Chapter One Hundred: Azure Steel Battle Armor (Support! Support!)

Zhu Lan attached great importance to this upcoming grand ceremony; the future of Fantasy Technology’s ascent depended entirely on it. He had racked his brain over every detail: super fireworks, Japanese celebrities, and a floating stage at sea.

Zhu Lan had no interest in an ordinary ceremony. Such an event would only serve as modest publicity for Fantasy Technology. What he needed was a ceremony that would shock Asia—a global spectacle was currently beyond his reach.

With super fireworks and major domestic and international stars, these two elements alone would guarantee enough popularity to draw significant attention. Once the Fantasy Technology brand was launched, there would be no one who didn't know the name. This would be a tremendous boost for next year's sales strategy, far more effective than gold-tier advertising spots on CCTV.

A year of prime-time advertising cost between three hundred and five hundred million, but a single super ceremony would cost one billion. Zhu Lan would rather spend a billion on a momentary, dazzling bloom than buy a year of repetitive, tiresome CCTV ads. Fatigue-inducing bombardment could never compare to the beauty of an instantaneous explosion of brilliance.

Only a momentary bloom could leave a lasting impression. While long-term bombardment had its merits, Zhu Lan had discovered that the power brokers in Yanjing were blocking his access to the next year's CCTV advertising slots, which is why he chose this "instantaneous bloom" approach to establish Fantasy Technology's reputation in China and even across Asia.

"Kong Yan, follow up on this! The super fireworks must be in place without a hitch. If necessary, transmit the data from District 13 to them."

Kong Yan nodded. "Boss, if we do that, there might be complications with the super fireworks project!"

"Don't worry. You go and follow up. If it really doesn't work out, then you step in. Understand?"

Kong Yan nodded, looking as if she partially understood.

Returning to Fantasy Technology, Zhu Lan immediately threw himself into new work, leaving the other matters to Lan Tianxin and Kong Yan.

In the plaza of the Canglan Base, a red-and-blue armored figure was constantly testing its performance.

"Red Queen, the pulse cannon's power is too low. Increase it a bit; the effective range is too short!" Zhu Lan, currently inside the suit, tossed a strange-looking gun aside and spoke to the AI.

"Boss, the pulse gun's capacity cannot be increased further. The materials cannot withstand it."

Zhu Lan shook his head helplessly.

Canglan No. 1 was a brand-new suit of armor, improved from the Mark II and Mark III models, as well as exoskeleton technology. The shell was crafted from the latest titanium alloy and integrated with nano-repair capabilities; as long as the damage wasn't catastrophic, the nanobots could restore it to its original form.

Equipped with a sub-system of the Red Queen AI, it could monitor any dynamic in real-time. The weapons system retained the original laser rays, micro-missiles, and sniper-style design, while also adding modular hardpoints. For instance, Zhu Lan reserved a slot for the current pulse rifle, intending to keep it open for even better weaponry.

For flight propulsion, it still used an Arc Reactor, but for weapon power, it utilized a higher-performance nuclear battery. By combining Red Queen’s calculations with Kong Yan’s data, they had managed to synthesize a new element that completely isolated the effects of nuclear radiation. As long as nothing went wrong, the radiation from the battery would not harm Zhu Lan. Naturally, Zhu Lan remained cautious, so Canglan No. 1 did not currently have the nuclear battery installed, relying instead on the Arc Reactor.

"Fine, I'll test it out. Equip the weapons!"

As soon as Zhu Lan spoke, several mechanical arms rose from the floor, accompanied by other devices. The outer shell of Canglan No. 1 was detached, replaced by a more sci-fi silver-blue armor, and the weapons were mounted onto it.

"Energy and power systems ready!"
"Weapon systems mounted!"
"Smart calculation started!"
"Map loading started!"
"Environmental simulation started!"

The built-in AI began to slowly assess the status of Canglan No. 1.

"Red Queen, open the hatch. I'm going out to test it!"
"Yes, Boss. Searching for nearby radar signals. Simulation started!"

In the plaza, a circular ceiling opened, revealing the blue sky. The Canglan armor’s hands and feet emitted blue-purple flames, and it slowly ascended.

"Boss, signal simulation complete. You are cleared for takeoff!"
"Good!" Zhu Lan accelerated, instantly turning into a streak of fire as he soared into the high altitude.

On the local radar, it would only appear as a fleeting eagle, revealing nothing. At an altitude of 30,000 meters, Zhu Lan operated the suit at a speed of Mach 2.5. Theoretically, the suit could reach Mach 3.8, but Zhu Lan’s body simply couldn't withstand that speed.

"Boss, your body is reaching its limit. You cannot accelerate any further!"
Zhu Lan looked at the Mach 2.7 reading and nodded helplessly. "I understand. Reduce speed to Mach 2."

Zhu Lan flew over the Indian Ocean, carefully avoiding shipping lanes, and was now approaching the edge of the Antarctic.

"Let me see the scenery of Antarctica!" Zhu Lan said, guiding the Canglan suit to descend from 30,000 meters.

