Chapter 2: The Base's First Impression

  Ayers Rock is located in the eastern Amadeus Salt Marsh of the Western Plateau, and the MacDonnell Ranges and Musgrave Ranges, which can be called mountains on the Australian continent, surround this area into a large plain. Of course, this plain is not a fish and rice village, but a typical gravel plain, a pure no-man's land.

  In the fragmented thoughts of a journey, one person and one car carry sunlight southward step by step. The sun, which has gradually shifted westward, no longer has the scorching heat of noon. In the quiet and desolate desert, the sounds of Zhong Yi and various sisters' conversations occasionally come through.

  "Girls, let's get a Korean one next, the Korean girls may be mostly modified versions like our ZTZ99 tanks, but they're still pretty good, comparable to the gentle girls from southern China. Don't get it wrong, I'm talking about Korean ones, not North Korean ones, I don't want to hear slogans every day, I prefer sweet and gentle girls, of course, Kim Jong-un is a special case."

  Speechless again, the base station had not transmitted any sound for a long time. Along the way, Zhong Shao Wei's requests kept coming, from Zhi Ling Jie, Bulan Ni to Shakira and then to Mei Jie Bing Ye, the jokes were endless, Tian Tang Niao comrade felt that his database was about to collapse.

  "Hey, why aren't you talking? Didn't you record the voices of those Korean girls? That's your mistake. Although Park Geun-hye is always colluding with Japan, in reality, Koreans still know that distant relatives are not as good as close neighbors. Look at how Park Geun-hye has been secretly sending signals to Xi Jinping recently..."

  "Older brother, if you keep talking like that, we'll be caught by the river crabs. Do you want to die before achieving your goal?"

  "Haha……" The sudden voice from the base car made Zhong Shao Wei laugh, "Too sweet, with a sugar content of 90%, bird, this voice is that of some anchor's, called Park something... Stop, don't go, bird look at it like this?" The sweet talk along the way did not make Zhong Yi lose his sharp observational skills, from this point on, Comrade Shao Wei was still a qualified soldier, although a bit lecherous.

  It's more like a gorge than a valley, with steep cliffs on both sides that are made of hard red granite. The cliffs aren't very high, only about 100 meters or so. The valley isn't very long either, and you can see from one end to the other from the entrance where the base camp is located. This type of terrain isn't uncommon in Australia, but from a military perspective, the granite cliffs on both sides of the valley are the best barrier. As long as we defend the two entrances to the valley, there's no way ground artillery can attack us from within the valley. Plus, the top of the cliffs is perfect for setting up anti-aircraft defenses, making this valley a naturally fortified stronghold.

  "Is that all, Bird? Before the base vehicle deploys, can you use your detection ability?" Compared to the previously mentioned ** Silk Man, this is the true elite of the Armored Corps, Zhong Yi. He has sharp observational skills, accurate judgment, and once he sets his sights on a target, he will resolutely execute it.

  "Reporting in, sir. We're currently on the outskirts of the Musgrave Ranges in Western Australia, approximately 32.5 kilometers from Ayers Rock."

  They had actually walked over thirty kilometers in the chat, and Zhong Shaojun secretly praised his own marching ability in his heart. "Bird, can you make a more detailed detection? For example, the mineral deposits and human activity around us."

  "Sorry, sir. Before the base expands, I can only have a 50-kilometer mapping capability and does not include underground and biological activity situations."

  The response from the base vehicle was not unexpected. Before the base unfolded, it was already good to have such capabilities. However, this way, it is impossible to determine if there are other human activities nearby and the mining situation necessary for the development of the base. "Take a gamble, at least that large red stone is rich in iron elements, I don't know if it can be used by the base."

  In the absence of further information, decide and act! The phrase "missing an opportunity" should never appear on the lips of an armored officer.

  "Birds, prepare to deploy base. Target: center of valley ahead."

  "Survey completed, unknown mountain valley, average width 142 meters; length 1246 meters; geological composition of granite. Meets base construction conditions, but surrounding space is narrow and not suitable for subsequent base construction, please report to superior officer whether the base should continue to expand."

  "Expand!" Large buildings like the War Factory can be placed outside of valleys, and in case of real danger, the base vehicle is guaranteed to be the most important.

  "Confirmed execution of the base's highest commander's order, base car deployment, time six hours." After the soft and charming female anchor's voice, the black base car slightly trembled, and with a loud rumbling sound, the base car really transformed like an Autobot, a huge metal arm extending from the car, pulling out one fixed module after another from the carriage and installing them in different positions...

  Zhong Yi looked a bit dazed, is this carriage the small pocket on Doraemon's chest? Is this the difference between this and the game? Integrated module construction? What a big fuss!

  The main building of the base, about 10 meters high, rose from the ground with a mechanical arm as its center, without doors or windows, and was closely attached to the steep cliff on the north side. From top to bottom, it emitted a black alloy glow, with a very sci-fi shape. To the left front, slightly shorter, but also closed, with the same heavy black gold, and the same sci-fi flashiness. Zhong Yi looked at it with great interest, but with a smile on his face, this style was just like in the game, the next step should be a courtyard-style plaza, where helicopters could take off and land...

  The last alloy block was laid smoothly under the flexible manipulation of the metal arm. Afterwards, the metal arm hung quietly above the courtyard, and the base unfolded to announce its completion. Zhong Shaowei, who had been leaning against a mountain valley, couldn't wait any longer, threw away the half-eaten sausage in his hand, jumped up and rushed into the courtyard, looking around at the base building like a mythical palace, with his mouth repeating two words: Miracle...

