novel bin Chapter 55, Section 7: Agricultural War Zone
Chapter 55, Section 7: Agricultural War Zone
Chapter 55 The Seventh Agricultural War Zone (Please Subscribe)
"A minor character? Of course not."
Lilith frowned.
She thought for a moment, then pulled out a holographic map projector from her tactical vest.
Press the switch.
A pale blue light spread out in the dusty air.
It presents a huge topographical map.
"Consultant Luo Wei, in your past reports, you have consistently referred to yourself as the 'head of the Seventh Grain Depot.'"
"For the convenience of official document circulation, the Governor's Office tacitly approved this somewhat presumptuous title."
"However, this seems to have given you and your subordinates a misconception, a blind confidence based on a limited perspective."
"How long have you been in charge here? Three weeks? Less than a month. Your vision is limited to this concrete bunker beneath your feet, limited to these so-called defenses and accounts."
"Your understanding of the complete structure of this massive machine remains superficial, filled with the assumptions of a novice."
.
Lilith is positioned heavily in the center of the map.
A vast agricultural complex spanning thousands of kilometers.
"Look carefully, Lowe. This is Abundance II, the Seventh Agricultural War Zone."
"It's not just a few warehouses used to store grain, as you might imagine. It's a production monster that spans a continental plate."
"After the Fourth and Ninth War Zones fell to the plague, this monster is now bearing the burden of the Bounty II alone, seventy percent of the tithe."
"Every breath it takes concerns the survival of the entire planet, and it's far more complex than you think."
As she tapped her finger.
The map was divided into four distinctly colored sections.
"For ease of management, the Seventh Agricultural War Zone was further subdivided into four independently operating giant granary fortress cities: East, South, West, and North."
Lilith pointed to a green area at the very edge.
"What you manage is only the eastern granary, whose function is wheat cultivation and primary processing."
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"You are merely an agent of the Seventh Agricultural War Zone, a quarter of its territory, and only temporarily."
Luo Wei felt a slight chill run down his spine.
He certainly knew the approximate administrative divisions.
However, under closed management and high-pressure living conditions.
He did subconsciously equate the "Eastern Granary" with the entire "Seventh Agricultural War Zone," blurring the relevant concepts.
This cognitive bias is strategically problematic.
Lilith pointed to three other blocks and then said, "To your west is the western granary of the Seventh Agricultural District."
"That's where they're responsible for the maintenance of heavy agricultural machinery and fuel refining; the manager is Iron Lung," Hammond said.
"To the south lies the southern granary of the Seventh Agricultural War Zone. It boasts the planet's largest water cycle and algae cultivation center, controlled by Lady Vanessa, the 'Jellyfish.'"
"And to the north lies the granary of the north."
Lilith's finger stopped on that crimson area.
"It's also the largest high-energy military rations refining complex on the entire planet, and the person in charge there is known as the Butcher," said Bill.
Seemingly noticing the confusion in Luo Wei's eyes, Lilith added, "I know what you're thinking. The Ninth Agricultural Zone, which fell a few days ago, does indeed have orbital elevators, responsible for receiving corpses and organic waste from the Nest City world."
"But it's merely the raw material input." The Ninth Agricultural Zone produces only semi-finished corpse starch slurry, containing highly toxic substances and unfiltered viruses.
"And your Seventh Agricultural War Zone's northern granary is the end of this process, responsible for receiving raw materials from the Ninth Agricultural War Zone and carrying out deep purification and detoxification."
"Then combine it with the wheat from the eastern granary under your jurisdiction and the algae from the southern granary. Finally, press it into standard rations for the Astronauts."
At this point, Lilith's eyes flashed with a cold light.
"In other words, the Ninth Agricultural War Zone is just a dumping ground for garbage," while the northern granary of your Seventh Agricultural War Zone is the real kitchen that controls the lifeline of finished grain products.
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"The two are related as upstream and downstream in the industrial chain."
"Therefore, if Butcher Bill goes wrong, if he adds some special ingredient to the refining tank, then the entire mortal auxiliary force of the sector will be wiped out."
Looking at the three flashing names, Luo Wei felt a sense of suffocation.
These guys were all supervisors of equal rank to him, in charge of the other three granaries in the Seventh Agricultural War Zone.
That's definitely not a minor character.
"The governor suspects all three of them?"
“That’s right.” Lilith put away the map, her face grim. “According to the court’s profile, the clues about the higher-ups at the Star Children’s Mutual Aid Association didn’t point to the slum’s sewers, but rather to the offices of these three supervisors.”
Hammond.
Vanessa.
"Bill."
Lilith read the three names again, as if reciting a death list.
"They control the fuel, water, and protein of the Seventh Agricultural Zone."
"If any of these three people were infected by the Zerg's Kiss of the Genestealer, or were simply high-ranking hybrids of the Star Child Cult—"
Before she could finish speaking, Luo Wei felt a chill run down his spine.
This is more than just simple infiltration.
This was a meticulously planned hunt.
If these three forces had already fallen, then all the defenses that Luo Wei had previously undertaken were, at the strategic level, nothing more than a desperate struggle.
"As a result, before the net could even be cast, your place exploded." Lilith deactivated the holographic map projection. "I had just passed through your defense zone when I received the Governor's urgent orders, so I rushed here immediately."
