Preparation

The beasts returned to the mountains, and silence fell upon the world.

Inside the base, the people stared at one another.

Suddenly, a portion of the crowd collapsed to the ground; the joy of the previous night's victory was like a basin of cold water poured straight over their heads.

The hearts of the people were no longer as unified as they had been.

Whispers began to spread through the crowd, and soon, voices calling for retreat could be heard. Some wanted to gather a consensus to force the entire base to relocate to a safer city, while others wanted to head straight for the county seat to seek the protection of the military.

The members of the Board of Directors listened to these discussions, their faces turning ashen.

Should they hold? Or should they retreat?

All the middle and upper management began to calculate in their hearts.

At this moment, Gao Zheng proposed, "Let's all head to the conference room first. We need to discuss this."

Due to Gao Zheng's long-standing prestige, all the middle and upper management followed him back to the office building.

In the conference room, the directors and vice presidents sat in the front rows, while the department managers and heads sat toward the back.

Before Gao Zheng spoke, the atmosphere remained stiflingly dull.

Lin Chenxing scanned everyone present. He saw that a few department managers had wandering, unfocused eyes, while others looked like dead men, having completely lost their fighting spirit. Only a handful of people showed true determination in their gazes.

Seeing this, a sense of unwillingness surged in Lin Chenxing's heart.

Clearly, the world had entered the apocalypse described in the novels he had read.

Since he had transmigrated here and already created such excellent conditions, how could he just sit around waiting to die in the early stages of the apocalypse without having achieved anything?

He had read many similar apocalyptic novels in his past life. Although his memories were not very clear, he vaguely remembered that many protagonists had started with worse conditions than his own. How had they managed to triumph from similar situations?

Lin Chenxing pondered and recalled, trying to find a path forward.

However, the blurriness of his memories prevented him from recalling any detailed solutions.

Running was impossible; how could he easily abandon such a perfect foundation?

But as for holding, how could they defend against so many monsters possessing such immense power?

At this moment, Guo Qichang suddenly said, "What we saw and heard earlier were just birds and larger beasts living on the surface, right?"

Gao Zheng replied, "That is correct. Old Guo, do you have any thoughts?"

Guo Qichang pointed to the floor and said, "Since both the sky and the ground are dangerous, why don't we go beneath our feet?"

A manager, whose panic instantly transformed into surprise, stood up and shouted, "Right! As long as we travel underground and don't show our faces on the surface, we won't have to be afraid. They couldn't possibly find us underground."

He Qishun glanced at the manager and said slowly, "Don't get happy too soon. The underground isn't as safe as you imagine."

Meng Chang added, "He is right. During our last discussion, we mentioned that we have to guard against rats."

"According to our observations and calculations, there are at least several hundred of them in the underground of this area, and that's a conservative estimate."

Guo Qichang said, "I am aware of the rat situation. Although there are dangers below, they are still smaller than the dangers above."

"While we are expanding the underground space, we can also clear out the rat nests and nip the threat in the bud."

Gao Zheng noted, "Old Guo's proposal is feasible. However, if we start, we will inevitably have to split off a team to specifically protect the construction workers, which will leave fewer people for our external exploration teams. Also, who will be responsible for this?"

Guo Qichang crossed his arms and said, "Since I proposed it, I will naturally be the one to implement it. However, I need Director Meng to send me some people responsible for planning and design."

"Fine, I will give the order when the time comes," Meng Chang nodded slightly in agreement.

Seeing that this matter was settled, He Qishun put forward his own view: "Aside from building the underground base, I think the exploration toward Chuilong Town must begin as soon as possible. With so many tasks, our manpower is completely insufficient. We must take this opportunity to rescue those who are still alive and bolster our ranks."

Gao Zheng said with a serious expression, "This is indeed a top priority, but we cannot be hasty. We must be steady and solid; only by ensuring our own safety can we save more people."

"How about this: you take a team to scout Hejiao Village, which is closest to us, and try your best to return before dark."

"Tomorrow, you will stay at the base to rest, and then Tianxing will lead another team to a different village."

"If we have the capacity after the base's construction and defense are handled, we will pull out one more group to be specifically responsible for your logistics, allowing you to explore further."

"When that time comes, Chenxing will be in charge of that team. The three of you can discuss the scheduling for your three groups yourselves."

Hearing Gao Zheng's arrangement, a sense of heroism surged in Lin Chenxing's heart. He said confidently, "I will definitely handle the logistics for Director He and Director Ma so they can explore and save people with peace of mind."

Gao Zheng continued, "I believe that through last night's battle and what you have seen today, you all have some guesses."

"Our explosives are not very effective against those monsters, especially those that are naturally thick-skinned."

"And the cold weapons we used suffered heavy wear and tear after last night's battle."

"What does this mean? Given our current methods and the monsters' rate of evolution, it may not be long before our explosives and weapons can no longer cause them any harm."

"How should we face these monsters in the future? After all, we cannot hide forever."

"Chenxing, Meng Chang, does your research institute have any ideas?"

Lin Chenxing only oversaw the research institute and usually only offered suggestions, lacking deep knowledge of the technical details. After a moment of thought, he replied, "Using beasts to control beasts—that is the best method for now. During the process of evolution, besides their defenses becoming stronger, the monsters' attacks have also evolved. Their claws, teeth, and bones—using these to craft weapons will surely be able to injure other monsters."

Since Meng Chang was the head of the research institute and a researcher himself, his thoughts were often more professional. He proposed a deeper suggestion than Lin Chenxing's: "Direct utilization is indeed the most convenient and fastest method for now. However, I propose leaving a portion of the bones for the institute to experiment with and analyze the underlying reasons for the changes in those bones. If we can use this to improve our existing forging technology, that would be even better."

Lin Chenxing suggested, "We should leave at least one carcass of every type of monster for the research institute to ensure we make the best use of everything."

Gao Zheng nodded slightly and said, "Then let's proceed with this plan first. The research institute should speed up their study on how to use those bones to craft bone weapons today, so that when the exploration team sets out tomorrow, we can equip everyone with one."

"Meeting adjourned."