Vientiane Throne of Civilization

Chapter 1704 Passive and Active

With this news now completely confirmed, the number of issues they need to consider also increases.

That is, if an enemy appears in the desert region and launches an attack from the Smith Kingdom, would it threaten them?
Another question is, what if the Kingdom of Smith becomes desertified on a large scale and eventually it affects them?
Zhou Xu wasn't too worried about the first question.

According to intelligence relayed by spies, the Kingdom of Smith, which connects to the other side of the void, is most likely behind a sheer cliff.

That thing is practically an insurmountable barrier.

Honestly, if there were such a sheer cliff on the desert border of their Great Zhou, Zhou Xu would be overjoyed; the defensive advantage would be too great.

Even if Fisher can't defeat the enemy, he can retreat to this cliff and set up camp for defense, and there shouldn't be any major problems.

To some extent, the existence of the Smith Kingdom can also help them draw fire.

Even if they do manage to invade, they have already deployed defensive camps on the new northeastern border, with Li Ce and Hilke in charge. Among the garrison troops are female warriors with an average combat strength of elite level.

In addition, a railway has long been built from Blackmoon City to the northeastern border, making travel extremely efficient.

Even if something goes wrong, the small communication cube will be able to send a message back immediately from the northeastern border.

Upon receiving the message, Zhou Xu was able to immediately arrange for the Imperial Guards and the grassland garrison to provide support.

At the same time, there is his own Nascent Soul Realm combat power and Yalvit's Transcendent Realm combat power.

As soon as the steam train crosses the grassland pass, its support coverage can directly extend to the northeastern border.

With such a top-of-the-line configuration, the northeastern border might not be as secure as Mount Tai, but it certainly feels close.

Not to mention they haven't discovered any enemies yet.

As for the second question...

That does require a little more attention. However, because the Steam City is located behind that area, the Greenery and Environmental Protection Bureau started carrying out large-scale greening projects there in the early years.

Today, the entire interior of the steam city is covered with green belts, and the city's perimeter is surrounded by a large forest. The forest area has even merged with the jungle of the female warrior tribe, forming an even larger green area.

Under this premise, there is no need to worry about water sources. The northeastern region happens to be adjacent to a large river that extends from the northeastern region of their Great Zhou all the way to the city of Mistiela of the female warrior tribe, which can be said to traverse an entire area.

However, the news they had sent back from the desert border had at least made Zhou Xu a little wary.

Although it was still an uncertain matter, Zhou Xu issued another order out of a sense of urgency.

"Pass on my order: send some of the plants found on the grassland to the northeastern border so that the Greening and Environmental Protection Bureau can plant them on the outskirts."

While Zhou Xu was busy with sand control and prevention, Fisher discovered over time that the system of the Great Zhou's Diligent Governance Hall was indeed quite effective in the Kingdom of Smith.

While maintaining a firm grip on power, it also significantly reduces work pressure.

The Kingdom of Smith is a small country with relatively few daily government affairs, and Fisher has managed to weather this storm.

At the same time, he finally had the energy to take care of the exploration troops he had previously sent out.

"Has the exploration team we sent out earlier not sent back any news yet?"

Just like in the Great Zhou, after the desert was pieced together, Fisher began to send out exploration teams to explore the new area.

Initially, things went relatively smoothly, but after the surrounding area was explored, the exploration team began to explore more deeply.

But gradually, the exploration teams sent out disappeared without a trace, which was one of the reasons for Fisher's recent frustration. Now, faced with Fisher's questioning, his subordinates could only bite the bullet and say...

"Your Majesty, no news has come back from the border."

"Tsk!"

As expected, Fisher became visibly annoyed upon receiving this answer.

There was nothing that could be done about it. As things stand, the patchwork of the new world has not brought them any new hope. On the contrary, it has brought them the impact of extreme climate and caused him to lose an important kingdom governor!
Fisher looked grim, yet seemed unsure of what to do.

We need to get some news about whether the exploration team we sent out is alive or dead!
There's no news at all, what is he supposed to do?
Faced with this situation, Fisher's expression shifted between light and shadow before he issued an order.

"Pass down the order: increase the scale! Send out another exploration team!"

He had no choice. Unlike Zhou Xu, who was in no hurry to expand outwards, he was counting on this new region to turn his desperate situation around and reverse the course of events.

Having already gone all in, how could he just wait and do nothing?

This time, Fisher's thinking was also very simple: assuming there were potential threats in the desert, a small exploration team could very well be wiped out if they encountered any problems, without even being able to send back a message.

Under this premise, increasing the size of the troops will make them stronger and increase their chances of survival.

Of course, the cost of action will also increase accordingly.

Unwittingly, Fisher, who did not want to be passive, found himself in a passive situation instead.

On the other hand, Zhou Xu, who stayed true to his own little territory and made steady progress, maintained a firm dominant position and showed little sign of panic.

On the first day of the new year, the Trapped Camp, led by Jie Liancheng and Zhou Chongshan, continued their exploration mission in the desert.

Their current location is completely beyond the observation range of the giant eagle riders.

In other words, even if the giant eagle knights were flying in the air, they would no longer be able to quickly pinpoint the location of their Great Zhou desert border.

In this situation, the compass that their Great Zhou had developed during the Age of Exploration unexpectedly came in handy, at least helping them determine their location and preventing them from completely losing their way in this desert.

The exploration team carried out their exploration missions while drawing maps and leaving marks.

In fact, according to Zhou Xu's initial plan, they only needed to complete the exploration of the surrounding area to confirm that there were no enemies present.

However, due to the need to prevent and control desertification, they later developed a need to obtain desert plants.

Upon receiving this instruction, the exploration team resumed its exploration mission.

"Look, there's a pillar over there!"

To improve exploration efficiency, the Trapped Camp spread out their formation in small squads.

Just then, one of the soldiers seemed to have noticed something and immediately shouted.

Hearing the noise, Xie Liancheng subconsciously looked in that direction, and his eyes lit up.

"What pillar? That thing is a cactus!"

Before the words were even finished, the sand beneath many squads suddenly exploded, and one after another, dark figures sprang out from the sand, launching attacks on the passing Trapped Camp!
(End of this chapter)