Chapter 665: The "Transformation" of Bay Territory
The sound of engines echoed through the jungle.
Line after line of trucks sped forward.
Dense clusters of fuel bombs were hurled into the jungle.
Boom!
Blazing flames ignited throughout the jungle.
Billowing smoke surged straight into the sky.
The crackling sound of burning was music to the soldiers' ears.
They had long wanted to go all out on this dangerous jungle.
Now that they had the order from the territory, they naturally wanted to go wild.
Of course, the commanders held them back.
The outside was a mess, and anything could happen.
The jungle monsters were all venomous and deadly—one misstep could lead to casualties.
This was a critical moment for the territory's operations. Completing the mission was top priority; less trouble was better than more.
Though the well-trained soldiers were a bit regretful, they didn't complain. They just watched the raging flames outside the window with anticipation.
The more they learned about the Catachan demi-plane, the more excited they became.
What kind of surprises and adventures awaited in such a vast and dangerous world?
Rumble!
At that moment, the convoy suddenly opened fire.
Clusters of magical shells blasted out to the sides of the road.
Brilliant magical energy bursts swiftly cleared the surrounding vegetation.
The mutated monsters hiding within were torn to shreds by the fierce impacts.
The surrounding threats were quickly eliminated, and the convoy resumed its journey.
Raging flames burned through the jungle as the uncontrollable mutated monsters fled in the direction away from the firelight.
Watching the golem-armored trucks race past, the expectant Yudala couldn't help but have stars in her eyes:
"Our big ships are nice and all, but they can't match that kind of speed!"
"If our territory could develop a ship like this, one that could charge straight through like a golem-armored train, that'd be amazing."
Rika subconsciously shook her head. She didn't mock Yudala's wild imagination, but her hands tightened instinctively on the steering wheel.
It was Leon, who had been traveling alongside them, whose mind suddenly lit up. Thinking of the somewhat clumsy five-mast warship, he couldn't help but ask Yudala:
"Huh? A ship that can charge through the sea like that? We really could give it a try!"
"Do you have any ideas or inspiration? What does the scene in your mind look like?"
Faced with the sudden question, Yudala didn't panic at all. Ignoring Rika's hinting glance, she eagerly counted on her fingers and began to dream aloud:
"We can't just copy it directly, of course. But we can extract the strengths of the golem-armored trucks."
"Fast speed, early enemy detection, wider range control of sea zones."
"As long as we're fast enough, we can launch massive surprise attacks and reposition or deploy quickly."
"Agile, quick to engage enemies, or escape from their pursuit."
"In reconnaissance and armed repulsion, it could be more nimble than our current warships."
"And they could form small strike units to ambush isolated or weaker enemies."
"With enough firepower, they could deal devastating blows in a short time."
"As long as the small ships are armed well enough, they'll pose a serious threat and deterrent..."
The more she talked, the more excited Yudala became, her face glowing with enthusiasm.
Yudala began to envision it.
She led her own combat squad, joyfully charging across the vast sea.
Attacking those damn Wokou pirates, hunting dangerous sea beasts, and frolicking with Leviathans.
Just thinking about it thrilled her to no end.
Following Yudala's train of thought, Leon's mind expanded further. Under Rika's watchful gaze, he muttered:
"With the current production speed at Bay Territory's shipyard, we can churn out one large ship every four days."
"If we focused on smaller, faster ships, we could manage one a day—maybe even more than I imagined..."
More ships meant quicker formations and faster combat readiness.
As long as these fast-acting ships were equipped with Bay Territory's magical cannons—
Not too many, just three or four—
They could easily destroy most Wokou pirate ships using range and numbers alone.
If they were fast enough, with some degree of protection and came in large numbers, they'd be the nightmare of every Wokou pirate vessel.
With this thought, Leon's eyes lit up even more, and he nodded without hesitation:
"Well said. That's a brilliant idea."
"Once we arrive at the destination, come see me in the office immediately."
