In the apocalypse, I hoarded goods and handed over my storage space to the government.

The earth's surface.

Five figures emerged from the gushing poisonous fog tunnels and landed steadily on the outer perimeter of the surface defense line.

The purple forest, spanning several kilometers in radius, faded rapidly the moment its core disappeared.

Ye Xiao wiped the blood from his face and looked around warily.

"That's... all?"

"It's over."

Su Ran turned around and looked at everyone. "The crisis at the Bashu base has been resolved."

As soon as he finished speaking, everyone relaxed.

The senses begin to take over the brain.

Bai Lu, in particular, bent over and gasped for breath, followed by violent retching.

She stumbled over, instinctively grabbing Su Ran's arm, and managed to speak with difficulty.

"I will absolutely, positively never come to a place like this again!"

As she spoke, she couldn't help but gag twice.

Although they were protected by the spatial barrier provided by Su Ran, the stench of blood and decay that struck their very souls was almost enough to completely permeate their senses.

Su Ran didn't mind the stains on her body, but gently patted her back to help her catch her breath.

"It felt like being stuffed into the stomach of a giant animal."

Ye Xiao, Mo Yun, and the others were also feeling unwell at this moment.

Just now, underground, in the midst of a life-or-death struggle with heightened mental tension, they subconsciously ignored these sensory stimuli.

Now that the crisis is over, that lingering force that shot straight to the top of my head immediately surged up like a raging torrent.

"Go back and wash up first. We'll meet in the temporary rest room in half an hour."

Su Ran looked at the disheveled group and gave the order.

……

Meanwhile, on the ground, at the forefront of the defense line.

Zhao Zhigang was anxiously holding up his binoculars, staring intently at the direction of the purple mist.

His palms were sweating profusely. If the Awakened Squad failed, he would have to order the erasure of this area, no matter the cost, to protect the safety of tens of millions of people in the rear.

However, in the next second.

Without any warning.

The billowing purple mist seemed to have lost its source and began to dissipate rapidly.

Thousands upon thousands of vines withered and turned yellow as if they had been drained of moisture.

The swarms of corpse beetles that crawled out of the ground were like headless flies that had lost their way. After circling around in place a few times, they died in large numbers.

In less than a minute.

The death zone, stretching for over ten kilometers, has been transformed into a lifeless, withered forest.

The crisis has been averted.

Zhao Zhigang's hands were trembling as he repeatedly checked the information.

He suddenly turned his head and looked at Su Ran, who had appeared behind him at some point.

"Advisor Su..."

Zhao Zhigang's voice was hoarse, filled with undisguised shock, "This...this is it?"

"Okay, it's over."

Su Ran raised her head, her gaze passing over the dazed Zhao Zhigang, and looking towards the distant forest that had been turned into a dead wasteland.

"General Zhao, don't just stand there. Prepare to send men in to clean up the mess and clear the battlefield."

"Oh, right."

He paused, then continued, "While you're at it, help us find where that core crystal is. It's our trophy."

……

Half an hour later.

The Bashu Base has three underground floors and a special-grade lounge.

Bai Lu walked in wearing a loose military green T-shirt, frantically wiping her wet long hair with a towel while bringing it to her nose to smell it.

"It still has a fishy, ​​foul smell."

Her delicate brows furrowed, her eyes filled with disgust. "That sap melted from the vines is disgusting; it feels like it's seeping into my bones."

Su Ran sat on the leather sofa and didn't respond to the question.

"Bang."

The door was pushed open roughly.

Ye Xiao strode in, followed by Zhu Jingye.

The two changed into clean combat uniforms, but Ye Xiao's expression was clearly not good.

"Brother Su."

Ye Xiao plopped down opposite Su Ran, grabbed a bottle of mineral water from the coffee table, unscrewed it, and gulped down half the bottle.

"This whole thing was so damn frustrating!"

"What's wrong?"

"I just ran into General Zhao and his group of officers in the corridor. The way that guy looked at us was like we were gods."

Ye Xiao squeezed the empty water bottle so hard it made a cracking sound.

"But even after we crawled into the large intestine and fought tooth and nail to kill that giant, we were still crushed by those special forces soldiers on the leaderboard!"

"Can you please stop talking so disgustingly?"

Bai Lu looked extremely disgusted.

Footsteps came from outside the door.

Mo Yun stepped into the room, holding a military tablet in his hand, his expression equally solemn.

"Brother Su, Old Ye is right."

Mo Yun walked over to the sofa and sat down.

"The crisis in Sichuan and Chongqing has been resolved, and the military has classified our operation as Level S."

This record is unparalleled in the current Great Xia Dynasty.

His voice was steady, but he spoke very quickly, "We've already tallied 72,000 points. This is the highest single point gain so far."

"The engineering corps outside is still cleaning up the battlefield and clearing away the corpses of those mutated insects. There should be a few more points added later, but there certainly won't be many."

"Over 70,000 points? Isn't that great?"

Bai Lu paused, her hand still wiping her hair, looking somewhat puzzled.

"It depends on the total score."

Mo Yun pointed to the bright red data comparison chart on the screen.

Bai Lu peeked out, and Zhu Jingye also came over.

[First Place: Sharp Sword Special Forces. Total Points: 1,055,000.]

[Second Place: Awakener Headquarters. Total Points: 958,000.]

It's still a difference of 100,000 points.

"Our total points are still far behind those of the special forces."

"What are the special forces doing? How come their points are increasing so fast?" Zhu Jingye couldn't help but mutter.

"They mainly cleared out first-tier zombie hordes and low-tier mutated beast hordes."

Su Ran put down her cup and said calmly, "Twenty full-strength squads, working in conjunction with combat helicopters. Wherever the zombies are concentrated, that's where they'll go."

Mo Yun pushed up his glasses, his voice a little hoarse, "In other words, they are using a 'bulldozer' approach, carrying out a heartless sweep."

"That's right. That's reality."

Su Ran sat up straight, her aura instantly becoming sharp.

"A 'Xingtian' exoskeleton, paired with a crystal energy rifle, can give an ordinary soldier the combat power to restrain a second-tier mutated beast, or even to fight a first-tier beast horde head-on."

"And as long as the Great Xia's arsenal keeps running, we can mass-produce tens of thousands of such people!"

"And among those who have awakened, there are fewer than one hundred recorded nationwide so far."

"Brother Su, we can be considered to have turned the tide this time, right?"

Ye Xiao retorted defiantly, "Without us, could the Sharp Sword Unit have taken over this forest?"

"Yes, it's possible, it's just a matter of cost."

Su Ran's reply was merciless, every word piercing to the heart.

"Once the core location is determined, they will mobilize heavy artillery divisions and use extremely high-yield heavy bunker-buster bombs."

"Although it will trigger a fierce counterattack from the monsters and may damage the outer defenses of the main base, in the end, this forest will still be blasted into scorched earth."

He stood up and spoke condescendingly, "Nothing is irreplaceable in the face of the state apparatus."