Chapter 182: Learning Some of the Gist of the Truth

"Well first of all, I want to introduce myself. My name is Adrian and I command this private fleet. I’m going to say that this fleet is not part of the Philippine Navy but part of a private military company. So there’s that. But don’t be mistaken, as we have no intention on being your enemy, especially when we are encountering a situation like this," Adrian continued calmly. "Humanity is already close enough to extinction. Starting another conflict between survivors would be stupid."

Captain Liu studied Adrian silently for several moments after hearing that.

The Chinese captain’s expression remained difficult to read.

Tired.

Careful.

But observant.

Eventually he nodded slightly.

"You speak logically."

Ryan quietly muttered beside Adrian.

"Well that’s one way of saying we don’t want to get nuked."

One of the Chinese sailors nearby looked confused hearing that while another almost laughed quietly before stopping himself.

The tension eased slightly again.

Not much.

But enough that the atmosphere no longer felt seconds away from gunfire.

Captain Liu finally spoke again.

"You said private military company."

"Yes."

"That amount of military hardware is difficult for even governments to maintain now."

Adrian looked toward the surrounding fleet briefly.

The destroyers floated nearby beneath the morning sunlight while helicopters continued circling above the sea. Further away, the dead Kraken remained partially visible floating across the water while recovery ships worked around the corpse.

"Let’s just say we adapted quickly," Adrian answered.

Captain Liu narrowed his eyes slightly.

"That is not a real answer."

"No," Adrian admitted calmly. "It isn’t."

For several seconds, the Chinese captain simply looked at him again.

Then unexpectedly—

He nodded.

"Fair enough."

Honestly, Adrian respected that.

The man clearly understood there were questions neither side intended to answer yet.

Ryan glanced around the submarine afterward.

Up close, the Changzheng-418 looked rough.

Very rough.

Sections of the outer hull showed signs of emergency repairs while some external panels looked scorched from heat damage or explosions. Several sailors nearby carried visible injuries beneath hastily wrapped bandages.

One crewman had a limp.

Another looked dangerously thin.

Ryan slowly exhaled through his nose.

"You guys been underwater the whole time?"

Captain Liu looked toward him.

"Mostly."

Ryan blinked slightly.

"For how long?"

"Almost seven months."

That immediately shut Ryan up.

Even Adrian’s Marines quietly exchanged looks hearing that answer.

Seven months.

Inside a submarine.

During the collapse of civilization.

Captain Liu rested one hand lightly against the sail tower behind him.

"We lost communication with mainland command shortly after the nuclear exchanges began."

"Wait, nuclear exchanges? That happened?"

"...I think it’s best that we talk about this inside," Captain Liu said quietly.

Adrian immediately noticed the shift in the Chinese captain’s expression.

It was subtle.

But there.

Something about the topic clearly carried weight.

Ryan looked between the two men before shrugging lightly.

"Well that doesn’t sound ominous at all."

Captain Liu gestured toward the command hatch behind him.

"Please."

The atmosphere around the submarine remained tense as Adrian followed Captain Liu toward the sail tower hatch. Ryan and two Marines accompanied him while the rest remained topside alongside the Chinese sailors.

Several armed crewmen watched carefully as Adrian descended the ladder into the submarine.

The interior of the Changzheng-418 immediately felt different from Adrian’s own submarines.

Not technologically inferior.

Just different.

The corridors were narrower.

The lighting dimmer.

The air heavier.

Ryan quietly looked around while they moved deeper into the vessel.

"Damn..."

The inside showed clear signs of prolonged deployment.

Crew bunks had blankets hanging from improvised hooks for privacy. Empty ration containers were stacked neatly near supply compartments while maintenance tools remained scattered around certain sections of the submarine.

The sailors they passed looked exhausted.

Not just physically.

Mentally too.

Some looked toward Adrian curiously while others barely reacted anymore.

Seven months underwater had clearly drained them.

Captain Liu eventually stopped outside a reinforced compartment near the center of the submarine.

"My quarters."

He opened the hatch afterward.

The room itself was small compared to surface naval accommodations, but still larger than most crew spaces aboard the submarine. A narrow desk occupied one side while tactical charts, maintenance reports, and handwritten notes covered much of the walls.

A portable electric kettle sat near one corner beside stacked ration packs.