Inspired, Leon darted into the cramped cab of the truck and began rapidly jotting down notes and sketches.
Yudala, who had just been boasting away, was suddenly left dumbfounded.
That burst of inspiration had just been a flash in her mind.
When it came to actually doing it, she'd rather be the one commanding a cannon barrage.
Yeah, she was confident in that.
Yudala immediately turned her pleading gaze to Rika, unconsciously flashing a flattering smile.
Rika gave her an exasperated side-eye and scolded:
"Always yapping—happy now?"
"What are you standing there for? Get started on the planning proposal."
Planning proposal?
Yudala felt a headache coming on and muttered sweet talk to Rika.
They both realized that getting close to the senior commander Leon was a rare opportunity.
If they could get involved deeply, it would be a huge boost for both their careers.
Feeling the pressure, the two of them handed driving duties to another Bay Territory Warrior and began discussing nonstop.
About four hours later—
Bay Territory's vehicles arrived at the destination. When they got there, they found the place already bustling.
A team of civil engineers who had arrived via teleportation circle was already clearing the surrounding jungle.
A bit nervous, Yudala and Rika took a chance to find Leon and pitched their wild ideas.
What moved Leon most—
Was their suggestion that Bay Territory's navy form small combat units like the inspector and scout teams.
With a solid grasp of each unit's role, Leon found the proposal excellent.
Under their excited gazes, Leon contacted Matthew directly.
Upon hearing the report, Matthew felt true joy at the talent and progress growing within Bay Territory.
Not only did he approve Leon's request, he even suggested contacting the territory's major research institutes for support.
What kind of support?
"Install elemental fusion engines on warships."
Upon hearing the lord's proposal, Leon's heart skipped a beat.
Though he hadn't worked much with the fusion engines, he knew full well their might—after all, he was the one who unearthed them.
The terrifying power and deterrence of the Reaper 3000 had left a deep impression on him.
And paired with the magical footage of Yaya-01 in full rampage mode, Leon was overcome with indescribable excitement and immediately agreed:
"I'll contact the major research institutes right away and submit the development request."
"I'll also start reviewing the shipyard's data and reach out to the person in charge..."
Hearing Leon's eager response, Matthew nodded in satisfaction.
Indeed, talent cultivated personally always worked better—more insightful and more dedicated.
To help Leon invest himself more fully, Matthew gave him further instructions:
"For the upcoming battle, you'll handle material logistics and supply coordination."
"This will develop your organizational and planning skills, and help you identify candidates for team formation."
"Of course, recruiting personnel will be up to you. That's part of your training too."
"..."
Delighted and confident at the lord's trust and assignment, Leon almost pounded his chest in promise.
Watching Leon converse with the lord, Yudala and Rika exchanged an ecstatic glance.
"Talk about hitting the jackpot!"
"It really was the lord, and he personally got involved!"
"This must be a huge project!"
"Hehehe, we're about to hit it big!"
"..."
Regaining his composure, Leon noticed their excitement and gave them a dazzling smile—then dropped a bomb:
"The lord and I are both impressed with your ideas. Now, we're assigning you an important task."
"You two will find and recruit suitable team members and junior commanders to help us expand and build the force."
"I'll handle the higher-level officers and skilled personnel."
"If you two can get that done..."
Dizzy with the sudden responsibility, Yudala and Rika nodded blankly and were immediately swept up by Leon's momentum.
Meanwhile, as he set up a fire-element energy pool, the corners of Matthew's mouth curled upward.
The territory was producing more talent and creative plans than ever.
Matthew was gradually reducing his direct influence, letting them grow freely within the framework he'd built.
After all, Matthew's previous development path had failed.
Now that Bay Territory had boarded the expressway of growth, Matthew was contemplating a better "future."
Without the players' occasionally brilliant yet unreliable ideas—
Matthew needed the true talent in the territory to offer more insight and inspiration.
