Chapter 201: City in the Crossfire

The underground world was dripping with water. Occasionally, there was a slight vibration of roaring above the head, as if a large machine was passing by. Occasionally, there were dull explosions and sporadic gunshots in the distance, and then it returned to silence.

Sitting on the piled boxes, Dolores leaned on the edge of another wooden box, her eyes slightly closed and fell into a deep sleep. Her long black hair was draped over her body, revealing a little white shoulders and neck. Her figure was soft and pitiful. This noble lady stayed in the dark and damp underground, which was out of place. The beautiful dress was so contrasted with the dusty wooden boxes and bags around.

Some of the other people closed their eyes to rest, and some sat below to look at the projected map of Lebion and make marks, planning how to leave this place later.

The few red-hatted brothers who originally stayed here also tried to move as quietly as possible. They moved some supplies from other hidden corners, and some were trying to assemble some new guns.

At noon, the two sides discussed the next action. Although Tilan didn't want to get involved in the fight between the two sides, they had to consider some cooperation at this time. After all, they were not familiar with the local area. If they wanted to get out safely, they really needed the help of the local snake "Red Hat".

"I rescued you, so you have to give me some benefits." That's what he said at the time.

So, Tilan and his group also agreed to provide some power in the process to protect the underground base and the safety of "Red Hat" himself.

At this moment, Shelian and Guluo followed "Red Hat" to the ground to investigate the situation, while the rest of the people stayed underground to rest and recuperate.

On the surface, the headquarters of "Fentie Energy".

A huge steel jungle full of rust was everywhere, and the pipes and gates in it roared from time to time. Various raw materials flowed in it, and the exhaust gas generated by industry was steaming, and the air was filled with a slightly pungent smell.

Some personnel wearing gas masks and protective clothing were patrolling around with guns, on the lookout for possible sabotage from the enemy. On the other side, in the solid steel fortress, the top executives of 'Fentie Energy' were also discussing things.

"Since the explosion at the oil depot last night, the other side has started to take action. First, there were sporadic conflicts in the north, and then they began to block the passage to Lebion. It's hard to believe that they were unintentional and impromptu." A man with short brown hair reported this. Judging from his neat red and black uniform and the overlapping diamond badge on his collar, he should be a middle-level executive of Fentie Energy.

"Is there any need to analyze this? I think they are coming for us. Now that the large forces have been dispatched, we will have a decisive battle directly." Masiza stood up at the corner of the conference table and spoke excitedly.

However, the words of the second son did not cause much ripples. Many middle and senior executives present remained silent and looked at the man in the middle of the conference table.

Compared to Masiza, this one is obviously much more mature and stable. He has a square face and wears a neat and well-fitting red and black uniform, which gives him a military-like temperament.

"Sit down, Masiza." He still looked at the slowly changing projection map in front of him and spoke in a deep voice.

"Uh..."

Seeing that everyone ignored him, Masiza could only sit down in dismay. Yes, he is the second son of "Fen Tie Energy", but in terms of prestige and actual ability, he is far inferior to his eldest brother Brod. The age difference between the two is nearly 7 years. Sometimes Brod is like a strict father in front of Masiza.

"The movements of "Black Hammer Heavy Industry" are very strange. They did not launch a large-scale attack at the beginning. It seems that they are testing and looking for something. This is not in line with their style." Looking at the situation on the desktop projection, Brod slowly analyzed.

"Our informant over there said that the Black Hammer Heavy Industry seemed to have been attacked by assassins last night. Kujin's youngest grandson was seriously injured and dying, and the eldest son who was originally the successor was also sniped and is now receiving treatment."

"Did our people do it?" Brod raised his head and swept his cold eyes across the audience, making everyone present feel a sense of oppression.

"No, it wasn't our people who did it." Although the two parties have a tendency to conflict with each other, the situation has not suddenly deteriorated to such a point, and it is not wise to act rashly.

"This means that someone is trying to sow discord." Brod said in a deep voice.

"It is inevitable to decide the outcome with the Black Hammer Heavy Industry, but if there is a third party spying in the middle, the process becomes dangerous."

"But, who else can be a third party in Lebion?" Someone present was puzzled. Apart from the only two remaining industrial groups, Lebion has no forces that can be called famous, and the gap in strength with the first two is too great.

"What is the current situation of other forces in the North Second District?" Brod closed his eyes and thought.

