Chapter 505: Delay

Oppressive, desolate.

He let out a long breath, Nie Ping looked with a complex expression at the soldiers on the defense line, who were as still as statues.

"You... just how much have you hidden from us..."

He considered himself also a high-level figure in the Huaxia war zone.

But upon learning that beneath the capital...

It also hid a spatial passage, but that was only a few days ago.

Moreover, when the apocalypse broke out, hearing the horn that called for the retreat of zombies, he only felt absurd.

He, a grand commander of a region, would be a frontier official in ancient times.

But regarding the capital's secrets, he actually knew nothing.

Is this a lack of trust in himself?

Noticing Nie Ping's grief and indignation, Lihao gave a bitter laugh and began to explain:

"It's not that we don't trust you."

"I'm saying, even I was kept in the dark, do you believe me?"

"Or rather, we ourselves have only just come into contact with these things."

"This bronze gate, or rather the spatial passage, only slowly emerged on the eve of the apocalypse outbreak."

"Before that, this place was merely a civil defense project secretly built by the capital."

The two drew closer.

Looking at the bronze gate that almost occupied their entire field of view, a sense of fear welled up and rushed toward them.

That was the fear arising from the subconscious, imagining what colossal entity might lie behind such a massive bronze gate.

"On the eve of the apocalypse outbreak, staff reported that an abnormality had appeared here."

"At that time, it was nothing more than something like a \"black hole\"."

"Later we sent troops and research personnel to study it, and only then did we discover what lay inside."

"As the apocalypse began, the black hole gradually expanded into this form, eventually becoming a bronze gate."

"As for the other things, we actually really don't know."

"Some information suspected to be related to the Doomsday Game is mostly speculation."

"Besides, you also know that."

"In fact, even before the apocalypse outbreak, supernatural incidents and special events had occurred all over the world."

"It's just that they weren't nearly as terrifying as they are now."

"Humanity's understanding of the whole world is actually extremely limited."

He sighed.

"As for the plan of the capital joining forces with the Demonic Beasts, it is actually a helpless move."

"We.."

"Do we have any choice?"

In front of outsiders, Lihao, who was usually strong and confident, a pillar of spirit, took off his disguise, his posture somewhat hunched:

"We have no choice..."

"We are nothing but an isolated island."

"Outside the capital's defense line lies an endless tide of corpses; you should know just how many terrifying mutants are hidden within."

"If it weren't for their fear of the Demonic Beasts, we would have been destroyed long ago."

"Or rather, those monsters are also worried about us, worried that driving humanity to desperation..."

"Jade and stone burned together."

"In the end, letting the Demonic Beasts reap the benefit."

Nie Ping remained silent for a long time, his voice bitter as he softly asked in return:

"But Demonic Beasts also eat people; they are also our enemies."

"If we let them out... once problems arise, we will be sinners of all Huaxia."

"Moreover, you actually have no means to restrain the Demonic Beasts, right?"

Lihao smiled after hearing that, then straightened his posture.

"That's right!"

"Demonic Beasts are enemies too! But they are also enemies of the zombies!"

"Put bluntly, we are just a piece of meat; if we are all dead, they will have to face the zombies!"

"Compared to the majority of zombies that exist only to eat humans, I would rather cooperate with the Demonic Beasts! At least, they can gain strength by eating zombies!"

As he spoke, he suddenly pointed at the bronze gate, his eyes turning fierce:

"I will open the gate! We will die, and the zombies will suffer heavy losses!"

"If we detonate nuclear bombs in mutual destruction, it remains unknown who will come out on top!"

"But! As long as I threaten those mutants with this gate, we still have room to struggle!"

"A thread between life and death!"

"As long as we live, there is still hope!"

"Those damned zombies want to wear us down slowly—then let them!"

"Those Demonic Beasts want to force us—then we will delay!"

"Using the flesh and blood of our Huaxia soldiers to buy time..."

"Then we will exchange!"

Nie Ping listened to his impassioned speech, then fell silent for a long time.

"So..."

"Is this why you're hostile toward Lin An, or rather..."

"Is it because you don't agree with our ideals?"

Falling from the sky, Lihao stared at his former comrade-in-arms.

"It's not hostility."

"He's an enemy."

"You should know that once people's hearts fall into chaos, causing the entire Huaxia warzone to fight each other, what fate awaits the capital."

"Without external support, without the pressure of a righteous cause, who would willingly sacrifice?"

"We can't keep draining."

"We can't drag this out; we'll all die."

"If we die, the demonic beasts will emerge, and the zombies surrounding us will sweep across all of Huaxia."

"Put bluntly, we are the most important line of defense against the enemy."

"If we fall, all of Huaxia falls."

"By then, who will stand against the endless corpse tide? Millions of mutants? Not to mention the unknown threat of demonic beasts."

"Just because of him, Lin An?"

A scoff.

Lihao said solemnly:

"I don't look down on him, but an individual's power is too tiny."

"Nie Ping, you should know how minuscule individual strength is in the face of the apocalypse."

"Only by combining technological power and the power of the Awakened Ones is the right path!"

"Do you think he can jump straight to the fourth stage, or instantly produce millions, tens of millions of Awakened Ones?"

"Or perhaps one person developing technology? Arming survivors? Not to mention his occupying Linjiang Academy, which is just a bunch of students."

"He lacks that ability; instead, he's a threat."

"We fight to the death on the front lines, shedding blood for all of Huaxia, while he hides in our rear."

"Maybe his performance is indeed not bad, his strength is strong. But don't think: if he started out in our situation, could he still do it so easily?"

"For every mutant we kill, we must simultaneously face ten mutants attacking us! That's why our leveling speed is so slow!"

"And what about him?"

"He even has the leisure to slaughter factions that oppose him!"

"He points a knife at his own people—how are we supposed to trust him?"

"Perhaps he's been holding it in too long."

Lihao's emotions were somewhat agitated; he pointed at the soldiers on the city wall, his voice ringing high:

"Our enemies are monsters!"

"Not our own people!"

"What the hell is Lin An doing!? The capital told him to cooperate; even if he disobeyed, that would be forgivable—but he's also declaring independence!"

"I'll tell you straight: the Long'an Project has a huge flaw; in our estimates, his memory has definitely already recovered!"

"Do you have any idea what kind of person Lin An really is!?"

Nie Ping's heart jolted; he was about to speak when Lihao quickly cut him off:

"Lin An's performance in the whole project is fundamentally just living for himself!"

"He only considers himself; he absolutely won't care about anyone's life or death."

"I tell you! He can kill everyone in the city just to save his own life!"

"After nearly ten thousand death simulations, his mind has twisted to the point of losing humanity!"

"Just like a worm! Survival is his only instinct!"

"He's a monster wearing human skin!"

His chest heaved; a flash of strong wariness crossed Lihao's eyes:

"Nie Ping, stop fantasizing that Lin An will help us in any way, and stop fantasizing that he'll be a faint light."

"If we say our bottom line is cooperating with demonic beasts..."

"Do you believe it? To become stronger and survive, Lin An could even cooperate with zombies for his own sake."

Having said that, Lihao turned his head and flew toward the steel city wall:

"Let's leave it at that."

"Nie Ping, I hope you weigh your options and figure out exactly which side you're on..."