With a large clamp, I removed the equipment from his back, then instructed the Air Force base leadership to package the corpse and send it back to Kyoto for DNA analysis. Judging by the facial structure, the individual appeared to be of European descent. Could agents from Country M be behind this? Given the high level of technology involved, the probability pointed toward Country M, though their spoken Mandarin was undeniably excellent.

After taking the flight gear, we didn't linger a moment, flying directly back to the base for disassembly. By dawn, the work was finally complete. Exhausted, everyone sprawled across a large ** in the control cabin of the Hope. This bed was temporarily formed from ** metal and could expand arbitrarily.

Zhao Fang sighed, “Brother-in-law, I’m so tired. Xiao Yu and Xiao Hui have such tireless bodies.”

Yi Xiaorou countered, “But they envy us! We should be content.”

I gave a kiss to the left and a kiss to the right. “Come, let me reward you two. We’ll rally our spirits soon to discuss and analyze the findings.”

Xiao Yu Di and Xiao Hui entered the control cabin. “I see everyone is tired. Why don’t we rest a bit before looking at the disassembly analysis results?”

Zhao Fang pushed herself up. “No, I can’t wait. Let’s finish discussing things, then we can rest properly.”

The large bed instantly reformed into a circular lounge chair, and everyone gathered around. The analysis results were displayed on the large screen in the control cabin, and each person also received a copy on their phone.

Xiao Hui noted, “Brother, this flight equipment isn't actually that advanced. Its power system still relies on our high-energy batteries; it’s just that without our medium-to-high efficiency batteries, their endurance is severely limited.”

I commented, “Limited? I accompanied the three of them quite a distance the other day—you all know that.”

Xiao Yu Di chimed in, “Brother, didn't you notice the size of this equipment? A significant portion of its volume is dedicated to the energy compartment. If it used high-efficiency, high-energy batteries, a single cell would be enough for global flight.”

I sighed, “Impressive.”

Yi Xiaorou explained, “The principle is actually quite simple. This equipment generates a magnetic field within a specific range. The force produced by this field happens to be repulsive to Earth’s gravity. When the body loses the effect of gravity, it experiences weightlessness, requiring only a slight thrust for rapid flight.”

Zhao Fen pointed out, “This equipment is poorly designed. Besides the limitations of its power source, its inherent structure prevents the magnetic field range from expanding further. In other words, carrying one person is the absolute limit of this apparatus.”

Zhao Fang added, “Also, this gear is very dangerous! Its circuit design is trash; poor control could easily detonate the high-energy battery pack inside the power cell. This is no laughing matter.”

I confirmed, “I experienced it firsthand. That much is undeniable.”

The five women looked at me. “Give us your opinion.”

While they were busy disassembling and analyzing, I had gone to speak with Professor Chen. That man was nearing a state of mania in his genetic research. He talked about creating people who could fly, people who could release toxins, people of immense strength, and people with super-brainpower—in short, he was going mad.

“Ahem, my opinion is that everyone’s assessment is correct and accurate. You’ve all worked very hard. I’ll go out shortly and buy you youtiao.”

The five women glared at me in unison: “The great Young Master Zhao can’t afford to treat us?”

Xiao Hui, unable to hide her feelings, was kind to me but not overly fond of coquetry, so she was the first to drop her pique. “Brother, with this equipment as a reference, we can design a far more complete anti-gravity device. As far as I know, in ten million years, such devices will be highly refined and ubiquitous. Due to population expansion and traffic congestion, aerial transport will become critically important in the future. For low-altitude flight, anti-gravity devices will be mandatory; otherwise, energy consumption is wasted needlessly, and the size of the vehicle is severely restricted. Future compact flying machines will be the size of today’s bicycles, capable of traversing sea, land, and air.”

Xiao Yu Di suggested, “If we want to develop smaller, personal-scale flight gear, we could design it into a pair of shoes, or perhaps a helmet—anything far more convenient and lightweight than this thing strapped to one’s back.”

I cheered, “Then let’s start developing it! I’ve been studying finance recently; military research isn’t my forte. I leave this area entirely in your capable hands.”

All four women, except Xiao Hui, protested: “You’re not good at finance either! What you’re best at is attracting girls!”

I chuckled awkwardly, “I have indeed gotten involved with quite a few people lately. I’ll go into secluded training soon enough.”

Xiao Yu Di stood up. “This research won’t be finished in a day or two. Let’s go home first. But Brother, you need to be more careful in your actions from now on. Since this flyer is still considered extremely advanced on the current Earth, if they equip their troops with them en masse, it will inevitably pose a massive threat to us.”

I paused in thought. “But that also indicates that the people who assassinated Li Qi were highly determined, or they wouldn’t have dared to use such a secret weapon so carelessly.”

Yi Xiaorou reasoned, “Not necessarily. The opponent might have believed they could complete the mission easily with this kind of flyer, never imagining they would encounter you.”

Zhao Fang reassured them, “Actually, everyone shouldn’t be too afraid. After all, the energy they use is still under our control. We just need to keep an eye out for anyone buying large quantities of high-energy batteries.”

The women nodded in agreement. “That’s true. If they were to use ordinary energy sources, the size of this equipment would probably increase a hundredfold. At that point, its sheer weight would be a massive burden, and the magnetic field would be too weak to counteract Earth’s gravity on the body. It would essentially become scrap metal.”

I laughed, “It seems our technology has spurred the technological development of other nations as well. We cannot afford to fall behind them; otherwise, if they manage to develop high-energy batteries on their own, our trouble will be immense.”

Xiao Hui said cheerfully, “Don’t worry, Brother. Look.”

Following the direction of Xiao Hui’s finger, we looked over. Ah, wasn’t that the scene depicted in the mural in the conference room of the Yuejin Tower? A heart-shaped, large energy stone was guiding three smaller red, yellow, and green energy stones suspended in mid-air. This, it turned out, was the real energy system.

“Brother, I have successfully reconfigured the four energy stones. Research into how to initiate their energy output is also underway. Before long, we can obtain energy blocks with far greater efficiency than the high-energy batteries. These blocks store enormous energy, and only we can manufacture them. There’s no need to fear others surpassing us.”

I stood up excitedly and hugged Xiao Hui. “Little Sister Xiao Hui, you are truly magnificent! Brother is so proud of you.”

Xiao Hui blushed and scurried to the side. “Brother, Miss is here. She’ll get jealous.”

Xiao Yu Di’s face turned bright red. “Xiao Hui, you’re teasing me! I’m not jealous of Brother! If the older sisters present were to get jealous, would Brother still have the peaceful life he has now?”

I bowed deeply. “I thank everyone for your understanding and tolerance. After the New Year, I will definitely strive to love all of you equally as repayment.”

Yi Xiaorou was deeply moved. “Save it. Your capabilities are too potent; if you double them, I might very well die in your arms.”

Since there was nothing more to discuss, everyone decided to head home to rest. However, Xiao Hui insisted on staying behind. She was quite different from Xiao Yu Di; despite possessing high intelligence, she always felt a sense of disconnection from the human world. Besides research, this place perhaps felt more like a home to her.