I built an armada.

The connection sound to the presidential palace in New Delhi seemed ironically drawn out.

"Hi, my dear General Wilkins! Good day!"

The Indian king's distinctive English, thick with curry accent, came over cheerfully, as if he had just won some international award.

"Have you already witnessed the stunning debut of our great 'Guardian of South Asia'?! Oh, the breathtaking effect!"

Those groundbreaking data points! How wonderful…

That's wonderful!
"King of India!"

Wilkins' voice was as cold as the Siberian permafrost, instantly silencing the other's flamboyant performance; every word was like a blow from an ice axe.

"You posted that garbage video, and those ridiculous parameters that you couldn't even dream up? Do you think the strategic technology intelligence room of our Eagle Tribe is full of a bunch of low-IQ idiots who can only lick snot bubbles?!"

"Oh my God!"

The Indian king's voice showed no panic at being exposed; instead, it rose an exaggerated eight octaves, filled with grievance and incredulous indignation.

"General! How could you say such a thing?!"
That was a great breakthrough achieved by thousands of elites in our Strategic Science Department, who devoted countless efforts and worked tirelessly!
This video, these statistics! They represent the purest and most authentic glory! I swear in the name of the great Shiva!

It is a miracle! It is the holy sword light bestowed upon the Indian Empire by the great god Shiva, protecting South Asia!

"Fuck your Shiva!"

Brigadier Wilkins was internally screaming, almost grinding his teeth to dust.

Listen up! Refund your money immediately!
Two hundred billion US dollars!
Not a penny less! That piece of trash video of yours claiming miracles—it's utterly worthless!

"A refund?! No! There will never be a refund!"

The Indian king's voice suddenly became firm, resolute, and even carried an almost sacred sense of defense.

"That was a sacred advance payment made during the research and development process of our great empire! Every penny was infused with the wisdom of scientists, the sweat of workers, and even... the pure prayers offered to a sacred bull!"
Every frame, every piece of data in that video—it's all the real divine power we painstakingly captured! If you can't understand it, it's because your technology isn't advanced enough to comprehend Shiva's power! No refunds! An agreement is an agreement!

His self-righteous tone made it hard to believe what had just happened.

puff--

Almost at the same second, in the luxurious and deathly silent private room of the president of the Donghuang tribe in Tokyo Bay, Noda Taro, who had been listening to the entire "miracle debate" through another encrypted channel, turned deathly pale!

The priceless Dehua porcelain teacup in his hand crashed to the ground with a loud bang, scalding tea mixed with expensive tea stains splashing all over the expensive carpet! He swayed precariously, unable to catch his breath, and fell backward! Fortunately, his secretary scrambled to catch him, preventing him from tumbling headfirst into the valuable ukiyo-e print frame next to him!

"Liar...liar...demon...Shiva...devil!!"

His throat gurgled, emitting a desperate roar like a broken bellows.

The secretary hurriedly picked up another phone, her fingers trembling as she dialed New Delhi.

"Your Majesty... I am... President Noda..."

"Oh! Noda-kun!"

The Indian king's enthusiastic, nonchalant tone rang out once again.

"...Payment...we...urgently..."

"Noda-kun! My good neighbor!"

The Indian king's voice immediately switched to a somber and comforting mode.

"Difficulties! Temporary! We are defending the skies of South Asia with our lives! Every penny is a sacred price! Wait a little longer! Wait until our guardians are successfully deployed! Believe me! The Empire will not forget its good neighbor who helped us in our time of need! We will repay you with interest..."

Noda Taro snatched the microphone from his secretary and roared with his last ounce of strength.

"Give me the money! Now!!!"

The sound was mournful, like a cuckoo weeping blood.

"...The signal is a bit weak...Noda-kun? Are you still there?"

A confused voice came from the Indian king.

"Hello? Hello? Ugh... the weather in New Delhi always interferes with communications like this..."

A busy signal sounded.

The entire president's office fell into a deathly silence. Noda Taro clutched his convulsing, throbbing chest, his body trembling violently. His cloudy eyes were fixed on the gray Tokyo sky outside the window, and his lips moved silently, uttering a few words.

"I've been... tricked... again..."

"Pfft, hahahahahaha—!"

In the highest-secret lounge of the Longxin Base, Su Dingping, who had been closely following the developments of this international farce, finally couldn't help but let out a low, cheerful laugh.

