The Treasure Chest, Two Choices

"Gale Slash!"

Jeremy swung his long sword, unleashing a swift blade of wind that instantly cleaved several incoming Skyrakers in half.

Then, without looking back, he proceeded straight into the commercial building.

These Skyrakers were too much of a nuisance, and Jeremy didn't want to waste any more time on them.

Now, he was only a few floors away from Claire, close enough to make his way up to her.

However, Jeremy took note of this grudge. He vowed to destroy the nest of these beasts whenever he got the chance.

Upon entering the building, Jeremy surveyed his surroundings.

He found himself in a luxuriously decorated office, surprisingly clean and devoid of any bloodstains.

Jeremy took out the equipment he had obtained from the Hurricane White Wolf and checked it.

To his surprise, it was a piece of bronze-level equipment.

[Equipment]: Windrider Boots

[Level]: Black Iron

[Quality]: Purple

[Attributes]: Agility +20, Jumping Power +10

[Skill]: Windride

[Introduction]: Using this skill allows the player to momentarily hover in the sky for 5 minutes, with a cooldown of 3 hours.

Jeremy's eyes lit up when he saw the equipment's skill.

It was a piece of purple-quality equipment with a skill that allowed him to hover!

Although the skill's duration was only a mere 5 minutes, it could be life-saving at critical moments.

After swapping his leather boots for the Windrider Boots, Jeremy checked his stats and found his agility had reached 660 points.

With a light jump, Jeremy noticed he could now jump a full meter higher than before, a clear improvement in his jumping attribute.

After resting briefly, Jeremy pushed the door open and exited the office.

He entered a spacious workspace, dimly lit due to the lights being off, with rows of desks neatly arranged and monsters in suits wandering among them.

Jeremy assessed the situation, guessing it was likely a financial bond company, and these monsters were formerly financial white-collars.

"Roar!" Upon seeing Jeremy, the group of suit-wearing monsters charged at him.

With Jeremy's current strength, these monsters naturally posed no threat.

Jeremy easily dispatched them and then approached the elevator.

As expected, the elevator was out of service. The building's electrical system had been damaged. If he wanted to go up, he would have to take the stairs.

Upon reaching the stairwell, before even entering, Jeremy heard the roaring of monsters.

He peeked into the stairwell.

Then, Jeremy saw the densely packed monsters layered on top of each other in the stairwell, crammed so tightly that the stairwell was virtually blocked.

"Roar!!!"

Upon seeing Jeremy, the monsters roared in unison.

They climbed over the bodies of other monsters, baring their teeth and claws as they pounced toward him.

Jeremy sighed. This was exactly why he hated taking the stairs.

Such a narrow stairway, while limiting the number of monsters, also restricted his movements, preventing him from dodging attacks with ease.

Having come this far, he had no choice but to take a risk.

Just as Jeremy was about to head upstairs, a notification from The Eye of Omniscience suddenly appeared before him.

[Notice: In the living room on the 38th floor above you, there is a silver treasure chest.]

Jeremy paused for a moment, his eyes then lit up with excitement.

"Finally, another treasure chest!" A smile crept onto Jeremy's face.

Unlike ordinary players, possessing The Eye of Omniscience allowed him to gain extra rewards. So every treasure chest significantly increased his power.

"Roar!!"

At that moment, monsters had already rushed towards him.

"A bunch of beasts, dare to block my way!" Looking at the swarm of monsters coming towards him, a bloody light flashed in Jeremy's eyes.

He gripped his twin blades tightly, his gaze icy as he boldly charged towards them.

...

Meanwhile, in the conference room of the central building in Moonlight City.

By now, the room was filled with people, and a few videos were being looped on the big screen.

The footage showed Jeremy weaving through monsters like a flood, and scenes of him ascending a commercial building surrounded by tens of thousands of monsters.

Everyone was shocked by these videos.

Had these videos not been provided by Benjamin, they would have thought they were fabricated.

Some faces in the room looked grim.

These were the people who supported evacuation, as no one wanted to stay and face their doom.

But who could have imagined that someone could actually survive among tens of thousands of monsters!

What shocked them even more was that this person did not flee after surviving but instead climbed up the commercial building.

It was known that the commercial building was the second tallest in Moonlight City, standing over 500 meters tall. At the time of the apocalypse, it was the peak of the workday, and now it housed at least tens of thousands of monsters.

Yet, that young man charged in alone!

