Chapter 153: Federation Law (2nd Update, Seeking Monthly Tickets!)

Yubei City Airport No. 1, Aircraft Inner Harbor.

A large Federation mobile airship and several smaller aircraft were currently docked.

The airship’s flight engines were already started and on standby. Many members of the Federation Investigation Team, dressed in black suits, were escorting some special citizens onto the airship.

“Director Taylor, the situation is already so serious, why haven’t we taken off yet!”

A middle-aged man with salt-and-pepper hair and a gloomy face, sitting in a wheelchair, was pushed over by a bodyguard. The massive airflow from the aircraft’s engines made everyone’s clothes flutter. The middle-aged man, his face filled with anger, questioned Taylor Moreno, who was sending messages on a mobile terminal.

Taylor Moreno glanced up at him. “Councilman Zhou, please return to the airship immediately. The flight formation cannot risk taking off without clearing the airspace threat.”

“Absurd! What about the Iron Guard? The Guard Regiment? And… and all the anti-aircraft equipment at the airport? The Federation paid to support them, why aren’t they clearing the airspace for us immediately!! A bunch of idiots!” Councilman Zhou cursed hysterically. “Take off now, or you can forget about being a director.”

Taylor Moreno let out a disdainful laugh and replied calmly, “The Iron Guard? They refuse to escort us. However, I have already used my Federation authority to directly reboot the airport system. The anti-aircraft weapons will now clear a path for us, so please don’t waste time here.”

Councilman Zhou gave her a cold look, his expression shifting, and said urgently, “Hmph, then hurry up. If you waste my time, you’ll all be fired!”

“Notify all flight formations to prepare for takeoff.”

Taylor Moreno handed the mobile device to her subordinate and gave the order.

“Yes.”

*Clatter, clatter, clatter…*

At this moment, the sound of hurried footsteps approached rapidly. Taylor Moreno turned her head and saw Bai Shuang leading a group of emergency team members and Iron Guard soldiers walking over quickly, all of them filled with anger.

“Guard Regiment!”

She immediately shouted. At once, dozens of Guard Regiment members stepped forward, raising their guns.

“How dare you do such a thing!” Bai Shuang ignored the muzzles of the Guard Regiment’s guns and rushed forward angrily. “There are tens of thousands of survivors here! Do you know the consequences of your actions?”

Taylor Moreno took a step back, letting the Guard Regiment stand in front of her. She adjusted her glasses and said with an arrogant look, “According to Article 332 of the Federation Law, all armed forces must provide comprehensive escort measures for the aircraft of government officials. I am simply following the regulations!”

Bai Shuang roared in fury after hearing this, “Then have you forgotten Article 1 of the Federation Law? The lives, property, and freedom of all citizens are paramount!!”

“So what if I have?”

Taylor Moreno sneered and pointed to the large airship behind her.

“Do you know who is on that airship?!”

The conflict here quickly attracted the attention of other survivors in the plaza. Many people felt displeasure just seeing this Federation Investigation Team, so more and more people gathered around. Many who heard the conversation between the two were filled with burning rage.

“What! They actually shut down the anti-aircraft systems… for an escort??!!”

“What the hell! Why would they do that!?”

“Damn it, I’ll kill you all!”

“Kill these sons of bitches!!”

“Kill them!!”

The crowd was incensed. Many began to raise their guns. The Guard Regiment members were forced to stand in a line in front of Taylor Moreno and Councilman Zhou, blocking the angry survivors from rushing forward.

Shu Qin, Xu Jin, Old Mo, and the others were now covered in blood and grime. To resist the onslaught, their gun barrels were almost hot enough to be used as fire pokers, only to be suddenly stabbed in the back by their own side.

It was impossible not to be furious.

Councilman Zhou watched this scene with a grim face and gave a slight nod to the bodyguard behind him, preparing to leave.

Facing the sky full of angry curses, Taylor Moreno shouted back, “I advise you not to waste your time! The entire airport is an asset of the Federation. You don’t ridiculously think that these weapons, these high walls, were paid for and built by you lot, do you?!”

Her body trembled, and she became more agitated as she spoke. “You should know that the people on these airships are the most important assets of our human civilization! Everyone has an obligation to prioritize their protection…”

*BANG!*

A gunshot cut through the air, suddenly silencing the explosive scene.

Because everyone saw that Taylor, who had been shouting wildly, now had a neat bullet hole in the center of her forehead. Blood slowly trickled down from it. Her eyes were filled with disbelief, and then… *thud*, she fell backward.

*Clack, clack.*

The sound of firm, powerful footsteps approached quickly. The crowd parted automatically. The Iron Guard Commander, Zhang Dingzhong, walked into the inner harbor, surrounded by his adjutants.

Seeing the newcomer, Councilman Zhou’s expression changed drastically. He looked at the dead Taylor on the ground and said with a cold and stern expression, “General Zhang, you dare to open fire on a Federation official? This is tantamount to declaring war on our entire Federation government…”

*BANG!*

Zhang Dingzhong, with a cold expression, walked over, raised his pistol, and fired another shot, blowing the head off the councilman in the wheelchair. He cursed in a low voice, “Bastard.”

