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

Chapter 342 It turns out that the highest realm of the "Infrastructure Maniac" is physical sainthood.
With the end times approaching, jade jewelry is selling poorly; the more chaotic the world, the less valuable these items become. Conversely, gold prices have surged, reaching over 1,300 yuan per gram. Some are even predicting it will exceed 2,000 yuan.

That's simply outrageous.

However, upon closer examination, this is normal given the changing times.

Antiques in prosperous times, gold in troubled times.

Some people say that in the end times, shouldn't food, gasoline, and other commodities be the hard currency?
But anyone who has studied economics knows that food and gasoline cannot shoulder the burden of currency.

In ancient times, people used seashells, which later developed into a variety of currencies such as knife coins (Qi and Yan), cloth coins (Central Plains), and round coins (Qin).

After unifying China, Qin Shi Huang promoted the "round with a square hole" Banliang coin, laying the foundation for the form of Chinese coinage. Emperor Wu of Han then centralized the right to mint coins, issuing the Wuzhu coin (approximately 3.25 grams), which circulated for over 700 years and became a model of ancient currency.

The properties of food and gasoline dictate that they cannot directly serve as currency to meet demand. However, oil, on the other hand, can serve as an anchor. For example, after the collapse of the Bretton Woods system, the United States and Saudi Arabia formally signed the Petrodollar Agreement in 1974, linking the dollar to oil and establishing the dollar's hegemonic system. Therefore, the Middle East is the strategic core and most important region for the United States, and its loss is unacceptable.

This is also closely related to why "Israel" is a local tyrant in the Middle East. Of course, there are deeper reasons why "Israel" is a supreme ruler-like figure.

In today's world, only gold is the best hard currency.

To put it simply, imagine gasoline becoming a hard currency. In the apocalypse, you're carrying a can of gasoline to buy steamed buns. Just imagine the scene. It might suddenly catch fire, and the steamed bun shop would explode.

Bartering is outdated and unsuitable for large markets with large populations, especially for retail. If you want steamed buns, I want clothes, and someone wants medicine, how do you exchange them?
You're carrying gasoline, wanting to buy steamed buns, but the bun seller has already taken too much gasoline and it's hard to store. Now they only want clothes, or maybe just medicine...

You're starving, so hungry you're dizzy, carrying gasoline around the streets trying to trade clothes with people, but the clothes sellers only want a woman in return, and you're a man... while the drug sellers only want a weapon...

Bartering is only possible in large-scale transactions between countries or powers.

Global stock and real estate markets have collapsed, gold prices have skyrocketed, and the existing economic system has rendered the currencies of various countries worthless. The new era demands a new economic system.

At Li Xiang's suggestion, the country began to prepare "energy currency," anchored to grain reserves: 1 unit = the energy required to sustain an adult for 24 hours, replacing traditional currency.

In the end times, nothing is more important than food, not even gold or oil.

China has the confidence to say, without any modesty, that no other country can match its grain reserves. And once spring arrives, we will immediately begin promoting Yuan Longping's high-yield hybrid rice varieties.

That's a yield of 1251.5 kg per mu in a single season (In October 2023, the "Liliangyou 8022" variety, bred by Yuan Longping's team in Dechang County, Liangshan Prefecture, Sichuan Province, achieved a yield of 1251.5 kg per mu in a single season after yield testing, breaking the world record for single-season yield of hybrid rice. This variety uses techniques such as dry-land sparse sowing and wide-narrow row transplanting, and the highest average yield in the experimental field reached 1316.5 kg per mu).

Multiple tests have been conducted in other locations, including double-cropping, where the average yield per mu (a Chinese unit of area, approximately 0.067 hectares) can reach over 1500 kilograms.

Of course, the current climate is unstable, which may reduce yields or make it only suitable for single-season planting, but this rice variety is already a "killer app".

Zhao Xueqing is in charge of the underground farm and is also exploring this rice variety, hoping to create even higher records on the underground farm.

Because the underground farm has a different environment than the surface farm, and because she is very ambitious and not satisfied with a yield of 1500 kilograms.

The higher the record, the better! As for whether it tastes good or not, that's not a concern; as long as it fills our stomachs, that's fine.

The "calorie coin" is just a trial balloon, a way to gauge public opinion and prepare for the future. There will be a gradual transition so that it doesn't come too suddenly and cause people to be unable to accept it.

However, even with the rise of "thermal cryptocurrencies," gold and oil will still hold a significant position. This is determined by their inherent characteristics. Gold may even be more enduring and sought-after than oil.

Of all the thousands of currencies in the world, gold has remained steadfast for thousands of years.

Fortunately, Li Xiang also had a large amount of gold reserves.

