Under the Red Dragon.

Chapter 598 The Driving Force of the Times
How long would it take for a medieval magical agricultural nation to develop into a true industrial nation with magic as its primary industry and technology as its secondary industry?

The Golden Empire demonstrated to the entire world of Ekania its pioneering and development process, a process that would take at least nearly a hundred years.

Even with the legacy of an ancient magical empire and the correct will and wisdom of its rulers, the Golden Empire still needed decades of dedicated development and hard work to accumulate strength and achieve its current prosperity.

After decades of development, the military-industrial system of the Golden Empire has now formed with the Dragon Royal Court as its central top layer.
Within the Ministry of Defense, which is led by Mist Dragon Droni, the Defense Magic Technology Military Industry Department is the chief steward.

The empire is structured around twelve leading military industrial groups, with hundreds of subordinate magical technology research institutes serving as the main research and development force.

Among them, twelve leading military industrial groups are all super-large imperial enterprises directly managed by the Dragon Royal Court and directly supervised by the Imperial Government's Asset Supervision Committee.

These include the Golden Empire Cross-Border Magic Industry Group, the Empire Pioneer Magic Energy Technology Group, the Empire Aerospace Industry Group and the Empire Aerospace Energy Group, the Empire Shipbuilding Industry Group and the Empire Weaponry and Equipment Industry Group, the Empire Particle Element Group and the Empire Magic Information Industry Group, etc.

Known as the economic godfather of the Empire and the northern land of Ekania, Goblin Glitter's high status is also due to his position as the head consultant of the Empire's weapons and equipment industrial group.

The position of consultant may not seem to have any great power or important functions, but it means that the goblin glitter can contact and communicate with the top rulers of the empire at any time to quickly reach a consensus on their goals.

The hundreds of research institutes affiliated with these twelve leading military industrial groups were subsequently divided into three layers by the imperial government through long-term exploration: general institutes, subsystem institutes, and component institutes.

The General Institute is responsible for the overall design and system module integration of military equipment for Imperial Legion soldiers and even for military equipment produced and sold to all parts of Asia.

This important department is usually headed by veteran master craftsmen and magic system designers from within the empire, and it is the core decision-making body for the entire military weapons research and development project.

For example, the reform of the Imperial Floating Mage Tower model and the optimization of its energy core were led by the Aerospace Energy Design Institute (Institute 301) in Gulfstream City.

The project that led the replication and development of Imperial Astral warships was handled by the Starship Design Institute (Institute 295) in the city of Degonia.

The Imperial Shipbuilding Industry Group's 401 Research Institute, located in the Golden City, a city in the eastern part of the Empire where waterways converge and flow into the sea, is in charge of leading the Empire's naval steel warship project.

The organizational structure of the Golden Empire is several times, even dozens of times, more complex and rigorous than that of other civilizations in the world of Ekania.

But it is precisely because of this rigorous yet clearly defined imperial structure that the country has developed unprecedented organizational power and cohesion.

It is precisely through these well-organized, streamlined, efficient, and united military research institutes that the Golden Empire has created the current top-tier military equipment research and development system and upgrade system.

Compared to other nations in the world of Ekania, the Golden Empire possesses advantages in 'talent advantage', 'separation of production and research', 'military-civilian integration', and a massive, almost insurmountable, magical industrialization output advantage.

This is also the advantage that makes the Golden Empire unique in the world civilization of Ekania, enough to crush any country in the world of Ekania.

Even if all the nations and civilizations on a single continent were united, they could not withstand the Golden Empire's nearly century-long accumulation and innovation in the military industry.

Because the Golden Empire has the largest population base with the highest coverage of knowledge dissemination and education in the world of Ekania, the probability of high-level talents emerging is far greater than that of other civilizations.

After all, over the decades, as many as 108 institutions of higher learning have emerged in the empire.

Of course, for this reason, the empire's rulers bear far more responsibility than the rulers of other countries.

Not only the ruling dragon king, but also the blue dragon Doth, was so busy that he passed by the dragon's lair several times without entering, and even the white dragon Garmott was deeply preoccupied with his own affairs.

