Gao Wu: My freshman internship was a battle on the front lines.

Chapter 90 Press Conference

At 9:30 a.m., the area outside the Jiangcheng City Lord's Mansion was already packed with people.

Hundreds of reporters and social media influencers, armed with cameras and microphones, surrounded the entrance to the city lord's mansion.

The broadcast van of Jiangcheng TV was parked in the designated location early, with its huge satellite antenna already raised, ready to broadcast live to the entire city, the entire prefecture, and even the whole of Daxia.

Traffic on major live streaming platforms has exploded.

The number of viewers in the local Jiangcheng live stream room exceeded 500,000.

The number of viewers in the live broadcast room of Shanhefu-level city exceeded two million.

The comments were scrolling by so fast that it was almost impossible to read what each sentence was saying.

"Finally, the press conference is here!"

"I want to see Ye Feng! Where is Ye Feng?"

"How many people actually died in Jiangcheng this time? Is there an accurate number?"

"I heard that Ye Feng single-handedly took down the alien beasts in Fortress One and Fortress Two. Is that true?"

"Upstairs, it's true. My third uncle's second great-uncle served in the army at Fort No. 3 and saw it with his own eyes."

"That's Fortress Number One! Hundreds of thousands of mutated rats! And one person killed them all?"

"It wasn't just the mutated rats, but also the ghost wolf pack from Fortress Two. I heard there was even a sixth-tier wolf king, who was also killed by Ye Feng with a single strike."

"One strike to cut through a level six enemy? You're just bragging!"

Believe it or not, you'll find out at the press conference.

The comments section was filled with arguments, each sticking to their own opinion and refusing to concede.

Meanwhile, in the lounge on the second floor of the city lord's mansion, Ye Feng was standing in front of the mirror, tidying his clothes.

He was dressed in a black suit, his hair was neatly combed, and he looked both formal and youthful.

"Handsome." Ye Feng gave himself a thumbs up in the mirror.

"Damn, that's handsome."

The adjutant standing to the side twitched at the corner of his mouth, wanting to laugh but not daring to.

Ye Feng turned around and took a thick document from his adjutant.

"Is this all the content to be released today?" Ye Feng asked.

"Yes, Major Ye." The adjutant nodded quickly.

"Zhou Shou and the others had already interrogated him before they went into seclusion, and there were no problems."

"Okay." Ye Feng tucked the folder under his arm. "Let's go."

The press conference officially began at 10:00 AM sharp.

The moment Ye Feng stepped onto the stage, the entire hall fell silent.

Hundreds of eyes fell on him, and the shutters of cameras and video cameras clicked incessantly, flashing brightly.

He stood in the center of the stage, his gaze sweeping across the entire audience.

"Fellow journalists and fellow citizens of Wuhan."

His voice wasn't loud, but it was full of energy, carrying through the microphone throughout the entire hall and into every live broadcast room.

"I am Ye Feng, Major of the Night Watch. I will be hosting today's press conference."

The live stream chat exploded instantly.

"Ye Feng! Ye Feng! Ye Feng!"

"So cool! That aura!"

"Honey, look at me! I'm here!"

"Hey upstairs, why don't you look in the mirror?"

Ye Feng didn't waste any words and went straight to the point.

"First, I would like to inform you about the extent of the damage in Jiangcheng."

He opened the folder, his voice deep and clear.

"Yesterday, the Heavenly Demon Clan's Devouring Array covered half of Jiangcheng, causing numerous civilian casualties. Preliminary statistics indicate that the number of civilian deaths is..."

"More than 118,400 people were injured. The number of injured exceeded 200,000."

When he uttered that number, the entire hall fell into a deathly silence.

The hands that were spamming the chat in the live stream also stopped.

118,000 people.

This is not just a number; it represents 118,000 lives.

They have parents, children, wives, and husbands.

They just wanted to live. But the Heavenly Demons took their lives before they even had time to react.

"Four hundred and fifty-six Night Watchmen have been killed in action," Ye Feng continued reading.

"The military suffered 1,237 casualties."

This time, no one spoke, and no one posted comments.

The live stream room, which had millions of viewers online, was as quiet as if it were empty.

Ye Feng closed the folder and looked up.

"These fallen soldiers are heroes of Jiangcheng. They are people Jiangcheng will never forget."

"The compensation for fallen soldiers will be paid at the highest standard. The compensation for civilians will also be paid at the highest standard."

"A total of 3.7 billion."

Three billion.7 billion.

This number was like a bomb, exploding among the reporters.

"Three billion? Where did Jiangcheng get so much money?"

"Didn't they say Jiangcheng's finances were on the verge of bankruptcy?"

"Could it be that Garrison Commander Cao has brought out his entire savings for his funeral?"

Discussions arose one after another, and the live stream chat became active again.

