As the smoke cleared, the twilight cast a poignant golden glow over the ravaged land. Ning Yu stood atop a dilapidated building, gazing at the busy figures in the distance, a rare, relaxed smile appearing on his weary face.
"Report to the captain: The initial search of the eastern area of the city has been completed. Some usable building materials and a small amount of fuel have been found."
"Captain, an intact underground water pipe has been found in the western part of the city, but further water quality testing is needed."
The team members reported on their search progress one after another, their joyful voices filling the desolate land with long-lost vitality.
"Alright! Everyone, you've worked hard. Take a break and we'll officially start tomorrow..." Ning Yu paused halfway through his sentence. He looked down at the resource statistics list displayed on the system interface, and his originally relaxed brows gradually furrowed into a deep frown.
"What's wrong, Captain?" Mu Xue, who was beside him, noticed his strange behavior and followed his gaze to the system interface. She immediately fell silent as well.
On the interface, the stark red numbers were alarming; reserves of all resources were far below expectations, especially basic building materials such as steel and cement needed for constructing dwellings and fortifications, which were pitifully scarce.
"How could this happen..." Ning Yu muttered to himself. He originally thought that the resource problem would be alleviated after conquering this area, but he did not expect that reality would be more cruel than he imagined.
"Don't be discouraged. There might still be resource points we haven't discovered yet." Mu Xue patted his shoulder and comforted him. "Let's search more carefully. If all else fails, we'll have to risk searching even further."
Ning Yu nodded, expanding the search area to the entire city and assigning the team to small groups to act separately. However, they were unaware that a conspiracy against them was quietly brewing.
A few kilometers away, in an abandoned factory, several ragged people were arguing heatedly around a table.
"Why should they occupy such good territory? We've struggled here for so long, why?!"
"Exactly! Those resources should have been ours in the first place!"
"Stop arguing! What's the point of arguing? We can't beat them anyway..."
"Who says we can't beat them? We can..." The speaker lowered his voice, a sinister glint in his eyes.
Over the next few days, Ning Yu's team encountered a series of unexpected incidents while searching for resources. Sometimes they discovered the resource sites had been emptied halfway through excavation, and other times their previously intact equipment was deliberately damaged.
"Damn it! Who's behind this?" Ning Yu slammed his fist on the wall and roared angrily.
"It seems our operation has attracted the attention of some people," Mu Xue said with a solemn expression. "These people are likely the remnants of the old forces that have been hiding in this area."
Ning Yu took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down. He knew that the most important thing now was to find the masterminds behind it all, otherwise their situation would be extremely dangerous.
"Notify all team members to be on high alert and increase vigilance! Also, focus on investigating the industrial area in the south of the city; I suspect..." Before he could finish speaking, a team member stumbled in, his face filled with terror. "Captain, something bad has happened! The North City Squad... the North City Squad..."
The teammate hadn't finished speaking, but their panicked expressions and trembling voices said it all. Ning Yu's heart sank, and an ominous premonition surged into her mind.
"What happened to the North City Squad? Tell me slowly!" Mu Xue grabbed the team member's shoulder and asked urgently.
"The North City Squad...they...they found a water source near the chemical plant in the north of the city, and then...then..." The team member stammered, clearly terrified.
"Get to the point!" Ning Yu shouted sternly.
"That water source...that water source is radioactive! They...they are trapped inside now!" The team member finally managed to finish his sentence.
"What?!" Ning Yu and Mu Xue exchanged a glance, both seeing shock and worry in each other's eyes.
"Go! Take me there right now!" Ning Yu didn't hesitate at all. He immediately took several elite team members and followed the messenger towards the North City Chemical Plant.
Throughout the journey, Ning Yu's heart was in his throat. He kept praying that the North City Squad would be safe and sound. However, reality is often crueler than imagination.
When they arrived near the chemical plant, they could see several faint lights flashing in the night, which were the distress flares of the North City Squad.
"Captain, look!" one of the team members said, pointing ahead. "There seems to be someone over there!"
Ning Yu looked closely and indeed saw several blurry figures loitering suspiciously outside the chemical plant gate.
"Not good! An ambush!" Ning Yu's alarm bells rang, and he immediately realized that this was likely a trap set by the old forces.
"Everyone, be on high alert and prepare for battle!" Ning Yu gave the order and charged out first.
Those people were clearly not expected Ning Yu to arrive so quickly, and they panicked, frantically unleashing their supernatural attacks.
Ning Yu was prepared and moved with lightning speed, quickly dodging the attacks while simultaneously unleashing his special ability to force the attackers back.
However, just as he was about to give chase, a violent tremor suddenly came from beneath his feet.
"Oh no! It's a supernatural trap!" Ning Yu's expression changed, but it was too late to dodge.
Suddenly, the ground cracked open, and a powerful suction force pulled him downwards. Ning Yu struggled desperately, but was still sucked underground.
...
After an unknown amount of time, Ning Yu finally woke up from his unconsciousness. He struggled to get up and found himself in a small, dark space with only a faint light coming in from a crack in the ceiling.
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