Chapter 125: Negotiation Failure

Chapter 125: Failed Negotiations

At Base M, Charles watched the residents demonstrating in the streets once again and impatiently asked his assistant, "What are those trash protesting about now? Can't they ever settle down?"

This was already Charles' countless assistant—likely even he himself had lost count of how many assistants had been executed during his outbursts.

The assistant trembled in fear, his voice shaking. "I-it's... th-th..."

"Where did this stuttering fool come from? If you can't speak clearly, I'll put a bullet in you right now," Charles said coldly, his gaze sharp as ice.

"It's about the second moon in the sky," the assistant blurted out, squeezing his eyes shut as if bracing for the worst.

At the mention of the second moon, Charles' demeanor shifted. He slowly straightened in his seat, his expression unreadable. "Explain. In detail."

"According to the NeuroNet, the second moon is an artificial planet created by the Jingshi Base—a replica of Earth. Its environment fully replicates Earth's habitable conditions."

The assistant stole nervous glances at Charles with every word, terrified that any syllable might trigger the man's unstable temper and earn him a bullet.

"Rumors say the Jingshi Base is already prepared to evacuate its population to that planet at any moment, leaving Earth's biosphere to die. Our base's residents are afraid they'll be left behind, so they organized this protest... They want you, the Commander-in-Chief, to negotiate with the Jingshi Base and ensure we're included in the migration..."

[GUNSHOT] A gunshot rang out. The assistant collapsed, his eyes wide open, his pupils still reflecting Charles' emotionless face. Even in death, he likely never understood what had provoked Charles' fury.

Charles pressed the emergency convocation button. Soon, all of Base M's command staff assembled in the conference room.

"How much do you know about the Jingshi Base's artificial planet?" Charles asked calmly.

But everyone knew his composure was paper-thin—the clearest proof being the assistant's body dragged out moments ago and the fresh bloodstain not yet mopped up in the corner.

The officials exchanged uneasy glances until the Deputy Commander finally spoke up. "Our intelligence confirms the NeuroNet rumors are true. The Jingshi Base has indeed engineered a Class-M habitat. Their residents may migrate soon."

"Bring in the research team," Charles ordered his secretary flatly.

"Yes, sir!" The secretary hurried out and returned shortly with the researchers in tow.

"Have you created a habitable artificial planet?" Charles demanded without preamble.

The scientists went ashen, recalling the uproar over the Jingshi Base's supposed achievement. An arctic terror infiltrated their bones, as if the Reaper's breath chilled their necks.

The chief scientist's Adam's apple bobbed. "Artificial planets are centuries beyond current tech trees. The Jingshi Base couldn't possibly have made one—it's a bluff to manipulate public opinion. Commander-in-Chief Charles, you mustn't fall for their trap—"

"Enough. Answer me: Have you created a habitable artificial planet?" Charles' stare pinned the man down. "Just say 'Yes' or 'No.'"

In mere seconds, sweat drenched the lead researcher's forehead.

"N-no..."

Before he could finish, Charles drew his pistol. Three precise shots cracked the air. Within moments, every researcher in the room lay dead.

Charles' mask of calm shattered, revealing a rictus of insanity, his eyes wild with frenzy.

"Useless! All of you! Just die!" he bellowed with berserker fury.

The officials shrank like whipped dogs, none daring to intervene.

Blood pooled across the floor, filling the room with its copper reek. Yet to Charles, it carried a perverse, cloying perfume, tempering his rage.

Perversely, the scent seemed to calm him. He pulled out his NeuroCom and opened a direct channel to Jingshi Command.

The staff member in charge of answering the dedicated line at the Jingshi Base immediately notified Gu Jinsheng upon recognizing the communication number as Charles'. Gu Jinsheng summoned the other three Deputy Commanders, and the four of them gathered in the conference room to take the call from Charles.

"You've created an artificial planet suitable for human survival?" Charles' eyes were dark, still flickering with the remnants of unsettled frenzy.

Gu Jinsheng gave a slight nod, not denying it.

Charles sneered. "The residents of M Base will also be migrating."

Gu Jinsheng refused outright, unwavering. "Absolutely not."

"I suggest you reconsider, or else we'll all die together." Charles stared at Gu Jinsheng with a chilling intensity, his tone deadly serious. "Gu Jinsheng, you know I don’t care about life or death. But do you? What about your lover? Would you let him die before dawn?"

Charles' threat involving Ji An caused ice to form in Gu Jinsheng's eyes.

