Global Catastrophe: I Became the World Tree-Chapter 217 - 166 Huge Expenditure_2

Next, Ye Xiangfeng asked Chen Dalong quite a few questions about superhumans.

And Chen Dalong was an open book, sharing nearly everything he knew.

When the couple learned that most people who awaken their abilities by taking gene potions only enhance their existing special abilities, and that only 1% awaken other abilities, they didn’t know whether to be shocked or happy.

"Boss Chen, do you think this is a good thing?" Ye Xiangfeng inquired.

"Definitely a good thing! Any awakened ability is a good thing. Moreover, in the future, there will be more and more people like us with enhanced physical abilities."

"The importance of superhumans like your daughter, who possess special abilities, will gradually become more prominent," said Chen Dalong.

Of course, he knew Ye Rou’s "true" identity and was well aware that once she regained her past life’s memories and began to recover her strength, she might become a being comparable to the Dragon Lord.

Therefore, the compliments that followed were freely given, without any psychological burden.

With Chen Dalong’s deliberate attempt to establish good relations, the two sides naturally enjoyed their conversation. Ye Xiangfeng’s family stayed at the Mad Dragon Security Company for another full hour before leaving.

...

While Ye Feng’s family was awakening to become superhumans, in Yang City’s largest conference room, a meeting of the highest standard was taking place.

As in the past, Division Commander Bai Yinghui and Mayor Liu Zaoxin were sitting at the head of the table.

To the left were military officers, and to the right were leaders from the municipal departments.

Bai Yinghui scanned the room and took the lead, "The main topic of today’s meeting is how we should face the crisis posed by the mutated beings."

"Over these past days, we have discussed many details. I’ve called everyone here today mainly to discuss matters concerning the Dragon King’s Hall Reinforcement Army."

At this statement, many were visibly energized, looking forward to Bai Yinghui’s words with anticipation.

They had not had an easy time dealing with the mutated insects and were well aware of the difficulty they presented.

If the defense walls hadn’t already been built, they frankly didn’t have much confidence that they could withstand the crisis.

Even with the completed defense walls and various defensive installations in place, many in the room were still concerned, especially considering the sheer number of mutated insects they were facing.

As many as 300 million mutated insects were estimated, and that was a conservative count.

In such a scenario, Dragon Hall’s support was undoubtedly of utmost importance to them.

Dragon Hall’s strength had been witnessed by all during this period, most notably in the defense of the three mines.

According to the estimates of the Staff Department, without the aid of Dragon Hall’s mutated creatures, each mine would need at least 3,000 soldiers to secure the workers’ safety.

Previously, they only had 10,000 regular soldiers. If each mine required 3,000 soldiers, that would mean a total of 9,000 soldiers would be withdrawn. In such a case, Yang City’s security would be difficult to guarantee, not to mention other matters like training new recruits.

But with Dragon Hall’s assistance, the number of soldiers needed at each mine could be drastically reduced to 300. The military had even started to suggest that defense tasks could be handed over to various security companies.

From this, it was clear just how powerful Dragon Hall was, and this wasn’t even the extent of their strength.

Therefore, if Dragon Hall was willing to maintain an alliance for both attack and defense, the military’s pressure would undoubtedly be lessened.

As everyone looked on with anticipation, Bai Yinghui said, "We have already made contact with the Dragon Hall to inquire about their stance."

"The Dragon King has indicated that they are willing to send troops to assist, but it will be for a fee. So the main purpose of this meeting is to discuss how large a price we are willing to pay to bring them on our side."

Right after Bai Yinghui finished speaking, the mayor sitting beside him, Liu Zaoxin, immediately declared, "Don’t worry, as long as we can get through this crisis, money is no object."

The military’s funds are limited; even if there are military expenses on hand, those are to enhance the military’s strength. Therefore, the cost of requesting reinforcements naturally needs to be paid by the Yang City government.

After hearing Liu Zaoxin’s statement, the majority of the military leaders breathed a sigh of relief.

"Alright, since that’s the case, let’s have Captain Zhang Ji talk about the specifics! He was the one liaising with Dragon Hall regarding this matter," Bai Yinghui said immediately.

Upon hearing his name, Zhang Ji immediately stood up. "The demands from Dragon Hall are as follows..."

In the following moments, Zhang Ji laid out all the details of his negotiations with the Dragon Lord and the latter’s demands.

After Zhang Ji finished speaking, everyone couldn’t help but fall into deep thought.

To be honest, even for the Yang City government, the cost of going to war was definitely not a small figure.

Right away, Liu Zaoxin looked towards his executive secretary, Cao Guangzhi, who immediately whispered, "We still have a substantial amount in our account, especially the construction funds allocated from the capital."

"After all various expenses, we can at least come up with this amount," Cao Guangzhi gestured.

Liu Zaoxin nodded immediately, now having a clear idea in his mind.

He cleared his throat to draw everyone’s attention before speaking, "According to Captain Zhang Ji, Third Order Mutated Animals can directly demonstrate their oppressive presence, suppressing mutated insects, and have the greatest effect."

"So, how many Third Order Mutated Creatures does the Dragon Lord have at his disposal? If the number is not too large, I suggest inviting them all to assist in the battle."

After a moment of thought, Bai Yinghui responded, "According to the information we have gathered, Dragon Hall possesses 25 Third Order Mutated Creatures, though we can’t rule out those we haven’t detected."

"A single Third Order Mutated Creature costs 30 million Huaxia Currency; to invite all 25 Third Order Mutated Creatures would require a total of 750 million Huaxia Currency."

Hearing this number, even if Liu Zaoxin was prepared, the corner of his mouth couldn’t help but twitch violently; it was an exorbitantly high price.

However, considering that if the defense were unsuccessful and the mutated beings breached the city, causing destruction, then the losses wouldn’t be a matter of a few billion but potentially tens to hundreds of billions.

So, he gritted his teeth and nodded, "Okay, I got it."

"Besides, we cannot simply invite Third Order Mutated Creatures. We’ll definitely need to invite Second Order ones as well, but with limited funds, we cannot invite all."

The others listened and involuntarily nodded in agreement. The Second Order Mutated Organisms were also expensive, costing 2 million each to invite, amounting to a billion for 50 of them.

In such a situation, it was essential to invite those mutated animals that could utterly overwhelm Second Order mutated insects to justify the expense.

"Just tell us directly, how many Second Order Mutated Organisms can our funds invite? That way we can make a decision," Bai Yinghui stated.

"Then... let’s say 300," Liu Zaoxin said through gritted teeth once more.

Second Order Mutated Organisms would amount to a whopping 600 million.

"In that case, our invitation order should go like this: Mutated Siberian Tiger, Mutated Asiatic Lion, Mutated African Elephant, Mutated Hippo, Mutated White Rhino, Mutated Brown Bear, Mutated American Leopard, Mutated Giant Panda, Mutated Wild Wolves, and Mutated Honey Badger."

"If we still don’t have enough, then we can invite Mutated Dogs. Dragon Hall has over a thousand of them—definitely enough," Bai Yinghui said, feeling a bit of toothache by the end of the list.

Not only him, but everyone else in the room also fell silent.

If they had that many Mutated Dogs... no, the Mutated Dogs they currently had in custody numbered over 10,000.

But the problem was that these Mutated Dogs were only Early Stage First Order and did not heed their commands.

They were filled with envy and jealousy!

And Liu Zaoxin, who was bleeding money in huge waves, directly asked, "Doesn’t the military have a plan to tame the Mutated Dogs? When can it be implemented, and how long will it take to see results?"