Dawn of a New Era

Chapter 776 - 749: Martial Arts Golden Age (Final)

This cultivation technique is too profound and unfathomable; apart from a few people who have hope of mastering it, the vast majority can only look on in envy.

But this does not stop the hearts of all from burning with passion.

In ancient times, this would be a divine manual capable of making one a god and an ancestor, a path to immortality laid bare, but now it is publicly shared by President Chen without reservation.

However, it’s a pity, just like the same textbooks, the same teachers, the same schools, no matter how hard they work, many poor students find it impossible to get into Qingbei, C9, alike, most mortals, even with the path to godhood before them, ultimately remain mortals.

Effort, talent, luck—none can be lacking.

And this is destined to be for only a very rare few.

In these years, apart from the legendary figures attracted from outside, the number of legends that have emerged annually in the Great Xia Country has, for the most part, remained zero.

Of course, the reason for this is that in earlier years the base number of peak Martial Artists was truly too low.

Back when Chen Shouyi went to the Capital City to take the Martial Artist assessment, the names of the four peak Martial Artists in the Capital City still rang loudly.

The entire Great Xia Country had perhaps just ten peak Martial Artists.

And now, there are likely a hundred times more, numbering in the thousands.

With such a large base, in the coming years, the number of legendary strong individuals is expected to grow explosively.

...

Capital City

Supreme Military Authority Committee.

An important meeting was underway.

"As of now, the national research funding expenditure has exceeded three trillion.

It’s estimated that by the end of the year, research expenditure will surpass military spending, breaking through to five trillion," the Minister of Finance said in a deep voice.

The atmosphere in the conference room was oppressive.

The Great Xia Country’s fiscal revenue last year was around thirteen trillion, and although the economy has fully recovered this year and is growing strongly, it won’t exceed fifteen trillion.

Five trillion is one-third of that.

Adding in the indispensable military spending, this year’s fiscal deficit, if not addressed by printing more money, will be a frightening figure, and printing more money would trigger inflation...

The President rubbed his brow, feeling a bit worn out.

The ongoing massive space program is entirely funded by money piling up, and it’s just starting, with each year expected to cost more and more.

"Now, the military is still somewhat too large, with Earth’s situation trending towards stability, and major wars expected to be rare in the future. Moreover, the future trend is elite forces with rapid response capabilities. Maintaining such a large military is somewhat untimely; let’s discuss the downsizing plan and decide how much we should cut," the President mused aloud.

If in doubt, cut the military.

The Great Xia Country is already adept at this. The existence of President Chen, to some extent, is worth more than half the military, greatly reducing national defense pressure.

And among all cost-saving measures.

Cutting the military is undoubtedly the most immediate.

In recent years, although the military has downsized multiple times, the nation’s first and second-line forces, together with garrisons in neighboring countries, still maintain an astounding scale of twenty million, without a doubt, this is a massive fiscal expenditure.

At this moment, the door was gently knocked on.

The President’s assistant, who was quietly sitting in the corner taking meeting notes, stood up silently, went to exit the door, and quickly returned, whispering in the President’s ear:

"Mr. President, something big has happened in Zhonghai."

"What?"

...

The impact of the divine occurrence was bigger than imagined.

Even before an official explanation could clarify the rumors, Zhonghai City and surrounding areas were already in a state of panic.

It had been just a year since the Lord of Lightning had invaded, and this memory had not yet faded from people’s minds. The similar scene undoubtedly left people jittery and nervous.

As the rumors spread, many voluntarily rushed to air raid shelters; by late morning, the situation had escalated, and streets were deserted.

In Xingqing Town, where the Second Martial Arts Academy is located, countless people gathered into a massive black crowd, swarming over, each person looking excited, making the nearby soldiers act as if facing a formidable enemy.

Chen Shouyi, sensing this scene, had no choice but to end his lecture hastily.

Fortunately, what needed to be said had already been said.

The rest was just filler.

...

Chen Shouyi, having turned down interviews from journalists from various countries, used mental suggestion to discreetly pass through the crowd and return home.

As soon as they saw Chen Shouyi, the Shell Lady and the Red Little Dot jumped off the bed and came to his feet, politely saying:

"Good giant, you’re back."

"Mm!" Chen Shouyi responded, closing the door.

This is indeed his adorable Little Dot, without the distraction of cartoons, she becomes utterly cute.

Perhaps it was the projector’s own poor quality, or maybe it was his own unnoticed resentment.

Last night at midnight, the projector suddenly broke.

Originally planning to study it today to see if he could fix it, Chen Shouyi now abandoned that idea upon seeing the two small creatures’ obedient behavior.

Not watching cartoons is better after all.

Chen Shouyi is not against watching cartoons but is against watching low-age cartoons.

What’s more bothersome than low-age cartoons is watching the same cartoon repeatedly.

Perhaps as a side effect of watching too many, Chen Shouyi often found strange lines and images inexplicably flashing through his mind.

If this continues, he felt he might be brainwashed by several little pigs.

Afterwards, he played around with the two little ones for a while, with the result being that he successfully made the Shell Lady cry.

The Red Little Dot, however, did not cry; she just laid on the ground like a dead pig, motionless, and no longer cooperated with Chen Shouyi.

...

He sheepishly stood up.

Wasn’t it just that he pushed them over a few times?

They truly can’t handle rough play.

He went to the bathroom to wash his face and checked his attribute panel.

He found the Faith Value had been rapidly increasing, almost jumping 0.1 points every ten seconds.

"Growing fast!"

This growth trend far surpassed his previous lectures.

Of course, it was nowhere near comparable to when he killed the Lord of Lightning; at that time, it stirred the entire world, and his influence reached its peak.

In just one day, over ten thousand points were gained, something that cannot be easily replicated.

However, if speaking of sustainability, the lectures were indeed more superior.

Humans are the most forgetful; no matter how great the influence or achievement, it will slowly fade over time.

Just like a star, without works, without exposure, it won’t take long for people to forget. Only occasionally will they remember.

And speeches, in some sense, are works themselves.

As long as someone practices his Chen Clan Cultivation Technique, watches his lecture videos, or sings his praises, his Faith Value will flow continuously.

At this moment, the phone rang.

Chen Shouyi quickly walked out of the bathroom and picked up the phone.

"General Manager Chen, are you free right now? Mr. Ye Zongye and Mr. Luo Jingwen wish to visit you!" Bai Xiaoling said on the phone.

Oh, too formal, they could just come directly.

Chen Shouyi felt a bit helpless: "Let them come over."

"Okay, General Manager Chen, I’ll hang up now!"

ps: Anyway, comments are currently disabled, finally able to shamefully ask for monthly votes, ahhhh!