Chapter 323: The Edge of Chaos

“Where’s Committee Yenir?”

“Yenir! Where are you!?”

As one group of survivors after another was ‘found’ and transported out of the city, the military Awakeneds—on high alert—realized that Yenir had been gone for quite some time.

Amidst the murmurs of confusion, Ming Luo, who was busy discussing fuel issues, hurriedly sent a private message to Yenir.

For some unknown reason.

Ever since dissenting voices had arisen within the military against establishing the fire network, he felt as though Yenir had transformed into a completely different person.

Watching the anxious military Awakeneds scramble to find Yenir, a representative from the Dongqing Battle Zone nonchalantly smiled and said:

“Maybe Committee Yenir is just tired?”

“He’s no longer involved here. If he’s gone, let him be.”

“I bet he’s realized he’s not cut out for large-scale command and decided to leave early.”

With that, the Middle-Aged Man bellowed to the military forces, his eyes darting toward the city. Yenir had probably already sensed that no one was listening to him.

Setting the city ablaze? That’s a pipe dream. Who could shoulder the inescapable blame of the military?

Wrecking the city is even less likely.

Within the six major battle zones surrounding the East Sea, who doesn’t have some stake in this place?

Now that the city is nearly abandoned, should he lead a team in to scavenge some benefits?

After all, with no one around, nobody would notice if something went missing.

If we take a step back, if Yenir were determined to destroy the city single-handedly, that would actually be ideal—his losses would be nil.

Lost in thought, he couldn’t help but ponder his next move. As he glanced around at some officials from the East Sea, he was struck by how everyone’s gaze was subtly drifting toward the city.

Clearly, many had already anticipated this outcome.

And what of the Sea Beast?

That creature… the military has its own ways of handling it.

“Using the pretext of evacuating survivors holed up in skyscrapers?”

“Even if the Sea Beast catches up, escaping shouldn’t be too tough…”

…………..

At the core of the East Sea Safe Zone, beside the towering Spirit Tower.

Once the heart of the East Sea, this place served as the energy hub for the entire city and was the sole node supplying the Safe Zone with Spirit Energy.

Where once strict surveillance and Level-One defenses reigned, the area was now deserted, save for the continuously humming Spirit Energy Node.

At first glance, it resembled a cold, desolate graveyard.

Standing atop the Spirit Tower with his hands clasped behind him, Yenir silently surveyed the node below.

“Third-Stage Spirit Energy Node.”

“Once detonated, its power is no less than that of a one-megaton nuclear bomb.”

“Simultaneously triggering the Spirit Energy transport pipelines—the network stretching throughout the city—would reduce the entire metropolis to rubble…”

“The unleashed, rampant Spirit Energy could scramble the Sea Beast’s senses in an instant, completely masking human presence.”

Murmuring to himself, Yenir seemed lost in recollection, his brows furrowed in thought.

The Spirit Energy Node was the very foundation upon which the Safe Zone was built.

Upon completing the Safe Zone (City Building) task from the system, one would receive a safety token. With that token and a Spirit Energy Node, a Safe Zone could be established.

This system-driven Safe Zone was much like a city in a game—it not only possessed various core functions but also continually emitted refined Spirit Energy for Awakeneds to absorb. Though the efficiency was low, over time it was undoubtedly a better way to gain strength than constantly battling mutants.

Many Awakeneds lacked practical combat skills yet held high ranks precisely for this reason. Particularly among mid-level officials, most had acquired their power in this manner.

Ordinary civilians weren’t entitled to it, but the children of government officials and Awakener progeny could.

This explained why, during Yenir’s trial, his civilian team could never match the Awakener descendants.

Thus, for the authorities, the Safe Zone node was of utmost importance.

The Safe Zone task was easy to complete, and the nodes were naturally occurring.

Each Spirit Energy Node was like an oil well—the higher the rank, the more valuable it became.

A major reason the military was reluctant to destroy the East Sea was precisely this.

Apart from extremely challenging dungeons that rewarded new Spirit Energy Nodes, there were no fresh nodes to be found within the Huaxia Battle Zone.

