Whether it was Cheng Wu or Cheng Long, both brought a wave of severe weakening to the checkpoint.

Cheng Wu took away a group of elders, uprooting the foundation of the checkpoint.

Cheng Long, on the other hand, led a group of Eastern people to their deaths, weakening their influence within the checkpoint, leading to internal conflict.

"At this rate, am I next to deliver a heavy blow to the checkpoint?"

Cheng Ye stood by the roadside pondering, unable to help but smile a little.

But overall, after clarifying that Cheng Long's death had nothing to do with the checkpoint, he felt somewhat relieved.

At least he could confirm the enemy was not within the checkpoint.

Plus, with the Horned Starfish in hand, he was no longer under anyone's control as before.

However, the more it was like this, the less he wanted to leave Happiness City and wander into the Wilderness.

Now that he had the ability to stand his ground, it was the perfect time for focused development.

Not to mention, just that set of battle armor was worth a good 2800 contribution points, acquired for free in a single battle.

And he also gained an additional twenty thousand in fortune to develop his influence and confidants.

"I used to think that old man was an Idealist, but now it seems, perhaps he's... an Elder?"

Cheng Ye pondered secretly.

He hadn't told Luo Xiaoxue about the twenty thousand contribution points because he was previously unsure about the situation.

Now he finally had some clues.

"The community concept was proposed by the Idealist Faction, and now it seems, there's definitely an Elder behind the scenes pushing it. My joint community has just entered the Elder's sight. Does the Elder want to see what kind of sparks might fly from the union of an Inspector and the community?"

"But this way, in the eyes of other people at the checkpoint, won't I be seen as siding with the Idealist Faction, going against the Initial Heart Faction's ideals?"

At this thought, Cheng Ye felt a bit of a headache.

According to Luo Xiaoxue's introduction, the so-called "Initial Heart" was proposed by Cheng Wu.

That is to say, in this set of human rights equality, once entering the Buffer Zone, regardless of strength, everyone should have equal opportunities and the right to survive should be equally protected in the face of danger, without privilege due to noble identity.

For example, this time with the Stand-In Starfish, according to Cheng Wu's ideal, it should have been immediately notified to all residents, followed by a community-wide quarantine.

Then the Buffer Zone would coordinate manpower for inspections and medicine delivery, isolating the source of spread from the root.

Under his management, Inspectors virtually had no special rights, being no different from the management personnel of the Public Works Bureau, just another cog in the Buffer Zone machine.

But facts proved this ideal inevitably failed, not just because infection sources kept emerging, with increasingly bizarre transmission methods.

More so due to too severe a population loss in the Buffer Zone, no one was willing to be trapped like a tool with just a word from above, labeled with a death tag because of infection.

The Idealist Faction emerged in response, quickly gaining the Elder's support, forcing the Initial Heart Faction to leave.

Thereafter, the Idealist Faction relaxed human rights restrictions, and revised the Inspector system, elevating the status of Inspectors indefinitely.

They attempted to use the checkpoint to block infection sources, keeping them outside the defense line, rather than relying entirely on total quarantines each time a source infiltrated.

Unexpectedly, after a sudden expansion of power, everyone was busy vying for power and climbing up, completely forgetting the responsibility Inspectors originally bore, ultimately leading to heavy casualties in the Buffer Zone.

Later, remnants of the Initial Heart Faction regained power, retaining a portion of the Initial Heart ideals while enjoying the benefits of the Idealist Faction's reforms, namely the supreme status of Inspectors.

This caused conflict.

Making the current checkpoint fundamentally mired in internal conflict.

Some want to be good Inspectors, maintaining the Initial Heart, keeping infection sources outside the defense line.

Others are keen only on climbing higher, becoming Extraordinaries, reaching the top.

For both groups, although the Buffer Zone residents are not tools, they are merely numbers.

As Matthew Lee said, Inspectors are there to stop infected bodies from flooding into the Buffer Zone, not to open green lights for scavengers and caravans to promote economic development of the Buffer Zone.

"But if I succeed in this, wouldn't I become the first Inspector to drive internal development, a proponent of the new ideals?"

"Moreover, this feels a bit like placing myself at a high-level position, managing the Buffer Zone as a gathering place?"

Thinking of this, Cheng Ye couldn't help but smack his lips.

Perhaps influenced by modern concepts, he hadn't considered so much when he did these things.

Now, with the information filled in, looking back, he was indeed walking this path.

Fortunately, this path wouldn't conflict with the two ideologies of the checkpoint for the time being, and even if he offended someone, he now had trump cards to hedge against the risk.

"Thankfully, the faction struggles within the checkpoint aren't as precarious as before, I've mostly familiarized myself with the rules inside, and outside the rules... who dares think of killing me to solve problems, might want to take the opportunity to try out what Extraordinary Power feels like."

"But the entanglements among the three major factions in the Inner City, and the disputes between these factions and the checkpoint, I absolutely cannot get involved now!"

Those qualified to speak at this level are surely all Extraordinaries.

With the Horned Starfish's five minutes, he might barely protect himself, but to presume to stand on equal footing with these people is simply a pipe dream.

Wait until one day he has gathered all extraordinary abilities and is fully qualified to speak, then entering this circle would be appropriate.

As he was pondering, not far away, a bus came driving over.

With a glance, Cheng Ye couldn't help but laugh when he saw the person waving at him from the driver's seat.

Vehicles heading to the checkpoint came one after another, all loaded with residents migrating away.

But buses returning from the checkpoint, because of the checkpoint's closure, were all empty.

The vehicle came to a stop.

Cheng Ye got on the bus, sat in his usual window seat, and said, "Master Tian, I thought you had the day off today."

"There's no rest, this whole week is the peak period."

Encountering Cheng Ye, Master Tian, who had a somewhat distressed look, managed to squeeze out a smile, "It's really good to see you're okay!"

"I'm fine, during the infection tide, how is your family..."

"Everything's fine, really good."

Master Tian laughed and then sighed, "It's just that some old neighbors I've known for years are all slowly packing up to leave."

"Why are the elders all leaving, do they also want to seek opportunities outside?"

"Yes, the structure in the Buffer Zone has long been stagnant for years, with all paths upward blocked by the elders, and even they are clueless, living in a daze, which has made development worse and worse. Moreover, they have to endure the risks from the waves of infections affecting Happiness City."

"Out there, as long as they have the courage, there are many who can make a name for themselves in a year or two, but in our Buffer Zone, it's just continuous toil, barely making a living."

"If you talk about safety, honestly, it's not, it's just really tiring."

Finishing, Master Tian quickly added, "But mainly it's because contribution points have become increasingly difficult to accumulate over the years. From an initial hundred points to enter the Inner City to now needing a thousand points, the difficulty has increased, so taking this opportunity, struck by poverty, the elders naturally think of leaving, trying their luck at other Shelter Cities!"

...

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