Chapter 110: Discussion and Attention

“Do you know?” a man said with a mysterious look, as if he had learned some earth-shattering secret.

This was a residential district where a bunch of bored people were chatting in the shade of the trees. Seeing Huang Xiaosha, who had just returned, acting so mysteriously, he naturally attracted the attention of a group of elderly men and women. Even some young people gathered around.

One of the old men said disdainfully, “Huang Xiaosha, I watched you grow up. What secret could you possibly have? You’re just putting on a mysterious act again.” He laughed loudly, “Isn’t it just you bragging again about returning from the place destroyed by that beast, and then praising that beast to the skies to show off your bravery? Let me tell you, it’s useless. The girl from the Fang family won’t fall for you because of that.”

“Hahahaha…” Everyone nearby burst into laughter.

Huang Xiaosha looked embarrassed and said, “Uncle Lu, watch your mouth. I’m twenty-eight this year. If I don’t consider it now, in this environment, I’ll probably stay a bachelor for the rest of my life.” Then the embarrassment on his face vanished, replaced by excitement, and he said, “I did indeed just come back from that place.”

The others started rolling their eyes. Here we go again… another one of his bragging sessions.

However, people these days were bored out of their minds. Since a large amount of industry in Xiang A City had been relocated, the number of people losing their jobs kept increasing. Many service industries had halted, and shops cut off from supplies had closed one after another. In the entire Xiang A City, at least half the people were unemployed. Being familiar with Xiang A City and with the outside being chaotic, most people chose to stay in the district and chat with their neighbors. Naturally, gossip flew everywhere, from the heads of one family to the feet of another, sparing not even a single hair on their bodies.

Therefore, even though Huang Xiaosha bragged every day, and people knew he was lying, many still pricked up their ears to listen.

Huang Xiaosha got excited. “Do you know what Fierce Beast appeared in the South District Square just now? You don’t, right? Let me tell you, it was a Level Four Fierce Beast Rhinoceros Beast. My god, its arm wasn’t just as thick as my thigh; my whole body was only the size of its leg. Standing in front of it was like standing in front of a small mountain.”

A young man nearby chuckled and muttered, “Huang Xiaosha, just keep blowing hot air. If you stood next to it, wouldn’t it just gore you into meat paste with one horn? How could you still be here spitting saliva everywhere?”

Huang Xiaosha didn’t get angry like he usually did. Instead, he said with a grin, “It’s a metaphor, a metaphor, do you understand?” Ignoring the man, he continued, “You should have heard of the Rhinoceros Beast. It came here a few times a few days ago, didn’t it? The army was useless as hell; they could only come and clean up the mess after it destroyed a huge area. The destruction just now was astonishing. The entire South District Square was almost turned into ruins, and even those few skyscrapers were teetering on the brink.”

Among the people present, there were a few who had witnessed the destructive power of the Rhinoceros Beast, so no one refuted Huang Xiaosha’s words.

“As usual, the army sent out four armed helicopters, using machine guns and missiles all at once. But it was useless as hell; the Rhinoceros Beast was still roaring and crashing around everywhere.” Saying this, Huang Xiaosha couldn’t help but curse, “Damn it, are the people up there eating shit? It’s been months, and they still can’t produce any actual lethal weapons.”

After venting a bit, a mysterious expression finally appeared on his face. The crowd knew that the secret he was talking about was about to be revealed.

Sure enough, Huang Xiaosha said, “But, do you know what happened to the Rhinoceros Beast in the end? Let me tell you, someone punched it again and again, literally beating its head into meat paste, and it died right there in the South District Square.”

There was a buzz, and everyone below was dumbfounded. Many people shouted, “Keep lying! You’re just full of it! We can accept that the Rhinoceros Beast was killed, but killed with fists? Damn it, Huang Xiaosha, you’re really stretching it. No wonder Old Man Fang says you’re dishonest and not a steady guy, and won’t let his daughter marry you.”

Huang Xiaosha got anxious. “What I’m saying is true! Didn’t you hear the deafening shouts? That was the cheering for a hero. Let me tell you, it happened like this…”

Countless scenes like this were happening in the streets, alleys, and residential districts of Xiang A City. People who had watched the whole process from beginning to end spread the news at the fastest speed. In just two or three hours, anyone who didn’t know would think the news came from Mars. Those lucky enough to see it were surrounded by people, answering questions and spitting saliva as they recounted the situation.

It was satisfying; that was the shared feeling of everyone.

Since the Fierce Beasts landed, everything people heard and saw was the Fierce Beasts advancing like a hot knife through butter. If one city fell today, a town would be lost tomorrow. Everyone had had enough of this life, and they had even grown to hate this kind of news.

