Chapter 138: Level One Combat Readiness State

Driven by a sense of urgency, Xie Han piloted the fighter jet and reached the airspace above New City just minutes later. Down below, the hustle and bustle of daily life continued unabated. Unaware of the impending catastrophe, the residents were completely immersed in labor and joy. Catching sight of the aircraft suddenly descending from the sky, they temporarily put down their work, waving and cheering at the fighter.

After reducing altitude, Xu Qiang spotted the jet piloted by Xie Han from the testing base. Once the hangar's overhead doors swung open, Xie Han gently guided the craft down inside. The moment the landing gear touched the hangar floor, he commanded the onboard AI to fold and retract the wings, popped open the canopy, and vaulted out. The fighter automatically navigated itself along the tracks to its designated slot, awaiting its next flight and combat mission.

Xu Qiang and Chen Liu had been waiting not far away. Seeing Xie Han land safely, both men heaved sighs of relief and rushed over with beaming faces. "How was it?" they asked. "The feeling of soaring through the skies must have been exhilarating, right? If only we knew how to fly this thing—riding the high blue skies is everyone's dream."

Yet, they quickly noticed the complete absence of joy on Xie Han's face. Instead, his expression was icy, shadowed by gloom and depression. Startled, Xu Qiang asked, "Leader Xie, why do you look so terrible? Did you have trouble adapting to the aircraft's performance?"

Xie Han shook his head and said, "Qiangzi, tell Feiwu and Tianhe to call an emergency meeting."

Both Xu Qiang and Chen Liu felt a jolt in their hearts. Judging by Xie Han's expression and the call for an emergency meeting, something major must have happened; otherwise, he would never have used such a term. "Lad Xie, what on earth happened?" Chen Liu asked. "Looking this panicked is not like you at all."

Xie Han forced a bitter, strained smile and replied, "Brother Chen Liu, in a moment, your expressions might look even worse than mine."

Just as Xie Han had predicted, after viewing the images stored on the data drive he handed over, the color drained completely from their faces. They sat slumped and dazed in their respective chairs, their minds entirely blank.

While Xu Qiang and the others might not have personally witnessed the horrifying scenes at Wangtian Base—meaning their expressions, though grim, fell short of utter despair—Chen Liu, who had been through it, turned deathly pale. He finally understood why Xie Han wore such an expression. The shock delivered by this news was simply too monumental. The vitality they had cultivated over the past half-year through painstaking, blood-and-sweat-toiling effort was now on the verge of total destruction. That sense of helpless despair was something not everyone could bear.

"How could this happen?" Xu Qiang slammed his fist against the table with a mad, frenzied expression. "Is it because of the survivors who broke away from Wangtian Base? Or something else? Why do they relentlessly hunt us down? Is there something among us that the zombies desperately need?"

Xie Han pulled himself out of his deep thoughts, smiled bitterly, and said, "Why... truth be told, we shouldn't have rashly attacked Wangtian City and plundered the manufacturing plant. The situation we face today is entirely my doing. It's all my fault; I shouldn't have taken that step."

Chu Tianhe took a deep breath and said, "Boss, this isn't your fault. We all agreed to plunder the manufacturing plant, didn't we? Besides, the machinery inside was something we desperately needed and had to get our hands on."

"Perhaps you are all wondering why the massive hordes of zombies ignored other gathering bases and chased solely after Wangtian Base and our New City..." Xie Han cleared his thoughts and swept his gaze over the curious faces of Chen Liu and the other three. "It's simple. Just like humans, the controllers among the zombies have their own standards and thresholds. Wangtian Base both rose and fell because of its hunting fleet. Because the threat posed by that hunting fleet exceeded the standard boundaries of the controllers' cognitive limits, it had to be destroyed. Similarly, the destructive power brought by our New City's vehicle fleet has crossed the controllers' threshold as well, which is why we, too, must be destroyed."

Qiang Feiwu said in a deep voice, "Are you saying our threat level alone is considered equal to a Wangtian hunting fleet of hundreds of vehicles?" Although Qiang Feiwu had spent the past few months managing only the civilian base, before defecting to Wangtian Base, she had been a formidable female squad leader. Slaughter and cold-bloodedness were hardly foreign to her.

Xie Han shook his head, sighed, tapped his finger on the table, and said, "A hunting fleet built from hundreds of vehicles was indeed imposing, and the metal tide they created was terrifying. But don't forget our New City's homemade incendiary bombs, nor the Breaker and the Controller I killed inside Wangtian City. Combined, those two pose a threat that arguably surpasses the former Wangtian hunting fleet. Have you noticed? When dealing with Wangtian Base, they used low speed to lull the base into complacency. But when dealing with New City, they are advancing at maximum zombie velocity. At their speed, with New City less than two hundred kilometers away from Wangtian City, they will appear at the outer edges of the military exclusion zone in just three days."

