Chapter 543 - In the Name of the Survival Committee?
Chapter 543: In the Name of the Survival Committee?
His words took Wild Wolf aback.
When he looked at Meng Chao, his gaze turned strange.
He frowned and asked, “Why? If it’s really as you said and everything is the abnormal beast’s scheme, then the most important segment of this scheme is to block off all information.
“Anyone who wants to tell the gangs about what is really going on in the village and reveal the abnormal beast’s intentions will definitely be stopped and killed. This matter is very dangerous. Are you sure you want to take this risk?”
“That’s right. I will definitely find Saber Jin Wanhao and obtain his trust. I’m the only one who can do it!” Meng Chao said quickly. “When the hunting squad entered the lair, the gangs cooperated with us. The information about the squads and our appearances was shared with the gangs through the tactical data link. Even Saber Jin Wanhao has it. The elites of the gangs know me and that I represent the will of the secret police and the abnormal beast research department.
“Besides, the major explosion created by the Deification Capsule pharmacy might not have killed all the veteran hunters. If anyone retreated while injured, there is a high chance that they have met the gangs.
“Perhaps Man-eating Shark Zhou Chong and the other veteran hunters are getting treatment there. As long as I can find them, we will definitely be able to communicate and get the gangs to find a place for the villagers. Trust me!”
Wild Wolf was silent for a long time. He stared at Meng Chao.
“Why do you want to help us? I heard your story before. Meng Chao, even though you were not born among the nine great cultivation houses, you have been rising to power miraculously over the past few years, and during this, you received a lot of help from the mega corporations.
“Now, you have the support from the Broken Star Club and Blue Home, which are two big organizations. You are also an off-staff member of the abnormal beast research department. Superstar is also developing really quickly. You are even closely connected to model superhuman Lu Siya as well as Sky Pillar Corporation, which supports her.
“With you being the youngest Heaven Realm superhuman in Dragon City, with just a tiny nod, any of the nine great cultivation families would take you in at any moment.
“If you’re prideful and don’t want to submit to anyone, you still have the chance to use your own hands to create the tenth cultivation family.
“In other words, you’ve already reached the top and can turn into a Crystalline Nine-headed Dragon at any moment. Why are you so concerned about the lives and deaths of us Demonic Halberd Pigs?”
“Because the Crystalline Nine-headed Dragons and Demonic Halberd Pigs are all just beasts, and I have no interest in beasts, even the smartest and strongest of them all.”
Meng Chao did not look away from Wild Wolf’s gaze and said firmly, “I am a human, and I only want to be a human. I also hope that the people beside me can live like real humans. That’s all!”
Wild Wolf’s gaze had been as steely as an ice spike, but at that moment, it shattered before Meng Chao’s even firmer gaze.
He fell into deep contemplation.
“Uncle Wolf, perhaps we can let Meng Chao try it.” At that moment, Su Mulian vouched for Meng Chao. “Just now, the one who went out to negotiate with the gangs was Big Sis Bai Shan. Since she had been tempted to the monsters’ side a long time ago, there’s no way she would have wanted to sincerely solve this problem.
“Perhaps the monsters have also cut off information on the gangs’ side. They might have also been deceived by Big Sis Bai Shan and don’t know the situation inside the village. That’s why they’re acting as if they’re facing a major enemy.
“If we rush over rashly, forget about the number of people who will die during our skirmish with the gangs, even if some villagers manage to survive, when the battle ends, how are we going to deal with the situation?
“You don’t want the village to be treated as the cause behind why Dragon City lost the war, right?”
Su Mulian’s words affected the scale in Wild Wolf’s heart. He looked like he was already a little convinced.
Suddenly, gunshots came from the perimeter of the village.
Everyone was stunned, and they quickly ran in the direction of the noise.
On their way there, they saw a lot of villagers who were injured and crying.
When they asked what happened, they learned that a batch of villagers could not stand the scorching flames around them and the torture from the smog. They wanted to escape the village to get on the path of survival.
But what happened was that they were sent back by the gangs on the other side of the river of trash.
“Wait. Who told you to charge out?” Wild Wolf glared at them and grabbed a villager who had taken the lead. He growled, “Even if you really wanted to charge out, you should do it under the command of Wild Wolves. You would have been told to spread out and charge forward in an orderly manner. If you run around like headless chickens, you’ll just be a plate of scattered sand charging to your own deaths!”
The villager was badly burned by the flames and scared out of his wits. “D-Didn’t you give us the order?”
“What?” Wild Wolf’s gaze was so terrifying that he looked like he wanted to eat the villager. “Who told you that I gave the order? My order was to distribute weapons and replenishments for everyone and divide the people into the strong and the weak. Then, you were supposed to gather together and wait for our next course of action!”
