"Mom, what is Superman Uncle doing?" Lucy stood outside the kitchen, curiously pointing at Anthony sitting cross-legged in the courtyard, asking Lynn.
Lynn raised a finger to her lips and whispered, "Lucy, Uncle is practicing. Keep your voice down, so you don't disturb him."
"Mom, what is practicing?" Lucy tilted her head in confusion.
"Practicing is like learning martial arts to fight bad guys," Lynn explained after a moment of thought.
"Then Lucy wants to learn martial arts too!" Lucy exclaimed excitedly.
Just as the mother and daughter were conversing, a gentle male voice chimed in, "Why do you want to learn martial arts?"
Lucy immediately turned her head and saw that it was Anthony. Her chubby little face lit up even more, and she smiled, saying, "After Lucy learns martial arts, I can protect Mom and Uncle."
"I'm sorry for interrupting you," Lynn apologized with a sheepish smile.
Anthony shook his head and smiled, "I just finished my practice. It's alright." He then lowered his head and playfully ruffled Lucy's hair, adding, "When you grow up, Uncle will teach you."
As they spoke, the base gate suddenly opened. Dash, accompanied by Cheryl and Verna, walked in looking tired and disheveled. Especially Dash, he threw a small cloth bag toward Anthony, then collapsed onto the couch with a sigh, saying, "I'm exhausted today." He chuckled and continued, "But the harvest is not bad. Take a look, young man."
"Oh? Well, I've got to see what goodies you've managed to get, old man!" Anthony, under the expectant gaze of Dash, Cheryl, and Verna, immediately opened the cloth bag and began counting. There were three transparent zombie crystals, about 200 various-sized regular gray zombie crystals, and over 50 mutant zombie crystals. This was undoubtedly a great harvest.
"Not bad, we're having an extra meal tonight!" Anthony instructed Lynn with a smile. He then looked at Dash and said, "By the way, old man, there's something I need your help with."
"Spill it out, kid," Dash grinned.
Anthony went straight to the point, "Annabelle and Lynn joined the base not long ago. In order to develop their combat abilities quickly, I hope you can also teach them the cultivation method of the Qi Absorption Technique."
Dash waved his hand dismissively, "No big deal. Anything else?"
"Well, there's also your Hard Qi Gong and Diamond Fist," Anthony said somewhat sheepishly.
"No problem. Today, just make me a couple more meat dishes," Dash replied nonchalantly.
Since they had already joined the Dawn Base, there was no issue sharing their skills. Moreover, it was a way to contribute and spread their inherited martial arts knowledge, which he was quite pleased about.
After dinner, the group gathered in the gym. Dash stood at the front, cleared his throat, and began, "The Diamond Fist is essentially a technique that concentrates inner energy at one point and then releases it explosively in an instant. Learning it is not difficult, but the challenge lies in controlling your inner energy."
"I'll demonstrate it for you first." Dash pointed at Anthony and said, "You, come up here and practice with me. We'll also test the results of your Hard Qi Gong."
"No problem!" Anthony's eyes lit up, and he immediately stood up and approached. His inner energy in the dantian had already formed a habit of self-defense, making it a perfect opportunity to test it out.
"Hehe, get ready, young man. This punch carries fifty years of my skill," Dash grinned.
"Go!" Anthony steadied his body and silently circulated his inner energy.
Dash didn't hold back either. He slightly retracted his right arm to gather power, and a faint golden light continuously gathered on his fist. Once he was fully charged, he suddenly punched Anthony's abdomen. "Diamond Fist!" The impact unleashed a burst of energy, accompanied by a booming sound.
"Come!" Anthony retracted his Level 2 Venom Armor and braced himself, tensing his abdominal muscles before meeting the fist with his body. A gust of powerful energy spread out, slightly staggering Verna and Cheryl, who had practiced Qi Absorption Technique, but Annabelle and Lynn, both regular people, were blown backward.
After the punch, Dash withdrew his fist and stood up straight. Anthony, on the other hand, had a slightly flushed face, and the resonating feeling in his abdomen hadn't completely subsided. He took a few deep breaths, silently circulated his inner energy, and finally breathed a sigh of relief. His complexion returned to normal as he looked at Dash with admiration, saying, "Impressive punch!"
