Chapter 30 The Badge of the Pioneers

A blood-red shield-shaped sculpture stood at the very center of the castle on Mad Wind Island, emblazoned with a golden longsword and hibiscus flower.

The hibiscus flower was a small plant with light purple blossoms. It wasn't tall, magnificent, or even particularly beautiful, but it possessed an indomitable vitality. It could adapt to any environment, enduring drought, scorching heat, poverty, and barren land. It had no specific soil requirements, and it could thrive in dense, heavy soil or even in the cracks of rocks.

The golden longsword represented immense power and an invincible deterrent.

The hibiscus flower, on the other hand, symbolized an unyielding will that could persevere tenaciously no matter the circumstances.

The longsword combined with the hibiscus flower was the emblem of the Mad Wind Island Pioneer Corps.

Li Tianran looked at the emblem and was filled with emotion.

Just a few months ago, Li Tianran was just an ordinary farmer with only his sister and a dog as family and friends. His total assets consisted of a dilapidated manor that had been discarded by modern society.

But now, he possessed a city, surrounded by a group of incredibly powerful friends and subordinates, possessing formidable military strength, technology that didn't belong to this world, fields, power, and even his own corps and emblem…

In the near future, he would also possess the world's most devastating weapons, enough to allow him to step onto the negotiating tables of the world's powerful nations and have the right to speak with the people who wielded the most power.

It all felt like a dream.

The rise of a force could take a very long time, like the Qin state during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods of Yanhuang, which took seven wise rulers and nearly one hundred and sixty years to stand at the pinnacle of the world.

The rise of a force could also occur in a very short period of time, like the European Union, which developed rapidly during and after the World Wars, using the spoils of war to completely surpass old powers like England and Germany, which had centuries of history, in just a few decades.

From many examples, it could be seen that the rise of a powerful force had no necessary connection to time.

The key was whether they could seize the opportunity!

The current world situation was like a game of Dou Dizhu (Fight the Landlord), and the cards in Li Tianran's hand were unbelievably good. He only needed to wait for the right moment to play his cards, then start with a Royal Flush, followed by a full house with a pair, and he could defeat his opponents in one fell swoop...

"One day, I will have Mad Wind Island remove its satellite shielding and camouflage and appear openly before the world. I will lead you into the halls that represent the highest power in the world. There, I will make all of humanity recognize our government, our organization, our corps, and we can have equal dialogue with any country in the world." Li Tianran looked at the sculpture in front of him, his spirit soaring, full of vigor and vitality.

Behind him, Ding Lu and the others clenched their fists.

What man hadn't had such a thought, to step into the highest hall under the spotlight, to be looked up to by everyone with admiration?

All the men trembled with excitement.

Tang Su, however, remained calm. As a woman, she naturally didn't have a strong desire for power and status.

But there was a strange look in her eyes.

She looked at Li Tianran's back and murmured to herself.

"I don't have such great ambitions or desires, and I don't want to be seen as a beacon of hope or a guide by the world, and I don't want to be in the spotlight, but if you want to… I will do everything I can to help you achieve this goal."

"..."

This was the seventh day after the Third Cataclysm.

Many major events happened in the world today.

But the most important, and the most worthy of being recorded in the annals of human civilization, was undoubtedly the birth of the Pioneer Corps, which would later be known as the "Sword of God." And when Li Tianran, as the commander-in-chief of this corps, stood beneath the giant emblem sculpture and uttered those heroic words, he probably didn't expect that in the future, this seemingly laughable corps of only ninety people would become humanity's strongest fighting force against the cataclysm...

……

Just as Li Tianran was riding high, moving steadily toward the palace of his dreams, the situation in the world was not optimistic.

In a military factory in the northern territory of Yanhuang, a large number of machines were operating, dismantling the former weapon manufacturing lines and factories.

With a piercing roar, huge walls collapsed, and demolition machines invaded, violently dismantling the steel in the machinery and buildings.

An old man in a thick military coat stood not far away, watching this scene with helplessness and heartache, sighing silently.

"Old Li, still angry?" At this moment, a general in military uniform walked over, patted the old man's shoulder, and said with a chuckle, "Reducing resource consumption and reducing traditional military and industrial production are national policies! It's not just your factory that's being affected. At least eight military factories in the northern territory have been dismantled, and ninety percent of the traditional weapon production lines across the country have been shut down!"

"I'm not angry, I'm heartbroken..." The old man's cloudy eyes looked at the distant collapsing buildings, and he said in a trembling voice, "This armory has been around for over seventy years. Back then, in order to build this armory, our ancestors endured tremendous pressure and spent five years to complete it under the double sanctions of the European Union and Russia. And now, it only takes five days to destroy it! Alas, it's the effort of so many people... now it's all for nothing!"

The general was silent for a moment, then said, "The history and efforts of our predecessors are indeed worthy of respect, but we must also move forward! Now the whole world is studying Evolvers. If we fall behind again, history will repeat itself! But building new research institutes requires land and steel resources, but our available resources are getting less and less. What can we do?"

"We can only take a gamble, dismantle the former industry, and develop new industries!"

The old man's expression softened a little upon hearing this, but the deep worry on his face remained. He looked at the distant collapsing buildings and said, "I always feel that the actions of the Chief and even the whole world are too rushed this time. They have almost abandoned ninety percent of their traditional weapons, retaining only things like nuclear weapons and heavy missiles..."

"If the Evolvers developed with the investment of massive resources are not as powerful as we imagined… then our situation will be very dangerous." The old man rubbed his eyes.

The general smiled wryly, "The Chief isn't rushing on his own accord, but the world simply doesn't give us time to transition slowly! All the countries in the world are scrambling to study Evolvers. If we are one step late, we may fall behind… Compared to the crisis of the Beast Kings, the Chief is more concerned about the threats from other countries."

"Do you think mankind can overcome this crisis?" The old man suddenly turned to look at the general and asked softly.

"If all the people in the world could abandon national and racial differences and unite, then there would be absolutely no problem." The general lit a cigarette and chuckled, "But is it possible to do that?"

"Until yesterday, there were still battles happening around the world. A team of Evolvers from the European Union was massacred during training. The European Union sent a large number of spies to Russia and our country, trying to find evidence that our two countries killed their soldiers... The European Union still regards us and Russia as the most deadly enemies."

"It's harder to unite humanity than it is to overcome this disaster." The general shook his head and turned to walk away.

Rumble!

A loud noise.

The last building of the armory finally collapsed.

……

"Ding! Your level 4 fruits are ripe, please harvest them in time!"

In the farm, Li Tianran heard a pleasant notification sound.

Li Tianran jumped up from the sofa and strode toward the planting area.

After a long wait, he was finally going to harvest one hundred and forty thousand level 4 fruits.

He was going to try and see just how powerful he could become in one day if he consumed an unlimited number of level 4 fruits!

"Maybe I can transform from an apocalyptic protagonist into a Xianxia (Immortal Hero) protagonist?" Tang Su was engrossed in reading *Fanren Xiu Shen Chuan* (A Record of a Mortal's Journey to Immortality), her eyes full of longing, "The kind that can destroy stars with a snap of their fingers!"

Li Tianran rubbed his chin, then muttered in a low voice, "What are you talking about? This is an apocalypse game... What are you destroying stars for?"

"If you open the cheat too much, you'll receive a ban and have your data wiped..."