"Three days..." Chen Liu mused. "Perhaps three days will be enough for New City to evacuate." He turned to Xu Qiang and said, "From this incident, we can see our shortcomings—we actually neglected reconnaissance and intelligence. If Lad Xie hadn't discovered this early on, we probably wouldn't have known until the zombies had completely surrounded us."

Xu Qiang wore a look of shame and said, "Brother Chen Liu is right. I truly failed to arrange things properly."

Xie Han interrupted the two of them. "Now is not the time to assign blame. Everyone should focus on figuring out how to handle this crisis. Personally, I am entirely against Brother Chen Liu's evacuation plan. Even if we evacuate this time, what about the next? Will we keep running? Furthermore, the moment we evacuate, not only will our foundation here be ruined, but the morale of these over twenty thousand people will scatter to the winds. The chances of making a comeback from that would be virtually zero."

"I agree with Leader Xie's plan," Xu Qiang said, displaying his characteristic decisiveness. "Though a million zombies sounds terrifying, we are not entirely without a chance. With a force of twenty thousand people, through flexible tactics, dealing with these mindless zombies is entirely possible. As you know, zombies can only attack at close range, whereas we humans, utilizing machinery, can strike zombies from up to two miles away. Imagine that—over such a massive distance, every single one of us has enough ammunition to empty thousands of rounds."

Xie Han added, "You all know why I repeatedly insisted on manufacturing only a small number of machine guns and mass-producing assault rifles. An assault rifle, fitted with a mere scope, transforms into a mid-range sniper rifle. With an effective range of one mile when paired with a scope, it is absolute hell for zombies. On top of that, we possess a massive stockpile of napalm and the mysterious GGB biological bombs. With all this, we certainly have a fighting chance."

Everyone fell silent. This was a difficult dilemma to resolve. Taking a step back might allow them to dodge this immediate crisis, but it would also mean facing the collapse of morale throughout New City. On the other hand, choosing to resist—just thinking about a zombie horde numbering in the millions—was a decision not anyone could easily make. Even if they emerged victorious this time, they must not forget there were tens of millions of zombies lingering inside Wangtian City. What if they came again? How would they deal with that?

"The five of us represent the highest leadership of New City. Since everyone is hesitant, let's vote by a show of hands on whether to evacuate or resist." Xie Han swept his gaze over the four grim faces, raised his hand, and said, "Those in favor of resisting and defending New City, raise your hand..."

Without hesitation, Xu Qiang raised his hand right after Xie Han. As a soldier—even one belonging to a military left behind in the power vacuum of the apocalypse—never retreating remained deeply ingrained in his heart. New City was now his home, and defending it was a soldier's inherent duty, come what may, even sacrifice.

Chen Liu and the others exchanged glances. Qiang Feiwu showed no hesitation. She cast a deep look at Xie Han, slowly raised her hand, and said, "A life of constant fleeing is no way to live. Are humans really left with nothing but escape? Though I am merely a woman, I want to say that human choices are not limited to flight alone. We can resist. To reclaim humanity's living space, fighting the zombies is an absolute necessity, despite the sacrifice it demands."

Chu Tianhe also raised his hand, saying, "Haven't you all been laughing at me for being the boss's bootlicker and yes-man? Since the boss has given the nod, my opinion hardly matters anyway—you could all guess my answer. Feiwu put it well: running away only makes people increasingly cowardly, whereas resistance forces us to face things with strength and hold fast to humanity's tomorrow."

"Hehe..." A-Liu shook his head. With only five people in the leadership council and four already voting in favor, what choice did he have? He raised his hand and smiled wryly. "I only wanted to give New City a chance to start over, not out of cowardice, but for preservation. Since everyone has already decided, I, Chen Liu, am still a man of blood and mettle. How could a fight against zombies be missing me? Still, I suggest we prepare for both outcomes. Just in case we truly cannot hold out, we can at least preserve the seeds of New City."

Xie Han was very satisfied with everyone's statements. He lowered his hand and said, "Since the motion has passed, I hereby declare, in my capacity as the supreme commander of New City, that New City enters a state of wartime emergency mobilization. Every single member of New City has the responsibility and obligation to participate in this battle for survival to defend our city and our home. Everyone, go down and make the preparations!"

New City operated under military management, and its regulations clearly defined the obligations of every citizen. In the apocalypse, the proportion of youth, the elderly, and the infirm was extremely small because they struggled to survive; three years had been more than enough to weed out the vast majority of them.正是正是 Under such apocalyptic conditions, nearly everyone who managed to survive to this day was an outstanding soldier. Given sufficient firearms, New City could instantly mobilize twenty thousand troops.

