I built an armada.

"And we...we have lost thousands of naval officers and soldiers in vain...the port was destroyed, the fleet was annihilated...and now we have to watch helplessly as those who stole our nation's most important assets use them to make a fortune..."

"No, I can't accept this! This is a huge humiliation for our country! We must retaliate!"

It's unclear who started it, but an overwhelming sense of sorrow and despair spread through the meeting room, with several older ministers even bursting into tears.

The dream of dominating the East China Sea has now turned into the cold, enormous profits on the enemy's books and the blood, tears, and shame that linger in our own country.

This contrast caused them more excruciating pain than any defeat clause.

The bitter fruit of failure is so hard to swallow.

At this very moment, in the conference room of the East Wilderness Cabinet Building, the atmosphere that had been silent due to despair was completely ignited by the news that the "Fukuno" had been sold for a sky-high price of 8.3 billion yen, except that what was ignited was a raging fire of humiliation and anger.

"Eighty-three billion! That's eighty-three billion US dollars, not eighty-three Eastern Wilderness coins!"

"You idiot! The Longxia people are going too far!"

An elderly minister dressed in traditional clothing slammed his fist on the table, the veins on the back of his withered hand bulging.

His voice trembled with extreme anger, "That's our aircraft carrier! It's a national treasure that we built with all our national strength and countless efforts!"

"Those Longxia bandits! They robbed us and then... sold them for such an outrageous price!"

"They're sucking our blood and eating our flesh!"

Another, relatively younger minister, his face ashen, gritted his teeth and retorted, "It's more than just sucking our blood! We've practically become the 'source of funding' for the development of their Dragon Xia Navy!"

"Just think about it, they use the wealth they plundered from us to build more and more advanced warships and train more elite soldiers! The tragedy of our country has become a stepping stone to their rise to power!"

"This...this is an utter disgrace!"

Then the bald minister angrily chimed in: "Damn the Longxia Navy, they are utterly shameless. How could they do this? What right do they have to sell our aircraft carrier?"

"Do they even respect our Eastern Wilderness tribe? They completely disregard us; they all deserve to die!"

As he said this, he gritted his teeth in hatred, and his body trembled.

This perception eroded their hearts like venom, making them feel an unprecedented sense of absurdity and indignation at having "contributed" to the enemy.

They have never been in so much pain as they are today, nor have they ever felt so utterly humiliated!

The Fukuno was the last hope of the Eastern Wilderness tribe, and it was an aircraft carrier they had built at great expense, but now it had been sold off by the Dragon Xia Navy.

Even if they wanted to redeem it from the Longxia tribe, there was no hope whatsoever!
"One rises as the other falls..."

The Defense Minister's voice was hoarse with a hint of fear, "After this battle, the Longxia Navy has obtained a huge amount of funds, and its development speed will inevitably accelerate further. As for us... we have been severely damaged, and it may be difficult for us to recover for the next ten or even several decades."

"With this shift in power, do we... do we still have a future? Can we withstand their next attack?"

Panic spread rapidly through the office like a plague, instantly turning the atmosphere into a heavy one.

Immediately, some people thought of the impending and inevitable postwar reparations, since they had been abandoned by the Eagle Tribe and were now like orphans.

Since it is a defeated nation, it must bear all the consequences of defeat.

"And that astronomical sum of compensation... Longxia will definitely invest most of it in military research and development and equipment procurement!"

"This means that we not only lose the present on the battlefield, but we also have to use our own money to fund the enemy to build a stronger military that threatens our future!"

Thinking of this, all the ministers felt a chill run down their spines, filled with an indescribable fear of the future.

In despair, some people once again placed their hopes on the Eagle Tribe.

"What's the progress on the military deployments and support promised by the Great Chief? Why hasn't there been any substantial action yet?"

They anxiously inquired with colleagues who had close ties to the foreign and defense departments.

"The chief's meaning is very clear: he said that for the time being, he will not provide us with any assistance."

"We are currently unable to contact the Eagle Tribe to confirm this matter."

This response only made everyone present more uneasy, and they were almost in despair.