"Since the departure of Jielou City, it has been a mess over there. Gangs of all sizes have emerged, but the number of people is generally between 50-100. They are not powerful enough and they are fighting each other. I guess they are not able to interfere with us."

"As for Fenri City... they lost a lot of high-end combat power in the raid on Jielou City last year, and have been in a state of contraction since then. The Dead Tree Garden has been obsessed with improving cash crops. Last year, it also recovered part of its funds by cultivating watermelon seedlings that can grow in wasteland. Now it is busy expanding production and has no time to care about other people."

"Cultivating cash crops, really..." Broad shook his head.

"How do they solve the problem of toxins in the soil? Even if the plants can survive, toxins will accumulate in the fruits. Will the federal market accept such things?"

"It is said that they select soil that has been washed after the rainy season and has less toxins, and then after neutralization and sedimentation, they use it to grow fruits. They also build special glass sheds to avoid direct corrosion from poisonous rain."

"Even if it is barely qualified, this product is estimated to have a limited upper limit and can only flow in the low-end market." Broad shook his head slowly, not optimistic about the only achievement of the Dead Tree Garden over the years.

"What about the other cities, Depat and Silicon Bay, how are they doing?"

Depat is the only city in the North Second District that still produces ore. Although its population and area are not as large as Lebion, it is also a rare gathering place for people. Silicon Bay is a small city. It used to be the chip and AI manufacturing center of the North Star District. Later, most of the equipment and personnel were evacuated, and only a small number of them remained. It is said that they are the descendants of the technicians who were eliminated that year.

"Depat is still the same. Those people send raw ore to us and Black Hammer every year in exchange for a certain amount of income. As for Silicon Valley... It is blocked there. No one has been able to really enter for a long time. The periphery is guarded and patrolled by self-discipline units. According to rumors, the original residents inside have now been modified into a half-flesh and half-machine appearance."

"Does the federal government of the planet not care? I remember that most of these modifications are banned by the Ethics Committee. The maximum degree of mechanization allowed now shall not exceed 30%."

"Maybe they are too lazy to care. The technology in Silicon Bay is not advanced, and it has been closed for a long time. In recent years, the planetary government has focused on economic recovery. In order to save money, the army has rarely been mobilized."

For the North Second District, the Star Region Government's successive governors and governors have selectively ignored it, because once the interference causes a topic, they have to consider how to end it. It is easy to interfere in, but it is difficult to get out. The North Second District has a clear ban on living, so the residents inside must be relocated and immigrated. This will cost a lot of money, but there is not much benefit. The planet does not lack the remaining population.

"External forces, internal forces..." Faced with a third-party force that came out of nowhere, Broad fell into thought.

"There is very little intelligence at present, and we need to act cautiously."

"Divide the mecha into five groups, two groups will go out to confront the 'Black Hammer Heavy Industry', and the remaining three groups will stay at the headquarters and be ready to respond to emergencies at any time."

"In addition, release unmanned reconnaissance aircraft to monitor the situation in the city at all times."

"Yes, sir!" Everyone present stood up and announced the end of the meeting.

After everyone left, only Masiza and Broad were left in the meeting room. Seeing that he was gradually left alone, Masiza also remembered that he should take the opportunity to slip away instead of standing here stupidly waiting to be criticized by the eldest brother.

However, he realized that something was wrong a little too late. "Masiza, who were those people who had dinner with you yesterday?"

The eldest brother's sudden question forced Masiza to stop in his tracks. He laughed dryly and turned back, "They are some new friends I met."

"How strong are they? "

"This... probably between Sequence 3 and Sequence 4?" Masiza tried to recall. Among them, Avni's heroic appearance left a deep impression on him, while he selectively ignored the strongest natural sequence 4 Allen.

"How many people are there in total?"

"Four, but I heard that there are several companions?"

"Four, and several companions, let's just say there are seven in total. They were promoted to Sequence 4 before the age of 20, which is considered an excellent talent in the Federation. Don't you think it's strange that they suddenly came to a place like Lebion?" Broad analyzed.

"Strange, maybe they are just traveling? I feel that the girl should be from a wealthy family. She is familiar with all kinds of luxury goods, and she also complained about my average taste..." Strangely enough, if someone else had complained and despised him like this, Masiza would have been furious, but facing the blonde girl, he liked her more and more, and even couldn't help but want to please her.