"Charles, I advise you to behave. Unless you wish to die without a burial."

Charles burst into laughter as if he had heard the funniest joke, his voice shrill and unnatural, piercingly shrill.

He laughed for a long time before finally stopping. "Fine. Bring it on, then."

Charles ended the call, his face devoid of any amusement, only malice. His staff were accustomed to his volatile nature.

"Go, clear out those protesters outside!" Charles ordered the guard squad.

The guard squad captain personally organized personnel to clear the streets of demonstrators. Knowing Charles' temperament, he understood that if these people refused to stand down, they might not survive the day. Holding onto the last sliver of his conscience, he urged them desperately.

"Everyone, please go home. Commander Charles is already in talks with the Jingshi Base. Trust him—he will give you a satisfactory answer."

But when lives were at stake, no one could remain rational enough to heed good intentions.

"Negotiations, always negotiations! How long will this take? Give us a concrete date! Or will you still be 'in talks' when the Jingshi Base has already evacuated all its residents?"

"This time, we won’t back down. We demand a straight answer!"

"That’s right! We won’t be brushed off so easily this time. Call out Commander Charles—we want to hear it from him directly. He must give us a satisfactory answer today!"

As tensions escalated, the protesters with abilities grew increasingly agitated, leading to several clashes.

Inside, Charles frowned in displeasure as he watched the live feed of the chaos on the streets.

"Can’t they handle such a simple task?"

The secretary wiped sweat from his brow. "They demand to see you. Otherwise, they won’t leave."

"See me?" Charles smiled darkly. "Fine. As long as they don’t regret it."

On the streets, the protesters continued shouting, "Bring Charles out to face us!!!"

The guard captain could only think these people had truly lost their minds. Charles was the walking death god—meeting him? They must have a death wish.

No one could hear the captain’s internal monologue. Just then, his earpiece crackled with a colleague’s voice. "Attention, attention—Charles is coming out."

The captain sensed heavy footsteps approaching from behind. On pure reflex, he signaled his team to dive for cover urgently. His subordinates swiftly dodged to either side.

The moment they moved, Charles emerged, surrounded by bodyguards, followed by a brutal hail of bullets.

The air filled with the reek of gunpowder and blood as rows of civilians fell. Had the captain not reacted quickly, he and his men would have been among the casualties.

The captain would bet anything that Charles had no intention of warning them to move—they would all have been just more casualties in his path.

"Aaaah!!!"

Screams erupted as chaos engulfed the crowd. No one was shouting to see Charles anymore, nor demanding answers from him. Everyone was scrambling for their lives, while Charles laughed maniacally in excitement.

"Haha, you wanted to see me, didn’t you? Now that you’ve seen me, why run?" Charles' eyes were blood-red, the whites indistinguishable from the pupils.

The head of security stared at the piles of corpses that had appeared in an instant, shaking his head and muttering, "Madness... sheer madness!"

After Charles ended the call, Gu Jinsheng and the others at the Jing City Base were still holding an emergency meeting.

Zhou Qin voiced his concern, "Chief, Charles has gone completely insane. Now that he knows we’ve created a habitable artificial planet suitable for human survival but aren’t taking him along, who knows what crazy things he might do?"

"It’s not something we can hide anyway. There are already two moons in the sky. Charles isn’t stupid—he’ll figure it out with a little thought," Kong Zhongcheng said dismissively.

"I’ll check with Ji An to see how much longer before the migration can begin," Gu Jinsheng said, starting to message Ji An.

Although the artificial planet had been completed, there was still much work left to refine it. Even once finished, migration couldn’t begin immediately. Earth organisms would first need to be introduced for testing, and only if no mutations occurred would humans consider relocating.

Ji An and the other researchers were working as fast as possible, but they were still in the refinement phase. Numerous superpowered personnel were purifying the soil and water sources to ensure the artificial planet had ample clean resources.

Migration wasn't something that could happen overnight.

After receiving the reply, Gu Jinsheng shook his head. "It's going to take more time."

Wan Xueying said gravely, "Charles has gone completely off the deep end. I suspect he might resort to nuclear weapons."

Everyone in the meeting room immediately looked up at her. "That’s exactly the kind of thing Charles would do. He’s always been fond of cutting off his nose to spite his face."

Gu Jinsheng nodded. "I’ll notify Ji An."

Upon receiving the message, Ji An immediately organized personnel to keep tabs on M Base's activities 24/7 and stand ready to intercept any missiles at a moment’s notice.