163 A series of strange happenings (1/2)

All of the Qing Consortium's executives were talking and laughing in the conference room a moment ago. But now, all of them fell silent.

Qing Huai was considered the best candidate of the middle generation to lead soldiers into battles. The troops under him were also more elite. Everyone had thought the 7th Combat Brigade would definitely head into Stronghold 113 and eliminate the Experimentals. But they did not expect there to be bad news coming back from the front line before the meeting was even over.

”How could the 7th Combat Brigade, made up of several thousand people, get ambushed by a few hundred Experimentals?” someone wondered. ”Could this information be false? We all know the 7th Combat Brigade is equipped with the best gear, and its combat capability is the strongest as well.”

Naturally, the person who spoke knew the most powerful units in the Qing Consortium had been the 5th Combat Brigade under Qing Zhen and the 6th Combat Brigade under Luo Lan. But those brigades didn't exist anymore.

The 5th Combat Brigade had already been disbanded, and all of their soldiers had been separated and reassigned to other brigades, whereas the 6th Combat Brigade had perished in the earthquake.

In reality, everyone had been reluctant to make a move on Qing Zhen because he and Luo Lan each possessed a relatively stronger military force that they dreaded. But now that something had happened to Luo Lan, Qing Zhen would be left to fend for himself.

However, they were unaware that not all of Luo Lan's soldiers had perished in the disaster at Stronghold 113. The earthquake only split the military base in two, forcibly separating the combat troops and making it impossible for them to join up with the other.

At present, the displacement in the ground that stretched from the Jing Mountains was known as the Stair of the Jing Mountains. It was as though the stairs had been forcefully squeezed out of the ground like a crease in the plains.

It was almost foreseeable that this place would become a new mountain range within the next few centuries or millennia.

But the Qing Consortium would not give up on this place until they discovered new coal mines.

That elder in the conference room calmly said, ”The number of Experimentals has exceeded our estimation. There are probably close to a thousand of them. When Qing Huai and his men were setting up camp, the Experimentals attacked them with lightning speed. Qing Huai hadn't expected that the Experimentals would initiate the attack. Right now, I suspect that a new life form has emerged from the hordes of Experimentals… one that has intelligence.”

”It seems Stronghold 113 has become their lair.” Someone sighed. ”Why don't we get Qing Zhen to deal with those Experimentals? He's a veteran, after all.”

When the elder looked at the person who suggested that, a kind of inexplicable pressure descended on the conference room. The elder said, ”Qing Yun, take the 1st Combat Brigade with you. How can the will of the organization compromise with an individual? From today onwards, Qing Zhen is not allowed to take a single step out of his villa.”

The other executives in the conference room began to have their own considerations. Qing Zhen had proven his capabilities to the organization over the years. But with the will of the organization changed, this capable young man could only end up a dignified prisoner.

But they felt that if Qing Zhen had been the one sent to Stronghold 113, the outcome of the mission would be completely different.

Qing Zhen and Luo Lan had suffered a terrible loss in the incident in the Jing Mountains. But who could have expected natural disasters like an earthquake and volcanic eruption to happen? This was an act of nature.

…

At this moment, a convoy of vehicles carrying goods and supplies were driving slowly towards Stronghold 109. A black figure was clinging to the undercarriage of a large truck. This person was Xu Xianchu, who had traveled on a long and arduous journey to Stronghold 109.

Xu Xianchu clenched his teeth and persisted. It was not easy to cling to the undercarriage, but he was determined to sneak into Stronghold 109. At a time like this, who would expect Xu Xianchu to enter Stronghold 109 like this?