Chapter 152 What new gadgets has the Dragon Kingdom invented?
The Pentagon. In the command room, the atmosphere was as heavy as a lead weight pressing on everyone's chest.
The US Secretary of State sat on a wide yet cold-looking chair, his eyes fixed unblinkingly on the live broadcast screen.
Fine beads of sweat oozed from his forehead. His exquisite tie now seemed to have become a shackle restricting his breathing, making his breaths slightly rapid.
At this moment, only ten minutes remained of the twelve-hour deadline set by the Dragon Kingdom. For the Secretary of State, every second of these ten minutes felt like a stretched rubber band.
His fingers tapped lightly on the armrest unconsciously. Although he was still pretending to be calm on the surface, maintaining his usual arrogant demeanor, deep down he felt like a lonely boat in a storm, not daring to slack off in the slightest.
Previously, they had been quite confident, guessing that the Dragon Kingdom would obediently retreat after seeing their declaration!
However, as they watched time slip away bit by bit, the Dragon Kingdom's fleet seemed like executioners waiting for their sentence, with no intention of retreating at all!
At this moment, his brows were tightly furrowed, his brow seemingly twisted into a dead knot, and he pondered secretly in his heart, which felt like a tangled mess.
"The Dragon Kingdom's fleet hasn't withdrawn yet. Do they really intend to go head-to-head with us?"
"What do they have to rely on?"
"Do they think they can withstand our two carrier strike groups with just three warships?"
"Are they crazy?"
This question hovered and wandered in his mind like a ghost.
Not only him, but the other high-ranking officials in the command room also had a trace of shock on their faces at this moment! They seemed startled by the Dragon Kingdom's current boldness!
Was this still the peace-loving Dragon Kingdom? According to past situations, shouldn't they have already packed up and retreated?
What was going on here? Did they really want to start a war with them? They couldn't understand it!
Meanwhile, the Dragon Kingdom issued a new announcement!
"In view of the pirates' stubborn refusal to surrender and their failure to cherish the opportunity we provided!"
"In this regard, we can only take necessary measures and launch an attack against them!"
"Unrelated vessels, please evacuate the target waters immediately!"
"Do not say we didn't warn you!"
Upon seeing this announcement, the USA personnel were slightly taken aback at first, but then the corners of their mouths curled up slightly, that arc full of disdain and contempt.
The Secretary of State was speechless: "This is hundreds of nautical miles away from our naval base!"
"From so far away, what is the Dragon Kingdom going to use to attack?"
"Are they going to use their heads?"
"They don't even draft their lies before bragging!"
He mocked inwardly, his arms crossed even tighter, as if this could give him a bit more confidence.
The others also felt that the Dragon Kingdom was bragging!
Smith, the Director of the Intelligence Agency, thought at this moment: "Could they have some other motive?"
Everyone couldn't help but frown, but after thinking for a long time, they still couldn't figure out if the Dragon Kingdom really had any other motive!
At this moment, the voice of a high-ranking official suddenly rang out!
"Look, everyone, the Dragon Kingdom's warships are moving!"
Following his voice, they looked and discovered that in the image, the Dragon Kingdom's warships were indeed moving. They saw the warships, which had originally been lying dormant like steel beasts, slowly start their engines, the water stirred up by the propellers creating layers of white ripples on the sea surface.
Seeing this scene, the Secretary of State first widened his eyes, and a surge of ecstasy welled up in his heart. Then, the arc of his mouth became even more pronounced: "Has the Dragon Kingdom finally... finally failed to hold on and is about to run away?"
However, fate always seems to enjoy playing tricks on people. He had guessed wrong again!
Those three Longwei-class Strategic Warships, after merely adjusting their direction, stopped steadily once again.
Time in this tense atmosphere seemed to have been pressed with a fast-forward button, or perhaps it had become incredibly slow as if enchanted. Finally, the 12 hours slipped away from their fingertips like quicksand.
Old Zhao appeared on the screen again. He was dressed in a crisp military uniform, his posture as upright as a pine or cypress, standing tall in the sea breeze. His eyes were firm and confident, shining like the brightest stars in the night sky.
Soon, Old Zhao's loud and powerful voice was transmitted in all directions through the broadcasting equipment: "Dear compatriots of the Dragon Kingdom, hello!"
"On the occasion of the Lunar New Year, it is a pity that I could not spend it with you!"
"On behalf of all the officers and soldiers of the Longwei fleet, I wish the people of the whole country a Happy New Year."
"At the same time, I announce that let us be the ones to fire the Dragon Kingdom's first shot of the New Year!"
When the Secretary of State heard this, his mind went blank for a moment, and then he was stunned. Immediately after, a smug expression appeared on his face, which was already slightly pale: "Fire a shot?"
"Is the Dragon Kingdom planning to admit defeat... and go back to the country to fire a shot??"
"They really chickened out?"
His shrewd eyes began to dart around, and his mind was running at high speed like a calculator. He had even started calculating how to extort another sum from the Dragon Kingdom! Thinking that the costs of deploying the aircraft carrier must be borne by the Dragon Kingdom.
He seemed to have already seen the Dragon Kingdom obediently yielding to his coercion and inducement, with large amounts of profit about to fall into his own pocket.
However, his fantasy, like a beautiful but fragile soap bubble, was mercilessly popped in the next instant.
Just as he was immersed in his greedy fantasy, the live broadcast screen suddenly switched without warning to the Longwei-class Strategic Warship, specifically to the huge Electromagnetic Naval Gun.
In an instant, the whole world seemed to have been pressed with a pause button, and everyone was dumbfounded. They saw a shocking behemoth appear on the screen.
It was an Electromagnetic Railgun with a ten-meter caliber, the barrel reaching a hundred meters in length, resembling a sleeping steel dragon. Under the sunshine, the metal surface of the Electromagnetic Railgun shone with a cold and soul-stirring light, as if proclaiming its incomparable power to the world.
After seeing this scene, the group of experts from the USA were so shocked that their jaws almost dropped. They were either whispering to each other or standing there in a daze, their expressions identical, full of disbelief.
The originally quiet and orderly laboratory instantly turned into a mess. An expert with gray hair and great prestige in the military field widened his eyes, his eyes full of shock and disbelief. His lips trembled slightly, and he said with a voice that was also clearly trembling: "This is simply incredible! How did the Dragon Kingdom develop a naval gun with such a large caliber?"
The US Secretary of State had accidentally seen the appearance of the naval gun in the footage before, but this time it was different from before! This time, the footage featured a close-up of the Electromagnetic Naval Gun! They were able to see the true appearance of the Electromagnetic Naval Gun more intuitively!
At this moment, he was completely dumbfounded!
"A hundred-meter barrel, ten-meter caliber, what on earth is this thing???"
And just then, he thought of a more terrifying idea!
"The Dragon Kingdom just said they would fire a shot..."
"It wouldn't be... this gun, right!!!"