In the deep black of Memphis’s pupils, endless swirling flames of red and orange were reflected. He watched the scene for a few more minutes, then turned his gaze away. All his complex emotions were now fully cleansed, replaced by the cold, calm indifference that had always defined him.
With a light push off the ground, Memphis returned to his familiar pickup truck, opened the passenger door, and calmly spoke to Wallflower, who was seated inside:
"This matter ends here. You should head back first. I have a few things left to do."
Wallflower looked at him calmly, silently observing Memphis' demeanor for over a minute before slowly asking:
Memphis let them curse him out for five minutes until they finally ran out of steam. Then, he calmly and coldly said:"There are four points. First, I’m not a hypocrite. I’m a villain. You made the mistake of trusting a villain—that’s your error, not mine. And mistakes come with consequences. I don’t have any responsibility for your poor choices.”“Second, the order to arrest you came before the release order. What happens first takes precedence. What comes after follows. These two orders target different groups, and my team only needed to carry out the arrests, not the release. That’s following proper procedure, not deceit.”“Third, the arrests were done openly. All my team members knew what they were doing and agreed to it. There was no coercion or secrecy involved. Whether anyone witnessed it or spread the word—I don’t care. If they want to talk about it, let them. I’m not stopping anyone.”“Fourth, though I’m not a righteous man, even righteous people only show kindness to their a
Hearing this, Memphis raised an eyebrow, intrigued by the odd properties of the plant. He couldn’t help but ask: “So, what do you plan to do with it?"Leroy responded excitedly:"I want to try boiling or roasting it, separating and condensing it into two distinct layers—liquid and solid—to see if I can isolate these effects. When we’re struggling to sleep, we could use the dizzying effect, and when we need to stay awake, we’d have the alertness effect.""What the hell is this? A mutated drug?" Memphis thought, shaking off the odd idea. Pointing to the people still wailing, he said calmly:"Do whatever you want, but I need you to find one or two more wild plants. They need to be common and have seeds that can be cultivated, or at the very least, be capable of being grown somehow. These people will be your assistants.""Understood."With that task assigned, Memphis turned to the nine captives and said: “Stop making noise. You won’t lose your lives here. Stay in this place for nine days,
The pickup truck quickly approached the area near Hope town, but it didn’t return to the base gate. Instead, it stopped at a residential complex about 500 meters away. This was the housing area Lionel had rapidly set up to accommodate over 500 people from Sunny Hills.Though the night was growing dim under the moonlight, supplies continued to come and go. The rooms had been thoroughly cleaned, the rotting corpses and a few trapped zombies had been cleared out, and a few lights powered by car batteries were illuminating the area. All that was left was to bring in bedding, and a warm resting place would be ready.In the middle of the large courtyard were ten large rice cookers, three pots of food, a table full of bread, and a huge pot of steaming wild vegetable soup. The residents of Sunny Hills lined up in five long rows to receive their meals, their faces showing signs of renewed spirit.The aroma was incredibly enticing. Since the apocalypse began, this was likely the best meal most
Memphis took the report, briefly scanning the capabilities of the Sunny Hills soldiers, focusing on their levels, strengths, long-range attack skills, and their "attitudes" based on their past behavior.Nicky, being the second-in-command and responsible for communication within Cormac’s army, had provided exceptionally detailed and accurate information. From this, Memphis could discern who could be useful right away and who would need careful molding.The soldiers of Sunny Hills were all men, mostly aggressive, and showed great resilience on the battlefield. As long as they felt secure, they could endure pressure. Unlike the Hope militia, they wouldn’t cry or panic at the sight of fallen comrades. However, they were notably lacking in discipline, often needing the threat of guns to follow orders, and were prone to chaos when facing high-level danger."Mixing the two groups together could balance out their strengths and weaknesses."Another flaw of the Sunny Hills soldiers was their hi
It was the first time Doctor Beirne had received such direct orders from Memphis, so he couldn't help but focus 200% of his attention, hastily making all kinds of guarantees and promises.Memphis had appointed him as the head of the medical unit, giving him full authority over staff assignments, which was essentially the status of a hospital director before the apocalypse. If Memphis were to tell him to bring someone back from the dead, he'd still try his best.Memphis also asked him to take a look at the broken arm on his left bicep. But when he heard that it would take 30 minutes to cast a splint, he declined, saying he'd come back later.It was too costly—time was scarce.The system's healing abilities weren’t all-powerful, and the human body’s natural recovery was still key. Despite undergoing continuous healing, it seemed like his body had developed some resistance to it. Even with more treatment, his condition wouldn’t improve immediately; he had to rely on himself to recover sl
Yosef took the A4 sheet and immediately saw the bold title: "Desire Survey Form." Zoran silently looked over the contents. There were two options: one, to accept more members into his squad, and two, to be ready for a transfer to Lakeside County. This, of course, meant relinquishing all power. Kiley bit her lip. Up until now, she’d been deeply conflicted about her future decision. But after a few moments of hesitation, she slowly checked a box on her form. Kathy's survey form was mostly similar to the others, but under her section, there was a handwritten note: "If you agree to stay, you'll receive treatment equivalent to mine." Only one person had the authority to write on this form, and only one person referred to themselves as "I" here. Memphis held Kathy in high regard. She was someone who preferred action over words—silent but effective. This woman rarely appeared on the front lines, yet her contributions to training new recruits in the rear were unmatched. Especially conside
There were even two individuals in a heated argument, trying to persuade the other before breaking into a tight embrace and sobbing uncontrollably as the moment of separation approached.This scene carried a faint melancholy. Unlike the news of casualties from yesterday’s battle, it wasn’t tragic or sorrowful in the same way, yet it bore a different kind of weight, one that caused a slight sting in the nose and tugged at the heartstrings.But, human emotions are always complex, always difficult to articulate...In contrast to the mood in Hope town, over in Sunny Hills, the air was filled with excited cheers and intense joy. Once again, Memphis Jack
After the conversation, the squad leaders gradually left, even Jarred Lawton, Wylie Rawson, Lionel Hester, Amanda Owens, and other close confidants departed, leaving Memphis alone in the main seat. He cast a gaze around the room, eventually looking at the cold moon hanging in the sky. It seemed like it would be a full moon in just three days.His eyes gradually calmed, turning into a cold, indifferent look."I only hope the emotions you all just expressed were genuine."Muttering to himself as usual, Memphis raised his right hand to gently press on the wound on his left arm. It would probably take until midnight or early morning for it to fully heal.He had carefully created an environment where the others could openly communicate, express their thoughts freely, and break down barriers and prejudices. Naturally, he hoped it would have the desired effect.The cracks in the leadership at Hope Town stemmed from Lakeside District. Ever since they learned they could communicate with the go