Chapter 43: 110,000 (3/3)

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Once construction of the clone cultivation factory was complete, the entire factory complex needed no more than ten thousand clones to maintain its operation.

Li Qingsong then assigned all the surplus clones to the construction of additional outlying bases, railway lines linking the bases, power grids, and communications networks.

As a result, mine after mine rapidly appeared across the surface of Luoshen Star. Moreover, these newly built mines were more technologically advanced: they could complete the initial processing of ores right at the mining site, while requiring far fewer workers than before.

Railway lines swiftly extended in every direction, while the power grid and communications network spread throughout the region.

The problem now, however, was that although there were many mines, Li Qingsong did not yet have enough personnel to operate them.

Once built, they could only remain idle.

But that did not matter. The first batch of newly cultivated clones was about to be born.

After approximately half a year spent amid frantic construction, the cultivation of the first batch of clones was finally complete.

Under Li Qingsong’s control, as many as fifty thousand cultivation tanks were emptied one by one. The clones were transported to a recovery room, where they underwent preliminary examinations.

After a somewhat tense wait, all fifty thousand clones finally awoke. Without hesitation, Li Qingsong extended his consciousness links toward them.

In an instant, a surging tide of mental power flooded in, and Li Qingsong’s thoughts immediately attained an unprecedented speed.

Under these circumstances, several problems that had accumulated earlier—problems he had been unable to address because of limited mental capacity—were solved in an instant.

It was like a student who, because of limited time, had not yet managed to finish the thick stack of examination papers before him. But then, in an instant, more students joined him, and within a brief moment, every paper had been completed.

Feeling the surging mental power, Li Qingsong shifted his attention once more and began testing how many consciousnesses he could connect to at that moment.

The number of consciousness links rose rapidly. From just over sixty thousand at the beginning, it instantly surged to seventy thousand.

But that was not the limit. The number continued to climb swiftly.

Eighty thousand, ninety thousand, one hundred thousand...

Even after reaching one hundred thousand, the increase did not stop. At last, it surged to 102,200, and only then did Li Qingsong feel that every available consciousness-link slot had been occupied.

Clearly, the current upper limit was 102,200 connections.

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But that was merely the connection limit of his current body.

The newly cultivated batch had also been nourished with the strange bird’s bodily fluids, yet their cultivation process had been more standardized and rigorous. Their “quality” ought to be higher than that of the clone body he was currently using.

Li Qingsong immediately transferred his consciousness into one of the newly cultivated clones. However, the number of consciousness links did not increase. Instead, it fell by five hundred.

“Minor differences naturally lead to minor differences in quality. That’s perfectly normal.”

Li Qingsong thought this to himself and transferred again.

This time, the number of consciousness links increased by nine hundred, reaching 102,600.

Thus, Li Qingsong tested the clones one by one. In the end, after trying every single body, he selected the clone capable of supporting the greatest number of connections.

That clone’s consciousness-link capacity reached 109,800!

That was practically 110,000!

And counting the fifty thousand newly cultivated clones, the total number of clones under his command was almost exactly 110,000.

“Excellent. Excellent.”

Li Qingsong was filled with delight. He immediately directed the fifty thousand clones to put on clothing, eat their first meal, undergo restorative training, and complete the other necessary procedures. Once that was done, he dispatched them to the mines, factories, breeding facilities, and other production sites that had already been built but had remained idle for lack of manpower.

At the same time, another batch of cell samples was placed into the cultivation tanks, and a new round of cultivation began.

His consciousness-link capacity had now risen to 110,000, but it was obvious that 110,000 clones would not be enough.

They needed rest as well. To maintain 110,000 clones working continuously around the clock every day, he would need at least 170,000 clones.

If he did not want the clones to work under such exhausting and extreme conditions, and wished to retain some flexibility for scheduling, then he would need at least 200,000.

With additional reserve clones, along with a reserve sufficient to accommodate future increases in his consciousness-link capacity, he would probably need as many as one million clones.

At the very least, the clone factory would have to operate at full capacity for the next ten years without a moment’s rest.

At present, Li Qingsong owned a total of 269 bases.

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Now that he had sufficient manpower, all 269 bases had begun operating at full capacity.

Countless trains raced along the railway tracks. Countless heavy trucks moved across Luoshen Star’s bleak, lifeless terrain. Countless factories and mines thundered day and night.

Yet even with everything operating at full capacity, of the 110,000 clones Li Qingsong could control, as many as 30,000 remained temporarily idle.

“At last, I have surplus clones.”

Li Qingsong sighed inwardly. “With these thirty thousand clones completely freed from production, I can finally establish a dedicated scientific development department.”

Previously, Li Qingsong had also continued conducting technological research. But back then, whenever a problem arose, he would temporarily reassign a group of personnel to study and solve it. It was more like emergency response than deliberate research and development.

Now, however, circumstances were different.

Li Qingsong had completely moved beyond the early stage in which he had been exhausting himself merely to survive, protect himself, and maintain the normal development of his bases.

It was time to take the initiative and advance technology.

After all, constructing such vast bases, so many production lines, and such a complete industrial system was not the ultimate goal. The true purpose was to improve technology through production and drive technological progress.

Thus, another enormous base rapidly rose from the surface of Luoshen Star.

It was a comprehensive scientific research institution.

Li Qingsong divided its interior into several major sections: a materials research building, a casting-process research building, a mechanical research building, an optical research building, a chemical research building, a computational technology research building, and many others.

Each building was further subdivided into more specialized departments. The materials research building, for example, contained a polyethylene research department, a metals research department, a glass research department, a heat-resistant materials research department, and more.

The computational technology building was divided into photoresist research, silicon purification research, circuit research, and so on.

Its research covered every aspect of modern science and technology.

Although everything remained at a relatively basic level, the overall framework for research had now been established.

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