漫画啦

The person in the video call was a bespectacled old soldier who looked like an engineer. It seemed he was already informed that Xia Fan would contact him, as he was not in the least bit surprised. Furthermore, he seemed to already be aware of the relationship Xia Fan shared with Traveling Buddha, as well as their exploits in the Burning Star Region.

“Are the two of you free today?” He Dong asked.

“Yes, me and Traveling Buddha have just returned from the Outer Frontier, so the station gave us a week of leave.”

“In that case, I might need to go do an inspection of a research center in two days’ time, so why don’t you two come on down today. The sooner the better, as I still have a meeting I need to attend later in the afternoon.”

“No problem. We’ll be right there!” Xia Fan readily agreed.

Hanging up, Xia Fan proceeded to drag the still-sleeping Traveling Buddha out from his bed without another word, and had the hotel staff book them an atmospheric shuttle from the rental company.

Traveling Buddha knew that there was no way he was escaping from Xia Fan’s clutches. The man had three interests: cracking cases, piloting ships, and the war forty thousand years ago that had caused the eradication of Ashen Dragon and Hidden Moon. Xia Fan would become very serious whenever any of those matters were involved.

Thus, Traveling Buddha had no choice but to wash his face and follow behind Xia Fan, listlessly making his way to the roof of the hotel.

—

The shuttle that Xia Fan had asked for was already waiting in the parking lot on the roof.

There were two types of shuttles: atmospheric and extra-atmospheric. Judging from their names alone, an atmospheric shuttle would not be able to pass out of the atmosphere and reach space, while the extra-atmospheric shuttles could breach the atmosphere and take short trips into space. Because these were considered lightweight transportation vehicles, a shuttle’s speed was generally faster than the various attack ships, and they were more fuel-efficient.

The Navy’s General Armament Department of the Deron Star Region was on the same planet as the Special Bureau branch of the Deron Star Region, though they were in different cities. An atmospheric shuttle would suffice.

The damage to the Disaster had been severe, and in its current state it was unsuitable for flight. Xia Fan had it parked in the spaceport’s hangar. The next step would be for it to undergo another overhaul so that it could serve as his backup spaceship.

With a whoosh of the winds, the shuttle left the city and traveled deep into the vast desert inland.

This was a restricted military zone. The military had surrounded a large swathe of the desert with a metal net. Inside that area was a series of large warehouses connected to one another.

There was no flying in a military zone’s airspace, so the shuttle had to park at the entrance. Xia Fan allowed the pilot to head back first, and would give him a call if the need arose later. With that, he and Traveling Buddha made their way to the military post outside the zone, stating their purpose for coming to the armed soldiers.

“Oh, are you Mr. Traveling Buddha and Xia Fan?”

“That is us.”

“The general already informed us that you’d be visiting today. Please, follow me!”

A soldier invited Traveling Buddha and Xia Fan aboard a light armored hovercar, and drove them to the main building of the General Armament Department.

He Dong’s secretary was a young lady wearing a camouflage beret, who was waiting for their arrival by the entrance. She led Xia Fan and Traveling Buddha through the security checkpoint, and brought them to the top floor of the main building, He Dong’s office.

The route there was heavily guarded. The many security checks annoyed Traveling Buddha quite a bit, but it was Xia Fan who was looking forward to meeting General He Dong. Judging by the situation, he might really be able to acquire a good ship from him!

Finally, Xia Fan met He Dong in his office. He was a civilian general, and he looked a bit shorter in person than on the video call, with a slight pot belly.

Sitting down on the sofa, He Dong smiled and chatted with the two younger lads, asking them about what had happened in the Outer Frontier. Xia Fan answered him without sparing any details.

Upon hearing Xia Fan and Traveling Buddha had encountered the Outer Frontier Task Force’s Third Fleet, helmed by Rear Admiral Parker, He Dong somewhat emotionally said, “Parker was my junior during military training camp. When I studied engineering, he went into command. I only just treated him to a round of drinks not too long ago to send him off on his voyage.

“The missions the Outer Frontier Task Force undertake are really grueling. It’ll be two years before I’ll be able to see him again.”

After getting a little emotional, He Dong finally got to the matter at hand.

“Grandpa Old Buddha had already spoken to me before. The elder said that he could not believe that you and Traveling Buddha ended up with a frigate produced by the Sacred Federation. Are you implying that our Starcloud Union has no good ships out there?”

Xia Fan just chuckled. “Is that what Grandpa Old Buddha thinks? How amusing!”

He Dong adjusted his spectacles, “After all, he is the Godly Buddha Clan, an existence that is a key pillar holding up the Starcloud Union. He’s someone whose passion for the Union burns, everyone knows that.

