31: Chapter 31: Thunderclap in the Sands

In July in Saudi Arabia, the scorching sun baked the vast desert, distorting the air.

However, on the outskirts of Riyadh, inside a newly completed, heavily guarded, modern factory, the cool air conditioning intertwined with the heated atmosphere.

This was the production base of "Spark-Arab Defense Company," and also the first overseas enclave opened by Spark Technology amidst the storm.

Lin Wan, dressed in a custom suit and a simple white lab coat, stood at the end of the assembly line accompanying several core engineers.

She breathed a sigh of relief as she watched the last prototype of "thunderbird no. 1" being carefully loaded into a special military transport crate.

Over the past half month, she had practically lived in the factory, coordinating technology transfers, supervising production processes, and responding to various inquiries from the Saudi side.

She had lost some weight, but her eyes were sharper and brighter than ever.

"General Manager Lin, the first batch of ten prototypes has been fully tested, the parameters meet the standards, and they are ready for delivery."

The technical lead for the project, a senior engineer who had followed from back home, reported with irrepressible excitement.

Lin Wan nodded, picked up the encrypted internal phone, and dialed Su Chen's number.

Despite being separated by thousands of miles, she maintained her habit of reporting daily.

"General Manager Su, here in Riyadh, the first batch of 'thunderbird' prototypes is complete, ready to be delivered to the Saudi military for live-fire testing."

On the other end of the line, Su Chen's voice remained steady, carrying a hint of approval: "Thank you for your hard work, Lin Wan."

"I will handle the pressure back home."

"You must ensure the test goes flawlessly on the front line."

"This is not just a matter of a one-billion-dollar order, but the key to whether we can gain a firm foothold in the Middle East."

"Understood. We are confident."

Lin Wan said firmly.

She hung up the phone and turned to the Saudi project liaison waiting on the side, a young prince named Abdul: "Your Highness, we can set off now."

A secret test site deep in the desert, waves of heat hit the face.

Several camouflage-painted military off-road vehicles stopped behind a sand dune.

A group of high-ranking generals in Saudi military uniforms, led by Prince Abdul, observed the test that would determine future procurement.

Lin Wan and her technical team kept their eyes glued to several screens inside a temporarily erected mobile command vehicle.

The test began.

The first item, basic performance.

A "thunderbird no. 1" took off rapidly in almost complete silence, its streamlined body and special coating reflecting a dull luster under the sun, soon blending into the deep blue sky, making it difficult for the naked eye to track.

"Current altitude 500 meters, cruising speed 80 km/h, signal stable."

The operator reported.

Outside the command vehicle, an old Saudi general with stars on his epaulets held binoculars and nodded slightly: "The noise control is good, much better than those 'big mosquitoes' we have now."

The second item, reconnaissance and identification.

The screen switched to the drone's primary perspective.

High-definition images were transmitted back in real-time; sand dunes, rocks, and even lizards hiding in the shadows were clearly visible.

Immediately, the screen switched to infrared mode, and several "imaginary enemy" targets (simulated infantry squads and light armored vehicles) pre-placed under camouflage nets in the distance immediately presented distinct heat source outlines.

"Target automatically identified and locked, coordinates marked: bearing XXX, distance 1250 meters... Target type: light armored vehicle, confidence level 97.8%."

The system's synthesized female voice reported calmly.

The generals exchanged surprised glances.

This identification speed and accuracy far exceeded their expectations.

The third item, complex environment and anti-interference.

The drone was guided to fly into a simulated electromagnetic interference zone, and at the same time, the testing party manually cut off the GPS signal.

The image on the screen fluctuated slightly but quickly returned to stability.

The operator reported: "Automatically switched to inertial navigation + terrain matching mode, flight attitude is stable, image transmission encrypted signal is normal, latency 0.28 seconds."

"thunderbird no. 1" moved like a ghost with its own consciousness, deftly bypassing preset obstacles (simulated town ruins and power lines), and flew precisely to the next designated reconnaissance point.

