The silence of the night was so deep, the hovering mechas didn’t lower their gun muzzles, but they also did not fire. He Ao, standing at the hatch, no longer spoke, just stood calmly in the night breeze. It was unclear how much time had passed when a Dragon Cavalry Fighter slowly approached, hovering beside the Floating Warplane. The hatch of the Dragon Cavalry Fighter on top opened, and an Elderly wearing a military uniform, tall and with a resolute face, stepped out from the hatch. He looked at He Ao standing at the hatch of the Floating Warplane and laughed, "Why does Mayor Lin En have the time to visit South City today?" His gaze swept over He Ao’s neat suit, pausing slightly. "Because recently, many people have been bringing up South City to me, so I took the chance to come and see for myself." He Ao, gripping his walking stick, also responded with a smile, "I just so happen to want to hear you talk about the current situation in South City, General Corvey." Hearing He Ao’s words, the Elderly’s expression grew a touch more serious. He glanced at He Ao, then smiled and nodded, "I would be delighted." Then he raised his head to look at the sky faintly flickering with electric light, and said gently, "The environment here doesn’t seem too good. How about we go to my command center?" He Ao nodded composedly. Corvey returned to the Dragon Cavalry Fighter, and He Ao turned his head, glancing at Fren sitting in the pilot’s seat. Watching the Dragon Cavalry Fighter disappear into the depths of the luminous mechas, Fren’s voice paused for a moment, then turned back to look at He Ao, "Are we really going to follow them in? That’s General Corvey’s stronghold. Once we go there, there won’t be any way out for us." "But that is also the shield guarding Yilan City. Let’s go." He Ao, holding his brass walking stick, did not close the hatch. Instead, he sat directly on a chair near the hatch. Fren gave the enormous mechas surrounding them a glance, fell silent for a moment, and then started the Floating Warplane. With the night sky, carrying a hint of chill, slowly receding behind them, the mechas in front split to either side, clearing a path for the Dragon Cavalry Fighter ahead and the Floating Warplane carrying He Ao. He Ao turned his head, his gaze passing through the open door to the massive mechas standing in the darkness, observing the cockpits at the chests of the mechas. Vaguely, a pair of invisible eyes also seemed to pierce through the thick cockpit doors, watching him seated at the hatch. The towering mechas and the dense Dragon Cavalry Fighters, along with the gazes of the soldiers behind them, cleared a long path in the darkness. The night sky became the carpet for this long road, and the war machines standing alongside it were the steadfast guards of that carpet. The speed of the Floating Warplane was not slow, and the distance left for He Ao was not long. Under the gaze of these ’eyes,’ led by the Dragon Cavalry Fighter ahead, He Ao arrived in front of a tower-shaped building inside the high wall. This was the ground command center of the South City Defense Army, the heart of the South City military during normal times. There was also a high wall command center atop the wall, but it would only be activated in the event of an attack by foreign enemies. As the two flying machines drew near, the walls of the towering tower-like building slid aside to reveal a narrow opening. Beyond the opening was a dark landing field, seemingly a municipal airstrip. Fren, piloting the Floating Warplane, followed the Dragon Cavalry Fighter into the opening, then gently landed on the municipal airstrip. The edge of the Floating Warplane’s folding stairs unfolded naturally, and He Ao stood up from his seat, slowly descending the stairs of the Floating Warplane. Fren gave the surroundings a glance, hesitated for a moment, but eventually, he too stood up from the pilot’s seat and followed He Ao down the warplane. At this moment, the Elderly in military uniform had already descended from the Dragon Cavalry Fighter and was standing between the Floating Warplane and the Dragon Cavalry Fighter, waiting for He Ao. "It seems is my first time here." He Ao glanced around the airport within the city, which was circular in shape. The walls appeared to be made of pure metal, reflecting a silver-grey luster, and the overall look was very simplistic, without any superfluous designs. "Mayors seldom come to the edge of the city walls," the elderly man in military attire stood by He Ao’s side. "They always prefer delivering speeches to their supporters at bustling venues or playing golf on opulent indoor courses." He slightly raised his hand, gesturing He Ao to move forward. "In the twenty years I’ve worked here, you’re the first to come." "People do love the prosperity of the city," He Ao slightly lifted his brass cane, walking forward with Corvey. "But the bustling city is built on what lies behind us, isn’t it?" Corvey looked up at He Ao and smiled. "Of course." The two stopped in front of the elevator doors. By this time, Fren had caught up, with several formidable Transcendent soldiers accompanying him, following behind the