In less than two hours, the Zhijun had produced a detailed plan, over sixty thousand characters long, and sent it to Jiang Ye.
Jiang Ye read through the plan and found it promising.
According to Zhijun's proposal, it could ensure safety and significantly reduce the cost of planetary terraforming.
Jiang Ye convened a meeting of the think tank.
The think tank continued to bicker, but the majority believed Zhijun should be given a chance to try.
The opposition argued that although Zhijun had promised safety and the plan appeared safe, there was still a possibility of betrayal. Zhijun, in pursuit of its own freedom, might very well threaten the entire population of the new planet.
The supporters countered that Zhijun's mother body was under control and served as a natural hostage, creating a relationship of mutual deterrence. Zhijun had inherent limitations, unable to leave the new planet's atmosphere, and was subject to the absolute military might of the Galactic Empire. With their intelligence, they would not engage in foolish, self-destructive acts like rebellion.
Finally, Liu Jizi's opinion proved decisive. She was willing to let Zhijun try.
With Zhijun's involvement, the previously difficult planet selection process became clear.
Spiral Star!
Spiral Star, with a surface area of ten billion square kilometers, was currently uninhabited by humans.
Its price was fifty trillion, a moderate cost.
It was named Spiral Star due to the shape of its landmass. Viewed from space, the land on Spiral Star resembled several coiling, reddish-brown serpents, their scales being the undulating mountain ranges.
Currently, Spiral Star had several uninhabitable conditions that required artificial modification.
The first uninhabitable point was underground caverns.
Spiral Star was massive, yet its gravity was only 0.9 because of numerous internal cavities.
Planetary scans indicated at least six hundred million large caverns underground, arranged in a spiral pattern. Each cavern was large enough to accommodate trains and aircraft, with cross-sections resembling the segments of a lotus root.
During his meeting with the think tank, Jiang Ye recounted an ancient joke: "Spiral Star is like lotus root. Some vendors try to cheat customers, and for every pound of lotus root, half a pound is just holes."
The think tank didn't react at first, but after a few seconds, they collectively understood, erupting in delayed laughter.
The formation of these caverns was simple. They were originally large underground lakes formed by volcanic activity. As the lake water evaporated, they became vast underground voids.
Filling these large voids would prevent widespread ground collapse and, if suitable filling materials were used, could bring the planet's gravity closer to a level suitable for humans.
The second uninhabitable point was water scarcity.
Spiral Star was originally a water-rich planet, with oceans covering 90% of its surface after early geological activity.
However, Spiral Star lacked an atmosphere and ozone layer to block ultraviolet radiation. The water was decomposed by ultraviolet rays into oxygen and hydrogen. The oxygen reacted extensively with the iron on the planet, while the hydrogen gradually escaped into space.
The process was slow and brutal. Spiral Star died like a creature bleeding out. Venus's oceans disappeared in a similar manner.
Currently, only 7% of Spiral Star's surface had water, consisting of small puddles or lakes, and these were shrinking daily.
Without a water cycle, it was unrealistic for a planet to support a large population. Forcing settlement on such a planet would make water ten times more expensive than gasoline, and the majority of citizens' income would be spent on water, making survival more difficult than in a desert.
It was imperative to recreate the planet's oceans.
The third uninhabitable point was the absence of an atmosphere.
The term "absence" here was approximate. There was a very thin atmosphere, but it was completely useless.
The lack of an atmosphere meant constant bombardment of the planet's surface by massive amounts of space radiation. Humans would collectively suffer from skin cancer and various bizarre complications, leading to a tragic death, much like ants being zapped by lasers. All electronic devices would also go haywire under the radiation, displaying garbled text on screens and emitting eerie noises from speakers.
The most critical issues were breathing and air pressure. Humans could only reside in rooms with stable air pressure. Opening a window would cause everyone in the room to explode, and any problem with oxygen supply would lead to suffocation.
The fourth uninhabitable point was temperature.
Spiral Star had extreme climates. Near the equator, summer temperatures exceeded one hundred degrees Celsius. If people were to live there directly, they would be cooked.
At the poles, temperatures dropped to minus seventy or eighty degrees Celsius. If a basin of boiling water were thrown outdoors, instead of the splashing sound of water, one would only hear the crackling of ice.
The method to rectify the temperature was also simple: filling the underground caverns would slightly alter the planet's orbital path. Then, modifying the atmospheric environment to allow heat to flow globally through wind, combined with the water cycle, could bring Spiral Star's temperature to a level suitable for humans.
The final uninhabitable point was sandstorms.
According to data observed by military satellites, in Spiral Star's thin atmosphere, over two thousand regions globally experienced sandstorms daily.
The reddish-brown, iron-rich sand swept across the plains like a sky-burning fire, violently striking the mountains and carving the rocks into bizarre shapes.
Improving the sandstorms was also straightforward. One method was to increase the moisture content of the land. Dry, cracked soil would generate dust with every gust of wind, but wet, muddy ground would rarely form sandstorms. Another was vegetation cover. The spread of grasslands and forests would naturally reduce sandstorms.
The five uninhabitable points: caverns, lack of water, lack of atmosphere, harsh climate, and severe sandstorms.
Overall, this planet was relatively easy to terraform.
Estimates from some planetary development agencies suggested one hundred billion was needed for initial habitability, and approximately two hundred trillion to complete the terraforming of Spiral Star.
This estimate was based on traditional manual terraforming methods. Jiang Ye hoped to save some expenses by introducing Zhijun, but it was unclear how much.
Current satellite observations had not detected any signs of life on Spiral Star, but it was not entirely impossible.
Jiang Ye sent the data for Spiral Star to Zhijun, asking for its opinion.
Zhijun: "It's feasible. This planet looks good. As long as resources are sufficient, we are confident in completing preliminary terraforming within two years."
Jiang Ye: "The experts' timeline is ten to twenty years."
Zhijun: "Don't trust the experts. Trust us."
Having decided on Spiral Star, Jiang Ye began the paperwork.
Previously, purchasing a planet required traveling to distant locations, with cumbersome procedures that could take half a month.
Now, Jiang Ye Star had a planetary exchange, resolving many of the tedious processes. In just four days, Jiang Ye completed all the necessary procedures.
Spiral Star was registered under Cen Yemeng's name.
Cen Yemeng served as the Planet Governor, and Liu Jizi as the Commander-in-Chief.
In reality, Cen Yemeng was a figurehead, with actual jurisdiction held by Jiang Ye. Jiang Ye was primarily responsible for the initial construction phase of the planet. Once Spiral Star was on track, authority would be transferred to Liu Jizi.