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

The battle has begun in the conference room.

One faction advocates maintaining wartime high pressure, consolidating the defense line, and even launching proactive attacks.

Another faction believes that the state apparatus is already operating beyond its capacity and must stop to catch its breath, restore people's livelihoods, and appease war-weariness.

Su Ran picked up her teacup and took a sip of the tea, which had long since gone cold.

He longed to nod in agreement with them.

Say something like, "Okay, let everyone take a break."

But he can't.

Because only he knew that the victory known as the "recapture of the entire territory" was nothing more than a laughable opening act in this grand drama of the apocalypse.

What humans crushed with cannons and steel was just a group of newly mutated beasts that didn't even have rudimentary intelligence.

But the real hell is quietly brewing under the cover of this victory.

"I object."

He put down his teacup, the porcelain hitting the solid wood table with a crisp sound.

The argument stopped abruptly.

Everyone turned to look at Su Ran.

The leader, who had been resting with his eyes closed, slowly raised his eyelids and looked at him.

"I'm starting to wonder if my book, 'Report on the Evolutionary Time of Alienated Organisms,' was written in vain."

Su Ran stood up, placed her hands on the table, and looked around the room.

"Are you all mistaken about something? The recapture of the entire territory does not equate to peace throughout the land."

"I was the one who suggested giving people the day off yesterday. It was an anesthetic that gave people a chance to breathe in their despair!"

So, you people in high positions believed it yourselves?

His words were as merciless as knives.

Qian Liye's expression froze. "Advisor Su, that's going too far. They just need a buffer period..."

"There is no grace period," Su Ran interrupted him.

"Advisor Su!"

Sun Desheng slammed his hand on the table, veins bulging on his forehead.

"Stop talking nonsense! You don't have to worry about daily necessities, and you don't have to look at the list of ordinary people who died from overwork!"

One hundred thousand lives! They just needed a buffer period. Where exactly did they go wrong?

"Advisor Su, the soldiers on the front lines are not machines. Guns can explode and people can break down."

Qian Liye gritted his teeth and followed suit, saying, "We have twelve main bases, an underground Great Wall, and solid fortifications."

Why force the state apparatus to collapse at this crucial moment?

"Strong fortifications?"

Su Ran straightened up. He didn't continue arguing and his fingertips tapped rapidly on the tactical terminal.

The central holographic sand table shimmered with light.

The azure blue map of the Great Xia disappeared, replaced by the entire panorama of the Blue Planet.

Apart from the solitary blue of the Great Xia, the surrounding Eurasian, American, and African continents were all covered by a deep, almost black, scarlet red.

"What do you think high walls can block out?"

Su Ran stared intently at Sun Desheng and Qian Liye across the sand table.

"A Tier 1 zombie? Or a Tier 2 mutated beast?"

Sun Desheng frowned and did not reply.

"General Wang."

Su Ran turned to look at Wang Jianjun, "Your soldiers just fought against a pack of second-tier mutated wolves."

Tell them, can a standard-caliber rifle penetrate the skull of a second-tier mutated beast?

Wang Jianjun's face darkened, and his voice became hoarse.

"It can't be penetrated. We need to use 12.7mm armor-piercing rounds, or go straight for crystal energy weapons. Ordinary rifles can only graze the skin."

"Did you hear that?"

Su Ran slammed her hands heavily on the table, leaning forward, exuding an overwhelming sense of pressure.

"This is only second-tier!"

"Didn't any of you read my report carefully? At most, third-order creatures will appear on a large scale in three months."

"A third-tier mutant with bone density exceeding that of steel, and muscle explosive power capable of overturning a main battle tank with bare hands!"

They can withstand the fragmentation damage of 155mm howitzers. Tier 4 creatures can even charge through mortar explosions!

Su Ran's fingers swiftly traced several red lines on the sand table, pointing directly to the South Asian subcontinent and the Siberian wilderness.

"Director Sun, Director Qian. You want to take a break and recuperate? Fine. Take a six-month break."

His voice was extremely cold. "Six months later, groups of third- and fourth-order creatures crossed the border."

They flew in from the sky and burrowed in from underground.

"To remain trapped at this point is tantamount to turning Great Xia into a giant coffin containing 1.2 billion people!"

The temperature in the conference room dropped to freezing.

Qian Liye opened his mouth, but found his throat too dry to make a sound.

"But... the soldiers have indeed reached their limit."

Wang Jianjun pinched the bridge of his nose. "If we keep fighting, what will we use to fight?"

"Even if you can't bear it, you have to bear it."

Su Ran's gaze was sharp and resolute.

"Upgrade the soldiers' equipment! Gradually phase out conventional weapons and fully switch to producing crystal energy weapons and shadow-carrying mechs."

If the Crystal Core Soldiers can't hold out, then send in the Awakened! If the Awakened can't hold out, I'll be at the very front!

He turned around abruptly, his back against the glaringly blood-red global map.

"What do you think is going on outside the boundary marker right now? It's the world's largest and most brutal breeding ground for venomous insects!"

He paused for a second before continuing.

"Those small countries are all wiped out. What will billions of zombies do without humans as food? They'll devour each other!"

"The strong devour the weak, and the high-ranking devour the low-ranking."

"While we're sitting here discussing whether to take a break, even more terrifying monsters are being born every second overseas."

"Giving them time is digging our own grave."

A year later, hundreds or even thousands of fifth and sixth-tier monsters will be born overseas. Even…”

Su Ran paused for a second before uttering two words that sent chills down everyone's spines.

"The Corpse Emperor".

The temperature in the conference room seemed to have dropped to freezing.

Li Guodong suddenly stood up straight, his fists clenched tightly.

Zhang Xiao even bit his lip until it bled, tasting the blood.

"Everyone."

Su Ran stopped sneering, her gaze filled with determination.

"The recapture of the entire Great Xia territory is not the end. It only means that we barely managed to build a raft during that global tsunami."

"After we cleared the country, Great Xia became an isolated island."

"The sea of ​​blood on the outer perimeter is still rising. If the water isn't drained, the island will be submerged sooner or later!"