Chapter Eighty-Four: Mass Production of Gas Masks!

Chu Xiao reached out and grasped the corner of Wang Lulu's coat, offering gentle reassurance. "It's all right! Everything I said is true! This is who you are!"
"You are the beautiful warrior in my heart!"
Normally, Chu Xiao was serious and reserved, but in front of Wang Lulu, he sometimes let his true nature slip through.
"Ah!" Wang Lulu let out a soft exclamation, then simply fell silent, realizing that the more she spoke, the more muddled things became.
Chu Xiao and his party returned to Pearl City.
Ji Kaicheng came out to greet them.
"Welcome back, Lieutenant General Chu, and your troops, victorious from the campaign!" Ji Kaicheng announced loudly.
The people who had been working looked up at his words, turning their gaze toward Chu Xiao and his group.
Recognizing Chu Xiao, who had been away for so long, they all dropped what they were doing and hurried over to welcome him.
"Lieutenant General Chu is back!"
"Are you all right? You look thinner! And tanned!"
"Lieutenant General Chu has returned! Everyone, come and see—he comes back triumphant!"
...
The crowd called out in excitement, while Chu Xiao did his best to maintain the composure of a leader.
"Hello, everyone!"
"Please, get back to work—there's no need to welcome me!"
"Tonight, everyone gets an extra meal!"
With those words, Chu Xiao completely ignited the people's enthusiasm.
In times like these, an extra meal meant extra meat. During wartime, it was already a blessing to have enough to eat, let alone meat!
Now there would be meat! People immediately threw themselves into their work with renewed vigor—meat was their motivation!
Chu Xiao's lips curved into a smile, revealing gleaming white teeth. "I'll leave this matter to General Ji—there shouldn't be any problem, right?"
Ji Kaicheng felt a pang of regret, but with his superior present, he could only comply.
"As you command!"
"Good. Now, come with me to the office to report on the situation," Chu Xiao said, striding ahead.
Ji Kaicheng hurried to catch up.
Inside the office.

A man in uniform stood straight and tall in the center of the room, reviewing the documents in his hands.
"While you were away from the city these past few days, everything has been fine. But there is one point of concern: Hades' machines have approached our fortress several times. They haven’t attacked, but have loitered at a distance—about ten kilometers away."
Ji Kaicheng had not dared to act rashly, choosing instead to wait for Chu Xiao’s return before making a decision.
Chu Xiao found this a little unexpected.
"This is certainly worth noting! But most likely, Hades is sending someone to watch us. Fortunately, we didn’t set out from this direction this time, or there would have been trouble! Still, Hades is not without cunning."
"This time, Hades must have expected to take Oqiang easily, but now that it hasn’t fallen, he’s surely come up with a new plan."
Ji Kaicheng was alarmed. "What plan?"
Chu Xiao leaned back in his seat, a troubled look on his face.
"I suspect that next time, he’ll attack all four countries at once, keeping them separated so that none can support each other."
"In that way, he could easily conquer one nation."
"What should we do?" Ji Kaicheng was at a loss. If Hades really did this, every nation would be in grave danger.
Chu Xiao shook his head. "For now, I have no solution."
"The best course is to strengthen each nation, so every one can stand against Hades alone. That way, no matter what schemes he devises, he can’t break through."
"For now, at least, Hades doesn’t think as deviously as humans do—he hasn’t thought of gas bombs or biological weapons. Otherwise, those unable to defend themselves would be doomed."
As Chu Xiao finished, a sudden thought struck him.
"Wait! Hold on!" His once languid eyes flashed sharply. "Quickly notify the other three nations to begin mass-producing gas masks!"
"We need them, too! Every citizen must have one, and every soldier must carry one into battle!"
"As for food, we must implement strict anti-contamination measures as well!"
Chu Xiao’s rapid instructions left Ji Kaicheng a bit bewildered.
"Didn’t you just say Hades wouldn’t think of that for now?"
"Don’t forget, he has his lackey Louis at his side. Even if Hades can’t come up with it, Louis will—sooner or later! A traitor always gets his reward for treachery!" Chu Xiao sneered coldly.
At the mention of Louis, the chill in Chu Xiao’s gaze deepened further.
In both this life and the last, were it not for Louis, things would never have come to this!
Even now, he could have eliminated Hades, but instead chose to serve him as a lackey, betraying his own people!
Such a crime deserves death!
Who now could hear that name without hatred?

"Yes, sir! I’ll see to it right away!" Ji Kaicheng was about to withdraw when Chu Xiao suddenly remembered something and called after him.
"Wait—don’t forget to arrange the extra meal for everyone!"
Ji Kaicheng felt his lips twitch uncontrollably.
Could his superior hold a grudge any more?
"Yes, sir! I won’t forget!"
Inwardly, Ji Kaicheng sighed—tonight, it looked like he wouldn’t be getting any sleep.
The three nations—America, Oqiang, and Northsand—were all deeply shocked when they received the news.
America.
Mucus received the message. Though surprised, he quickly regained his composure.
"What do you all think?" Mucus asked the assembled senators for their opinions.
They looked at one another uncertainly. The reason given by Kyushu for spreading this news was unconvincing—just a suspicion, yet everyone was being urged to expend manpower and resources to manufacture gas masks. It seemed unreliable.
Clearly, no one was very willing.
Oden, by virtue of his outstanding achievements, had also become a senator, holding a high position.
The group whispered among themselves, but no one spoke up.
Mucus slammed his palm onto the table, leaving a dent in the surface.
"Enough! Silence! If you have something to say, say it aloud! Stop whispering!"
Though Mucus’s voice was not loud, there was an unmistakable chill and anger in his tone.
The room fell silent; no one dared utter another word.
Seeing this, Oden rose to speak. "I think Kyushu has a point. I know Louis—he’s cunning and despicable. Sooner or later, he’ll offer up some idea to curry favor, and it won’t benefit us. Gas bombs and biological weapons are the hardest to guard against. If they’re released into the air, it’s all too easy to breathe them in by accident."
"Therefore, we must be extremely careful to protect our food and water supplies."
No one dared object after Oden spoke.
Mucus lowered his eyes, his expression unreadable.
The others kept silent, waiting for the leader to issue his command.
After a long while, Mucus suddenly looked up. "Begin production of gas masks. Institute strict protection for food and water supplies. Also, gather experts in bacteriology and virology to form an antidote team—keep them under secret protection, in case of emergency!"