A hundred T3 warships!
If they were built, that alone would exceed the Dax Empire's present number of T3 interstellar warships.
Of course, that was only in theory.
You make progress, and the other side cannot stand still either.
Besides, these billion in resources could not all go into building T3 interstellar warships.
"We're going to build a T3-grade interstellar factory. Only that way can we raise our capacity. Once the T3 interstellar factory is built, then we'll build T3 interstellar warships in great numbers," Zhao Chen stated his plan.
"Won't there be a problem with the time? We have to know the Dax Empire civilization, after this defeat, is bound to prepare a third expedition. The third expedition will certainly be stronger than this one," Secretary Officer Barbara said with some worry.
Zhao Chen nodded: "We all know that. But we can't put all our resources into building combat interstellar warships. That would make our present military strength greater, but it would be spending our future time. As for when the Dax Empire's next attack comes: the interstellar warships they send are sure to number over three thousand, probably around five thousand. And to gather five thousand interstellar warships, the Dax Empire civilization needs at least eight to ten months to prepare. And by the comparison of fighting strength between Fierce Dragon–built and Dax-built interstellar warships, we need only prepare fifteen hundred interstellar warships; that's enough! Though our starships aren't many, so long as we have enough T3 interstellar warships by then, with T2 interstellar warships making up the main fleet, we can perfectly well defeat the Dax Empire's third offensive! So the next eight months are vital for us!"
Everyone nodded.
"Barbara, what's our Fierce Dragon System's monthly output value now?" Zhao Chen looked at Secretary Officer Barbara.
Secretary Officer Barbara called up a video window and, pointing at the figures on it, said, "At present our Fierce Dragon civilization's monthly output value is around eighty million star coins. That's not yet counting the output value from the Frey region. By our reckoning, within a month we'll have retaken the Frey region, and by the cooperation agreement we expect to sign with the Frey region, we provide help and technological assistance and take eighty percent of the output concerned. The total monthly output value can reach two hundred million star coins. Then we'll raise the industrial and technological capacity concerned. For instance, replacing the T1 interstellar mining ships entirely with T2 ones, and counting in newly developed resource planets and mining areas. Then this output value may rise thirty percent every month on average. This growth rate can be kept up for five months. After five months, the monthly output value of our whole star system's resources can exceed seven hundred million star coins!"
On hearing the figure of seven hundred million star coins,
even Zhao Chen could not help being startled.
This was technology changing productive power.
The more advanced the technology, the more production efficiency could be raised as well.
"Very good; keep to this pace. Within six months, bring our monthly output value to seven hundred million star coins!" Zhao Chen nodded with satisfaction.
Marshal Chu Xuan beside him went on, "Then, by our expected plan, our interstellar fleet's expansion can't stop in these eight months either. At present we're already considering stopping most of the T1 interstellar-warship production lines and upgrading them all to T2 interstellar warships. The T1 interstellar warships in service can be kept. So, eight months from now, of the fifteen hundred interstellar warships we foresee, a hundred will be T3 interstellar warships, five hundred T2 interstellar warships, and the rest the T1 interstellar warships we've kept. If we have these interstellar warships, even if the Dax Empire comes with six thousand or seven thousand interstellar warships, I'm fully confident of fighting them!"
Fighting the enemy's great numbers of interstellar warships with high-quality interstellar warships had always been what the Fierce Dragon civilization was good at.
For commanders like Marshal Chu Xuan, this was simply all too familiar.
It was the kind of fight they were best at.
With everything in every respect laid out,
Zhao Chen could count himself relieved too.
Rooting out the Frey civilization, negotiating with the Lanners civilization, facing the Dax Empire civilization:
coming through these moves one step after another, the least slip might have brought the Fierce Dragon civilization great trouble.
——————
The Dax Empire civilization.
On learning the news that the second expedition had failed,
the Dax King was in a towering rage.
