Chapter 1664
Chapter 1664 - 1660: Frontline Collapse
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8 min read
Times of peace often come with many choices, yet those lucky enough to be immersed in an era of peace usually can’t appreciate this happiness... They only complain about the excessive overtime, the increasingly low wages, and the constantly rising cost of living.
But for those unlucky ones during wartime, such complaints are infuriating whining without any real suffering.
These unlucky souls, how they yearn for the "daily routine" of the past.
When war arrives, everyday life ceases to exist. Their lives become brutally simple: pick up a weapon when they can, and head to the frontlines, holding on for as long as possible.
Disease? Age? Gender? In the face of ethnic survival, these are all meaningless excuses. If you’re unwilling to fight, plenty of others will drag you to the battlefield to spend the last moments of your life.
This reality is not about some other worldline’s European war or the Foreign Domain War on Mercury 42. It is the last struggle when most ethnic groups face Doomsday, which is no different in essence... Some ethnic groups have struggled and survived, but most have ended up filling their ranks with their own people before embracing the humiliation of enslavement or extinction.
"... This is the situation in Southeast Asia, South Asia, and the island countries of the Pacific. They have entered a state of mass bleeding, and now conscription ages range from eighty down to ten years old... They can’t hold out much longer."
Why not East Asia? If not counting the Eastern Country, then East Asia succumbed three years ago, and now that land has become the territory of the Foreign Invaders.
The ones who still have hope are probably some countries in the south and southwest of the Eastern Country. They are miserable but have indeed managed to hold on for many years. Using the advantage of the Poison Sea, they have stabilized the frontlines... It means a large number of High-Tier Professionals and Veteran Soldiers were forcibly developed. Surrounded by the sea on four sides and backed by mountains, they’ve been left with no path of retreat.
These bones and blood are regretfully being consumed... and strategically, once all these nations in South Asia and Southeast Asia fall, it means the Foreign Invaders need no longer worry about their rear supply lines, nor need to disperse their forces for defense, allowing them to concentrate all power on the Eastern Country.
"When that moment comes, it’ll be terrible... As long as they are alive, even if they’re barely clinging to life, the Foreign Invaders will be quite uneasy."
For this reason, even though aid is extremely difficult, the Eastern Country has never stopped supporting those island nations and Southeast Asian countries... Of course, what Lu Ping’an knows that pleased them the most was the Eastern Country securing their leaders and high-level members’ families, alleviating their worries from behind.
The leaders themselves? Many have thought about deserting, but have been rejected by the Eastern Country. Even if it breeds resentment, this is not the time to remove their heads... A change of leadership could be good or bad, but the Eastern Country does not want to risk a potential avalanche right now.
It’s also worth mentioning that the existence of the Poison Sea, paradoxically, has led the Eastern Country to significantly develop the "Submarine Blackfish." These underwater vanguards have achieved many battle merits over the years. Much of the aid and rescue work has been performed by them... But also, due to the recent increase in attrition rates, it’s widely accepted as fact that the "Foreign Invaders have more or less conquered the Poison Sea."
"... If possible, we hope they’ll hold on for another year, but clearly, they can’t make it that long."
The small countries of Southeast Asia have already seen entire nations surrender... Countless eyes are watching them, ready to see how the Foreign Invaders will handle them.
The lowest depths of humanity are constantly being breached. To Lu Ping’an, what they face may seem like a humiliation worse than death, but among those suffering ethnic groups who’ve lost everything, becoming a slave is an entirely acceptable option.
"... And then they all died. Starting from the outskirts of the capital, all sorts of monsters, demons, and ghosts feasted for ten days, leaving nothing behind."
But obviously, the enemy does not need humanity’s surrender.
From the perspective of strategic decision-makers, pretending to accept the surrender at this time, or even establishing a Fake Man Kingdom, would greatly reduce the will to resist of various countries. However...
