Chapter 505: The Insects Were Never Defeated! Regaining the Lost Confidence!
Yet the strong interaction material, only an atom thick, also gave the droplet a fatal weakness.
That was because a weapon capable of breaching this strong interaction shell needed only a single gram of antimatter to collapse it completely.
The droplet's shell of strong interaction material was maintained by a special internal field generator. Once the shell was pierced, the energy released by matter-antimatter annihilation would instantly flood inside, destroying the generator.
The positively charged nuclei would scatter, atoms would return to normal motion, and the material would revert to being no stronger than an ordinary metal alloy—leaving the droplet stripped of its formidable defense.
That was the true reason why the droplet had been shattered in a single strike.
The Endless-class carrier only needed to pack one gram of antimatter inside the shell of its projectile. At the instant of impact, when the antimatter touched the droplet, the annihilation effect would destroy its invincible strong interaction shell.
As for the remaining alloy beneath, a 200,000-ton-yield nuclear detonation would take care of the rest.
The massive fireball in the high atmosphere gradually dissipated. Across the world, television screens that had flickered with static now cleared, restoring the image.
People saw the Endless-class carrier still hovering steadily above, while the unstoppable droplet had vanished without a trace, leaving no sign behind.
The shadow of death that had loomed over human civilization was gone. In that instant, humanity erupted once more in unrestrained celebration.
From the beginning of the doomsday battle until its end, they had endured endless surges of joy and despair. Some, overcome with tears of joy, collapsed into deep slumber, sinking into dreams weighed by exhaustion.
Nerves that had been stretched taut for so long finally relaxed. Many slumped to the ground, unwilling to rise again.
At this moment, in the skies, the ten droplets' glimmers had dwindled to nine. In humanity's eyes, the Endless-class carrier had become the heir of Hou Yi, the archer who once struck down the suns.
Their joy and excitement at this instant mirrored the awe of those who once beheld Hou Yi shooting the suns from the sky.
After two long centuries and countless calamities, humanity had finally broken the myth of the Trisolarans' invincibility. They had waited far too long for this day.
Humanity desperately needed a victory to restore its confidence. A race that languished too long in defeat was doomed to extremity and destruction.
Amid laughter and tears, even men hardened like steel wept openly. None cared how the droplet had been destroyed—what mattered was how hard-won this victory was.
On the Endless-class carrier, Luo Ji, who now knew the truth, still wore a bewildered expression.
It was not that he was surprised Paul had managed to harness one gram of antimatter for a weapon, but rather—how had they known the droplet's strong interaction shell was only a single atom thick?
To construct a working model of the droplet in such a short time and devise a countermeasure targeting its weakness would have been impossible without a profoundly advanced technological foundation.
Especially when it came to strong interaction material—a substance utterly alien to Earth's scientists, something that had existed only in theory.
Because of this, no one could possibly know how thick the droplet's shell was, nor how much antimatter would be required.
After turning it over in his mind, Luo Ji concluded that the only explanation was that Universal Megacorp already possessed both the materials and the technology necessary to build a droplet themselves.
Otherwise, they could never have devised so flawless a counterattack in so short a time.
This Megacorp, seemingly only a step beyond humanity, might in fact surpass even Trisolaran civilization, wielding technological power far more terrifying!
"Dr. Luo Ji, Earth is safe now. You may return at any time," Paul said, dismissing him.
Luo Ji nodded blankly. He found himself less and less able to see through Paul—or the Universal Megacorp behind him.
Soon, Luo Ji boarded the Megacorp's shuttle and descended to the surface. Crowds surrounded him, faces alight with joy, showering him with flower petals.
The barren wasteland was now blanketed in blossoms. People cheered with fervor, calling out Luo Ji's name.
Yet even louder were the voices calling out for Paul. But Paul did not descend with Luo Ji—he had already gone ahead to the Earth International headquarters.
This victory, one that could be called a historical turning point, had bought humanity precious breathing space—perhaps even the critical chance to turn defeat into triumph.