Although the Eagle Tribe's carrier battle group is still patrolling the nearby waters, it has significantly reduced its provocative actions, and its military communication with the Eastern Wilderness leadership has become increasingly lukewarm.

Various signs indicate that the Eagle Tribe seems to be reassessing its investment in the Eastern Seas region, and even showing signs of gradually withdrawing.

This was nothing short of a bolt from the blue for the Eastern Wilderness Tribe, which relied on the Eagle Tribe for defense!
"If...if the Eagle Tribe's support really is withdrawn..."

One minister dared not speak further, but that meant the Eastern Wilderness would face the enraged and powerful Longxia alone, and the outcome was predictable.

Just as panic was about to spiral out of control, the usually taciturn and ashen-faced cabinet leader finally spoke.

He spoke in a hoarse voice, temporarily stabilizing the situation: "Gentlemen, please calm down."

He glanced around at everyone, his eyes revealing unfathomable weariness and a lingering trace of calculation. "I have my own considerations regarding the Eagle Tribe's movements. Right now, the Dragon Xia army is at the city gates, their momentum is at its peak, and the Eagle Tribe also needs time to adjust its strategy."

"What we need to do now is to stabilize our position and deal with Long Xia's 'statement' first. Once we get through this hurdle, many things... can be carried out quietly."

His words were vague, but the phrase "to proceed quietly" seemed to inject a shot of adrenaline into the desperate ministers, giving them a glimmer of hope and bringing the chaotic scene under control.

However, public sentiment cannot be controlled in such a "rational" way.

The news that the Fukuno had been sold for an exorbitant price spread rapidly through unknown channels on the internet and in some media outlets in the Eastern Wilderness, instantly igniting public outrage.

"Our aircraft carrier! It was taken by the enemy and sold for an exorbitant price!"

"Baka yarou! This is a disgrace! A national humiliation!" "Don't we have the protection of Amaterasu? Why did the Dragon Xia Navy steal the Fukuno aircraft carrier and now they're even selling it for money?"

"My God! The Fukuno aircraft carrier carries the souls of thousands of fallen heroes. Now it's become another country's aircraft carrier. Doesn't the Longxia Navy fear divine retribution for doing this? Waaah, those poor souls, they've become wandering ghosts!"

"What are the navy doing?! Are our navy all asleep at the wheel? Why did they let this happen?!"

"Revenge! We must have revenge!"

"That's right, we must take revenge on the Longxia people and kill them all, leaving no one alive!"

Online voices advocating war and revenge surged, filled with hysterical emotions.

But amidst the clamor, there are also some relatively sober voices:
"Gentlemen, calm down! How can we seek revenge now? Are our fleets still under repair in port?"

"The most urgent task is to resolve the issue of the Longxia Navy still blocking our doorstep demanding an explanation! If we can't even get past this current hurdle, how can we talk about the future?"

"First, we need to figure out how to survive before we can talk about the future!"

"Now we must learn to be patient. Only by surviving can we have any hope of revenge, instead of recklessly talking about revenge."

These relatively rational voices gradually gained the upper hand, temporarily suppressing the blind wave of revenge. However, the deep-seated sense of humiliation and hatred towards Longxia had already taken root in the hearts of the people.

In stark contrast to the grief and despair on the other side of the ocean, inside the oval office of the Eagle Tribe's black palace, the Great Chief was cheerfully flipping through a document from the War Department.

This is a preliminary budget for military spending in the next fiscal year, and one item in particular caught his attention.

"Oh? The 'Prometheus' project team, which is responsible for reverse engineering the Longxia 052 guided-missile destroyer, reported a breakthrough?"

The Great Chief read the relevant paragraphs with great interest. "Hmm... key progress has been made in the integrated power management system and some radar signal processing algorithms..."

"Can these results be partially applied to the design of our next generation, namely the improved third-generation Arleigh Burke-class destroyers?"

He nodded in satisfaction, picked up his gold-plated pen, signed his name on the document, and smiled slightly: "Very good. It seems that having a powerful opponent can indeed force our scientists and engineers to use their brains more diligently."

"Although we started a little late, with our basic industrial strength and technological foundation, it is not impossible for us to join the ranks of developing third-generation destroyers, or even surpass them."

