Necromancer, summoning 055? What the heck?

Chapter 263 The Eve of the Storm: The Red Thread Appears, A Word of Advice to the Elves
Robert stood on the island superstructure of the USS Ronald Reagan, gazing at the vast ocean waters known as the "Sea of ​​Tranquility."

The salty sea breeze, carrying the smell of rust and fuel, swept over him, ruffling his slightly graying temples.

The steel behemoth behind him, over 300 meters long, was once a symbol of the empire's supreme military power, but now it resembles an aging giant, baring its fangs and claws, yet showing signs of exhaustion.

As the supreme commander of the Empire in the Tranquil Sea and the highest commander of the "Afu" encirclement operation, Robert was initially shocked when he learned that the Eastern Xia Fleet had made an unusually large-scale advance. After a brief moment of shock, he became excited.

After completing the notification to the domestic authorities, he quickly unfolded the nautical chart and began to draw on it with red and black pens, creating arrows, circles, and question marks that spread across the chart.

When Brian Thomas, one of Admiral Robert's most trusted old subordinates, walked into the office located in the center of the ship's island, he saw a nautical chart that had been drawn in dense detail.

Colonel Thomas was in excellent physical condition, showing the marks of years of consistent exercise. He had neatly trimmed brown hair and a weathered yet still well-defined face.

With just a glance from afar, relying on his extremely high tactical skills and the intuition formed by his years of military service, he immediately realized that his own general commander was planning not a simple deterrent or defensive deployment, but a standard, even extremely aggressive, offensive naval warfare plan.

Thomas couldn't help but shiver.

His old leader's greatest idol in his life was the famous bald eagle, an outstanding general in the Civil War, a legendary general who was skilled at winning with fewer troops and against stronger opponents, and who almost single-handedly turned the tide of the war in the South.

This worship even reached a certain obsessive level—in today’s world where electronic sand tables, holographic projections, and real-time data links are ubiquitous, this general still stubbornly prefers to use traditional paper maps and physical models. He believes that this can better cultivate a commander’s spatial sense and intuition, which is to say that he has carried the old-school military style to his very core!

Therefore, most of the time, people respect his personal preferences and do not call him by his full name, but simply refer to him as "General Robert".

However, throughout his long military career, the powerful First Empire of Earth maintained an overwhelming advantage almost all the time, never giving this general, who longed to replicate his idol's glory, a real stage to "win against all odds".

It seems like it exists now!

Upon hearing the adjutant's announcement, Robert turned around, reluctantly lifting his gaze from the nautical chart, and gestured for Thomas to sit down.

The old general walked to a small wine cabinet and skillfully took out a bottle of red wine that looked expensive and two wine glasses. He then took out two large Havana cigars from an exquisite wooden box.

Thomas slowly sat down, his body still somewhat stiff. He took the glass of wine the general offered him, swirled it, and watched the amber liquid ripple under the light. He cautiously began to speak: "General, has the situation really become that dire?"

Robert didn't answer immediately. He carefully trimmed the head of the cigar with a cigar cutter, then slowly lit it with a special long-handled match, took a deep drag, and let the rich smoke swirl in his mouth for a moment before exhaling with satisfaction.

The rising smoke blurred the deep wrinkles on his face and made the light in his eyes appear somewhat uncertain.

“Just minutes before you arrived, I received a ‘supreme instruction’ from our beloved Minister of War, right there in his luxurious office.”

"You know, he used to be a news channel host, and he's better at talking than any of us!"

Robert put on a stern face, deliberately mimicking the mannerisms of the minister known for his flamboyant performances and forceful slogans, waving his arms and raising his voice dramatically, "'Mr. Robert! We must show resolve! Absolute resolve!'"

"The Eastern Xia people are crossing our bottom line. This is a despicable act that our great leader cannot tolerate. They must pay the price!"

"We must be tough, and show them with strong actions that the bald eagle's talons are still sharp! Victory will only belong to our great leader!"

"Pooh!"

As soon as the imitation ended, Robert spat as if something dirty had really gotten into his mouth, then grabbed his wine glass and gulped it down.

He put down his wine glass and began to ruthlessly strip away the minister of war's glamorous facade.

"What does he know? Besides posting blatantly flawed messages on social media and trying every trick in the book to curry favor with the president, does he have even a shred of military capability?"

"Is it his 'WeChat group command system,' which is used as a negative example by military academies across the entire planet? Or is it his obsession with the aesthetics of the generals' hair and beards? Or is it his acrobatic performance where all senior generals are required to do a series of standard push-ups in front of the camera to prove their 'physical fitness'?"

"Don't be ridiculous. Every day he was in office, he made the Empire a laughing stock of the entire planet Earth."

As he spoke, he became somewhat agitated. Robert stood up again and walked heavily to the large porthole.

Outside the window, night had completely enveloped the sea, its deep inky blue merging seamlessly with the sky. The escort fleet surrounding the USS Reagan—destroyers, frigates, and supply ships—along with the sea dogs beneath the waves, remained completely silent.