"Not bad yourself, kid. You managed to withstand about eighty percent of my power head-on. That's not easy. It seems it's time for me to teach you the second part of Hard Qi Gong," Dash laughed heartily.
The two of them exchanged a few more words, and then Dash turned to the group and said, "Now, do you all understand?"
Cheryl and Verna nodded, seemingly grasping the concept. However, Annabelle and Lynn remained confused. As ordinary people, they couldn't fully comprehend the intricacies involved.
"Alright, I'll proceed with the explanation now," Dash said, launching into a detailed explanation of the power-generating techniques. He would save teaching Annabelle and Lynn for later.
"When punching, gather your inner energy into the fist. The punch should utilize your waist and stance together, combining the strength of your entire body into one force. This can result in damage three or even four times stronger than your natural strength. With the addition of inner energy, it can be increased further. Even an ordinary person can generate a force of a thousand kilograms or more."
"But you guys are far from that point. The fact that you can produce double your strength is already something to be grateful for," Dash concluded with a grin.
Meanwhile, at the Survivors Base in ChuDu City, in the Central Command Center, a meeting room with a table over five meters long was occupied by uniformed generals seated neatly in a row. They sat as straight as pine trees, their upper bodies upright.
After a few minutes, a white-haired old man walked into the meeting room. Instantly, the generals inside the command room stood up, saluting respectfully.
The white-haired old man stood at the front of the table, reciprocated the salute, and then motioned for everyone to sit down.
The group quickly took their seats in an orderly manner. Seeing this, the white-haired old man nodded in approval, and then said in a calm tone, "Now, the situation across the country is dire. As the exemplar of ChuDu City Military District, we must achieve even more outstanding results in fighting against the zombies."
At this point, the white-haired old man's voice paused, and his expression turned serious. He continued, "According to the current intelligence, these zombies have begun to evolve. There are now five known levels of zombies: Regular, Regular Mutant, First Tier, Second Tier, and Third Tier. These zombies possess formidable individual combat capabilities, far surpassing the striking power of conventional firearms. Therefore, I am proposing the Human Doomsday Soldier Program, as suggested by Dr. Madden from the Military District's biochemical laboratory."
With a wave of his hand, he continued, "Wendy, show everyone the proposal."
"Yes, Commander." A stern-looking female officer behind the old man immediately distributed the documents she was holding to the various officers present. The document was not thick, only about ten pages long, but as they read further, the brows of the officers in the room furrowed deeper.
Until the end, a middle-aged officer stood up and said, "Commander Ervin, I disagree with this plan."
"This is tantamount to playing with human lives. I refuse to subject our soldiers to such unethical experiments!" Another officer stood up in agreement.
"Hmm." Ervin nodded and then glanced at the thirty-plus officers in the room. He calmly said, "Generals Herbert and Jude have already expressed their opinions. What about the rest of you?"
The others exchanged uncertain glances. Finally, another middle-aged officer stood up and stated, "I agree with this plan."
Ervin's calm face revealed a hint of satisfaction. He asked in a composed tone, "Please explain your reasons."
The middle-aged officer nodded and began, "First, according to reports from subordinate legions, the number of our soldiers dying is increasing rapidly. On the battlefield, it takes several hundred soldiers to eliminate a single First Tier mutant. Such casualties are too great for us, and I don't want our warriors to sacrifice so easily."
"Secondly, regarding the experiments, I believe we can offer the laboratory soldiers who are severely injured, disabled, or near death. I believe that compared to death, everyone would prefer to strive for even the tiniest bit of hope."
"Thirdly, considering the nature of those people from overseas, I suspect they might have initiated experiments earlier. In future wars, individual combat or even super-soldier team operations will become mainstream, perhaps even deciding the outcome."
At this point, the middle-aged officer took a deep breath and continued, "A hundred years ago, we lagged behind and suffered. Today, the Earth is facing an unprecedented crisis and opportunity. I agree with the plan!"
"Very well!" Ervin exclaimed. The other officers began standing up one by one, their faces filled with excitement as they expressed their agreement. As leaders of the millennia, how could they miss such a golden opportunity?
Amidst the chorus of approval, an untimely voice once again spoke up. "General Llewellyn, as a senior commander, I find it hard to believe that such a trivial proposition would come from your mouth."
Llewellyn's expression darkened. "Herbert, what do you mean?"