“This time he sent you to find me so that you could pick out a ship you’re fond of. Of course, in my purview, in accordance with the grade you’re at, you can only choose destroyers. If you want to get yourself a more powerful cruiser or battlecruiser, I won’t be of any help to you.”

Xia Fan hurriedly assured the older man, “That I understand. But the chief told us yesterday that the Special Bureau will be dispatched to the Outer Frontier in the future. If nothing happens to either of us, we’ll find ourselves frequently being sent to more dangerous locations in the Outer Frontier, which is why we need at least a high-performance warship!”

He Dong laughed, “I know about that. It’s not just the Special Bureau. Even the Union Navy, Army, Intelligence Bureau, in addition to the Strategic Bureau! Every crucial force in the Union is now required to expand beyond our borders.

“Speaking of, I would like to ask you something. Do you know what the Naval General Armament Department does?”

Xia Fan answered, “Before coming here, I checked the Ministry of Defense’s website. It stated that the General Armament Department is the provisioner of equipment for the Union Navy.”

He Dong shook his head with a smile, “Though what you said is right, it isn’t exactly accurate.

“Strictly speaking, the General Armament Department doesn’t just provide equipment, but also Naval-issued, high-quality specialized equipment.

“The major things are motherships, and the smallest things could be something like a screw. We procure everything needed from the manufacturers, and given the high requirements of the Navy, the quality of the equipment we acquire is well beyond what anyone can purchase from the market.

“Just take the most common Hound-class frigate found in the Union; the same ship, when bought by the Navy, would often cost twice as much as, and its performance will be at least three times the civilian variant.

“Not only that, the Naval-issued Hound class is equipped with the latest star maps and navigation systems, and is able to have military scanning devices installed, as well as military grade cannons.

“In any case, no matter what it is, even a nail, as long as it is related to the Navy, then its performance will be far greater than what you can get outside. After all, we’re talking about a nail that has been specially manufactured for the navy.

“Even more amazingly, due to the bulk purchases the navy makes, we will always ensure we get the lowest prices.

“Using the same example of the Navy-issued Hound-class Frigate, if you ordered a warship with the same performance capabilities as a Navy-issued Hound-class Frigate through civilian channels, no matter how much money you spend, there’s no way you’d be able to buy one. The laws of the Starcloud Union stipulate that the performance of civilian warships must be lower than the Naval variant.

“Even if you really managed to buy a Navy-issued warship, the amount of money you’d have to expend would definitely not just be double, but at least seven, eight, even ten times or more!

“You ought to be clear by now, right? Navy-issued equipment and warships are the best choice money can buy; they would be the cheapest and perform the best!”

Xia Fan was slightly surprised, asking somewhat animatedly, “Do you mean to say that the esteemed general would be willing to provide us with a Navy-al issued warship?!”

He Dong stood up and patted Xia Fan on his shoulder. He grinned broadly, “Of course. The call from Grandpa Old Buddha wasn’t for naught.”

“But speaking of which, this isn’t provided, but a purchase. You’ll need to pay the cost of the warship and equipment that you end up choosing. This can be with points or with Union dollars. After all, the General Armament Department is a Union organization, and if I don’t accept your money, I won’t be able to balance the account books.”

“But,” Xia Fan felt that this proposal was too inconceivable. Since He Dong planned to sell a Navy warship to him, he asked in puzzlement, “Does the Union allow private individuals to purchase Navy warships?”

He Dong stared at Xia Fan, “Of course not. What would a civilian do with a powerful Navy warship? Think of staging a rebellion?”

“But,” his tone changed as he said, “There are always exceptions to the rule! For second-hand Navy warships, I at least still have the authority to decide how to handle them. For example, I sell a Navy Hound-class frigate to you, and it is just the empty shell of a ship. Its combat systems, like fire control, radar, and other such equipment, would all be removed.

“But if I were to sell you some other equipment at the same time I’m selling you the husk of a Navy warship, and you put them in yourself when you head back, then that’s absolutely none of my business. After all, when I sold you the ship, it was nothing more than an empty ship with no weapons whatsoever.

“So, do you understand now? The ship’s hull will be signed off under your name, and the equipment… it’ll be signed off under Traveling Buddha’s name. I’ll sell them separately to you two, but because of the wonderful relationship you two share, willing to work together, what can I do about that?”

Xia Fan completely understood what He Dong was insinuating. It turned out that He Dong’s proposal was exploiting a particular loophole in the Union’s laws.

The law stated that it was possible to sell second-hand Navy warships, but they must have their equipment and weapons removed.