Where once some had doubted Paul's plan to build ten thousand high-energy particle accelerators, all doubt now dissolved with the droplet's destruction.
At the Earth International conference chamber, Hines and Jonathan had already been waiting, along with delegates and leaders from all branches of Earth government. One by one, they rose, casting respectful gazes toward Paul.
When Paul entered, Jonathan hurried over more deferential than ever, saying, "Congratulations, Mr. Paul. Both Earth International and Fleet International have extended their warmest congratulations on this victory."
"Your public support has reached unprecedented heights. No one will question your plans again."
That single strike from the Endless-class carrier had earned Paul the title of "Savior." The hopes of all humanity now rested upon him.
"Lord Paul, I am curious," Hines said, still maintaining composure and caution, unlike the frenzied masses. "How did you know the droplet's weakness? And how did you conceive of a way to destroy it?"
Paul replied half-jokingly, "Perhaps we were lucky. If the droplet hadn't obligingly flown right into the barrel, maybe we wouldn't have been able to deal with it."
Of course, Paul knew that behind this "luck" lay meticulous planning.
Without Luo Ji's Dark Forest Theory luring the enemy in, the droplet would never have approached so directly.
Without its approach, Universal Megacorp's projectile would not have struck true. Without the gravitational deceleration traps, the droplet would have evaded.
Every step had been a matter of precise calculation.
The gravitational wave broadcast and Luo Ji's Dark Forest Theory were the true weapons that had disrupted Trisolaran judgment and led to their fatal error.
The moment the droplet was destroyed, the remaining nine instantly shifted tactics. They slowed, blending into the dark void of space.
This was, in fact, their proper use. Rather than charging head-on, droplets were meant to lurk in the shadows, waiting for the chance to assassinate key targets—that was how they could unleash their full potential.
Before long, humanity observed that the nine droplets had disappeared into the night sky. Believing the Trisolarans had lost their nerve, they cheered even louder.
But soon Paul addressed the world through the media, calming the frenzy.
"Humanity has not yet achieved final victory. To defeat the Trisolaran civilization, we must press on with even greater effort and perseverance."
"The Trisolarans compared us to insects. It is, in fact, an apt metaphor. Humanity uses every means imaginable to exterminate insects—poison, fire, flooding, genetic manipulation, flyswatters…"
"Yet insects have never been exterminated."
"And just like those indomitable insects, our civilization will never be destroyed by the Trisolarans."
Paul's speech was simple and direct. Those watching the live broadcast wept. Never before in human history had words so profoundly stirred the human heart.
This speech carried far greater weight than the Declaration of Independence proclaimed more than three hundred years ago, greater even than the idea that all men are created equal. Humanity's cohesion had become more solid than ever before.
At this moment, the sophon's scornful words, once a humiliation, instead became an inspirational rallying cry.
Yes, humanity was nothing more than insects.
As individuals, fragile and pitiful. But united, those insects had already defeated the Trisolarans' advance fleet. Now, it was time to show the proud Trisolarans how these humble insects would defeat them once again!
Right after Paul delivered this speech, the Earth International and Fleet International immediately joined forces to launch the particle accelerator construction program.
Through precise calculations, they determined the optimal distribution of accelerators with the most rational use of resources.
With the immediate threat of the droplet gone, the accelerator project began in full force, advancing at a thunderous pace.
This time, humanity no longer complained or quarreled.
Everyone believed their labor carried the value of saving civilization itself. To defeat the Trisolarans, they were willing to shoulder any burden, however heavy.
Day and night, they toiled without rest.
Watching people across the globe lay the foundations for accelerators, Paul and Morgan Blackhand knew this effort was merely a futile distraction from the true plan.
Yet, what looked futile was crucial to humanity.
People always needed something to do to prove their worth and existence. Otherwise, they would sink into nihilism, trapped in self-contradiction.
Give them something to work for, and they would not wallow in arrogance or despair.
