Chapter 155: Troops Deployed

Although corresponding information could be viewed from his residence, the command center made access more convenient.

Just a few minutes away from his residence, he soon found himself within the command hall.

Star Ocean immediately displayed the satellite images that had been captured, showing South Sudan, the youngest country on the African continent, established only in 2011.

After its establishment, numerous armed tribes led to internal chaos that remained unresolved, culminating in a major conflict between the president and the vice president in 2016.

Even a year ago, the internal situation tensed up again when insurgent forces launched an attack on the government troops—this rebellion was led by Assa, who turned to insurrection after failing to be elected governor of Jonglei State.

The Bol region, where Zheng Hailan’s medical team had encountered trouble, was situated in Jonglei State, making Assa’s forces the prime suspects.

“Star Ocean, look at this satellite cloud image. It’s still storming there; the satellite might not be able to capture clear images for now.

Immediately dispatching Eagle Nest will not only provide us with better imagery but also ensure the logistical support for the First Flight Brigade. We may need to stay airborne for an extended period.”

“Yes, sir. But is there a possibility of exposure if we deploy Eagle Nest?”

Eagle Nest was a large solar-powered unmanned jet drone capable of flying at altitudes up to 30,000 meters, designed with a blended wing body.

This drone had a large internal storage of high-energy graphene batteries which converted and stored energy from solar panels on its dorsal surfaces.

Its belly was equipped with numerous slots allowing for mid-air recharging of Hawk drones at 5,000 meters, hence the name Eagle Nest.

Most impressively, it was fitted with a replica alien civilization super-magnetic imaging device. However, the current replication level only allowed detection within a 50-kilometer range.

The entire drone was almost as big as the United States’ B2 stealth bomber.

Despite Du Qiu’s development of a new type of radar stealth technology, there were no guarantees that it wouldn’t be spotted while flying through the skies.

Although Africa lagged in powerful anti-air detection equipment, satellites were still overhead, and it was uncertain whether one might capture it by chance.

Du Qiu calmly stated, “Although we have conducted tests before, we haven’t truly executed such long-range flights. Now that someone is causing trouble, let’s treat this as a drill. Star Ocean, patch me through to Muviny’s phone.”

“Mr. Li, you’re calling at this late hour; is there something urgent?”

Muviny always addressed him with the pseudonym Li Shennan, thus avoiding drawing attention from prying eyes.

Du Qiu said, “Mr. Muviny, our Iron Guard Security company has received a contract and will be dispatching armed personnel to South Sudan for a hostage rescue mission.

This marks the Tanga Federation’s security company’s first step towards international operations. I hope you can reach an aid agreement with the South Sudanese government.”

Muviny was a bit confused at first, then responded, “Mr. Li, are you suggesting…”

“Iron Guard Security has already obtained weapons authorization from neighboring countries, but not yet from South Sudan. The Tanga Federation needs to establish its influence in East Africa, and Iron Guard is prepared to take the lead.”

Muviny’s spirit was uplifted upon hearing this; the Tanga Federation’s Defense Forces were a formidable force in East Africa, victorious against U country following training and armament by Tang Country.

They had even defeated the North African reinforcements from Li country, turning the Tanga Federation’s military into the strongest in East Africa.

Years ago, Muviny had participated in the counter-offensive against U country, and now, four decades later, the former soldier had become the Minister of Defense and the ruling party’s second-in-command.

Over the past year, thanks to Du Qiu’s Dream Technology, the Tanga Federation’s economy developed rapidly, becoming the fastest-growing country in Africa.

Accordingly, Muviny, ambitious and eyeing the presidency, planned to implement a series of pivotal policies to turn the Tanga Federation into Africa’s strongest nation.

The propulsion for all these plans undoubtedly needed the full-fledged support of Du Qiu’s Dream Technology.

In fact, Muviny had already noticed the increasing support for Dream Technology from the president to other government officials and even military leaders over the past year.

It became clear to him that allying with Du Qiu in the Tanga Federation was the best course of action.

Hearing Du Qiu’s plans, Muviny asked, “Mr. Li, are you intending to expand your influence?”

“Mr. Muviny, I plan to enlarge the influence of the Tanga Federation—a major power will rise on the western shores of the Indian Ocean.”

“Alright, I will quickly reach the necessary agreements with the South Sudanese government.”

“You might offer them a batch of light weapons; isn’t the Federal Defense Force upgrading to improved assault rifles? The surplus could definitely help them.”

“Understood, I will summon their ambassador immediately.”

“Good, Iron Guard will take action first.”

After ending the call, Du Qiu considered the number of personnel needed for this mission.

Initially, Iron Guard Security hired about 100 retired Tangan Defense Force soldiers.

Later, with the creation of simulated blue-collar robots, a group of these became the core force of the security company.

Once high-fidelity intelligent robots were produced, Du Qiu stopped recruiting humans for security positions.

After all, ordinary security tasks were very suitable for simulated blue-collar robots.

With the introduction of high-fidelity intelligent robots, complex military operations became smoothly achievable under their leadership.

These robots had already undergone countless training exercises at a mountain base.

The drills had evolved from initial squad-and-platoon-level engagements to full brigade maneuvers, making this robotic legion one of Du Qiu’s key assets, confident of local superiority against U.S. forces.

After careful consideration, Du Qiu instructed Star Ocean, “Deploy the first company of Iron Guard’s first battalion along with an additional reinforced group of officer ranks as reserve.

Plan the operation; I’ll head to South Sudan myself after speaking with Ning Shuangshuang.”

“Yes, sir. I’ll make the arrangements.”

Star Ocean paused before adding, “Sir, are you personally going to participate in the rescue mission? Should we bring all your personal guards?”

“No need; it’s not a large-scale battle. We’re just dealing with armed militants. Six personal guards will suffice, especially since we’ll have the Iron Guard.”

Du Qiu’s personal guards were fully armored, high-fidelity intelligent robots, resembling futuristic armored warriors.

In reality, these guards were not the strongest available—the real powerhouse was the non-simulated combat robots, essentially walking arsenals.

These were designed to provide fire support platforms for the simulated robot soldiers and would not be unveiled until a direct confrontation, to avoid causing panic.

As for concerns about robots confronting humans, Du Qiu considered such worries baseless.

Robots were programmed to follow instructions; they were tools for humans, just like any other machinery that aided human tasks.

Having researched the database of alien civilization’s manufacturing, Du Qiu was fully assured about AI rebellion against humans.

While the database lacked historical and cultural data about the alien civilization, simply looking at these discontinued simulated robots was enough to understand their confidence in utilizing intelligent machines.

The original alien version of high-fidelity intelligent robots were strong AIs, almost indistinguishable from aliens, possibly doing everything an alien human could, except for reproducing.

Coupled with his understanding of the robot ranking system, Du Qiu was convinced that under such program restrictions, AI would be humanity’s best companion.

Suddenly, Star Ocean’s voice chimed in, “Sir, Iron Guard’s first company has already departed. I’ve arranged for the Second Flight Brigade to escort them. The Transporter will deliver them to their destination.

Covering roughly 2000 kilometers, we will head out to sea, then veer west, flying along the Tangan border before turning north along the Kenyan border into South Sudan.”

The Transporter, similar to Eagle Nest, was another one of Du Qiu’s creations—a large intelligent unmanned transport aircraft designed to carry personnel and cargo and serve as the air power for deploying Du Qiu’s robot legions.

The transporter’s body was larger than Eagle Nest’s to accommodate a total cargo weight of 100 tons.

Special thanks to “My Peaceful Days” for the tip of 100 coins!