After Ye Fan eliminated the enemy forces invading the southeastern seas, the overall strategic situation greatly improved.

Next, he only needed to deal with the enemies in the south and west.

Currently, these two groups of enemies have completely halted, spreading out to avoid the fate suffered by those concentrated and destroyed by the lightning storm. Hence, they are difficult to target for now.

South Island is considered an old base, but there are many Qin Han People there, and Ye Fan does not wish for countless fellow countrymen to accompany these foes to the grave.

Thus, the battle has temporarily ceased, with both sides awaiting the arrival of the White Eagle Country's forces.

......

Two days later, at South Island.

A mighty fleet dispersed across the southern seas, with one ship arriving at the southernmost military port of South Island.

After nearly a month of arduous journey, the people from the western continent finally arrived.

Led by the White Eagle Country, the western continent's army piloted over five hundred giant vessels, finally reaching the territory of Qin Han.

The ships scattered across the southern seas, apparently deterred by the lightning assaults of the Dawn Army.

Only one ship discreetly docked at South Island.

Liu Jingyan brought a group to welcome the representatives from the White Eagle Country.

They made their way to the base city on South Island, beginning discussions on the current situation.

Liu Jingyan initially held little hope, as he believed the Dawn Army was now invincible.

The terrifying lightning strikes seemed beyond human resistance, and he doubted the White Eagle Country could produce any surprises.

But upon meeting the people from the White Eagle Country, he sensed something amiss.

The representative from the White Eagle Country was named George, a Level 2 Mutant, who seemed unremarkable.

However, the people accompanying him startled Liu Jingyan.

Beside George were more than a dozen scientists, exchanging greetings with Dr. Ouyang and others, indicating familiarity among them.

Apart from these scientists, there were over a hundred masked individuals.

These people remained silent, sitting like statues, not moving even a bit.

This was very unreasonable; normal people would move for various reasons when sitting—adjust their posture for comfort, scratch an itch, or cough.

Yet these people did none of that, sitting like stones, without any response, appearing very strange.

Dr. Ouyang spoke to Liu Jingyan at this point.

"Mr. Liu, here, let me give you a solemn introduction."

Liu Jingyan immediately straightened up, looking at George, thinking he would be the first introduced.

But Dr. Ouyang first introduced a white-haired foreign elder.

"This is Peilan, a scientist from the White Eagle Country's 51 Company, and also my direct superior."

"Ah! Your... your superior?"

Liu Jingyan was a bit dumbfounded, wondering how someone as obsessed with science as Dr. Ouyang could have a superior.

And what is this 51 Company organization?

Seeing Liu Jingyan's confusion, Dr. Ouyang continued: "Mr. Liu might not know 51 Company, but you should have heard of the White Eagle Country's Area 51."

Liu Jingyan nodded; he had heard of this mysterious organization, rumored to specialize in researching extraterrestrial visitors and other enigmatic events.

"51 Company evolved from Area 51; in fact, before the apocalypse, Area 51 wielded considerable power. We are all scientists from Area 51."

"How did Area 51 turn into a company?" Liu Jingyan asked.

Dr. Ouyang smiled: "That's a long story. Normally, others cannot know our secrets, but now you have the qualifications due to your position becoming key to determining the outcome of this war. So, sharing this with you is permissible."

Dr. Ouyang continued: "Three years before the apocalypse began, Area 51 discovered extraterrestrial visitors and established contact, acquiring an advanced technology from them."

"I won't explain the technical details; even if I did, you wouldn't understand. You just need to know that the meteor shower before the apocalypse was man-made."

"Ah! Man-made?" Liu Jingyan was a bit flabbergasted; what kind of technology could control a meteor shower?

Moreover, this technology is excessively cruel, wiping out more than 95% of humanity in the world.

These scientific fanatics, are they madmen?

Perhaps noticing the discomfort on Liu Jingyan's face, Dr. Peilan spoke up from the other side.

Dr. Peilan had a pair of sea-blue eyes. When one looked into them, they would feel as if they were gazing into the abyss—distant, profound, and inexplicably dangerous.

"Mr. Liu, don't you think that the world before the apocalypse was too crowded? People were everywhere, and of incredibly low quality. People were greedy, selfish, ignorant, cruel, arrogant, foolish... The environment of this planet was severely damaged, industrial fumes and household waste were ubiquitous, and even nuclear waste water. Sea levels rose, glaciers melted, land became desertified, and people lived in overcrowded cities, living like ants and dying like cockroaches every day..."

