That afternoon.
At the Southwest Military Region's command center.
Lin Yuan pushed open the door to the First Conference Room.
Before a massive holographic terrain model, Zhao Dingbang was smoking as he stared at the map.
There was no one else in the conference room.
Clearly.
This was a private conversation at the highest level.
"Colonel Lin, sit down."
Zhao Dingbang stubbed out his cigarette, his voice sounding a little hoarse.
Lin Yuan pulled out a chair and sat down.
He keenly sensed that beneath Zhao Dingbang's excitement lurked a hint of madness.
"The higher-ups have just issued an absolute order."
"For the defensive battle against the beast tide the day after tomorrow."
"All seven outbreak sites across the country will be livestreamed simultaneously online in the highest definition!"
Zhao Dingbang brought up a Red-Header Document and projected it into the air.
At those words.
Lin Yuan narrowed his eyes.
A nationwide livestream?
His first reaction was that this decision was far too crazy.
The terrifying destructive power of ferocious beasts was nothing like movie special effects.
If the Defense Line collapsed.
Tens of millions, perhaps even hundreds of millions of viewers, would witness the hellish spectacle of humans being slaughtered!
That would undoubtedly trigger unimaginable social unrest!
"How could the higher-ups make a decision like this?"
Lin Yuan immediately challenged him.
At present, ordinary people only knew that animals had mutated.
If they learned about a disaster like a beast tide, they would surely break down.
Zhao Dingbang gave a bitter laugh.
He rested his clasped hands on the table, his expression grim.
"First, we can't hide it anymore."
"The internet overseas has spiraled completely out of control."
Zhao Dingbang tapped a few keys.
Dozens of overseas video feeds instantly appeared on the screen along the side of the conference room.
Flames soared into the sky.
Blood stained streets abroad red.
Packs of mutated wild wolves hunted civilians with savage abandon in bustling cities.
Fully armed foreign soldiers opened fire, only to be torn to pieces by several enormous mutated birds.
Screams and explosions mingled.
The footage was horrifically graphic.
"Do you see?"
"They don't have the Basic Breathing Technique overseas. Even their armies have no martial artists."
"Ordinary firearms can barely hold out against first-tier ferocious beasts."
"But once they encounter second-tier ferocious beasts, their Defense Line might as well be made of paper."
"Some countries have already descended into anarchy."
"Countless refugees are trying to break through our borders."
"No matter how slow our internet users might be, they've long since seen the horrors outside through all sorts of channels."
Zhao Dingbang cut off the footage and turned back to Lin Yuan.
Lin Yuan fell silent.
The truth could not stay hidden forever.
Rather than let all kinds of apocalyptic rumors run rampant among the public.
It was better for the authorities to step in and lay the truth before everyone.
"Second."
"We need to make our 1.4 billion citizens believe."
"That amid this apocalyptic onslaught, Dragon Country's military has the absolute strength to protect them!"
"This is the only way to rebuild their faith."
"As long as we win this livestreamed battle, the entire nation will unite like never before!"
At that moment.
Zhao Dingbang's tone abruptly sharpened.
This was an enormous gamble.
If they won, Dragon Country would stand united.
If they lost, faith would crumble, and the country would tear itself apart.
"Commander."
"Is the military confident it can hold all seven outbreak sites at once?"
Lin Yuan looked Zhao Dingbang straight in the eye.
Even with six months of preparation.
The strength of the ferocious beasts was still no easy problem to solve.
Zhao Dingbang did not answer immediately.
He brought up another encrypted data report and pushed it directly in front of Lin Yuan.
"As of one hour ago."
"This is the latest data compiled from every military region in the country."
Lin Yuan looked closely.
The numbers on the screen made his heart jolt.
[Total martial artists in Dragon Country: 3,498.] [First-Order Martial Artists: 3,473.] [Of these: 2,545 at the early stage, 651 at the middle stage, 192 at the late stage, and 85 at the peak stage.] [Second-Tier Martial Artists: 24.] [Of these: 23 at the early stage and 1 at the middle stage.] [Third-Tier Martial Artists: 1 (early stage).]
At the very bottom of the report was another conspicuous line of small text.
[Reserve martial artists: 108,500 (have sensed aura and are undergoing physical transformation).]
Lin Yuan marveled inwardly.
This was the terrifying power of the state apparatus operating at full capacity.
A million soldiers practicing the Basic Breathing Technique day and night had built an entire army of transcendent fighters through sheer numbers.
"Colonel Lin."
"These figures are why the country dares to launch a nationwide livestream."
"Modern heavy firepower, combined with nearly thirty-five hundred martial artists."
"Those newly evolved beasts won't be able to cause much trouble!"
Zhao Dingbang's voice carried a powerful sense of pride.
Lin Yuan nodded slightly.
Indeed.
If this force were concentrated in one place.
Forget seven beast tide outbreak sites—they could crush even ten through sheer force.
"Then how are the troops being allocated?"
A moment later.
Lin Yuan pointed at the seven red dots on the holographic terrain model.
