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

After Su Ran finished speaking, the lounge fell into a brief silence.

When Li Guodong heard this question, his hand, which was about to take out a cigarette, froze in mid-air.

"Xiao Su, General Zhang Xiao also raised this question with you, Chief, after the Supreme Conference ended yesterday."

A hint of surprise flashed in Su Ran's eyes.

Li Guodong pulled out a chair and sat down opposite him.

"After yesterday's top-level operational meeting, everyone went their separate ways to deploy their work."

His voice was hoarse, with the roughness characteristic of someone who had stayed up all night.

"After the meeting, I stayed behind to give the leader a private report on the progress of the intelligence network. That old guy Zhang Xiao didn't leave either."

Su Ran leaned back in her chair, not urging him, waiting for the rest of the story to unfold.

"This old gunman never beats around the bush. The suggestion he made was about what you just asked about—wild awakened people abroad."

"What did General Zhang say?" Su Ran asked.

Li Guodong rubbed his throbbing temples.

"You know Old Zhang's temper; he can't tolerate any nonsense."

He bit his cigarette butt and spat out a few cold words.

"His suggestion was to prepare for potential frictions and conflicts that might arise when future expeditionary forces cross national borders."

Before those wild awakened ones fully mature, let's wipe them out in their infancy.

Su Ran bit her fingertip with her teeth, her brows furrowing involuntarily.

"How will it be destroyed?"

Li Guodong met Su Ran's gaze and carefully chose his words.

"It's the kind of destruction you're thinking of."

A few words lowered the indoor air pressure to freezing point.

"Is he going to use strategic weapons?" Su Ran's voice was slightly deep.

"That's right."

Su Ran's heart skipped a beat, and her pupils contracted slightly.

To achieve complete annihilation without leaving any blind spots and eliminating all future threats, conventional infantry advances and tactical infiltrations are simply not feasible.

That means we have to use real strategic-level weapons of truth.

Covering strikes. A thorough, sweeping bombardment.

Once that level of military action is taken, the target will no longer be a few leading wild awakened individuals, but the entire settlement.

That will be accompanied by incalculable casualties among ordinary survivors.

Su Ran looked at the thermal imaging photos taken by the Tianyan satellite on the table.

Those few red patches on the North American plate, each containing tens of thousands of people, are nothing more than coordinates that can be erased at any time in the face of the weapon of truth.

"This is not like General Zhang's style."

He shook his head and said,

"He was a pure soldier. A soldier's duty is to protect his country, and he never pointed his gun at civilians."

If that were to happen, the casualty figures would be astronomical.

Fragments of memories from my past life flashed through my mind like a revolving lantern.

"After barely escaping the surging zombie horde and enduring the brutal mutated beasts, they finally fell to the guns of their own humans."

Su Ran shook her head. "This is too ironic."

Li Guodong keenly noticed the subtle changes in Su Ran's expression.

"Old Zhang was driven to desperation."

He sighed, took the cigarette from his mouth, and held it between his fingers.

"He's not a bloodthirsty madman; he's a commander whose mind is only focused on the Great Xia defense line!"

You've read the intelligence and are aware of the situation abroad.

Zhang Xiao's original words were even more extreme than mine.

Li Guodong took a deep breath and spoke indistinctly.

"Let me repeat to you Zhang Xiao's exact words to the leader yesterday."

He sat up straight and repeated the story in Zhang Xiao's rough and ruthless tone.

"Sir, look at those former governments abroad! When the red rain fell, the mutations started, and what did they do?"

Li Guodong slammed his hand heavily on the table.

"Those elites who control core resources didn't utter a word, they went straight into the underground fortress that had been built long ago, and locked the heavy blast doors!"

They abandoned tens of millions, even hundreds of millions of people at the bottom of society, leaving them all on the ground!

Su Ran listened quietly.

Having experienced the apocalypse of his past life, he understands the consequences of such abandonment better than anyone else.

"Those wild awakened ones who survived in the early stages did not have the protection of the state apparatus or logistical support."

How have they managed to survive until now? What have they been eating? Whose bones have they been stepping on?

Li Guodong growled, and Su Ran's eyes gradually turned cold.

Without productivity, resources are conserved.

