Just as Ian Song was about to snap Jason Gao's neck, a deep voice suddenly rang out: "Friend, please show mercy!"
As shadows flickered, a middle-aged man in camouflage appeared several meters away.
This man wasn't particularly tall, his skin was dark and rough, and he looked to be in his early forties. His face seemed honest and simple, but Ian could sense a strong aura of bloodshed coming from him.
Moreover, his power was formidable—he had reached late-stage Dan-Strength among the martial artists of this world.
If Ian's guess was right, this man must be Zeke Guan, the First Leader of the Haigang Survivor Base.
Earlier, Ian had wondered how Zeke Guan could keep Jason Gao and Hailey Zhou in line if he was just an ordinary ex-soldier. Now he realized Zeke had been hiding his true strength all along.
"Big Brother Guan, you're here."
Hailey Zhou quickly stepped forward to greet Zeke Guan.
Zeke Guan nodded to her, then turned his gaze to Ian Song. "Friend, could you give Old Guan some face and let him go for now?"
Anyone who could build a ten-thousand-person survivor base was certainly no ordinary man. Zeke Guan might look plain and not very tall, but his whole demeanor radiated authority and confidence.
"Letting him go is fine, but I'm not doing it for your sake—because in my eyes, your 'face' isn't that big!" Ian Song smiled and released Jason Gao.
Hearing this, Zeke Guan showed no sign of anger. Instead, Hailey Zhou, who normally respected Zeke deeply, was quite upset. She said coldly, "You're way too arrogant. Do you really think just because you're strong, you can do whatever you want?"
"Is that how you talk to your own boss?" Ian Song turned to Hailey Zhou.
"I'm not your slave. I'll say whatever I want!" Hailey Zhou retorted.
Ian's expression cooled. "You're not my slave, but you are my subordinate. Criticizing your own leader to side with outsiders—what is that? That's called eating from inside and siding with outside!"
"I'm helping reason, not relatives!"
Hailey Zhou still refused to back down, arguing her point.
"Forget it!" Ian Song waved his hand. "I used to hear people say women never keep their promises, and I didn't believe it. But now I see, a woman's word really can't be trusted. In that case, our previous bet is void!"
When Ian Song mocked her for breaking her word, Hailey Zhou's face flushed red. "You forced me into that bet! I wasn't willing!"
"No need to say more. The bet is off!" Ian Song said firmly.
For a moment, Hailey Zhou looked even more embarrassed.
Ian Song ignored Hailey Zhou and turned to Zeke Guan. "I'm the kind of person who likes to gamble. How about we make a bet? If you beat me, I won't kill Jason Gao. If you lose, I still won't kill him—but you have to lead the base to submit to me. Deal?"
"Brother Guan, don't bet with him! He's really strong!" Hailey Zhou blurted out, anxious.
Zeke Guan smiled at Hailey Zhou and said, "I won't bet the whole base—that's too important. But I can agree to this: if you win, I'll make you our Second Leader. If you lose, I won't make things hard for you—I'll give you the post of Sixth Leader. How's that?"
"That's too small a stake—I'm not interested! How about this, I'll sweeten the pot: if you can beat me, I'll give you a million jin of grain!" On the way here, Ian Song had already used his clairvoyance to find a granary with about five million jin of food. There were plenty of zombies inside, but they wouldn't be a problem for him.
Hearing 'a million jin of grain,' Zeke Guan was very tempted. Right now the base only had tens of thousands of jin left. There was a city granary, but both inside and outside were swarming with zombies—they couldn't get the food out at all.
Seeing Zeke Guan tempted, Ian Song added, "I'll let you bring ten people to fight me alone!"
Hearing this condition, Hailey Zhou's mind started to turn. Ian Song was strong, but if ten people fought him at once, there might be a chance to win.
The base had five leaders—Zeke Guan had never shown his true power, but Second Leader Boris Hu was a Dan-Strength martial artist. Besides them, there were two Force-Refining fighters and six Dark-Strength warriors.
Thinking of this, Hailey Zhou said to Zeke Guan, "Brother Guan, he's so arrogant—why not accept his challenge and put him in his place?"
The base's food stores couldn't last more than a few days, so faced with the offer of a million jin of grain, Zeke Guan decided to take the risk and accepted Ian Song's challenge.
Soon, Second Leader Boris Hu arrived after hearing the news.
Boris Hu was Zeke Guan's old war comrade, also in his early forties, and his whole aura was sharp and elite.
Not long after, the other two Force-Refining experts and six Dark-Strength fighters also showed up.
A few minutes later...
Everyone moved to the basketball court at the Haigang steelworks.
Facing ten opponents several meters away, Ian Song didn't look the slightest bit nervous.
Seeing this, Hailey Zhou was so frustrated she was grinding her teeth, thinking to herself, 'Just wait until we beat you—let's see how cocky you are then.'
Zeke Guan began assigning tactics: "Old Hu, you and I will be the main attackers! Old Gao, Hailey, you two flank from the sides. The rest of you, use hit-and-run harassment to split his focus!"
"Got it!"
Everyone nodded.
"Go!"
As soon as the word was given, Zeke Guan and Boris Hu shot forward like leopards, attacking Ian Song from left and right.
Their moves were simple and fierce—clearly military boxing techniques.
Just as they sprang into action, Hailey Zhou and Jason Gao also moved, aiming to circle behind Ian Song.
But before they could get close, there were two loud bangs—Zeke Guan and Boris Hu were sent flying back even faster, crashing to the ground.
"What...?"
The First and Second Leaders were defeated in an instant.
"Whoosh!"
A blur flashed by—Hailey Zhou and Jason Gao followed the same fate, knocked flying by a single palm and landing several meters away.
Then, Ian Song flashed again, and the remaining six hadn't even reacted before they too were all knocked flying.
This time, Ian Song didn't use full force—he only made sure they were hurt from the fall, not seriously injured.
In the arena.
Ian Song stood proud, his gaze sweeping over the ten who were climbing to their feet. "Do you yield?"
"I accept the outcome!" Zeke Guan said solemnly. "I'm willing to lead the base to submit to you!"
Hearing this, the others were all a bit unwilling, but more than that, they were resigned. This man was just too strong—the ten of them together couldn't last a single round. And judging by his speed, not even bullets could hit him. Still, no one knew if things would get better or worse for the base under his rule.
Many at the base had watched the fight. As the dust settled, a thin man quietly slipped away, headed for a secluded corner. He pulled out a small communicator from his pocket and whispered, "Agent Wind Nineteen reporting to Hall Master: Haigang Base has fallen into the hands of a mysterious young man. His strength...!"