He later went to Lake Baikal and unintentionally salvaged 1600 tons of gold that had sunk to the bottom of the lake. It is said that this gold was sunk into the lake by the Russian Tsar during a special period to protect the national treasury.

Lake Baikal is extremely deep, with an average depth of 730 meters and a maximum depth of 1620 meters. Moreover, the location of the gold is unknown, its ownership is disputed, and Russia does not allow it to be salvaged, making it extremely difficult to retrieve. However, Li Xiang possesses the Giant Whale Armor, which allows him to venture into the deep sea, so Lake Baikal is no problem for him.

In addition, he has earth-based abilities, so if he really wants to find gold underground that has not yet been mined, he can find it and then use the "Crystal Gold Armor" to refine it; it's just a matter of taking some time.

But gold, the US dollar, and "thermal currencies" are merely forms of representation; behind them lies the embodiment of productive forces (material resources). Without productive forces (material resources), these things are worthless.

Li Xiang's jade jewelry business has been partially transformed into a gold jewelry business, also selling 999 or 9999 gold bars, while another part has been transformed into a "La Me Meng" restaurant, which is not just about hot pot, but also involves various kinds of food, even fast food.

Because "food is the first necessity of the people," the true meaning of this saying is its literal interpretation. Any extended meanings are meaningless. Even in the end times, people cannot avoid eating.

The original employees naturally all transferred to the "La Me Meng" catering company. For example, Li Xiang's old friend and former colleague Chen Huanhuan, who was originally the manager of a jewelry and jade store, transformed into the regional catering manager of an underground city.

After these years of experience, she has matured and exudes an air of sophistication in every gesture.

Without Li Xiang's intervention, Chen Huanhuan and her team of regional managers smoothly secured the best commercial locations in various underground cities, planning to open "So Cute" restaurants throughout the underground cities. Each underground city would have at least eight branches.

Of course, the reason these key personnel were able to get things so smoothly was inseparable from Li Xiang's status and position. The moment he introduced himself, "We are Lame Meng Catering Service Company..." people immediately knew that this was a business under Li Sheng's control, and who wouldn't give him face?
Who is Li Shengna? A trendsetter of the new era, rumored to be the future head manager.

Although this rumor is just hearsay, there's no smoke without fire. Anyone with a modicum of common sense can see that in various meetings and television news broadcasts, Li Xiang is always prominently featured, especially in the center position. Most importantly, Li Xiang is not only powerful and has unparalleled achievements, but he also holds a high position and is young!

Youth is the greatest asset.

He's only in his early twenties.

It is said that Saint-level transcendents can live for at least two or three hundred years, or even longer. In such a long time, how many terms could Li Xiang hold? In special times of crisis, he might even serve for life.

These adorable restaurant chains also shoulder other responsibilities, gradually venturing into media (publicity, public opinion), intelligence, and the like, but that will have to be done slowly. We are still in a time of peace, so there's no rush.

The underground city of Dark Sanctuary became a national model. Reporters conducted on-site interviews, and many scenes were exposed. People then realized, wow, Li Sheng really had foresight. It turns out that "Eternal Night Media" and "Dark Sanctuary" both had profound meanings. His foresight was amazing.

……

Li Xiang took some time to go to Paris because Eileen had also given birth to a mixed-race baby girl in one of the best hospitals in Paris. Li Xiang went to take care of her.

Eileen is all alone, which is quite pitiful.

However, money can solve most things. Before Li Xiang arrived, she hired several experienced obstetric nurses to take care of her.

After being discharged from the hospital, Li Xiang took her back to the castle.

With her child by her side, Eileen was much happier. She named her child "Aurélie Li Mérovingien".

Although Li Xiang's surname was added, the name Merovic was still the primary one. Li Xiang had no objection to this. The other party never mentioned marriage, and he couldn't give her a formal title, so what was the point of talking about the surname Li?
The Merovinga family is very wealthy, and their children are born with a silver spoon in their mouths. However, as a father, Li Xiang also has to show his appreciation. Eileen has already prepared everything her daughter needs, so there is plenty of it and Li Xiang doesn't need to worry about it.

So he used his expertise to help Eileen build a magnificent underground palace, which would later become her refuge.

It is divided into two main parts: the inner castle and the outer castle. The inner castle is undoubtedly the residence of Eileen and the children, while the outer castle can be used to house refugees and recruit some subordinates in the future.

However, Li Xiang instructed her to carefully select her subordinates to ensure their absolute loyalty. In the apocalypse, she should trust no one but herself.

Eileen hugged him and chuckled. Eileen single-handedly supported a large family and controlled all the businesses; she was certainly no naive or innocent girl. Especially after her parents' death, she matured very quickly.

