owlsbooks Chapter 2248 Please vote for me!!! Please subscribe!!! Please support!!!
Chapter 2248 Please vote for me!!! Please subscribe!!! Please support!!!
Chapter 2248 Please vote for me!!! Please subscribe!!! Please support!!!
But the last battle with the dark elves ended in a whimper; it started with a storm and ended inexplicably.
Many people expected that they could attack directly, find those dark elves, and completely exterminate them!
It's not that Asgard is killing, but the Dark Elves... a race of lunatics! Before Malekith unified the Dark Elves, the Dark Elves had been killing each other since they had civilization, without a moment's rest! After the unification, they began endless conquest and slaughter!
Asgard in Odin's youth was the most violent period of Asgard, but even so, when faced with races and civilizations that were willing to surrender, Asgard would generally let them go, and even allow them to govern, as long as they surrendered to Asgard and paid symbolic tributes.
For example, the most typical example is the Light Elves. They are one of the first races conquered by Asgard, but the Light Elves still have their own royal court and their own system. Asgard is only a garrison and usually does not interfere in their internal affairs. As for offerings, they are only symbolic, some precious specialties and some rare things.
Some people say that this is not right. Isn’t this extortion and excessive taxation?
But those who think so are wrong.
Precious does not mean necessary. For a country or civilization, the most precious things are not those rare and luxurious things, but the most common things that are needed by everyone, which are the most indispensable!
For a country, those things that are rare and cannot be enjoyed by most people are never important. In fact, they are things that are used for trading.
If Asgard really wants to control the life and death of its subordinate forces, it only needs to control two things: food and energy!
We can still find examples of this on Earth!
The "iron triangle" of energy, food and finance not only supports the American flag flying at the top of the global order, but also weaves a giant network that makes it difficult for countries to break free.
The key to controlling the lifeline of global energy is hidden in the Pentagon's battle map. It is no accident that the US Navy's Fifth Fleet is stationed in the Persian Gulf. This sea area carries 20% of the world's oil transportation volume, and every tanker must be monitored by US radar. When Iraq tried to settle oil with the euro, Saddam's regime collapsed in the "war on terror"; when Libya planned to establish a pan-African gold currency system, Gaddafi was killed in a NATO air strike. These historical slices reveal the unchallengeable unspoken rules of the petrodollar system - in 2025, 83% of global crude oil trade will still be settled in US dollars. Even if the US domestic crude oil production has exceeded 1320 million barrels per day, it still has to firmly control the pricing power of Middle Eastern oil-producing countries.
The political game at the dinner table is more covert than on the battlefield.
Although food is extremely important to human life and there is no oversupply, the price will never be too high; although farmers contribute the most to the country and almost all industries need their support, their status in the whole society will never be too high. Therefore, in modern society, what really determines the price of goods is never the market supply and demand relationship, but the interests of the capital behind the market. What really determines the social status of a group is not the size of your contribution to this society, but the need to maintain social order at the top of the social pyramid.
Therefore, it is actually very kind of Asgard to collect some valuable tributes from their affiliated forces that have no actual impact on people's livelihood.
You know, if Asgard is really cruel, it can start with people's livelihood and directly control those resources related to people's livelihood!
It’s like the four major grain traders’ control over the global grain market!
The four major international grain traders ABCD - ADM, Bunge, Cargill of the United States and Louis Dreyfus of France.
ADM of the United States was founded in 1902 and is headquartered in Illinois. It is mainly engaged in food processing and trade, especially in the processing of rapeseed, wheat and corn, which has an absolute market share. Bunge of the United States was founded in 1818 and is headquartered in New York State. Its business covers fertilizers, agriculture, food industry and other fields. It is the world's fourth largest grain export company. Cargill of the United States was founded in 1865 and is headquartered in Minnesota. Its business covers agricultural products, food, finance and other fields. It is the largest corn feed manufacturer in the United States. Louis Dreyfus of France was founded in 1851 and is headquartered in Paris. Its main business is European grain export trade and grain processing. It is also the first grain exporter in France. These four major grain traders have controlled 80% of the global grain market through cross-border cooperation and monopoly control. They have full control over the entire industrial chain from grain planting, storage, transportation to processing and sales. This monopoly operation seriously threatens the food security of various countries, especially the developing countries.
