Chapter 270
Four hours later, the convoy stops on a high ridge.
Diana exits the vehicle, plateau wind lifting her hair.
She looks at the village, her eyes holding no pity—only analysis.
Rupert hands her a bottle of water. "Where will the first 'Starlight' be built?"
Diana points toward an empty lot east of the village currently used as a dump. "Highest elevation, longest sun exposure. Clear the garbage, build a library where children can see the stars."
Rupert follows her pointing direction.
"Alright." He says only one word.
On the return flight, Diana falls asleep leaning against the cabin window.
Rupert gently covers her with a cashmere blanket, dimming the light on her side.
He opens his laptop to various educational proposals:
[Montessori Method Application Analysis in Science Enlightenment]
[Reggio Emilia Model Community Co-Construction Project Case Studies]
[Frostmark Dominion Phenomenon-Based Learning Curriculum Design Framework]
He reads carefully, annotating periodically.
...
The Starlight Project's launch speed once again redefines Frank's understanding.
Within seventy-two hours, the advance team has reached Red Spring Village.
Heavy equipment arrives via military transport aircraft, rolling along temporarily widened mountain roads into this ancient land.
Before construction begins, Diana requires the medical team to provide free health screenings for all villagers.
Villagers are initially skeptical, but seeing professional medical equipment, they queue for examinations.
Diana, thousands of miles away at Stellar Observation Base, monitors every data point in real-time.
"Athena, screen all samples for genetic markers. Cross-reference with global genome databases."
"Cross-reference complete. Seventeen previously unrecorded gene fragments discovered. Sample number RSV-073, subject Jedediah, eighty-nine years old. Cardiopulmonary function and cellular activity equivalent to a thirty-year-old male in peak condition."
On screen appears a wrinkled but clear-eyed elderly man's image, beside it his remarkably healthy data stream.
Diana pulls up Jedediah's profile: generations of herding, daily walking over twenty miles, a monotonous diet.
"Magnify sample 073 gene sequence."
A double helix structure rotates on screen, one segment highlighted.
"This mutation fragment is located in a key region regulating cell apoptosis and energy metabolism. Function cannot be explained by existing models. Preliminary simulations show it may significantly delay cellular aging, optimize energy conversion efficiency—especially in low-oxygen environments."
Rupert approaches behind Diana.
"I need his living cell samples and a small gene sequencing workstation." Diana's tone is calm. "Right there in Red Spring Village."
Rupert calls Frank.
"Prepare an 'Ark'-level mobile biological laboratory. Deliver it to Red Spring Village within three days."
"'Ark'-level? Isn't that the highest-spec laboratory for global biochemical crises?"
Frank is shocked. "Does Red Spring Village need that level of sterilization?"
"No." Rupert glances at Diana. "Building an office."
"Diana will send you the personnel list. Pull a three-person team from 'Prologue' Institute. All equipment departs today."
Call ends.
Frank resignedly calls Teddy.
Three days later.
Red Spring Village, east ridge. The dump has been cleared.
A heavy-lift helicopter precisely positions a silver-white metal container—its side bearing a minimalist "Starlight" logo.
Diana exits the vehicle, watching engineering staff connect lines.
One hour later, all external laboratory connections are complete.
The hatch slides open. Teddy and two assistants await inside.
"Dr. York, equipment self-check complete. Ready to operate anytime."
Diana nods, her gaze sweeping past instruments to the laboratory's deepest section—an entire wall of massive frameless glass.
Outside, the nascent "Starlight" campus takes shape.
Rupert walks to her side. "Jedediah agreed to provide samples. He'll come at four this afternoon. Equipment needs calibration. What do you want for dinner? The yak meat here is excellent."
"Beef soup." She answers, then turns to Teddy, gaze sharp. "Prepare for cell separation. We don't have much time."
Four PM. Jedediah follows the village official into the silver Ark Laboratory.
Jedediah has lived his entire life in earthen houses, yet shows no fear of this metal structure—only a curious examination of glowing instruments.
"Just drawing blood?" Jedediah extends his wrinkled yet powerful arm, asking in accented Mandarin.
"Yes, and a small skin sample. It won't hurt." Teddy says as gently as possible.
Diana observes quietly.
In her eyes, Jedediah isn't an ordinary elderly man—he's a perfect data model.
Sample collection complete.
The laboratory door closes. The atmosphere turns serious.
"Begin cell culture, simultaneous whole genome sequencing." Diana orders. Teddy and assistants immediately dive into work.
The high-throughput sequencer hums deeply, data streaming directly to the Stellar Observation Base's quantum computer for Athena's analysis and modeling.
Rupert quietly enters.
"Dr. York!" Teddy's voice carries surprise. "Mitochondrial activity shows non-linear attenuation in vitro culture... no, it's self-correcting!"
On screen, the curve representing mitochondrial energy briefly drops, then climbs, ultimately stabilizing at levels far exceeding theoretical values.
"Athena, magnify the expression process of the RSV-073 sample's seventeenth mutation fragment." Diana stares intently at the screen.
Data refreshes. Complex protein folding animation unfolds.
"It's not delaying aging," Diana says softly. Everyone in the lab stops working. "It's a 'repair directive.' When cells sustain damage, it activates a hyper-efficient compensatory mechanism, parsing and restructuring surrounding biomass to repair organelles. It doesn't make cells age slowly—it makes cells... not break."
Teddy rushes to the computer, pulling up records. "Jedediah had a severely comminuted right leg fracture in his youth. By all rights, he should be permanently disabled, but his bone density and skeletal structure... show absolutely no trace!"
A stunning inference forms in everyone's minds: This isn't a longevity gene—it's a perfect "regeneration factory."
The laboratory falls silent, only Athena continuing her report. "Simulations show cells carrying this gene fragment have three hundred seventy times the gamma radiation tolerance of normal cells."
Rupert closes his file, looking at Diana.
Her eyes hold no wild joy—only the focus of solving a puzzle.
"Organize the data," Diana turns to Teddy. "Prepare to write the paper."
Over the next forty-eight hours, Diana dictates, Teddy records, and Athena converts logic into data models.
A paper titled "A Mitochondrial Autophagy-Related Deep Compensatory Mechanism for Cellular Senescence" rapidly takes shape.
The paper isn't submitted to journals—Diana directly uploads it to the scientific preprint server.
Only one signature: Y.
Ten minutes after the paper goes live, server traffic hits a historical peak, nearly crashing.
Frank at World Base is inundated with calls.
"Mr. Russell! Nature and Science are willing to publish a joint special issue for this paper! They say it could lock in a Nobel Prize!"
Rupert is on another call, his other hand browsing ergonomic reports for Red Spring Village desks and chairs.
"Not necessary. Tell them subsequent research results will prioritize young scholars funded by the Starlight Foundation."
Frank freezes.
"Understood. The white oak you previously ordered has been airlifted from Frostmark Dominion."
"Good." Rupert hangs up.
One week later, the Russell Group headquarters.
Frank delivers a white oak frame—natural grain, mortise-and-tenon construction.
Inside isn't a famous painting, but the paper's first page—title, abstract, data charts, and the solitary signature "Y."
Rupert accepts the frame, walks to the wall opposite his desk, and personally hangs it.