The law also stipulated that military- grade equipment and Navy warships could not be sold to the same buyer, so as to prevent a private individual from reconstructing a Navy warship.

The third law also stated that the purchase of advanced military equipment needed to pass a qualification review.

Given Traveling Buddha’s status, there was no doubt he qualified. Who would dare stop the Little Old Buddha from buying military-grade radar or cannons?

Even if the entire universe rebelled, a descendant of the Godly Buddha Clan would definitely not rebel!

Based on the above three points, Grandpa Old Buddha and He Dong had designed this perfect situation that would allow Xia Fan to very easily obtain his very own elite Navy warship!

After he was done with his explanation, He Dong raised his arm and checked the time. He then addressed Xia Fan and Traveling Buddha, “I still have an important meeting this afternoon, so let’s end it here.

“My secretary Lina shall arrange for the two of you to go pick out the ship and equipment you want from the warehouse. If there’s any further questions, you direct them straight to her.”

…..

…

Xia Fan and Traveling Buddha left He Dong’s office and were escorted to the General Armament Department’s warehouse by his secretary, Lina.

The warehouse was filled with destroyers, with at least ninety percent of them looking brand new.

Looking from above, the warehouse did not seem to be particularly large, but only people who entered it themselves realized that there was still an underground portion to the place running down a great shaft, with thousands of destroyers in every conceivable style and appearance docked there. Many of them were models Xia Fan had never seen before, a spectacular sight that left him bedazzled.

Lina led Xia Fan and Traveling Buddha to browse through the hangar as she explained, “Though they are second-hand, their depreciation rate is decided by us, the Armament Department.

“The warships here are mostly test models. Because of our proximity to the Outer Frontier, the various shipyards always send their latest models here to be field-tested, since Deron General Armament Department is designated as one of the three major testing centers.

“The warships that you’re currently looking at are mostly prototypes, ultimately not approved for mass production for various reasons.

“Some were due to their performance not meeting the requirements of the military, or some that were too expensive to produce, or were too difficult to mass-produce. After all, the military wants one type of destroyer, and needs tens of thousands of them!

“If the cost is too high, and the budget is unable to support it, then no matter how good its performance was, we have no choice but to give it up. We can’t use ships that are too difficult to mass produce, either. Military warships needed to be built in batches, and if only a few hundred of one kind of warship can be produced a year, then the military won’t want it, either.”

Xia Fan nodded repeatedly. Only after he visited the General Armament Department did he learn that there were actually so many types of prototype warships that had failed to make it into mass production. Many of these models might not even be found on the Union internet!

Lina continued, “I suggest you choose one of the more expensive or hard-to-produce prototypes. Those are outstanding warships that even the Navy had trouble buying or producing, and will be far stronger than the warships currently in service in the Navy.”

As they spoke, they continued to tour through the thousands of destroyers. Every warship had their accompanying description, manufacturer, age, ship performance, and so on.

Traveling Buddha was bored and began yawning. As a woman, Lina was not too interested in the study of warships, but was helpless because this was the work she needed to do, so she had accompanied Xia Fan and Traveling Buddha to the warehouse.

Xia Fan flashed a radiant smile at Lina and said, “Why don’t we do it like this. I’m a speedster, so I can move a lot faster. The two of you don’t have to accompany me, and let me just quickly run through and check out these warships on my own.”

Speedster?

Lina looked at Xia Fan with a different eye now. As someone in the military, Lina of course knew how rare Speed ability-users were, and how difficult it was for them to get promoted through the ranks. She glanced at his badge, and saw he was already an Intermediate investigator despite his young age. Now it made sense, as it turns out he was the rare Speed-type warrior.

“Okay, We’ll rest on the first floor and wait for you there,” Lina answered.

…

Traveling Buddha and Lina left for the resting area.

Traveling Buddha took out his beloved tea set and began brewing some top grade tea that Lina had never tasted before, while Xia Fan was sprinting through the huge warehouses, carefully browsing through the data information on every warship.

In no time at all, Xia Fan was back. Traveling Buddha and Lina both could see a look of excitement on his face which also displayed this measure of uncertainty.

“Did a warship catch your eye?” Lina asked with a smile.

Xia Fan sat down. He slightly furrowed his brow and handed Lina the performance checklist of a destroyer. At the same time, he spoke in this slightly incredulous tone, “Mrs Lina, is this checklist wrong? Because if its true, then the performance capability of this destroyer is simply far too heaven-defying!”

Lina took the list in her hand and muttered, “That’s impossible. How could we have missed one? Which ship are you referring to?”

Lina checked the list and the moment she saw the name printed on it, she promptly let out a gasp, “Ah, so that’s the ship you saw!”