Perhaps the country had blocked some news. Under news control, many people in the rear had no way to understand the real situation. But for people living in frontline cities, news control was not very useful because they could see and hear it with their own eyes. Although Xiang A City had been a frontline city for over a month, people seemed to have had enough of this life during that time.

Walking on the street, a Fierce Beast might suddenly rush out, wreak havoc, and then leave. Or a massive Flying Fierce Beast might suddenly appear in the sky, drop a few balls of fire or light, flatten some buildings, and then fly away. If one didn’t suffer this unexpected disaster, they were lucky; the unlucky ones would be injured at best, or lose their lives at worst.

Throughout the city, the sirens of ambulances could be heard every day, with injuries and deaths occurring daily.

Given all these reasons, it was easy to see how excited the people, who had been suppressed for too long, were upon hearing that this Rhinoceros Beast had been beaten to death, especially after the news was confirmed. This was the kind of news they wanted. Only this kind of news would allow them to see more hope.

In an instant, the whole city seemed to boil over. People ran around telling each other, enjoying this uplifting news.

It seemed that Huang Dazhuang’s Fierce Beast Form was no longer five and a half meters tall, but ten meters, twenty meters. It seemed that the distance Zhou Liming leaped was not twenty or thirty meters, but one hundred meters, two hundred meters… and then he flew. Many people knew it might be an exaggeration, but they just liked the feeling of this exaggeration.

With the arrival of the X Squadron and the official data provided, Lv Guangrong naturally paid special attention to the X Squadron. He also wanted to know what the soldiers given such great power and praised so highly by the state were really like. Were they, as the higher-ups claimed, the hope of humanity and the foundation of the country’s survival in this disaster?

Lv Guangrong was born during a certain movement, so his name naturally carried the characteristics of that era.

Later, the N Gang was overthrown, but Lv Guangrong never thought about changing his name to something nicer. Although his name was rustic and full of the flavor of the era, Lv Guangrong knew that many big shots liked his name. Naturally, with the help of his father, who was a Major General at the time, he gradually rose to the same position as his father. Being able to become a Lieutenant General, the word “glory” in his name deserved much of the credit.

It was precisely because he was paying attention to the X Squadron that when he received a report that a Fierce Beast had appeared in the city, he did not hesitate to notify the X Squadron. He wanted to see their combat capabilities and what they were really like.

The armed helicopters had cameras, which allowed Lv Guangrong in the rear command center to clearly see every move happening in the South District Square.

From the appearance of Huang Dazhuang and the other two to Huang Dazhuang’s instant evolution and transformation, Lv Guangrong was no longer like a general. He was like an ordinary person, feeling shocked. He stood up abruptly from his chair, not even noticing that he had knocked it over, his eyes fixed on the screen.

The terrifying power brought him a shock that could be imagined.

He finally understood why the higher-ups gave countless praises to these people called Fierce Beast Warriors. He didn’t understand what a Fierce Beast Warrior was at first, but the moment Huang Dazhuang entered his Fierce Beast Form, he knew. The X Squadron was indeed worthy of being a special forces unit; its difference far exceeded everyone’s imagination.

The abilities Zhou Liming displayed in his ordinary form, although less shocking than Huang Dazhuang’s form in Lv Guangrong’s eyes, were on a deeper level more formidable than Huang Dazhuang, and more in line with the aesthetic views of most people.

People didn’t want the hero in their hearts to be a transformed gorilla beast, did they?

Until the Rhinoceros Beast was killed, Lv Guangrong was still immersed in the violent beauty of that power.

If one were to say what makes politicians and generals different from ordinary people or ordinary soldiers, it is probably their sensitivity to situations and their grasp of the current situation, which far exceeds that of ordinary people and soldiers. To stand at a high position, there are certainly some incompetent people, but more are the best of the best; otherwise, on what grounds do they stand higher than ordinary people?

People, heroes…

These two phrases made Lv Guangrong realize something. He stared at the screen, then walked back and forth with his hands behind his back, constantly blending these two words together in his mind. His intuition told him that within these two phrases, there were many things he could grasp and manipulate.

To climb to the position of general, background alone was not enough; one also needed an exceptional mind.

Lv Guangrong was able to serve as a Lieutenant General before the age of fifty, which made him one of the younger ones in the military. It was not only due to his family’s efforts but also related to his own brilliant mind. Being sent to the provincial capital of Xiang Province to serve as Commander during the country’s crisis was proof that he had real substance in the eyes of the central government and could shoulder heavy responsibilities.

Therefore, as long as he was given an opportunity, the rank of General might be within his reach.