Chapter 531

In the midnight capital of the United States, the cold seeped into the bones, yet the Pentagon was ablaze with light, like a dormant beast in the darkness.

Inside the building that should have long been quiet, figures now bustled; personnel in dark suits and uniforms hurried through the corridors, the sound of leather shoes striking the floor urgent and heavy, shattering the night's stillness.

An urgent encrypted meeting notice was issued two hours ago to the core decision‑makers of the Pentagon and senior military officials; the notice contained only a few words, yet it was enough to tense the entire U. S. defense system—"Emergency Assessment Meeting on the Successful Test Flight of Daxia's J‑20 Fighter".

Inside the top‑secret conference room on the third basement level, both sides of the long table were filled with people.

At the head of the table, U. S. Secretary of Defense Alan Walker rested his clasped hands on the table, his knuckles whitening, his brows furrowed into a tight river‑like shape.

Before him lay an open document; on top was a blurry satellite photo whose outline could still be made out—showing a silver‑gray J‑20 fighter soaring above the Xibei Gobi, its exhaust plume tracing a brilliant arc across the dim‑yellow sky.

"Everyone's here, let's begin." Walker's voice was hoarse, heavy with undisguised gravity, as his gaze swept over those seated before the table—Joint Chiefs Chairman Thomas Miller, CIA Director Robert Burns, Air Force Chief of Staff Henry Brown, and the CEOs of top defense contractors such as Lockheed Martin and Boeing, each a core figure in U. S. defense and military industry, yet now every face was grim.

Speaking first was CIA Director Burns, who picked up the red folder on the table, pulled out a stack of intelligence briefs, and slammed them down, his tone urgent.

"Gentlemen, according to reports from our operatives lurking near Daxia's Xibei test flight site and confirmed by real‑time satellite monitoring, Daxia's J‑20 stealth fighter completed its first full‑scope test flight this afternoon—and it was a complete success!"

The words "complete success" exploded in the meeting room like a thunderclap.

The CEO of Boeing seated on the right, David Horn, bolted upright, his face full of disbelief.

"Impossible! Three months ago our intelligence still showed severe defects in their Fire Control System and that their Stealth Coating lacked sufficient high‑temperature resistance—how could they possibly finish a full‑scope test flight so quickly?"

"That's the fact." Burns flipped the projector switch; the lights in the room dimmed instantly, and detailed data appeared on the large wall screen: "These are the core test‑flight parameters we obtained through special channels: the J‑20's maximum flight speed reaches Mach 2.5, its supersonic cruise speed stabilizes at Mach 1.8, far exceeding our earlier estimates."

"Its active phased‑array radar has a detection range exceeding 250 km, can lock onto twelve aerial targets simultaneously and engage six of them, and its multi‑target tracking capability even surpasses that of our F-22."

"More importantly, their Stealth Coating shows no loss of adhesion or stealth performance in high‑temperature environments, fully capable of withstanding the aerodynamic heating of high‑speed flight."

The data on the screen flipped page by page, each set of numbers striking the audience's hearts like a heavy hammer.

Air Force Chief of Staff Henry Brown's face turned livid, his fingers unconsciously tapping the tabletop.

"What about the Fire Control System? How is theirs tuned?"

As the Air Force's primary responsible officer, he knows best how vital the Fire Control System is to a fighter jet—it is the jet's "eyes" and "fists".

"The Fire Control System performed beyond expectations," Burns said with a hint of bitterness. "According to intelligence, the J‑20 completed a precision lock‑on test in low‑altitude, complex airflow conditions during the trial flight, with an error under 0.01 m, and successfully finished the air‑to‑air missile loading adaptation and simulated launch sequence, the launch chain unimpeded."

"The person in charge of this project is Daxia's defense‑science lead Lin Shengli, together with his eldest son Lin Zhengpeng, who is the core developer of the Fire Control System; he is said to be a genius, already holding a doctorate at age 33 and having deep expertise in avionics."

"Lin Shengli…" Walker murmured the name, his gaze growing darker. "We've kept an eye on him before—he has overseen the development of several cutting‑edge weapons for Daxia, and I never expected him to give us another 'surprise' with this stealth fighter."

His tone was full of mockery, yet it could not hide his inner anxiety.

The conference room fell into a brief silence, broken only by the faint hum of the projector.

Everyone was digesting this shocking news; they had originally believed that the United States' advantage in stealth fighters would last at least another decade, but the J‑20's successful test flight shattered that balance outright.

If Daxia proceeds to mass‑deploy the J‑20, the United States' air supremacy in the Asia‑Pacific region will face a serious challenge.

"We can't just stand by!" Joint Chiefs Chairman Thomas Miller slammed the table, breaking the silence. "We must act immediately! Daxia's aviation industry is developing faster than we can control; if this continues, our technological edge will vanish completely."

"General Miller is right," said James Reed, CEO of Lockheed Martin, picking up the thread. "Our F-22 may have been in service for years, but its performance still leads the world, and F-35 production is moving forward. Nevertheless, the emergence of Daxia's J-20 has indeed sounded an alarm for us. We need more funding to accelerate the development of a next-generation stealth fighter, while also upgrading the performance of our existing aircraft to ensure technological superiority over Daxia."

"Funding?" Walker frowned. "The defense budget is already under great pressure, and Congress is unlikely to approve a large supplemental appropriation."

"No matter the pressure, we have to do it!" Miller declared firmly. "This concerns our national security and global hegemony! We can emphasize to Congress the 'threat' posed by Daxia, making them understand that if we do not increase investment now, the future cost will be far greater. I propose adding 500 billion dollars to the current defense budget, earmarked for advanced fighter research, stealth-counter technology breakthroughs, and upgrading our military posture in the Asia-Pacific region."

"500 billion dollars? That's no small sum." Burns furrowed his brow. "Moreover, we still need time to persuade Congress."

"Time waits for no one!" Brown said in a low voice. "According to our assessment, after Daxia's successful J-20 test flight, they are likely to accelerate production, with deployment expected within 18 to 24 months. We must get ahead of them, completing technical upgrades and force-posture adjustments. I propose launching an emergency appropriation procedure, diverting a portion of existing defense funds as seed money, while simultaneously urging Congress to pass the supplemental bill as quickly as possible."