Seeing that his younger brother was still stubborn and obsessed with sensual pleasures, Broad felt a little disappointed, but he had gradually gotten used to it over the years.

"Go ahead, don't go out casually during this period."

"Yes, big brother." After saying that, Masiza quickly left the suffocating conference room.

Brod, who was left alone in the conference room, looked at the map on the projection, and fell into silence and thought again. After a long time, he sighed and stood up, looking back at the monitor under the ceiling behind him.

"Father, do you have any instructions?"

"I don't have any instructions. Just deal with it according to your ideas. 'Red' is almost completed. Staying undefeated is victory." An old voice came from the speaker on the ceiling.

"Undefeated is victory..." Brod smiled bitterly, and it was difficult for him to agree with this statement.

"I hope so."

————

In the city of Lebion, the two forces began to exchange fire. Although the top leaders of both sides did not intend to attack with all their strength, the lower-level personnel were not aware of this. They only knew that if they defeated their opponents, they would be the only force that monopolized Lebion, which would definitely be much more comfortable than it is now. Moreover, many people also expected to be promoted or rewarded by virtue of their performance in the war, so their desire to attack was not low, but rather very active.

"Fire! Fire! Blow them up!" The commander shouted in the communication channel. A shining high-polymer energy bomb was thrown into the air and fell into the distant buildings. Then the violent explosion spread, blasting holes in the abandoned buildings, and the originally broken city became even more devastated.

"Wow, help--" Various cries and shouts also rang in the city, some of which were already hoarse. It was obvious that the two warring parties did not care about the civilians in the city.

Some people cried on the streets, and the ground was scattered with some melted and re-condensed metal particles and blocks, and some places even burned and melted out potholes.

'It was really horrible. 'Standing in the corner of the ruined building, Shelian looked at the situation outside, and a wave of emotions rose in his heart. He came from the prosperous southern area with excellent public security, and this was the first time he faced the front line of the war.

"Oh, what's there to sigh about? This situation has never changed in the North Second District. Gangs from all over the country fight each other, and shop owners and cargo transporters are scheming against each other. The weak and powerless are just like ants on the ground. No one cares if they are stepped on casually." The red hat said sarcastically.

"Then is there any way to change it?" Shelian couldn't help but ask.

"Method? If I were the boss of Lebion, I would definitely establish a stable order, because these are my property and my things, so I have to protect them well, but now it is not, so I don't have the heart to care."

"Well, isn't there a better way? Treating people as slaves is too backward, even if there is some capitalism, it is better than this." Shelian also shook his head.

"What is the issue of isms? You educated people just have too many thoughts. It's troublesome. In my opinion, I gave them food and let them live a stable life. They have to repay me. I can't just raise a bunch of useless people for nothing. Otherwise, why should I help them?"

"That's true, but it's too straightforward and cruel. Can't you be more gentle?"

"Tenderness, don't you think it's funny? Can warmth be eaten? Can it make the other side listen to your reason?" Red Hat simply stopped pretending after Tilan exposed his intention of getting something for nothing at noon. He also realized that the group of people in front of him still had a bottom line. As long as he didn't really offend them, saying some straightforward words would not cause any conflicts.

"The world is like this, but you are not used to it because you have seen less. I think you probably came from the south. The prosperous and stable environment there can foster such ideas as yours." Red Hat also showed some contempt at this time.

"Listen to me, you guys are all very strong. If you can sneak in and kill the other party, the two sides will be in chaos. That will be our chance to clean up the mess. If I become the boss of Lebion in the future, you will also benefit a lot." Red Hat persuaded again.

"I think you are joking too. Brother, the other side has thousands of people and mecha patrols. Aren't we, a few Sequence 4, going over there to eat?" Shelian finally couldn't help but bicker with Red Hat. He was usually a calm and taciturn person.

"I'm not joking. You don't understand my strength. Although I'm not good at fighting, I have a lot of informants and relationships in Lebion. Otherwise, how do you think the two sides suddenly started fighting? As long as you cooperate with me, I will find a way to send you to their headquarters."

"Really?"

Turning around and looking at the short man in a gray jacket and earthy red trousers behind him, and thinking about the three subordinates of the big and small cats in the underground passage, Shelian really found it hard to believe that the man in front of him was an extremely powerful underground boss.

"Of course it's true." He raised his head again, trying to make his less than 1.6 meters tall body look taller.

(End of this chapter)