Chapter 280: Press Conference on Xingtian
Many people noticed that the city built by Blacklight Biotechnology, the Eco Science City, had launched several major projects.
For example, there were several factories of unknown purpose. These factories spanning dozens of kilometers, plus the Blacklight Nuclear Power Plant by the sea, all comprised a vast industrial park that was practically the largest place for manufacturing in Africa.
In addition, in the center of the Eco Science City, a building that had been under construction for more than a year was finally completed during this time.
This was a hemispherical building with an area of about four hectares and a diameter of about 200 meters. Based on its interior, it should be a public facility akin to a multifunctional stadium.
Nonetheless, unlike most stadiums, this hemispherical building had a huge dome made of the latest lightweight-material technology. Beneath this was 40,000 seats and a high-tech stage that could be raised and lowered in the center.
The stage was shaped like a distilling flask. A straight pa.s.sage extended into the backstage where actors could enter the stage directly from backstage. Above the stage was a hexahedron, which every side featured a huge screen of 15000mm x 10000mm. This was large enough so that even the audience in the furthest seat could see everything on the stage.
The name of this enclosed multifunctional stadium was the Blacklight Dome.
Presently, a large number of people had arrived at this dome-like building. These people thronged in and out, transporting pieces of equipment into the building.
This was because the TED conference in 2024 would be held here.
Xia Yin handed the planner to Chen Chen. After Chen Chen approved it, Xia Yin again sent it to the CEO in Africa, Qian Wenhuan. Qian Wenhuan would run the event on the ground.
To get Project Xingtian an unprecedented amount of publicity, the head office even personally negotiated with the TED organizers and set the venue for 2024’s TED conference to be in the Blacklight Dome of the Eco Science City.
Moreover, instead of inviting only 1,350 attendees as was the case with previous TED conferences, this time, Blacklight Biotechnology had issued 30,000 invitations in one go, inviting all well-known audience members who had been to a TED conference before. They even waived the 7,500 USD ticket fee and all expenses would be borne by Blacklight Biotechnology.
This was not only because Chen Chen would be giving a speech at this TED conference, but also because the latest press conference would be held at this venue!
Such an extravagant move immediately attracted the attention of the world. There were some people who, despite not receiving the invitation letter, began to quickly apply for visas to come to Namibia, wanting to partic.i.p.ate in this grand technological event.
At the end of March, the number of tourists in the Eco Science City exceeded 100,000 for the first time. The huge flow of people brought explosive economic benefits. It was hard to get a hotel room in the Eco Science City and even the hotels of nearby coastal cities like Walvis Bay and Swakopmund were already overcrowded.
Many people had no choice but to stay in the capital city, Windhoek, over a hundred kilometers away.
Besides the fact that this was TED, a world-renowned speech conference, where all the partic.i.p.ants were leaders from all walks of life, the more crucial reason that everyone went crazy over this was that many of them came for Blacklight Biotechnology’s latest press conference.
Many people had figured out long ago that Blacklight Biotechnology was a biomedical company standing at the apex of the Earth Federation. Although its market value was not high, not even making it into the world’s top 500, this was only because the company had not been funded and listed.
This company had become what it was today entirely on its own...
...
On 1 April, in front of the Blacklight Dome in the center of the Eco Science City, there was a lot of busy traffic and bustling people.
At eleven o’clock in the morning, hundreds of news vehicles and media from all over the world gathered in the square before the main entrance of the Blacklight Dome. Many reporters and anchors had to stand in the crowd, face the camera, and start reporting.
“Ladies and gentlemen, this is Federation Info. It’s Anna here. We’re now in the Eco Science City of Namibia. As you can see, there’s a ma.s.sive crowd! There are hundreds of media outlets besides us. One must say that today is a special day because today is when the hero of the Earth Federation — Blacklight Biotechnology — will hold its latest conference!
“As the benchmark for biomedical companies, Blacklight Biotechnology isn’t that high-profile. Ever since this mysterious company entered the public eye, this is only the second time it has held a press conference. What’s more dramatic is that the last press conference this company held was exactly this time last year. That press conference shook up the entire world. I wonder if this press conference will disappoint everyone?
“In any case, let us wait and see!”
The host of Federation Info spoke frankly and eloquently, and not too far from her was the reporter from Agence France-Presse.
“Dear audiences on the other side of the screen, this is AFP. Currently, I’m standing before the main entrance of the Blacklight Dome. We’re here in the Eco Science City of the famous Blacklight Biotechnology. Speaking of this legendary company, I think there aren’t many who haven’t heard about how Blacklight had developed a vaccine for the Blacklight virus one month in advance of many other continents, saving all of Africa, and even indirectly saving the Earth Federation...
“Moreover, they have also developed three anti-cancer targeted drugs, which they claim to have a 90% chance of curing cancer. In addition, they have also developed an age-reversal treatment plan. They’re practically a celebrity within the pharmaceutical industry and their existence has saved the equivalent of over a hundred million lives...
“And today, not only is it another one of Blacklight Biotechnology’s press conferences, but this time, the extremely mysterious founder of this company will appear in the public eye for the first time as a TED speaker to deliver a talk. And what kind of enlightenment will he bring to our lives? I’m Anson from AFP, please stay tuned in for our follow-up report!”
...
This kept happening in the square of the Blacklight Dome. As it got closer to noon, more people started flocking in. These people were dressed in suits and shoes, exuding an air of confidence. They waved their admission tickets, went past the usher, and verified their ident.i.ties. Following that, they had to pa.s.s through a metal detector and an X-ray machine before entering the venue.
There were 40,000 seats in the Blacklight Dome. The reason why only 30,000 people were invited was that the remaining 10,000 were for the staff members who had signed up as volunteers. In addition, there were also seats for major media outlets.
The Black Knights were responsible for the event’s security. To ensure Chen Chen’s safety during his talk, five hundred security guards were placed throughout the venue to keep watch. A thousand Black Knights were also situated among the audience.
Furthermore, Little X was also monitoring the Internet around the clock. It would be able to respond quickly if it found any traces of information that hinted at danger.
At a quarter past 12, when everyone was completely seated, the venue lights suddenly dimmed. At the same time, a circular podium at the center of the venue slowly descended from the roof of the dome while the six enormous screens lit up one after another, fully revealing the stage before everyone’s eyes.
Without a doubt, the TED Talk was starting.