MTLNOVEL Chapter 778: Mass Production (Part 2)
Even though Wang Tao had already seen many ups and downs, he was still somewhat excited upon hearing this news. After all, in the previous life, it took nearly two years to develop the zombie virus serum, and now, it's less than two months since the apocalypse had descended!
The apocalypse did indeed claim many lives; most people died during the zombie virus outbreak. After the outbreak, there were still quite a number of people who stubbornly survived. However, as time went on, these people slowly succumbed to the zombies. In the end, only a few super-large bases remained with living humans.
This means that there are still quite a few survivors left in the world!
If they could obtain the zombie virus serum, even if not dominating the apocalypse, it would at least increase their survival probability severalfold! With this advantage, humanity indeed has an opportunity to counterattack the apocalypse!
"Good, good, good!"
Wang Tao felt that his efforts had not been in vain. He let Qu Shilin and Luo Xing focus on research while he continued to go out and search for trapped scientific researchers. His current target was no longer just the western region but the entire country. As long as it was a talent, he wouldn't let it go.
When Wang Tao once again returned to Changhe Base with a group of scientific personnel, Luo Xing, who had already been waiting for him for a long time, came running over excitedly.
"Mr. Wang, the mass-produced version of the powered armor has been manufactured! There are two models available, please guide us!"
"So fast!"
Wang Tao was somewhat surprised.
But when he thought about it, it seemed about right. Last time, Luo Xing said that he would need one to two weeks to manufacture the mass-produced version of the powered armor. It seems like it's been a week since he said that.
Wang Tao followed Luo Xing to the testing ground, where Ding Yuqin, Wei Zhenguo, Bai Hao, Gu Yun, and others were present. After all, this was the mass-produced version of powered armor. If the tests showed no issues, the overall strength of Changhe Base would definitely be multiplied several times!
When everyone saw Wang Tao, they greeted him briefly, then turned their attention back to the two powered armors in the center of the field, one large and one small.
The first powered armor looked relatively simple, similar to the previous prototype, but while the prototype looked more like a large mechanical exoskeleton, this machine, although somewhat slimmer, indeed resembled powered armor more.
"This A-series powered armor may not have outstanding individual combat capabilities, but its manufacturing cost is low, allowing for large-scale production! Of course, this 'not so outstanding' is in comparison to the other powered armor. In reality, its combat capability isn't weak, at least not weaker than most ability users..."
As Luo Xing introduced it, he opened the hatch and crawled inside.
Buzz—
The powered armor emitted a vibration, its eyes glowing blue, activating instantly. Then Luo Xing began his performance.
Compared to the previous prototype, the biggest impression it gave Wang Tao was its flexibility. Although it was a lump of metal, its agility was on par with many human beings. Coupled with its full-body armor, carrying weapons, and using the crystal core energy, Luo Xing, an ordinary person, exhibited combat capabilities no less than a Level 2 ability user when wearing it!
If replaced by a battle-hardened soldier or a professionally trained individual, reaching Level 3 ability user combat capability would be no problem!
Although Level 3 ability user combat capability might not sound high, especially since Wang Tao is Level 5 and Level 4 zombies are not rare now. But remember, this model's powered armor is low-cost and can be mass-produced! In the previous life, powered armor couldn't be mass-produced!
Clap, clap, clap—
Everyone began to applaud.
This effect had clearly exceeded many people's expectations, especially its manufacturing cost, which was a pleasant surprise. Changhe Base had quite a few soldiers, and if each soldier could wear a set of this armor, the apocalypse wouldn't seem so terrifying!
Luo Xing was quite excited to receive everyone's acknowledgment, but he didn't become conceited. He still talked about the drawbacks of this A-series powered armor, such as endurance and weaker explosive power, but given its low cost and ability for mass production, these drawbacks weren't much of an issue.
After introducing the A-series powered armor, Luo Xing moved beside the second larger powered armor and excitedly introduced:
"This is the T-series powered armor, opposite to the A-series. Its manufacturing cost is very high, making large-scale production difficult; for now, it can only be produced in small quantities, but its combat capabilities are much stronger than the A-series! Ordinary people wearing it can easily have Level 3 combat power, and if a physically strong ability user wears it, they could even have Level 4 combat power!"
"Level 4 combat power!"
Although this outcome was somewhat anticipated, when Luo Xing personally announced it, everyone still felt a bit disoriented.
It's known that currently in the entire Changhe Base, excluding Wang Tao, only those around Wang Tao had ascended to Level 4, and they achieved this ascension in the past two days with Wang Tao's assistance. Without his help, they couldn't have ascended so quickly.
Aside from Wang Tao's group, the strongest others only had Level 3 power.
And this powered armor directly grants Level 4 combat power, which is certainly exciting since the gap between Level 4 and Level 3 isn't just one rank; it's the gap between an awakening and an ability user!
Luo Xing opened the hatch and personally demonstrated.
Compared to the A-series powered armor, although the T-series was larger and looked bulkier, it was actually more agile and more human-like!
Moreover, its speed, strength, defense, and endurance data overwhelm the A-series powered armor. Even though Luo Xing, an ordinary person, didn't show Level 4 combat power when driving it, it definitely counted as top-tier Level 3 power.
Others couldn't resist after Luo Xing finished testing; many tried it out themselves. As ability users, their physical qualities were strong enough to fully utilize the potential of powered armor.
However, unlike human Level 4 ascension, which grants an awakening ability, the T-series powered armor's Level 4 combat power is no different in essence from Level 3 combat power — it merely offers faster speed, greater strength, quicker reactions, similar to a System Awakener at Level 4!
"But it also has drawbacks, besides its high cost and difficulty in large-scale production, its consumption is also quite high, much higher than the A-series..."
At this point, Luo Xing scratched his head somewhat embarrassingly.
He naturally wanted to manufacture energy-saving powered armor, but there's currently no way around it. To achieve powerful combat abilities, apart from materials and design, energy is paramount. As long as the powered armor and controller can handle it, they would provide as much energy as possible. Impressive power brings about miracles!
Like this T-series powered armor, although it can be activated with first and second-stage crystal cores, if used for combat, at least Level 3 crystal cores are necessary, and using Level 4 would be even better. Such consumption means that even if one had the T-series powered armor, they couldn't afford it...
However, for Changhe Base, this isn't a significant problem. Since T-series can't be mass-produced for now and only small-scale production is feasible, Changhe Base can still afford it.
"Very well done. This time, you get the top merits!"
Wang Tao smiled and patted Luo Xing's shoulder.
"This isn't just my achievement; it's the result of everyone's joint effort! Each person is indispensable!"
Luo Xing waved his hands repeatedly, feeling satisfied just being able to create what he envisioned. He wasn't very concerned about merits, knowing Changhe Base would certainly not neglect him.
Wang Tao smiled without saying much; everyone had their share of credit, and Changhe Base wouldn't overlook them.
After the testing was completed, Wang Tao and others confirmed there were no problems with the two powered armors, and they could be mass-produced.
The production lines within the base gradually started, and one by one, sci-fi-looking powered armors appeared before countless survivors.