"Good!" The old general couldn't help but let out a low shout, "To maintain such efficiency without satellites, this is exactly what we need!"

The fourth item, tactical application demonstration.

The drone performed "stealth tactical following," silently approaching a simulated patrol convoy for close-range reconnaissance; then it demonstrated "multi-waypoint tactical planning," automatically conducting multi-angle, full-coverage reconnaissance on a simulated enemy front-line position, and packaged and transmitted all identified target coordinates back.

Finally, while testing the "automatic concealment upon loss of contact" function, the drone did not crash after the signal was forcibly interrupted.

Instead, it rapidly descended in altitude, turned off most of its lights and signal transmitters, and used its remaining power to glide to a preset sand valley kilometers away for a smooth "emergency landing."

The entire test process lasted three hours.

When the last "thunderbird no. 1" landed smoothly at the designated location, warm applause erupted at the scene.

The look of scrutiny on the Saudi generals' faces had long vanished, replaced by undisguised excitement and satisfaction.

Prince Abdul excitedly shook Lin Wan's hand: "Lin! It's perfect! This completely exceeded our imagination! This is not just a drone, this is our 'Heavenly Eye' in the desert!"

Half a month later, Riyadh Royal Palace, the signing ceremony scene.

The gilded banquet hall was brightly lit.

Su Chen flew in personally to sign the first procurement agreement with the representative of the Saudi Deputy Secretary of Defense under the flashes of numerous media (mainly Saudi and Middle East media).

Agreement amount: One billion US dollars.

Procurement content: Ten thousand "thunderbird no. 1" tactical reconnaissance drones.

This order not only meant that Spark-Arab Defense Company was profitable upon establishment, but its sheer volume instantly pushed "thunderbird no. 1" to the center stage of the world's military trade.

At the banquet after the signing ceremony, Prince Abdul was radiant and raised his glass to toast Su Chen: "Su, my friend! Your products have performed extremely well in recent border patrols and counter-terrorism clearing operations!"

"It not only helped us accurately locate the hideouts of extremists, avoiding unnecessary casualties for our soldiers, but even provided us with real-time heat source images inside buildings during a city hostage incident, making a great contribution to the successful rescue of the hostages!"

He lowered his voice with a mysterious smile: "Now, it's not just us."

"The UAE, Qatar, Kuwait... several neighboring Secretaries of Defense have been asking me in private where they can get these 'magical birds.'"

"Your orders will probably be lined up until next year soon!"

Su Chen smiled and clinked glasses with him, his heart surging with waves.

This risky move was the right one.

The huge profits and influence of the military trade market are far beyond what the civilian market can compare to.

The one-billion-dollar order was like a shot of adrenaline, not only bringing huge cash flow but also greatly boosting the morale that had been somewhat sluggish back home due to the chip supply cut.

When the news reached back home, there was jubilation within Spark Technology.

Shen Nanpeng looked at the preliminary profit report from the finance department, his fingers trembling—the production cost was strictly controlled at around ten thousand US dollars, and the selling price was one hundred thousand US dollars, which was almost a nine hundred percent gross profit!

And this didn't even count the long-term benefits that might come from subsequent maintenance, training, and software upgrades.

"We... we have survived, and in a way no one expected!"

He exclaimed uncharacteristically at the executive meeting.

Wang Ming, Wu Hao, and other R&D backbones were even more excited.

Their technology had not only created commercial value but also proved its worth on the real battlefield; this sense of achievement was incomparable.

And in Su Chen's top-floor office, he overlooked the city with lights coming on, listening to Lin Wan's report from Saudi Arabia about more Arab countries expressing procurement intentions, his eyes flashing with a more far-reaching light.

The screech of "thunderbird" had already resounded across the sea of sand.

But this was just the beginning.

The path of military industry had been opened.

Relying on the era-transcending technological foundation provided by the system, the giant ship of Spark Technology, after withstanding the storms of international capital, not only did not sink but adjusted its course and sailed into a wider and deeper ocean.

Next step, it was time to let those hiding behind the scenes hear this "thunder" from the East.