Denton and Tyler didn't join them this time. They insisted this was a deal between Caroline and the army, and they weren't getting involved. Once Caroline met with Francis, the whole group headed out in full force. They had no trouble at all taking over the canned food factory and the grain processing facility. The army managed both transfers smoothly. The workers there didn't even know Harry was dead. Harry was a real schemer. He had secretly protected these places, keeping the addresses to himself and handling most things personally. He only sent deliveries here about twice a month, usually leaving a few trusted confidants to watch over the sites. That was why it took Caroline so long to finally tell Francis to take action. She never seemed to be in any rush. After Harry died, the next scheduled supply run happened to fall on the coldest day of the season. The staff at those facilities just assumed the heavy snow and freezing weather were to blame for the delay, so they didn't think much of it. Plus, they had plenty of food and water, so everyone just focused on their work and waited for Harry to show up again. But as the temperatures started to rise sharply these past few days and Harry still didn't show up, they realized something was off. They were just debating whether to break Harry's "never leave the facility" order and go look for him when the army showed up. The army took over in a single sweep, rounding the workers up on the spot. Aside from a handful of Harry's most loyal followers, the rest were just regular workers. So for most of them, it didn't matter who was in charge. As long as they got fed, they were happy to keep working. When word got around that the army was taking over the factories, they supported it completely. Once the army dealt with Harry's confidants and sent in their own people, those plants were officially in army hands.Caroline still wanted a cut of the factories' profits, but she didn't ask for any specific goods. Of course, she did mention that if they came across any bizarre mutant animal corpses like that turtle, she'd take those instead and settle for less in supplies. After finishing up with those factories, the group rushed off to the Mutant Grain Research Institute. They expected the takeover of the institute would go off without a hitch. But neither Caroline nor the army had expected a rebellion to break out right then and there. When Caroline arrived at the institute, what shocked her most was that in the middle of the chaos stood a mutant plant over 16 feet tall. Suddenly, she remembered what she'd heard from Harry's bodyguard. There was a mutant tree in Harry's lab. It had originally been more than 10 feet tall, and now it had grown past 16 feet. The tree had even developed some intelligence and could follow simple commands. Right now, the one controlling the tree was a young man in a lab coat. He was standing next to the tree, with shackles on his feet. And that wasn't even the most surprising thing. What truly stunned Caroline was that she recognized the man instantly. He was Nelson Valdez, the most powerful healing-type ability user. The mutant tree had once been just a regular sycamore. Now, it stood more than 16 feet tall. All its small branches had disappeared, replaced by six or seven thick limbs. Each branch had only a single leaf, and each leaf was the size of a human hand, some almost as big as half a person. The tree was using its branches and leaves to attack people nonstop. It could literally smack someone and send them flying. The scene was both fascinating and terrifying. When Caroline and the others arrived, they saw the sycamore swinging both of its branches at once, sending a man—well over six feet tall—sailing more than 20 feet through the air with a single smack. Bullets were fired at the tree, but the tree blocked the bullets with its leaves.Then, the tree scooped up the bullets with its leaves and flung them back, knocking out two gunmen in an instant. Behind the tree stood a tall, slender man with a cold and detached look. He was just over six feet tall, and he was wearing a dirty, curly lab coat. His hair looked unkempt, hanging over his eyes. He had a high, slightly hooked nose. His extremely thin lips pressed together, almost vanishing into a line. His cheeks were gaunt, but his bone structure was striking. His eyes were narrow with double eyelids, with a deep and unreadable gaze. Altogether, he gave off a cold, aloof, hard-to-approach vibe. The tree's leaves shielded him tightly, leaving him completely unharmed. Looking closely, Caroline could see the man's lips moving nonstop, as if he was talking to the mutant tree, giving it instructions. Soon, the mutant tree took care of everyone who tried to attack. All that remained in the area were faint cries of pain and the occasional rustle as the tree's leaves shook. Otherwise, there was barely a sound.