"Those were fifteen hundred of our interstellar warships. With ten T3 interstellar warships among them. How could they lose!" At first the Dax King would not believe such a thing.
He could not imagine at all how two weak T2 civilizations had defeated his expeditionary fleet.
"According to the last word sent back from the front, the Lanners civilization's fleet appeared on the battlefield."
Hearing this report from his subordinate,
the Dax King was dazed a moment, then smashed an object beside him to pieces with his fist.
"Lanners… so that's it; it was the Lanners civilization making mischief. Those cunning fellows. Do they think that's enough to defeat us!"
"Brother. I ask to fight. I'm willing to lead the army on the third expedition to this Fifth System. Only by taking this Fifth System can our Dax Empire's present situation be kept up!" The Dax Prince knelt on the floor and asked to fight.
He was the Dax King's younger brother; below one man and above ten thousand, as it could be said.
"But we don't have so many starships now. And the several star systems we govern are beginning to have problems with order in the rear too, because of these recent defeats on the battlefield," a minister reminded beside them.
"Those problems exist. But so long as we win one battle, we can keep our war machine going. If we don't have enough interstellar warships, we can build them. Build interstellar warships more efficiently. Follow my plan. Within ten months I'm confident of forming an interstellar fleet of five thousand. Then we pull part of the interstellar fleets back from the Fourth System battlefield too. We can wipe out that so-called Trial civilization of the Fifth System at one stroke!"
The Dax King glanced at his brother's plan.
What was in the plan was in fact very simple: nothing but squeezing the planets below, demanding more taxes, more working hours and so on.
Under such squeezing, the output of interstellar warships truly could rise.
But anyone with eyes could see that in such a high-pressure environment, the Dax Empire was bound to have great trouble within.
Once the whole problem exploded, there would be no need of outside enemies; the troubles within alone would be enough to give the Dax Empire a hard time.
But to the Dax King, ever warlike, this did not matter in the least.
In his thinking, there was nothing in this world that war could not settle.
If one battle could not settle it, then fight a second.
So long as he won the last war, his Dax Empire civilization could become the final victor.
War above all.
This would forever be their declaration of victory!
"First destroy the Fifth System, then settle the whole account with the Lanners civilization." The Dax King looked at his brother: "I give you the authority. Get this done. Don't disappoint me!"
——————
The Lanners civilization.
"What? They actually put forward a condition of a billion star coins. What are they thinking!" The leader of the Lanners civilization looked incredulous.
As she saw it, she could not believe at all that this Fierce Dragon civilization would put forward such a condition.
Though she too had thought the terms they first put forward somewhat outrageous,
that had also been to give the other side room to negotiate.
Normally, negotiations went on within this range, the two sides tugging back and forth.
But who could have imagined that the Fierce Dragon civilization's side would not play by the usual rules at all, and slam down the ultimate trump card outright?[1]
"That's what I thought at the time too. But that Fierce Dragon Emperor was simply playing the rogue. What they meant was that if our side doesn't agree, and their Fierce Dragon civilization can't win this Trial of the Gods, then they'll simply throw the game too, and drag our Lanners civilization down with them!" the Lanners civilization's representative said helplessly.
"This fellow is too much of a rogue."
"To think there's someone who'd think like this."
"But it has to be said this man really is clever. In the Trial of the Gods there can be only one victor in the end. And compared with us and the Dax Empire civilization, his Fierce Dragon civilization truly is too small. But if they get this billion star coins, it's as good as seeing hope. And it's because of this sliver of hope that they'd be willing to cooperate with us. That makes sense too."
"But this is resources worth a billion star coins. Even for our Lanners civilization, it's no small sum. Just handing it to the Fierce Dragon civilization like this lets them off far too cheaply."
"What else can we do but give it? They've stated their position outright: if we don't give it, they won't cooperate with us, and may even go straight to supporting the Dax Empire in exchange for three years to develop. He's laying his cards on the table and playing us. So long as we don't agree, he flips the table outright."