When White Dragon Gemot stood on the top floor of the Imperial Military Equipment Research Institute's main engineering center, looking down at the central region of the Empire, the busyness of these days seemed to be swept away by the low-altitude breeze, which was 120 meters high.

In fact, in the Golden Empire, the beauty of architecture was not simply measured by its height.

However, due to the diverse races within the empire, including the existence of numerous races such as dragons and giants, and the proliferation of giant subspecies, the buildings within the empire are generally very tall.

Even the elven artisans within the empire, who have always valued exquisite luxury, have gradually been influenced by the empire and have come to admire a grand and magnificent aesthetic.

"Your Majesty Garmott, military trade orders received by the Hobbes Empire increased by nearly twenty percentage points year-on-year in the first half of this year,"

"This also means that the Empire's current production capacity needs to be increased slightly in order to meet the Hobbes Empire's needs this year!"

The head of the military industrial institute did not act with the same caution and deference as subjects in other countries when meeting their rulers; his tone was simply respectful.

Grimm leaned lazily against the leather sofa by the rooftop pool, his gaze sweeping over the human wearing the Imperial Medal before him.

In fact, even Grimhot could not fully understand the many high-ranking officials in the empire who accepted the dragon's rule.

Because of the current size of the Golden Empire and the fluidity of its political order, many officials who achieve results within the empire receive timely feedback, namely, promotion.

The most coveted position among officials in the empire was to establish a complete imperial system in the desolate and uncivilized regions.

Such merits are enough for imperial officials to rest on their laurels, and after a long period of stable observation, they can obtain a ticket to enter the Imperial Central Council.

However, the empire had long been accustomed to this order.

Gormot nodded slightly and asked respectfully, "Your Excellency, what is the current estimated production capacity of the Empire's military industry?"

The chief of staff, his temples slightly graying, didn't need to look at any documents. He spoke up, "If we estimate based on normal levels, the Empire's military-industrial complex has enough annual production capacity to supply nearly half of the countries in the world of Aikania."

"Take, for example, the high-energy explosive guns used by wolf riders who patrol and contain the main battle legions in ground warfare,"

"The Imperial military industry can produce two billion explosive bombs every year. If the Empire faces war, this number can increase exponentially with the military industry operating at full capacity!"

"The empire produces enough explosives in a year to support a medium-sized war of attrition for a large nation-state. Moreover, according to the monitoring of the Imperial Civilization Observation Council, many civilizations in other material planes are still in the early stages of civilization development."

"Therefore, the Empire's explosives are among the best-selling military products in the kingdoms of Ekania."

"For this reason, the Empire's explosive guns are also very popular, and many military factories in the Empire have been allocated a huge number of military orders,"

"Well, the most important link in the corruption in the military industry that His Majesty Gemot recently mentioned lies in the allocation of these military orders."

"As for corruption caused by quality issues in the Imperial military industry, that's practically nonexistent; no one would dare to do that!"

After a slight pause, the Chief of Humanity continued, "High-energy shells are also highly sought-after military products in other nations of Aikania. The Empire's annual production capacity is approximately 30 million shells, of which about 30% is consumed by the seven kings of the Northern Continent."

"Among them, the Hobbes Empire holds the largest share, accounting for about two-tenths of the seven kings." Grimhot took a sip of warm tea. Even the humanoid dragon king was over three meters tall.

Therefore, Germutter's teacup was no different from His Excellency's teacup, which was like a large vat.

"Well, that's normal,"

White Dragon Garmott ignored the issue of corruption in the military industry and instead turned the topic to the Hobbes Empire.

"The Hobbes Empire is the second most civilized nation in the Northern Kingdoms, after the Empire. Although the establishment of its military and magical industrial systems was not achieved overnight, the Hobbes Empire cannot build a complete system like the Empire."

"But the organizational capacity of the human empire under Charal Caesar is still far superior to that of the other kings, so it is not surprising that the Hobbes Empire has the strength to swallow so many goods."

Gemot grinned slightly and said, "After all, the kings of the Northern Continent all own vast industries outside the world of Ekania. Even if the empire eats the meat while they can only drink the soup, they are still far richer than other ordinary countries."

The Chief of Staff's eyes flickered slightly as he looked at the impassive White Dragon King before continuing, "As for the starships within the Empire, their annual production capacity is somewhat stretched thin."

