Returning to hometown to farm: The apocalypse system arrived ten years earlier?

Chapter 336 We need the mysterious armored man!

Meanwhile, some coastal cities in China are also in grave danger.

Average height: Tianjin 3.3 meters, Ningbo 4.2 meters, Shanghai 4.5 meters...

Luojia Temple in Quanzhou, at high tide, resembles a Buddhist kingdom floating on the sea, a truly magnificent sight. At low tide, it stands abruptly atop the rocks. However, now, seawater has flooded into the temple, and the monks have already evacuated. If sea levels continue to rise, this ancient temple may no longer be a sacred place.

Television news and online discussions are all about rising sea levels.

Weather satellites show that, for unknown reasons, the temperature of Antarctic glaciers is extremely high, and the glaciers are melting at a visible rate.

One expert explained: "The glaciers at the North and South Poles store 70% of the world's freshwater. If they were to melt completely, the sea level would rise by 66 meters."

"66 meters? My God, at that time, the entire capital city would probably be submerged, the entire middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River would be unrecognizable, Shandong would be split into two large islands, Jiangsu Province would be almost entirely underwater, and among the first-tier coastal cities, only Shenzhen would probably be preserved."

"Don't panic. If the water level really rises to 66 meters, other countries won't fare much better. For example, the United States, whose economic center is concentrated along the coast, will see the entire Gulf Coast, New York, Boston, and the East Coast submerged."

"At that time, the African continent will probably be the ultimate winner. Apart from parts of Kenya and Mozambique being submerged, most of the African continent will remain undisturbed."

"Winner my foot! If only Africa is left, then all the major powers will gather in Africa to divide up the territory. How will the African people ever have a chance to be masters of their own destiny?"

"What about the notebook? That's what I'm most concerned about. How many meters will the sea level rise before the notebook gets submerged?"

One netizen replied: "You might be disappointed, but Japan's elevation is actually quite high. Tokyo's average elevation is 34.9 meters, and other coastal cities and densely populated areas are also more than 20 meters above sea level. It was submerged later than our coastal cities. And it also has Mount Fuji, which is over 3700 meters high."

“Here, if the sea level rises by 10 meters, the eastern coastal areas will be the first to be submerged by seawater. Many first-tier and near-first-tier cities will become a vast ocean, such as Hangzhou, Suzhou, Shanghai, Haizhou, Qingdao, Tianjin, and Bincheng... They will all become a vast ocean with only high-rise buildings remaining.”

"If the water level rises to 20 meters, seawater will begin to flow back into the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River. At that time, Nanjing, Wuhu, Dandong, Qinhuangdao, Yuzhang, Jiujiang, Anqing and other places will be flooded. In addition, Guangzhou, Taipei and other places will also be largely submerged by seawater."

"And at this time, the notebook was still safe and sound."

“That won’t do. We’ll give them a few DF-5B missiles then. They said the name is romantic and they like it, right? They said it comes from Xin Qiji’s poem ‘Green Jade Table: Lantern Festival’: ‘The east wind releases a thousand trees of flowers at night. And blows down stars like rain.’”

"Haha, actually we just want the East Wind to prevail over the West Wind. This is a quote from 'Dream of the Red Chamber' that our teacher used: 'Either the East Wind prevails over the West Wind, or the West Wind prevails over the East Wind!'"

"However, Japan is located in an earthquake zone, with the pushing force from the Asian continental plate and the pulling force from the retreating Pacific plate. Japan's islands are sliding towards the Mariana Trench, the deepest point in the world. According to statistics, Japan sinks by about 10 centimeters per year on average. Even if it is not flooded this time, it is only a matter of time before it sinks."

The whole country, no, the whole world, is discussing the issue of "rising sea levels." It can be said to be a global hot topic. Even the old people in Lijia Village will chat about it when they have nothing else to do.

Fortunately, Lijia Village is located in Sichuan Province, with an average altitude of over 2,000 meters and a minimum altitude of 188 meters. Even if the sea level rises by 66 meters, it will not be flooded. It truly deserves the title of "Land of Abundance".

……

Early September in Antarctica should be dominated by polar nights and blizzards, but the ice field is shrouded in an eerie dark red light.

