The pale sky was mixed with deep mist, a dew hung on the glass reflecting the empty street, and the room not far away was still lit with orange-yellow light.
In the early hours of the morning.
Su Changxing returned to the vicinity of the base, and the environment here had also changed, with guards at the door and four machine guns openly set up on the roof of the entrance and exit.
"Hello, the area ahead has been designated as a military zone, so please show the relevant documents," shouted a young soldier in black tactical clothing when he saw Su Changxing approaching.
Su Changxing looked around and found seven or eight people nearby, both openly and covertly, then asked, "Are you also with Team Seventeen?"
The young soldier paused at his words and did not respond. Instead, he continued, "Please show the documents."
Su Changxing took out his documents from his chest and handed them to him.
The young soldier took the documents, his expression changed slightly, and he nodded slightly with a respectful look, saying, "My apologies, group leader, please proceed."
He was completely surprised that this man, who looked so exceptionally young, was their newly appointed group leader.
Su Changxing didnāt engage much, nodded, and walked inside. Patrol squads moved around the path, and gunshots occasionally came from nearby.
Upon reaching Zhou Anās residence, he saw Yu Jieyi and Xu Wenfeng sitting in the yard having breakfast.
"Bring me some too, Iām hungry,"
Su Changxing said, walking inside.
Yu Jieyiās eyes brightened as she saw Su Changxing enter, stood up excitedly, and said:
"Leader, youāre finally back; weāve been waiting for you."
Nonetheless, her face was still a bit cold, likely a habitual expression.
Xu Wenfeng pointed at himself and said with a smile, "I also came as soon as I heard about you, Brother Su... We all believe that with your leadership, weāll safely endure the apocalypse."
Su Changxing sat down, feeling a little annoyed, "Youāre all counting on me, huh? Being strong yourself is what really matters. I donāt see any progress since we last met."
Xu Wenfeng said innocently, "Honestly, Iāve really gotten a lot stronger."
Su Changxing took a big bite of the pancake on the table, looked at Yu Jieyi, and asked, "Besides you two, who else has come?"
Yu Jieyi sat down again and said, "There are quite a few people. Originally, there were forty or fifty people from the gathering place, including eight of us as Extraordinary."
"This many?"
Su Changxing was a bit surprised as he didnāt expect so many people to gather in such a short time.
Yu Jieyi explained, "Itās also because weāre all in one city, so gathering wasnāt too tricky. However, Ye Yongqiang went missing, likely died during the time when the Giant Anchor fell."
"Dead?"
Su Changxing frowned slightly, putting down the pancake he hadnāt finished, thinking that Ye Yongqiang was quite a brave person among them.
He had a natural fierceness and bloodiness.
Yu Jieyi nodded and said, "Of course, itās also possible he was taken by people from the Black Fog World, but thatās uncertain. From the result, itās about the same."
The vegetation in the yard hadnāt withered due to the arrival of the black fog; instead, it was greener, lusher than before.
Su Changxing leaned on the chair, tapping the table with one hand, contemplating for a while before saying:
"Xu Wenfeng, go and gather the other Extraordinary; weāre going to have a meeting."
Xu Wenfeng nodded and said, "Alright, theyāre all just around now."
Ā·Ā·Ā·Ā·Ā·Ā·
Nine people sat at the long table, the room bright with white light, and there were many eye exchanges among some of them, but it was very quiet.
Su Changxing had a stack of documents in front of him, and he was smiling as he looked at them, saying:
"We are all members of Team Seventeen now, and Iām the group leader, but the structure of combat members in the organization isnāt yet perfect, and you need to take on important roles."
"Of course, for now, these positions are temporary and will be adjusted based on actual situations later."
"One thing I need to say upfront: personal strength is whatās most important. Your primary goal from now on is to enhance your strength, earn points, and then exchange them at the Doomsday Shop for items that can fortify yourselves."
"Yu Jieyi, you will take over as the second team captain, with Xu Wenfeng as your vice-captain."
Xu Wenfeng smiled knowingly at Yu Jieyi.
Yu Jieyi just nodded coldly at Su Changxing.
Observing their expressions, Su Changxing continued, "Zhu Wenwu, you and Zhu Xin Xue will temporarily act as Zhou Anās deputies."
Zhou An had sufficient combat power, but he was a bit lacking in leading a team, and with Zhu Wenwu added, it would suffice.
"Okay,"
Zhu Wenwu nodded without much reaction, feeling that the decision was fine, as he was more familiar with Zhou An here.
Su Changxing nodded and continued:
"Shang Benqing, youāll be the third-team captain with Chang Yi as vice-captain."
The old man paused, smiled, and said, "Ha, can I do it? Iāve got these old bones."
Su Changxing affirmed plainly, "You can."
If Ye Yongqiang were still here, he would have paired Chang Yi with Ye Yongqiang, but plans canāt keep up with changes.
"Qian Runwei hasnāt arrived yet; heāll be the fourth-team captain, with Yan Xu and Luo Bing as vice-captains."
Yan Xu nodded continuously with a smile on his face and said, "Ha, no problem, group leader."
Su Changxing handed them a stack of documents and black coins, saying:
"These represent the general management scope for each team. This coin is a Mysterious Item, and it functions similarly to a phone but isnāt affected by signal interference, and it works throughout this city."
"Any questions can be raised now, or you can ask me privately later."
Ā·Ā·Ā·Ā·Ā·Ā·
"Weāre short on personnel, and we canāt cover places outside the city at all; if this continues, the monsters in the wilderness will probably start to overrun."
Su Changxing said, sitting on the sofa, sipping juice.
Lin Xiuyu smiled bitterly and said, "Thereās nothing we can do about it; soon enough, people will scramble to seek refuge in the city."
This newly appointed group leader seems to have more considerations than him, thinking about all aspects.
Su Changxing looked at him and said, "You seem to have no signs of becoming an Extraordinary. Doesnāt that worry you?"
Lin Xiuyuās expression was carefree, shrugging as he said, "Worry about what? I survived that kind of situation; every extra second I live now is a gain."
Su Changxing laughed lightly, "You sure are carefree. Howās the situation with your boss on their side?"
Lin Xiuyu thought for a moment and shook his head, "Some areas are completely covered by black fog and lost contact. Heās currently missing... But weāve lined up top scientists in various fields to tackle the problem, trying to find alternative communication methods."