The General

Tu Ran took note of all this but didn't let it bother her.

Another helicopter flew overhead, preparing to land. The rotors kicked up a storm across the ground, and the crowd instinctively turned their backs to the aircraft, falling silent.

Two minutes later, the helicopter touched down smoothly. The wind died, and everyone turned to look.

It was an A-577 military helicopter, with a top speed of nearly five hundred kilometers per hour. Its combat effectiveness and survivability were several times that of standard military helicopters, and its cost was staggering—only high-ranking officials of the Federal Government could use one.

Why would a high-ranking official come here? The crowd wondered.

Two people jumped out of the helicopter. Both wore full combat gear, completely different in appearance from the Executive Department guards or the Pioneer Team's combat suits.

Pure white form-fitting armor that followed the joints' movements perfectly, with smooth, fluid strides. The helmets were the same pure white, fully protecting the head, with only the visor in black—no one could see the eyes from outside, but the wearer could certainly see out clearly.

Both held laser guns, distinct from the ones circulating within the Pioneer Team—more streamlined, with sleek lines that hinted at an eerie beauty. This full ensemble had never been shown to the media.

Everyone stared at them, transfixed. On their chests, electronic name tags displayed a few words:

“Federal Center Executive Department Director-General: General Xie Hong”

“Federal Executive Department Eden District Branch Director: Major Xie Wei”

Executive Department? Director-General? Xie Hong? A General?

A stir rippled through the crowd.

“OMG, how powerful are the gene monsters in this Sankar Arsenal that the Director-General himself has to come down?”

“A big shot of general level—we'd never even get to see one normally!”

“God... I could die happy now...”

“...”

Tu Ran looked at the so-called Executive Department Director-General, and the finger on her machine gun's trigger twitched slightly.

Above his head was a light screen, very bright.

【Ice Freeze】

Description: The user can freeze anything they wish to freeze according to their will, no contact needed, ranged attack. Wherever it goes, a thousand miles of ice, ten thousand miles of snow.

Level: Beginner

Note: Consumes a large amount of energy; use with caution.

After reading this screen's description, another new screen automatically overlaid it.

Xie Hong didn't just have one ability,【Ice Freeze】.

【Deaf】

Description: Losing your hearing, you can better appreciate the scenery before you. Here's your chance to experience a world of silence.

Level: Beginner

Note: Once activated, lasts at least two hours, no upper limit, consider at your own discretion.

This ability was somewhat similar to her【Oil and Salt Do Not Enter】—both were beginner level, but hers could be controlled at will, while【Deaf】had to last at least two hours.

Xie Hong's surname was Xie, and he was at general level, so he was most likely part of the Xie family.

He had two abilities, which showed the Xie family was also collecting inner cores. As for whether their methods were the same as the Wells family's, that was unknown.

Tu Ran suspected there were similarities—taking them directly from Pioneers' bodies was convenient, and in the Federation, a person vanishing without a trace didn't draw much attention.

But the difference between the Xie family and the Wells family was that the large-scale exotic creature lure traps in Regaken State were under Federal Government control.

Anything under Federal Government control, the Xie family would take the lion's share; most of the inner cores harvested would go to them.

Xie Hong's personal arrival confirmed Tu Ran's previous suspicion: the Sankar Arsenal was a Xie family enterprise.

And it was an important one.

Xie Xu made his way through the crowd, approached Xie Hong, and the two spoke for five minutes, ending with Xie Hong nodding.

Then Xie Xu operated his communicator, and a series of “ding ding ding” sounds rang from everyone's wrist devices.

What Xie Xu sent was the internal structural diagram of the Sankar Arsenal.

Zero quickly converted it and projected the diagram in real time into everyone's combat helmets.

The blueprint was absolute top secret, and it wouldn't have been released if the situation weren't urgent. The conversation between Xie Xu and Xie Hong must have been about whether to release it.

After everyone received it, Xie Xu quickly briefed them on the current situation inside the arsenal.

“The gene monsters inside the factory have a rapid reproduction characteristic—they multiply almost infinitely, and they move very fast, making them hard to catch.”

“On surfaces they pass, a moss-like, highly corrosive plant grows that can quickly eat through the surface of any metal equipment. If your guns get contaminated with this plant, they'll fail rapidly.”

“They can also emit a high-penetration infrasound attack that acts on the human brain, slowing reactions, and in severe cases causing hallucinations. Our combat helmets can only slightly reduce the attack's intensity, not completely block it.”

As Xie Xu spoke, people's hearts sank to the bottom.

They understood why the Executive Department head had come personally.

These gene monsters were stacked with debuffs, an almost heaven-defying existence.

Infinite multiplication meant they couldn't be killed off; fast movement meant they couldn't be caught; corrosive to weapons meant they couldn't be killed; infrasound attacks meant they couldn't be countered.

Seeing morale sink, Xie Hong spoke up to boost spirits.

Behind his white helmet, his voice was firm.

“They're not invincible. Their bite force is very low—their teeth can't even pierce our combat suits.”

That was at least some good news. People regained a bit of confidence.

But Tu Ran thought of something: weren't they saying that surfaces they passed grew ultra-corrosive plants that could even eat through metal? If they had that level of corrosion capability, why would they need bite force? They could just grow right on your skin and corrode you down to nothing but bone fragments.

Xie Hong must have known that, but he didn't mention it at all—he was afraid that if he did, no one would be willing to go.

“This time, I've gathered you all to the Sankar Arsenal with one sole objective: kill! Kill as many as you can!” Xie Hong's voice was impassioned.

But the crowd didn't respond much.

So, at the end, he added, “Afterwards, we'll distribute rewards based on the number of gene monsters each person kills.”

At the mention of rewards, the crowd's morale jumped up two notches.

Money really does make a difference.

“Soldiers, today's mission is tough. Pack your gear, check your equipment—I'll fight alongside you!”

“Yes!” Morale was high, and everyone began checking their gear and loading their guns…