The various departments in Yanjing had been closely monitoring the movements of the fleet tasked with salvaging the meteorite. Although winter had arrived and the nation was organizing manpower to hunt mutated beasts to curb casualties, the issue of hunting mutated beasts was insignificant compared to the importance of the meteorite.
Yanjing's emphasis was not without reason. Having learned of the meteorite's function, they could not allow it to fall into the hands of others, as it would undoubtedly alter the global balance of power. Whoever could obtain the meteorite first would be able to cultivate an army of espers.
Thus, under the attention of headquarters, the fleet from Hainan departed first, arriving at the Divine Realm four to five days ahead of other factions. Subsequently, good news continued to pour in. First, Li Keyi, a member of the Yanjing Research Institute, found a method to isolate electromagnetic waves. With the ability to isolate electromagnetic waves, ordinary people could also find ways to approach the meteorite. Then, Fang Qinghao from the Esper Administration found the meteorite underwater. Other factions' espers had actually only entered the Divine Realm not long before this.
Li Keyi specifically proposed a strategy for bringing the meteorite back, the most crucial part of which was to custom-make spherical containers of lead and graphite with a diameter of over ten meters, preferably in a two-half structure that could be fitted together. Once this container was sent to the South Pacific, the meteorite could be officially salvaged. During this period, the meteorite would be buried underground by Qin Kewei using his esper abilities.
Headquarters attached great importance to this and immediately issued instructions to begin manufacturing these lead and graphite containers. Not just one, but three such containers were made, divided into two halves each, totaling six pieces. When fitted together, they formed perfect spheres.
Manufacturing containers to store the meteorite was not difficult; the challenge lay in how to transport them to the South Pacific. The vast distance meant ordinary ships could not deliver them. Using helicopters would make the target too large, and without refueling stops, helicopters would struggle to fly such long distances. The only solution was to use large ships.
Ultimately, headquarters chose to dispatch six civilian ships, equipped with sufficient fuel. Nothing else needed to be transported; they only needed to deliver the containers to the fleet. The fleet outside the Divine Realm transmitted the latest news daily, and the method for the fleet to contact people within the Divine Realm was simple: espers would report to the fleet daily.
Ke Yiming was the most diligent, tirelessly going to the fleet in the Divine Realm to report the situation. However, each time he left, his backpack was bulging, appearing very heavy. If the canvas backpack were not of good quality, it would likely not withstand the weight of several hundred kilograms.
Ke Yiming's actions had already attracted attention, as his movements were too conspicuous. Carrying a heavy package every time, everyone could guess the truth.
Shen Feng saw this and did not care. It was merely sneaking some valuable items. He did not need any precious items now; his only purpose for going out to sea was for meteorite fragments. Nothing else was important.
Guo Pinming and Qi Lingshan were also indifferent to some of the gold and jewelry on the ship because they were eventually returning to Yuzhou. In Yuzhou, they primarily used ration coupons. When Shen Feng left Yuzhou, he directly made a promise: "After the mission is completed and we return, I will give each of you ten tons of ration coupons, and a few buildings. You can use them as you wish, whether for business or for rent!"
With Shen Feng's guarantee, Guo Pinming and Qi Lingshan were no longer too concerned about gold and jewelry, as they would have everything if they could complete the mission.
Conversely, the people from the Esper Administration felt their salaries were not high enough. They could not even save enough money to purchase evolution bases, and to continue evolving, they even needed to accept gifts from Chang Jianyi. What they lacked the most was money.
The containers customized by Li Keyi were successfully manufactured within a day, as it was merely a matter of building a container with no technical difficulties. The only challenge was transporting it to the South Pacific. This was an ocean voyage, and encountering a storm at sea could make it difficult to even preserve oneself. If they encountered sea beasts, it would be a sure death, never to see the sun again.
At the Hainan dock, six civilian ships were already docked. The massive hemispheres were placed on the deck and then covered with tarpaulin.
Sixty soldiers were arranged in formation on the ships. They carried a conviction of death for this mission; they could die, but the mission must be completed.
A commander stood before these soldiers and said earnestly, "This mission is very dangerous because there are giant sea beasts in the ocean. Even warships cannot do anything to these sea beasts, and you will be traveling on civilian ships without any support at sea. If the ship leaks, it means the mission has failed. In such a situation, I will not blame anyone who is willing to withdraw. Those who wish to withdraw, step forward!"
The soldiers remained motionless, all standing on the dock, their gazes as firm as ever.
The commander continued, "Sea beasts like to attack humans, and you can at most carry firearms and large-caliber grenade launchers. In this situation, if you unfortunately encounter sea beasts, it will be a death sentence. Think about your families, think about your future. Those willing to withdraw, step forward!"
Still, no one stepped forward. They were prepared to die, and even if they faced stormy seas after setting sail, they had to undertake this task.
Seeing the determined expressions of the soldiers, the commander finally showed a look of relief. However, he did not know how many would return from this voyage. Six ships departed, and if just two ships arrived, it would be enough.
"Then let's set sail. Use the fastest speed. Regardless of the route you choose, you must deliver these containers to the fleet in the South Pacific," the commander gave the order, and the group set off towards the South Pacific. While in Southeast Asia, they could still sail along the coast. However, once they reached the vicinity of Australia, they would have to enter deep-sea areas, which were notoriously the regions where giant sea beasts appeared most frequently.
