bigabreads Chapter 564 The Most Treasured Thing
Chapter 564 The Most Treasured Thing
The command center remained quiet for a long time.
Yue Lengshu's gaze slowly lowered, landing on his clasped hands.
Those hands were dry and thin, with slightly protruding knuckles, and the skin was covered with fine age spots.
He had used these hands to sign countless documents—transfer orders, commands, obituaries, and sealing orders.
Each one weighed heavily on his heart, like a stack of tombstones.
What he endured was far beyond what others could compare to.
"Xu Si, Xiao Zheng."
"Do you know what my strongest feeling has been since the end of the world?"
How could Zheng Fangzhou's words not resonate with him? But even if they did, what difference would it make?
Xu Si hesitated for a moment, and did not answer.
Zheng Fangzhou also did not answer.
"It's a matter of powerlessness!"
As the top decision-maker, his statement was not an attempt to expose his shortcomings, but rather a clarification of the heavy responsibilities he bears.
"But..." Zheng Fangzhou wanted to say that the situation had changed, but Yue Lengshu reached out and pressed him down.
He had never said these words to anyone before.
Several of the old brothers lowered their heads at the same time, even Wu Pian, who was the most eager to fight, did so.
They were powerless, just as powerless.
Xu Si understood.
His strength belongs to him, not them.
Even if he is strong, he is still uncontrollable.
An uncontrollable force cannot guarantee their safety, nor can it guarantee the safety of all bases.
"I understand," Xu Si said.
Yue Lengshu looked up at him, and a faint, almost imperceptible surprise appeared in his eyes, which had been worn almost gray by the years and heavy pressure.
He wasn't sure if Xu Si truly understood.
"You understand?" he repeated, his tone devoid of sarcasm, but rather possessing an almost imperceptible depth.
Zhou Qi, Wu Pian, and Fan Changjie watched the two silently, unaware of the riddle they were playing.
Only Zhou Jieyi seemed lost in thought.
"You're afraid of me," Xu Si said bluntly.
"Or rather, what you fear is my unrestrained power. I can open the floodgates for you today, and close them again tomorrow."
Every transfer order and every sealing instruction you signed was based on one premise—the end times are the norm, and order can only be maintained by systems.
The foundation of any system is the checks and balances between people.
He paused, his gaze sweeping over everyone present.
"But I stand here, and all your systems are worthless before Sequence Nine. That's why you dare not gamble."
Xu Si showed no mercy and directly laid out the current situation.
"I will not give you any guarantees, nor will I be subject to any checks and balances. You are free to do whatever you want, but you only have this one chance. If you don't cause trouble, we can coexist peacefully. If you do cause trouble, don't blame me for being ruthless!"
This is the purpose of Xu Si's trip.
The situation in the City of Fire is currently good, but he is worried that once the official base is opened up, this foundation may collapse.
Therefore, Xu Si did not necessarily want them to open the underground survival base as they imagined.
It is conceivable that once the underground survival base is fully activated, even just one of them would have an impact on the City of Fire.
The most important factor is the population; the City of Fire currently has over two hundred people.
The population of even the smallest official survival base is several times that of the City of Fire.
If the two sides increase communication, even with Xu Si's pressure, the City of Fire will be in a weaker position in the communication.
This is determined by the combat effectiveness at the grassroots level.
As for whether there might be a situation where someone takes over another's place, Xu Si thinks it's possible.
After all, City of Fire is not professional in any aspect, lacking sufficient and perfect contingency plans, long-term and feasible systems, and a promising future.
If the official survival base truly moves from underground to the surface, and even into the City of Fire, then it's only a matter of time before the core of the City of Fire undergoes a transformation.
This is something that Xu Si cannot decide or influence.
Therefore, the ideal situation is for the two parties to keep to themselves and not interfere with each other.
Xu Si's trip had two purposes: first, to ascertain Zheng Fangzhou's situation; and second, to pose a threat, as he did not want a rift to appear between the government and the City of Fire too early.
So they actually felt that Xu Si wanted to force them to move from underground to the surface.
But that's not actually the case. Xu Si didn't care whether they went to the ground or not; what he cared about was whether they would cause trouble for the City of Fire.
Yue Lengshu and the others looked even more grim than before; Xu Si's words of piercing insight had hit the nail on the head.
But now Xu Si completely disregarded them.
What they thought was their greatest advantage was something Xu Si didn't care about at all.
"If your purpose in coming here is merely to humiliate us, there's no need to go to such lengths!" This was Qi Wuyan's first time speaking, and his attitude was, of course, very clear.
"I have no intention of humiliating you all. I am simply stating the facts. You are free to continue as you see fit, or you are free to open up the underground base and the City of Fire to increase communication!"
However, I don't want you to have any other ideas about the City of Fire; that's my bottom line!
"If you cross this line, don't say I didn't warn you. I won't show you any leniency because of any rhetoric about being fellow humans!"
The City of Fire now holds what Xu Si cherishes most.
He will not tolerate destruction, much less desecration.
Zheng Fangzhou glanced at Xu Si with surprise, and suddenly felt a little confused.
Zheng Fangzhou didn't know what to say, and Yue Lengshu, Zhou Jieyi, and Wu Pian were also at a loss for words.
Now, they seem to have become the abandoned ones.
A long silence fell over the command center.
The chandelier overhead cast a cold, white light, making everyone's faces appear sharply defined, and the shadows cast into their eyes looked like an insurmountable chasm.
The atmosphere couldn't be allowed to cool down, so Yue Lengshu stood up, his gaze level with Xu Si's.
Xu Si's warning had been delivered, and he could have left now, but he didn't.
"Why don't you take my seat?" This wasn't Yue Lengshu's sarcasm, but his true feelings.
He had actually been looking forward to this day for a long time; the responsibilities on his shoulders had almost crushed him.
If he could, he would even prefer to sacrifice himself at the moment the end of the world arrives.
Instead of having to endure such torment.
After those words were spoken, the atmosphere in the command hall seemed to have lost a crucial pillar, and the entire space seemed to sink.
Wu Pian and Zhou Jieyi both stood up, their eyes fixed on Yue Lengshu in disbelief.
They knew all too well that Yue Lengshu wasn't just saying things out of anger; perhaps he had already had this idea in mind.
Is it appropriate to simply shift the blame onto a young person?
Wu Pian was first shocked, then shook his head slightly.
Based on what Xu Si just said, he definitely won't accept it. It's not a matter of whether he's willing or not.
Rather, it's because he simply can't afford to waste his energy on such trivial matters.