Industrial Cthulhu doesn't believe in the end times.

Chapter 11: The General Mobilization

Upon receiving the news, applause erupted once again in the hall, but He Ping's expression immediately changed.

"What's wrong? Is there a problem?" The commander-in-chief was flustered by him, fearing that some information he didn't know might affect the implementation of the plan.

"No, no problem." He Ping quickly took out his communication equipment and transmitted the first-hand information. He reassured everyone, "You can continue operating as usual here. I'm concerned about other things."

"By the way, do you think it's possible for these ice crystals to have been discovered in advance? I mean, by satellite or something."

“Impossible,” the commander-in-chief said with certainty. “The ice layer discovered this time is located in a rock section, it is not large in scale, and it is in a polar night region. Optical and remote sensing cannot detect it accurately. It can only be discovered when approaching it from the ground.”

He Ping nodded, turned to leave, but paused before asking, "When will these people on the moon return to Earth?"

"Five days later." The commander-in-chief was somewhat puzzled. These plans had been finalized long ago, but considering that the other party was not a professional in the aerospace field, he could understand.

"This is our first time landing on the moon. The astronauts are not assigned any other tasks. They will undergo physical examinations as soon as possible after their return."

He Ping nodded and said in a low voice, "Make preparations in advance. We may need to suspend all space missions that last more than a month to bring back the other comrades who are still in space as soon as possible. Kyoto should get back to you soon, so you should have a plan in mind."

"Is...something going to happen?"

He Ping nodded, revealed no further information, and turned to leave.

At the coastal base, by the time Su Xun and the others saw the 'live broadcast' on TV, more than ten minutes had passed since Ge Hongbo struck the ice-containing moon rock.

The atmosphere at the scene was far less enthusiastic than at the aerospace command center, since everyone present knew what this meant.

"Well, the moon landing went smoothly, so it's something to celebrate."

Shao Xuezhen led the applause, and then said to everyone, "I'm sure you all understand the arduous task we are about to face. The most important task at present is to promote the activation of the national emergency response plan. Does Advisor Su have any good suggestions in this regard?"

During this period, the Secretariat has compiled a new emergency plan and distributed it to the Disaster Recovery Office. It was also distributed to the equipment of every member of the office before the lunar landing program began.

Su Xun had already looked into it, but after all, a national contingency plan involves many aspects, and he hadn't fully grasped it yet. At this moment, he could only flip through the materials while pondering.

“I believe that recruitment should be expanded. The post-apocalyptic world is not a modern war. With communication cut off, information technology cannot play its due role. We need more manpower.”

"In addition, we need to conduct military-style training for the entire population. It doesn't need to be extensive, but the movements must be included."

"In the apocalypse, the people should be protected. We can conduct large-scale skills training to enhance their survival capabilities, but will militarized training cause social unrest and disrupt resource supply?"

Some people disagreed and raised a question. Su Xun looked over and found that it was a representative from the military.

Su Xun nodded to him and said in a deep voice, "This comrade's question is very good, but my thought is that once the apocalypse occurs, the first thing to collapse will be the order of civilized society."

"Our soldiers have their own unique spiritual core, which has a powerful appeal. With the militarized training of the whole society, all people will spontaneously move towards this spiritual core."

"This closeness is enough to make our social order more robust, prevent many heinous incidents from happening, and greatly benefit post-disaster reconstruction work."

The people present exchanged glances, considering the possibility of this trend. Shao Xuezhen nodded: "We will discuss this issue as soon as possible and try to come up with a decision before tonight."

Are there any other suggestions?

Su Xun pondered: "The research and manufacturing of nuclear fusion and superconductors cannot be affected; on the contrary, they should be accelerated, especially superconductors. Communication equipment made from them should be able to withstand the enormous spiritual energy impact generated during the apocalypse." "In addition, we need landmines—or explosives, a lot of them. We also need handcuffs, a lot of them."

Su Xun made several suggestions in succession, which Shao Xuezhen recorded one by one.

“Alright, then I’ll coordinate production from all sides. Lao Xu, you go and supervise the research work at the Academy of Sciences. Lao Wang, go and inform the major war zones in advance of their respective plans.”

With a clear direction, the disaster recovery office began to operate efficiently. When ASEAN is determined to accomplish something, no difficulty can stop them.

While the entire nation rejoiced over the successful moon landing, groups of people received different messages. Several secret meetings were held in succession, and the scope of knowledge about a certain crisis once again expanded. However, everyone who heard about it kept silent and refused to divulge any information.

Even so, many astute individuals have already realized that something big is about to happen, and the winds have shifted.

The calm before the storm is always deceptive, and the successful implementation of the moon landing program deserves an afternoon of celebration.

2*30年5月16日傍晚18时00分。

Many ASEAN people who were watching the live broadcast of the moon landing suddenly found that the live broadcast had changed to a different scene.

They soon discovered that not only live broadcasts, but almost all channels that could receive information, including television, mobile phones, and even radio, were simultaneously broadcasting the same message.

"Fellow countrymen, friends, sons and daughters of the ASEAN covenant countries."

At that moment, billions of people on Earth heard a deep and resonant voice.

"At this moment, I stand here with the heaviest heart to declare to you: our civilization is facing the most severe test since its birth."

"According to predictions by experts from the First Academy of Sciences, our blue planet will face an unprecedented astronomical disaster within a month."

"The specific details will be made public to the public by the expert team within three hours, but as a member of ASEAN, I must convey the most crucial facts to you at this moment—"

"This is not a temporary drill, nor a regional alert, but a survival defense line that needs to be built by every family and every pair of arms. Our research team has confirmed that this disaster will impact the social system on a scale beyond conventional understanding."

"In accordance with the sacred mission entrusted to the ASEAN Council by the ASEAN Covenant, and under the supervision of the ASEAN Secretariat, the Council adopted the following resolution."

"Effective immediately, all ASEAN theater commands will enter a state of first-level combat readiness."

"Effective immediately, all ASEAN member states are entering a state of emergency and activating their contingency plans."

"Effective immediately, all provinces, cities, units, and social strata shall enter a state of wartime mobilization."

"From this moment forward, all transportation, energy networks, and medical reserves will be under the unified control of the wartime committee."

"Three immediate instructions are now issued:"

"First, grassroots cadres in all cities and counties must complete the community emergency team formation within 24 hours and implement the 'household-to-neighbor' mutual assistance mechanism;
Second, all ASEAN production enterprises will switch to wartime standards immediately, and citizens aged 18 to 60 will be on standby to receive job conscription orders.
Third, the education system has activated the "Passing on the Torch" contingency plan, requiring history teachers in all schools to explain its contents to students tomorrow.

"Fellow countrymen, stay at your posts, remain rational, and hold fast to hope."

"The motherland stands with you."

(End of this chapter)