His shots hit the center of the forehead every time, without mercy.

The bodyguard behind Councilman Zhou was splattered with blood. He looked down and saw that the councilman had already fallen limp in his wheelchair, mouth agape, having soiled himself, as dead as could be.

The several hundred passengers on the airship also heard the gunshots, and the cabin instantly descended into chaos, filled with screams.

This sudden turn of events also stunned the angry survivors present. Shi Diyuan of Longshan No. 1’s eyes widened, a look of satisfaction on his face. The siblings Jian Xuwei and Jian Zeyang of the Silver Star had slight changes in their expressions.

Zhang Dingzhong walked directly up to the Guard Regiment’s leader, Zhan Wei, and swept a cold glance over him.

“Zhan Wei, when you were my guard, did I ever teach you to point your gun at women and children?”

“Chief, I…”

Seeing his old commander, Zhan Wei’s expression was one of struggle. He lowered his head. The men of the Guard Regiment all lowered their guns; they had been unwilling to aim at the survivors in the first place.

Zhang Dingzhong walked right past him, came to the back, and said to the deputy who was trembling in fear next to Taylor Moreno’s body, “You have three minutes to take off.”

“Ah!?”

Hearing this, the deputy’s face turned pale with fright. The other Federation officials’ expressions changed drastically, and they all ran towards the airship.

“Quick! Let’s go!”

On the airship, Zhao Yan and Xu Wen sat at the very back, clutching their computer bags, their expressions tense. Seeing the airship was about to take off, they finally breathed a sigh of relief.

“Oh my god, I thought they were going to shoot at us.”

“Sigh… we’re finally taking off…”

*Whirr…*

The airship slowly took off, and the entire flight formation began to ascend into the high-altitude night.

Zhao Yan looked through the airship’s porthole at the black armored train docked on the track platform in the distance, her eyes flickering. “Director Ding… what a pity…”

…

After executing Taylor and Councilman Zhou, General Zhang Dingzhong came to Bai Shuang’s side.

“What’s the situation now?”

“Not good.” Bai Shuang’s face was clouded with worry. “We didn’t expect them to do something like this. It has completely disrupted our plan.”

Wei Kexue, at the side, lamented, “This authority comes from a high-level authorization of the former Federation. Now we either have to negotiate with them or overwrite the system.”

With the collapse of the Federation government and the fall of various regions, the system permissions for local assets were not clearly divided. The purpose of Bai Shuang’s emergency team was to activate and maintain the ascension channel to help survivors evacuate. She never expected Taylor Moreno to pull such a move at a critical moment, catching everyone completely off guard. This disaster had come from within humanity itself.

Hearing this, the leaders of the survivor teams all felt their hearts sink, and their gazes fell upon Zhang Dingzhong.

“Don’t even think about authorization. How long will it take to overwrite the system?”

At this moment, the calmest person here was Zhang Dingzhong. His expression was unchanged, like an anchor in everyone’s hearts. “The defense line has not been breached. There is still a chance to evacuate.”

Wei Kexue looked around with a complicated expression and said urgently, “If we overwrite the system, it will take at least 4 hours with the computing power we brought. The ascension elevator has also been repaired with Captain Lin’s help. But the problem now is, even if we complete the overwrite, the power transmitted from the eastern cable can no longer support the operation of the ascension elevator.”

Zhang Dingzhong’s brow furrowed slightly, and he looked at Bai Shuang.

“That’s right,” Bai Shuang said with some shame. “The earthquake just now damaged a power supply line to the airport. The ascension elevator, electromagnetic acceleration, and the anti-aircraft system are all major power consumers. The current energy is no longer sufficient to maintain the basic operation of the airport.”

As soon as Bai Shuang’s words fell, the atmosphere seemed to freeze instantly.

The faces of the survivors present changed drastically. An air of panic and despair began to spread.

“What?? The airport can’t be maintained?”

“Then what do we do? Wait to die?”

“Oh my god…”

…

“So, are there no other options?” Zhang Dingzhong’s face darkened as he asked in a stern voice.

“We…” Bai Shuang was now frantic. The crisis at the airport had far exceeded their initial estimates. Coupled with the heavy losses suffered by the Iron Guard, the survivors stranded here were on the verge of desperation. For a moment, she had no solution.

“There is one more way!”

Just then, a loud voice suddenly came from behind the crowd. Hearing it, everyone’s expression changed, and they all looked back.

In the distance, Lin Xian and KIKI were running over quickly, their faces urgent.

“Captain Lin!” Shu Qin and Xu Jin immediately called out.

“Captain Lin?!”

When Wei Kexue saw Lin Xian approaching, he suddenly remembered that there was such a master of mechanical abilities here. He immediately spoke as if grasping at a lifeline, “You… you have a way to overwrite the system?”

In his view, if Lin Xian could directly repair such a complex robot, perhaps there was a chance if he could also directly overwrite the system.

“I can’t overwrite the system!”

Lin Xian walked over hurriedly, his gaze sweeping over General Zhang Dingzhong, knowing he must be the commander of the Iron Guard. He said directly, “But I have a way to send everyone at the airport up to the high-altitude corridor in two hours!”