The four major grain traders have had a profound impact on the global grain market through transnational cooperation and monopoly control. First, they have taken the initiative in the global grain market by controlling grain production and processing technology. For example, Monsanto and DuPont Pioneer Seed Company have a dominant position in the field of genetically modified breeding, and have further consolidated their market position through patent protection and technological monopoly. Second, the four major grain traders have influenced global food prices and supply by controlling all links in the food supply chain. For example, ADM controls price fluctuations in major global grain markets through its huge processing and trading network. This monopoly operation has not only affected food security in developing countries, but also triggered a global food crisis. Finally, the four major grain traders have further consolidated their monopoly position by investing in agricultural technology and biotechnology. For example, Monsanto has invested a lot of money in the research and development of genetically modified seeds, which has not only increased production, but also further expanded its market share through patent protection and technological monopoly.
The three major grain traders in the United States, ADM, Bunge, and Cargill, control 80% of the global grain trade. The wheat in their hands can be transformed into a more effective strategic weapon than missiles. When the Soviet Union suffered a poor harvest in 1973, the United States suddenly cut off grain exports, forcing Moscow to make concessions in its strategic contraction; during the global grain price surge in 2022, the net profit of the four major grain traders increased by an average of 45%, while 12 African countries fell into severe famine. Genetically modified technology extends control to the genetic level. Monsanto's patented seeds account for 35% of the global market share. Growers must buy special fertilizers and pesticides year after year. This "agricultural opium" has turned 60% of Argentina's arable land into genetically modified soybean plantations.
Dollar hegemony flows through the capillaries of the financial system.
The Federal Reserve's printing press has issued an additional 4.3 trillion US dollars in the past two years. These green pieces of paper have harvested global wealth through "seigniorage" - when the US dollar index breaks through 2024 in 105, Sri Lanka's foreign exchange reserves plummeted to 15 billion US dollars, and the island country had to mortgage its important ports to China in exchange for US dollar liquidity. The SWIFT system is like a sword of Damocles hanging over the heads of countries. Countries that leave the US dollar system may have their economic bloodlines cut off in an instant.
These three hegemonies do not exist in isolation, but form a sophisticated linkage mechanism. When oil prices fluctuate, the grain futures of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange will inevitably follow suit, because 40% of corn production is converted into biofuels; when the Federal Reserve raises interest rates, the debt repayment pressure of developing countries increases sharply, and they are often forced to open their agricultural markets in exchange for US dollar loans.
This "energy-food-finance" death spiral has repeatedly demonstrated its destructive power in the 2008 global financial crisis and the 2022 food crisis. Each crisis has become an opportunity for American capital to reap high-quality assets.
Controlling oil means controlling countries around the world, controlling food means controlling humans, and controlling currency means controlling the global economy. It can be seen that food plays a vital role in the global economy.
They can even create famine out of thin air!
Even in a good year, they can artificially create a famine and thus raise food prices!
The latest data from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) shows that the world produces enough food each year to feed 120 billion people, but at this moment there are still about 8 million people experiencing severe hunger, which is equivalent to 3.6 people dying every second due to food shortage-related reasons. Behind this number, there is a systemic war that is more complicated than food production.
So Asgard is actually quite kind, even during the time of Odin.
But dark elves are different.
They are a group of lunatics from top to bottom, inside and out. When they conquer a planet, they don't carry out so-called ruling, but simply kill and exterminate... Compared with them, Odin is as pure as a little white rabbit!
So Asgard tried its best to destroy them back then.
These lunatics are pure warmongers who are only interested in killing and destruction.
