night.
Squads of armed soldiers entered the park, seemingly having just returned from a mission and collected supplies from the logistics department.
A large group of people headed to the cafeteria for a meal.
Their food.
Unlike other survivors.
The main dish is a black, blocky substance that looks like some kind of chocolate chip cookie, along with a bowl of hot broth.
You can scoop out a few pieces of meat from the soup.
I just don't know... what kind of meat this is.
They eat in the cafeteria, and they don't need to take their plates with them after they finish eating; someone will collect the plates and clean them.
In a certain seat.
A soldier picked up a piece of staple food and put it in his mouth. His expression immediately turned extremely ugly, and he swallowed it while enduring the discomfort.
"This is fucking awful!"
"It's good enough to have something to eat."
My companion next to me took out a piece of candy from his pocket, unwrapped it, and popped it into his mouth: "It'll make you feel better if you put something on your stomach after eating this."
Upon hearing this...
The man picked out the meat from the soup and ate it, then picked up a few pieces of staple food and stuffed them into his mouth, chewed a few times, and gulped down a mouthful of soup.
Swallow it all in one gulp.
He took out a pack of biscuits from his pocket, tore open the packaging, put the biscuits in his mouth and chewed a couple of times before his complexion gradually calmed down.
Besides them.
The people at the other tables were also chatting casually, and the atmosphere wasn't as heavy as it was at noon.
At a dining table in the first row near the window.
Several men sat together chatting, with four bottles of chilled beer and a small bottle of baijiu (Chinese liquor) on the table.
Regarding food.
Their plates didn't have any black lumps; their main dishes were a few palm-sized pieces of roasted meat, an egg, a bowl of meat soup, and a plate of peanuts.
"Old Zhang."
"I heard your people have discovered that monster on Dongzheng Street. Is that true?"
A middle-aged man wearing glasses sighed slowly: "It's true, I also lost a squad."
"You just left a few days ago, how come you're back so soon?"
The man who had asked the question couldn't help but curse, "What a bunch of insatiable beasts!"
Don't overthink it.
The man known as Old Zhang said calmly, "We've already been replaced. If anyone should have a headache, it should be that Li Guangtou."
"That makes sense."
"We don't need to worry about this. We just need to report the situation to our superiors, and they will definitely make arrangements."
At this moment.
A man with thick eyebrows and big eyes next to him poured himself a beer: "Now that you're back, don't think about these trivial matters."
"Come on, let's drink!"
"What are you planning to do after dinner? Are you organizing any activities? Remember to include me."
"What else can we do? We can go to the nightclub, have some fun, play cards or mahjong or something."
"It seems like a few new women have recently started working at the nightclub. I need to go check it out."
"All you ever think about are women. There were so many women standing at the door just now, why didn't you take a few back with you?"
"Those women were all disheveled and smelled terrible; only those garbage collectors could bring themselves to do that to them."
.........
Three hours ago.
"After Li Guangqiang took over the defense of Dongzheng Street and I completed the handover with him, I led my men back to rest and recuperate."
Inside the central conference room.
The heads of all departments in the park are present, and the commander who just withdrew from the defense line is giving a report.
He was seated in the main seat.
He was a middle-aged man with a square face, a stern expression, and thick eyebrows and big eyes that made him look particularly upright.
"How is the defense line?"
The commander, dressed in camouflage, looked grim and slowly said, "The situation is not optimistic."
“We have discovered traces of Black Knights activity in the area near Dongzheng Street, but their numbers are not large at present.”
"If it is not dealt with in time, once this thing reaches a certain scale, the tragedy of last time will surely be repeated."
These words were spoken.
The expressions of everyone present darkened.
This is not an exaggeration; the bloody lesson from last time is still fresh in our minds, but fortunately, there are solutions.
"The Black Knights are gathering very quickly and are expected to reach a significant size within a week. We must be prepared at any time."
The commander looked at the person in the main seat and asked, "Commander, is the next batch of personnel ready?"
In the main seat.
Zhou Zhengguo frowned and remained silent.
Seeing this, the commander couldn't help but sigh inwardly; he could understand his old leader's feelings.
He deeply admired this old leader.
Even in the complex post-apocalyptic environment, the other party was still able to uphold their bottom line and maintain the most basic order.
That plan... was cruel in some ways... but there was no other way.
This matter absolutely cannot be delayed!
The frontline commander withdrew his gaze and looked at a man in the seat to his right, who immediately understood and stood up on his own initiative.
"It's ready."
The man slowly began to explain the situation: "As of now, exactly one hundred people have registered."
"We'll stick to the standards set last time. I'm not sure if the number is enough, or if we need to recruit more people."
"If there are a hundred people..."