In the apocalypse, if one person wants to survive, it often means that they have to push ten people into the abyss with their own hands.

"Old Zhang's eyes turned red at that time."

Li Guodong's voice grew deeper.

He yelled at the commander: "These foreign wild awakened individuals are too uncontrollable!"

According to Consultant Su's deductions, given enough time, they could progress to the third, fourth, and even fifth and sixth tiers...

They are fully capable of developing capabilities that transcend the reach of firearms!

Su Ran nodded.

This was an inescapable dead end, and the fundamental reason why he forced Mo Yun to train troops like crazy at the Kunlun base.

"Old Zhang has a very sharp strategic vision."

Li Guodong forcefully stubbed out the half-smoked cigarette in the ashtray.

He stated, "When firearms lose their ability to counterbalance other weapons, the personal thoughts and desires of these top awakened individuals will directly determine the direction of human civilization as a whole."

"How much risk will Great Xia take by entrusting the flame of civilization to these people?"

The exhaust fan in the lounge emitted a low hum, making the atmosphere in the room even more somber.

"Zhang Xiao has a very good understanding of the psychology of this group of people who rose up in the apocalypse."

Li Guodong swallowed hard. "These wild awakened individuals did not receive any protection from the state in the early stages."

In other words, they know better than anyone else that they are among the abandoned.

Such a person has walked through hordes of zombies and the mouths of mutated beasts, experiencing the tragedies of cannibalism and backstabbing.

Now that he has acquired supernatural abilities capable of overturning everything, his mindset can never return to what it was before.

Li Guodong slammed his fist on the table twice, as if Zhang Xiao were slapping the table.

"Before the disaster, he might have been a law-abiding and enthusiastic citizen."

However, in that completely out-of-control wasteland overseas, people have absolutely no concept of obeying the law.

He stood up, walked to the water dispenser, and took a big gulp of cold water to calm his restless heart.

"In extreme and desperate situations, the first thing people degenerate from is their humanity."

Li Guodong stared into Su Ran's eyes. "Old Zhang's last words to the leader were: Never overestimate human nature."

Su Ran remained silent throughout.

He leaned back in his chair, his gaze fixed on the North American gathering shown on the projector.

General Zhang Xiao's words hit the nail on the head regarding survival in the apocalypse.

This military commander, who had not experienced the devastation of the ten-year apocalypse, accurately depicted the prototype of the wasteland warlord solely through deduction and insight into human nature.

In his previous life, he witnessed far too many tragedies like this over the past ten years.

Awakened individuals, freed from the suppression of the state apparatus, will establish themselves as gods once they gain absolute power.

It can use hundreds of ordinary people as bait to fill the bellies of mutated beasts;

To accelerate evolution, they even keep low-level awakened beings in captivity and harvest their crystal cores regularly.

The strong who grow up in that soil have their wrists stained with the blood of their own kind.

Zhang Xiao's concerns were not unfounded.

"The weakness of the Great Xia in its Awakened ranks will eventually become a fatal wound that is exposed on the surface."

Su Ran's fingers tapped involuntarily on the table.

No matter how large the state apparatus or how fierce the tank formation.

Once they encounter those high-level wild awakened beings, their defenses will be torn apart like paper.

If these hidden dangers are not eliminated in advance using the weapon of truth, the soldiers of Great Xia will be very likely to face a group of unscrupulous and extremely powerful wasteland gods when they cross the border in the future.

"From the military's perspective, General Zhang Xiao was considering how to obtain certainty for the future with minimal cost."

Su Ran crossed her arms, a hint of respect flashing in her eyes.

"It's understandable that he wants to pave the way with the truth in advance."

"yes."

Li Guodong gave a wry smile and sat back down in his chair.

"From his position, the death of even one more Xia soldier would be a dereliction of duty."

As for the survivors overseas, no matter how miserable they are, that's their business.

"A merciful general cannot command an army"—Old Zhang has truly grasped the meaning of this saying.

After dissecting the most difficult problem, Su Ran took a deep breath and pulled her scattered thoughts back.

He had figured out the attitude of the pro-war faction in the military; now the most crucial thing was the direction of the decision-making level.

"So..."

Su Ran leaned forward, her gaze fixed intently on Li Guodong. "What are you thinking, Commander?"