CHAPTER 398: CHAPTER 188: SECOND BASE (PART 2)

"The idea is good, but unnecessary."

Chen Jian waved his hand and then said:

"The speed of the Beast Tide’s development has far exceeded our expectations; asking you to fight guerrilla style as before is no longer appropriate."

"From now on, stay at the base for training."

"The warriors of the Holy Temple Guard are more familiar with machinery and artillery, and your mindset is also in line—albeit in a different form."

"You’re aware of the defensive line outside the base, right? I need your team to cooperate with the Huaxia Army to operate those dozens of cannons."

"Understood."

Jin Zhong nodded heavily.

"This is exactly what we excel at, we will do it well."

"But...what about the other monsters in the vicinity?"

"Many cities are facing the threat of the Beast Tide, and we can’t just watch and do nothing."

"Don’t worry, we’ll find a way."

Chen Jian exhaled lightly and then said:

"The second aircraft is already completed; this aircraft is much more powerful than our prototype."

"It will assume the support tasks for all the surrounding towns—or rather, bombing tasks."

"We can’t ensure that everyone will survive the Beast Tide, but I believe more will survive than perish..."

....

Meanwhile, on the other side.

Inside Jinling City.

He Shuo sat opposite Zhang Tao, whose face showed some guilt and heartbreak as he said:

"The tragedy at Liangxi City is something none of us wanted to see."

"In fact, upon receiving the news, I immediately dispatched the Supreme Army corps to support Liangxi."

"But it’s undeniable that our actions were too slow."

"So much so that the tragedy had occurred before we arrived."

"I must take responsibility for this, and I am willing to make amends for it...."

"Talking to me about compensation is meaningless."

He Shuo interrupted Zhang Tao and then said:

"If you’re talking about compensation, you should say it to those innocent souls who died at the hands of monsters."

"They had the chance to escape—the monster, though terrifying, wasn’t top-tier in hunting or chasing abilities."

"It was the cowardice of the Church Protection Army that led to their demise."

"This can’t even be called a natural disaster; it was a man-made disaster that should never have happened."

"I know."

Zhang Tao nodded slowly and then said:

"This is my issue."

"I’ve reflected on it, and if it weren’t for my urgent reorganization of the Holy Temple Guard and reforms within the Mechanical God Sect, this might not have happened."

"Excessively centralized power led to an inevitable vacuum period."

"This serves as a lesson for us; I’ve overestimated the faith of the followers...."

When he finished speaking, He Shuo was momentarily at a loss for words.

In fact, what Zhang Tao said should have been his lines.

According to the original plan, during this meeting, even if Zhang Tao didn’t try to argue, he should have at least evaded the core issue.

But unexpectedly, Zhang Tao delivered a straight blow.

A very precise and ruthless blow.

This left He Shuo a bit bewildered.

After a moment’s silence, he asked:

"So you do understand the problem."

"But identifying the issue is just the first step. What now? What do you plan to do?"

"A power vacuum won’t disappear on its own; if the Mechanical God Sect continues to neglect management of other peripheral cities, such tragedies will only increase."

"The Beast Tide is at our doorstep, aren’t you going to respond?"

"Of course not."

Zhang Tao quickly denied.

He took a file from the bishop beside him and pushed it in front of He Shuo.

"This is our adjustment plan for the future."

"There’s no time to stabilize the situation and enhance the Mechanical God Sect’s organizational capacity using milder methods."

"I plan to announce a state of emergency in all cities within the sect’s control, drawing on the power of the City Defense Department."

"The Church Protection Army will obtain full authority and assume full responsibility."

"Only this way can we respond swiftly to potential emergencies."

After Zhang Tao finished speaking, He Shuo furrowed his brow.

"Are you saying you want to completely dissolve the management authority of the Holy Blood Temple and the local City Defense Army?"

"I have no choice."

Zhang Tao said in a low tone after a pause:

"Please trust me, this is not a power grab."

"In fact, the Holy Blood Temple has already distanced itself from the power core of each city."

"Taking over their authority now is essentially assuming the responsibilities they’ve abandoned."

"Eliminating the interference of all external responsibilities will allow me to truly unite the Church Protection Army and the bishops."

"Only then can the reward and punishment measures I’ve set be implemented smoothly and accurately."

"Very convincing."

He Shuo nodded slowly.

"I agree with your plan."

"That’s good!"

Zhang Tao exhaled deeply and then said:

"In fact, I was worried we might have some unnecessary misunderstandings in this matter."

"After all, to be honest, there are indeed temporarily irreconcilable positional conflicts between us."

"We believe in the Holy Trinity, and we manage the world through religious governance, but you don’t believe in God."

"Such conflicts lead to natural differences in how we view some issues."

"But fortunately... we still have a common goal."

"And that is, to let humanity endure."

"Based on this common goal, all differences can be put aside, right?"

"Right."

He Shuo stood up and said:

"In that case, today’s discussion can also conclude."

"Proceed with your plan."

"However you need to do it, but remember, we don’t want to witness another tragedy like in Liangxi City."

"Understood."

Zhang Tao also stood up, and before He Shuo turned away, he said somewhat urgently:

"There’s one more thing."

"Jinling New City is likely to become the core of the Beast Tide’s attack; the defense pressure there will be immense."

"I’m wondering if you need assistance?"

"Besides Jin Zhong’s team, we can send another team to Jinling New City to slightly alleviate the Huaxia Army’s defense pressure."

"It might be just a drop in the bucket, but we can... offer some help."

"Then come."

He Shuo replied briefly and then turned to leave.

Behind him, Zhang Tao bowed respectfully as He Shuo and Zeng Yi walked out without looking back.

It wasn’t until they were outside the Holy Hall’s vicinity that he spoke softly:

"We might have to leave Jinling City."

"This Zhang Tao... I don’t know what exactly he’s planning, but I can sense that his thoughts are already biased against us."

"Commander, do you think he’s planning to send an undercover agent to Base 011?"

Zeng Yi asked with a frown.

"Not necessarily."

He Shuo slowly shook his head.

"He probably won’t use such a crude method, maybe the support he sends is genuinely just support."

"However, he indeed makes me feel threatened."

"But this doesn’t benefit them."

Zeng Yi asked puzzled:

"They need us to fight the Beast Tide; if we’re gone, who can block the Beast Tide attacks for them?"

"Fu Xi."

He Shuo replied.

"The key is Fu Xi."

"For the Mechanical God Sect, the Mechanical Soul is something they consistently pursue."

"And the Mechanical Soul is tied to electricity; Zhang Tao happens to be a ’Saint’ who values electricity."

"It’s very likely that they already have intelligence on Fu Xi, perhaps they also found pertinent knowledge from their long records."

"If he thinks, our strength is only because of Fu Xi?"

"Then he has every reason to covet the Mechanical Soul we control."

Saying this, He Shuo exhaled deeply.

"In any case, we must issue a warning to the base."

"After obtaining their consent, we should evacuate as soon as possible."

"Back to 011?"

Zeng Yi asked.

He Shuo shook his head.

"No."

"We must ensure our forces are dispersed to avoid the risk of being completely wiped out."

"We’re not returning to 011, we need to establish a second base."

"To Han Shui!"