After boarding the ships, the soldiers immediately and skillfully took off their military uniforms and disguised themselves as ordinary sailors, heading south. The six ships divided into two directions: three ships went south through the Bashi Channel, while the other three passed through the Nansha Islands, sailed through the inland seas of the Southeast Asian archipelago, and after passing Cape York, reached the Coral Sea. One route was more adventurous but the fastest, reaching the South Pacific in half a month. The other route was safer but very slow, winding and turning, taking at least a month to reach the destination.
After boarding the ships, the soldiers looked at the containers covered with cloth on the deck and couldn't help but joke, "It's like an inverted big bowl. I wonder what the espers want these big bowls for."
"I think only sea beasts can use such big bowls. Look, the diameter alone is over ten meters. Besides sea beasts, can anyone else on Earth use such big bowls?"
"I think such big bowls are to deal with sea beasts. Look, these big bowls are made of lead. They say touching too much stunts growth. If these are given to sea beasts, won't the sea beasts be touching them every day? In the end, the sea beasts will become smaller."
"Nonsense, I've never heard of animals shrinking their bodies. No matter how much they touch, they won't get smaller."
Finally, the squad leader passed by the soldiers and shouted loudly, "Are classified matters for you to discuss casually? This is utter nonsense. This mission must be kept secret. Anyone who dares to talk nonsense again will be confined!"
The soldiers quickly shut their mouths and began to sail according to the route.
The squad leader continued to instruct, "Pass the word down: do not say where we are going, do not say what we are doing, and do not pick local people's pineapples and wax apples."
The soldiers were very obedient and passed down the order. There were only about ten of them, so conveying an order was quick.
...
After dawn, Shen Feng had also sobered up. He was quite curious about what had happened last night, so he immediately deployed his portable parachute on his back. After taking off, he began to observe at sea and found that in the area where the Russian espers were located, the wooden boat had shattered. A group of people had set up camp on floating ice. During the hot summer, the floating ice melted quickly, so every so often, espers needed to reinforce the floating ice, otherwise, those on the ice would fall into the water.
There were also raised objects covered with white cloth on the floating ice, with bloodstains faintly visible. Needless to say, beneath these white cloths were corpses.
"One, two, three, four, five. Five espers were killed last night. It's a shame I was drunk last night and didn't get to see this scene!" Shen Feng exclaimed inwardly after seeing the scene below. If he hadn't been drunk last night, he could have enjoyed the show.
Speaking of which, Shen Feng also felt that Gong Changfa's plan this time was quite insidious. Fortunately, he was on his side and was calculating against others.
Then, Shen Feng went to the North American gathering place to check the situation. But as soon as he approached, "Bat" immediately took off, flapping its wings to block Shen Feng's approach, its tone quite cold, "Please do not approach casually. If you wish to communicate, please come by boat. This is already our North American airspace!"
"So overbearing!" Shen Feng was very displeased. If it weren't for the fact that he couldn't cause trouble casually now, he really wanted to use wind blades to pierce this so-called "Bat" with a thousand arrows, to see if he would still declare this as their airspace.
Shen Feng could only turn and leave, but he was also guessing that the situation in North America was probably not going well. Otherwise, these people were all smiles yesterday, but today they looked like they had "sell your mother" written on their faces. Therefore, the fight between these two groups last night must have been a Pyrrhic victory.
However, as Shen Feng returned to the ferry, he discovered a small boat on the water approaching the warship. Looking down from above, he could vaguely see someone's reflective head. This made him certain of the other party's identity, "Is this the European Andorf?"
Most of the espers in the Divine Realm were young people, all with handsome and dashing appearances. Men were valiant and strong, and women were also stunning beauties. However, there was an anomaly among the espers: Andorf. At a young age, he had aged prematurely due to excessive use of his abilities, not only looking weathered but also balding.
Looking down from above and seeing the reflection on his head, there was no need for speculation; there was only one answer.
At the same time, Natalie, who was on the same boat as Andorf, also detected the person overhead using ultrasound and quickly and quietly reminded him, "Andorf, we have someone above us!"
Andorf looked up and saw Shen Feng in the sky, then said in a low voice, "Don't worry about him, he won't attack us. Remember what I told you: when we reach the Chinese espers' gathering place, use your abilities to scan the seabed and see if the meteorite is under their ship. I suspect they have found the meteorite's whereabouts."
Natalie quickly replied, "I will definitely do it."
Andorf had successfully angered the Russian and Indian espers during last night's battle. The reason was simple: he had shattered the wooden boat with a punch. The violent vibration caused the fragile parts of the wooden boat to break directly. These two groups lost their footing, and after suffering such an attack, how could these espers tolerate it?
Immediately, a battle broke out. Espers were inherently powerful. As soon as the battle began, both sides suffered heavy casualties.
Although the North Americans had shattered the wooden boat, their numbers were too few. After the battle broke out, six North American espers were directly killed, two of whom were killed with bare hands by Silinova. In the end, the North American espers could only retreat in disarray.
Andorf thought carefully and realized that only the Chinese espers remained aloof. They were the direct beneficiaries of this conflict. Whoever benefited from this situation was most likely the mastermind. Therefore, he had reason to suspect that the Chinese espers had found the meteorite, and scanning the sea area seemed very necessary.