Two figures stood side by side on the remaining ice field.

Li Xiang's Giant Whale Holy Armor emitted white mist in the low temperature, while Luo Feifei's Abyss Sea King's Seal floated in her palm, its azure light patterns clashing with the heat wave, emitting a hissing sound.

The ice beneath their feet was collapsing—not from typical glacial fissures, but vaporizing in large swathes as if being devoured by an invisible behemoth.

Heat surged forth from a spatial rift spanning several kilometers, within which churned crimson vortexes, and glimpses of the other side of the world could be seen: mountains of lava, rivers flowing with liquid flames, and some enormous, indescribable shadow writhing in the heat haze.

The heat wave erupted, instantly turning the ice surface into boiling water upon contact, only to evaporate it in the next second, leaving behind honeycomb-like charred holes.

Li Xiang's heart stirred, and he took out a sixth-order "Mysterious Ice Armor" that he had previously condensed, and tentatively threw it out.

This Xuanbing Armor was forged from a mineral core called "Jiaolong Tears" obtained when Luo Feifei and she went to the seabed to excavate special ley lines. It has extremely high strength and melting point, but it looks crystal clear like Xuanbing.

"Whoosh~"

Under his immense strength of 70 jin, the Xuanbing Armor slammed into the spatial rift like a cannonball. Unfortunately, it melted into liquid and dripped down as soon as it got close to the rift.

At the same time, Li Xiang and Luo Feifei noticed that purplish-black arcs of electricity were flashing at the edge of the spatial rift, and the Antarctic blizzard, after being swept in, condensed into fire rain and spewed out.

Luo Feifei waved her jade hand, using the Royal Seal to create a water curtain barrier. The fire rain crashed onto the water curtain, exploding into a sulfurous, poisonous mist.

Some scaly ash drifted in with the heat. System: "Detected remains of an otherworldly creature, energy level: Saint Rank."

"Thump~, thump~, thump~"

A faint, heart-pounding vibration emanated from the depths of the crack, each pulsation intensifying the tremors of the icy plain.

Li Xiang used his Saint-level earth-type ability to construct a "geological furnace" in an attempt to absorb heat, but the furnace was corroded and cracked by the energy from another world.

Luo Feifei tried to activate the "Abyss Sea King's Seal" to freeze the heat flow, but the ice layer vaporized the moment it came into contact with the heat.

They considered many other solutions, such as Li Xiang using an interdimensional warehouse to temporarily store the seawater. However, although his warehouse was large, it was still too small compared to the waters of the four seas. Even if the warehouse were completely filled with seawater, it wouldn't lower the sea level much.

For example, Luo Feifei used her water-based powers to guide seawater into the other side of a spacetime tunnel. However, this is a precious water resource on Earth; if it were guided into some unknown world, it would be a huge loss. Earth's water resources are inherently limited.

Although seawater is not drinkable, it can be desalinated or evaporated to obtain pure water.

Moreover, judging from the current situation, even if this plan were adopted, it wouldn't work, because the seawater would vaporize completely before it even gets close, potentially leading to torrential downpours across the globe. The previous flood prevention and disaster relief efforts would have to be repeated.

In fact, even without doing so, the "super rainstorm" is likely to return in a few days.

Luo Feifei suddenly groaned, and Wang Quanxi's light dimmed abruptly—her water-based superpowers were being suppressed by the laws of another world.

Li Xiang grabbed her slender waist, and in a flash, retreated several thousand meters. When he looked back, his pupils shrank: the spot where he had just stood had collapsed into a boiling ice abyss, and cracks were tearing outwards at a speed of more than ten meters per second.

"What should we do?" Luo Feifei looked at Li Xiang. She was still angry with Li Xiang, but with this great calamity looming, she decided to "forget the past" for now and settle accounts with him later.

Luo Feifei had actually consulted a fortune teller later, and the divination results, as always, indicated that she and Li Xiang would need several years before they could finally get married.

Luo Feifei wondered, "Could it be that, years later, Jiang Cai'er had an accident? Or that her relationship broke down and she got divorced?" But then she felt it was unlikely. She had observed Jiang Cai'er from afar; Jiang Cai'er was very strong, and she might not be able to defeat her. Moreover, Li Xiang doted on Jiang Cai'er.