  A gentle voice of a female anchor came in softly, as if whispering gently in the ear: "Report to Commander, base deployment is complete, please enter the control console."

  Zhong Yi snapped back to his senses, clenching his fists tightly: this 100x100 meter Great China Base was all he had in this strange world.

  Adjusting the sunscreen on his body out of habit, although it wasn't a military uniform, Lieutenant's excited mood at this moment was no less than that of the graduation and rank conferral ceremony a month ago.

  Two sliding doors, indistinguishable from the other walls, opened silently to the left and right. Jing Yi's expression was serious as he stepped into the main building of the base. In stark contrast to its exterior, the interior of the base was quite bright. A holographic electronic map hung on one side of the circular hall, showing the surrounding environment of the base.

  "Where are you, bird? Why is this grand hall equipped with only one holographic screen, so empty?"

  "Sir, this is just the first floor lobby of the base. Your control room is on the second floor, and your resting room is on the third floor." The female anchor's voice reverberated in the circular hall, sounding particularly charming.

  "How can I go to the second floor?" Zhong Yi looked around and found that there was no staircase entrance in the hall.

  "Sir, you are the highest commander here, and all facilities in the base exist to serve you." The column in the middle of the hall silently opened a elevator door.

  Zhong Yi smiled silently and walked in.

  The space on the second floor seems much smaller than the hall on the first floor, and the most striking thing is the large control panel under the holographic screen. After walking a few big steps, Comrade Shao Wei couldn't help but burst out another swear word: "Damn it, this interface is just like in the game!"

  Next to the holographic map are several options for controlling the interface: Building Interface, Defense Interface, Character Interface, Equipment Interface.

  Open the building interface, and indeed, the power plant icon is already lit up, no longer in gray and white like other icons. With a tap on the icon, the main interface immediately displays a row of text:

  Power plant

  Funds: 800

  Power requirement: Increase 200 power

  Construction area: 20 * 20

  Construction time: 4 hours

  The base's development requires sufficient power to make various buildings within the base operate normally. Although the power plant increases power slightly, it has a low cost, short construction period, and can be repeatedly constructed to meet the power needs of most small buildings.

  "Alright, the introduction is detailed enough, but compared to the game, there's nothing new. It just adds construction time and building range, funding... eight hundred in funding? Zhong Shao Wei's right eyelid twitched involuntarily. Not all settings are the same as in the game, what's the startup funding here?"

  It's okay, the top of the holographic screen is displayed very clearly.

  Base funds: 10,000

  Accumulated expenditure: 0

  There is also the calculation of cumulative expenditure, which is not available in the game. What kind of tricks will there be? "Bird, what's the use of calculating cumulative expenditure?" I was busy looking at the console and didn't hear the female anchor speak for a while.

  "Reporting officer, after base expansion, you have acquired the highest authority of the base."

  "What does it mean?"

  "That means you can't understand it and no one else has permission to decrypt the database, including me."

  "What's the point of having you then? What do I need to do to get more authority?"

  "Ah, of course, it's about accumulating military achievements to promote military rank."

  Zhong Yi seemed to see a strand of black thread flowing down from his head, the base's intelligent system was too smart, and Lieutenant General regretted choosing a Korean host, but at this critical moment, there was no time to think about it.

  The power plant must be built first, otherwise other buildings cannot be built. All other icons on the building interface are gray and white.

  He clicked on the power plant icon, then tapped the build marker at the bottom of the interface. The holographic screen immediately switched to a 3D view centered on the base, with a radius of fifty kilometers. Buildable flat areas were shown in green, while other terrain types that were not suitable for construction were covered in red. It seemed that the fifty-kilometer radius was the base's control range, which wasn't bad - such a large area would be enough to build a large city, especially since this was in Australia, where land was cheap.

  No choice but to place important buildings a bit further away from the base for now. Pointing at the center of the holographic screen, which is where the base is located on the map, zoom in, select an empty space next to the main building, confirm.

  The scene on the construction site appeared clearly on the screen, and a row of tall walls rose up around the newly selected location, with dust flying inside. The power plant icon on the building interface also returned to gray and white, but a four-hour countdown appeared next to the icon.

  Staring at the interface for a while, Zhong Yi felt a bit bored. "Bird, how many power plants do I need to build to meet the initial development needs? Can I build several at the same time?"

  "Reporting, sir. The first question lacks the necessary permissions and cannot be answered. The second question, at any given time, each interface can only have one icon option for construction." The female anchor was still as gentle as ever.

  "Damn it!" He muttered under his breath, waving his hand as if the female anchor was really annoying him. It's better to rely on oneself than others, suppressing the frustration in his heart, Zhong Yi lowered his head and continued to study the control interface. It was the same as the settings in the game, without a power plant, other interfaces couldn't be opened yet. On the construction interface, apart from the electric stone that was being built, there were only two gray icons, namely the ore refinery and barracks, all the other positions were question marks.

  "What the, what's with the plane? I'm an armored officer, we don't even have a tank factory here. You want me to command a bunch of infantry? Besides, what era is this? Who still has pure infantry? You think it's World War II or something, like those little devils charging forward shouting 'Banzai'? Hey, bird, when we came over, did the time change too? What's today's date?"

  October 12, 1934.

  "It's already 12... What? Bird, you didn't say wrong, did you? 1934?"

  "Reporting officer, no errors, today is October 12th, 1934."

  "I...can't take it!" Zhong Yi heavily fell back into his leather chair.

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