He pointed to the frozen image on the computer screen that flashed with cheap "plasma cannon" effects, and couldn't help but smile.

Sitting next to her, Guo Xueyun, whose shoulders were also shaking from trying not to laugh, couldn't help but ask.

"Dingping... just how fake is this?"

How fake is it?

A glint of light flashed in Su Dingping's eyes, and he lightly flicked the screen with his finger.

"Let's put it this way, the thing they used to destroy that 'computer' in the distance is probably on the same physical level as the fireworks and firecrackers we use to electrocute mice in remote rural areas of Longxia during the Lunar New Year. The only difference might be that it's a little bigger and noisier."

He pointed to a cluster of devices that was almost invisible in the corner of the video; it was a specially processed and blurred 'EMP prototype'.

"Oh, right, it also has a layer of cool-looking silver paint on it."

"Pfft!"

Guo Xueyun couldn't hold back any longer and burst out laughing. Then, remembering the numbers on the secret military intelligence report, her eyes lit up like stars.

"Two hundred billion... for the Eagle; over ten billion for core components... the Eastern Wilderness paid extra... to buy this?"

"Ah."

Su Dingping's smile deepened, revealing a profound understanding of the entire situation.

"I paid money to buy a... special effects light show personally directed by the great god Shiva, plus a data-fabricated PPT."

This tuition fee is a bit expensive.

He shook his head, his tone neither sarcastic nor simply stating a fact.

"But compared to some countries that invest huge sums of money only to end up with a pile of iron that they can't even handle... it's probably... worth the money?"

At this moment, the entire internet is in an uproar!

That fabricated video, which the angry experts from the Eagle Tribe deemed "something even aliens couldn't have made up," has already spread like a virus to every corner of the Earth with a network signal.

The dazzlingly cool, yet ridiculously cheap, special effects, and the explosive parameter charts that were blindingly bright... completely ignited the flames of criticism from netizens around the world!
"Pfft! Did this Indian go to Hollywood to learn something? The special effects are rougher than my five-year-old nephew's!"

"A 120-kilometer destruction radius?! And with precision? Next time, I suggest just writing 'capable of destroying the moon'!"

"Look at the high-definition live footage of the electromagnetic railgun test site posted on Longxia's official website!"
That electromagnetic arc light!
That precision with which it instantly dismantled the armored target! That's real skill! Is this Indian kid joking?

The online space of Longxia Tribe has become a sea of ​​joy, with joke writers taking the stage one after another.

"Let me tell you a joke."

Indian EMP.

"The video is fake, but the thieving desire to cheat people is real! Eagle and Eastern Wilderness."

"Damn it, we're idiots!"

"Best comedy of the year – Shiva Revisited: Where Did My 200 Billion Go?"

The online ridicule was like a raging tsunami, almost tearing down New Delhi's internet hub.

The Indian king's reaction, with a face as thick as the walls of the Taj Mahal, can be described as a pinnacle of performance art in international politics.

Instead of deleting the video and hiding away, he... escalated the situation!
"Solemn Declaration!"

The day after the video went viral, the official Indian mouthpiece released a strongly worded and resolute announcement.

"The core test data video of our country's 'Guardian of South Asia' project has unfortunately been maliciously altered by evil external forces! Their purpose is to confuse the public and maliciously smear the high-tech image of our sacred and inviolable Indian Empire!"

This is a despicable cultural invasion targeting our nation's great rise! We strongly condemn it! And reserve the right to pursue legal action against them through the Interstellar Court! The true 'Guardians of South Asia' are far more powerful than what is depicted in the altered video!
It is the shield of peace! It is a blessing bestowed upon South Asia by Shiva!

The announcement was translated into hundreds of languages ​​on Earth in a very short time and was flooded into every corner of the world by angry Indian trolls!
In a short time.

The "malicious alteration" theory has somehow carved out a small, bizarre niche in the global public opinion arena by relying on sophistry and a level of patriotism comparable to that of India!

The internet was in an uproar, while the internet was filled with ridicule.

Inside the underground Defence Science and Technology Research Institute in New Delhi, however, a somber atmosphere prevailed.

"Doctor! Dr. Shaha! Please, please think of something!"

A technician in a wrinkled white coat looked at the mountain of core components produced by the Eastern Wilderness tribe with a sob in his voice.

"The Eagles are pressing us like crazy! They're saying if we don't deliver the 'real stuff' soon, they'll cut off all technical assistance! And His Majesty the King... the pressure is off the charts!"

