Chapter 006: Wealth Rivaling a Nation

"Mr. Justin Hammer, is that spaceship overhead really manufactured by Hammer Industries?"

"Genuine."

"Mr. Justin Hammer, is that spaceship truly an anti-gravity spacecraft?"

"Of course, absolutely an anti-gravity spacecraft. Do you think I would lie to you on an occasion like this?"

"Mr. Justin Hammer, during World War II, Tony Stark's father invented an anti-gravity car. Are you merely rehashing old ideas?"

"Heh, you're quite knowledgeable. Yes, Howard Stark was undoubtedly a genius no less than Tony Stark. Unfortunately, limited by the technology of his time, his anti-gravity car was not perfected. After his death, anti-gravity research hit a bottleneck. But I can tell you, our anti-gravity spacecraft is true anti-gravity technology."

Wang Bo remained remarkably composed in the face of the reporter's barbed questions.

Because there was nothing to get excited about.

"Mr. Justin Hammer, you mentioned earlier that your new product is closely related to the Moon and Mars. Am I to understand that your anti-gravity spacecraft can leave Earth and reach those two planets?"

"No problem!" Wang Bo admitted outright. "Besides anti-gravity technology, my spacecraft is equipped with supersonic thrusters. It can reach the Moon in half an hour. Mars is a bit farther, taking a few hours. I believe you all know what this means."

The same thought emerged in the minds of most reporters.

Interstellar colonization!

The reporters grew even more excited, almost frenzied.

"Mr. Justin Hammer, do you think interstellar colonization is achievable?"

"Yes."

"But as everyone knows, Mars and the Moon are not suitable for human habitation."

"You're right, but that doesn't stump us, does it?" Wang Bo said leisurely. "Humans conquered Earth; there's no reason we can't conquer Mars and the Moon. There are technical challenges, but they're not insurmountable."

"Mr. Justin Hammer, your spacecraft looks very small. Can it really achieve large-scale interstellar colonization?"

"That question shows a lack of insight. Anti-gravity technology and supersonic engines are mature; building larger spacecraft is only a matter of time. The reason I built a small spacecraft is not due to technical limitations but because I saw no need to build a large one."

Wang Bo's words resonated with many, and they joined in deriding the reporter who had asked that question.

The reporter's face flushed red, and he retreated in defeat.

But more reporters swarmed forward, trying to extract more information from Wang Bo.

Wang Bo didn't hide anything; he said all that could and should be said, and as for what couldn't be said, he kept his mouth shut.

The press conference lasted over two hours before finally concluding.

Before lunch, Wang Bo returned to his office at Hammer Industries, took out the Gourmet Tablecloth, and began to enjoy his lunch.

Meanwhile, the reporters who had returned to their newsrooms were eagerly planning to break a big story.

By the next day, all of New York was buzzing.

Countless newspapers were reporting on Justin Hammer, anti-gravity spacecraft, light-speed engines, interstellar colonization, and more. At the same time, Hammer Industries' stock was rising at an astonishing rate.

Many meddlesome people had already crowned Wang Bo as the world's richest man.

But this didn't provoke dissatisfaction from others, as everyone felt the title was well-deserved.

Although there was still some distance from interstellar colonization, it was undeniable that both the Moon and Mars held vast resources.

Take the Moon, for example: it has abundant mineral deposits, with rare metal reserves greater than Earth's. Lunar rocks contain all the elements found on Earth and about 60 kinds of minerals, including six that do not exist on Earth.

Lunar rocks are mainly divided into three types: basalt rich in iron and titanium; anorthosite rich in rare earths, potassium, and phosphorus; and breccia rich in iron.

Rare earths, in particular, are indispensable in the electronics industry and are one of the raw materials for energy-saving light bulbs.

Earth's rare earth production is limited, and with massive consumption over the past few decades, rare earth resources will soon be exhausted.

The Moon's rare earth reserves are estimated at 22.5 to 45 billion tons. If lunar rare earths could be mined and brought to Earth, the rare earth crisis would be no more.

Additionally, the Moon contains some nuclear fuel materials, such as uranium and helium-3. Uranium is the main fuel for nuclear fission, while helium-3 is the main fuel for nuclear fusion. Since fusion does not produce neutrons, it is a pollution-free form of controlled nuclear fission.

Earth's helium-3 content is very low, with total global reserves amounting to only a few thousand tons.

But the Moon is different. Without a global magnetic field, the solar wind carrying rare gas ions like helium continuously bombards the lunar surface, enriching the lunar soil with helium-3.

The helium-3 content in lunar soil is estimated at over 700,000 tons. If lunar helium-3 could be mined and brought to Earth, the energy crisis on Earth would essentially be over.

In the past, humans were limited by technology and could not harvest lunar resources.

They could only gaze at the Moon and sigh.

But now, with Hammer Industries' spacecraft able to easily reach the Moon, it means they can mine vast resources there.

In other words, Wang Bo alone controls the resources of one planet—no, two planets.

So it was only fitting that people called him the world's richest man.

People often use the phrase 'wealth rivaling a nation' to describe someone's riches, but everyone knows it's just an exaggeration.

No matter how wealthy an individual is, they cannot compare to a country.

But now, people could finally say that phrase boldly, and it was truly fitting for him.

Wang Bo instantly became the darling of countless media outlets and newspapers. Time magazine, the most authoritative in America, used Wang Bo's portrait as its cover with a simple headline.

He, Justin Hammer, Wealth Rivaling a Nation.

No problem.

At that moment, whether it was Stark Industries or any other company, they were insignificant compared to Hammer Industries.

At the same time, Wang Bo found that countless orders were pouring into Hammer Industries like snowflakes. A bunch of sharp operators even wanted to buy Wang Bo's spaceship.

In response, Wang Bo had only one thought... Sell!

Why not sell? He built the spaceship to make money. Since the Moon and Mars were already purchased and were his private property, if other companies wanted to set up operations, they had to pay up.