two elderly men in the front. He glanced at the conversing He Ao and Corvey, and then at the soldiers next to him, brimming with a murderous aura, feeling somewhat bewildered for a moment. The elevator doors opened naturally, revealing the empty elevator to everyone’s view. The two stepped into the elevator as a matter of course, followed by Fren and the soldiers who also entered. Then the elevator doors closed, and the elevator ascended. "Mayor Lin En seems to have been injured? Do you need a doctor?" Standing in the ascending elevator, Corvey looked up toward He Ao’s cheek. Although there weren’t many scars on He Ao’s face, that was only relative to his body. Even after he had washed away the blood, the tiny wounds on his face were still visible. Moreover, even after cleaning, a faint smell of blood lingered on him, both his own and that of others. "I encountered a little trouble on the way here," He Ao replied naturally, holding his cane as if he was talking about an inconsequential matter, "It’s all been taken care of." Then his gaze fell on Corvey’s military uniform. "Is General Corvey preparing to go out?" At this moment, Corvey was not wearing formal dress attire but a simple wartime military uniform. "There’s a military exercise," Corvey withdrew his gaze, slowly explaining, "Even in times of peace, we must be prepared to face any problems, so necessary military training is indispensable," His tone paused slightly. "You saw when you just arrived that many of our soldiers are ready; they are all brave warriors." He Ao nodded slightly. "I never doubt our brave Yilan warriors." The elevator doors opened, and the two walked out. The first thing that caught He Ao’s eye was a spacious hall, with a large electronic screen standing at the very front of the hall. Rows of small desks, each with a computer screen, were arranged back from the big screen, resembling classroom desks. Figures in military attire were continuously operating the computers at these desks. However, these people weren’t numerous, occupying only about one-fifth of the desks. "This is our command center." Corvey explained, "They are working on planning the exercise." He Ao’s gaze lingered on the electronic screen at the front of the hall, which was currently displaying a huge map of Yilan City. Lines leading to somewhere in the northeast of Yilan City were being rapidly sketched out on the map. He Ao glanced at the planned destination on the screen, then turned his head and smiled, "So your ’exercise’ this time is aimed at the Mayor’s Mansion?" "We also don’t know if the Mayor might face an accident, sometimes a proper exercise can enhance the stability of Yilan City." Corvey replied with equal composure, then seemingly remembered something and asked with a smile, "Mayor Lin En wants to come to South City, is there anywhere in particular you want to visit?" "Is there a place high enough that allows for a distant view?" He Ao responded with a smile as well. Corvey raised his hand and pointed down a road, "There’s a garden there." He Ao walked with him down that road. Standing behind them, Fren watched all this in astonishment; he glanced at the two elderly men who were chatting and laughing as if they were old friends, then back at the marching route planned on the large screen in front. It was almost like the words ’I’m about to stage a coup’ were written on their faces, yet how could they still be chatting so normally? The soldiers beside Fren also seemed confused, their gaze quickly flitting between the two chatting and laughing elderly men. "Have there been a lot of outsiders heading this way recently?" He Ao asked as he strolled down the hallway with Corvey. "Of course, quite a few," Corvey nodded lightly, walking down the corridor with He Ao while gradually distancing themselves from those behind, "Some people who connected with me through lobbying groups, as you know, these people are like rats, you can never completely get rid of them. "They are telling me, to maintain the city’s stability, I must do something; they will help me resolve the troubles coming from the Federal Central." "That sounds quite nice," He Ao glanced at the portraits hanging on both sides of the hallway, those of the City Defense Officers who had guarded South City throughout the generations, and asked with a smile, "Do you trust them?" "Whether I trust them or not is no longer the point," Corvey shook his head, "Lately, my subordinates keep coming to me with some video clip, featuring speeches by some members of the City Cabinet, claiming that we officers are the Consortium’s lapdogs and that there should be a thorough purge of us from the City Defense Army." His gaze joined He Ao’s, looking at the portraits hanging along the corridor, "And you also know, the price of grain is rising, consumer prices are rising, yet the Consortium’s factories are shutting down, and employees are not getting paid, but the bank loans can’t be reduced a single day, the Consortium’s ’punishments’ are hitting everyone hard, and this city is gradually becoming chaotic." "I remember you were born in Nevus District?" He Ao averted his eyes, memories flashing through his