Homo Sapiens

This was another technology planned for the Qingye Group.

The technology for manufacturing Coral Cement was one that humanity had discovered long ago but found difficult to industrialize.

This technology utilized the biomineralization of coral polyps—the process by which living organisms produce minerals.

For example, coral polyps can use elements in seawater to produce calcareous structures, which form the coral’s skeleton.

The underlying biochemical process involves the coral polyps triggering a chemical reaction. Within a sealed nanostructure, they convert carbon from the water into carbonate ions, producing a compound called aragonite, which is known for its extreme hardness.

Of course, this material didn’t possess all the properties of cement—its adhesive qualities in particular needed improvement—but it could be mixed with conventional cement.

But that was for aragonite produced by natural coral polyps. Through genetic recombination, Li Qingye could give the polyps additional traits, enabling them to secrete high-adhesion, high-strength compounds.

Moreover, the raw materials used by the genetically modified coral polyps to synthesize Coral Cement were sourced partly from elements in seawater and partly from carbon dioxide in the air.

This meant that the Coral Cement factory could be built alongside the low-temperature glass factory and power plant. The carbon dioxide produced during glass manufacturing could then be supplied to the cement factory, effectively recycling the waste gas.

Likewise, the aragonite components secreted by the genetically modified polyps only needed to be ground and mixed with other powdered cement ingredients, eliminating the need for a second calcination.

This process also saved a tremendous amount of energy.

The resulting Coral Cement’s average strength was actually higher than that of ordinary cement. Depending on the mixture ratios and additives, its overall strength was 21% to 57% higher, its corrosion resistance was 16% to 62% higher, and its low-temperature crack resistance was comparable to specialized cryogenic cements.

Lower energy consumption meant lower production costs.

And enhanced overall performance meant a greater competitive edge.

With low-temperature glass and Coral Cement, the Qingye Group’s growth was guaranteed to be rapid.

The key now was to find a suitable location.

Since Luzon was the main base for the Homo Sapiens Company, it certainly couldn’t be the launching point for the Qingye Group.

Moreover, the location couldn’t be chosen carelessly. A variety of factors had to be taken into full consideration.

For example, the local government’s power couldn’t be too strong. The location also had to be coastal, so landlocked countries were out of the question. Finally, the region needed to have some existing infrastructure and not be completely devoid of an industrial base.

This process eliminated many potential regions.

After careful analysis, Li Qingye decided to place the Qingye Group in the southern coastal region of Hongsawaddy.

Compared to the industrial base in Africa, the southern coast of Hongsawaddy had at least some industrial foundation. It was also a relatively chaotic region, but not excessively so.

This kind of place was perfect for fishing in troubled waters. Situated between the Southeast Asian mainland and the South Asian Subcontinent, its geographical location was quite favorable.

If they could control all of Hongsawaddy, they could cooperate with Huaguo’s Southwest Region to the north. To the west lay Tianzhu, Bangladesh, and Ceylon; to the east, Siam and Lancang; and to the south, Malaysia, Java, and Xing Island.

Compared to other places in Southeast Asia, Hongsawaddy was an ideal staging ground.

Having laid out a series of plans, Li Qingye returned to Kalaqua Island overnight.

As for that fellow Yang Tiancheng, he would of course be kept on the island for a while longer. Only after his ”training” was complete would he be allowed to return to Malaysia.

However, to lull the suspicions of Yang Tiancheng’s assistant, as well as Yang Changfeng back in Manila, Harry kept his word. He placed an order with the Borneo-based Xinfeng Company, managed by Yang Tiancheng, for 30,000 tons of crude palm oil at a price of 672 US dollars per ton.

This completely dispelled any doubts the assistant and Yang Changfeng might have had.

Meanwhile, Yang Tiancheng, now under the control of the Soldier program, instructed his assistant to hurry back to Malaysia and arrange the palm oil sale. He claimed he needed to build rapport with his client and planned to spend another ten-plus days touring the Kalaqua Islands with Harry.

The assistant wasn’t suspicious at all. After all, this order cleared out last year’s remaining inventory and included another 20,000 tons of this year’s new oil. A major client like that had to be handled with care.

The assistant didn’t care that Yang Tiancheng was staying for another ten-plus days. He probably wouldn’t have batted an eye even if his boss had to sell his body, so long as he himself wasn’t the one staying.

「Elsewhere.」

Back on Kalaqua Island, Li Qingye quickly summoned the managers he intended to assign to the Qingye Group. There were 24 of them in total.

The three people leading them were Liu Zhifan, Ma Chi, and Yang Mengjiao.

Ma Chi was the one who bore a slight resemblance to Li Qingye. However, he looked much younger, being only 27 years old.

Liu Zhifan was put in charge of corporate management for the Qingye Group, serving as its general manager.

Yang Mengjiao was responsible for the Qingye Group’s internal affairs. Of course, to avoid using the same departmental names as the Homo Sapiens Company, the Qingye Group would not actually call it the ”Internal Affairs Department”—only its function would be identical.

As for a Security Department, the Qingye Group wouldn’t need to establish its own. That division was meant to be secret anyway, so the Homo Sapiens Company’s Security Department would handle its responsibilities.

Publicly, the Homo Sapiens Company’s Security Department was only responsible for security. Its true operations were kept off the books.

”Ma Chi, are you confident you can complete this mission?”

Ma Chi nodded immediately. ”Yes. Rest assured, Boss, I will complete this mission.”

”Remember, when you are operating under this identity, you must never leave the controlled zones without authorization, especially not to enter Huaguo. Otherwise, you could be killed,” Li Qingye warned.

”I’ll be careful.” Ma Chi didn’t seem afraid.

Over the past few days, he had already witnessed the power of the Homo Sapiens Company: ubiquitous surveillance insects, biochips capable of controlling human minds, and a seemingly endless stream of advanced technology.

Ma Chi had been lured to Manila the previous year by his own greed. While the Fuzhou Gang’s ”education” had matured him considerably, it hadn’t extinguished his desire to get ahead in life.

If he just kept working a conventional job, he might never earn enough money in his entire life. He still had aging parents back in Huaguo, and his mother suffered from severe diabetes that could develop into uremia at any time.

Although he had lost some of his freedom after becoming a manager in the Spider Web, he had also gained a great deal.

And Li Qingye had made him a promise: if he completed his mission successfully, he would be given an executive position at a Homo Sapiens Company subsidiary, allowing him to return to Huaguo a successful and famous man.

This was why Ma Chi had agreed without hesitation, despite knowing the risks involved.

The other manager, Liu Zhifan, had his own ambitions. He wanted to make the people who had once looked down on him regret it.

As for the last one, Yang Mengjiao, she had completely despaired of the world. The Fuzhou Gang had forced her into prostitution, and she had contracted AIDS.

Of course, she didn’t need to worry too much about AIDS now.

For one thing, there were now drugs on the market that could control the disease.

For another, Li Qingye was a top-tier biologist. It was just AIDS; given enough time, he would sooner or later find a safe cure.

’If I didn’t have to consider other issues, I actually have a way to cure AIDS. I could use genetic recombination technology, in conjunction with the Jianmu Factor, to grant the human body immunity to the disease.

’The problem is, doing so involves modifying genes, which could lead to genetic contamination and create problems for the human gene pool.’

Li Qingye didn’t want to resort to such a method unless it was absolutely necessary.