Death Countdown.  

To combat the great catastrophe, it's necessary to concentrate the resources and manpower of the entire war zone and go all out. Whether now or in the future when assimilating other safe zones, they will face the same problem.

It's impossible for Clark to personally handle every faction in every safe zone. Arnold, Lynn, and Dirk must each be capable of standing on their own. Otherwise, what's the point of building influence and painstakingly cultivating team members? If you don't kill, others will think you're too timid to act and easy to bully.

In the midst of the apocalypse, kindness and benevolence will only be exploited by others as weaknesses. In order to protect their own interests, no one will let go, even in the face of death.

After Arnold and the others left, the crowd from the academy gathered again, different from the past when the two factions were at odds with each other. Faced with outsiders, both sides were preparing to cooperate for the first time.

"Everyone, what do you think about the crisis they mentioned?" The deputy head directly addressed the second-in-command of the student faction.

"To be honest, I think something might happen, but it shouldn't be as terrifying as they say."

"Yeah, probably just trying to scare us. Do they really think we're three-year-olds who have never seen the world?"

"Establishing a safe zone is fine, but it must be one of our people leading!"

"Yes! Who knows if what they're saying now is just to ensure our current treatment, and they might change their minds later!"

"With so many of us, fighting desperately will surely lead to our victory!"

The deputy head smiled, with Gerard currently in the hands of the opposing faction, it was actually a good thing. He feigned doubt and asked, "Aren't you afraid they might strike again? Even if we fight back, many of us might die, right?"

The awakened individuals present hesitated, recalling the terrifying punch from Arnold. "What are we afraid of! Have you all forgotten President Norm and the people from the Science Academy?"

"If it weren't for the strongest few of us going to the mountains today, these people wouldn't have dared to threaten us!"

"Exactly! Let's just forget about the mountains. Damn it, our territory has been taken over. Hurry up and call President Norm and his gang back!"

"That's one way to put it..."

An awakened girl, a rare sight among them, hesitated before speaking.

"But after calling them back, what if the monster from the mountains breaks out of the seal?"

When the awakened individuals heard about the mountain monster, a hint of fear flashed across their faces involuntarily.

"A monster breaking out is still better than the current situation!"

"After dealing with these people, we can join forces to force the monster back! The folks from the Science Academy can seal it once; they can seal it a second time!"

"But... the risk is really too great. Last time, nearly a hundred of us died."

"Damn it, we can't be blamed for the deaths! It's all because of those people outside!"

The deputy head observed the expressions of everyone and suddenly spoke.

"Actually, you all may have overlooked something."

He pretended to be mysterious, said it, and then stopped to see how others would react. However, most students didn't pay much attention to him.

"If you have something to say, say it. If not, hold your peace."

A student sneered at him, different from Gerard and Lenny's support. His role as deputy head didn't hold much weight now.

Seeing this, the deputy head felt a bit annoyed. The situation was becoming increasingly serious. Students who used to show him respect now treated him like nothing. If it weren't for the support of some student organizations in the leadership, these middle-aged people might have to fight for food with the ordinary students.

Ultimately, his political acumen surpassed that of the students. The deputy head kept a smile on his face, as if he hadn't heard the disrespectful comment. He slowly spoke:

"Do you remember what those outsiders said about the psychic nodes? You all know better than me how important psychic nodes are—they can enhance our abilities significantly!"

"If there's really a psychic node in the academy that we don't know about, I think we can pretend to agree to their plan."

"First, deceive them into revealing the location of the psychic node, then call President Norm and the others to take action!"

"Kill them!"

"Maybe, in fact, these people are giving us a tremendous opportunity."

The crowd, upon hearing this, exchanged glances, suddenly realizing that they had indeed overlooked this point.

Yeah, if they could really deceive them into revealing the location of the psychic node, it would be more important than anything else!

However, just as the words fell, a girl sitting in the corner, looking mature beyond her years, suddenly changed her expression. Seizing the opportunity of claiming to need the restroom, she hurriedly ran out.

Unnoticed, the awakened individuals in the academy excitedly began discussing along this line of thought.

"They brought a bunch of ordinary people with them, didn't they?"

"They can threaten us, so why can't we turn the tables? Absolutely, we can send a few people over to hold them hostage!"

"That Arnold, I've observed him. He may endure hits well, but his speed should be skill-enhanced."

"We can call President Norm back; the rest of them will be easy to deal with!"

"Exactly, that one who looks like a soldier, no need to worry. It's just some weird agility; his strength isn't much superior to ours!"

"Tsk, I think we should pay attention to the last girl who spoke. She seems to be an awakened individual too, but maybe her strength is so weak that I can't feel her aura."

"But she probably doesn't have much strength; otherwise, she would have made a move during the meeting."

Among the awakened individuals, a guy in sportswear pondered, his eyes showing a hint of excitement.

"So elegant and beautiful, and an awakened individual too."

"Much better than the girls in our academy!"

"You know... after we take care of these people, that girl..."

"Hahaha, just as I thought. I damn well want to taste it too. She looks arrogant; who knows if she's the same in bed?"

"Not just that girl; I noticed there are a few other little girls among them, and they look good too!"

Laughter erupted among the crowd, and everyone seemed to discuss the distribution of the "spoils" as if victory was already assured.

In the desolate and withering back mountains of the academy, faint roars emanated from the mountains. Norm, with an unpleasant expression, listened to the news relayed by the girl and glanced towards the back mountains with a flash of severity in his eyes.

It was 9:00 PM, and the conference room was well-lit with candles. The tables and chairs, previously damaged in the fight, had been replaced with new ones. Moreover, over ten girls were brought in to hold candles made of oil as makeshift lighting.

With only ten days remaining until doomsday, the scene resembled that of ancient court ladies lighting lamps, making everyone somewhat uncomfortable.