Chapter 194 – The General
Tu Ran noticed but didn’t dwell on it.
Another helicopter flew overhead, preparing to land.
The rotor blades spun rapidly, whipping up strong winds across the ground, prompting the crowd to halt their conversations and turn their backs to the helicopter.
Two minutes later, the helicopter landed smoothly.
The wind died down.
The crowd turned to look.
It was an A-577 military helicopter, with a speed of nearly 500 kilometers per hour. Its combat effectiveness and survivability were several times higher than those of ordinary military helicopters, making it incredibly expensive—only high-ranking officials of the Federal Government could use it.
Why would such high-ranking officials be here? The crowd was puzzled.
Two people jumped out of the helicopter.
Both were dressed in full combat gear, entirely different in appearance from the uniforms of the Executive Department guards or the pioneer team’s combat suits.
Their armor was a pure white, perfectly tailored to the body’s joints, allowing for smooth and natural movement. Their helmets were also pure white, providing full protection for the head, with only the visor being black, making it impossible to see their eyes from the outside.
But those inside could undoubtedly see out clearly.
Both carried laser guns in their hands, though these were different from the ones commonly used by the pioneer teams. The design was more minimalist, with sleek lines that gave the weapons a strangely beautiful aesthetic.
This full set of equipment had never been shown in the media.
Everyone stared at them, not blinking.
The electronic nameplates on their chests displayed a few words.
“Federal Central Executive Department Chief: General Xie Hong.”
“Federal Executive Department Eden District Branch Head: Major Xie Wei.”
Executive Department? Chief?
Xie Hong? General?
A murmur of excitement spread through the crowd.
“OMG, how powerful must the genetic monsters in the Sankar Arsenal be to warrant the Federal Central Executive Department Chief coming personally!”
“We rarely even see someone of General rank!”
“Oh my God… I would die without regrets now…”
“…”
Tu Ran watched the so-called Central Executive Department Chief, her finger twitching slightly on the machine gun’s trigger.
He had a hologram above his head.
It was very striking.
[Ice Freeze]
Description: The user can freeze anything they wish based on their subjective intent without physical contact, making it a remote attack. Where it reaches, the world is frozen, and snow falls for miles.
Level: Primary
Note: High energy consumption, use with caution.
After reading the description of this hologram, another layer automatically covered it.
Xie Hong had more than just the [Ice Freeze] ability.
[Deafness]
Description: Losing your hearing allows you to better appreciate the scenery before you. It gives you the chance to experience a silent world.
Level: Primary
Note: Once activated, it lasts for at least two hours with no upper limit; consider carefully.
This ability was somewhat similar to her [Insensitive to Oil and Salt], both being primary-level. However, her [Insensitive to Oil and Salt] could be controlled at will, while [Deafness] had to last for a fixed two-hour period.
Xie Hong, with the surname Xie and holding the rank of General, was likely from the Xie family.
He had two abilities, indicating that the Xie family was also collecting inner cores. Whether their methods of collecting inner cores were similar to those of the Wells family remained unknown.
Tu Ran believed there were likely similarities, as obtaining them directly from pioneers was convenient; in the Federation, a sudden disappearance of a person wouldn’t attract much attention.
But unlike the Wells family, the large-scale genetic monster trapping traps in Reigaken State were under the management of the Federal Government.
Whenever it was managed by the Federal Government, the Xie family would inevitably get the lion’s share of the inner cores.
Xie Hong’s personal visit confirmed Tu Ran’s earlier suspicion: the Sankar Arsenal was indeed the Xie family’s property.
Moreover, this property was very important.
Xie Xu walked through the crowd and approached Xie Hong. They talked for five minutes, ending with Xie Hong nodding.
Then Xie Xu operated his communicator, and the sound of “ding ding ding” rang on everyone’s wrist devices.
Xie Xu had sent over the internal blueprints of the Sankar Arsenal.
The blueprints were highly confidential and would never be released unless the situation was urgent.
Xie Xu and Xie Hong’s discussion was likely about whether to release the blueprints.
Once everyone had received the blueprints, Xie Xu quickly briefed them on the current situation inside the Sankar Arsenal.
“The genetic monsters inside the factory have a characteristic of rapid reproduction, almost infinitely multiplying, and their escape movements are extremely fast, making them hard to capture.”
“Objects they come into contact with will grow a type of moss-like, highly corrosive plant that can quickly erode any metal surface. If your weapons get contaminated by this plant, they will rapidly become ineffective.”
“They can also emit a type of highly penetrating infrasonic attack that affects the human brain, slowing reactions and causing hallucinations in severe cases. Our combat helmets can only slightly reduce the impact of these sound waves and cannot completely block them.”
As they listened to Xie Xu’s introduction, people’s hearts sank.
They understood why the Central Executive Department Chief had come in person.
The genetic monsters they were dealing with were like a fully buffed, god-like existence.
Infinite reproduction meant they couldn’t be killed completely; swift escape meant they couldn’t be caught; corrosion of weapons meant they couldn’t be defeated; infrasonic attacks meant they couldn’t be neutralized.
Seeing the morale drop, Xie Hong spoke to rally the spirits.
From behind his white helmet, his determined voice rang out.
“They are not invincible. Their biting force is very low; their teeth cannot even penetrate our combat suits.”
This was a rare piece of good news.
People’s confidence picked up slightly.
But Tu Ran thought of something: wasn’t it said that objects they came into contact with would grow highly corrosive plants, capable of eroding metal objects?
If they had such high corrosion ability, why would they need biting force? They could grow directly on your flesh and completely erode even bones.
Xie Hong surely knew this, but he didn’t mention it, fearing that if he did, no one would be willing to go.
“The only goal in gathering everyone to the Sankar Arsenal is to kill! Kill as many as you can!” Xie Hong’s voice was passionate.
But the crowd gave him little reaction.
So, he added, “Afterward, we will allocate rewards based on the number of genetic monsters each person kills.”
Hearing about the rewards, the crowd’s morale surged two levels.
Indeed, money made a difference.
“Warriors, today’s mission is tough. Prepare your gear, check your equipment, and I will fight alongside you!”
“Okay!” With high morale, people began to check their gear and ensure their weapons were loaded…
