CHAPTER 451: CHAPTER 449: HUMANITARIAN AID

While the people of Suyia on the ground were amazed by the giant object descending from the sky, the passengers on this colossal airship were equally astonished by the performance of the Airbag Ark they were piloting.

"External temperature minus 101℃, engine number two is frozen and cannot de-ice automatically. Send a crew to handle it," the Captain of the Airbag Ark said, glancing at the console in front of him as he picked up the communicator to issue orders.

Putting down the communicator, the Captain couldn’t help but sigh to the First Officer beside him, "Running normally at over a hundred degrees below zero, the performance of this thing is really something!"

"Yeah, crossing the Eurasian continent and flying more than 8,000 kilometers in this extreme weather; the performance of this Airbag Ark is indeed amazing!" The First Officer echoed the sentiment.

Even though they had long been accustomed to the superior performance of this Airbag Ark, the two couldn’t help marveling whenever they talked about it.

This Airbag Ark is the latest aerial equipment from Flame Country, just deployed three months ago. Twelve were built in total, eight of which are for earthquake relief and the relocation and resettlement of disaster victims in the Southwest Region where a major earthquake occurred earlier this year. Two handle material transport, and the remaining two are tasked with delivering aid to Lucia.

All the crew on the Ark are from the navy. Initially, they thought that with the sea frozen and naval ships lost, they’d become obsolete, but didn’t expect to find a renewed purpose in this form.

"Report to the Captain, we’ve reached the designated altitude. The capital of Lucia is visible ahead, awaiting instructions!" a lookout reported through the vessel’s communicator to the Captain.

Hearing the lookout’s report, the Captain picked up the communicator and said, "Stay alert and have the communications officer make contact with Lucia as per the plan to guide us!"

As the Captain issued orders, the First Officer looked through a telescope at Moscow below, expressing quite some sentiments, "Ah, Lucia’s capital. I studied here years ago, didn’t expect the whole city to be buried in snow now."

"What city isn’t buried in snow now? Do you think everywhere is like Yu City with its rugged and mountainous terrain?" The Captain joked with the First Officer.

The two had been together since they enlisted and were longtime partners with deep rapport, which was why they were assigned to take over this Airbag Ark.

Listening to the Captain’s joke, the First Officer shook his head, seeming somewhat pensive, "I was just thinking about the amazing things our country brought out after the disaster. Without them, would we be struggling to survive like others?"

"Without these treasures the country revealed post-disaster, life would definitely be harder, and you and I wouldn’t have the chance to reunite and conduct humanitarian aid in Lucia." The Captain saw through it but didn’t think the First Officer’s thoughts invalid, "However, being able to unveil such high-tech treasures is what makes us stronger. Even without them, life might be tough, but not unmanageable. Our country’s stability isn’t solely dependent on high-tech items."

"True, perhaps I overthought. Without the high-tech, life might just be a bit tougher, but we will for sure overcome disasters." The First Officer realized his musings were somewhat unnecessary. People of Flame Country never pursued technology or equipment alone; they believed in people as the decisive factor.

While the Captain and First Officer chatted, the communications officer at the console was contacting the ground in Russian via radio, "This is the Flame Country’s Xu Dog, here to provide humanitarian aid to your country. Please guide us to your location!"

Xu Dog was the code name for this Airbag Ark. All twelve Arks were named after the Chinese zodiac, with Xu Dog and Hai Pig being the ones coming to Lucia for humanitarian aid this time.

After the communications officer called twice, a reply with a distinctive vodka tone finally came through the radio, "Received, we will launch red smoke!"

Upon receiving the reply, red fireworks lit up on the ground.

Seeing the red fireworks on the ground, the Captain breathed a slight sigh of relief. Without ground guidance, they wouldn’t face problems, but finding the people of Lucia in a city almost entirely buried in snow would be like finding a needle in a haystack.

Even though they had new cold-resistant wolfhounds on board, capable of conducting some searches in cold environments, it was the same situation.

At over a hundred degrees below zero, this temperature was indeed unsuitable for any living creature’s survival or activities.

"Turn on the searchlight! Contact Hai Pig and have them maintain formation, prepare to land." The Captain picked up the communicator and issued new instructions.

With the Captain’s order, the huge searchlight mounted on the bottom of the Ark lit up, its white beam slicing through the darkness like a sword. Following Xu Dog, Hai Pig also turned on its searchlight.

Two beams shot down from the sky, illuminating the ground in brilliant white.

A few Lucia people who came to meet them had to raise their hands to shield their eyes from the blinding light.

Since the onset of the disaster, it was the first time they had felt such intense light, and their eyes were somewhat uncomfortable. However, none found the light distressing; in fact, they wanted to embrace it, because the light brought hope.

Currently, for these Lucians, their wish was simply that these two colossal objects descending from the sky could bring enough food.

Although Lucia survived this terrifying disaster relying on Suyia’s legacy, life was hardly pleasant. Ever since the downfall of the red giant bear, life for the people on this land had been bitter, only exacerbated by the disaster.

The Lucia officials who came to greet them looked up, squinting at the massive object emitting light as they couldn’t help but wonder if things would be completely different if the red giant bear was still around, or if their nation would possess the same ability to build such large aircraft.

But all of this was just fantasy. The red giant bear had fallen thirty years ago, leaving behind only its remains and traces of its existence.

Harboring these thoughts, the Lucia officials saw a small, blimp-like aircraft detach from the large flying object and descend towards the ground.

Meanwhile, as the small blimp was released, the large flying object continued to descend gradually.