Just as the commander was about to give his opinion, Zhou Zhengguo, who was in the main seat, suddenly interrupted him: "One hundred people should be enough."
Upon hearing this...
The commander and the person in charge exchanged a glance, then sat down silently without saying another word.
"What are the opinions below?"
“There have been some negative comments lately, and the security detail has already arranged for people to handle them.”
Zhou Zhengguo was silent for a moment, then asked again, "Did they all volunteer?"
The person in charge's expression changed slightly upon hearing this: "Most of them volunteered..."
"That's good."
Zhou Zhengguo didn't press the matter further; everyone knew the truth in their hearts, so there was no need to expose it.
...........
In this matter...
There is almost no room for maneuver; some sacrifices can only be made, but this is not a long-term solution.
Fortunately.
They have another way!
Zhou Zhengguo looked at the person in charge of another project and asked, "How is the Cleaner Project progressing?"
"Five days ago, the ten team members completed the third absorption of crystal cores. Their current strength is barely enough to defeat the Black Warrior."
Progress is slow.
But after so much preparation, it can finally be put to use.
"Dispatch ten team members to Dongzheng Street and take advantage of the fact that the Black Warriors have not yet formed a large force to clear out a portion of them."
These ten team members...
They are their hope in the fight against Darth Vader... They can be sent out to hone their skills, but absolutely no accidents can happen!
Thinking about this...
Zhou Zhengguo added, "In addition, have Li Guangqiang closely monitor the movements of the zombie horde. If anything seems amiss, immediately recall the scavenger team!"
Once you're in the zone...
Zhou Zhengguo didn't want to delay and just wanted to end this heavy meeting as soon as possible to start asking about the situation in the park.
What's the situation at the training base lately?
"There are a total of five awakened individuals who have successfully unleashed their potential and completed full awakening, but the awakened abilities are not ideal."
Death training...
Very few people managed to persevere to the end; these people were risking their lives...
I calmed myself down.
Zhou Zhengguo continued, "Is the crystal core testing still ongoing?"
"People keep signing up."
The project leader slowly began, "But the success rate of consuming the crystal core is only ten percent. Should we stop?"
"If anyone signs up, we'll continue testing. Have the search and rescue teams we sent out found anything?"
"Six of the ten search and rescue teams returned, bringing back a total of 367 survivors, while four search and rescue teams remained missing."
"We don't know the situation yet. If they haven't returned to the park within the specified time, we will send someone to check."
The head of the search and rescue department suddenly paused, glanced up at the head of the table, and quietly added:
"Among the four search and rescue teams that went missing this time... was Search and Rescue Team No. 2."
Upon hearing this, everyone's expression changed slightly.
Everyone present knew... this second search and rescue team was different from the others...
but.
Zhou Zhengguo, who should have been the most concerned, didn't dwell on the issue too much, and his expression didn't even change much.
"Is the ammunition reserve in the warehouse sufficient?"
"Ammunition reserves are not a problem for the time being. At the current rate of consumption, they can last for another five months."
What about the food?
"The logistics department strictly controls food, and everyone is allocated food in accordance with the quota. With the support of the farm, there are no problems for the time being."
......
In a somber atmosphere.
The meeting lasted for half an hour before it ended.
The heads of various departments in the park tidied up the materials on their desks and left one after another.
"Xiao Lu, can you stay here for a moment?"
The commander, who had just come from the front lines, slowly stopped at the door, silently turned around, and returned to his seat.
After everyone else left.
Zhou Zhengguo got up, walked over to the other person, took out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket, and handed one to him.
He had quit smoking for a long time, but at some point, he picked up the old habit again.
"Is it about Search and Rescue Team Two?"
"I remember Miss is with Search and Rescue Team Number Two. I'll go and ask about the situation tomorrow and send an elite team out to search for her."
"No."
"The situation on Dongzheng Street is very serious. You will need to go there to provide support at any time. Take the time to get some rest."
Upon hearing this...
The commander sighed inwardly, said nothing more, and silently took out his lighter to light a cigarette.
There was a long silence.
Zhou Zhengguo stubbed out his cigarette with his fingers, looked up at the dim light, and spoke quietly.
"Do you think... we can hold on until the end?"
Now.
They were just gritting their teeth and holding on; Darth Vader was an insatiable beast, and this hole would never be filled.
If the Cleaner Project fails... the consequences are unimaginable!
Even if we succeed.
The ammunition in the warehouse will eventually run out. If we still can't muster a team capable of directly confronting the zombie horde by then...
The current relatively stable situation is about to collapse completely!
The commander remained silent for a long time after hearing this before slowly saying, "Keep going, there will always be hope."
...........
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