Chapter 1 The Impending Doom

Night had fallen, but South City remained restless.

In the brightly lit council hall, the white-haired old speaker stared expressionlessly at the red-headed document in his hand.

"The integration of military and government will be implemented in three days. There will be significant changes to your positions. It's possible that we may never work together again." The old speaker's voice was calm. Since the exposure of the cult case, the South City Council had been thrust into the eye of the storm, with various negative impacts following one after another.

It was foreseeable that after the implementation of military-government integration, the councilors, who were currently neatly dressed and well-mannered in the council hall, would be transferred away from the center of power and become insignificant minor figures.

Looking ahead to the coming dark future, the council hall was shrouded in an extremely oppressive silence.

"This is the last public meeting of the South City Council! It has been a pleasure working with you all. In three days, the new power holders will take office, and we… should also retire." The old speaker looked tired and said in a deep voice, "In these three days, everyone should organize the work of their departments and prepare for the handover… I have finished speaking. Does anyone else have anything to say?"

"..."

The nearly one-hundred-person council hall was silent, and the expressions on the faces of all the councilors were filled with anxiety about the future.

"Very well, the meeting is adjourned." The old speaker nodded and stood up.

"I have something to say." Just then, a voice rang out. Yu Cheng stood up and said, "I just received news that mutations have occurred in the world's oceans. A large number of viruses have spawned many monsters that are attacking ports and marine bases."

"South City also has a branch of the Liao Sea called the 'Ling River'! It stretches from the bay to the edge of the city, passing through a dozen villages and towns, and finally reaching the Sun and Moon Lake on the outskirts of the city."

"If a monster from the Liao Sea sneaks into South City along the Ling River, or if the Ling River and Sun and Moon Lake themselves spawn monsters, and they crawl ashore to attack villages, towns, and residents, how should we respond?"

Yu Cheng was clearly well prepared. He took out a map of South City from his briefcase, walked to the front of the conference table, posted the map on the projection screen, and used a pen to point to the river's route on the map, saying, "As you can see, there aren't many defense forces at the branch location connecting the Liao Sea port to the Ling River. And according to my understanding, the Ling River also has more than a dozen branches within South City, namely Niuwei Bay, the Moat..."

"This river is hundreds of kilometers long, and we don't have enough power to defend and investigate the entire river. Once a mutated beast breaks into the city along the river, the damage it causes will be incredibly terrifying!"

"I suggest that we immediately issue an emergency decree to gather all the residents of South City and enter the shelters together! This way, we don't have to disperse our defense forces to check this hundreds of kilometers of river!"

"The City Gymnasium is a good shelter. It has a large internal area, enough to accommodate tens of thousands of people, and it has a steel-forged protective layer that can withstand magnitude nine earthquakes! We only need to arrange military police with heavy firepower outside the stadium, and we can completely turn the stadium into a fortress. Absolutely no monster can break in! This proposal of mine..."

Yu Cheng's voice became more and more excited, but at this moment, the old speaker suddenly interrupted him.

"Yu Cheng, you're too alarmist." The old speaker looked at Yu Cheng expressionlessly and said calmly, "The military has already begun to act and has sealed off the ports where the ocean enters the city's branches. No monsters will invade, absolutely not."

"Speaker, even if all the tributary ports are sealed off, isn't it possible for monsters to be born in the local rivers and lakes of South City?" Yu Cheng's face was a little unsightly. "Life and death are major matters and should not be taken lightly!"

"This kind of thing… is something the military and police departments should consider." The speaker said in a deep voice, "What we have to do now is to perform our respective duties, do our own work, and prepare for the handover in three days."

"This concerns the lives of tens of thousands of people! Is it still necessary to consider overstepping authority and the rules of office at this point?" Yu Cheng was very surprised and couldn't understand the old speaker's attitude. He turned to look at the other councilors and said urgently, "Colleagues, are you going to stand by and watch South City fall into crisis because it is undefended?"

The council hall was silent.

Yu Cheng's pupils suddenly shrank.

What he saw were the councilors' cold faces, even with a hint of mockery and hostility, as if watching a clown put on a desperate performance!

Yu Cheng's heart suddenly turned cold. He knew these people's attitudes and why they were so indifferent.

In three days, these councilors would be stepping down. At this point, they had long since given up on themselves and had the idea of smashing the pot if it's already broken. Who would be willing to spend the time and effort to do such a thing?

"Little Yu, I know you're upset that you haven't been promoted for so many years! It's understandable that you want to take this opportunity of military and government reform to climb up, but you can't be too obvious or too proactive. Before the higher-ups issue an order, we can't spread panic at will! This will cause the current situation to spiral out of control and backfire!" The old speaker patted Yu Cheng on the shoulder with a fake smile and said, "Your intentions are good, but have you considered that if all the people in South City are gathered together, if a monster breaks into the stadium, it will cause even greater casualties?"

"Speaker, no, it won't! Those monsters have only increased in size and brutality, but they are not strong enough to resist large-caliber artillery, grenades, and other weapons. As long as we bring out enough equipment..." Yu Cheng tried desperately to explain.

"Little Yu! Let's not discuss this matter! Do as I say, everyone go back and prepare the handover materials!" The old speaker looked at Yu Cheng calmly and said, "I'm about to retire. If your plan has huge consequences, I can't bear the responsibility..."

Yu Cheng stood there dumbfounded, like a statue.

Swish!

The sound of chairs moving rang out constantly, followed by footsteps. Many people walked past Yu Cheng, in groups of twos and threes, and no one stopped by Yu Cheng's side.

Yu Cheng heard people talking in low voices, with mocking laughter.

"Always thinking about showing off..."

"Last time, in the cult case, he was in the limelight and showed great integrity..."

"Perhaps this time, he is the only one who will not be demoted, but promoted instead!"

"We're all about to die, and he still wants to step on our shoulders to help him take another step up… Hehe, Yu Cheng really knows how to play!"

Yu Cheng suddenly raised his head, his eyes bloodshot. He grabbed a councilor by the shoulder and roared, "What the hell are you talking about? Do you think I made the suggestion because I wanted a promotion?"

"What are you doing? Let go!"

"Councilor Yu, don't fight!"

More than a dozen people separated Yu Cheng and that person in a hurry, and the scene was chaotic.

"With you people in charge of South City, it's a more terrible disaster than a monster invasion!" Yu Cheng pointed his trembling finger at those well-dressed councilors and roared in despair.

"Damn, crazy!"

"Let's go, let's go!"

"Don't pay attention to him..."

A group of councilors showed contemptuous and disgusted expressions, strode out of the council hall, and disappeared into the darkness, never to return.

Yu Cheng showed an expression that was like crying and not crying, like laughing and not laughing, and muttered to himself, "I hope no monsters invade South City within three days, otherwise it will really be a living hell..."

The old speaker sat in the Audi car at the entrance of the council hall, looking at Yu Cheng expressionlessly, and said in a deep voice, "Drive."

The secretary in the passenger seat looked at the old speaker's attitude and didn't dare to ask any more questions. He simply deleted an email he had just received with the sender listed as "Good Citizen Li Mouran" and threw it into the recycle bin...