Soon, he descended to 7,000 meters, and the endless expanse of the ocean appeared before him. Suddenly, he spotted a medium-sized reef in the distance. Remembering something, he flew toward it. The Canglan suit landed steadily on the reef.

"Red Queen, is anyone nearby?"
"No signals within radar range, Boss. This is already within the forbidden zone for life!"

Zhu Lan nodded and opened the suit, stepping out. The salty scent of the sea rushed at him, and as far as the eye could see, there was only the deep blue ocean.

"Red Queen, do you think with our current technology, we could build an underwater base in this sea?"
"Boss, I don't mean to discourage you, but with our current technology, it's impossible. We lack materials capable of withstanding the immense deep-sea pressure, and research into deep-sea robotics hasn't even begun. With our current tech, we can operate at a maximum depth of three hundred meters. Anything beyond five hundred meters is a domain we cannot touch. Unless..."

Zhu Lan nodded. "I understand. It seems it will take at least a year or two before we can touch that field."

Red Queen said nothing, seemingly acknowledging his words.

"Boss, emergency! A signal detected 94 nautical miles to the east. Please suit up immediately!"

Zhu Lan frowned but said nothing, immediately walking back into the Canglan suit to armor up.

"What's going on?"
"Boss, it's a nuclear submarine. It seems to have discovered our presence. It actively switched on its sonar, which is how I picked it up."
"What kind of nuclear submarine?" Zhu Lan immediately began operating the suit, but since it had been powered down, it required a moment to reboot.
"Boss, incoming missile!"

At Red Queen's warning, Zhu Lan looked up and saw a missile rising from the sea not far away, arcing through the air toward him.

"Damn it!"
Zhu Lan raised his arm, the weapon beginning to charge.
"Lock on!"
"Maximum power!" Zhu Lan gritted his teeth. He couldn't trust anything less than maximum power against a missile.
"Yes, activating maximum power. Five hundred percent. Energy conversion started!"

The Arc Reactor on Canglan’s chest flared brightly, and massive amounts of energy poured into the laser emitter on his arm.

*Boom!*

The force of the blast sent the entire suit flying backward onto the sea; the reef he had been standing on was completely disintegrated by the shockwave.

*Boom!*

The laser struck the missile directly; it couldn't dodge because it had nowhere to go!

*Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!*

More missiles began to rise from the depths.

"Damn it!"

Zhu Lan accelerated, shooting toward the high sky.
"Red Queen, deploy flares!"
"Yes, flares deployed!"

A device opened on Canglan’s back, releasing a barrage of flares that covered a vast area of the sky.

*Boom, boom, boom!*

The incoming missiles struck the wall of flares and exploded one after another. Zhu Lan had already maneuvered the suit up to an altitude of 20,000 meters. Looking down, he saw a massive black shape slowly vanishing beneath the surface. He could only watch, helpless, as the suit lacked the capability for underwater combat.

"Bastard!" Zhu Lan was furious. He had only come to see the scenery—he never expected to be attacked by a submarine!

"Red Queen, did you identify the submarine?"
"Based on its shape, the only match is the Soviet Alfa-class attack submarine, but these are rarely active anymore."

Zhu Lan frowned. Looking at the data for the Alfa-class, he saw that they had been retired in 1996, replaced by more advanced models. Theoretically, these submarines shouldn't exist.

"Did Russia sell any of these?" Zhu Lan wondered if another nation had purchased them.
"According to known records, most Alfa-class subs were scrapped. Only a few were maintained and permanently mothballed by Russia, much like the Typhoon-class."
"Then what did I just run into? Don't tell me it's those!"
"Boss, this might be a test platform. This area is a human exclusion zone; no one would come here unless it was a secret mission. This submarine likely has its own orders, and we simply intruded into its territory."

Zhu Lan nodded helplessly; this was the only logical conclusion. They were over 1,900 nautical miles north of the Antarctic, facing the Indian Ocean, and at least 1,400 nautical miles from the nearest shipping lane. It was truly a dead zone for humanity.

"Damn it!" Zhu Lan cursed and steered the suit toward home.

Shortly after Canglan departed, a reconnaissance plane without a national flag flew over, but it found nothing and returned empty-handed. Using simulated signals, Zhu Lan bypassed the Chinese radar and returned directly to the Canglan Base.

Removing the armor, Zhu Lan rubbed his head. The proximity of the missile explosion had caused the suit to jolt, leaving him with a nasty bump.

"Boss, Canglan still needs improvements."
"Of course it needs improvements! You saw what just happened!" Zhu Lan was still fuming.

Red Queen had repeatedly guaranteed he wouldn't be discovered, yet he had been detected by a submarine. The odds of that were even lower than being spotted by a satellite. Submarines relied on sonar—they had ears but no eyes, unless they surfaced to use satellites or aircraft as their eyes. For the tiny Canglan suit, which made almost no noise, to be detected, how could he not be angry?

"Improve it! Build a new one. The reaction to missile attacks was too slow. Modify everything. The energy application didn't meet expectations. Test it again. Next time, I want to see a brand-new Canglan suit!"