mind, and asked softly. "My father was a miner, and my mother was a shoemaker," Corvey murmured, his head lowered, speaking calmly as he continued walking alongside He Ao. "I remember your father worked for Kopace Mining," He Ao spoke slowly, "and your mother worked in a small local shoe factory in Yilan District, which was later acquired by Yiwis Space System and transformed into an equipment factory, leading to your mother being laid off." "My information should be laying on every mayor’s desk, but you’re probably the only one who’s really read it these twenty years." Corvey raised his head to look ahead, speaking unhurriedly. "I just happened to have read it." He Ao sighed softly, Lin En had indeed just happened to read Corvey’s profile, then discovered that Corvey’s background was not ’noble’. Only after that did he seriously look up Corvey’s information and take note of it. Corvey’s mother had been unemployed for a long time, unable to find stable work, and had to take part-time jobs in fast-food restaurants to support the family, while their home was burdened with a heavy mortgage, putting the entire family’s burden on Corvey’s father’s shoulders. But not long after his mother’s unemployment, an accident also occurred at the mine where Corvey’s father worked. Hundreds of tons of mining machinery tipped over, crushing his legs, leading directly to Corvey’s father sustaining comminuted fractures in both legs, and ultimately he was amputated. The mine did not pay any compensation, Corvey’s family could not afford the expensive medical costs, nor could they buy mechanical prosthetics, so in the end, they had to bring his father home, and due to the amputation, his father lost his job as well. The final result of this incident was that Corvey’s mother had to work multiple jobs to support the family, and both Corvey, who was a good student, and his brother had to drop out of school to work. They were also evicted from their home for defaulting on their mortgage and moved into a smaller rental apartment. Later, Corvey joined the Federal Central Army, and by coincidence, became a Transcendent within it. Subsequently, he became a mercenary, rising through the ranks in a mountain of corpses and sea of blood, and ultimately returned to Yilan twenty years ago to become a City Defense Army officer. By that time, his parents had both passed away, and his brother, too, died of overwork in a factory not long after. The silent corridor unexpectedly fell into a hush, leaving only the slow footsteps of two people. Corvey looked ahead; by now they had reached the end of the corridor, where a tall glass door stood. He reached out and pressed his hand against the glass door. The tightly closed glass door slowly opened, revealing a tranquil semi-open-air garden under the night sky. By this time, the followers who had been behind them had been left far behind by the two men. The two men walked through the glass door and came to the garden’s fence. The intertwined lights of the buildings and streets appeared in their field of view. "I often stand here, looking at this city," Corvey lifted his head to gaze into the distance, "when I was young, and couldn’t see as many bright lights." Lightning flashed violently in the sky once again, and light raindrops fell on the shoulders of the two men. Corvey looked up at the sky, then lowered his head to look at He Ao, "When the downpour comes, these lights may not withstand the ordeal." "Actually, I don’t like these lights, better if they were extinguished," He Ao looked up at the distant view, then lowered his head to gaze at the greater darkness beneath their feet, "The light that illuminates should not belong to just a small area; it’s the profound silence and darkness that make up the majority of this city that should blaze brightly," He reached out his hand to catch the falling raindrops, "As long as the flame is fierce enough, the most violent wind and rain cannot extinguish it." The howling cold breeze blew through the hair of the two elderly men, brushing their aged cheeks. Corvey sighed deeply, "but is your flame strong enough to withstand the storm?" His gaze lifted slightly as if piercing through the dim night, the solid high walls, to reach the vast world beyond the city, "Even if you can handle the threats inside the city, can you also deal with those from outside the city?" "This is my first time as Mayor," He Ao lowered his head, turned back to Corvey with a smile, "I have failed three times before this, but failure and crisis are not reasons to give up." Corvey lowered his head to glance at the elderly man next to him holding a brass cane, "Do you think I’m willing to believe you? Believe the grandson of a Senator?" "Believe a Doctor who does volunteer clinical work in Nevus District." He Ao replied calmly. The downpour in the sky steadily fell, drenching the two elderly men. The best time for a coup is when the Mayor is assassinated, then taking control of the City Government and pinning everything on the assassin makes everything much easier. A qualified ambitious person would not let go of the best opportunity, unless he is not an ambitious person at all.