Chapter 182: Critical Situation

In a secret base in the desert, a group of armed personnel wearing traditional robes gathered around several wooden crates, their eyes flashing with excitement.

"Allah be praised! They've finally arrived!" The leader, a man with a thick beard, impatiently pried open a crate lid, inside which were neatly arranged several gleaming automatic rifles—the Type Weapon 56 manufactured by Long Country.

"My brothers!" The bearded man held a rifle high, shouting excitedly to those around him, "This is the divine weapon that will help us win Victory! The Long Countrymen's weapons are the most reliable war machines in the world!"

A burst of cheers erupted around them, and several young fighters impatiently picked up the weapons, caressing the black gun bodies and the distinctively curved Magazine with affection.

"Look, there's this too!" Another crate was opened, revealing several rocket launchers and rows of Rocket Shell.

"107 Rocket Launcher!" The bearded man's eyes were startlingly bright, "With this, those enemies hiding in bunkers will have nowhere to hide! Allah above, the Long Countrymen are simply our best friends!"

Everyone present knew that this batch of weapons had not been easy to obtain.

A few months ago, the procurement team they sent had gone through many twists and turns before finally making contact with Long Country's arms representatives through secret channels.

After difficult negotiations, they exchanged precious oil for this batch of advanced weapons capable of changing the landscape of local wars.

"Abdullah, get the young men ready," the bearded man said to his assistant beside him, "We will test the power of these weapons tonight. At dawn tomorrow, we launch the attack on the northern outpost!"

Scenes like this were constantly playing out in multiple hotspots.

Long Country's weapons, with their astonishing cost-effectiveness and reliability, quickly won the favor of armed forces in these regions.

……

While the weapons manufactured by Long Country were shining brightly in war-torn hotspots around the world, Li Mingyuan had no time to appreciate these achievements.

He was sitting in a jeep heading to the Military Department, his brows tightly locked.

"Chief Engineer Li, the situation is not good." The driver, Lao Liu, shook his head while driving, "News from the front line says the Taiyang army can no longer hold on."

Li Mingyuan nodded, "I heard. The Star-Spangled Country is determined to take down Taiyang this time."

Lao Liu sighed, "They call it a 'coalition force', but it's actually just a pawn for the Star-Spangled Country. Damn it, I've fought for so many years and never seen anyone so shameless!"

Outside the car window, he watched the pedestrians walking hurriedly and the military vehicles occasionally driving by.

On the surface, everything looked normal, but the heavy expressions on everyone's faces betrayed the tense atmosphere beneath the appearance.

In front of the headquarters building, there were twice as many guards as usual, and the inspections were even stricter.

After showing his credentials, Li Mingyuan was taken directly to the conference room on the fourth floor.

Pushing open the door, the room was already full of people.

Besides generals of all ranks from the Military, there were also some high-ranking officials and heads of intelligence departments. Li Mingyuan had just found a seat when a general strode in, his face so gloomy it could drip water.

"The situation is critical, so I won't beat around the bush." The general went straight to the point,

"The Taiyang army has collapsed across the board, and the last line of defense is crumbling. It is expected that within three days, the Star-Spangled Country's army will reach our border."

There was Silence in the conference room, with only the faint sound of paper and pens rubbing against each other.

"The Star-Spangled Country's air force is even more arrogant." Director Li of the intelligence department added,

"The communications we intercepted show that their pilots are openly clamoring on the channel to bomb targets within our country."

"How arrogant?" a general asked.

Director Li opened a file, "According to our decrypted telegrams, a flight squadron leader named Mike said in the communication: 'The Long Countrymen's Anti-aircraft System is just like their Great Wall—ancient and useless. Give me three squadrons, and I can blow Fengtian into a ruin, then leisurely return to base to drink coffee.'"

"Son of a bitch!" A general from Dongbei couldn't help but slam the table and stand up, "These arrogant bastards! Do they really think we are easy to bully?"

The general signaled for him to sit down, "Don't be agitated, the Star-Spangled Country does have the capital for arrogance. They now possess absolute air superiority, with thousands of warplanes deployed in Taiyang alone, including the latest F-86 Sabre fighter jets."

Li Mingyuan calculated secretly in his heart: The F-86 was indeed a cutting-edge fighter in this era, with a top speed of nearly 900 kilometers per hour, equipped with 6 12.7mm machine guns or Rocket Shell, and its technical level was at least 5 years ahead of the world at that time.

The intelligence report continued: "What is even more worrying is that the capital of Taiyang has fallen, and civilian casualties are heavy. A large number of refugees are pouring toward our border, with an estimated number reaching hundreds of thousands. The situation in the border area is already on the verge of breaking out."

The general looked around, his gaze finally landing on Li Mingyuan, "Chief Engineer Li, how are your Anti-aircraft System and new weapons coming along?"

Everyone's eyes were focused on Li Mingyuan.

Li Mingyuan stood up calmly, "The Tianluo System has already begun small-batch production, and the first batch of 200 launchers and 50 Anti-aircraft Machine Gun will be delivered within two weeks. The Cloud Bomb has also been finalized and is in urgent production. In addition, we have developed an improved Anti-aircraft Machine Gun with a 30% increase in rate of fire and a 50% increase in accuracy, which can effectively intercept low-flying warplanes."

"Two weeks?" The general frowned, "The Star-Spangled Country can reach our border in three days; two weeks is too slow!"

Li Mingyuan was prepared, "Chief, we can first mobilize existing anti-aircraft forces to the border while stepping up the production of new weapons. I have designed a simplified production process; if given enough resources and manpower, I can deliver the first batch of equipment within a week."

The general thought for a moment and nodded, "Good, I will immediately issue an order to fully support your production plan. Resources are not the problem; time is."

Just then, a communicator ran in hurriedly and handed a telegram to the general.

The general scanned it quickly, his expression becoming even more solemn.

"The situation has changed. According to the latest intelligence, the Star-Spangled Country's Marine Corps has landed in northern Taiyang, only 200 kilometers from our border. They have also deployed Missile Launcher, clearly aimed at us."

The atmosphere in the conference room suddenly became even more tense.

"Chief," Li Mingyuan suddenly spoke, "I think we must act immediately. The Star-Spangled Country is testing our bottom line. If we do not make a strong response, they will become even more unscrupulous."

The general looked at Li Mingyuan, "What is your suggestion?"

"Immediately deploy all our existing anti-aircraft forces to the border, while accelerating the production and transport of new weapons. In addition,"

Li Mingyuan paused, "We need the support of the Polar Bear, especially in terms of air power."

Mentioning the Polar Bear, the atmosphere in the conference room changed subtly.

Everyone knew that although the Polar Bear supported Long Country on the surface, it had actually been watching from the sidelines, with an ambiguous attitude.