Shen Yulin's expression grew increasingly savage as he spoke.
His voice gradually rose, sounding more and more like the intestinal writhing that rumbled from the depths of a ravenous beast's throat as it faced its prey.
By the end, even he realized he had lost his composure.
He took a deep breath and lowered his voice as much as possible before reaching his conclusion. "Of course, no one likes war. No one wishes, after several decades of bloodshed and turmoil have only just ended, to place the fate of the entire city back on an unpredictable gambling table.
"But the fact is that Dragon City desperately needs a new war to prevent the bubble from bursting, to reconcile its internal conflicts, and to allow us to smoothly transform from a native technological civilization in a world without Spiritual Energy into invincible rulers of a New World with Spiritual Energy and Superhuman Power.
"The fact is that, over the past several decades, everything in Dragon City—its economy, morality, laws, order, professions, and research directions—has revolved around war, served war, and treated victory as its highest and only goal.
"Just the departments of our Nine Super Enterprises involved in the military and war-related fields generate profits exceeding fifty percent of the corporations' total profits.
"And that fifty percent of profit concerns countless jobs, the livelihoods and well-being of countless families, and in turn, Dragon City's entire consumer market and Financial Market.
"The fact is that many Dragon City citizens have spent the past twenty or thirty years mastering only one survival skill: plunging gleaming blades into monsters' carotid arteries, precisely avoiding their cervical vertebrae, cleanly slicing open their throats, and then meticulously harvesting every last bit of material from their bodies.
"The only survival skill mastered by other Dragon City citizens is