The meeting room had a harmonious atmosphere.
Lu Heng looked at the somewhat excited officers and couldn't help but shake his head. He estimated they still lacked understanding of the apocalypse, and their focus shouldn't be on collecting supplies.
Raising the ability levels of all survivors was the long-term solution for fighting zombies.
"It's nothing, it's what I should do. However, I remember I mentioned before that zombies would evolve to level four. Do you have any defensive measures for this?"
"Well, after you mentioned it, we also made some preparations. But currently, the common soldiers in the base are still at the second-tier level. To have everyone advance to the third-tier or higher, it requires a large number of crystals, especially since we have so many people here."
This was indeed a difficult problem. They couldn't stop all base construction and resource gathering just to focus on killing zombies for upgrades.
The base construction personnel were already insufficient, and they relied on issuing missions to attract some survivors to participate in the base's fortification and construction.
Diverting soldiers to specifically kill zombies for crystals would compromise the base's safety. After all, social order was already chaotic, and in a world where the strong reigned supreme, some ability users were unwilling to obey the management of the army.
In a way, the current base had a delicate relationship between the military and those ability teams. Once a team became strong enough, the base would no longer be controlled by the military.
Those teams organized by ability users did not have the idea of saving humanity like the soldiers. They were more inclined to be local tyrants, wishing they could call all the shots.
Lu Heng pondered for a while. The number of crystals in his spatial dimension was quite astonishing. After all, since the apocalypse, he had killed zombies in several cities. Excluding the crystals used for his own upgrades, there were still tens of thousands of first and second-level crystals piled up in the plaza.
However, how to reasonably take them out was also a matter. Even for a ninth-tier ability user, taking out too many crystals at once would likely attract the greed of some people.
As the saying goes, a thief can steal for a thousand days, but a guard can't guard for a thousand days.
He couldn't constantly guard against those with ulterior motives.
"Then I'd like to know, who manages the trading market in our base?"
The topic changed so abruptly that Zhao Kai didn't react immediately. "You're asking who manages the trading market?"
"Yes," Lu Heng nodded.
"The base manages it. Our base was established by the military in the first place. The construction materials for the outer walls were also provided by the military initially, so we are responsible for managing all the buildings and maintaining order here."
At this moment, the tiger behind Lu Heng, likely tired of standing, changed to a lying posture.
But its movement drew the attention of everyone in the room again, and they became tense. After all, having a ninth-tier mutated beast nearby, for all the high-ranking officials at the third and fourth tiers in the room, they probably wouldn't be enough for it to handle in one move.
Lu Heng stroked the Siberian tiger's fur and smiled at everyone, "It's alright, it's just changing its posture."
Then, he glanced at the golden eagle that had already closed its eyes and fallen asleep, shaking his head. "Then I'd like to set up a stall there. I wonder what procedures I need to follow?"
"Oh? Mr. Lu, which location have you taken a liking to? I'll have them clear a spot for you," Zhao Kai said with a smile.
"I haven't decided yet. I only took a brief look last time, and I've forgotten some details after so long. I brought back some things this time and plan to open a stall to sell them."
"Alright, we have blueprints here. Hey! Old Wang, go get the trading market blueprints and let Mr. Lu pick a storefront."
The named Old Wang quickly got up and personally went to the资料室 (ziliao shi - data room) to get the blueprints.
Soon, the blueprints were brought back. Zhao Kai took the blueprints and spread them on the conference table, introducing, "This was a commercial complex before the apocalypse. The area around the old city was also newly built not long ago. Because there is an ancient city here, and the original city walls were suitable for rapid modification, we chose this location to build the base."
Lu Heng nodded. He carefully examined the floor plan of the trading market. He clearly remembered the location of Leng Tian's shop, and then pointed to a shop next to it that looked of considerable size, asking, "Is this place rented out?"
"Mr. Lu, you've taken a fancy to this place? This location is good, it's not far from the entrance of the market, and the shop is large enough. Don't worry, even if it's rented out, I'll have them switch locations." Zhao Kai said, patting his chest.
"How can I impose? This..."
"Don't think too much of it. You've helped the base solve the major problem of material shortages. We were just wondering how to thank you. If you weren't a civilian, I..."
Halfway through his sentence, Zhao Kai seemed to have thought of something, and looked at Lu Heng excitedly, asking, "Do you have any plans to join our army? Don't refuse immediately. Currently, the various military forces are operating independently. Although we still have some contact, each base solves its own problems.
Therefore, I can still make decisions regarding the increase or decrease of military personnel.
Don't feel burdened. Even if you join our team, we won't order you to do anything. We will discuss everything together.
And after you join our army, you will have more security in your dealings within the base. We won't assign you to any specific battalion, or, we can hire you as a consultant, a military advisor. There are precedents for this, and you won't be constrained by the army."
After saying a long string of words, Zhao Kai stared intently at Lu Heng, eagerly awaiting his agreement. After all, having a ninth-tier ability user completely join the military would bring endless benefits to their base.
Lu Heng was somewhat taken aback by this sudden invitation. Had it become so easy to join the army now?
Could he so easily become a military advisor here?
That would be a strategist, right?
After thinking for a moment, Lu Heng probed Zhao Kai's thoughts and knew he had no ill intentions. Only then did he ask, "If I join the army, what do I need to do?"
Zhao Kai: "You don't need to do anything special, but I still hope you can contribute to the matter of finding supplies that you previously promised us. As for other matters, you don't need to participate. But I, shamelessly, want to ask you, if the base encounters an insurmountable zombie threat, would you be willing to lend a hand?"
This still meant he would be indirectly helping the base, which was definitely not as free as being on his own. He believed that with his strength, he could completely build a team that was absolutely loyal to him.
He shook his head, "I'm not interested in being a consultant. As you know, I've always been a loner, and I haven't had any desire to join or form a team yet."
Hearing this, Zhao Kai became somewhat dejected. It was a pity to let such a talent slip away. However, as a strong individual, he could understand that they wouldn't attach themselves to others.