As the several burly female Awakened beings left the room.

Fu Xiyao, who had been silent all along, slowly stood up. For the first time, her usually gentle face was filled with seriousness.

"Ma Yuanbai, how dare you do this?"

In fact, Fu Xiyao had already 'seen' everything that was happening in Kangcheng and the actions of everyone in the Seventh Regiment through the rain.

She was also aware that the Seventh Regiment had now completely taken control of Kangcheng.

Although everything seemed to be going smoothly, Fu Xiyao felt that it was definitely not that simple, and immediately questioned:

"You seized Kangcheng without Li Yu's knowledge! What are you trying to do? Do you want to become the regimental commander?"

Faced with Fu Xiyao's questioning, Ma Yuanbai remained calm and composed.

He first slightly cupped his hands, bowed to Xi Yao in a gesture of respect, and then spoke in reply:

"Fu Xiyao, I have offended you in the past, but it was out of my own volition."

Ma Yuanbai straightened up, his gaze honest:

"Given your relationship with Li Yu, if you had known beforehand, you would have informed Li Yu immediately. But this plan cannot afford to fail, so I had no choice but to resort to this tactic."

After expressing his apology, Ma Yuanbai continued:

“You know Li Yu’s personality better than I do; he won’t agree to this plan.”

He paused, his voice low yet carrying an undeniable power:

"However, you should also know that everything I did was for the Seventh Regiment, for Li Yu's future."

Fu Xiyao stared intently at the self-righteous Ma Yuanbai and said seriously, "But this is acting without authorization. What will Li Yu think when he finds out later?"

Her voice carried a hint of worry:

"Won't he think that everyone in the Seventh Regiment conspired to deceive him, and that your concealment will make Li Yu, the regimental commander, feel disheartened?"

Ma Yuanbai took a deep breath and explained with an almost cold firmness:

"Opportunity knocks but once."

"Kangcheng, this perfect foothold, is the hope for the Seventh Regiment's survival! It is the foundation that allows Li Yuneng to go further!"

He suddenly turned to Fu Xiyao, his eyes burning with a kind of madness:

“I, Ma Yuanbai, will bear all the blame.”

"But both the Seventh Regiment and Li Yu need this poorly defended empty city as a strong backing."

Fu Xiyao frowned and sighed: "You can discuss these things with Li Yu, instead of taking action without telling him."

Ma Yuanbai explained sincerely, "I would love to discuss this with Li Yu, but time is of the essence. If we miss this opportunity, it will be difficult to find another chance."

"Furthermore, given Li Yu's personality, if no one in Kangcheng provokes him, he will certainly not take the initiative to seize the city, but will choose to lead the Seventh Regiment to continue westward."

Ma Yuanbai suddenly muttered to himself, "Continue to be that rootless duckweed..."

His voice suddenly rose, as if carrying long-suppressed emotions:

"But this is already the western part of Zhongzhou. What else is there to the west? If we migrate further west, how far can we go?"

Ma Yuanbai suddenly turned around, his back to Fu Xiyao, and looked out the window at the city that now belonged to the Seventh Regiment:

"So! I'll take Kangcheng for him first!"

"Once everything settles down and things stabilize, I'll explain things properly to Li Yu, and he'll understand my predicament."

Ma Yuanbai walked resolutely out the door with his hands behind his back, seemingly ready to face Li Yu and everything else.

Fu Xiyao stared at Ma Yuanbai's departing figure, her lips moved slightly, but in the end she didn't say anything.

The rain is gradually thinning.

On the streets of Kangcheng, the propaganda team continued tirelessly, circling around and around, repeating their reassuring declarations over and over again.

At the same time, under Ma Yuanbai's instruction, the propaganda team used the most direct and impactful method—material incentives!

Not only did they spread the news of the changes in the city, but they also, in Li Yu's name, took the initiative to distribute fresh, energy-rich alien beast meat to the few residents in the city for free!

The residents initially found it difficult to accept the new situation, but when they saw the soldiers of the Seventh Regiment carrying large chunks of exotic beast meat that smelled incredibly tempting, their attitudes changed dramatically.

Driven by the lure of profit, the previous doubts and anxieties were instantly overwhelmed by the immense joy.

The residents accepted the beast meat with beaming smiles, and upon hearing that it would be distributed periodically, they praised it repeatedly.

"Thank you so much, sir!"

"Li Yu is indeed a true hero of Zhongzhou!"

"Thank you everyone from the Seventh Regiment, you must have had a long and tiring trip!"

When the propaganda team announced that Li Yu, the leader of the Seventh Regiment, would not only distribute welfare benefits after taking over Kangcheng, but also exempt all previous exorbitant taxes and levies, the residents were overjoyed.

The huge benefits that came crashing down on them instantly lessened the sense of unfamiliarity surrounding the power shift in Kangcheng.

In such a stark contrast, Chen Hai's previous management of Kangcheng now seems less perfect and outstanding.

The atmosphere on the street quickly changed, and the residents and the people of the Seventh Regiment soon became one, their mouths full of heartfelt praise for Li Yu and the new policies.

Faced with such tangible benefits, the title of heroes of Zhongzhou instantly became dazzling and quickly took root in people's hearts.

The residents of Kangcheng are eager to return home, and this strong boost is propelling them forward at an unimaginable pace.

The residents' acceptance of the Seventh Regiment came much faster than Ma Yuanbai had expected.

The mastermind behind all of this, Li Yu, the true soul of the Seventh Regiment whom everyone talks about, is still kept in the dark.

The sky was just before dawn, and the light drizzle foreshadowed a rare period of tranquility.

At this moment, Li Yu was leading the timid Huang Shasha back from the restricted area of ​​the monument back to the core area of ​​Kangcheng.

After walking for a long time, the two finally emerged from the thick, impenetrable white fog at the edge of the restricted area.

As soon as I stepped out of the fog and my vision cleared up a little, a patrol of soldiers appeared not far ahead.

Huang Shasha flinched, hiding behind Li Yu in fear, her voice barely audible:

"There's...someone..."

"It's just a patrol team, don't be afraid, it's nothing," Li Yu said gently, her gaze habitually sweeping over the patrol team of soldiers.

However, upon seeing this, he stopped in his tracks instantly!

Something's not right!

The patrol team patrolling in the rain—their figures, their presence—were incredibly familiar!

Even the camouflage uniforms they were wearing... seemed to be the uniform that the Seventh Regiment liked to wear the most!

"Uh..." Li Yu couldn't help but frown, wondering if she was hallucinating from being in the white mist for too long.

He looked closely again—it was true!

Those familiar faces were clearly from his Seventh Regiment!

The patrol leader was apparently a talented Awakened One from the Seventh Regiment, named Wang Xiaohu.

Li Yu was completely puzzled. Why would his Seventh Regiment be patrolling here? And why were they carrying weapons and looking so wary?