New Hope

Born jumped down from the combat vehicle and walked forward.

He made a slight sound of surprise. These two teams weren't entirely unfamiliar; they belonged to Stanley and Edwin, respectively.

After thinking for a moment, Born nodded at Emerson.

"Everyone, let's discuss this inside."

"The rest, clear out the zombies. Thanks for your hard work."

The group headed towards the exhibition hall in a grand procession.

However, only two representatives from the two teams stepped forward, while the rest helped Born's team clear out the zombies.

After all, their arrival had attracted the zombies, so they were partly responsible.

In the meeting room.

The representative from Edwin was a young man named Frank.

The representative from Stanley was named Russ.

Both spoke simultaneously as soon as they entered.

"Born, you are the leader of the Dover City shelter. Our leaders have no intention of opposing you. We come in good faith and wish to cooperate with you."

"I represent Mayor Stanley, and we share the same intention."

Then they clapped their hands, and their attendants brought forward two iron boxes.

The boxes were opened.

One box was filled with precious tobacco and alcohol, while the other contained bullet casings, crop seeds, and evolution cores.

These were all valuable resources in the apocalypse.

While tobacco and alcohol might seem trivial, the factories producing these items were gone.

When such items are truly scarce, people will miss them dearly.

For example, Emerson, an old smoker, doesn't yet feel the pinch. But in a while, when there are no cigarettes, he will realize their worth.

As for bullet casings, they could be used to make ammunition once gunpowder was obtained, making them extremely valuable.

Born frowned slightly and asked softly, "Why do you want to cooperate?"

Frank, evidently more articulate, exchanged a glance with Russ before smiling and saying, "Both of our leaders believe that Star Labs remains a significant threat."

"They are very strong. If things remained peaceful, it would be fine, but the trip to the Red Sea Tavern made it clear that their aim is not just to purge zombies but also to eliminate any dissent."

Aileen had previously mentioned that she wanted only one voice in Dover City to facilitate their plans.

This woman was very goal-oriented.

Her digging into Born's past showed how serious she was.

If they didn't act now, Star Labs was likely preparing for something big.

Once Star Labs made their move, it would probably be a devastating strike, targeting and dismantling each of the three factions one by one.

"The chairman's idea is simple. We each send a hundred men and cooperate to break through Star Labs. The resources will be divided into three parts. As for Aileen and her scientists, controlling them is the best option."

Frank coughed and took a sip of water, observing Born's reaction out of the corner of his eye.

Born had gathered some information.

There were about ten survivor settlements in Dover City, but only the three factions could muster a thousand people each.

Star Labs, however, was too mysterious. No one knew how many people they had in that building.

Edwin and Stanley were both highly capable.

About eighty percent of the survivors in Dover City were under their control.

This made it increasingly difficult for Born's group to find resources.

However, the three factions had a tacit understanding not to encroach on each other's territories for supplies.

This was the first time they were considering cooperation.

Born was wary; in the apocalypse, people couldn't be trusted.

The mutual understanding between the three factions was merely to avoid unnecessary conflicts.

Now, cooperation meant considering the possibility of being betrayed.

And targeting Star Labs was bound to be costly.

"I'm not sure if you realize, but Star Labs' security teams possess powerful abilities, and they have methods we don't understand."

"They have a type of smoke grenade that can attract zombie hordes. Their combat training is top-notch, and they also have Type B and Type C zombie weapons."

Born laid out all the information he had gathered, showing his sincerity.

Even if the cooperation fell through in the end, he could still keep the resources brought by these two men with the help of this intelligence.

Frank's eyes darted around, and he smiled. "This information is indeed crucial, but we have also considered the difficulty posed by Star Labs."

"But Boss Born, do you dare to take a gamble?"

Born narrowed his eyes and looked at Frank.

Gamble on what?

It was about betting on the likelihood of Star Labs making a move against them.

Seeing Born's expression, Frank added more fuel to the fire.

"Being passive means falling behind."

"Are you going to sit and wait for death?"

"As you said, if they have smoke grenades that can attract zombies, just a few thrown at our three bases could lead to hordes of zombies overwhelming us..."

Frank paused, then leaned back in his chair with a smile, leaving Born to ponder the implications.

Born couldn't help but sigh. Indeed, he was tempted.

Besides, he also wanted to clarify what Aileen had mentioned earlier.

He was an orphan, but only recently discovered that his biological father might still be alive.

Regardless, he wanted to find out.

If Dudley was not his biological father, there would be no follow-up.

But if he was, Born wanted to find Dudley and ask how he could have been so heartless and cold to abandon his child for over twenty years.

He might have said it didn't matter, but he couldn't convince himself internally.

It was like a moth to a flame.

Even knowing it might be futile and unworthy, he still wanted to try.

Born took a deep breath and slowly asked, "When?"

Frank smiled and extended his hand to Born. "Pleasure to work with you."

"As for the timing, the chairman's idea is to clear out Star Labs before the spring, on the last day of January, to welcome new hope with the arrival of spring."

Born was taken aback.

Those words truly resonated with him.

Winter was very cold, colder than it had been in many years, with frequent heavy snow and everything withering.

Spring, bringing new hope.

Perhaps it was a moment everyone had been eagerly anticipating since the apocalypse began.

Born was no exception.

Spring, planting, the revival of all things.

"Spring is good, spring is good," Born murmured.

Then, scratching his head awkwardly, he asked, "How many days until the last day of January?"

Without a calendar, he hadn't been keeping track of time, living day by day.

Frank stumbled, his smile freezing.

He pulled out an electronic calendar and handed it to Born.

It displayed: 1.28

"Boss Born truly is unique. January 31st, at 7 AM sharp, we will gather outside Star Labs."

Frank smiled again.

Born extended his hand, shaking hands with both Russ and Frank.

"Pleasure to work with you."

"Pleasure to work with you, and may spring bring new hope."