Chapter Thirteen: The Industrial District

At this moment, the interior of Base No. 2 was not only marked by an uneven surface littered with rubble but also cluttered with cables, planting racks, and various other items piled up within. Construction of the planting racks could not begin just yet; the land first required leveling.

A large amount of rubble was carted away with small trolleys, and the uneven ground was hammered flat. Although the surface remained far from perfectly smooth, it was no longer the chaotic mess it had once been. If he insisted on achieving complete flatness, Qing Song Li could have managed it—simply by producing lime and making cement—but it was unnecessary. There was no need for such aesthetic perfection; functionality was all that mattered.

After roughly leveling the ground, fifteen clones busied themselves with laying out electrical wiring inside the cavern following the blueprint. Only then would the construction of the planting racks commence. This enormous cavern spanned approximately 11,000 square meters, with about 8,000 square meters allocated for cultivation.

Moreover, Qing Song Li, following a standardized development plan, designated a storage area of 200 square meters with a volume of 1,000 cubic meters, and a dormitory covering 300 square meters. The dormitory contained triple-decker beds—100 in total—accommodating 300 individuals.

In addition, there were facilities including a 100-square-meter cafeteria and kitchen, a 100-square-meter warehouse, a 100-square-meter equipment room, a 200-square-meter nutrient solution preparation room, and a garbage recycling station. The overarching goal was to ensure that the clones could survive entirely within the base, never needing to step outside.

This approach reduced risk and cut down on spacesuit usage. Even the inferior-quality spacesuits currently at their disposal were scarce and prone to failure, so conservation was essential. As for cramped quarters and limited space, Qing Song Li did not concern himself at all. Clones lacked self-awareness; there was no reason to make their living conditions comfortable.

Within the 10,000 square meters dedicated to planting, 3,000 square meters were arranged into four-layer racks, providing a total planting area of 12,000 square meters, used for cultivating sweet potatoes. Every three months, this could yield approximately 80,000 kilograms of sweet potatoes.

Another 3,000 square meters were configured as two-layer racks, offering 6,000 square meters for growing wheat. Similarly, with a three-month growth cycle, the wheat harvested could be milled into around 4,000 kilograms of flour.

The remaining 2,000 square meters were devoted to peanuts, soybeans, rapeseed, sunflowers, sorghum, cotton, various vegetables, and so forth.

The final 2,000 square meters were set aside not for crops but for raising livestock and poultry. For poultry, Qing Song Li chose chickens. These creatures could lay eggs and provide meat, were easy to raise, and required little space; not keeping chickens was simply out of the question.

As for livestock, pigs, cattle, and sheep were selected. These animals would not only supply meat but their skins, fur, and bones would have industrial uses. Though not immediately necessary, Qing Song Li prepared for future needs. For instance, animal fat could be rendered into lubricants, and hides could serve as insulation materials.

At full operational capacity, Base No. 2 could support at least 400 people. This would provide a balanced diet rich in carbohydrates, proteins, fiber, vitamins, and other nutrients, with attention to palatability—far superior to the previous diet solely reliant on sweet potatoes. Some clones already experienced visceral nausea from eating only sweet potatoes, even without consciousness.

For sustainable use, Qing Song Li had to consider these factors. Even without employing any automation technology—which he lacked—running Base No. 2 at full power would require only about 80 workers. In other words, deploying 80 people could sustain 400, yielding a fivefold efficiency.

This would free up manpower for industrial development and technological advancement. But, regrettably, Base No. 2 was still far from full operational status.

“Population remains the bottleneck,” Qing Song Li sighed. “Even counting the clones currently being cultivated, I have at most 37 people. But at least for the foreseeable future, I need not worry about food. I can focus entirely on expanding the population.”

He then directed the clones to begin assembling the planting racks. Eventually, all the racks were built, but only a small portion was put to use—there simply weren’t enough hands.

Base No. 1 had ceased cultivation; all plastic films were reclaimed, and all clones were transferred to Base No. 2. Of the 32 clones present, only seven were assigned to planting and animal husbandry. Two remained aboard the Deep Space vessel, two were in the mining crew, and three worked as fire tenders, leaving 18 clones unassigned.

Qing Song Li deployed these 18 clones to an endeavor that filled him with excitement: constructing an industrial zone following the standardized approach used in the planting area.

Naturally, this was not a project achievable in the short term or with such a small workforce.

He allocated ten years for this undertaking.

Ten years to chip away at the work, gradually supplement the population, and build a comprehensive industrial zone.

Unlike the cavern, which was too cramped, this industrial zone would be built directly within a canyon. Areas not requiring atmospheric pressure would be open-air, while zones that did would be enclosed with steel plates. After all, by now Qing Song Li had gained the capability to smelt and process metals.

Within this industrial zone, he planned to centrally coordinate various future industries: energy, metallurgy, metalworking, machinery, chemical engineering, and more.

Of these, chemical engineering was the most crucial.

The reason was simple: the tanks for cultivating clones were easy enough to manufacture, and early-stage cell processing and gene editing could be handled by equipment aboard the Deep Space vessel.

The sole bottleneck to rapidly expanding the population lay in the preparation of nutrient solutions. This required chemical industry development to reach a certain level.

Once Qing Song Li attained sufficient chemical engineering capability, he could prepare nutrient solutions himself and cultivate clones on a large scale.

At that point, he would no longer have to wait six months just to add five clones—assuming no unexpected losses. If luck were poor, the replacement rate might not even keep pace with clone mortality.

Planning and constructing such a vast and comprehensive industrial zone was no trivial matter; it was beyond the capacity of a single individual.

Even if he worked himself to exhaustion, it would remain unattainable.

But that was not a problem. At this moment, Qing Song Li had 32 minds at his disposal—each clone contributing a brain.

Moreover, communication among them was seamless, without misunderstandings, miscommunications, or internal conflicts.