The largest red dot lay in the Emei Mountains, beyond the Southwest Military Region's Defense Line.
The Ironclad Mad Ape at the Peak Second-Order Stage was there.
Zhao Dingbang sighed.
He pointed at the other six outbreak sites.
"All the Second-Tier Martial Artists, along with most of the country's First-Order Martial Artists."
"They've already been urgently airdropped into those six theaters aboard Military Transport Aircraft."
"Here in the Southwest Theater Command, aside from our conventional heavy-firepower units."
"Our martial artist contingent consists of only around two hundred First-Order Martial Artists."
"..."
As Zhao Dingbang finished speaking.
The atmosphere in the conference room instantly grew strange.
Lin Yuan rapidly ran through the battle in his mind.
Against a beast tide numbering in the hundreds of thousands, around two hundred First-Order Martial Artists would barely amount to a mouthful.
They could only serve as enforcement squads or mop up the occasional beast that slipped through.
There was no spearhead capable of withstanding the pressure at the very front!
"What are the higher-ups thinking?"
Lin Yuan's brows knitted tightly.
"It's because you're here."
"You're the country's only Third-Tier Martial Artist."
"Your assessed combat strength already exceeds that of all the martial artists in those six theaters combined."
Zhao Dingbang stood up and braced both hands on the table.
He leaned forward, staring intently at Lin Yuan.
"The other theaters need Second-Tier Martial Artists to lead them before they can hold their ground."
"But on the southwestern Defense Line, having you as our anchor is enough!"
Lin Yuan finally understood.
The higher-ups were staking everything on him alone!
Under the livestream cameras.
He would be the sole focus of this entire theater.
He not only had to win.
He had to win with overwhelming force, in a way that set every viewer's blood on fire!
"What the higher-ups want is..."
"For you to single-handedly punch through the core beast force led by that Mad Ape at the Peak Second-Order Stage."
Afraid Lin Yuan might feel pressured, Zhao Dingbang immediately added.
"Of course, conventional artillery will bombard the area for you."
"If you think it's too much."
"I'll immediately ask General Headquarters to transfer at least three Second-Tier Martial Artists back here as reinforcements!"
Lin Yuan smiled.
He leaned back in his chair, a fierce gleam of fighting spirit flashing in his eyes.
Reinforcements?
No need.
His three Third-Order Martial Techniques were only one final step away from mastery.
And there was still one day left before the beast tide erupted.
Lin Yuan was fully confident that he could train all three techniques to the mastery realm.
That monkey at the Peak Second-Order Stage, along with the densely packed high-tier ferocious beasts.
In everyone else's eyes, they were deadly threats.
But in Lin Yuan's eyes, they were lambs awaiting slaughter.
"No need to call anyone in."
"Leave the Southwest Theater Command to me."
"As long as I'm still standing, not a single ferocious beast will take so much as half a step past the Defense Line."
Lin Yuan stood up and straightened his uniform.
There were no grand declarations.
Only absolute confidence.
Zhao Dingbang let out a long breath.
His taut nerves finally relaxed a little.
"Good!"
"Now those are soldiers worthy of our Southwest Military Region!"
Lin Yuan changed the subject.
He pointed to the figures for Second-Tier Martial Artists on the report.
"Commander, I'm curious."
"Who are these twenty-four Second-Tier Martial Artists?"
Lin Yuan knew exactly how hard cultivation was.
Even with the boost from the Spiritual Energy Tide,
anyone who had broken through to the Second-Tier Stage already had monstrous talent.
Zhao Dingbang smiled.
He lit another cigarette.
"As for the only one at the Mid-Second-Tier Stage..."
"You know her too."
"It's Su Qingxue."
Lin Yuan nodded slightly.
The news came as no surprise.
Su Qingxue had been reborn and had her cultivation experience from her previous life.
Three days before the Spiritual Energy Revival,
Lin Yuan had spoken with Su Qingxue on the phone and learned that she had already reached the Late First-Order Stage.
And the Spiritual Energy Tide that accompanied the Spiritual Energy Revival had given martial artists an enormous boost.
If Su Qingxue had seized that chance, reaching the Mid-Second-Tier Stage was nothing strange.
"What about the others?"
Lin Yuan pressed him.
Zhao Dingbang turned to another page of the file.
"As for the other Second-Tier Martial Artists..."
"Seventeen of them were on the list Su Qingxue provided."
"Ye Qingshan is currently with the Magic City Military Region. He's reached the Early Second Tier."
"Song Qingyin is with the Southern Military Region. She's also at the Early Second Tier."
"Then there's Chu Tiankuo, Xiao Zhan..."
"They're all exceptionally talented, and none of them missed the Spiritual Energy Tide."
"As for the remaining six at the Early Second Tier..."
"They weren't on Su Qingxue's list."
"They're the finest special forces soldiers from the major military regions."
"Years spent fighting on the edge of death gave them an understanding of Aura far beyond that of ordinary people."
"They used that one-hour tide to force their way across the threshold into the Second-Tier Stage."
"..."
Before you continue