"Those fools, the Octopus and their kind are nothing but a horde of savages chasing after profit and flesh. You want to surrender? To whom do you surrender? Who has the power to press down all the tribes, to stop those driven mad by the Poison Sea from feeding?"
The harsh natural environment also exerts tremendous pressure on the Foreign Invaders; beneath the seas now lie countless bones of extraterrestrial guests, but still more arrive through the Great Gate, obstinately holding the line.
In the eyes of outsiders, these are the crazed acts of butchery by the Foreign Invaders, but those who truly understand them know this is just a pack of starved beasts.
"...In a sense, it’s a good thing. At least now no one dares to surrender."
Chris casually voiced the stark truth that everyone was thinking but didn’t dare to say out loud.
In fact, following the massacre on the Capital Island of a certain Island Country, the will to resist of other nations surged instantaneously, causing quality stocks like those in the Eastern Country’s military-industrial sector, white spirits, and mining to skyrocket, with the entire stock market rising by more than thirty percent...
"Why? Why would the stocks unrelated to them go up?"
Lu Ping’an was somewhat baffled; this was completely illogical. The stock markets of those troubled countries had already crashed. Why would the Eastern Country’s stock market, which had nothing to do with them, rise?
In actuality, when Lu Ping’an heard the news of the Eastern Country’s stock market soaring, especially when his own Rebirth Company’s market value actually doubled in three days, he thought it was some kind of hellish joke.
"...Don’t look at how those countries are filled with fighting spirit, constantly delivering speeches that express heartfelt commitment and the readiness for a do-or-die struggle, but in reality, many capitalists and politicians have already started preparing their escape routes en masse. Their funds and wealth would be worthless if they continue to use their own national currency after the destruction that war brings. Therefore, their capital flows into the Eastern Country, naturally needing ’liquidation’..."
With the massive influx of foreign capital, it was obviously impossible to urgently find projects to invest in, hence the only choice was to continuously enter the stock market, debt market, and real estate market.
Now, the Eastern Country, as always, was disinclined to issue crazy amounts of debt. Would it be sensible to buy properties frenziedly at such a time? During the war, when even the homeland might be under attack, no one would be so foolish.
With no alternative, the only option was to advance into the stock market.
Actually, this was beneficial to the Eastern Country. With an average increase of thirty percent, healthcare and logistics stocks like those of Lu Ping’an doubled, and, bizarrely, a multitude of military-industrial stocks surged three to ten times. Heaven knows how much wealth and capital this wave has brought in.
And those military-industrial enterprises? They now possessed nearly endless war funding. Even Lu Ping’an had so much money he didn’t know what to do with it...
"Should we? Maybe we should build a few more ships?"
"Are you sure? Civilian ship prices have more than doubled, and the military is on a quota system. You could get some by pushing hard, but are you sure you want to compete with the frontline military region for production capacity at this time?"
It seems that, like Lu Ping’an, many others were immediately prepared to invest in warships and ships, causing even civilian shipbuilding to become overloaded.
"...So what do I do with my money? Maybe, let’s just set up a few shipyards, given that I have the technology on my side anyway."
This idea seemed pretty good, so, the next day, the Ancient City saw the establishment of two new mega-sized shipyards.
Similar events occurred in other areas. The "Big Shots," "Church," and "Large Enterprises," now flush with cash, all began to massively increase their investments in military-industrial, logistics, and medical supplies... The losses at the frontline paradoxically led to a significant strengthening of the Eastern Country’s military power in the rear.
The downfall of the frontlines ended up directly feeding the rear abundantly, and if the war eventually ended in victory, it’s likely that the whole of Southeast Asia and South Asia would become...
"Lu Ping’an, the signal is in, they’ve started the attack."
And Lu Ping’an, at last, received the long-awaited signal.
"The Sakura Kingdom is on the offensive? Them attacking the Leduc Peninsula (Korea) has almost become a traditional art form."
— End of Chapter 1664 —