161: Chapter 159 The Dragon Kingdom's Decision: Staking the Nation's Fate

Beijing, Supreme Command Headquarters.

A top-level closed-door meeting was underway, tense and focused.

Seated around the massive oval conference table were the highest-ranking officials from the Dragon Country's military, government, and scientific sectors.

Almost every face was etched with gravity.

The atmosphere was invisibly oppressive, thick enough to be wrung out like water.

At the head of the conference table, the Supreme Commander was lightly tapping his fingers against the surface, producing a rhythmic "tap, tap, tap."

Before him lay a document—the report that General Zhan Kuang had transmitted overnight via the highest-level encrypted channel.

The document's title consisted of only eight short characters: "The Nation's Fate at Stake, The Final Plan."

"Have you all finished reading it?" the Supreme Commander finally spoke, his voice somewhat serious. "Share your thoughts."

As his words fell, a deathly silence filled the conference room.

Everyone kept their heads lowered, staring at the copies of the document before them; truly, Luo Yu's plan was far too shocking.

Because it was no longer just an operational plan; it was a wager that gambled the entire country, and indeed the future of all human civilization.

"I... I will speak first." A middle-aged man wearing gold-rimmed glasses, looking refined and scholarly, was the first to break the silence. He was the head of the Dragon Country's strategic arsenal.

"Theoretically speaking, Marshal Luo Yu's plan is feasible. If our country's active and reserve nuclear warheads, combined with the fuel rods from all Nuclear Power Plants, as well as the unprocessed nuclear waste, nuclear raw materials, and so on, were all converted into pure energy, the total would be an astronomical figure. This amount of energy might truly allow Godzilla to achieve a qualitative leap."

At this point, he paused, then shifted his tone, which became incomparably heavy: "However, we must clearly realize that once we do this, it means the Dragon Country will completely abandon its nuclear deterrent. We will become a 'toothless' giant. Before the abyss crisis is resolved, if... and I mean if, the international situation undergoes any unpredictable changes, we will be completely defenseless."

Indeed! His words voiced the concerns of most people present.

When the phantom of Ghidorah appeared, and when the three kings of the abyss appeared, everyone had worked together to launch nuclear missiles for the sake of humanity's future during those critical moments of life and death. But... the current situation has not reached that point yet. We must proceed with caution, because once that is done, it is possible that, apart from necessary Nuclear Power Plants, the Dragon Country will be unable to produce any nuclear weapons in the future.

"I object!" The next second, a hawkish general with the rank of full general abruptly stood up: "Nuclear weapons are the fundamental guarantee for our Dragon Country to stand among the nations of the world! They are the stabilizer that countless predecessors exchanged for with blood and sweat! What if... what if Godzilla's evolution fails? What if Marshal Luo Yu... runs into some accident? When that time comes, what will we use to defend this country? Our own flesh and blood?"

Indeed! His questioning was resonant and powerful.

A low murmur of discussion immediately broke out in the conference room.

"Old Li makes sense; the risk is too great."

"This is no different from putting all of the Dragon Country's eggs into Luo Yu's basket. If the basket tips over, we lose everything."

"But if we don't do this, do we have any other choice?"

General Zhan Kuang, who had been urgently summoned to Beijing, had been sitting at the end of the conference table without speaking. At this moment, he finally stood up.

Everyone's gaze instantly focused on him.

"Everyone." General Zhan Kuang's gaze swept across the room, his voice steady. "I will only ask one question: one year from now, when the three kings of the abyss descend in their true forms, what will we use to resist them?"

He glanced at that hawkish general: "General Li, you tell me: with your army group? Or with our Dongfeng missiles?"

"..." General Li's face instantly flushed red; he opened his mouth, but couldn't utter a single word.

"Or perhaps, with our proud nuclear arsenal?" General Zhan Kuang's tone became heavy. "Don't forget, Tier 5 Abyssal Giant Beasts already have resistance to nuclear weapons. Do you think that if we throw all the nuclear bombs in the world at them, we will kill the three kings of the abyss?"

Silence!! The conference room was deathly quiet.

General Zhan Kuang's words were like a basin of cold water, instantly extinguishing the last shred of wishful thinking in everyone's hearts.

"The times have changed, everyone." General Zhan Kuang's voice softened, yet it carried an irresistible power. "Everything we relied on in the past has already lost its meaning in the face of this new enemy. The logic of conventional warfare and the rules of great power competition are fragile and vulnerable when faced with absolute power."

"Our only, and final, trump card right now is Luo Yu; it is Godzilla."

"If we concentrate all our resources on this card, we might still have a glimmer of hope. If we hesitate and are timid, we will only lose completely, and won't even be able to get to the table."

Having finished, General Zhan Kuang sat back down and said nothing more.

The entire conference room sank into an even deeper silence. Everyone's gaze converged on the Supreme Commander at the head of the table.

The Supreme Commander slowly closed his eyes, and his fingers stopped tapping. In his mind, scenes from the thirty years of the Abyss Era flashed by: shattered cities, crying children, and those young figures who charged toward the Abyssal Giant Beasts without hesitation.

After a long while, he opened his eyes. There was not a shred of hesitation left in them, only the determination to burn his bridges and fight to the end.

"I approve of Luo Yu's plan." The six simple words carried the weight of Mount Tai.

"Supreme Commander!" General Li still wanted to say something.

"Execute the order!" The Supreme Commander slammed his hand onto the table, causing the water in his teacup to spill out: "This is not a request; this is an order!"

"Starting today, establish a Supreme Strategic Resource Allocation Group, with me personally serving as the group leader, and General Zhan Kuang, you will serve as the deputy leader. There is only one task: in the shortest possible time, gather all nuclear facilities, nuclear raw materials, and nuclear weapons in the country, transport them to the East Sea Defense Line, and hand them over to Marshal Luo Yu for unified deployment!"

"Externally, issue an announcement." The Supreme Commander's tone was decisive. "Say that to cope with the final crisis, the Dragon Country will conduct an unprecedented 'Spark Plan,' calling on all countries around the world to donate your 'firewood' to jointly ignite this fire of hope that will continue human civilization!"

"We, the Dragon Country, must be the first to set an example!"

"Yes!" Inside the conference room, everyone stood up abruptly and responded in unison.

At this moment, all doubts and worries turned into a shared determination to face the enemy together. Betting the nation's fate, a final stand!

... That afternoon, at the East Sea Defense Line.

Luo Yu received an encrypted communication from the Supreme Command Headquarters. The content of the communication was very simple, containing only one sentence.

"Exhaust everything, spare no cost. The future of the Dragon Country is entrusted to you."

Luo Yu turned off the communicator; there was no expression of excitement or wild joy on his face, only a calm demeanor as he walked to the window and watched the setting sun dye the sea surface gold.

"Hiss, hiss." Godzilla jumped onto the windowsill and rubbed its head against his cheek.

"Chirp~" Mothra also flew over, landed on his shoulder, and let out a gentle chirp.

"Don't worry." Luo Yu gently stroked Godzilla's head and said in a low voice, "This meal will be enough to fill you up."