The Hidden Secrets of Xinchang City: The Fallen Commander

Chen Xun hesitated for a moment, but after a brief silence, he decided to speak the truth.

"My ability is Grade A: the Seeker."

Chen Xun's eyes briefly glowed with a reddish light, giving him a seductive appearance. "I can see the information of all those with lower-level abilities than mine. For those one level higher, I can see part of their information."

"That includes some of the data within their shelters."

"Well, well, a spy, huh?" Chen Dafeng grinned. "Never thought there was such a talent. Tsk, your eyes are pretty nice, too. My sister would probably love those colored contacts."

Hearing this, Chen Xun's face drained of color. He instinctively took a few steps back.

"Relax, I didn't say I was going to take your eyeballs," Chen Dafeng lazily drawled. "So, by your logic, you can see my ability too, right?"

Chen Xun lowered his head and replied, "Yes."

Chen Dafeng smirked coldly. "So, you knew from the start that I could kill your boss? Or did you intentionally let me in to create a situation where we'd both get hurt, so you could rise to the top as the new leader of the Brave Alliance?"

Chen Xun lowered his head even more, not daring to speak.

"Ha, your luck's better than I thought," Chen Dafeng suddenly broke the silence after a few minutes. "My superior took an interest in you. He told me not to scare you."

"Tsk, you just got yourself a life."

Chen Dafeng stood up and patted Chen Xun on the shoulder.

At that moment, Chen Dafeng had heard Mike's voice in his ear: "Spare him, let him help you liberate Xinchang faster."

Chen Dafeng had never met Mike but had heard his voice during a prior internal meeting. He also knew that Jiang Xiaoci had instructed him before leaving that Mike had a unique ability to monitor what others were doing and could issue temporary commands when necessary.

Chen Dafeng didn't respond to Mike, but simply followed his instructions.

"Superior..." Chen Xun muttered, his body trembling lightly at the mention of the word, as if savoring it.

"You guessed right. I have someone above me. I'm not the boss," Chen Dafeng said, leaning toward Chen Xun with a smile. "I'm from Jinling. My superior is a commander there. Got it?"

He wasn't a local! No wonder he wasn't listed on the city's leaderboard!

Chen Xun took a deep breath. "Brother Xiong, I understand."

"You figured out my shelter's details?"

"No, I guessed."

"Smart," Chen Dafeng remarked, straightening up. He glanced at the survivors trapped by the defenders nearby. "I don't have much more to say. I have my rules: the chief criminal should be executed, and… something like that… I don't remember! Anyway, this old man is dead, and you all get to live, but you'd better listen!"

He pointed at Chen Xun, addressing everyone loudly. "From now on, he's your new leader. This place, the Brave Alliance, is liberated! Everyone answers to me now!"

"Whether you like it or not, that's the reality!"

Chen Dafeng turned back to look at Chen Xun. "I don't know much about your internal affairs, but here's a chance for you to handle things. Don't cause me any more trouble."

"Of course, you could also try to escape."

Chen Dafeng gave a lazy warning. "You can gamble and see if I have the means to chase you to the ends of the Earth."

With that, he turned and waved his hand, signaling that Chongshan should lead the defenders and himself temporarily out of the Brave Alliance.

Before leaving, he threw one last remark over his shoulder: "I won't be far. Get it done quickly, don't delay my next task!"

"Yes, Brother Xiong," Chen Xun said, bowing respectfully from a distance, his head lowered, his body trembling slightly.

It was fear, mixed with a tinge of excitement.

From the simple information Chen Dafeng had let slip, Chen Xun sensed something unusual. He saw a new opportunity. The powerful man in front of him was backed by an even greater force!

The person behind him had the power to intervene in neighboring cities like Jinling, suggesting that they had already achieved absolute unity within their own ranks!

Chen Xun wouldn't run out of fear—he was staying.

The Brave Alliance had already been destroyed by Chen Dafeng. He needed a new power to survive and even rise higher!

Chen Dafeng and the defenders found an open area, and soon, the convoy led by Qin Dashan arrived in the distance.

Still uneasy about Chen Dafeng, Qin Dashan kept the convoy close, ready to provide backup at any moment.

"Captain Chen!"

As the command vehicle came to a halt, Qin Dashan jumped out and quickly walked up to Chen Dafeng. "How did it go? What's the current situation?"

Chen Dafeng, lazily flipping through the city's chat channel, waved dismissively. "Chongshan, you handle the report."

It wasn't that Chen Dafeng disliked Qin Dashan, he just preferred not to deal with post-battle matters due to his usual lazy disposition.

"Yes, General."

After Chongshan briefed Qin Dashan, a patrol soldier came running with new information.

"There's a group of people coming, claiming they want to find Captain Chen."

"Is it Chen Xun?" Qin Dashan asked, glancing at Chen Dafeng before nodding to the soldier. "Bring them in."

