The failure of the Imperial Glory's Gellar Field in the Warp led to the corruption of the entire crew.
The members of the Mechanicus responsible for maintaining the ship's various systems were no exception.
With no one to maintain and oversee them, the ship's various systems became paralyzed and ceased operation.
To get the ship operational again, the reactor needed to be restarted first.
Only with sufficient energy provided could the various subsystems operate at normal capacity.
Forget about deciding where the Imperial Glory should go; at the very least, survival needs to be maintained.
If the reactor isn't restarted, once the backup power is depleted,
Systems like artificial gravity, temperature control, and oxygen recycling will fail.
In an oxygen-deprived and extremely cold environment, players simply cannot survive.
Although Astroma Prime is near the Imperial Glory,
No one knows what the situation is like there.
How many areas have the rebels captured? Have they seized the anti-aircraft guns?
If the Governor is already dead, or the enemy has taken the anti-aircraft guns,
Without a logistical base, it would be extremely difficult for the players to reclaim Atoma Prime from the Chaos cultists.
Restarting the reactor and turning the Imperial Glory into a main base is the wise move.
No matter what, this is a Luna-class warship.
If it can operate normally, weapons like the lance arrays, torpedoes, and macro-cannons can exert deterrence on a planetary level.
It can also provide air superiority for players operating on the ground.
Dovahkiin raised his hand. "Guide, we do know how to fix a few things, but something like a reactor is a bit too advance'd."
'Oh my God!'
'I'm just a second-year university student.'
'How could I possibly be qualified to fix the reactor of a Luna-class battleship!!'
Old Bird nodded in agreement.
Although he holds an MIT degree,
His research fields cover nuclear physics and plasma engineering.
He wasn't confident about this task either.
The game was too realistic; he was afraid he couldn't fix it.
"It's alright, just go ahead and try. The Emperor will guide you."
Qin Yun offered some encouragement, then his tone turned stern.
"This matter is not up for refusal. Do not say anything that undermines loyalty."
"You will complete this task, repair the reactor, and restart the Imperial Glory."
Looking at the bewildered players, Qin Yun felt a bit embarrassed.
But he didn't show it, maintaining his aloof demeanor.
Putting the players in a difficult spot was better than putting himself in one.
"State any needs you have. I will have the other veterans assist you as much as possible."
After speaking, Qin Yun strode away.
He had other matters to attend to.
"Fix the reactor? Me?" Monkey pointed at himself.
"This feels really unreliable!!" Dovahkiin scratched his head.
"Let's look for the manual first," Old Bird said. "Although it's difficult, it doesn't mean there's no chance."
"Besides, we only need to restart the reactor, get it running."
The group searched around the chamber.
Eventually, they found the reactor maintenance manual on a data storage stack.
It was a full ten thousand pages long, containing not only text descriptions but also designs and data.
The manual detailed various situations the reactor might encounter and the corresponding appeasement rituals.
"This game is so realistic, it could be the death of me."
Looking at the complex designs and data precise to six decimal places, Old Bird immediately felt a headache coming on.
Dovahkiin and the others were even worse off.
Their educational background wasn't as high as Old Bird's!
Looking at that manual was like reading gibberish.
Looking at it sideways or straight on, all they saw were complex diagrams and lots of numbers.
For a period of time afterward, Old Bird studied the blueprints and data.
At first, he was amazed by the game developers' rigor.
The data was as detailed as scientific research literature, and the designs conformed to engineering standards without a single flaw.
"So realistic they even simulated the reactor!!"
Old Bird silently gave the developers a thumbs up in his heart.
But soon, he felt it was all just too much.
'It's just a game, why make it so complicated?'
'Could this reactor actually operate in the real world?'
Old Bird studied the reactor manual until he logged out.
Even at work, his mind was filled with the reactor's designs and data.
East University Research Institute, cafeteria.
"Ding Yanfeng, what's wrong with you?"
"You've seemed distracted all day today?"