After such a long period of depression, he finally saw some good news and couldn't help but pick up his coffee and take a nice sip.

Just as he was in a good mood, an aide walked in hurriedly, his face showing a hint of seriousness.

"Your Excellency, we have the latest intelligence."

Before they could even get their bearings, their staff gave an urgent report: "The Longxia side... auctioned off the 'Fukuno' aircraft carrier, which they had previously captured from the Eastern Wilderness tribe, to the Shatian tribe for $8.3 billion."

"How many?!"

The chieftain's smile froze instantly. He looked up abruptly, his eyes filled with disbelief. "Eighty-three billion?! How dare they?! That's just a medium-sized, conventionally powered aircraft carrier that needs extensive repairs!"

A strong sense of dissatisfaction welled up inside him; the price had severely disrupted his perception of the value of high-end weapons.

"At this rate, if Longxia were to one day take over our 'Enterprise'... cough cough,"

He stopped himself in time, feeling a surge of relief. The fact that the unfortunate nuclear-powered aircraft carrier had been detained in Longxia was kept strictly confidential and not known to the outside world; otherwise, it would have been sold for an astronomical price.

Fortunately, he didn't let anger cloud his judgment, otherwise the consequences would have been unimaginable.

What we're selling now is the aircraft carrier of the Eastern Wilderness Tribe, not theirs, so there's no need to worry about anything, nor to consider anything shameful.

The aide continued to report: "Moreover, according to intelligence from multiple sources, Longxia has also successfully sold a large number of Type 052C destroyers in this military trade activity. The initial estimate is that the order quantity exceeds forty ships, and the total amount may be close to four hundred billion US dollars."

"Four hundred billion... plus the eight billion for the aircraft carrier..."

The chief muttered to himself, his good mood from the technological breakthrough vanishing instantly, his face turning grave. "This means that the Dragonxia Navy will receive an additional injection of nearly 50 billion US dollars in the short term!"

"This is enough to support them in launching several new-generation warship development projects, massively expanding the size of their existing fleet, and even accelerating the construction of their overseas bases..."

He stood up, walked to the huge world map, and stared intently at the Eastern Continent sea area.

"The rise of the Longxia Navy can no longer be described as 'rapid'; it's simply terrifying! If we try to curb its development now, the price we need to pay will be ten or even a hundred times higher than it was a few years ago!"

He realized that relying solely on the Eagle Tribe's few military bases deployed in the Eastern Continent and occasional "freedom of navigation" operations was becoming increasingly insufficient to suppress this ever-growing Eastern dragon.

"We must find more leverage points and build a broader network to restrain them."

The chief pondered for a moment, then instructed his staff, "Make arrangements immediately. I need to have an emergency call with the leaders of the Philippine Tribe, the Thousand Buddha Tribe, the Niying Tribe, and the Lijiapo Tribe."

"We need to coordinate our positions and discuss strategies to jointly address the expansion of the Longxia Navy."

These countries are located in key waters surrounding Longxia and are important pieces in building the so-called "first island chain" and intervening in East Asian affairs.

Then, he remembered another major concern and asked, "On the military's side, has there been any breakthrough in the project to counter the Longxia anti-ship ballistic missile? Especially those... similar to the 'Yunfan' series."

The aide shook his head helplessly: "Sir, there is too little time. We lack sufficient data, especially the specific parameters and guidance logic of its terminal maneuver."

"Existing missile defense systems would find it extremely difficult to effectively intercept. Unless..."

"We can obtain a complete 'Yunfan' missile, or at least a core component, for reverse engineering; otherwise, progress will be very slow."

The chieftain gave a wry smile: "The complete 'Cloud Sail'? Do you think Longxia would sell it to us? They probably wouldn't even let us touch a single screw."

He waved his hand, not wanting to dwell on this frustrating issue any longer. "Forget it, let's contact those countries first. This game in Dongzhou is getting increasingly difficult."

He gazed out the window, his eyes seemingly piercing through time and space, envisioning an even more intense clash and struggle of forces in the western Pacific. (End of Chapter)