During the previous dual budget phase, we operated conservatively, setting the budget at eighty-five thousand and reserving fifteen thousand as a contingency. Unfortunately, that contingency actually materialized, wasting a significant amount of time and necessitating several thousand extra to procure replacement materials.

Benton declared, “How about I cover the cost myself and we buy it again? Just don't give me that look, okay?”

Ax responded irritably, “No way. The money has to come out of the ten thousand prize money. Who doesn't have money to cover their own expenses? You’ll lose points, and once they’re deducted, you’re disqualified from the competition!”

Benton mumbled, “I’m sorry.”

Ax continued updating the financial report, finalizing the material budget, calculating the exact shortfall, and handing the task of sourcing the missing materials to Li Chunyu. Worried that Spender might cause friction with Benton, Li Chunyu dragged Spender out too; after all, Spender was the one managing the funds, so pulling him out was perfectly justifiable.

Seeing that the issue was resolved, Popo found a seat and began chatting with a group of his usual cronies. Benton was left alone, fidgeting as if sitting on pins and needles. He drifted over to Ziye’s side for a while, but seeing her intensely focused on refining materials, completely ignoring his presence, left a bitter taste in his mouth. He walked out and saw Popo laughing heartily with his friends, his face bright with smiles, which sparked an urge in Benton to just swing a fist at him.

“Aren’t you busy?” he asked grimly. “Ziye is busy inside, and you’re just chatting out here. That’s crossing a line.”

Popo looked up. “I’m asking about the progress of the other competitors. Our team is moving too slowly. I’m going to redraw a schedule shortly, otherwise, problems are bound to arise.”

Benton suddenly broke out in a cold sweat.

Popo knew a lot of people and commanded a small cadre of subordinates; gathering intel on rivals was effortless. If they accidentally uncovered his secrets... A sudden panic seized him. He rushed out of the lab to a secluded spot and dialed his girlfriend’s HyperCom. “I can’t stand staying in Chuqiao much longer. How much longer do I have to stay?”

His girlfriend replied, “I was just about to call you. You don’t need to drag out the progress anymore. Work on the mech with them during this time. Once it’s done, save the data and send it to me.”

Benton lowered his voice. “Didn’t I already give you the blueprints? Why do you still need the manufacturing data? If this is discovered, they’ll kill me.”

His girlfriend immediately grew angry. “Blueprints without data are useless for construction. One word: are you going to help me or not?”

Benton conceded helplessly, “Fine, I’ll help.”

After hanging up the HyperCom, his girlfriend immediately dialed another number and spoke in a coaxing tone, “Ales, he’s agreed to help. Don't worry, everything will be executed perfectly.”

Over the HyperCom, the grim face of Ales finally softened into a slight smile. “Yinlu, well done.”

After sorting out Benton’s garbage materials, it was time for the semester to begin.

The start of the term was always chaotic—new students arriving, returning students hosting orientation. Popo had originally agreed to be an orientation representative, but he had to back out to prioritize finishing the mech as quickly as possible. Everyone else also canceled their small and large activities, hiding in the laboratory to run tests again and again.

Every procedural step required precise calculation; every component involved hundreds of operations; all core data had to be accurate down to the nanometer. Ziye added two more optical screens to her existing four on her main terminal, running continuous calculations across all of them. Little Sprout’s screen was also brought in to assist Ziye with the processing.

At first glance, no one could detect its existence, which was simply incredible.

With its support, all the data was calculated in a single day, ready to be sent to the factory for component manufacturing.

Benton stood beside Ziye, gazing at the dizzying array of data, unable to commit a single number to memory. He considered planting a virus on Ziye’s terminal, but she was exceedingly cautious, always running a self-diagnostic check before any startup. Her terminal’s self-check system was formidable; forget a virus, even a single irrelevant piece of data would be purged instantly.

Benton could only wait anxiously for her to visit the restroom, hoping for a window of time to copy all the data.

However, Ziye remained constantly beside her terminal; he found no opportunity to act.

Once the data testing was complete, everyone headed to the factory together to process the raw materials into the optimal alloy ratio and load them into the material slots of the production line for the main spindle casting.

Benton stood next to Ziye, watching her input the commands, and suddenly conceived a new plan!

After the parts were made, the data would still be on the production line. If more material was introduced, an identical piece could be manufactured. He wouldn't need to steal any of Ziye’s data; he just needed to create a new piece before she could clear the old data—that would be foolproof.

The only remaining issue was how to prevent Ziye from cleaning up the data promptly after the parts were finished.

He frowned in thought for a moment, then walked to the restroom and dialed Yinlu’s HyperCom. “Lulu, don’t you know Ziye? In a moment, I’ll send you a ‘9’ over HyperCom. As soon as you see it, call her immediately. Find a way to draw her away.”

