In the apocalypse, I hoarded goods and handed over my storage space to the government.

When Su Ran walked out of the P3 laboratory, the night had already spread out like thick ink.

But he did not feel the darkness.

Because the entire area surrounding the Kunlun base was as bright as day at that moment.

Hundreds of high-powered military searchlights pierced the sky, their beams crisscrossing and illuminating the barren land for tens of kilometers in all its detail.

The nauseating stench of decay in the air had faded considerably, replaced by an "industrial smell" that gave Su Ran immense peace of mind.

Smoke, freshly mixed concrete, and the exhaust fumes from a high-powered diesel engine.

"Boom!"

The earth was trembling.

This is neither an earthquake nor a horde of zombies.

Standing on the high slope, Su Ran looked at the magnificent scene before her, which was so spectacular it made her scalp tingle. Even though she had lived two lives, she still felt her blood boiling.

As far as the eye can see, a torrent of steel is relentlessly crushing the earth.

Less than three hours after the battle ended, the tank units, which had originally served as killing machines, had been relegated to the second line, replaced by a much larger engineering corps.

Hundreds of heavy bulldozers were lined up in a long, straight line.

They pushed forward all the unrotted zombie remains, the black blood and mud, and even the scorched earth turned up by the artillery fire.

Following closely behind were behemoth-like automated paving machines and quick-drying cement pouring trucks.

They don't require fine workmanship; they only need thickness and hardness.

A concrete barrier, ten meters high and three meters thick, is growing wildly on the ground at a speed visible to the naked eye.

This is the speed of the Great Xia Dynasty.

This is the fangs that the infrastructure-building maniac is baring in the apocalypse.

"Comrade Su Ran!"

A loud, boisterous laugh interrupted Su Ran's thoughts.

General Zhang Xiao strode over, his training uniform still covered in soot, but his resolute face was flushed, as if he had just drunk two kilograms of strong liquor.

"So, what do you think? Does this setup meet your standards?"

Zhang Xiao walked to Su Ran's side and slammed his hand on the cement block in front of him, which had just hardened.

"In three hours, the engineering corps advanced forty kilometers! The lads on the front lines are in a frenzy, and with those 'crystal cores' you gave us that can be used as hard currency once discovered, everyone's got plenty of motivation, and they've pushed all the way to the Red Maple Ridge line in one go!"

Forty kilometers.

Su Ran silently did some calculations in her mind.

This is beyond the coverage radius of heavy artillery and falls within the absolute lethal range of a rocket artillery cluster.

"That's greedy enough."

Su Ran handed Zhang Xiao a cigarette and lit one for herself. "Has this area within forty kilometers been completely cleared?"

"The rat holes have all been filled with cement."

Zhang Xiao took the cigarette and tucked it behind his ear, his eyes turning sharp. "As required, all the bodies must be burned and buried on site, and all underground pipe networks must be sealed off."

"Currently, the engineering corps is pouring the first permanent barrier wall at the 20-kilometer mark. It is made of quick-drying cement and reinforced with steel cages, and is 10 meters high and 3 meters thick. At this rate, this 'absolute vacuum zone' will be completely formed before sunrise tomorrow."

Su Ran took a deep drag of her cigarette, watching the swirling smoke, and felt much more at ease.

This is the confidence that comes from having a powerful nation as your backer.

The so-called "safe zone" in the previous life was often just a few reinforced buildings or a community surrounded by barbed wire.

In the struggle for even a one-meter buffer zone, more than a dozen lives are often lost.

And now?

As long as the firepower is strong enough and the energy supply is sufficient, the infrastructure powerhouse can build the Great Wall right up to the face of the zombies!

Zhang Xiao looked at the mechanical behemoth in the distance, his tone suddenly becoming somewhat sentimental.

"Advisor Su, to be honest, after fighting a lifetime of wars, this is the first time I've felt... this battle is truly exhilarating. Before, I had to worry about this and that, but now? Overwhelming firepower is the only way."

"What were the casualties during the subsequent cleanup of the battlefield?" Su Ran asked directly.

"Not counting mechanical losses, there were 120 minor injuries, mainly from ambushes by remaining mutants while clearing the rubble. Five were seriously injured, and there were no fatalities."

Zhang Xiao's tone lowered slightly as he said this, "This is all thanks to the batch of sonic repellent devices you had distributed before, which forced all the rats hiding underground to come out."

Su Ran exhaled a smoke ring and looked at the still-roaring machinery in the distance.

"It's exhilarating because the enemy isn't strong enough."

Su Ran's voice was calm, instantly dampening Zhang Xiao's enthusiasm. "General Zhang, this forty-kilometer stretch is a 'vacuum zone,' a buffer zone. But this is just the beginning. Things outside are changing every moment."

"Zombies are evolving, and beasts are reverting to their ancestral forms. Our reinforced concrete can stop the claws of a level one zombie, but it can't stop a punch from a level four strength-type zombie king. This forty-kilometer stretch has only given us a place to catch our breath and sleep without having to keep one eye open."

Zhang Xiao's smile faded, and he stood at attention, saying, "Understood. I will triple the firepower."

"It's not just about firepower."

Su Ran waved her hand and turned to walk towards the temporary rest area at the back.

"I'm going to check on those 'new recruits'."

……

Temporary medical rest area.

The bustling activity of the construction site was gone; only the medic's quiet inquiries and occasional suppressed groans of pain could be heard.

But there wasn't much of a sense of despondency.

Most of the wounded soldiers were excitedly gesturing about the details of the battle they had just fought.

The relief of surviving a disaster and the thrill of slaying the monster intertwined, creating a unique and invigorating fighting spirit.

Those fifteen "geniuses," along with Bai Lu and Ye Xiao, are all here.

There was no wailing or howling as expected, nor any hysterical breakdown.

Wang Meng, shirtless, was having a military doctor stitch up a half-foot-long wound on his back.

It seems the anesthetic wasn't enough; the guy bit down on a wad of gauze, not uttering a sound, sweat dripping down his muscles.

In the corner, Zhao Tian was wiping his military dagger with an expensive silk shirt.

The one who changed the most was Mo Yun.

Su Ran stopped in front of a tent.

Mo Yun was sitting on a cot, and a female military doctor was treating the wound on his palm.

Those hands no longer showed the clean, white skin that once belonged to a researcher.

The fingertips were charred black, and there were even several areas on the palms where the skin was completely carbonized and peeled off, revealing the purplish-red new muscle tissue underneath.

"Advisor Su."

Seeing Su Ran enter, Mo Yun instinctively tried to stand up, but winced in pain.

"Sit down."

Su Ran pressed down on his shoulder, her gaze sweeping over those unsettling hands. "Do you regret it? If you hadn't signed the special forces mobilization order, you'd probably still be drinking coffee in the constant temperature laboratory right now."

Mo Yun was taken aback.

He pushed up his cracked glasses, paused for a moment, and then looked up.

Those eyes, which were originally filled with timidity and only hid behind data, now had an extra layer.

That is light.

Having seen blood, killed, and crawled out of a pile of corpses, they possess a unique, cold glint.