That concludes the report.
Shen Heng walked out of the building where the conference room was located.
However, unlike before he went in, he wasn't alone when he came out; Li Daoyi was with him.
Looking in one direction, Shen Heng smiled and nodded in acknowledgment.
Li Daoyi followed his gaze and watched the figures turn and leave, clicking his tongue in amazement.
"Looks like you're getting along pretty well with your team, everyone's waiting for you there."
"It's alright." Shen Heng nodded slightly.
Upon hearing this, Li Daoyi's lips curled into a smile, and his gaze fell upon Shen Heng.
"So, how's it going? Any complaints about being temporarily confined to the base?"
Shen Heng paused for a moment, then shook his head slightly.
"I had thought about this when I decided to take action."
He paused, then added:
"Of course, I'm not saying I'm thinking about being grounded, I'm just thinking about the possibility of being punished."
"Whether or not we'll be punished depends on how things go. If we do get punished, won't you have any objections?" Li Daoyi asked.
Shen Heng thought about it carefully for a moment and said:
"If it's just a slight deduction, or even the confiscation of the rewards for this operation, that's fine, since these things haven't even reached my hands yet!"
"But if they want to deduct anything from me, that might be a little upsetting."
"Knowing this, why did you still do it? Finding eleven Fourth Tier inspectors would be a huge financial burden even at headquarters now!" Li Daoyi.
"Ugh, I don't want to either, but..."
Shen Heng sighed softly, his gaze lingering on the distant horizon.
"If we don't seize this opportunity, I really don't know how we can resist and win against the invasion of the Ruins Realm."
He paused, then added:
"Even so, I don't feel we can resist the invasion of the Ruins Realm for long."
Shen Heng wasn't exaggerating; this was indeed his true thought.
Once you enter the Erosion Zone, the more you come into contact with it, the more you can feel the enormous gap between the two worlds.
From low-level Calamity Beast that seemed to be given away for free, to Erosion Zone the size of half a continent, and then to mid-level Calamity Beast that were almost imperceptibly important...
He truly felt the enormous gap in cultural foundation caused by the two worlds, different backgrounds, and different development paths!
This gap is like a country that has just come into contact with technology facing a modern country that has been developing for hundreds of years; or like Li Hongzhang, wearing a yellow jacket, riding an elevator for the first time and looking at the cars driving on the road!
Shen Heng had no doubt that if the Erosion Zone weren't unstable and had a limited capacity for carrying materials and energy, the Calamity Beast would already be wreaking havoc on Blue Star!
Li Daoyi narrowed his eyes and looked at Shen Heng for a while, but did not reply. Instead, he said:
"It's good that you stay at the base; you can take this time to rest."
Shen Heng nodded slightly. Due to his limited abilities, he had been busy for most of the past six months since entering the Erosion Zone, and had not had much free time.
Others can also rest and recuperate during the lulls in the Calamity Beast attacks or while returning from exploration.
He basically would come back after completing a mission, prepare for a bit, and then go out again.
"Oh, right," Li Daoyi said, as if suddenly remembering something, his gaze sweeping over Shen Heng from head to toe, "It seems you haven't neglected your cultivation of Origin Power Manipulation. This old Daoist can't even tell your current level!"
"It's alright, I can only say that I manage to set aside some time to practice every day."
"What level have you reached in your cultivation?"
"It looks like the Late Fourth Tier."
"Almost at Fifth Tier?"
"Not yet, only at the Late Fourth Tier!"
"We need to speed things up! Three people at headquarters have already broken through to the Fifth Tier!"
"I'd like to too, but Daoist Master, don't overestimate me. I've only been here a few years. If it weren't for the large amount of Origin Crystal I obtained after entering the Erosion Zone, I might not even be at the Mid Fourth Tier yet!"
"What, you want some supplies from me, the old man?"
"I didn't say that..."
On the other side, in the conference room.
After Shen Heng and Li Daoyi left, Zhang Weijun and the others remained seated in the meeting room.
Zhang Weijun carefully examined the detailed information about the operation that he had just printed out.
A moment later, the document slowly closed, and Zhang Weijun looked up at Zhou Zhenguo and Wang Yuanshan.
"Situation report, list of casualties, and report on the possibility of the Calamity Beast sending nearby Calamity Beast to attack. Any questions?"
The two nodded. There wasn't much to say about the first two, but the third...
"If we report it now, other Erosion Zone have already started taking action. Is it too late?" Wang Yuanshan asked.
"Whether there's enough time or not, we still have to report it!" Zhang Weijun said calmly.
Upon hearing this, the two nodded slightly.
The related actions are not limited to the Plateau Erosion Zone; they are being carried out in the vast majority of Erosion Zone.
The reason it is said to be the vast majority is because the Plateau Erosion Zone is one of the Erosion Zone with the most "Eye of Earth Marrow" and "Anchor Point ".
Some Erosion Zone have few Eye of Earth Marrow and Anchor Point, and some Erosion Zone even lack Eye of Earth Marrow and Anchor Point altogether.
They are trying to explore and speculate as to why this is the case.
However, it is clear that this information is only known to the higher-ups of the Calamity Beast.
"I heard that some countries overseas are not very cooperative with this operation?" Wang Yuanshan asked.
"Those small countries have always been short-sighted; there's nothing surprising about it," Zhou Zhenguo said, taking a sip from his thermos.
"You can't blame them for that. They don't have much power to begin with, so it's normal for them to want to preserve their strength in this kind of situation. In addition, in order to prevent the loss of those Erosion Zone, the Joint Management Committee has also arranged for various countries to send some high-level martial artists and weapons there, which makes them even more willing to rely on the outside world," Zhang Weijun said without surprise.
He paused, then added:
Ultimately, it's just that our hearts are different!
"Tch..." Zhou Zhenguo put down his thermos and scoffed dismissively, "They'll know what to do when the Calamity Beast invade their territory later!"
"That's true, but we can't give up easily, otherwise the Calamity Beast might use that Erosion Zone as a springboard to invade!" Wang Yuanshan said.
Zhou Zhenguo frowned but did not continue the conversation.
"Alright, let's talk about Shen Heng's incident!" Zhang Weijun steered the conversation back on track, his gaze sweeping over the two men. "After submitting the report, what recommendations do you think should be included?"
The atmosphere grew heavy again.
Wang Yuanshan frowned, his expression slightly somber, and said:
"He was chosen as the commander-in-chief of this operation because of his cautious and reliable work style. Who would have thought?"
"When it came to the crucial moment, he became the one who acted most recklessly?"