Alex strolled around the Laser Tank with his hands in his pockets, noticing a very interesting detail.
The laser main gun, capable of instantly melting a main battle tank, was not directly connected to the roaring plasma reactor inside the vehicle.
Instead, there was a set of uniquely designed energy cells.
They were meticulously crafted into the shape of 120mm shells and neatly arranged in a magazine similar to an auto-loader at the rear of the turret.
The tail of each cell flickered with a blue indicator light, showing its current energy status.
"Interesting…" Alex climbed into the turret, carefully observing the design.
According to the on-site explanation, after the main gun fired 8-10 times, the gunner would need to open the magazine and replace the energy cells, just like loading traditional tank shells.
This operational procedure almost perfectly replicated the loading process of traditional tanks, only replacing shells with energy units.
He frowned, contemplating the purpose of this design.
Logically, with the power output of a plasma reactor, it could directly power the Laser Tank via cables.
But then he thought, the experts in the military equipment department must have considered it more thoroughly than him.
"Safety redundancy?" Alex muttered softly.
Indeed, physically isolating the weapon system from the power system was a wise choice.
In case the laser gun overloaded or short-circuited, it would at least not affect the vehicle's entire power system.
Moreover, modular design is easier to maintain on the battlefield—damaged cells can be quickly replaced without needing to tow the entire tank back to the repair shop.
In fact, this design concept is not uncommon in modern military equipment.
Just like the electromagnetic catapults on aircraft carriers, although nuclear reactors can provide almost infinite energy, they still rely on super capacitor banks for instantaneous high-power output during catapulting.
After all, the peak power required when energy weapons fire often far exceeds the continuous output capability of the power system.
Having figured this out, Alex climbed out of the tank.
He actually felt that the items displayed in the land equipment exhibition hall were just so-so.
After all, he was an Inquisitor and Sub-Sector Governor in the 40k era; he could access various military equipment if he wanted to.
Especially since he had already driven a Titan in 40k, these current pieces of equipment were just novelties to him, not something that truly impressed him.
So, after experiencing Old Lu's personal laser weapon, he strolled to the aerospace museum, wanting to see if there was anything eye-catching there.
When Alex walked into the air force exhibition area, he clearly felt that the atmosphere here was completely different from other exhibition areas.
The surrounding audience walked in small groups, with slight disappointment on their faces—after all, compared to the awe-inspiring Laser Tanks and bipedal mechs in the army exhibition area, the air force side indeed seemed a bit deserted.
"It seems the Air Force didn't get any new technology this time…" Alex heard an aviation enthusiast beside him whispering to his companion, "There isn't even a decent new model."
Just then, a broadcast suddenly echoed through the exhibition hall: "Attention, everyone, a special demonstration will soon take place in the runway area!"
Alex looked in the direction of the sound and saw that the "White Emperor" aerospace fighter, which had been displayed as a concept model in previous airshows, was now slowly being pushed onto the runway.
Its silver-gray fuselage reflected the dazzling sunlight, and its streamlined shape was full of futuristic appeal.
"Oh my god! Can the White Emperor really fly?" A young man wearing a press pass suddenly exclaimed.
This exclamation was like pouring cold water into a hot oil pan, and the entire exhibition area instantly erupted.
Reporters rushed towards the photography area like mad, some even accidentally knocking over display signs without bothering to pick them up.
Alex saw an elderly photographer with white hair frantically adjusting his tripod, muttering continuously, "Oh my heavens, I can actually photograph the White Emperor's maiden flight in my lifetime…"
Not far away, several foreign military observers' expressions changed drastically, and they immediately pulled out satellite phones and began whispering reports.
One man wearing sunglasses stared intently at the runway, oblivious to his tilted coffee cup, as coffee dripped onto his shiny leather shoes.
"This is impossible!" Alex heard someone behind him gasp, "They really broke through aerospace engine technology?"
On the runway, the white emperor fighter's engine began to emit a peculiar hum, unlike the sound of any active fighter jet; it sounded more like some kind of energy field resonating.
Alex narrowed his eyes, a slight smile playing on his lips—it seemed the Air Force wasn't without new equipment; they had been holding back a big move.
The white emperor fighter, a conceptual product born from a network cultural and creative IP, had been a popular meme in military fan circles for the past few years.
Whenever an airshow opened, netizens would always post playful comments like "You don't believe me, but I really built it," but everyone knew it was just a joke.
After all, the design parameters of this fighter were ridiculously exaggerated, with performance indicators like Mach 5 cruising within the atmosphere and integrated aerospace combat, which looked like something out of a science fiction novel.
"This thing's power system would at least require controllable nuclear fusion-level energy." Alex remembered a technical guru on a military forum once analyzing, "Just the design of that aerospace engine violates existing laws of physics."
The comment section was uniformly filled with replies like "Just watch it as a sci-fi movie" and "Don't take cultural products too seriously."
Even the most fervent military enthusiasts believed that the White Emperor was, at most, a "concept car" showcasing future aviation ideas.
However, at this moment, this fighter, once regarded by everyone as a "high-end collectible," was being carefully pushed onto the main runway by ground crew.
Even more astonishingly, through the open cockpit canopy, it was clearly visible that a pilot in a new flight suit was performing the final pre-flight checks inside.
His unhurried movements were as if he were piloting an ordinary active fighter jet.
"Holy crap! Are they serious?!" A young man holding a selfie stick suddenly blurted out a curse.
This sentence seemed to flip a switch, and the entire viewing area instantly erupted into a frenzy.
Some people frantically rubbed their eyes, others fumbled with their camera settings, and a few military enthusiasts were so excited they hugged each other.
When the white emperor fighter's engine emitted a peculiar hum unlike any active fighter jet, the scene suddenly fell into an eerie silence.
Everyone held their breath, staring intently at the silver-white fighter.
As the engine sound gradually intensified, the fighter began to taxi slowly, and a deafening cheer suddenly erupted from the viewing stand.
"This is more magical than magic!" A man in a baseball cap shouted, his voice hoarse with excitement.
Several foreign reporters watched the scene dumbfounded, their camera shutters clicking in a continuous stream.
And the technical guru who had once asserted on the forum that the White Emperor could absolutely not fly was now standing in the front row of the viewing stand, his expression as if he had simultaneously seen a UFO and won the lottery.
Alex looked at the accelerating White Emperor on the runway and suddenly remembered that long-circulating joke: when everyone thought it was just a cultural and creative IP, it was built anyway.
The plasma exhaust flame from the fighter's tail drew a dazzling blue light on the runway, and with a deafening sonic boom, this aerospace fighter shot straight into the sky at a nearly vertical angle, leaving countless dropped jaws and a ground littered with shattered sunglasses on the viewing stand.
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