Chapter 594: Vanguard

Chapter 594: Vanguard

Zhu Zheng thought back to Baili Changqing’s assessment of Zhang Yi and couldn’t help letting out a sigh.

“That man prioritizes personal gain above all else. He’s really not suitable to be brought into Blizzard City.”

Standing beside him, Secretary Lan Xincheng leaned in with a smile and said, “After the zombie tide chaos, Tianhai City is pretty much a ruin.”

“Not only are living people scarce, but all the major powers have taken heavy losses. With their current strength, they simply can’t maintain regional stability.”

“And now that Zhang Yi’s also shown such a disappointing attitude, why not consider supporting some new forces?”

Zhu Zheng raised an eyebrow at that—it had clearly piqued his interest.

Tianhai City used to be a mega-metropolis with a population of twenty million.

It was a city rich in resources.

Now, its population was decimated, and aside from Zhang Yi’s team, the other major forces guarding it had no capacity to govern.

So why not bring in strength from other cities?

First, it would stabilize the Tianhai region. Second, it would keep Zhang Yi in check and prevent him from becoming the sole authority in Tianhai.

To put it plainly, Zhu Zheng just didn’t like Zhang Yi’s lone-wolf attitude.

He tapped his fingers on the table, then said slowly, “Let’s add that to the plan.”

“Coincidentally, we’ve got ten factions taking part in the Linhai City operation.”

“When the task is done, there won’t be enough territory in Linhai for all of them. We’ll just move a few over to Tianhai City. Problem solved.”

Just like that, with a casual exchange, they’d divided up Tianhai City like it was a piece of cake.

To Zhang Yi, though, this didn’t matter much. His team was small—they only needed the Lu River District and West Hill District.

Whatever Zhu Zheng stirred up wouldn’t affect him. It’d just hit the other three factions.

But if anyone tried to snatch food from

his

mouth? Heh.

Zhang Yi was willing to give face to the Jiangnan District—you could come.

But once you came… could you still leave?

At that moment, Zhu Zheng got a report from the front desk.

“Commander, Captain Deng Shentong of the Celestial Squad is requesting to see you.”

Zhu Zheng raised his hand and said, “Let him in.”

Lan Xincheng smiled. “He’s probably here to ask for a deployment.”

The Celestial Squad led by Deng Shentong had the biggest name in Blizzard City.

Deng Shentong was young, strong, and battle-hungry!

He was always the most eager to take on missions, hungry to make his mark and build a fearsome reputation.

He’d been dominating Blizzard City’s points-based Heaven List for nearly two months now.

Because of this, many in Blizzard City considered him the number one expert in the Jiangnan District.

With his outstanding background and handsome looks, he was hugely popular among the residents of Tianhai City.

Many even believed that if Zhu Zheng ever stepped back from command, Deng Shentong would be the one to take his place as district commander.

Zhu Zheng himself had great appreciation for this young prodigy.

Soon, Deng Shentong stepped through several doors and entered Zhu Zheng’s office.

As soon as he arrived, he asked, “Commander, why aren’t we being sent to carry out this mission?”

“Even though many superhuman teams are being deployed, it’s obvious this enemy isn’t some ordinary group. If they really try to escape, those outer-city forces won’t be able to catch them.”

He added with a hint of contempt, “They’re just not professionals. And with all the internal rivalries, there’s no way they’ll cooperate effectively.”

But Zhu Zheng chuckled when he heard that.

He leaned back on the sofa, relaxed, and casually asked, “Do you know much about Moon of Corrosion?”

Deng Shentong opened his mouth, but no words came out.

They’d never had any contact with that ronin group from the Neon Nation, and there was no intel to go on.

Zhu Zheng took a deep breath and said, “These days, the Neon Nation is split into two factions:

Izumo

in Kanto, and

Pelican

in Kansai.”

“And Moon of Corrosion is a ronin organization that rampages through Kanto. Even Izumo, which controls nearly all official power in Kanto, can’t deal with them.”

“That alone shows just how powerful these ronin are. They might even be on par with your investigation squads!”

Zhu Zheng fixed his gaze on Deng Shentong, his expression turning serious.

“Without solid intel, there’s no way I’ll send you in. After all, the six investigation squads are the pillars of Blizzard City.”

Deng Shentong frowned.

“The Neon Nation is just a tiny island country. What kind of strength could a bunch of rogue superhuman groups even have?”

Zhu Zheng shook his head and looked at Deng Shentong with a touch of exasperation.

“Don’t underestimate your opponents! To belittle them is to belittle yourself.”

“Even during the War to Defend the Nation, our casualty ratios against them were five-to-one, sometimes even nine-to-one!”

“Strategically, we can look down on them. But tactically—we

must

respect them. We cannot afford carelessness!”

Deng Shentong calmed down and silently reflected.

Sure, the Neon Nation wasn’t large in terms of territory—but it was still equivalent to a province, with over a hundred million citizens.

From a pool that big, it wasn’t surprising for many powerful superhumans to emerge.

Deng Shentong even joked to himself, the Neon people have always been kind of extreme—so after mutation, it makes sense if they turned out even more dangerous.

He now understood Zhu Zheng’s reasoning.

“So, what you mean is… sending the outer-city factions to Linhai City is really about using them to gather intel on Moon of Corrosion?”

Zhu Zheng nodded in approval.

“That’s right, that’s the idea.”

“Of course, if they

do

manage to take those superhumans down, even better.”

“But even if they fail, they’ll still reveal something about Moon of Corrosion. At that point, you’ll get credit for a third of the results. As for those who didn’t go? Let’s just say—tough luck.”

Now that Deng Shentong understood Zhu Zheng’s thinking, he felt at peace.

“Still, I doubt those forces have the strength to pull this off.”

For some reason, a figure suddenly flashed in Deng Shentong’s mind—Zhang Yi.

Among all the outer-city forces, very few caught his eye—but Zhang Yi was undoubtedly the most outstanding.

Because he had defeated Wu Di.

Deng Shentong couldn’t help but ask, “Is Zhang Yi from Tianhai City going?”

Hearing the question, Zhu Zheng, Lan Xincheng, and Sun Luxuan were all slightly surprised.

It was rare to hear this prideful Celestial Squad captain mention

anyone

by name.

Zhu Zheng looked a bit annoyed. “That guy? He didn’t even sign up for the mission. Such a schemer!”

Deng Shentong’s eyes glinted, but he smiled. “You could also say he’s smart. At least he sees this mission isn’t that simple.”

Zhu Zheng clearly didn’t like that take.

He crossed his arms and frowned. “If everyone acted like him—so self-centered—the Superhuman Federation would fall apart!”

Zhu Zheng was a military man. Military men lived by the code of unconditional obedience to orders and the chain of command.

But Deng Shentong wasn’t like that. Neither was Zhang Yi.

So rather than see Zhang Yi as rebellious, Deng Shentong admired his intelligence.

For Deng Shentong, what mattered most was talent. Everything else could be tolerated.

After all, a great leader knows how to identify the strengths of their people—and how to make the best use of them.

Author's Note