CHAPTER 376: CHAPTER 177: TIER 3, TIER 1

"So, you actually haven’t received a new appointment, right?"

Outside the 011 base, at the table, Chen Jian faced Jin Zhong, trying to speak in a relatively gentle tone.

"Yes, I haven’t received an appointment from Zhang... from the Saint, for the time being."

"However, he did explain to me in a private capacity."

"He means that the Guard Brigade I’m currently leading is still executing tasks and has important cooperation with you."

"If a reorganization were to occur now, it might adversely affect subsequent task execution."

"Therefore, he decided to temporarily keep the structure of the Fourth Brigade unchanged, which is also for the sake of cooperation between both parties."

Jin Zhong’s voice was calm, but Chen Jian could see obvious confusion in his eyes.

Clearly, although he wasn’t surprised by Zhang Tao’s reorganization actions, the decision to bypass the Fourth Brigade alone still left him somewhat puzzled.

Saying it’s "for the sake of cooperation" is just a transparent excuse, as there are many organizations collaborating with the Huaxia Army. Would Zhang Tao pause all his reform actions for this reason?

Evidently, that’s not the case.

Then there is only one answer.

For whatever reason, the Fourth Brigade has already been excluded.

Jin Zhong has been excluded.

Looking at Jin Zhong’s face, Chen Jian slightly shook his head.

In fact, even he himself did not expect that the opportunity he had been waiting for would come so quickly.

Originally, he was still a step away from incorporating Jin Zhong’s Guard Brigade.

Though not far, actually crossing this step wasn’t that simple.

But now, Zhang Tao’s bold reform actions had given Jin Zhong a strong push.

No matter how he acts in front of him, behind the scenes, he would certainly reflect on the significance of this "exclusion."

And as long as he entertained such thoughts, the rift between him and Zhang Tao, and the Mechanical God Sect would deepen increasingly.

Thinking of this, Chen Jian asked:

"Do you believe it yourself?"

After the words fell, Jin Zhong on the opposite side fell into silence.

After a long time, he finally replied:

"I don’t believe it."

"But, I can only choose to trust him."

"...Indeed."

Chen Jian was neither hurried nor impatient, as he hadn’t planned to persuade Jin Zhong on the spot.

Bringing him here and bringing up this issue was merely to let him have a preliminary mental preparation.

Chen Jian took a sip of the sweet water in his cup, made using carbon dioxide produced by the life-sustaining system, tasting like soda water with a hint of sugar.

Though somewhat unsubstantial, it barely compensated for the regret of not drinking carbonated beverages in this world.

Lightly exhaling a breath, Chen Jian continued:

"You actually don’t have many choices, what you can do is just go with the flow."

"However, I still hope you can clearly think through one issue."

"If what Zhang Tao wants to do entirely contradicts your expectations, what exactly can you gain?"

After saying this, the already silent Jin Zhong fell completely into confusion.

He could feel that Chen Jian’s words weren’t as simple as they seemed on the surface.

"Contradicts my expectations?"

What are my expectations?

My expectation is that he can correctly reorganize the Mechanical God Sect, uphold the belief in the Holy Trinity, be worthy of the believers, and be worthy of the people under the Holy Trinity’s protection.

But if he can’t do that, or simply doesn’t want to?

Jin Zhong looked up at Chen Jian, opened his mouth several times but eventually said nothing.

This question wouldn’t be so easily answered.

He sighed, picked up the cup, and drank it all at once.

The slightly pungent taste made him cough, and when he put down the cup again, Chen Jian was already standing.

"Anyway, think about it carefully."

"Of course, you don’t need to decide immediately."

"First observe more, do more—oh right, your team is almost rested, are you ready to start the next task?"

"We are always prepared."

Jin Zhong replied seriously.

"...This sentence has some meaning."

Chen Jian said humorously:

"But lacks a soul."

"Alright, let’s talk business."

"As I mentioned before, the main combat objective of your squad is still to ensure the safety of the human habitat in the Yangtze River Basin."

"This time, you are to go to Yanling City, kill two monsters besieging Yanling City, and evacuate the residents there to the Jingkou area."

"Evacuate?"

Jin Zhong asked incredulously:

"Has Yanling City been destroyed? Why evacuate?"

"No."

Chen Jian shook his head and replied:

"But according to reliable information we have, among the monsters attacking Yanling City, there is a level three monster."

"This monster can release a large amount of toxic liquid, which might negatively affect the surrounding ecosystem of Yanling City."

"And during combat, the pollution it might cause is even more uncontrollable."

"Therefore, I need you to evacuate as many residents as possible if conditions allow."

"This will cause significant pressure on Jingkou."

Jin Zhong frowned and said:

"Food might be insufficient, and living supplies might also be inadequate."

"Indeed."

Chen Jian sighed, and continued:

"This is the strategy of the Beast Tide. They attempt to distract us in various directions, including food and supplies."

"These issues should have been solved by Zhang Tao, but now, he is indulging in so-called power reforms..."

"Alright, I don’t need to complain to you about this, after all, I don’t have evidence to prove that what he’s doing is inevitably wrong."