##What Is Shentu Chain?
Shentu Chain, a security-first, delegated proof-of-stake blockchain, for trustworthy execution of mission-critical applications, including DeFi, NFTs, and autonomous vehicles. Shentu Chain prioritizes cross-chain compatibility, built as a Cosmos Hub with full EVM and Hyperledger Burrow compatibility, as well as compatibility with eWASM and Ant Financial’s AntChain. Across protocols, blockchain projects can receive security insights with the Security Oracle, which provides real-time guards of on-chain transactions, identifying and flagging a wide range of malicious vulnerabilities before they occur. Depending on the level of the security score, audited blockchain projects of any protocol may be eligible for a ShentuShield membership, which is a flexible, decentralized reimbursement system for any crypto asset that is irretrievably lost or stolen due to security issues. ShentuShield memberships are open to all community members of these eligible blockchain projects, providing a safety net to holders of crypto assets in case anything unexpected happens.
Natively, projects can code in DeepSEA, a hyper-secure programming language supported by the Ethereum Foundation, Qtum Foundation, and IBM. DeepSEA works directly with the Shentu Virtual Machine (SVM), which is fully compatible with EVM. SVM innovatively exposes smart contract and blockchain security information, enabling unprecedented ways to access, check, and incorporate risk into the decisions of smart contracts. CTK is the native digital utility fuel of Shentu Chain, serving as the core utility for on-chain functionalities such as operating the Security Oracle and ShentuShield systems, paying gas consumption of Shentu Chain, and voting for governance decisions within the network.
What is the Security Oracle?
The Security Oracle is formed by a decentralized network of operators that use industry-leading security technologies to evaluate the reliability of mission-critical smart contracts, such as those used in DeFi. In exchange for these real-time, updatable scores, these operators receive CTK rewards. The Security Oracle is interoperable with any protocol, allowing their users to make educated decisions before interacting with smart contracts. Smart contracts integrated with the Security Oracle may flag and prevent malicious transactions from occurring, preventing situations of crypto asset loss. More information available here.
What is ShentuShield?
ShentuShield is a decentralized membership system to enable reimbursements of lost or stolen cryptocurrency from any protocol. Reimbursement decisions are fully made at the discretion of the members of ShentuShield, who may be blockchain projects or individual community supporters. Members may participate by contributing their own collateral as Collateral Providers, purchasing protection for their crypto as Shield Purchasers, or both. Collateral Providers earn staking rewards on their staked CTK, while also earning a share of the fees contributed by Shield Purchasers. Shield Purchasers reserve funds from the Pool to be used as reimbursements for their own crypto assets, paying a fee in CTK that goes directly to the Collateral Providers. A growing list of publicly viewable, audited clients can be found here.
What is DeepSEA?
DeepSEA is a secure programming language and compiler toolchain compatible with the SVM, EVM, eWASM, and Ant Financial’s AntChain. DeepSEA has been awarded research grants from Ethereum, IBM-Columbia, and Qtum to push forward its hyper-secure programming language. While coding in DeepSEA, mathematical proofs are automatically generated to prove alignment between the intended specification and the actual code, allowing for greater depth of formal verification and correctness.
What is the Shentu Virtual Machine (SVM)?
While fully compatible with EVM, the SVM has been architected to follow the leading universal VM found in computers worldwide, the x86–64 OS process model, with possible extensions to arm64 in the future. The SVM enables on-chain security parameters to allow smart contracts to interact differently with each other in accordance with their risk tolerance. Additionally, the SVM is designed to support a smart contract sandbox, isolating the operation of smart contracts (especially those that have yet to be secured) from the rest of the system.