The warriors of the Fire Seed Base are commanded by the Base Leader, followed by the Grand General.

Since Wu Qingshan dared to say that, he must have really received the general's approval. After all, falsely reporting military intelligence is a capital offense, and Wu Qingshan would not risk his life.

Therefore, Chen Yu, who was impersonating Qian Peng, had no choice but to compromise.

"Hehe, Qian Lian, as the saying goes, cooperation leads to win-win results, so why be so stubborn?" Wu Qingshan chuckled, his tone tinged with mockery and disdain. "Our 3rd Regiment always prioritizes the big picture. We're all working for the base, so why ruin our harmony over such a small matter? How about this: we both take a step back and work together to handle the aftermath of this village's situation?"

Upon hearing this, Chen Yu closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and seemed to have resigned himself to his fate: "Fine, since we are all serving the Fire Seed Base, joint development is not out of the question. But there is one thing I must make clear: our Second Regiment has paid a huge price for this, including casualties and material consumption. Therefore, in the distribution of credit, we must take the lion's share!"

Upon hearing this, Wu Qingshan's lips curled into a playful smile: "Qian Lian, what you're saying isn't very pleasant to hear. The distribution of benefits isn't about words, it's about strength. Although your Second Regiment has paid a price, our Third Regiment isn't going to be trifled with either. How about this, let's put aside our disputes for now and work together to handle the aftermath of this village. As for the distribution of benefits, we'll let the General decide after we return to base, how about that?"

Chen Yu opened his eyes, his gaze filled with resentment and helplessness.

After a moment's thought, he said, "Let's do as you say. Now, let's start cleaning up the battlefield!"

"For the sake of efficiency, Wu Lian, let's split up. You take your men and start clearing from the entrance of this passage, while I'll take my brothers and dig down from the snow over there."

Upon hearing this, Wu Qingshan sneered, "Look at the state of the place down there, and you want us to do this thankless work? Qian Peng, don't think I don't know what you're up to! The greatest value of this village is its geothermal resources. You're sending us away so you can monopolize the credit for discovering these geothermal resources, right?" Wu Qingshan's words were laced with sarcasm, and his eyes were fixed on Chen Yu, as if trying to see through his thoughts.

Chen Yu's expression changed slightly, but he quickly regained his composure. He sneered, "Wu Lian, you're judging me by your own petty standards. My suggestion to split up was purely to improve efficiency. After all, time is of the essence, and we need to complete the cleanup as soon as possible and report to our superiors. As for the hot spring in the village, the leader of that transport team had already reported it. So how can you say we discovered it?"

Upon hearing this, Wu Qingshan said with a smirk, "Brother, your information is really outdated. If this village were really just an ordinary hot spring, do you think it would have alarmed the General?"

"What?" Chen Yu feigned shock, his eyes widening as if he couldn't believe Wu Qingshan's words. "You mean... there are other secrets beneath this village besides the hot springs?"

Wu Qingshan smiled slightly, a hint of pride in his eyes: "To tell you the truth, our regimental commander was a geological expert before the disaster. Two years ago, he speculated that there was a huge geothermal resource in the western suburbs of Rongdu. However, before he could explore it in detail, he encountered this apocalyptic natural disaster. Now the snow cover is too thick, and it is no different from finding a needle in a haystack to search for that hidden geothermal resource in this vast snowfield. However, he has never given up on this matter. Two months ago, under the instructions of our regimental commander, our company began to investigate clues about the geothermal resource."

"Brother, you should be glad we got the news in time and came over. Otherwise, if you had dug around carelessly and damaged the integrity of the geothermal resources, not only you, but even your captain wouldn't have been able to bear the responsibility!"

Upon hearing this, Chen Yu made a hesitant expression, as if he wanted to say something but couldn't.

Seeing this, Wu Qingshan patted Chen Yu on the shoulder and laughed, "Alright, let the professionals handle the professional matters! We have professional geothermal experts in our company, so leave the geothermal resource exploration to us."

“Brother, don’t feel like you’re losing out. After all, this place truly possesses a large geothermal resource. Even if we split the credit equally, it’s far more worthwhile than a small hot spring.” Wu Qingshan said, his tone sincere and reassuring. “Moreover, once the geothermal resource is developed, it will be a major event for the entire Fire Seed Base. Your Second Regiment will also be rewarded for it. Why not?”

Chen Yu frowned slightly, seemingly weighing the pros and cons. After a moment, he slowly nodded: "Alright, since Wu Lian, you say so, then we'll trust you this once. Let's work together to excavate the hot springs."

Wu Qingshan smiled wryly upon hearing this: "Brother, you still don't trust me?"

Chen Yu chuckled awkwardly and said, "To be honest, this village is burned to the ground, and everything underneath has completely collapsed. What value is there left? Even a dog wouldn't dig it up! We might as well finish the mission as soon as possible and go back to report."

"Haha~!" Wu Qingshan laughed and pointed at Chen Yu, making a knowing expression.

Next, under Chen Yu's guidance, the two sides began to dig downwards from roughly above the entrance to the hot spring cave in Wenshui Village.

As for Wenshui Village below, no one wanted to touch it.

To prevent their superiors from blaming them for not searching thoroughly enough, they even worked together to increase the difficulty, causing all the sections that hadn't collapsed to crumble as well.

The real Qian Peng and his subordinates were buried forever under the snow.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!