The leader of the Lanners civilization listened to these voices and felt her head was about to split.
She said helplessly, "All right, everyone quiet down. Rest for half an hour. In half an hour we'll hold a meeting on this matter and vote on it directly."
"Yes!"
Because this matter was very important to the Lanners civilization, it could not be put off long either.
Half an hour soon passed.
The leaders of the Lanners civilization gathered again.
The leader of the Lanners civilization looked at these people; none of their faces looked very pleasant, as if they had eaten something disgusting and could not spit it out, only swallow it.
"All right, let's vote," the leader of the Lanners civilization spoke.
Everyone began to vote.
And the final result of the vote was somewhat surprising, yet within expectation too:
over two thirds agreed to this form of cooperation.
The leader of the Lanners civilization did not say much; she looked at that negotiating representative of the Lanners civilization: "The resolution is out. You can send someone over to tell them. Then fix the time of delivery for these billion star coins in resources. Since it's decided, the sooner we give it, the better. In the fighting between the Fierce Dragon civilization and the Dax civilization, the Fierce Dragon civilization must not fall so quickly. Otherwise we'll become the Dax Empire civilization's main target of attack next," the leader of the Lanners civilization said gravely.
"Yes!"
——————
The former Frey planet.
On this planet now, after that earlier upheaval, order had basically been restored in the major city clusters.
In the sky, the Fierce Dragon civilization's interstellar warships kept the peace, and on the ground some of the Fierce Dragon civilization's combat mecha were stationed too.
Together with some local regimes that had been set up, the planet had basically recovered its former order and life.
And because the high-pressure laws the Frey civilization had made before were gone, though the cities had been damaged by the war, smiles could still be seen on people's faces.
Overhead the wreck of that temple that had stood for the Frey civilization's rule could still be seen, drifting in the distant sky like an asteroid.
Interstellar industrial ships sent from the Fierce Dragon System were dismantling it; after all, this temple had been built with a great deal of resources too, and could not be wasted.
And at this moment, somewhere on this planet,
a meeting was being held.
As the Fierce Dragon civilization's representative at this meeting,
Marshal Medusa attended.
In truth most of the meeting's main business had already been settled by the departments and people concerned.
Marshal Medusa had only come as the Fierce Dragon civilization's representative to sign, and give a speech while she was at it.
Marshal Medusa looked at this planet's new regime and system before her.
It was basically the same as Dragon Star's:
made up of a planetary Upper House and Lower House.
The Upper House had seats for ten countries; the Lower House held some small countries and regions.
Because the Frey civilization was gone, some of the countries and regions of ten years ago had stepped forward one after another.
"Everyone. Once this agreement is signed, we're allies. Apart from military and foreign-affairs powers, we won't interfere in your internal administration, unless one of the special events written into the rules breaks out. I know too that now, with governments and countries everywhere on your planet being restored, there are bound to be territorial disputes. Bring all disputes to the Upper House to discuss; don't use force. If anyone uses force lightly, don't blame our interstellar warships for not being polite. We'll serve as a supervisor. Besides that, we'll share our technology with you too, so that your life and production and every other aspect can be greatly improved! …" Marshal Medusa delivered a set speech.
More than half of it had been written for her by the people under her before she came.
When she had finished speaking,
everyone applauded.
The Fierce Dragon civilization was unfamiliar to them.
But what those interstellar warships overhead stood for, they all knew very well.
To tell the truth, had it not been for the Fierce Dragon civilization's support, they would have had no way at all to overthrow the Frey civilization's regime.
And as things looked now, the system the Fierce Dragon civilization had set up truly was very good; apart from requiring them to pay some protection money, it imposed few restrictions.
Compared with the Frey civilization's high-pressure rule before, it was already far, far better.
Then the banquet ended.
Marshal Medusa then received some people one after another, in small meetings.