Ryan quietly muttered—

"Looks like everybody’s having a rough time."

Captain Liu closed the hatch behind them afterward.

The atmosphere inside immediately became quieter once the submarine noises muffled around the compartment.

Adrian noticed something else too.

A map.

Pinned across the wall.

China.

Covered in red markings.

Nuclear impact zones.

Ryan noticed it too.

"...Jesus."

Captain Liu slowly walked toward the desk.

For several seconds, he remained silent.

Then finally—

"The world ended faster than most people realize."

Adrian crossed his arms slightly.

"You mentioned nuclear exchanges."

Captain Liu nodded slowly.

"Yes."

He looked toward the map on the wall.

"The United States launched first."

Ryan frowned immediately.

"Against China?"

Captain Liu gave a tired smile.

"At first, we believed so too."

The Chinese captain pulled one of the papers from the wall afterward before placing it across the desk.

Satellite imagery.

Burned coastlines.

Destroyed cities.

Massive heat signatures.

Ryan’s expression slowly changed while looking through them.

"Holy shit..."

Captain Liu rested both hands lightly against the desk.

"The infected overwhelmed several major American cities within weeks after the outbreak escalated."

He pointed toward one of the photographs.

New York.

Gone.

Not from conventional destruction.

Nuclear fire.

Another image.

Los Angeles.

Burning ruins.

Another.

Chicago.

Completely devastated.

Captain Liu spoke quietly.

"At first we believed the Americans launched nuclear strikes against population centers to slow the spread."

Adrian remained silent while listening carefully.

Honestly—

It made tactical sense.

If entire cities became unrecoverable infection zones, then nuclear sterilization became one of the few remaining options.

Horrifying.

But logical.

Captain Liu continued.

"Then their missiles crossed international airspace."

Ryan slowly looked up.

"And China retaliated."

Captain Liu nodded once.

"Yes."

The room became quiet again afterward.

The submarine’s low reactor hum echoed faintly through the compartment.

Captain Liu walked toward the map again.

"At that point, global communication had already collapsed. Our government believed the United States initiated full nuclear war."

His eyes hardened slightly.

"And maybe they believed the same thing about us."

Ryan rubbed his forehead slightly.

"So both sides basically launched because they thought they were under attack?"

Captain Liu looked toward him calmly.

"No."

That immediately caught Ryan off guard.

Captain Liu continued quietly.

"We retaliated because by then... it no longer mattered."

Silence filled the compartment afterward.

Even Adrian narrowed his eyes slightly hearing that answer.

Captain Liu slowly pointed toward the marked Chinese cities on the wall map.

"Beijing."

Another point.

"Shanghai."

Another.

"Guangzhou."

His expression remained controlled, but Adrian could hear the exhaustion beneath his voice now.

"The infected already consumed millions."

Ryan stared at the map silently.

Captain Liu continued.

"Our military command eventually realized something horrifying."

He slowly turned back toward them.

"There were no military targets left worth protecting."

That sentence lingered heavily inside the compartment.

Because it carried terrifying truth.

The world’s militaries had not exchanged nuclear fire over conquest.

Or territory.

Or ideology.

They launched because civilization itself was collapsing beneath the infected.

Captain Liu crossed his arms.

"The Americans launched against infected population centers."

His gaze shifted toward the wall again.

"So we did the same."

Ryan blinked slowly.

"You nuked your own cities?"

Captain Liu nodded.

"Yes."

No hesitation.

No shame either.

Just exhaustion.

Adrian finally spoke again.

"How bad was it?"

Captain Liu laughed quietly.

Not because it was funny.

Because the question itself almost felt pointless.

"How bad?"

He slowly sat down near the desk afterward before answering.

"Captain... by the second month, mainland China was already collapsing."

His eyes lowered briefly.

"We still received military broadcasts then."

Another bitter smile appeared.

"At first the broadcasts spoke about containment."

Then his expression hardened again.

"Then evacuation."

"Then martial law."

The room remained completely silent while he spoke.

"Then eventually... only emergency frequencies remained."

Ryan slowly leaned back against the compartment wall.

"Jesus Christ..."

Captain Liu nodded slowly.

"The United States did not destroy China."

He looked directly toward Adrian afterward.

"The infected did."