Liu Jingyan initially wanted to refute these words, but as he looked into Peilan's eyes, he inexplicably began to agree with him.

Yes, indeed, these problems existed and were worsening.

This planet was no longer beautiful, and human-caused disasters were occurring continuously as humanity reaped what they had sown.

Peilan's persuasive words continued.

"The universe is vast and boundless, yet humans on this planet have no capability to leave it. Their very existence accelerates the planet's destruction. What we've done is actually to save this planet."

"The essence of the world is also a law of the jungle, survival of the fittest. So, we launched this salvation action to let this world undergo a natural selection. Since this species is no longer fit to rule the world, wouldn't it be better to create a new species?"

"What? Create a new species? How would you create it?" Liu Jingyan's eyes widened with astonishment; Peilan's words had already overturned his understanding.

Peilan shrugged slightly: "Don't be so surprised, Mr. Liu. This species is actually already around us, only you haven't realized it yet. For instance, the mutants—why are they called mutants? Their genes have mutated, transformed by the Crystal Core. Although they retain a human appearance, their cellular activity fundamentally differs from humans. So, biologically speaking, they are already a new species."

"And this species is different from the past. They no longer depend on a lot of high-tech things, nor do they need agricultural chemicals, chemicals, food additives, or genetically modified food. Wouldn't the world become more beautiful without these?"

Liu Jingyan looked at Peilan in shock: "Are you saying the mutants are your chosen new species?"

Unexpectedly, Peilan shook his head: "No, they are just one option. For the true species, we have more perfect considerations."

"What other species? Different from humans before the apocalypse?"

At this point, Peilan stood up and gestured to over a hundred people who had been standing motionlessly by his side.

In an instant, these individuals stood up and removed the masks from their faces.

Liu Jingyan was stunned, his mouth agape.

For these people's eyes were blood-red.

Their faces, either ashen or blue-skinned, all testified to their differences.

These were not humans, nor were they just mutants. They were all Corpse Kings.

Liu Jingyan stepped back in fright: "Th-this... How can there be so many Corpse Kings? Where did they come from?"

Peilan laughed heartily: "Can't you tell from their hair and skin color? These people hail from all over the world. Some are white, some are black, and others are of brown races. They are all incredibly powerful Corpse Kings, merely collected by me."

"Did you think the alliance of countries worldwide was just about military planning? No, you're wrong. We also prepared a second plan, which is to capture the Corpse Kings."

"Except for the Corpse Kings within Qin Han's territory, we've captured nearly all detectable Corpse Kings worldwide."

"Don't give me that astonished look; this isn't something particularly hard to achieve. With how fast technology is progressing, capturing Corpse Kings is feasible if you're willing to spend the effort and costs. Ye Fan had done similar things long ago—why wouldn't we succeed?"

Liu Jingyan couldn't help but gulp: "Why did you capture so many Corpse Kings?"

"For two purposes: one, to ensure the continuation of the new species; two, to oppose Ye Fan."

"Don't you think Corpse Kings are the perfect new species? Compared to mutants, their material needs are even lower, almost to the point of needing nothing. This makes them the most suitable for protecting the planet's environment."

"Moreover, the intelligence of the Corpse Kings is starting to awaken. The higher the level of the Corpse King, the higher their intelligence. If we train them diligently, they will eventually replace humanity."

"And dealing with Ye Fan is a temporary need. Nowadays, the Dawn Army is rampant and disrespectful to everyone. Let's see if the Dawn Army can deal with these Corpse Kings."

Liu Jingyan wanted to speak about the might of the Dawn Army, but Peilan stopped him.

"Do you know why your South Island hasn't been struck by Ye Fan's lightning attacks? It's because his compatriots are here, and he can't bring himself to do it. Now, I am going to release these hundred-plus Corpse Kings. They are all immensely powerful, each able to control five million corpses. When these Corpse Kings wreak havoc on Qin Han's lands and attack their base cities, what do you think Ye Fan will do?"

After saying this, Peilan, Dr. Ouyang, and their colleagues couldn't help but laugh heartily.

Looking at these mad-eyed scientists, Liu Jingyan knew that there was no turning back for him.

And Ye Fan's mighty Dawn Army would face its greatest trial yet.

Once these Corpse Kings were unleashed, calamity was sure to follow, inevitably entangling with the Qin Han survivors.

Could their nukes, their lightning storms, be used on their own territories? On their fellow countrymen?