Li Xiang pondered for a moment: "I have a magic weapon, the Star Core Barrier. Let's throw it out and see."

This is an SSS-level item he just bought by browsing the system shop, spending a huge sum of money—over six million achievement points. He really went all out, and now his account balance is almost gone.

Luo Feifei's eyes lit up with anticipation, hoping for a miracle.

Unfortunately, when Li Xiang activated the "Star Core Barrier," the barrier shattered after only three seconds, and the system prompted: "Insufficient energy level, intervention from the fundamental laws is required."

Li Xiang felt a pang of heartache; the loss was huge—over six million achievement points, gone just like that.

But for the sake of all humanity, he couldn't care less about such things.

Li Xiang has always had a broad perspective, considering the big picture in his actions. Even his "global zero-dollar purchase" was no exception. The supplies he collected were for post-apocalyptic use, not just for his family, but as "life-saving rations" for all of humanity. His family only had a few members; how much could they possibly eat? How much could they possibly use? They simply didn't need that much. Therefore, this wasn't prepared for his family alone.

Many people misunderstand him, thinking he is morally flawed, stealing and robbing all over the world, which is not gentlemanly, but he doesn't care.

Unfortunately, even a "star core barrier" wouldn't work, so it's estimated that existing technological weapons on Earth would be even less effective.

"I'll go back and think of something," Li Xiang said.

"Hmph, then go ahead. I'm leaving first." Luo Feifei snorted lightly, activated her "Electric Illusion Armor," and disappeared into the horizon. The intelligent Luo Feifei easily guessed that Li Xiang wanted to go back and consult his genius wife.

"Tch~, so what if your wife is smart? Does she think she can bully me because I'm uneducated?" Luo Feifei felt frustrated and bitter. As for education, well, she didn't graduate high school.

Although with her status, wealth, and status, she didn't need to care about academic qualifications, she was naturally upset to see Jiang Cai'er attending the best university in the country, being hailed as a research prodigy, having published many high-impact articles, obtaining several master's and doctoral degrees in just two years, and even becoming pregnant with enviable twins.

Li Xiang gave a wry smile. He did indeed want to go back and ask Jiang Cai'er for advice. Jiang Cai'er was also quite resistant to Luo Feifei, so he naturally couldn't bring Luo Feifei back with him.

In Lijia Village, Jiang Cai'er is currently pregnant. Her belly is growing bigger and bigger, and she hasn't even participated in disaster relief efforts. Instead, she's been designing a new type of nuclear reactor at home. Of course, she's just drawing diagrams, not conducting experiments.

The radiation from the experiment would be too great and harmful to the fetus. The Li family village couldn't conduct the experiment either.

Li Xiang then recounted his experiences in Antarctica in great detail, only omitting the part about traveling with Luo Feifei.

Jiang Cai'er used a quantum computer to perform simulations. After a long time, she designed a "space anchor." Li Xiang followed the design and activated the "crystal armor," which took two days and one night to produce. Then, he excitedly flew to Antarctica.

As a result, the "space anchor" was thrown out and lasted for only a dozen seconds before being twisted into scrap metal by the space node.

When he returned and told Jiang Cai'er, Jiang Cai'er pondered for a moment and said, "The only solution now is... to go and disturb those seniors."

Li Xiang nodded; he had the same idea.

The couple had the same idea.

The predecessors they were referring to were, of course, the three god-level "Earth Vein Spirits" who were currently in hibernation and recovering.

Although it would be bad to disturb their slumber, and the three were far from recovered, at this critical juncture for humanity's survival, we couldn't worry about that now.

"I believe the three seniors will not refuse."

Jiang Cai'er was pregnant, and Li Xiang didn't want her to travel around, so he went to the Qinling ancestral mountain alone.

The old man in the imperial robes was startled and awoke from his deep sleep. After a brief conversation, he learned the purpose of the visit. He stroked his beard and pondered for a long time before saying, "I do have a solution."

"What method?" Li Xiang asked excitedly.

The old man in the imperial robe slowly said, "The Nine Palaces Suppressing Mountains and Covering the Sky Formation requires five people. I am not capable enough to count as one, my second brother and third sister will be two, but unfortunately my fourth brother is too badly injured to fight, and my fifth brother is missing. We are still short two people."