“Th-That’s what everyone said,” the villager said. “Everyone heard that some really powerful monsters appeared in Leprosy Village and were about to release terrifying mutated viruses and Blood Flower spores. They also have this Deification Capsule that will make humans go completely out of control and turn into mutated monsters.
“In any case, Leprosy Village is now a den of monsters, so there’s no way you can protect it. The outside world is prepared to ‘clean up’ the place.
“Also, the old village chief and Ms. Mulian are both dead. No one knows how they died, and no one will come to save us.
“Right now, our only path of survival is outside Leprosy Village. We will only have hope of surviving if we cross the river of trash. That’s why you gave the order for all villagers to spread out and run. Anyone who makes it out alive is another life saved—”
“Ridiculous! If you spread out and run, aside from creating chaos and dying, you won’t achieve anything!” Wild Wolf then dragged the villager to Su Mulian and hissed, “Open your eyes wide and look at who this is!”
“M-Ms. Mulian?” The villager was shocked and delighted. Then, he sank into deep puzzlement. “You’re not dead?”
“It’s very clear now,” Meng Chao said to Wild Wolf. “The abnormal beast and its puppets are spreading rumors in the village. They want you to run in all directions and spread the chaos to more places.
“You don’t want the people who killed the old village chief to achieve their goals, right?”
Before his voice could fade, there were more gunshots ahead of them.
They seemed to have come from their side of the river, which meant that it was on the village’s side.
They looked at each other and quickly went forward.
After moving through alleys with so many twists and turns that Meng Chao felt like he moved through a maze, the area in front of him turned bright.
They arrived outside Leprosy Village and gathered at the miasma-shrouded bank of the river.
Sparks from gunshots flew everywhere from both sides of the river of trash. The gunshots were as deafening as firecrackers.
The armed gang members’ mission was to lock down Leprosy Village completely and not let anyone out. They used loads of ammunition belts to stir up wave after wave of water in the river.
The villagers believed that their burning home was about to turn into hell and their only way of survival was to risk the shower of bullets and charge forward bravely.
In the past, they had to endure the outside world exploiting them because the food and drinkable water they needed for survival was controlled by the gangs, but now, the flames, smog, monster, virus, and terrifying mutation gels oppressed them to the point that they could no longer tolerate it. There was no need for them to tolerate it either.
They lived in an era when anyone who did not have weapons in their hands was not a true Dragon Citizen.
Now, the destitute villagers were not even in possession of two cans of earthworm meat, but they had all sorts of cold weapons and guns they had assembled by stealing parts from the production line of the illegal forgeries.
The appearances of their guns and weapons were cruder and uglier than of the guns and weapons Dragon City created.
They were also not as sturdy and durable as mass-produced weapons.
But they had a lot of highly radioactive, polluted, corrosive, and poisonous raw materials in them, so their damage was no different from that of the bullets sweeping at them from the other bank.
For the time being, both sides still retained their final, thin shred of rationality.
They only used light machine guns to fire at random across the river as a warning and threat. They were not really trying to kill anyone.
But as the firepower from both sides grew stronger and more accurate, tension rose and a full-on battle was about to erupt.
When Meng Chao and the rest reached the river bank, they heard shouting from the other side of the river on a megaphone. “A large number of monsters have appeared inside and outside Dragon City. In the name of the Survival Committee, the city is now under the highest state of emergency! All regions are to be fortified, and unless absolutely necessary, all citizens are not allowed to move across regions!
“Leprosy Village has been classified as a highly dangerous warzone. Based on the Pitched Battle Regulations, all villagers must defend their positions and fight to the end. Those who leave their positions on their own will be treated as deserters and will be given the harshest judgment!
“Did you hear me?! Go back! Retreat! Swear that you will fight to the end and wait for reinforcements!”
“Go to hell!” someone on their side of the river answered. “Since you know that Leprosy Village is a highly dangerous warzone, then hurry up and let us leave! We’re just normal villagers!
“The Survival Committee has ignored us for decades, so what right do they have to give us orders NOW?!
“We’ve been defending Leprosy Village for decades! DECADES! Where are the reinforcements? Where are they!
“If Leprosy Village is really a warzone, why aren’t there any superhumans helping us? Are all the peerless elites dead?
“How can we fight against those fierce monsters on our own? When you say you want us to fight to the end, do you want us to use our flesh and blood to fill the monsters until they explode from eating too many of us?
“But even if there weren’t any monsters around, the flames alone would be enough to burn the village to a crisp!”
As the shouting from both sides of the river grew stronger and anger on both sides rose, the bullets clashed in midair and sparks flew.
Those sparks could ignite the miasma above the river of trash at any moment and set the whole area on fire!
With bloodshot eyes, Wild Wolf stared at Meng Chao.
“Has the Survival Committee already given the order for the villagers to stay here and fight to the bloody end?”