The idea of merging naval development with the elemental fusion engine—
Was a fresh concept Matthew had just come up with.
Now, he needed Leon and more naval experts to bring it to life.
Having heard the entire exchange, Annie blinked her clear, sparkling eyes and offered a bold proposal in her graceful voice:
"Then, should we quickly apply the elemental fusion engine to other constructs and large production machinery as well?"
Matthew praised Annie's sharp instincts and, after carefully checking the stability and condition of the elemental energy pool, answered after a pause:
"It's not worth it—and we can't just develop one path alone."
With a better understanding of social production and wealth concepts thanks to Matthew's guidance, Annie pondered and nodded thoughtfully.
The elemental fusion engine was indeed powerful!
But Bay Territory still hadn't fully mastered its mysteries and technologies!
Judging by the performance of Yaya-01, even a steadily running fusion engine was a true gold-devouring beast.
If applied hastily to production or other large machines—
It would put immense strain and pressure on supporting infrastructure and personnel.
The machines might run fast, but materials and staff wouldn't keep up.
It'd lead not only to massive waste, but possibly catastrophic safety incidents.
Annie had seen similar disasters firsthand in the production plants of the Ail Elves in the Rocky Mountains.
Without proper and thorough training, those elves had recklessly operated Bay Territory's semi-automated lines, causing great danger and trouble.
If not for Bay Territory's timely intervention, reconfiguring the machinery and retraining the staff—
The Silverleaf Family would've suffered major losses on their pricey advanced production line.
This time, Annie finally understood why Bay Territory continued training new production staff even after mastering fully automated lines.
New personnel could discover more issues during production.
And their mistakes and progress could feed into refining different products and workflows.
The data and feedback gained could guide future adjustments and upgrades.
The stronger the veteran workers became, and the more new staff joined—
Bay Territory's overall production capacity would one day far exceed the imagination of other factions.
Like this time, when Bay Territory launched a large-scale military advance.
In just a few short hours—
Deep in the deadly Catachan jungle—
Bay Territory deployed over 50,000 soldiers at once to 15 outer cities, 150 to 200 kilometers away.
The troop movement was completed quietly and efficiently.
Only a small portion used teleportation circles.
The rest traveled through roads cleared through the Catachan jungle.
Their stellar performance during movement and battles against mutated monsters—
Left Annie in awe.
This time, would the enemy finally force Bay Territory's army to go all out?
Annie was eager to find out!
The complex, massive spell formation activated.
It swiftly established a covert and stable link to the Fire Element Plane.
Raging fire elements burst out of the interface, impatient to emerge.
They were flamboyant, passionate, and violent.
They sought to unleash light and heat, to burn everything to ash.
They had no consciousness or soul—only a fixed program to incinerate all.
Born from the Fire Element Plane—
Only a rare few gained sentience and souls through various flukes.
Those few absorbed energy, devoured others, grew stronger and larger, and lived longer lives.
Normal fire elements only lasted a few days before extinguishing like fireworks.
The elemental array didn't kill them—it gave them a chance to burn freely.
The energy they released would be absorbed and stored like any other element.
As they dwindled, fire element residue gathered at the array's base, slowly condensing into fire crystals.
Some lucky individuals would gain sentience in this new world thanks to certain opportunities.
They would survive the dangerous initial phase within the safety of the fire element array.
Once stronger, they could return to the Fire Plane via the array's connection.
Many powerful fire element lords were born this way.
They brought fresh blood and knowledge to the Fire Plane, breaking its previous deathly stillness.
They also intensified competition, making the Fire Plane more "lively" and dynamic, and fostering new development.
Precisely because of this, the elemental lords of the Fire Element Plane do not reject the so-called "theft" behavior of the fire element arrays and elemental pools.
Sometimes, certain fire element lords even use the connection of the elemental array to send avatars or consciousness projections to other worlds for adventures.
They not only gain rewards unavailable in the Fire Element Plane, but also broaden their horizons and learn about changes in other worlds.