The expressions of everyone changed subtly, especially Li Tao's father, who looked at his son standing behind his brother, hesitating to speak.

A board member with a square face and a big nose coughed, his eyebrows furrowing into deep lines before he even spoke.

"I think starting the new city plan now is too risky. The armed train took out nineteen of our people, one-fifteenth of the company's elite armed forces, and now it eyes us vigilantly. What if it launches a surprise attack when we are clearing Changli County?"

"This is all we have. If we lose it, we will definitely be left behind by other companies within three to five years!"

As soon as he finished speaking, some immediately voiced their agreement.

Li Tao's father remained silent, but there was a hint of agreement in his eyes.

Seated at the head on the left side, Li Wangchuan interlocked his fingers in front of his nose, gazing coldly at the sixteen board members.

Besides Li Tao, he was the youngest present, at thirty-five, considered to have youth and vigor among a group with an average age of over fifty.

Four people spoke up, including a person named Zhang, making five total.

On his side, there were seven people, easily outnumbering the other side. At moments like this, the opinions of the remaining four were crucial.

Li Wangchuan turned his gaze to the woman on the right. She was not wearing a suit but had a very unisex attire, with no jewelry, well-maintained, looking in her fifties but could pass for a strong-willed woman in her thirties.

Sitting there like a rock that had weathered the years, silent yet commanding respect.

This was the third-party force on the board, Wang Yi, who took over her father's position a decade ago and has stayed ever since. Even in such turbulent end times, her position remained unshaken.

He had tested her when he first came to power a few years ago and got no useful information, only knowing that she was a tough nut to crack.

To carry out any plans in the Steel Council, convincing this woman was the most important thing.

As for Chairman Zhang…

Li Wangchuan glanced at the man with a frown shaped like the Chinese character for "river." At the start of the apocalypse, he lost twenty of his direct armed forces, effectively eliminating his chances. His presence on the board now was because the remaining four did not want to confront him directly, using his influence while they could.

A light knock on the table silenced the noise, as scrutinizing or unfriendly gazes turned to him.

"Li Tao, report the information you've obtained to the board members."

Li Tao adjusted his glasses and said loudly, "The overt strength of the armed train is an elite evolver squad with clear abilities pairing. Its leader is at Tier One, with a profession not within those we know of, tentatively classified as 'Controller' or 'Power Supplier', and they are holding back. There is another Tier One Evolver in the room, and the remaining nine are non-profession evolvers."

"Impossible, only two Tier One Evolvers could take out a B-Class Squad of mine!"

Chairman Zhang immediately questioned.

Li Tao was undisturbed by his interference, "I believe each board member has received the battle process report. Although many traces were erased, according to traces from various battlegrounds and retelling from returning soldiers, the company's 20-man armed squad had already had a skirmish with the zombie horde, consuming many powerful weapons."

"Then they split. One part was taken out by a hidden Tier One Evolver at the armed train's stop point, and the rest were ambushed at the armory, leading to heavy combat casualties, with us in a firepower disadvantage, causing further losses."

"Based on the combat process, the other side has the ability to take out a B-Class Squad. Of course, as the battlefield's highest commander, He Jie should bear the main responsibility."

Li Tao recounted the entire battle, albeit with some missing details, but overall not deviating much.

The only misunderstanding was considering He Jie, hiding in the carriage, as one of their own.

After all, no one would expect a non-profession evolver to annihilate a well-trained C-Class Squad.

Chairman Zhang's expression turned uglier, yet he continued to argue, "No need to elaborate on the process, but doesn't the outcome show that this force is hostile to us?"

"After these two days of identification by researchers, the Tier Two Evolution Beast bones traded are problem-free, and its evolutionary potential is extremely high, having significant research value. The Tier Two profession 'Furious Veteran' evolutionary route has been judged to have over ninety percent feasibility."

Li Tao looked up at Chairman Zhang, whose face was growing darker, "According to information analysis experts' assessments, the other side originates from a larger force. Had He Jie's forces not taken the initiative to attack that day, the other side wouldn't have clashed with us."

All the information laid out made it clear to everyone.

One side initiated the attack, sustaining heavy losses.

The other conducted transactions, gaining numerous resources.

It's obvious who brought more benefits to the company in this incident, Chairman Li or Chairman Zhang, unless one's brain is in a fog.

As for losing an armory,

Those were untapped resources, not yet accounted for, so the others weren't distressed.

Everyone's eyes instinctively wandered between Li Wangchuan and Chairman Wang.

