Chapter 920: A Wise Decision
Translator: Min Editor: Rundi
Shangjing, Ziyuan Road No. 27 was home to the largest gymnasium in Pan-Asia Corporation. Before the outbreak of the war, a grand football match was being held. Therefore, in the seats around the round stadium, there were still skeletons and rusted coke cans.
Just below the stadium sat Fallout Shelter 022, but the fallout shelter had long since been abandoned. It was the most pragmatic and diligent Sectarian Guardians of the Dusk Church that brought the fallout shelter back into the sun. Although they were followers, they were never constrained by the teachings and pursued absolute efficiency. It was because of this that they separated from the Bo Yu-led orthodox.
“Sometimes, I feel that the name Gravediggers is more suitable for us than the Sectarian Guardians.” Lu Minghui took a flashlight, looked around, and followed the blood trails that have oxidized many years ago.
“Your statement is very vivid.” The man smiled and said in a relaxed tone. “But I will not approve of your proposal at the meeting. No matter what age, digging graves is not a popular career.”
“Come on, I was just saying it as a joke.”
Walking in the run-down subway, behind the two, was a herd of double-headed cows carrying goods. These hard-working animals were one of the few mild mutants left on the wasteland. They could easily be tamed and could cross over terrains otherwise impassable by vehicles. And because of the reduced accumulation of toxins in the body, they were also one of the few meat sources on the wasteland, disregarding its dry taste.
More than a dozen soldiers dressed in winter clothes walked around the consignment team. They vigilantly glanced at the shadows in the corners and scanned for possible zombies, mutants, or raiders. Although it was the usual route they took, no one dared to be off-guard. Even if everyone alive exhausted all their fingers, it would still not be enough to count the survivors that died because of carelessness, many of which were also powerful lone travelers.
Soon, they arrived at their destination, Shangjing Stadium Station.
Passing through the ticket gate that was demolished, a team brought the double-headed cows to the exit and entered the second underground floor of the stadium. It was the stronghold of the Sectarian Guardians. Nearly 10,000 people live there. The center of the stadium was transformed into a large plantation. The transparent graphene shield could block the snow and allow the Sun to pass through. The fruit grown on the green field was the food source of this underground “city”.
Two sentries at the entrance came forward and immediately confirmed Lu Minghui’s identity, then they took two steps back and saluted.
Lu Minghui nodded, crossed the gate, and continued to walk forward. The man behind him stayed behind and took the team in another direction.
In a place like a cow shed, a potbelly man stepped forward and rubbed his swollen eyes and took out a flat plate from his pocket. As a warehouse manager, his daily job was to count the materials that were shipped into the base.
“Hey, fat man, are you on duty today?”
“Yes. My nose is almost falling off because of this damn weather…”
He mumbled and opened the leather buckle. Then, his hands suddenly froze.
“This! This is!” The man called Fat Man was shocked. The two squinted eyes widened and looked like two green beans.
“A whole container of cocoa beans. I don’t know exactly how many tons this is… but isn’t it wonderful? Until a few days ago, I thought this was extinct from Earth.” The man lit himself a poor-quality cigarette and patted the bulging package on the double-headed cow. “Separate this and move it into the warehouse. Remember to keep it dry.”
Fat Man nodded quickly and asked the staff to unload the cocoa beans. Just bake it in a pan, add sugar, and boil it continuously. They could extract the cocoa liquid. With a little refinement, it could be used to make cocoa powder or chocolate.
The end product would be luxury on the wasteland. Because of its easy to store nature, it could even be used as currency like canned food!
And because of their high-calorie characteristics, they were much more valuable than canned food of equal weight!
If the cocoa beans were converted to crystals, they would at least be worth millions.
On the other hand, Lu Minghui, who walked deep into the basement of the gym, stopped and pulled out the data cable from his EP to access the port next to the door. After it was loaded on the screen, a gap appeared on the flat concrete wall and formed a tunnel.
He walked into the tunnel.
As he stepped in, the cold lights in the corners of the hallway lit up, dispelling the darkness in the corridor. He stopped in front of the door at the end of the hallway. With a short pause, he took a deep breath and reached for the door.
Inside, his field of vision suddenly expanded.
It was a circular meeting room that resembled a Roman Religious Court. There were about 50 Dusk Church seniors on both sides of the conference room. Judging from the packed room, this meeting has already been in session for a while. At the same time as the gate opened, everyone’s focused shifted onto Lu Minghui.
“You are late, Mr. Bishop,” The old man sitting at the head of the table looked at his watch and softly said.
“There was some minor mishaps along the way.” Lu Minghui walked to the middle of the round conference room and bowed at the elder.
There were many bishops of the Sectarian Guardians, but only a few possessed actual power. The old man sitting in the head of the table was one of them. As the archbishop, he was in charge of all the decision making power including finance and military.
The old man nodded and did not pursue the reasons for his lateness. The dry lips slowly opened.
“Start reporting.”
Lu Minghui slightly lowered his head and began reporting.
“NAC has not taken a hostile approach to us despite the previous hostile relationship with the Orthodox led by Bo Yu. The covenant was agreed upon and Jiang Chen also liked the gift we offered. If the Holy Shield system is repaired, he promised to provide us with a sanctuary ground in Wanghai.”
People in the room whispered and exchanged some words. They were a little relieved. The old man sitting at the head of the table also nodded with approval. Obviously, he was quite satisfied with the good news brought by the bishop.
Seeing it was the right atmosphere, Lu Minghui adjusted the tone, and then said.
“As a gift, they gave us a container of cocoa beans…”
The discussion in the conference room came to an abrupt stop, and everyone’s expression, including the old man’s, froze. Everyone froze not because of embarrassment or anger, but because they were too shocked to react.
A container?
How big is a container?
A container of cocoa beans? Not mutated fruits? Or bullet shell grain?
Lu Minghui was not surprised by everyone’s reaction. He already experienced this feeling back in Shanghai, and until the container was loaded onto the freighter, he still remained in shock.
Looking at the seniors around the conferencetable , Lu Minghui looked at the old man sitting at the head and solemnly said.
“The strength of NAC is far beyond our imagination. We must re-examine our relationship with them.”
The skinny index finger rubbed on the armrest and the old man was silent. Compared with the senior figures present, he was considering the deeper meaning behind the gift and the daunting power of the NAC.
There was no goodwill on the wasteland. The only factor that allowed one to keep the other side calm was absolute power.
A long time later, the cracked lips slowly said.
“You’re right.”
Lu Minghui let out a sigh of relief.
“A wise decision.”