"Three billion! That's amazing!"

"Jiangcheng used to be dirt poor, how come it's suddenly so rich?"

"Have you forgotten? They raided our homes! The Li family and the Zhao family's homes were raided!"

"Even if the Li and Zhao families are rich, they couldn't possibly have 3.7 billion in cash, could they?"

"I don't know, but if Ye Feng says it exists, then it exists."

"The Sun, Zhang, and Wang families were each fined one billion!"

Ye Feng raised his hand, signaling everyone to be quiet.

"You don't need to know where the money comes from. You just need to know..."

"Jiangcheng's compensation will not be reduced by a single penny. The families of the fallen soldiers will not be mistreated."

He opened the second document.

"Next, we will read out the evidence of crimes committed by the Li and Zhao families."

This time, his voice was no longer deep, but cold. Cold as the winter wind, cold as a blade.

"Li Wanshan, the head of the Li family, colluded with the Heavenly Demon Clan and set up a devouring array under the Li family mansion under the guise of 'alchemy breakthrough'."

"His son, Li Mo, transformed into a half-heavenly demon, lured wild hunters, and extracted their life force and spiritual energy to provide power for the great formation."

Ye Feng's voice echoed in the empty hall.

"Zhao Wuji, the city lord of Jiangcheng, betrayed Jiangcheng and the human race as a local official. He colluded with Li Wanshan to assist the Heavenly Demon Envoy in setting up a great formation and provided experts as aid."

His gaze swept across the entire room, his voice laced with coldness.

"Their crimes resulted in the deaths of 118,000 civilians and the sacrifice of more than 1,600 soldiers."

"They are traitors to Jiangcheng, traitors to the human race, they are..."

He uttered the last two words slowly and deliberately.

"A traitor."

The moment that word was uttered, the entire hall erupted in chaos.

"Traitor!"

"They deserve to die!"

"Thank goodness they're dead, otherwise I would have definitely bitten them off!"

The live stream was filled with insults.

"That's fucking traitorous!"

"More hateful than a monster!"

"The beasts killed us because we were enemies, but these people rape and kill their own people for profit!"

"Support Ye Feng! Support the Night Watchmen!"

"If Ye Feng hadn't arrived in time, Jiangcheng would be finished!"

The insults and anger were overwhelming.

Ye Feng waited for a while until the commotion subsided before continuing to speak.

"Li Wanshan and Zhao Wuji have been executed. All members of the Li and Zhao families who participated in the rebellion will be dealt with according to the law."

"Those who did not participate may have their lives spared after investigation, but all their property will be confiscated."

No one objected.

Millions of people watched the live stream, and not a single person objected.

Because everyone knows that Ye Feng is telling the truth and doing what he should do.

Ye Feng opened the last document.

"Finally, I have some news to share with everyone."

He paused, a slight smile playing on his lips.

"Guard Cao, Director Zhou, and Elder Zhang have gained profound insights from yesterday's battle and have decided to go into seclusion to attempt to become sixth-level martial artists."

This statement had an even more explosive effect than the previous mention of 3.7 billion.

"Sixth rank? Commander Cao is about to break through to the sixth rank?"

"Is Director Zhou also aiming for a breakthrough?"

"Old Zhang has been stuck at the peak of the fifth rank for almost ten years. Is he finally about to break through?"

"Three people simultaneously attempting to reach the sixth rank? Jiangcheng is about to take off!"

"If just one Tier 6 beast appears, Jiangcheng will be safe. If two appear, all the strange beasts within a hundred miles will have to avoid it. If three appear..."

"The Beast King in the southern mountains will have to weigh it up."

"Didn't Ye Feng say they had profound insights? Maybe all three of them can break through?"

Three? Dream on. You'd be lucky to get even one.

The live stream chat was filled with heated debate, with some expressing optimism and others caution.

But no one denies it.

This news is fantastic news for Jiangcheng.

Ye Feng continued, "While Commander Cao and the others are in seclusion, all affairs in Jiangcheng will be handled jointly by me and their deputies."

No one objected.

Who dares to object?

Ye Feng's current prestige has surpassed that of Cao Keyuan, and even surpassed that of anyone in Jiangcheng in the past.

He is the hero of Jiangcheng, the savior of Jiangcheng, and the only hope of Jiangcheng.

He paused, as if mentioning it casually.

"Another problem is that Jiangcheng is currently facing a severe shortage of third- and fourth-tier martial artists."

"In the past, Jiangcheng had hundreds of third-tier martial artists and dozens of fourth-tier martial artists."

"And now? One hundred and thirty-seven third-tier martial artists have been killed, and eighteen fourth-tier martial artists have been killed."

"These losses cannot be replenished in a short period of time."

"If Jiangcheng wants to defend its land and its city in the days to come, it must cultivate new experts."