"Yes."

Soon, the patrol soldier returned, leading Chen Xun and a few nervous-looking men and women into the convoy.

They kept looking around nervously, barely daring to breathe.

The area was surrounded by highly trained soldiers, each one exuding an intimidating presence far superior to the ragtag forces of the Brave Alliance.

Not to mention the various military vehicles parked along the street—tanks included. The massive iron beasts lay still under the sun, their black barrels ominously deep, like a dark abyss. The sight alone was enough to send a chill down one's spine.

This was no ordinary military force; it was a well-organized, heavily armed, modern army. In all of Xinchang, this was a powerful force!

Add to that the ancient warriors impervious to bullets and artillery, and a killer capable of taking down anyone of the same rank in an instant.

Just a few steps in, and the tension among the group grew palpable.

As Chen Xun had anticipated, this was a force not to be trifled with.

"Brother Xiong," Chen Xun said obediently as he stood before Chen Dafeng, lowering his voice, "Everything's handled. I've told everyone the general situation, and I persuaded many who were about to leave."

"Everyone wants to work with you, wants to pledge allegiance to you."

"Allegiance? Work? What nonsense!" Lu Nianxin, who had been listening, shot him a glare. "Our Captain Chen is the soldier of the superior. We don't pledge allegiance to anyone, only to the people!"

Chen Xun was taken aback. He looked at Lu Nianxin, then at Chen Dafeng.

Chen Dafeng, too, was staring at Lu Nianxin, surprised. It seemed like he was asking, Since when did you start speaking so officially?

Lu Nianxin lowered his voice to explain. "We're still on a mission; we must maintain the collective image of Jinling's disaster relief force. We can't let our superior lose face, or he might dock your points."

"Good point," Chen Dafeng nodded in agreement. He trusted Lu Nianxin's judgment, and it was definitely the right move.

"He's right. We all answer to the superior, and the superior answers to the people," Qin Dashan added, extending his hand to Chen Xun. "Hello, I'm Qin Dashan, the temporary deputy commander of the Jinling disaster relief special task force."

"This is Captain Chen Dafeng, the commander of this operation."

"We're from Jinling, authorized by the higher-ups to carry out disaster relief operations in Xinchang."

Chen Xun shook his hand, his earlier suspicions now confirmed. These people were legitimate forces, part of the government!

They weren't just survivors—they were official soldiers in the apocalypse.

As they spoke, Chen Xun cautiously asked, "Dare I ask... when you mentioned your superior, who exactly are you referring to?"

"The central government," Qin Dashan replied clearly. "The national army in the apocalypse, the ones who set up the nationwide commander system for the post-apocalypse."

"Ah, I see!" Chen Xun's eyes widened in realization.

These people were officially recognized military personnel!

Chen Xun thought for a moment and then asked, "Did the Xinchang commander send you?"

"No," Qin Dashan raised an eyebrow, then asked, "Do you know the Xinchang commander?"

"I… sort of do," Chen Xun glanced at Chen Dafeng, unsure whether to say more.

Chen Dafeng lazily responded, "Don't look at me. He may be the deputy commander, but he's the one who runs the show. I'm just here for the fighting."

Got it.

A fierce general paired with a calm supervisor—a perfect combination.

Chen Xun nodded, deciding to continue the conversation with Qin Dashan. After all, talking with Chen Dafeng was risky. One wrong word, and that man might just kill him.

"To be honest, I do know the Xinchang commander, but… we didn't communicate much."

Chen Xun paused, then spoke in a low voice. "I'm not sure about the situation in Jinling, but I suspect the Xinchang commander is quite strong. If he's managed to bring together talents like you, it seems like Jinling's internal chaos is already resolved."

"But Xinchang is different. The situation here is fragmented, with strong individuals from different factions controlling various parts of the city. The situation has gotten so bad that even different streets are divided, each controlled by a different person."

Chen Xun spoke carefully, gauging Qin Dashan's reactions. When he noticed Qin Dashan's furrowed brow, he pressed on.

"It's true that the commander system was announced late. If it had been introduced earlier, when the top talents in Xinchang hadn't yet emerged, maybe the commander would've had a chance to unite people."

"But the second month of the apocalypse saw the commander's disaster relief policy introduced, and by then, people were already scattered. Xinchang had already seen the rise of several powerful factions who refused to follow the commander's leadership."

Chen Xun was about to continue when Chen Dafeng suddenly interrupted, "Hold on, you're wrong!"

"According to our internal memos, the selection of commanders in each region involves strong individuals with a sense of justice. If no suitable candidates are found, several commanders from the same area are appointed to oversee the situation."

Chen Dafeng frowned. "If Xinchang only has one commander, that means his strength is considerable! How could he not last a week?"

"There's something off about this!"