This person was a young man of about eighteen or nineteen, but there was not the slightest trace of the restless vanity of city life about him. Instead, he had the calm composure of a man hardened by iron and blood. He chuckled and said, “Old Captain, why are you making fun of me too? I’ve been a scout for over a year now. Old Miller and the others are still outside the city. Right now, there are still dozens of groups of stragglers gathered in the city center. Although they’re weak compared to us, the sound of gunfire might attract even more of them, so they decided to sneak in at night and sent me ahead to scout the way. If I don’t return, it means you’re still safe, and only then will everyone come into the city together.”

Brian Carter nodded. He took it for granted and didn’t think for a moment that if Little Henry didn’t return, the rest of the team would be worried. After all, Little Henry was a member of the Black Star Squad. Although he was still considered a rookie, dealing with those stragglers was no problem for him. If he couldn’t win, no one could stop him from escaping. So if Little Henry didn’t return, it could only mean he was safe, not that something had happened to him.

The Black Star Squad was completely unknown throughout the world, even within the Chinese military. Compared to those famous special forces units whose names began with “Dragon,” they had no reputation at all. But Brian Carter himself knew that the Black Star Special Forces were no worse than those “Dragon” units—perhaps even better. It was just that, for political reasons, the Black Star Special Forces were treated like a stepchild, and all sorts of things…

Brian Carter interrupted his own thoughts. He shook his head and said, “Little Henry, don’t call me Captain anymore. I retired more than two years ago. To be honest, I never really taught you much. Just call me by my name, or you can call me Big Brother Carter if you like.”

Little Henry immediately became anxious and said hurriedly, “How could I do that? If Captain Miller found out, he’d kill me! Besides, there were several times when our team was in trouble, and it was thanks to you, Old Captain, that we got through it. Anyway, you’ll always be our Old Captain!”

Brian Carter gave a wry smile and didn’t say anything more. He glanced at Little Henry’s tattered clothes, which were still caked with dried mud. He patted Little Henry on the shoulder and said, “Come with me to the basement. Change your clothes first, then have a good meal. When everyone arrives tonight, I’ll tell you all why I called you here.”

Little Henry immediately grinned and followed Brian Carter good-naturedly. The two of them passed through smashed-up shops and several rooms, arriving at the entrance to the basement, whose door had already been broken down. After going down to the bottom, they saw Brian Carter suddenly lift a steel cover from the floor and dive down. Little Henry didn’t hesitate and followed him in, and was greeted by a bright light.

This basement’s basement turned out to be a whole other world. Brian Carter had transformed it into a large room of nearly a hundred square meters, with good lighting, more than a dozen boxes of food and water, computers and other equipment, several boxes of clothes, and more than a dozen various weapons.

Little Henry, whose full name was Henry Clark, did a somersault in excitement, then dove straight for a box of food and water, opened it without ceremony, and began to eat and drink. As he ate, he said, “Old Captain, you’re living well! Not like us—just a few months ago, we were dragged out to the desert for training. If it hadn’t been for your warning, we might have been surrounded and wiped out by the Longxing team, left to rot in the desert. After making it back, we had to hide everywhere and rush to this city. We really suffered along the way… Sigh, now this is what I call living.”

Brian Carter gave a bitter smile and patted Henry Clark on the shoulder, but with one pat, Henry Clark toppled right over. Startled, Brian Carter quickly felt for his pulse and neck. Fortunately, his heartbeat and pulse were normal, and there were no injuries on his body. It turned out he had fallen asleep while eating and drinking—he really had suffered a lot these days. As a rookie in the Black Star Special Forces, he’d probably had it even harder than the others. Now Brian Carter finally understood why Old Miller had sent this kid to him first—it was so he could rest. Otherwise, the little guy might not have made it.

Brian Carter immediately pulled Henry Clark onto a makeshift bed. Listening to his snores, Brian Carter sat at the nearby computer and started typing. Soon, a string of numbers appeared on the screen, along with a few lines of English. He gazed deeply at the numbers and English, not reacting for a long time…

A day passed in a flash. Brian Carter still waited quietly behind the iron door, just as he had when he was the captain of the Black Star Special Forces—calm and composed, without a trace of panic or confusion. Occasionally, he could hear the distant sounds of commotion, angry shouts, wails, and gunfire from the streets. These sounds made Brian Carter’s gaze even deeper. He knew very well what they meant…

They represented the backlash of human civilization in utter despair, the venting of humanity when all hope was lost, the best embodiment of human depravity. They were…