Chapter 716
Chapter 716 - 702: Integration
1,537 words
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8 min read
"Is this the world of Explorers? Is it always this thrilling?"
"....If it’s really always this thrilling, I would have retired a long time ago."
The post-battle base was also a ruin and chaos, but the facilities inside the entrance were relatively complete.
The original spacious mine had become the new campsite and dining hall.
Some people were bandaging their wounds, some were trying to eat quickly in-between battles, and others were hurriedly assembling combat power to rescue their scattered companions.
But most people were lying on the ground, snoring away in their sleep.
Many of them had been hunted by the Aus people on the way here and had finally escaped to this place, only to encounter this major battle.
Now, when their spirits relaxed, they naturally fell into a deep sleep... They no longer had to worry about waking up and already being in hell.
Inside the base, chaos and busyness coexisted. On most people’s faces, though, hung a look of happiness.
Victory and survival were always the most joyful things.
"Yo, were you all waiting for me?"
Lu Ping’an actually also wanted to go back to sleep, but as soon as he returned, someone invited him to attend a meeting.
Lu Ping’an knocked on the door and entered, where several people were already waiting inside.
The two officers at the sand table were drawing and discussing strategies. One of them was Captain Zhao, whom Lu Ping’an had met before, and the other, judging by his rank, should be Major Qian Guozhong from the previous communication.
Considering he was an independent corps, his rank seemed a bit low? Lu Ping’an shook his head. The armies of this world were composed differently; numbers didn’t represent combat power and couldn’t be generalized.
Perhaps this independent corps didn’t consist of a thousand or even three thousand soldiers. If it were just a few hundred soldiers, a Major’s rank would suffice.
"You’re here."
When Lu Ping’an arrived, Zhao Quanshan, whom he had previously dealt with, immediately greeted him.
Lu Ping’an noticed that in this temporary meeting room, besides Wang Xier and the two officers, the attendees were basically team leaders of various other teams and a few lone strongmen... Several of the Decree-level professionals had seen each other before on the back of the monster.
Upon seeing Lu Ping’an, middle-aged and even elderly individuals took the initiative to greet the young man.
Some also approached him to inquire about the well-being of his team and their plans for the future, treating him so warmly that Lu Ping’an felt a little uncomfortable.
Given his experience, age, and apparent tier, Lu Ping’an didn’t even qualify to attend this meeting, let alone be given any importance... But now, no one dared ignore him.
In the world of professionals, strength and achievements were the hardest passes. The young man had naturally gained a central position at the meeting with his dazzling record.
Wang Xier directly pulled open a seat next to her, right at the center of the room.
Without hesitating, Lu Ping’an grabbed an empty seat and sat down. At this point, maintaining seniority would only make people think he was annoying.
Lu Ping’an glanced around the room, seeing that only the Decree-level professionals and Wang Xier had taken seats.
After a few minutes, Wang Xier remained quiet. It was the military officers and representatives of the scattered group in charge who continued speaking and even arguing.
"...My opinion is still to attack the Aus people’s headquarters as soon as possible. They must have received the news already, and the more time we give them, the more prepared they will be... "
Major Qian of the independent corps continued to outline his objective, trying to persuade the "bigwigs" in the meeting room.
After listening briefly, Lu Ping’an understood the direction of the meeting.
"... Still in a meaningless stalemate? It seems that I haven’t missed anything."
Lu Ping’an sighed helplessly, opened a bottle of water, and decided to just watch the show.
Major Qian of the independent corps represented the local military and was a staunch member of the Hawks sect. As a soldier, he judged that the overall situation was still very much on the Aus people’s home turf.
They had been making arrangements for a long time, spreading people, resources, weapons, and equipment throughout this world.
Now that an all-out war had started, it was natural to go for the snake’s head, taking advantage of the regional superiority and directly attacking Hod company’s headquarters.
Not only could they strike at the enemy’s vital points, capture their important personnel, but they could also seize the opponents’ technology and resource reserves, making it a profitable deal in every aspect.
"No way, it’s impossible to pass."
But after listening for a bit, Lu Ping’an knew that Major Qian’s efforts were doomed to be in vain.
He may be a good soldier, but perhaps he truly does not understand the self-sufficient professional teams under the current explorer system.
Just now on the battlefield, both sides were undoubtedly mortal enemies, and after leaving the battlefield, their primary concern was still their own interests and survival.
"Who can be sure they don’t have another monster like that?"
"Even if that thing was successfully created by humans, it’s extremely expensive, they can’t possibly have many."
"Heh, but you don’t deny they might have something stronger... We’re not unwilling to fight; you saw how we went all out just now. We just need to plan for the long term and get more detailed intelligence support."
"As for the intelligence we have on our side..."
"No, your intelligence isn’t enough. We’re dealing with more than just one monster..."
Millions of reasons ultimately boil down to one sentence—"I don’t want to go."
Reality is so cruel; just a moment ago they were comrades-in-arms, but once the battle was over and they calmed down, they began to calculate carefully.
Lu Ping’an didn’t even bother to speak, knowing full well that getting explorers to obey military orders is simply impossible... Even he himself wouldn’t be so obedient.
Soon, the emergency strategic decision-making meeting convened by Major Qian after the battle dispersed unhappily.
Individuals quickly left, fearing the angry military would conscript them... Working for the military without extra pay and always being on the front lines was clearly a bad deal.
Those who remained were the ones planning to continue their cooperation...
"Ah, there’s no helping it. This is the current era. So, I employed seven teams myself. My interest is their commission..."
Wang Xier didn’t beat around the bush. As an outsider, she spoke bluntly.
At a time like this, it’s impossible to use grand principles to call on others to continue fighting. To get help, real money and silver are needed.
Lu Ping’an shrugged. In a way, he was also this woman’s employee.
"Personally, I’m interested in the technology of the Aus people and have ideas about cooperation... But you can see that my team is a research team. Leave the front-line work to the professionals."
Lu Ping’an smilingly said, "I’m a technician," causing a colleague who was drinking water to spray it all over the opposite table.
A pair of eyes stared at Lu Ping’an, their emotions saying, "How can you be so shameless?"
You call yourself a technical research team? Who blew up that monster? Who, without hesitation, took the largest share of the spoils of war based on merit?
But both Qian Guozhong and Wang Xier happily agreed with Lu Ping’an’s "nonsense".
Wang Xier knew Lu Ping’an’s character. This level of cooperation is to secure more say in collaborations... When all hope is lost, he can retreat, but when necessary, he’s truly reliable.
Major Qian’s immediate response with a smile also revealed that he wasn’t as "honest" and "uninformed" as his appearance suggested.
"There’s no other way. We can’t come up with the resources and interests to employ everyone... But now, we can talk about the details of our cooperation."
This cunning and treacherous smile even intimidated Lu Ping’an.
So you were actually using the "attack their main base" tactic to pave the way for a retreat. Now that the others have withdrawn on their own, you can naturally bring out your "backup plan."
Everyone has their own goals, and an army naturally needs a strategic goal that fits its scale... As the military, they can’t reject these small and medium teams’ voluntary affiliations.
Truly gathering everyone together, perhaps, would mean public opinion forcing them to act.
𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶
Now, however, they can choose a more reasonable and fitting "current situation" strategic goal after some people voluntarily leave.
"Thank you, Lu Ping’an and your team, for your contributions. By eliminating the most troublesome threat, we’ve actually taken the initiative in this plane war. From now on, it’s just a matter of how much we can harvest."
— End of Chapter 716 —