Dong Hai put down his tray and sat opposite Ding Yanfeng.
Ding Yanfeng looked up, saw it was his friend, and lowered his head again.
"Thinking about how to fix a reactor."
Dong Hai widened his eyes, looking at his friend.
"Fix a reactor? Have you developed delusions recently? What reactor is there for you to fix?"
"Don't overreact." Ding Yanfeng looked around and lowered his voice. "It's a game I started playing recently."
"An NPC in the game gave me a task to restart a plasma fusion reactor."
"A game quest? Just ask a gaming expert or something."
Dong Hai said while eating. "Such a simple thing, is it worth brooding over?"
Ding Yanfeng explained: "This game is different from others on the market. It uses a realistic physics engine, pursuing 100% realism."
"There are no prompts in the game; you have to figure out how to fix it yourself."
Dong Hai looked his friend up and down, a skeptical expression on his face.
"As a top student from MIT, don't tell me you've been scammed."
After returning to China, Ding Yanfeng joined the East University Research Institute, where he met Dong Hai.
After some time, the two became good friends.
"I haven't been scammed," Ding Yanfeng shook his head. "The game I'm playing is very realistic. Two players managed to repair turrets and weapons inside using their engineering knowledge."
"Now the NPC is asking us to find a way to get a plasma fusion reactor operational again."
"Sounds interesting," Dong Hai showed an interested expression. "But you don't need to take game stuff so seriously."
"I thought so too at first, but this plasma fusion reactor has a maintenance manual. The content alone is over ten thousand pages, hundreds of thousands of words, with detailed designs and data."
"I even drew a few sketches and noted down some data from memory. Take a look for yourself."
Ding Yanfeng handed the sketches he'd drawn during work hours to Dong Hai.
Dong Hai reached for them while doubting.
"I'm telling you, you're too stubborn. Why take game stuff so seriously..."
Dong Hai's words trailed off as his eyes widened.
He stared intently at the design sketches and data.
Dong Hai held dual doctorates in mathematics and physics and had also studied abroad.
He was very sensitive to numbers and could often spot issues with numerical things at a glance.
The moment he saw the sketches, Dong Hai started mentally calculating.
He was surprised to find that the data on the sketches were self-consistent, not randomly fabricated.
"Is this really from a game? Not some confidential blueprint you stole from a lab?"
Dong Hai looked at his friend in shock.
"Believe me now? It's just a game, 100% realistic," Ding Yanfeng said somewhat irritably. "The game developers probably hired some research big shot as a technical consultant."
"Interesting," Dong Hai looked at the sketches. "If it's 100% realistic, I'd like to ask, how does the game solve the problem of confining high-temperature plasma?"
How to confine high-temperature plasma is currently the most important topic in nuclear physics labs.
It relates to commercializing nuclear fusion.
"Don't think about it. The game setting is sci-fi, and they have gravity field technology."
Ding Yanfeng glanced at Dong Hai and said irritably.
"Using gravity field confinement technology, its operating temperature threshold is far lower than lab standards, allowing stable energy output, thus achieving commercial use."
Dong Hai showed a regretful expression.
"Still a deus ex machina. I thought there might be a brand new approach."
"But since the game is so realistic, just follow real-world logic."
"The reactor operation process is divided into three steps: ignition, burn, output."
"As long as the output is greater than the input, it's considered normal operation."
"In the game, it probably just uses gravity field tech to confine the plasma stream, causing fusion, then stabilizing the output. But the steps should be the same."
"When you get in the game, try to check which step has the problem, then fix it according to the manual."
"That makes sense," Ding Yanfeng nodded. "Anyway, it's not real. I'll just go online and try it."
"Right, that's the attitude. It's just a game. Even if it blows up, it doesn't matter," Dong Hai said nonchalantly.
Imperial Glory Strategic Planning Room.
Qin Yun, who was checking messages, suddenly sneezed.
He rubbed his sore nose.
"I'm a Living Saint, why am I still sneezing? Could something bad be about to happen!!"