A young woman with glasses expressed her amazement, "Worthy of being the top player on the leaderboard. Jeremy looks only a few years younger than me, but I didn't expect him to be so powerful."

"Indeed powerful." Dana nodded. Jeremy's identity was easily discovered. Although he had guessed that Jeremy's level must be high, he did not anticipate that he would be the current number one on the leaderboard, Jeremy.

That explained why he dared to enter the commercial district alone.

Benjamin knocked on the screen, drawing everyone's attention.

He spoke gravely, "Although there has been a riot among the monsters in the commercial district, it is not the worst-case scenario. They remain in the commercial district, specifically gathered under the commercial building. Moonlight City is temporarily safe... instead, this presents an opportunity!"

Saying so, a map of Moonlight City appeared on the screen behind Benjamin.

The commercial district was circled in red, and the commercial building was marked with a red dot.

Everyone knew the meeting was getting to its crucial point and became serious.

Benjamin pointed at the commercial building on the map, saying, "We now have two options. One is to proceed as planned, waiting for Howard and his team to arrive and then gradually reclaim the commercial district. This is what I advocate."

He then looked around the room and continued, "The other option, as suggested by someone, is to use drones to carry high-yield explosives to indiscriminately bomb the commercial building and its surrounding areas, thus completely eliminating the threat of the commercial district!"

After his words, the room fell into silence.

Among the two options, many people leaned towards the second.

It would not only eliminate the threat but also avoid potential accidents in the process.

They were well aware that if the second plan were implemented, it wouldn't just be the threats and monsters being eradicated, but also the humans and that young man inside the commercial building.

But it wasn't them who were going to die, so why should they care?

A middle-aged man hesitated, "The problem is… do we even have the authority to issue such an order with our current ranks?"

Others had also considered this point.

The Federation had a strict hierarchy of power, and officials without sufficient rank couldn't overstep their boundaries to issue orders.

Benjamin didn't explain. He turned his gaze to the young woman wearing glasses and said, "Maggie, why don't you say a few words?"

"I understand." Maggie, the woman with the glasses, nodded and stood up to walk to the front.

She reached into her coat to pull out her credentials, looked around at everyone, and announced loudly, "Ladies and gentlemen, I am Federal Special Agent Maggie. I am here to inform you about a matter."

The room shuddered at her words, and everyone instinctively sat up a bit straighter.

Every city had its special agents. But they were usually called into action only for major incidents.

Since a special agent was involved, the matter at hand was clearly no small issue.

Maggie, with a serious expression, continued, "As of yesterday, the federal government has issued an emergency directive. The entire globe has entered a state of war. All local matters are now under the full authority of the local supreme institutions and highest officials... For the survival of humanity, special measures may be used during this critical period, and there will be no subsequent accountability."

After Maggie finished, the room was filled with looks of astonishment and mutual glances of disbelief.

Did this mean Benjamin had become the highest authority here?

Benjamin looked around at everyone and said calmly, "Now, I would like to hear your thoughts."

The room fell into silence.

Damn, if the higher-ups have given you full authority, what opinions could we possibly have?

It was then that everyone realized Benjamin had called them over as a mere formality.

"I agree with Mayor Benjamin's decision. I think we should wait for General Howard to arrive. After all, indiscriminate bombing is too inhumane." the middle-aged man who spoke earlier quickly stated his position.

Realizing the situation, others followed suit.

A smile appeared on Benjamin's face as he said, "It seems that everyone's opinions align with mine, which I find very reassuring."

The people in the room wore strange expressions, internally cursing.

Shameless, who's in agreement with you? You said there were two options, but there was clearly only one!

...

The meeting ended shortly after.

In the spacious conference room, Benjamin was left alone.

He watched a video of the young man moving through throngs of soldiers as if he was in a realm of his own, admiration in his eyes.

He had to admit, Jeremy had the best skills among the young people he had ever seen.

It was hard to imagine that this young man was only eighteen years old.

If given the chance, Benjamin would very much like to meet him.

But that was contingent on Jeremy making it out of the commercial building alive. "Reinforcements will arrive soon... Hang in there, kid!" Benjamin prayed silently, his gaze shifting to the official mobile phone on the podium.

The screen displayed a message.

"The apocalypse has arrived, and the players are humanity's last hope. This young man has emerged unexpectedly, carrying too much on his shoulders. I have already ordered the strongest special combat team from the capital to assist. At all costs, he must be protected during this time! Remember, at all costs!"

Sender:

The Supreme Leader of the Federation!