Thanks to the accumulation of firearms manufacturing over the past month or more, five thousand assault rifles were enough to arm over five thousand soldiers. Combined with the existing three thousand troops, New City's ultimate military strength would reach eight thousand. The newly scoped assault rifles would function practically as makeshift sniper rifles, turning those five thousand soldiers into five thousand snipers capable of delivering lethal, long-range headshots to the zombies.

After the meeting adjourned, Xu Qiang and the others hurried away, leaving Xie Han alone in the quiet conference room. Just minutes later, a shrill alarm blared across the testing base. Squads of soldiers bolted from their resting quarters, grabbed their full gear, and rapidly assembled in the front plaza of the testing base, quickly forming into orderly platoons. Xu Qiang's loud shouts echoed faintly in the distance. Mere minutes later, rows of soldiers began boarding prepared trucks, rolling out of the testing base and heading toward the direction of the civilian base.

Similarly, continuous alarms rang out across the civilian base. This emergency warning system, reserved for wartime, prompted residents still toiling in the fields to drop whatever they were working on—leaving their tools behind altogether—and flood toward the civilian base. Though nobody knew exactly what was happening, an ominous premonition gripped everyone's hearts, and people caught the panic reflected in each other's eyes.

Three thousand soldiers marched in columns onto the towering city walls of the civilian base, positioning rifles and heavy machine guns at various strategic firing points. At every street intersection within the civilian base stood a squad of battle-ready soldiers, safety latches clicked off, poised to fire at a moment's notice.

Under the prodding of the soldiers, the residents of the civilian base were all herded back to their temporary homes. The entire civilian base descended into chaos, though it was an orderly chaos. Prompted by the soldiers' intervention, calm was quickly restored. Not a single person could be seen wandering the streets; everyone waited inside their houses or tents. Though unaware of the exact nature of the emergency, they knew for certain that something massive had occurred.

Xie Han walked into the broadcast room of the testing base. Bai Mengmeng, the sweet-voiced young woman, had already prepared everything for the broadcast. The radio station was also hooked up to an external loudspeaker system installed across the civilian base; with a simple switch, the entire civilian base could hear everything broadcasted through the strategically placed horn speakers.

"We can begin..." Xie Han nodded to her and took a seat right next to Bai Mengmeng.

At Bai Mengmeng's signal, several staff members transferred the broadcast feed to the civilian base and gave an OK gesture. Bai Mengmeng spoke into the microphone, "Temporary broadcast, temporary broadcast. Attention listeners, this is New City Broadcasting Station, I am Bai Mengmeng." The moment Bai Mengmeng's voice rang out, everyone lingering inside their tents and rooms perked up their ears, straining to listen, terrified of missing a single word.

Xie Han paid no attention to the opening remarks, his thoughts drifting far, far away, until Bai Mengmeng gently nudged him back to reality. She pointed to the microphone placed before him. He offered a faint, bitter smile, but as he began to speak, his expression instantly shifted into one of absolute seriousness.

"All citizens of New City, I am the supreme commander of New City, Xie Han. Perhaps you are all wondering what is happening today. The truth is, I have just learned that New City is about to face an unprecedented catastrophe. From the direction of Wangtian City, over a million zombies are marching toward New City. Their target is our home—New City!"

As Xie Han's words fell, the entire civilian base erupted like a boiling cauldron. Every single person was stunned numb by the news. While those who had come from Andu City might not fully grasp what this meant, half of the population in the civilian base consisted of survivors who had fled Wangtian Base—they knew all too well what such a scene entailed. Morale shattered completely in that instant, and those with quick reflexes were already rushing to pack their meager belongings.

"Perhaps you are terrified upon hearing this news; after all, we have experienced such agonizing horrors before. Many of you are already packing your bags, waiting to see what our stance will be. I understand your thoughts. A tide of a million zombies possesses a force humans cannot resist; leaving New City with only one option: evacuation. But let me ask you all: are you willing to abandon the homes you've built? Are you willing to abandon the farmland you've plowed? Are you willing to abandon your homeland?"

"Yes, we are unwilling to abandon any of it, because these are the fruits of our grueling labor, the crystallization of our hard work. Though it has only been a few months, the emotional bonds and sweat we have poured into New City can never simply be cast aside. Perhaps... evacuation could keep us temporarily safe, but blind retreat will only turn us into cowards, into people who live forever in the shadow of the zombies."

"Are we cowards? I want to say: No!! Though we were once hunted and chased by zombies, terrified to the point of sleepless despair, I tell you that anyone who has lived to see this day is brave, because we have fought the zombies, struggled, and fought back for our survival. Since we are brave, why should we flee? We can summon our courage and defend our home."

Xie Han paused for a moment, then delivered his words with renewed, commanding force: "I hereby order, in my capacity as the supreme commander of New City, that New City immediately enters a state of Level-1 combat readiness. Every citizen who meets military regulations is required to report to their respective departments within thirty minutes of the state of readiness taking effect. Violators will be dealt with strictly according to military law!"