In addition, Asgard did pay a huge price to eliminate the Dark Elves, which led to everyone in Asgard being a little bit hostile to the Dark Elves.
"Why?" The people below were surprised by Thor's decisive attitude. Previously, the second battle between Asgard and the Dark Elves ended quickly. Later, the pursuit of the remnants of the Dark Elves was also stopped, which caused many people to be confused. Now Thor has this attitude again, so everyone naturally feels strange.
In fact, this is the disadvantage of insufficient prestige.
It was Odin who stopped the war. Although the people below did not understand, no one asked. They only imagined that Odin had some big plan and his own considerations.
But that wasn't the case with Thor.
No one understands.
Naturally, you have to ask the reason clearly.
Thor sighed, feeling that he still needed to explain.
"Because the remaining Dark Elves have all joined Kai... Odin also knows this. He believes Kai can control them. Besides, there are only a few old, weak and sick Dark Elves left now, and they all live around the solar system. It is impossible for them to attack Sif."
The dark elves' cloaking technology can indeed escape the tracking of the Rainbow Bridge.
But the problem is that the dark elves are not the only ones in the universe who can escape from the Rainbow Bridge.
"This..." Many people were surprised and hesitant at the same time.
They all knew Kai, and they also knew that Kai had helped Ah Shaide, but that didn't mean they could happily accept that a group of enemies were lingering under Kai's protection.
What's more, they don't trust the dark elves.
After all, those guys are crazy!
"Don't worry, I trust Kai. Besides, I have seen those dark elves. Only the old, weak, women and children are left among them..."
Speaking of this, a hint of sadness flashed in Thor's eyes.
Because he knew very well where those young and middle-aged people had gone.
The last battle with Malekith took place in the homeland of the Dark Elves, Watalheim... That planet has become a barren land. The entire planet is now only yellow sand and dark clouds. Any organic matter on the surface has been destroyed in the war that year. It will take at least hundreds of millions of years for this planet to breed life again.
There, Malekith and the dark elves were born, set sail, and headed towards the sea of stars, destroying countless civilizations and races.
It was also there that they met their final end.
Malekith died in battle. Before he died, he asked Thor and Kai to leave the last bloodline of the dark elves.
Then he died.
Next, the remaining dark elf warriors launched a desperate attack on Kai and Thor!
They did it not just for revenge.
It was also for burial.
In the end, even the injured and disabled dark elf warriors held up their broken bodies and staggered towards destruction.
Of course they were seeking death, but they were also seeking to keep the hope of life alive.
In the end, there were very few men left, only some old people stayed, but most of the women stayed. They were ordered to stay and take care of the children.
Those men were actually well aware of the hatred between them and Asgard.
In fact, it's not just Asgard. When the Dark Elves came to power, they offended many forces.
Now the Dark Elves only have one immigration ship left, and they have suffered heavy losses in fighter planes and warriors... Most importantly, even Malekith was killed in the battle.
Malekith is a bit like the Qin Shi Huang of the Dark Elves.
Before him, no one had ever been able to truly unify the Dark Elves. In the past, the Dark Elves were a bit like the princes of the Western Zhou Dynasty. Although it was possible for an overlord to emerge and be recognized by everyone as the strongest, in reality the various Dark Elf tribes under them still lived their own lives and attacked each other.
Until the rise of Malekith, the original political system was completely destroyed!
Free the Dark Elves from their tribal system.
Among the Dark Elves, all are equal.
Only Malekith is the most special one.
He is the king of the dark elves!
Everyone else must submit to him.
He is the spiritual pillar of the Dark Elves. Even though they lost the war with Asgard and Malekith was seriously injured, they still believed that under the leadership of Malekith, they could still regroup!
But when Malekith died in battle, all of this no longer existed!
So there is no need for them to continue to persevere.
They knew that if they were still alive, Asgard would never let them go, so they decided to use their own death in exchange for the chance of survival for the remaining tribesmen!