"Absolutely not," Jing Mingqiu said, jumping down from the oversized sky-piercing rocket and patting Jing Rou's head. "Those foreigners aren't fools. If we sell it too easily, they'll get suspicious."
The highest leader beamed with approval. "Exactly, Mingqiu, your ability to calculate human psychology has improved significantly."
"Ah," Jing Mingqiu spread his hands. "I'm surrounded by old foxes every day; I can't help but grow. Big leader, tomorrow is the military exercise. Can I personally participate? Last time, during the combat mecha test, I could only stand on the sidelines. My hands are itching for action."
Upon hearing this, the highest leader's expression changed drastically, becoming extremely serious. "No, absolutely not. Given the malicious nature of Western countries, if you personally engage, they will definitely use the excuse of 'weapon malfunction' to kill you."
"If you wish to participate in this military exercise, you must stay by my side at all times and never act alone. Never place any hope in the morality of Western powers; for the sake of profit, they are capable of the most vicious acts."
Jing Mingqiu glanced at the system panel, which unlocked new features with the establishment of the fourth and fifth nuclear power plants, and waved his hand dismissively. "It's fine, I can participate in the exercise remotely. However, that would require borrowing the laboratory for another night."
"No problem," the highest leader agreed readily. "You can use the laboratory as you please, for as long as you need. I have other matters to attend to, so I'll be leaving now. For the specific details, you can discuss them with Feng Weiguo."
After the highest leader departed, Jing Mingqiu first shared a tender moment with Mo Ruixue and the others, then, carrying his electric screwdriver, entered the dust-free workshop to begin modifying his personal mecha.
Meanwhile, in Zone 50, USA, at an Air Force base.
This was not only a training ground for pilots but also a production base for their research and development of various fighter jets, the absolute core of American military power.
Smith Luenn, who had taken the blame for the President, found his old classmate, General Artlee Shann, a six-star general in the USA, to pour out his grievances, his heart filled with indignation.
"General, you must avenge me! Those cunning fellows from Dragon Country tricked us out of over ten billion, buying a pile of worthless weeds!"
"Don't rush," Artlee Shann looked up, watching a G11 fighter jet streak across the sky, a hint of pride flashing in his eyes. "It's just some petty tricks they can't bring to the table. This world speaks the language of strength."
"The military exercise is about to begin. I will tear off Dragon Country's hypocritical mask and expose their fragile essence, making them disgorge everything they've consumed!"
Smith Luenn frowned. "General, what if they refuse to disgorge? Ten billion! If I can't fill this hole, my life will be ruined!"
Artlee Shann removed his sunglasses, revealing a sinister smile. "If they refuse to disgorge, we'll do as we did a hundred years ago. We'll unite with our allies, form a coalition, and personally retrieve what they owe us."
"But," Smith Luenn hesitated, "not to mention nuclear weapons, even with conventional arms, Dragon Country's technological strength has surged since Jing Mingqiu's sudden appearance. They've even created mechas from science fiction novels. Can we really win?"
Artlee Shann didn't answer immediately but instead clapped his hands.
"Clang, clang!"
Accompanied by a violent tremor of the ground, a giant mecha, over twenty meters tall, emerged from behind the hangar.
The giant mecha held an oversized chainsaw in one hand and two rotary rocket launchers on its back. Its eyes glowed with the characteristic red light of laser weapons, armed to the teeth.
Seeing Smith Luenn's stunned expression, Artlee Shann waved his hand dismissively. "Mechas, we've been making these things for a long time, but their effectiveness on the battlefield is too low, so we voluntarily abandoned them."
"We never expected that what we discarded as trash, Dragon Country would cherish like a treasure. Very well, during this military exercise, we'll let the whole world know just how useless the mechas Dragon Country relies on are."
Smith Luenn still looked worried. "General, what if Dragon Country uses fighter jets or other air defense weapons in advance to shoot down our aircraft?"
Before Smith Luenn could finish his sentence, he was forcefully interrupted by Artlee Shann's unrestrained laughter.
"Hahahaha! Fighter jets? Dragon Country's fighter jets? What kind of joke is that? Their fighter jets are at least three generations behind ours. If they dare to send fighter jets to intercept, we'll claim 'pilot error,' leading to a crash, killing two birds with one stone!"
"As for air defense weapons, our stealth fighters are equipped with the latest stealth coatings. Dragon Country's old, outdated radar can't even detect our fighters, let alone lock onto them for an attack."
Artlee Shann's words were not born of arrogance but from his thirty-plus years of military service. The American Air Force had dominated the world, unchallenged, and his confidence stemmed from thousands of secret incursions into Dragon Country's airspace to gather intelligence with stealth fighters.
"Smith, you don't need to worry. Dragon Country is just a paper tiger; they won't be able to leap for much longer. Tomorrow, you'll accompany me and watch how I teach them a lesson."
It wasn't just the USA; Sakura Country, the United Kingdom, and Germany, among other nations that felt deceived, were already rubbing their hands together, preparing to teach Dragon Country a lesson.
Sakura Country even harbored ambitions of forcing Dragon Country, as in the past, to sign unequal treaties and pay them massive compensation.
Before the troops moved, the provisions were already in place.
Even before the military exercise began, various public intellectuals, anti-national elements, and Western-bought internet trolls had already begun a frantic campaign online.
"Dragon Country's high command, only knows how to build toys to fool the public. Mechas, such cumbersome things, have long been eliminated by history. Modern warfare is technological warfare; control of the air is paramount."
"The USA has already developed sixth-generation fighter jets, while Dragon Country can't even build fifth-generation fighters."
"Sakura Country and the United Kingdom have both announced they will unveil new sixth-generation fighter jets during this exercise..."
In an instant, the internet was overwhelmingly pessimistic about Dragon Country.
Seeing this news, Jing Mingqiu was furious. He opened his Weibo account, which had mysteriously accumulated over ten million followers, and posted a message.
"Let's see what they're made of! A horse or a mule, let's bring them out! Why all the talk? Who's playing with toys and who can really fight – let's just settle it with a battle!"
Jing Mingqiu's message was like pouring fuel on the fire, completely igniting the online public opinion...
The next day, on a nameless deserted island in the center of the Pacific, under the gaze of the world, the first ultra-large military exercise, collectively participated by twenty major sovereign nations, officially commenced!