The radio signal made Shen Cong's eyes flicker — the Eastern Theater Command. They'd arrived.

He pulled over, sent the DJI Phantom 8 up into the last of the fading light, and surveyed what lay ahead. About five kilometers out, he found it: signs of human activity. A small settlement. Cross-referencing the map, it matched the location of Sanhe Town.

Looks like a minor outpost. Probably the Command's forward position at Sanhe Town. I can drop Zhao Zilong's group here.

He had no intention of walking into the Eastern Theater Command's territory blind. If they decided to bring him under strict military administration, he'd have handed control of his own life to someone else. That was a hard limit.

He picked up the radio. "The Eastern Theater Command is within range. I'm receiving their broadcast. Everything ahead falls inside their military defense zone."

"Already?" Zhao Zilong's voice came back with rare warmth. "That's wonderful. Thank you, Colonel Chen — I don't want to think about what this journey would have looked like without you."

"We're square. Don't thank me." His tone was flat. "There's a small settlement about five kilometers ahead, at the Sanhe Town position. Signs of human presence. I'll take you as far as Sanhe Town, confirm it's a Command outpost, and we part ways there."

"You're really not coming with us into the Command?"

"We'll see. Get ready to move — it's getting dark."

Great Vajra rolled forward along the cleared expressway. Along the roadside, wooden signs had been mounted on poles at intervals: Eastern Theater Command Military Defense Zone. Huai'an City Survivor Settlement Welcomes You. United... Together... Three kilometers ahead: Sanhe Town Free Trade Zone.

Free Trade Zone?

Shen Cong read the signs as he passed them. The name didn't suggest direct military jurisdiction. It sounded more like a designated space for outside survivors to conduct exchanges — somewhere with deliberate distance from the Command's formal structure. A free trade zone inside a military administration would be a contradiction in terms. Which meant it probably wasn't.

If it's genuinely independent, it might be worth using as…