Bitcoin Billionaire: I Regressed to Invest in the First Bitcoin!-Chapter 141: Cooling Crisis

After passing key-card doors after key-card doors, he arrived at the Operations Room.

The sound was different today.

Not the humming thrum of healthy hardware—but a growl. A low, straining rumble that layered the usual fan buzz with something off.

Darren heard it the moment he stepped into the room. He paused at the doorway, brow furrowing as warm air kissed his cheek. It was hotter. Noticeably.

Kara was already inside, crouched near Rig 6 with a thermal scanner. A technician stood nervously behind her, notebook in hand. Rico leaned on a table nearby, watching steam rise from his coffee and from the GPU racks alike.

This made Darren frown.

"Is there a problem?" he asked, stepping in.

Kara looked up, tight-lipped. "We're redlining."

Th𝗲 most uptodate novels are published on ƒгeewёbnovel.com.

First his brows raised, then they lowered, then he creased them, going through multiple stages of confusion. "Redlining? I— why— What happened?"

Kara pointed to the wall display.

Ambient Room Temp: 38.2°C (↑ 7°C)

Average GPU Temp: 91°C

Fan Load: 98%

Hashrate Fluctuation: -6.1% overnight

"If this continues, Rig 6 and 7 will throttle. Then we'll lose block speed," Kara said. "It's not catastrophic— not yet —but it's creeping up every hour."

Rico sighed. "Even with all fans running, the exhaust vents can't clear the heat fast enough. These GPUs aren't just crunching numbers, boss. They're cooking dinner."

Darren stared at the dashboard, his mind whirring.

"We've hit the edge of air cooling… sooner than I expected."

"So what do we do?" Kara asked. "I mean even the mechanic is drawing a blank, and he's a mechanic. They know stuff."

Darren wanted to grunt. He looked at all three of them and just turned around. "I need to think," he said.

Dumping his briefcase on his table, he sat down and began rubbing his temples. He wasn't a mechanic, so there was nothing he could do about it. To get one down here would cut down time and reduce their output.

Quickly, he went to the system for help, activating the Amplified Bitcoin Analyzer.

Ding!

┏A•B•A Notice: Cooling Threshold Exceeded┛

┏Suggested Solution: Implement Phase 1 Liquid Submersion Cooling (Experimental in 2010)┛

┏Projected Impact: +22% Performance Stability

— Reduced component stress

— Elimination of thermal throttling

— Increased lifespan of GPUs

┏Risks:

— Potential component damage without proper insulation

— No commercial precedent (Extreme First Mover Strategy)┛

Darren crossed his arms.

'Mineral oil cooling.' He exhaled. 'I don't know about this, System. But I'm going to trust you. A mechanic is here to contain the risk so I think we can pull it off.'

He got on his feet. "Okay, I've got a shortcut. Mineral oil cooling."

Kara looked up sharply. "Whoa. Are you serious, boss? That's still fringe even for the forum nerds. We'd be the first commercial setup doing it."

"Exactly," Darren replied. "No competition means no reference. That's how we own the future, isn't it?"

The mechanic stared at Darren. "You just came up with that by sitting for a couple minutes?" He looked at Rico and Kara. "Who the hell is this guy?"

------------

By midmorning, Darren had cleared out two racks. He tasked Kara and Rico with setting up the prototype tank.

The room swelled with tension and excitement as the first transparent acrylic tub was wheeled in, gleaming under the fluorescent lights. Kara walked around it like an engineer inspecting a prototype engine.

"Food-grade mineral oil only," she ordered. "No conductivity. Just make sure there are no bubbles."

They suspended the test rig — Rig 8 — on a mounting frame, disconnected the case fans, and dipped the motherboard and GPUs into the fluid. The oil gleamed like liquid glass.

The moment they booted it, the room collectively held its breath.

Whirr…

Buzz…

Silent.

Rico blinked. "...It's running. It's actually running. What the fuck, is Darren like a genius or something?"

Kara smiled. "I've been asking myself the same thing."

------------

By 12:00 PM, it was time for the Results Check.

The dashboard pinged with results from the submerged rig:

Rig 8 (Liquid-Cooled):

Temp: 42.1°C

Hashrate: 85.2 MH/s

Power Efficiency: +11%

Noise Output: -70%

Stability: 99.9% uptime

It has worked. Perfectly. No risks.

Darren stood behind the team, nodding slowly. "Rico, Kara — you've just built the new standard for every miner in the world. Document the entire process. This tech is ours now."

She did just that, and soon Steele Tech™ was already in sight, with the first product made.

But that was for another day.

Work continued in the Operations Room, Darren reviewed the electrical grid readouts. The rigs were sucking more power than anticipated.

"We're skating close to capacity. One surge and it's a blackout."

To deal with this, he called a private number. Ten minutes later, he was on a rooftop meeting with an LA power official.

"Install a backup transformer. Discreetly. No headlines," Darren instructed. "You'll get a bonus per month. Just keep the juice flowing."

The official lit a cigarette and nodded. "You've got a deal, Mr. Steele."

When the day came to an end, Kara was standing in front of the whiteboard again. She updated it.

Day 3 of Week 3 BTC Output: 4 Blocks = 200 BTC

Current Price: $0.50

Value: $100

Hashrate Stability: +19%

Noise Reduction: 62%

Cooling Efficiency: 27% ↑

She admired it all. "And once again, you silence all my doubts."

A smile of respect and love stretched on her face. "Just how do you do it, Mr. D?"