Blowing this place up would be tantamount to destroying an ‘oil well,’ a veritable mine.

But still…

Recalling the ‘advice’ from the military, Yenir chuckled lightly and shook his head.

“Not blowing it up…”

“That’s impossible.”

He muttered to himself.

Having dealt with Sea Beasts in his past life, he was well aware of one of their traits.

While mutants on land naturally shunned Spirit Energy Nodes—except in the case of riots—they rarely appeared around Safe Zones.

But the Sea Beast… this giant creature that fed on Spirit Energy was genetically driven by its hunger.

After coming ashore, they would instinctively seek out Spirit Energy Nodes. To them, human presence was as enticing as honey luring ants, with Safe Zones resembling beehives.

If the previously established fire network could block them, that possibility was long gone now.

If we don’t destroy the East Sea, if this isn’t cut off, and if no chaotic Spirit Energy zone is established in the East Sea, then an endless stream of Sea Beasts will, just as before, completely strangle every nearby battle zone.

We must relinquish this area and turn the entire East Sea into a no-man’s land—a calculated trade of space for time!

In the military’s imagination, this first wave of Sea Beasts was merely the vanguard.

But that was one point Yenir was too tired to reiterate.

He’d clearly seen that some people wouldn’t shed a tear until catastrophe struck.

“I overlooked that the current military has never truly suffered a massive loss…”

“I forgot that those incompetents are still clinging to their high posts…”

“I mistook their unified determination of the past for the present…”

“I regarded the team forged through blood and tears as being the same as them…”

Half in self-mockery, Yenir chuckled lightly, seemingly blaming himself for the colossal miscalculation.

No wonder he was so ‘naive.’

In his previous life, when he led Huaxia, those deemed worthless were long gone.

Under absolute military control, as the beacon of hope, no one ever dared oppose him—everyone followed his orders without question.

There was no scheming, no internal strife.

Or rather, they simply couldn’t afford any infighting.

With such ingrained thinking, he naturally believed that as long as he did the right thing, nothing would go amiss—even if his methods were harsh, it was all for the greater good.

Thus, from the moment of his rebirth, he mistakenly thought that merely demonstrating his potential would be enough to avert all disasters.

After all, the military’s only mistake in his past life was not nurturing him soon enough—discovering his potential far too late…

But now?

Yenir slowly closed his eyes, an overwhelming fatigue etched into them.

If things continued like this…

He was truly going to be worn out to death…

“A small disaster—the very first one… I nearly failed…”

“Since the warning for the East Sea…”

“Fang Teng obstructed me; the committee didn’t believe me. The investigation results were concealed, and the military turned a blind eye…”

“Everyone thinks I’m targeting Fang Teng, that I’m too ‘cowardly,’ even delusional.”

“After forcibly redeploying troops, someone within the military stirred up a fuss, slandering me as a traitor with ulterior motives…”

“Then, once the truth emerged, the command faltered once again after the disaster!”

“To thwart the enemy, I intended to set the city ablaze! Yet some couldn’t bear it—they clung to the delusion that there was still hope!?”

“Ridiculous to the extreme!”

With a determined leap back,

“Bang!”

From atop the hundred-meter tower, Yenir crashed down with a resounding impact and slowly rose to his feet.

His deep footprints remained in the cracked earth.

“Everyone’s fighting, scheming, and only looking out for their own interests…”

“If I don’t wipe out all this trash, how can I move forward!”

“Boom!”

He slashed out with his sword.

Accompanied by a dazzling aura of sword light, the Elemental Blade erupted in a burst of dark red flames as if cleaving through everything, smashing fiercely into the protective shell of the node.

“Bang!!”

The silvery-white shell immediately cracked, spiderweb fissures forming to reveal eerie blue light spheres within.

“No one can stop what I intend to do!”

An icy voice echoed through the core, reverberating off the metal.

At that moment, Wang Tian, who had rushed over in search of Yenir, stepped in and instantly sensed a fierce, fleeting murderous intent emanating from him.

He was taken aback, uncertain why.

Staring at the Youth’s retreating figure, a chill briefly seeped into his bones.

“Committee Yenir… were you calling for me?”