Chapter 90: Chapter 90: Headquarters Document, a Meeting, and the Dagger is Revealed

Setting his mind at ease for the moment, Lin Qi prepared to return to the conference room to continue his Meditation.

The benefits from the Spiritual Particles’ unique state far exceeded Lin Qi’s previous estimates. Perhaps his Spiritual Power could reach the Tier One Limit before he returned to the Cyber World.

Once that happened, Lin Qi would only need to analyze a single Tier Two Extraordinary Item to advance to Tier Two.

Did Lin Qi have any Tier Two Extraordinary Items?

As a matter of fact, he did!

When he had piloted the M-Class Mecha to search for the official rescue team, Lin Qi had retrieved a basketball-sized, high-temperature Crystal Stone from the head of a giant Zombie.

That very Crystal Stone was a Tier Two Extraordinary Item.

Just as he stepped out of the room, Lin Qi saw Wang Ziru coming toward him.

"Boss, Jiang Zhenlong is here. He brought a leader with him. Do you want to meet them?" Wang Ziru’s voice was low, almost a whisper.

Lin Qi nodded. Of course, he would.

"They’re in the conference room on the first floor."

Wang Ziru gave Lin Qi a brief rundown as he led the way.

"According to Jiang Zhenlong, this leader was originally his company commander. After the apocalypse broke out and their units were restructured, he became the Deputy Chief Commander of the Hongshan Rescue Team."

Lin Qi nodded. ’I hope this leader can see the reality of this apocalypse and doesn’t harbor too many unrealistic fantasies.’

Lin Qi was willing to cooperate, but he wouldn’t be exploited.

When they reached the first floor, they found it had been transformed into the camp’s main guard post. An Exoskeleton squad was stationed there twenty-four hours a day.

They were well-equipped. In a conspicuous spot, there was even a six-barreled electromagnetic gatling cannon, the same model found on an M-Class Mecha.

As soon as Lin Qi stepped into the conference room, a middle-aged man in camouflage fatigues enthusiastically stood up and extended his hand.

"Hello, Classmate Lin. I’m Ding Yang, the Deputy Chief Commander of the Hongshan Rescue Team."

Seeing how enthusiastic the leader was, Lin Qi figured the meeting would go smoothly.

Lin Qi extended his hand as well, and the two shook.

"Director Ding, let’s sit and talk."

Lin Qi walked over to the conference table, but instead of taking the head seat, he simply pulled out a chair near the middle and sat down.

Ding Yang was a bit surprised. ’This young man seems to have a lot of social experience.’

Not one to put on airs, Ding Yang sat in the chair next to Lin Qi.

They sat close, angled toward each other as they spoke, looking as if they were old acquaintances.

Behind them, Jiang Zhenlong and Wang Ziru stood ramrod straight. While the leaders were talking, their only job was to make themselves as unnoticeable as possible.

Lin Qi looked at Ding Yang, waiting for him to speak.

Ding Yang didn’t beat around the bush and got straight to the point: "Classmate Lin, what are your thoughts on this so-called apocalypse?"

’He’s starting off with a pretty lofty topic.’

Lin Qi could guess what Ding Yang was up to. He wanted to understand the values of the Mo University Camp’s leader in order to decide on the best approach.

Lin Qi answered, "The apocalypse is a tragedy, but we live in the present. We have to keep looking forward."

Upon hearing this, Ding Yang seemed taken aback for a moment before giving a wry smile. "Young people are so optimistic. Not like us old-timers. Any one of us would just curse this damn shit apocalypse."

Lin Qi followed his lead. "We can’t change the fact that the apocalypse has happened, nor can we bring back those who have died. So, I used the wisdom from my awakening and the knowledge I’ve acquired to build this camp."

"I hope more people can survive, allowing the camp to grow stronger, until we have enough power to rebuild civilization."

Lin Qi knew exactly what Ding Yang wanted to hear and tailored his words accordingly.

Ding Yang turned his head, looking Lin Qi squarely in the eyes. "Classmate Lin, are you being sincere?"