"This is how humanity of the Trisolaran Universe ought to be," Morgan Blackhand sighed. "It's just a pity they understood this too late. If they had realized it earlier, they wouldn't have needed our help at all."
The humans of the Three-Body Universe were like gifted yet lazy students, who only crammed at the last minute before finals to scrape by with a passing grade. Once the test was over, they reverted to their old, indolent arrogance.
"It's not too late for them to awaken now," Paul smiled. Soon, humanity would build accelerators across the orbits of all eight planets. Even with just a dozen, it would be enough to keep sophons constantly running back and forth, wasting Trisolaran time.
Once the distances and number of experiments surpassed the sophons' ability to block, the Trisolarans could only watch helplessly as humanity broke through their technological blockade. True, the Universal Megacorp could simply step in to help humanity break the blockade, or hand them new technologies outright.
But Li Ang had no intention of doing so.
The humans of this universe needed victories not only to dispel their feelings of inferiority, but also successes to rebuild their self-confidence.
Breaking through the Trisolaran blockade was the key to regaining that confidence. The process would be slow, but Li Ang was willing to walk beside them, until they reclaimed their long-lost pride.
Now, the Trisolarans were treating the accelerator project as entirely genuine. But faced with humanity's open-handed strategy, they had no immediate countermeasure.
To continue blocking human science, they would inevitably need to deploy more sophons.
Yet, in their current state, the Trisolarans no longer had the resources to play such a costly war of attrition.
While they wrestled with the dilemma, the second Wallfacer hearing convened. This time, however, the agenda was not to question the accelerator project, but to discuss future countermeasures.
Chairman Galnin of the Wallfacer Committee gave Paul a kind smile and a nod. "Lord Paul, we are glad to see you proving your worth, bringing stability to humanity."
"Now, with all of humanity wholeheartedly supporting your tireless, mountain-moving plan, you have achieved something no previous Wallfacer ever has."
Being a Wallfacer was never easy.
Tyler, who pushed for a phantom fleet to fight the Trisolarans, ended by shooting himself in despair.
Rey diaz, who tried to use all humanity's fate to coerce the Trisolarans into leaving the Solar System, was stoned to death by his own countrymen.
Both Wallfacers had met tragic ends.
As for Luo Ji and Hines, who had awakened from hibernation, for the moment no one was paying attention to them.
Then Lin Yun, representative of the Asian Fleet, also nodded in agreement: "This is an incredible achievement. We are astonished that just one gram of antimatter could defeat a droplet."
"Until now, everyone had been terrified by the droplet's unstoppable performance at the Battle of Jupiter."
"But looking back now, with hindsight, the Trisolarans are not invincible after all."
The closer death loomed, the more important it was to remain calm.
Everyone knew this simple truth, but practicing it was difficult. After witnessing the annihilation of the North American and European Fleets, humanity had panicked like ants on a hot pan.
They had yearned for a savior to descend, prayed for the nightmare to end.
And Paul's actions, in the eyes of ordinary people, seemed to be a heroic, last-minute reversal — a life-and-death gamble that left countless hearts enthralled.
But only Paul knew the truth: it was never his own brilliance that mattered, but the Universal Megacorp behind him — the crystallization of countless civilizations' finest scientific minds.
It was Li Ang's clear, overarching vision.
He himself was merely a piece on the board, carrying out a mission.
Every seemingly desperate or miraculous twist had been carefully planned and calculated, an inevitable outcome.
"This is no time to celebrate. The remaining nine droplets will arrive in three years. Only if we destroy them all will we gain more time."
Paul replied with steady composure.
The Universal Megacorp needed time to help humanity rebuild confidence, and also needed time to erode the Trisolarans' own confidence, step by step.
Only by forcing the Trisolarans to watch themselves defeated by the very insects they had scorned — to see the weak overcome the strong — could they truly conquer this tenacious species.
(Show your support and read more chapters on my Patreon: [email protected]/psychopet. Thank you for your support!)