Lilith then sighed helplessly.
"In order to suppress the psionic surge here, I had to release my psionic energy ahead of schedule, losing the opportunity to silently and completely eliminate them."
"Now, the cleanup plan has been forced to stop. Continuing the operation will only lead to failure, or even falling into a trap."
"This time, we can only watch them retreat into the shadows. Digging them all out again will be ten times more difficult and costly than before—"
At this point, Lilith changed the subject and patted the outer shell of the stasis field box.
"The passenger originally reserved for this thing" was none other than the alien leader of the "Star Child Mutual Aid Society" lurking in the shadows.
"The person filling this empty seat is a desperate mother who has just lost her child—"
Only then did Luo Wei learn what had happened behind the scenes.
The situation in the Seventh Agricultural War Zone was surprisingly complex.
"I'd like to talk to you about Mary," Rowe said, glancing at the stasis chamber.
"Why did she suddenly awaken? According to the records, she was just an ordinary textile worker. There were no records of psychics within three generations."
Nothing is impossible.
Lilith brought up a set of waveforms that she had just recorded.
"The awakening of psionicists often requires stringent conditions and comes at an extremely high price."
She gestured in the air, beginning to dissect this tragedy.
"The first is the psychological trauma. The pain of losing her husband is the first key."
"Secondly, there is intense physical pain."
"The induced labor you performed on her, followed by the memory-cleansing agent, not only dissolves her memories but also causes irreversible stimulation to her nervous system. This is the second key."
While outside, Lilith instructed her subordinates to put Mary into the stasis field box, and at the same time, she used the high-level privileges of the head of the guards to access all the surveillance footage in the basement.
She had a complete grasp of the situation here.
"Finally, and most importantly, that fifth-generation pureblood fetus is a natural psionic beacon."
Lilith stared at the pile of minced meat on the ground.
"It let out a shriek for help before it died, and a massive psionic pulse struck Mary's brain directly."
"With these three keys inserted simultaneously, coupled with the one-in-a-million latent psychic energy gene she inherently possesses—"
Lilith shrugged and said, "Bang, the door opened."
"A one in ten thousand chance, plus a one in a thousand coincidence, plus one hundred percent despair. And that's how we got a wild psionicist."
Lo Wei fell silent.
As a manager who is used to thinking with data and logic.
He had to admit that Lilith's analysis was impeccable.
This can be considered a miracle in terms of probability.
But in reality, it was a complete disaster.
Lilith put her gloves back on, covering the runes that symbolized power and restraint.
"I'll take her away immediately, along with all the relevant data here. To the outside world, this will just be a methane explosion. You understand what I mean?"
"Of course." Luo Wei bowed slightly.
"The eastern granary of the Seventh Agricultural Zone has never experienced a psionic rampage, nor have there been any gene stealers. We were just conducting a less-than-successful maintenance of the biogas pipeline."
"very good."
Lilith waved her hand.
Two bodyguards, clad in fully enclosed power armor, lifted the stasis field box.
Lilith stopped as she passed by Rowe.
She glanced around the lab and said, "Your methods are dirty, consultant."
"Unauthorized interception of high-risk alien samples in an attempt to analyze forbidden biotechnology. In the court's code, that's enough to send you to the stake ten times over."
Lowe did not attempt to defend himself.
Because the evidence is conclusive.
Explanation is meaningless.
"But I have to admit, you do possess an annoying survival skill. You're like—well, a cockroach in the bottom nest—always finding a way to survive in the dirtiest crevices."
With a respectful yet weary expression, Lowe replied, "Thank you for your kind words, Captain. I will strive to be the most resilient cockroach."
After a moment of surprise, Lilith remembered something.
"Oh, by the way, the governor asked me to tell you: she values results, but she can tolerate a little bit of oil stains that may be left behind in order to achieve those results."
However, please remember that the difference between assets and consumables often lies in whether they are controllable.
"Don't ruin yourself, Rowe. If you lose control because of greed, I won't mind cleaning up your mess myself."
After delivering that rebuke, Lilith threw in a "sweet date."
"Finally, prepare yourself mentally. You didn't just extinguish a pureblood larva; you extinguished a signal source."
Her tone became more forceful.
"The sect leader lurking in the shadows must have sensed the excruciating pain of his bloodline being severed."
"To it, you are no longer just a stumbling block in its way, but a dead debt that must be repaid in blood."
"It will come for you. With its wrath and its kind."
"That's a future liability," Lowe replied calmly. "I'll include it in next quarter's risk assessment report."
Speaking of it.
Luo Wei's tense facial muscles relaxed slightly.
He gave a self-deprecating smile.
"Besides, according to the Ministry of the Interior's logic, creditors often hope their debtors live to a ripe old age more than debtors do. I'm currently a debtor burdened with a huge tithe quota."
"As a valuable asset under the Governor's name," I believe neither you nor the Governor would stand idly by and watch your property be snatched away by stray dogs.
Lo Wei bowed again.
"Under the protection of the two of you, my safety factor is probably much higher than the walls of this granary."
Faced with this calculated flattery, the coldness in Lilith's eyes lessened slightly.
Then he let out a cold snort from his nose.
"I will relay your words to the Governor."
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