Chapter Forty-Nine: The Revelation of Lithography Stuns the World! (Thank you for your continued reading and generous support!)

“Congratulations, Host. Under your leadership, your nation has developed a super missile, intimidating the petty and earning you a considerable degree of admiration from your country’s people. You have been hailed as a super genius hero. You have gained ten reputation points!”

“Your current reputation stands at forty-one points!”

This sudden notification made Lin Yang pause for a moment.

You could gain reputation points from that too?

Then Lin Yang’s eyes flickered as he asked, “System, you used to say I was hailed as an unsung hero. Why is it ‘super genius hero’ this time? And why did I receive a full ten reputation points at once without any multiplier?”

The system’s wording was usually precise, so this abrupt change puzzled him.

“Answering Host: An academician from your country revealed during a global live broadcast that you played a crucial role in the missile’s development. You have earned a broad codename—‘Classmate.’ In the hearts of your country’s citizens, you are a super talented classmate, hence this time you are recognized as a genius hero.”

“Since this was a global live broadcast, your presence exerted tremendous pressure on other nations, greatly boosting both your country’s and your personal influence. Consequently, your reputation points increased accordingly.”

Lin Yang immediately understood. “So, the amount of reputation points gained isn’t fixed like achievement points, which only increase by one each time. Instead, it fluctuates based on the impact of the events I am involved in?”

“Yes, Host, you may fully understand it that way.”

“Alright then.” Lin Yang didn’t ask further. He glanced at the time and took out a perfect-grade body enhancement gene serum, consuming it immediately.

He had held off before to watch the missile’s maiden test and see Sakura’s humiliation.

Now that was over, Lin Yang wasted no time.

The earlier you use it, the stronger you become!

Morning.

As the first rays of sunlight bathed the land, the nation’s netizens, who had celebrated all night, showed no sign of fatigue. Instead, they gathered beneath Sakura’s official account, flooding it with thousands of comments per minute, demanding to know what Sakura planned to do today.

After all, seven days ago, Sakura had boasted so arrogantly. Although those announcement posts had quietly been deleted, the domestic netizens were not so easily fooled.

If you’re going to be proven wrong, it must be done head-on, and it must hit Sakura hard where it hurts!

Letting them off lightly was not the way of these netizens.

Yet, faced with the onslaught of comments, Sakura’s official account simply played dead, refusing to respond in any way.

In fact, it eventually switched to private mode, blocking all comments and posts.

“Can’t take the heat, huh? So arrogant seven days ago, now not even daring to respond. And they still want to be the leaders of the Eastern Continent? They should check if they’re even worthy!”

“Hahaha, with such petty behavior, even if you gave them ten thousand years, they’d never amount to anything!”

“Silly little Sakura, how laughable!”

As Sakura’s official account buckled under the pressure, the netizens’ mockery grew fiercer.

What the netizens didn’t know was that behind the scenes, Sakura’s people were turning pale with rage and fear, each face darker than the last.

They wanted to respond, but dared not.

Just the thought of the overwhelming power behind the ‘Classmate’ codename sent chills down their spines.

They wouldn’t dare make a move.

Even if globally mocked, they could only grit their teeth and feign ignorance.

No one dared mention the matter again.

Previously, those from Sakura who had been stomping around the internet one by one deleted their accounts or went offline, not daring to seek attention at such a time.

The contrast was painful.

Their once-proud missile, compared to the ‘Classmate’ codename, was like a child’s toy.

Though the Shangxia official account hadn’t openly boasted, the live broadcast of last night’s maiden missile test was like an invisible slap, mercilessly striking them all.

It turned Sakura’s recent actions into a joke overnight.

Inside the Bureau of Foreign Control.

Yeh Guohong, Tang Wensheng, and Han Zhaoyu’s faces all glowed with unprecedented satisfaction.

The success of the ‘Classmate’ missile test had given Shangxia absolute authority and dominance.

Since last night, inquiries from Western countries had been pouring in, trying to probe the situation.

The cautious and respectful tone in their words was unlike anything from previous years.

This feeling was immensely gratifying for Yeh Guohong and the others.

“Old Ye, can we now officially announce the lithography machine and controlled nuclear fusion technology?” Tang Wensheng asked, his face flushed with excitement.

“Controlled nuclear fusion technology is still being researched by Zhao Zizhen and others. As for the lithography machine…” Yeh Guohong pondered, then said, “Let’s announce the lithography machine first. With the ‘Classmate’ missile backing us, we need to develop where we must. From now on, things like mobile phone chips will be produced entirely in-house. No more paying foreign patent fees. The savings will reach at least hundreds of billions, which can be invested into the nuclear fusion industry.”

“Good!” Tang Wensheng rubbed his hands eagerly.

They had waited so long for this day!

Now, they could finally announce to the world that Shangxia possessed the most advanced lithography machine, free from any external constraints.

At ten in the morning.

Before anyone had fully come down from the excitement over the ‘Classmate’ missile, a sudden headline shot to the top of trending topics, stunning everyone.

“The Academy of Sciences announces: Shangxia’s first self-developed 0.1-nanometer lithography machine, codename—Lithography.Classmate One, has successfully run during the testing phase and is now officially operational!”

This news instantly stirred a storm online.

Netizens, who had been ready to sleep after a night of gossiping, woke up in shock.

“What the—? What did I just see? A 0.1-nanometer lithography machine?? Am I hallucinating from staying up too late, or have I slipped into another fantasy world?”

“...Probably not hallucinating, and definitely not dead. It really is a 0.1-nanometer lithography machine!”

“How is this possible? Forget breaking the physical material limits at 0.1 nanometers— we don’t even have advanced conventional lithography machines. Suddenly this appears? Are they joking?”

“Oh my god, going straight from nothing to 0.1 nanometers—isn’t that leap a bit too huge...”

“I can’t handle this, folks. Even though it’s from the official account, it feels like a scam…”

“Overnight, super missiles and 0.1-nanometer lithography machines. I wake up to find the world has advanced this far?”

“Wow. Although unbelievable, I’ve got one question: with this, will phone prices finally drop drastically?”

“Hey, did anyone notice the lithography machine’s codename also uses ‘Classmate’?”

“...”

At this moment, everyone—domestic or foreign—who saw this announcement was thrown into disarray.

In fact, the whole world was stunned.