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

Deep in the Alps.

Pierre had just finished a bad meeting and was pouring himself a drink to calm his nerves when his private terminal issued a piercing red alert.

He tapped the screen.

He glanced at it, his face turned ashen, and he smashed the wine glass in his hand on the ground, shattering it into pieces.

"Andriy! You idiot!"

Pierre completely broke down, roaring incoherently, and immediately connected to the emergency internal communications of the Pan-European Union.

A dozen seconds later, images of the heads of state of the member states reappeared in the meeting room.

This time, no one was in the mood to argue anymore; everyone looked like they had seen a ghost.

"The Great Xia has sent an ultimatum."

The Hans-German representative, von Stein, read aloud the telegram he had just received, his voice strained.

"They found out about the 'cleaning protocol'."

The meeting room was in complete chaos.

"Who leaked the secret? This was a top-secret meeting; there wasn't even a recorder. How could Great Xia know so much about it!"

Andrzej screamed hysterically.

At this moment, someone pointed to an empty space in the upper right corner.

"No need to guess. It's Italy. Their representative isn't online and has cut off their connection to the alliance's internal network."

Everyone suddenly realized.

Italy has rebelled.

At the most critical moment, they unhesitatingly sold the entire continent of Europe to Great Xia in exchange for Great Xia's protection.

"Damn traitors! They'll be nailed to the pillar of shame in Europe!" Pierre roared in impotent rage.

"Is it even useful to criticize them now?"

Voye looked ashen-faced.

"The conditions offered by Great Xia are very clear. Twenty-four hours. If you don't express your allegiance, we'll reveal the agreement to the mob on the surface."

"The Great Xia made it clear that anyone who dares to harm the survivors on the surface will be completely wiped out by the Great Xia's aerospace force."

Unsolvable dead end.

With overwhelming force and intelligence from Italy, Great Xia has placed a noose around the necks of European politicians, which is slowly tightening.

We cannot defeat the Great Xia's expeditionary force.

If we delay, millions of rioters will know the truth in 24 hours.

"We have no other choice."

"Italy has already beaten us to it; they are now the representatives of Europe. If we are any later, we won't even get a taste of the spoils."

Pierre gritted his teeth, staring at the numbers jumping on the countdown screen.

"Contact the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Great Xia..."

He lowered his head in frustration. "Gallic Kingdom accepts all terms of assimilation."

With the compromise of the Gallic Empire, the dominoes finally collapsed.

Hansland, Tulipland, Italy...

One underground government after another was forced to lower its proud head under the absolute pressure of survival.

They really don't have much time left to hesitate.

……

A ray of cold, hard morning light shone through the window, illuminating the worn leather sofa in the lounge.

Su Ran opened her eyes, a trace of sleepiness still lingering on her retina.

This was the first time since his rebirth that he hadn't been woken up by a nightmare.

The layers of screams and the stench of blood in my mind vanished briefly, like the receding tide.

Su Ran sat up, and the blanket slid down her knees.

He picked up the blanket, folded it neatly, and placed it on the armrest of the sofa.

I glanced at the digital clock on the wall.

It was exactly 7:00 AM.

I slept for a full nine hours.

Su Ran went into the bathroom and turned on the faucet.

The cold water splashed on his face, stimulating his peripheral nerves and bringing him fully awake.

The person in the mirror had stubble turning bluish, but the weariness in their eyes had vanished, replaced by a chilling calmness.

"I'm afraid I won't get to sleep like this again for long."

He was talking to himself.

After washing up, Su Ran changed into a brand new tactical combat uniform.

After checking the energy supply box he carried, he pushed open the door and walked out of the lounge.

……

Kunlun Base, Helipad No. 1.

The enormous dome had been opened, and the cold morning wind, carrying snowflakes, poured in.

Twenty-five heavy-duty Black Antelope transport helicopters were lined up in a row, their rotors spinning at low speeds, emitting a dull roar.

On the tarmac, two completely different murderous auras were converging.

On the left is the Sharp Sword Special Forces wearing black "Xingtian-II" powered exoskeletons.

The thousand-person team stood in neat rows, like a silent steel forest.

The matte coating on the armor surface absorbed the light, and a faint blue energy occasionally flashed at the joints of the mech.

On the right are members of the Awakened Headquarters.

Mo Yun and Lin Feng were pointing at a tactical tablet.

Ye Xiao squatted on the ground, the Tang sword resting across his knees, while Bai Lu stood to the side.

Seeing Su Ran approaching, Ye Xiao shoved the knife behind his back and stood up.

"Brother Su, you slept really soundly."

Ye Xiao winked and gestured towards the lounge, "Is the blanket warm?"

Su Ran didn't respond to his comment. She just glanced at Bai Lu, nodded and chuckled, then turned to look at Mo Yun.

"Is everything ready?"

"It's all complete."

Mo Yun handed over the tactical tablet.

The screen displays a complex global route map, with twenty-five red dots distributed around the world.

"This is the plan I came up with with the staff at the War Command last night. We'll disperse all 84 people that our Awakened Headquarters can currently mobilize."

Mo Yun swiped on the screen and brought up the list.

"It was divided into 25 'Judgment Teams' in total. Each team was centered around an Awakened Individual, plus 30 veterans of the Sharp Sword faction. The Kunlun base was also dismantled."

"Zhu Jingye and I led a team to be responsible for several religiously-based communities in South Asia. The people there are rather stubborn, so we have to use strong medicine."

Zhu Jingye walked up from behind and smiled憨厚ly.

"Don't worry, Brother Su, as long as I'm still breathing, Brother Mo can't possibly get hurt!"

Su Ran looked at the plan.

This strategy of dividing forces is currently the most efficient.

"I trust you to handle things." Su Ran handed the tablet back.

Ye Xiao leaned closer. "Old Mo, what are the arrangements for the rest of us?"

"You're going to the Great Lakes of North America."

Mo Yun pointed to a huge red area on the map.

"Brother Su, you should go to the Great Lakes region of North America. The survivor camps there are extremely large."

Su Ran narrowed her eyes, looking at the red dot on the map. After thinking for a moment, she spoke to Mo Yun.

"Let's put the Great Lakes aside for later. We'll head to the Far East first; I want to personally meet the leader of that 'Black Swan'."