Chapter 15 - High Subsidy

Chapter 15: High SubsidyIt turned out that becoming a government official came with such benefits. Even better, the specific affairs didn’t require personal attention; you just needed to collect your subsidy every month.

—Approximately 10 psionic credits, and for at least the next ten years, this subsidy will be paid by the Federation Government.

“It must be the Federation’s way of supporting Earth, increasing the priority,” Lin Zhichen thought, feeling very pleased. The so-called fairness was just having priority, right? The joy of having privileges was something ordinary people wouldn’t understand.

“Big brother, does the military’s exchange list have high-end versions of starships? Even shipborne components would be good!” Wu Tianyi reminded.

Lin Zhichen patted his head and reopened the holographic system to check.

Currently, the “Qinyuan” was configured with the basic version, and its energy reactor was still a fission reactor, no different from the pirate ships that appeared.

“We can exchange for a fusion reactor,” Lin Zhichen’s eyes lit up after looking for a while. “We can also upgrade to second-generation electromagnetic coil cannons!

Improved electromagnetic deflection shields, small gold-ceramic armor, second-generation radar gravity sensors, a full set of second-generation equipment!”

The output energy of a fusion reactor was 50% higher than that of a fission reactor. With ample power, the ship could support more powerful weaponry and equipment.

The second-generation electromagnetic coil cannon had about 30% more power than the first-generation electromagnetic railgun. Replacing all three cannons would nearly double the frigate’s firepower.

The improved electromagnetic deflection shield and small gold-ceramic armor enhance defense, with one boosting the energy shield and the other strengthening the ship’s armor.

The detection range of the second-generation radar gravity sensor was twice that of traditional radar. This meant that the “Qinyuan” and its crew could perform long-range bombardments more effectively, significantly enhancing their tactical capabilities!

“Big brother, can we choose a higher generation?” Lin Ke asked urgently.

“No, the maximum is the second generation,” Lin Zhichen shook his head. “Ordinary citizens get standard ships, and those associated with the government can upgrade to the second generation. This is likely a restriction on private armed forces.”

At any time, the most advanced weapons and equipment were firmly controlled by the government. Without strong support, a regime was just a facade.

Lin Zhichen pondered, “The upgrade costs are not cheap. Let’s first replace the most important radar. The Qinyuan is our main force, so it should be prioritized for the upgrade!”

The others nodded in agreement. This was the most reasonable configuration for now.

Calculating the costs, adding second-generation radar gravity sensors to the two frigates would cost 12.96 energy credits.

Upgrading the “Qinyuan” with a fusion reactor, ion engines, gravity sensors, and three coil cannons would total 72.08 energy credits, leaving them short on funds!

“Uh, big brother, maybe we shouldn’t upgrade ours for now…” Wu Tianyi suggested, but Lin Zhichen interrupted him with a wave of his hand. “No, the radar upgrade is essential for my tactics! I still have the 10 energy credits monthly subsidy from the Federation Government. Wait, it’s become 50 credits?”

“What?” The group was shocked. A subsidy of 50 energy credits means that without doing anything, they could build a frigate in a year!

How valuable was 1 energy credit?

1 energy credit equals 100 million energy points (Federation credits). In the interstellar era, resources were extremely abundant, and a meal at a restaurant for an ordinary person costs only 2-3 energy points.

1 energy credit was enough for an ordinary family to live comfortably for a lifetime.

If that wasn’t clear enough, let’s compare it to Earth. When the solar system first transitioned, the entire Earth’s productivity combined only produced 4-5 units of energy credits and 3-5 units of minerals per month. Building a frigate would take years of accumulation. sᴇaʀᴄh thᴇ ɴøᴠel Fɪre.nᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

Lin Zhichen’s monthly subsidy now is equivalent to nearly half a year’s output of a newly industrialized planet!

“It’s a subsidy for psionic warship owners, including my psionicist allowance,” he said, his tone rather complex.

He had to admit, he was impressed by the Federation Government’s generosity in throwing money around so freely!

No wonder it was the Human Federation Government—truly extravagant!

With money, everything becomes easier. He placed the order directly at the shipyard. The two purchased frigates would be upgraded directly at the factory, while the “Qinyuan” would be refitted at Earth’s spaceport.

“You guys go ahead and purchase the NPC crew members, just the regular ones. Tomorrow, I’ll take them to the asteroid belt for rotation training. In less than half a month, they’ll become elite!” Lin Zhichen reminded:

“Use my privileges to buy from the military’s cloning factory. There’s a discount, and they haven’t been filtered, so it’s easier to find some exceptional ones.”

The group nodded and quickly opened the cloning factory to check the NPC crew members for sale.

The cloning factory was where the Federation sold NPCs, and purchases could be made online.

Due to the limited growth of the natural human population, even fewer were willing to give up a comfortable life and risk their lives exploring the starry skies and fighting endless NPC wild monsters. To maximize the effectiveness of natural humans, the supplementation of NPCs was indispensable.

For example, most natural humans served in important positions like ship captains, while the remaining roles were filled by NPC crew members. This greatly enhanced the combat effectiveness of the Federation fleet—the main issue being that NPC captains had overly rigid tactics, which could easily lead to friendly fire incidents.

Moreover, training high-grade NPC captains was extremely difficult. Virtual world training had its limits, only reaching the basic level. Anything beyond that required real combat experience.

Considering the tendency of NPC captains to hinder their own teams, only one in ten NPC captains survived to become high-grade—this usually meant that at least nine warships and their crews became sunk costs.

With that money, it would be better to train more natural human captains!

“Big brother, the martial arts technique you taught us—I can now feel a bit of warmth rising in my lower abdomen when I practice,” Wei Peng, who was sitting idly nearby, said.

“The status panel also shows some changes. Is this what you referred to as refining essence into qi?”

“Hmm?” Lin Zhichen was surprised and quickly grabbed Wei Peng’s hand. “Let me take a look!”

Psionic energy surged, and sure enough, he detected a trace of qi in Wei Peng’s dantian.

Qi, the essence of spirit and energy, governed the body. It was refined from the body’s vital essence.

According to the cultivation concepts from his previous life, this was the stage of innate foundation building, the true beginning of cultivation. At this stage, qi circulated throughout the body, refining the blood and marrow, gradually perfecting the physical form.

“You’ve entered the path of cultivation,” Lin Zhichen said with a smile and a nod. “Although ancient cultivation techniques may not seem powerful, they are, to my knowledge, the only way for ordinary people to become psionicists!”

The people in the room listened with bated breath, their hearts pounding with excitement.

If they had been skeptical before, Lin Zhichen’s own achievement of becoming a psionicist through cultivation had made them all true believers.

“Cultivation is a tough journey. If it were solely based on talent, one might practice bitterly for a lifetime without achieving success. Learning it would be in vain,” Lin Zhichen said. “But if combined with my innate talent, it becomes an unparalleled path to greatness!”

Lin Zhichen’s talent was their greatest secret, never spoken of openly, and it was the source of their confidence.

As brothers who grew up together in an orphanage, they were closer than blood siblings.