Li Wangchuan was the first to speak, "Some may worry that if we fail this time, the company's strength will be greatly damaged, causing us to fall behind."

"But we're in an era of great competition, with numerous forces vying for supremacy. You either advance or fall back! Every day delayed widens the gap between us and other forces."

"Cyan Steel Industry is far behind other forces in terms of resources, manpower, and information."

"The new city plan is our most crucial step. Taking this step will lay the groundwork for our influence. Without this foundation, how can we make a name? Without this shield, how long do you expect us to survive in this apocalypse?"

His somewhat fierce voice echoed in the meeting room.

Everyone's expressions turned grim.

Li Tao looked at his uncle's back, a glimmer of astute brilliance flashing in his eyes.

The woman finally stopped staring at her smooth fingernails and instead looked up at the young man with the hawk-like gaze and wolf-like demeanor, with a hint of reminiscence in her eyes. "In a hundred boats racing, to not advance is to retreat. Since you have this awareness, go for it. The new city project will be led by your Li Family."

After speaking, the woman stood up and left without any explanation.

"Let the board express their stance on whether to approve the new city project."

"Agree."

"Agree..."

With the woman's stance, the momentum leaned towards Li Wangchuan, even those who had nominated Chairman Zhang stopped struggling.

The meeting concluded, and the room was left empty.

Li Wangchuan stood by the floor-to-ceiling window, looking out at the gray sky beyond the fourteenth floor, and the flames of ambition burned fiercely in his eyes.

"Xiaotao, bring me that set of genetic serum."

Li Tao looked up sharply, eyes filled with concern, "But we have no further direction for advancement."

"The direction is something you explore on your own."

"I suggest waiting a little longer; we have already discovered the Genetic Primordial, nurturing it for a few more years..."

"Xiaotao, every night now, I can't sleep, as if there's a fire burning in my chest."

"I can't remember the last time I was so excited I trembled, and I don't want to wait any longer."

"I want to open my arms and embrace this new world!"

...

"December 30th, 24°C, no rain"

"A new order has been established, but I always feel out of place with them, hmm... except for Yu Yue"

...

Gray-toned clouds rolled slowly over the intelligent logistics center, with rusted signs leaning on ten-meter-high steel frames, water-stained rust streaks spreading down the supports like varicose veins.

Intermittent metal clashing sounds came from the distance, the abandoned overpass swayed in the wind, mingled with the occasional caw of a raven.

The clanging sound of armed trains and metal collisions alternated, bringing a hint of vitality to this place.

The train conductor held a bowl of lamb vermicelli soup in his hands, leaning against the window of the driver's cabin, slurping the hot vermicelli while surveying this intelligent logistics center.

Although the primary aim was to lure in the Steel Council, coming to the logistics center wasn't without good reason.

The hardware on the armed train wasn't lacking, but some of the equipment inside was still in a state from forty years ago, communications relying entirely on voice, and transport depending on a small crane and manpower.

Though many are Evolvers now, they can't be doing such heavy labor all the time.

But the exoskeletons and robots that facilitate workers in moving heavy items, these highly intelligent pieces of equipment, mostly reside in top-tier laboratories or military, aerospace, and other bases.

On a large civil scale, they're quite rare.

He knew only the intelligent logistics centers had such things.

So the plan was to get dozens of them at once, to transport some large equipment later.

Like large-scale oxygen production equipment, bullet production lines, and such.

He didn't have them now, but the old employer surely must!

Moreover, the old employer comes from a heavy industry background, with a solid foundation.

Without suitable tools, wouldn't it be like coming back empty-handed from a mountain of treasures?

The logistics center naturally wasn't equipped with railway tracks inside, so the train could only stay on the platform a kilometer away.

The sound of the train inevitably attracted the surrounding wandering zombies, who, led by a Tier One Zombie, charged towards the armed train like small armies howling, at a few hundred meters away.

The machine gun on the train's head began its ruthless harvest, the thunderous sound echoed throughout the intelligent logistics center.

Large swaths of zombies were cut down like wheat.

Occasionally, those that escaped would also be caught by the firepower net inside the train.

The fastest Tier One Jumper had its head blown off by Yu Yue's gun.

She was extremely talented in sniping, and after gaining specialization, her skills surpassed Su Huan's, becoming the armed train's number one sniper.

Pieces of flesh flew outside, while the train conductor slurped his food.

When the gunfire ceased, Su Huan had just finished the last sip of lamb soup.

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