Yinlu thought this task was simple enough and readily agreed.

Benton returned to the scene. Ziye and the others were staring intently at the virtual holographic screen on the wall. The screen displayed progress and data—another barrage of code and symbols.

At a glance, everything was dense, and though he recognized all the data types, he was so nervous that the information appeared completely foreign.

Benton steeled himself, pushing the turmoil aside, and focused carefully on the screen data.

His grades in the Mech Fabrication class were considered quite good.

Once he settled down, he quickly grasped the meaning behind the data and was deeply captivated.

He had to admit, Ziye truly was a genius student, just as the rumors suggested. Some students couldn't grasp even the superficial layer of what the instructor taught over an entire semester, yet she, who wasn't even in the Fabrication major, displayed more expertise than the dedicated fabrication students. The calculation methods displayed on the screen were simpler and faster than those taught in the course, achieving the result in a single step, with almost every data point hitting the mark precisely.

No wonder Yinlu had asked him to steal the material. With this data, even a rookie team could win the school-level competition without much trouble!

For the first time, Benton felt a wave of indecision. If he didn't give the data to Yinlu, if he stayed with the Chuqiao team and worked hard with them, perhaps they could even reach the finals. Then, he could achieve both fame and fortune...

But he had promised Yinlu.

Thinking of his soft and yielding girlfriend, his heart constricted fiercely. She had never asked him for a favor before; this was the only time. If he couldn't even do this one small thing for her, what kind of boyfriend was he?

The more Benton thought, the more conflicted he became. He gripped his hair, unsure what to do.

Just then, Popo called out, “Benton, what are you spacing out for? The prototype is almost done!”

Benton snapped his head up. On the final holographic screen, a long progress bar read: Completion Rate 98%.

Should he help Yinlu or not? Benton’s hand hovered over his HyperCom, and a storm surged within him once more.

The final procedure was quick, stopping instantly at 100%. Everyone cheered except Benton, as the first casting was successfully completed!

Startled by the outburst, Benton’s hand jerked, sending the ‘9’ message. He wanted to retract it, but it was too late; the HyperCom screen displayed: Sent Successfully!

The die was cast; there was no turning back. Benton took a deep breath, about to say something, when Ziye activated the grav-sled and flew toward the end of the assembly line where the finished product emerged.

Benton followed without a word, running after her. Halfway there, he suddenly realized he shouldn't be running to the end; at this point, he should have stayed at the starting point to copy the data.

Beep-beep—the indicator light on Ziye’s HyperCom flashed.

Her entire focus was on the newly emerged main spindle. Without even looking, she cut the connection. The caller persisted, dialing a second time. Seeing Spender already at the spindle, Ziye suddenly remembered something. “Popo, go to the starting point and save the data.”

Popo immediately turned the grav-sled around. Benton was also walking toward the starting point, and hearing this, he broke into a cold sweat, unsure whether to turn back or not.

Popo sped up, quickly overtaking him, and laughed, “I’m faster than you!”

Benton’s face remained rigid; he couldn't manage a word for a long time.

Staring at Popo’s retreating back, he suddenly recognized a grave truth: he still possessed a shred of fragile conscience. Those who achieve greatness must first extinguish their conscience!

In the Great Interstellar Age, only the strong are acknowledged. No matter the means, as long as he succeeded, he would earn recognition. Yinlu was important, yes, but if he succeeded, how many beautiful women would throw themselves at him? By then, forget Yinlu, even Ling Sixiao would be begging at his feet!

The more Benton thought, the more excited he became. He caught up to Popo, forcing a hypocritical smile. “Let’s hurry and save the data, then go check the performance of the new spindle.”

Ziye’s HyperCom kept ringing on her wrist. She felt annoyed, but reasoning that the caller might have an urgent matter, she answered it, motioning to Li Chunyu to hand over her terminal.

The number was unfamiliar, but the person was not: it was Yinlu.

Ziye’s mind was entirely preoccupied with the spindle. She had little memory of this girl who had shared accommodations with her briefly during military training but had never interacted with otherwise. She asked, “What is it?”

Yinlu detected the impatience in Ziye’s tone, feeling a pinch of embarrassment. But remembering her critical mission, she forced a smile. “Nothing much, it’s the start of the term, right? I wanted to see if any friends from military training were free for dinner. Do you have time?”

Ziye had no interest in socializing with her and flatly refused. “Sorry, I’m busy tonight.” She hung up immediately.

Yinlu had hoped to drag out the conversation longer but had no opportunity; she had to give up.

Benton deliberately slowed his pace, watching Popo successfully save the data and drive the vehicle toward the terminal. Only then did he get off and copy all the data, saving it.

Just as he finished saving, he heard Ziye let out a mournful scream: “Aaaah—Unqualified!!!”

-(To be continued)