"Only one hundred and twenty small warships can be produced per year,"

"But as hounds of low-altitude combat, the Empire's steel ornithopters can provide six hundred finished aircraft each year with surplus production capacity,"

"However, Lord Wayne, the Night Lord of the Empire, has recently made many effective suggestions, which have led to a slight increase in the Empire's ornithopter production. This positive feedback will not be fully clear until next year."

White Dragon Grimhot nodded in satisfaction, praising the Chief of Staff and all relevant aspects of the Imperial military industry.

Among the people of the empire, countless people are proud of the country's strength, but they only know that the empire is powerful, not how powerful it is.

Only these dragon kings and the great dragons of the Gorgmora dragonflight truly understand just how powerful this empire is.

This is one of the reasons why all members of the High Mora Dragonflight are so proud and have such a strong sense of self-respect.

It was these very people who, in this almost barren land of civilization, painstakingly built a great nation from scratch.

The reason why Alina, the Bronze Dragon, said during the Night of Dragon's Madness that their hard work could not be wasted was precisely this.

"The Empire can only produce five main battleships a year, but it can produce forty medium-sized escort warships a year, nearly half of which are consumed by the kings of the Northern Lands,"

The Chief of Staff concluded.

White Dragon Gemot praised with satisfaction, "You have done a great job, Your Excellency. These data are extremely clear, and it is evident that you have been responsible in your work. I will report your performance to the Imperial Central Military Headquarters."

A slight smile appeared on the Chief of Staff's face, and the remaining half of his buttocks slumped off the sofa. "Serving the Empire faithfully is our sacred duty!"

"The wisdom of the Holy Gogmora and the Dragon Kings guides our way forward!"

White Dragon Gemo nodded and smiled, but inwardly he sighed slightly.

The Golden Empire is a complete and independent civilization system, so it is necessary to establish a complete magic industrial system. This was a conclusion that the Dragon Emperor had already reached at the beginning of the empire's establishment.

Today, the White Dragon Garmott once again felt the visionary wisdom of Karon.

It is precisely for this reason that the Golden Empire has now become Aikania's largest military supplier, gradually abandoning its status as a source of raw materials and transforming itself into a material transit point and a source of reprocessing and export supply.

Although the development of the military industry originated from a certain goal of the Dragon Emperor of the Golden Empire.

White Dragon Gemot knew his elder brother's thoughts well, which is why he vigorously promoted the Empire's "low profit, high volume" policy for exporting military products.

Only when the other nations in the world of Ekania also grow strong will their rulers pounce on the world like wolves, seeking their prey.

However, these civilizations would inevitably be indirectly controlled by the Golden Empire for a considerable period of time.

This also means that the strength of other countries could also be one of the sources of the Golden Empire's strength.

"However, Your Majesty Gemott, there are some private matters that I'm unsure whether I should mention,"

The Human Chieftain suddenly spoke up, saying, "The Grand Duchess of Elsa in the Central Continent once sent an envoy to communicate with me privately."

"The Grand Duke of Elsa wants to use a small seaside town as collateral in exchange for preferential rates and sales quotas for imperial military products,"

The Humanity Chief laughed and said, "The problem is, this seaside town is only a benefit for me, not for the Empire!"

White Dragon Garmott grinned.

"Have these nobles started to go mad?"

"The world of Aikania, with its many nations and civilizations, I eagerly await the moment when they begin to dance to the will of the Empire,"

White Dragon Grimhot stood up from the sofa and walked to the top railing to look down into the distance.

That place is located in the south of the Golden Empire, and it is also the place where the civilizations of the other nations in the world of Ekania converge.

"The day to conquer the infinite material planes is fast approaching!"

"And this era began with the Empire, and with the rise of this new era, perhaps in the future, countless genius kings will emerge within the astral plane of the world of Ekania, their names becoming renowned as kings,"

"But all of this is because of us!"

Gormot turned to the Chief of Humanity and said slowly, "This is the Empire, and it is also our glory!"

The Human Chief felt as if the white dragon before him had transformed into a succubus at that moment, making him willingly submit.

(End of this chapter)