Lin Qi gave a slight nod. ’Everything I said was true, except for the last two words.’

’My goal isn’t to rebuild civilization, but to acquire enough power.’

’Not just enough to survive in the Doomsday World, but enough to control my own destiny in the Cyber World.’

Ding Yang seemed to be mulling over Lin Qi’s words, not speaking right away.

After a long moment, Ding Yang’s expression turned serious. "I’d say about ninety percent of what you just said, Classmate Lin, came from the heart. There was that last ten percent... of falsehood, but in this apocalypse, our rescue team judges actions, not intentions. I believe you’re a good person, Classmate Lin."

Lin Qi was taken aback. ’What does he mean by that?’

’Did he see through my lie?’

He activated his Spiritual Vision to observe Ding Yang closely.

But he didn’t detect anything out of the ordinary.

"Director Ding, are you an Extraordinary?" Lin Qi sensed no malice, so he asked bluntly.

Ding Yang shook his head. "Just a middle-aged man’s intuition."

Turning, Ding Yang pointed to the tactical backpack Jiang Zhenlong was carrying. "Take out the gift," he said. "It’s a token of gratitude for Classmate Lin from the Hongshan station."

’A gift?’

Using his Spiritual Vision, Lin Qi saw what the gift really was before Jiang Zhenlong even took it out.

It was a manila folder containing a document with a red letterhead.

It read:

[By decision of the Hongshan Command Center, Modu University is hereby authorized to independently establish a Survivor Camp. Furthermore, Modu University is granted wartime authorization to autonomously construct production lines for weapons and equipment.]

[Authorizing Body: Hongshan Command Center]

[Authorized by: Ding Yang]

It was a document granting official authorization.

The document was handwritten, and a thumbprint was pressed over the authorizer’s name at the end.

On the surface, it didn’t seem particularly useful.

In reality, however, the Dragon Country’s government still existed in the Doomsday World and was suspected of possessing vast amounts of intelligence.

The document’s symbolic value was immense. It meant the Mo University Camp was now officially affiliated with and recognized by the government.

Possessing this document would eliminate many internal troubles and silence a lot of dissenting voices within the Mo University Camp.

By the time Lin Qi had finished reading the document, Jiang Zhenlong was only just beginning to slowly read its contents aloud.

Lin Qi wasn’t particularly moved, but Wang Ziru, standing beside him, was clearly emotional, his heart rate accelerating significantly.

’The Mo University Camp is officially recognized... doesn’t that mean that as part of the management, I basically have a tenured government position now?’

’I’ve made it?’

All sorts of thoughts raced through Wang Ziru’s mind. Finally, his gaze landed on Lin Qi, his expression growing more determined than ever.

’You can’t go wrong following the Boss.’

"Thank you for the recognition, Director."

Although Lin Qi wasn’t particularly impressed, he still made the appropriate gestures.

Ding Yang sighed. "I wish there were more places like the Mo University Camp. It would certainly take some of the pressure off us."

"Modu is too large, its population too dense. The Hongshan District alone had over a million people. By our estimates, there were at least fifty thousand survivors after the initial Zombie outbreak. Even after the Red Moon event, there are still more than ten thousand."

"The two hundred members of our Hongshan Rescue Team alone are nowhere near enough to conduct a grid search."

After his lament, Ding Yang fell silent for a long moment before finally revealing his true intentions.

"Especially our equipment. Our firearms are too loud, so we can’t clear out Zombies effectively without attracting a horde. Our Warriors’ cloth uniforms offer little protection against a direct Zombie attack, to say nothing of the evolved ones."

"Now that your Mo University Camp is established, let’s not talk about hierarchy. With this document, we’re at least partner units. So, how about you support us with some... Electromagnetic Firearms, Exoskeleton Armor, six-barreled electromagnetic gatling cannons, medium and large-scale Mecha, Chainsaw Swords..."

Ding Yang rattled them off like he was ordering from a menu, listing every piece of advanced weaponry he’d seen since entering the Mo University Camp.

Lin Qi’s mouth fell open. ’This conversation took a very different turn than I expected.’