The scattered lights on the sea resembled clusters of ghosts in the night.

Robert sighed heavily.

“Just a few days ago, Thomas, as you know, the Empire lost more than twenty generals at once. The reason? Simply because they were unwilling to offer enough sycophantic ‘loyalty’ to this newly appointed minister’s ‘favorite’ and his supreme master.”

"You know, this is a blatant 'loyalty test'! They summon so many veterans who have served the Empire for decades, like servants, and have this guy, a former National Police officer with no military experience, spout nonsense on stage."

"The generals either resigned or were dismissed. If I hadn't been on the front lines and hadn't had time to go back, my fate probably wouldn't have been much better than Brian's."

"The same to you!"

Thomas nodded somewhat dejectedly.

He came from a typical working-class family in the Empire and served in the military for a full thirty years. He was once a top naval aviator and then worked his way up from flight instructor, frigate captain, attack ship captain, and destroyer captain. If he hadn't lacked experience serving at the Imperial Army Headquarters, he would be the commander of a carrier strike group right now.

However, the empire now seems unwilling, or rather no longer needs, to give an officer like him, who has neither "background" nor "funds," a chance.

"Do you remember when we were young, Thomas?"

Robert's gaze seemed to pierce through the darkness before him, reaching back to bygone days. "Back then, our Empire's fleet could go wherever it wanted, whenever it wanted, across the entire ocean of Blue Star, whether north or south, near or far! No one dared to question it, and no one dared to stop it!"

"now what?"

"The enemy's warships have dared to brazenly sail right next to our formation, arrogantly trying to drive us away, and even simulating attack maneuvers! They're daring to slap us in the face! Why is that?!"

"Why is this?"

Colonel Thomas pursed his lips but remained silent.

The reason is clear to everyone: it's the ebb and flow of power.

The growth of the opposing Dongxia was only part of the reason; the bigger reason lay in their own poor performance.

From aging equipment and poor maintenance to a rigid, bureaucratic, and sycophantic command system;

From declining quality of recruits and low morale to lax discipline and frequent scandals...

The once mighty army is now riddled with problems. It possesses the most powerful and expensive violent group on the entire planet, yet it can't even take down a group of regional militias wearing flip-flops. It's truly absurd!

If previous presidents had left the country on its last legs, then this new president has essentially injected stimulants into that dying body, reviving it once more.

So what exactly was being consumed? Thomas knew in his heart that it was the empire's last remaining capital, the reputation accumulated over many years, the foundation of the empire's unity, and also the unpredictable fate of the nation.

After much hesitation, Colonel Thomas decided to reassure his superior.

"General, we still have democracy!"

"Perhaps in a few years, a new president will lead us onto the right path, who knows? In any case, history has proven that dictatorship can never be a match for democracy."

Indeed, in the ranks of senior military officers, both of them are still considered to be in their prime, and as long as they are careful to flatter and ingratiate themselves, they should have no problem surviving until the next president takes office.

Robert shook his head helplessly: "Old man, it's no use."

"Democracy is inherently a designed system. Its core value is to maximize the advantages of capital under the guise of 'fairness' and ensure that power and wealth always circulate within specific circles." "In a world of one person, one vote, those who control wealth, media, and discourse will inevitably gain the greatest support."

"You know, there are some things that even I can't say too much about, but that's the truth. The more money you have, the greater your chance of getting more votes, and then you can use the power you have to reap even more wealth."

"This is the empire's largest, ever-opening revolving door!"

Then Thomas saw his boss turn around, his eyes shining brightly.

"This is the empire's last chance!"

"This mysterious 'Afu' is the empire's last chance to build domestic consensus and force those greedy capitalists to temporarily set aside their internal strife and unite against external threats!"

"For that glimmer of hope for 'immortality' or 'technology that surpasses the times,' they are willing to give us unprecedented and maximum support! They will provide us with money and resources, and will even temporarily keep quiet in the media!"

"We must seize this opportunity! Let's give the Dongxia people a good thrashing! Just like we bleed that giant frozen bear in the north, let's bleed the Dongxia people. If we miss this opportunity, we may never have the courage to raise a gun again!"

"But!"

Thomas seemed frightened, and his words became somewhat stammering: "But we don't have any underlings who dare to attack Dongxia..."

"There will be!"

"We'll have it whenever we need it!"

Thomas took a deep drag on his cigar, and thick smoke billowed from the general's mouth, momentarily giving him the appearance of a ferocious mask.

"The Gray House, the Octagon, Broadway, James Island—never in recent decades has the Empire, from top to bottom, felt such an urgent need for this monster from outer space."

"I don't care about the value of this monster itself. I just hope that while the empire still has the strength, we can drive away these dogs in front of us and fight Dongxia to the death."

"Even if all these dogs eventually die, it's better than watching them one day, because of our weakness, crawl to our opponents and wag their tails and beg for mercy! Or even bite us back!"

"This is the best opportunity, Thomas!"

"Perhaps this is the last chance!"

