Chapter 29: The Deterrence of the Five from Earth

By consuming the spirit stones in the hands of the five, Liu Yinyun and his companions forcefully raised their cultivation to the peak of the first level of Qi Refinement...

Wu Fei spread his fingers, feeling the surge of magical power within his palm, and couldn’t contain his excitement: “So this is magical power… It feels amazing, as if another part of my body.” He gently tossed the ball of power, which exploded in the distance, stirring up a gust that carved a small pit in the sand—somewhat different from Liu Yinyun’s more forceful blasts.

The others, too, couldn’t wait to experiment with this new strength blossoming within their bodies…

Outer space. International spaceship. United States.

The president’s face was livid as he swept everything from his desk to the floor. “Damn it, what the hell have you done! Not only has the team sent by the Xia Nation to Earth survived, they’ve all succeeded in cultivating that cursed ‘Qi Refinement Method’! Why does God favor them so?!”

His female secretary, face full of fear yet secretly sneering, thought, “The Xia Nation cultivates immortality—what does that have to do with God? If you want to lose your temper, at least pick something that makes sense.”

The president panted heavily. “Get me the head of military operations. I want to know what he’s doing right now!”

The secretary dialed, and soon after, the line was connected. She spoke softly, “Mr. Oscar, the president wishes to speak with you.” The president snatched the phone, his voice ice cold: “Oscar, what are you doing right now?”

Oscar, head of military operations, was startled. What the hell kind of tone is that? Do I owe you something? He replied, “I’m in the restroom, taking a dump—the big kind, thick, long, and hard!”

The president’s fat, pale face turned green instantly. Oscar’s damn response conjured a vivid scene in his mind, making his stomach churn. He slammed his left hand on the desk so hard his palm stung, his anger intensifying. “The Xia team has already mastered the secret technique, and you’re still on the toilet?!”

Oscar was fuming too. After finally getting a break, the damn president even interrogated him about using the restroom!

He couldn’t hold back any longer: “Excretion is a normal human need. Or do you, Mr. President, just do it in your chair and have the secretary change your pants? If so, to borrow a phrase from Xia, I admit defeat—I simply can’t compare…”

A tic developed at the corner of the president’s eye. He wanted to slam the table again, but his hand hurt too much. His voice trembled with fury: “Oscar, I am the president! You know the power of my family! If you want to keep your position, you’d better behave like a loyal dog—sit when I tell you to sit, roll when I say roll. If you ever dare bite me, I’ll make sure you end up nothing but meat on the chopping block!”

Oscar’s blond hair nearly stood on end. He replied, word by word: “Don’t threaten me with your damn family. The whole United States is on this ship now, and the solar helium flash is only three years away. You’d better pray day and night with your family for some miracle hope from God…

I am the head of the United States military, not your personal lackey. You should remember that! If your muddled head, controlled by your family like a puppet, endangers the survival of the United States, I won’t hesitate to detonate the nuclear bombs on this ship and set off a trillion-dollar firework in space! Dare you bet on that, coward?”

The president slammed the phone down hard, cracking it. His eyes were bloodshot. “A mere dog dares shout at me? I’ll crush him! Yes, I’ll call my family, get him removed, then have him killed!”

He dialed the number for his family’s liaison.

Behind him, the female secretary’s expression was full of disdain. What a puppet, she thought. Now that he’s made it to president thanks to the family, he should just do as he’s told. The rest of the time, he can enjoy wealth and luxury as he likes. Does he really think he wields any real power? Pathetic. If the United States hadn’t entered spaceship society—no longer as free as Earth, and with the elite’s every move visible to the masses—the family would have quietly arranged his “natural death” long ago…

After the call, the president’s face shifted through a range of emotions like a quick-change act.

He took several deep breaths, then dialed Oscar again.

Oscar answered, “Speak!”

The president, humiliated to this point, forced himself to relax his face, even squeezing out what he thought was a friendly laugh. “Well… I admit I was a bit harsh earlier. I apologize. Don’t take it to heart. I was just upset about the Xia team’s return to Earth, and I care too much for our people. Really, I wanted to ask about arrangements for our second Earth return team…”

Damn Oscar. Damn the family. They can all go to hell!

In his mind, he unleashed every curse he knew at them.

What a powerful, ancient family, with generations of strength—enough to control half the United States. Back on Earth, they held the nation’s lifeblood in their hands, so domineering!

He’d just called, asking the family to deal with Oscar, who dared defy the president.

But the family head told him to wash his face and calm down. Three years was too short—a focus on the survival of the United States must come first. On that foundation, extract as much benefit from those Earth cultivators as possible, even if it’s not the people themselves—anything else of value is fine.

As for Oscar, he couldn’t be touched for now—he was genuinely talented. In the spaceship society, military strength was crucial. Changing leaders at such a critical moment would have dire consequences…

Damn their ancestors!

The president’s face was flushed as he gripped the phone. “Hello, Mr. Oscar, are you still there?”

Oscar, mildly surprised, quickly understood. The president must have begged his family for help and been refused, forced to accept the way things were and back down…

Oscar didn’t want to talk much to this puppet. “The new Earth return team has already been dispatched, equipped with advanced weapons and powerful signal jammers. They can block all electronic signals within a five-kilometer radius, including surveillance…”

The president tried to press for more, but all he heard was a click and a busy tone.

Damn it all…

Earth, Lushi City.

Liu Yinyun and his four companions, carrying pickaxes, hoes, and other tools, set out into the mountains in search of spirit stones.

Their mission was simple: using the spirit stone compass crafted by Chen Chushi—a small disk much like an ordinary compass, but with a needle carved from a spirit stone, inscribed with pictographs only Chen Chushi could decipher. This special arrangement allowed it to indicate the location of spirit stone clusters within ten kilometers…

They were to find the spirit stones in the mountains, then place a “spirit stone portable charger spell”-engraved stone among the cluster, allowing the spiritual energy to merge.

Along the route, they would leave small spirit stones in hidden spots as they returned, gradually forming a spiritual energy network that would cover the entirety of Lushi Island…

As the network grew, it would flow and maintain its connections on its own, eventually weaving from lines into a surface. By then, only Chen Chushi would be able to trace the source of the spiritual energy; to anyone else, finding the base station would be like searching for an undersea spring in the middle of the ocean.