Dr. Shaha, the chief scientist in charge of the EMP project, now had sunken eyes, an unshaven beard, and his once meticulously combed hair had turned into a bird's nest.

He clutched his head tightly with both hands, staring at the "prototype" machine in front of him, hastily assembled from various smuggled parts from Europe and the Eagle Tribe, resembling a giant industrial patchwork monster, his eyes filled with despair.

"Technological barriers...material limitations...industrial precision...we..."

His voice was hoarse, like a broken gong.

"We...have never truly grasped the core of EMP! Let alone something like Longxia's...we can't even match the individual toy-level weapons they created in their early days!"

His gaze swept over a photo on the information board next to him—a silhouette of a weapon with an extremely understated, futuristic design, gleaming with a steady, dark blue light, peeking out from Guo Xueyun's shoulder during a security mission.

That's the real energy weapon!

What they have? It's just an extra-large electric mosquito swatter!
"spell!"

Shaha suddenly raised his head, his eyes filled with a crazed, bloodshot look.

"Use every usable part! Use every smuggled technology module! Even if it only produces a few sparks, you have to assemble something that can actually conduct electricity! Tomorrow! There must be a press conference!!"

He gave the order, almost roaring.

The following day. National Science and Technology Centre, New Delhi.

A high-profile and lavishly decorated press conference was held here.

"ladies and gentlemen!"

Dr. Shah stood under the spotlight, his suit and tie unable to conceal the strange expression on his face, a mixture of exhaustion and excitement.

"Today! We are incredibly proud to announce to the world! A glorious moment for India! The prototype of the 'Guardian of South Asia' has been officially born!"

Behind him, the area shrouded by a huge curtain suddenly opened!

A huge, ugly lump of iron, covered with messy cables and various interfaces, looked like it had been forcibly sewn together with different industrial-style parts, was revealed! The metal casing gleamed with a cheap luster under the bright light.

"Its pulse energy! Beyond imagination!"

"Its attack range is mind-blowing!"

"It utilizes a groundbreaking electromagnetic core independently developed by our Indian scientists!"

Flashbulbs went off like crazy! Shah was shouting at the top of his lungs, boasting about one astonishing statistic after another. Some Indian journalists in the audience were clapping and crying with excitement, but there were even more international journalists with barely suppressed shock and... distorted expressions of suppressed laughter.

"Dr. Shahar!"

The CNN reporter from Eagle Tribe suddenly raised his hand, his voice shrill.

"You said the performance is amazing, could you give us a demonstration right now? Like destroying that phone stand in the corner? Let us... see for ourselves?"

Instantly! All eyes in the room were fixed on it!
Under the spotlight, sweat poured wildly from Shah's face.

"terribly sorry……"

He forced himself to remain calm and tried to force a formulaic smile.

"This touches upon our absolute top-secret military technology! No comment!"

He stiffly turned to the next slide, abruptly changing the subject.

"Future Outlook..."

A press conference that should have been a showcase of my country's national prestige came to an abrupt end amidst the strange looks of countless international journalists trying to suppress their laughter and the constant clicking of camera shutters.

The incredibly ugly "prototype" was secretly transported to the airport under the escort of a team of solemn-looking Indian guards. It was then loaded onto a waiting Eagle Strategic Air Force transport plane and headed straight for the Eagle Tribe's homeland!
Across the ocean. Deep in the western desert of the Eagle, at a highly secretive strategic weapons testing range.

A huge sand dune was pushed aside to create a flat area, in the center of which stood several steel-framed targets simulating city buildings.

The Indian "magic weapon," which had been escorted there under heavy guard, was set up several hundred meters away.

Brigadier General Richard Wilkins personally oversaw the operation from the command post, wearing sunglasses and with a grim expression.

He was surrounded by his most trusted and top-tier electromagnetic weapon testing team.

"Let's begin... benchmarking."

Wilkins' voice was devoid of warmth.

After a few sets of the lowest power pulses were released, the face of the test team leader changed from solemn to confused, then to shocked, and finally froze on a blank expression as if looking at an alien creature.

"The peak pulse... only reached... one-thousandth of what they claimed?"

"Effective interference radius... 500 meters?! And that's after severe attenuation?"

"Directional accuracy?...My God...that energy wave is scattered across the radar image like water spraying from a spray bottle!" (End of Chapter)