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

The turbulent waves on Earth have not yet affected our Lord Chen.

In the starry world, he is a chess player.

Indeed, it sounds absurd, but the three permanent members of the UN Security Council and superpowers of Earth still have to fight hand-to-hand with the enemy's minions. However, the Han Hai Territory, which has a population of less than 10,000 on the surface, is calmly playing the role of a chess player in the Starry World, stirring up trouble behind the scenes.

But that's reality. On Earth, the enemy's past advantages are too great, almost creating an order that is recognized as truth by most countries on Earth.

Even the allies of Dongxia... to be precise, they can't really be called allies, but rather temporary partners, would instinctively cower in the face of bald eagles. In fact, once the other side offered a little something, most of these partners would rush over without hesitation and lick their boots.

Under these circumstances, the fact that Dongxia was able to fight its way out of the encirclement and develop to the point where it is now feared by its opponents can only be described as "extraordinary talent" and "unyielding perseverance".

But the Starry World is different. There is no universally accepted order here. Conflicts and contradictions are the norm. Whether or not there is a mastermind behind the scenes, they will fight. Therefore, the Vast Ocean Territory, which has enough resources, information and weapons, has the capital to become the mastermind behind the scenes.

The current Han Hai Territory is simultaneously supporting two wars.

It was a war between the southern elven tribes and the Creek Moon Federation.

In fact, after being overwhelmed by the flood, the elves recovered from their defeat very quickly. After an immediate remobilization, they quickly devised a number of counter-attack strategies.

However, Chen Mo personally intervened and earnestly persuaded the elf to give up.

To this end, Hanhailing even went so far as to expose its real-time communication equipment.

When Iona first saw Chen Mo in the video, she was completely stunned.

The Starry Continent has its own fully mature communication system. The most common and frequently used methods are, of course, sending messages on horseback and by eagle.

The next level up is the transmission of magical beacons, which can be roughly understood as beacon towers that travel over longer distances and contain a greater amount of information.

A more advanced system is the Magic Cloud Platform, which is used by mercenary guilds in various regions. Mission information issued by a mercenary guild in one region can be transmitted to other mercenary guilds through the Magic Cloud Platform.

This system is often used in national war command, but it also has its own significant flaws. The platform itself is very large, and there are limits to the amount of information that can be transmitted and time intervals. The most troublesome thing is that its base is a large magic array, and installation and debugging require a long time. Even with the cooperation of skilled magicians and alchemy masters, it takes more than three days.

Therefore, while the magic platform is quite useful for communication between fixed cities, it becomes extremely useless during military campaigns. After all, waiting three days to set up the platform to receive a message is less efficient than hiring a professional errand runner to deliver the message.

Finally, there's a top-of-the-line teleportation array. Chen Mo got his hands on one and sent it back to his hometown in Dongxia. This thing was modified from a summoning altar spell. It can not only transmit text information, but also physical objects. It's incredibly useful.

However, not to mention that such a magic array is quite rare, even large countries can only equip a limited number of them, the more important thing is that the teleportation array has a cooldown time, and the longer the distance, the longer the cooldown time.

Now, Chen Mo demonstrated to the elves a communication technology that allows for face-to-face, real-time communication and is mobile at any time.

This was completely beyond the Grand Elder's comprehension.

Iona felt like she was going crazy.

During their first video call, the Grand Elder even suspected that the other side was using a fake golem to deceive him, and repeatedly asked "Chen Mo" on the screen about things that were little known to outsiders about his interactions with the Han Hai Territory.

It wasn't until Chen Mo revealed the top-secret secret of the entire Han Hai—that the little princess had broken his ribs—that Aiona finally and reluctantly accepted the reality before her eyes.

Then, without even discussing military matters, the Grand Elder immediately asked a question: "Your Excellency, could such a divine artifact be granted to the elves?"

Chen Mo quickly waved his hand.

"Elder Aiona, let's discuss this later. Your questioning and verification just now have already wasted a lot of our time!"

"My communications are charged on an interest-only basis, which is extremely expensive!"

Iona promptly shut her mouth and repeatedly clasped her hands in greeting.

"The reason I went to the trouble of using remote real-time communication to contact the Grand Elder is to ask him to consider preserving some dignity for humanity in the war against Xiyue."

"I heard that the Eastern Route Army was ordered not to sheathe their swords in order to attract Xi Yue's attention. That's not good!"

"I've also heard that the Silver Moon Elder Council has decided to open a few more outlets in the middle and lower reaches of the North Foothills River. I think that's not quite right either!"

Chen Mo seemed to be in a hurry, so he kept talking non-stop.

"I utterly despise the Stream Moon Federation's heinous act of disregarding the lives of humanity and breaching the dam, which is precisely the fundamental reason why I am willing to withstand the pressure and continue to provide the Elven race with a new round of military aid and technical support."

"But if elves are like that too, then I may have no choice but to stand by and watch."

"I maintain that war is war, and the slaughter of civilians during war is unacceptable and unforgivable!"

"Please consider this, Elder!"

(End of this chapter)