The Kunlun ancestral vein's energy transforms into five dragons. This formation was originally meant to be used when all five dragons gathered, but now it no longer works. Things have changed, the dragons are no longer the same, the old man sighed with emotion.

Li Xiang readily agreed, saying, "I'll count myself in too."

"And the other one?" the old man in the imperial robes asked.

After pondering for a moment, Li Xiang finally had no choice but to recommend Luo Feifei. This was because Luo Feifei was at the eighteenth level, making her the strongest fighter besides himself.

The others are far behind. Although Jiang Cai'er is at the sixteenth level and her actual combat strength may not be inferior to Luo Feifei, she is pregnant with twins and will give birth in two or three months, so she definitely cannot fight.

“This formation is quite complex and requires time to practice. I would be grateful if you could invite my second brother, third sister, and that Fairy Luo here,” said the old man in the imperial robes.

“Okay, I’ll take care of it.” Li Xiang left immediately.

Before long, Long Ling from the capital, Wen Shu Fairy from Jinling City, and Luo Feifei gathered at the Qinling Ancestral Vein.

The two humans and three spirits practiced the formation day and night deep underground, but it was too profound. Li Xiang and Luo Feifei were slightly weaker, and it would probably take them some time to master the formation.

……

Meanwhile, the outside world was already extremely anxious.

More than 30 heads of state arrived at the White House and gathered around the President of the United States to discuss this important matter.

After several meetings, the military operation finally began!

NATO strikes!

Over Antarctica, the dark clouds were torn apart by the roar of dozens of fighter jets. B-2 Spirit bombers swept across the glaciers like black giant owls, their bomb bays opening.

The bunker buster and thermobaric bombs fell one after another into the crimson crack that stretched across the ice field. The explosions lit up the surface of the crack, but they were like pebbles thrown into lava.

The heat wave surged slightly, and a flash of purplish-black electric arc appeared at the edge of the crack, completely engulfing all the shrapnel and shockwave.

Inside the Pentagon command center, the images transmitted from the satellites made the generals' faces turn ashen.

First wave of attacks:
F-35s launched AGM-158 stealth missiles, the warheads of which carried the newly developed "space oscillator," which is theoretically capable of interfering with space. This was the first time it was used in actual combat.

Unfortunately, at the moment of impact, the shadow inside the rift writhed, and the energy of the oscillator was absorbed, causing the missile debris to turn into molten iron and vaporize.

Second wave of attacks:
The NATO fleet launched a Dark Hawk hypersonic missile from the Southern Ocean, reaching a speed of Mach 5. The missile, upon touching the crack, seemed to have struck an invisible quagmire, its speed plummeting to zero before disintegrating into a plume of smoke.

Ultimately, NATO resorted to its ultimate weapon—nuclear weapons.

Three kilometers away from the fissure, a B61-12 tactical nuclear bomb was airdropped. As the mushroom cloud rose, the ice evaporated, creating a giant crater a kilometer in diameter, but the fissure remained completely unmoved.

Even more terrifying, the nuclear explosion energy was extracted by the crack, and a satisfied roar came from the other side of the passage, as if it had been fed to some being.

Radiation levels around the fissure spiked to a thousand times the lethal dose, and the drone went out of control and crashed as soon as it got close.

NATO scientists have discovered that all attacks are like "throwing a match into a black hole"—Earth's weapons simply cannot touch the origin of the laws of another world.

A report was placed on the White House conference table: "The rate of crack propagation has accelerated by 7%!"
The president of Great America finally pushed aside the tactical sand table and hissed, "Contact China... We need that armored man."

"If the armored man is willing to help, the zero-yuan purchase can be forgiven."

Other heads of state nodded in agreement. Compared to the flooding in various countries, what does a zero-dollar purchase matter?
As for "pardons," the United States has a long-standing tradition of granting this power at any time during the term of office. However, this "privilege" is usually used on the last day of the term to pardon family members, friends, sponsors, and political allies, and is also known as a "midnight pardon."

According to a report by the Congressional Research Service, most presidents have used this power.

(End of this chapter)