One of her businesses is a multinational conglomerate, and she is the behind-the-scenes boss and the largest shareholder. Well, Li Xiang even tried to take it from her before, but she didn't say anything.

Li Xiang naturally put a lot of effort into building a refuge for his lover and children, and the quality was top-notch.

He also made a special trip to Australia to collect a large amount of iron ore, which he refined into refined iron, as well as many rare metals, which he stored in Erin's underground alchemy room warehouse.

Because, in order to cope with the apocalypse, Eileen wanted to create more alchemical golems. As her strength increased, she could control more and more alchemical golems, and she wanted to build an alchemical golem army.

At the same time, Li Xiang also forged a large number of battle knives, armor, spears, longswords, etc. With his current strength, when he activates the crystal gold armor, 99% of them are extraordinary items, only differing in rank.

The highest level among them can reach 15 or above, but they are relatively rare.

Most are below level 10, with levels 1-7 being the most common.

Some were given to Eileen to arm the alchemical golems, while others were kept for future use.

Eileen's underground palace is powered by the alchemical furnace on the alchemical magic ship. She plans to build at least ten magic alchemical ships, and with the ample metal provided by Li Xiang, energy will not be a problem.

This is an unconventional form of nuclear power, extremely advanced and sophisticated. She is also researching how to convert the energy from the "alchemy furnace" into "electricity," because modern electronic products all require electricity.

Classical alchemy also needs to keep pace with the times, combine with modern technology, and innovate.

Moreover, Eileen already had a clue and was diligently researching this, so Li Xiang didn't bother to help her with the electricity issue.

Li Xiang had some amulets made for his precious daughter, Aurelia. They were all gold ornaments, not many in quantity, and quite light, similar to the ones he made for her grandmother. They were believed to bring her peace and good health. The reason they were lightweight was because his daughter was a newborn and delicate; he didn't want her to struggle with anything too heavy. ...

Li Xiang, naturally, wouldn't favor one over the other; he also went to Chiba Yukio's place to help her prepare an underground base. It had already been initially built and decorated inside Mount Fuji, but Li Xiang felt it could be further expanded.

He extended the base in the mountainside all the way to the lava lake of Mount Fuji, where the geothermal energy was sufficient for the base's use.

Chiba Asahi, Shikigami Akahana, and Jindouji all possess fire-type abilities.

As for the power issue, he went directly to the Self-Defense Forces and seized a newly built, yet-to-be-launched large warship, the 30FFM-class "Mogami"-class destroyer, with a standard displacement of 3900 tons and a full load displacement of 5500 tons, equipped with MT-30 gas turbines.

This gas turbine is an improvement on the Rolls-Royce Trent-800 aircraft engine, with 80% of its components being interchangeable with the original aircraft engine, representing the most advanced level in Europe and America.

其额定功率为骇人的36兆瓦，输出功率峰值更是能达到40兆瓦，换算成马力，大约4.8万至5万马力（1兆瓦≈1330马力）。

It can use different types of fuel, including heavy oil, and has been used on large ships such as the British Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carriers (each equipped with 2 engines) and the American Zumwalt-class destroyers (DDG-1000), which can simultaneously meet the needs of mechanical propulsion and power generation.

However, the domestically produced GT400 and CGT40 gas turbines have a rated power of 42 megawatts. The reason why the Type 055 destroyer can travel so fast is closely related to the fact that domestic marine gas turbine technology has surpassed that of other countries. The engine is the heart of the ship, the source of power. As for why domestic gas turbines have surpassed other technologies, it is naturally due to the integration of the strengths of various sources and the subsequent innovation; they were not developed out of thin air.

But Li Xiang couldn't possibly give his Japanese lover an advanced domestically produced gas turbine; if people found out, he'd be condemned to death. However, it was fine if he stole it from the Self-Defense Forces.

Chiba Yukio was somewhat worried about retaliation, but unexpectedly, the matter caused no stir. Only one message was released stating that the ship's deployment was cancelled due to unresolved technical difficulties and unsuitability for post-apocalyptic use. And that was the end of it.

Chiba Yukio: "..."

Li Xiang also helped her build an underground oil depot, so he could come and replenish her fuel regularly.

Chiba Yukio's base was not large; the power provided by a single escort ship was more than enough.

As for the rest of the interior decoration, Chiba Yukio hired some construction workers and also had shikigami to assist, so there were no problems.

Li Xiang also gave the Kusanagi Sword to Chiba Yukio, since it was originally a Japanese item, and Li Xiang didn't particularly like using swords; he preferred using a stick.

During Li Xiang's stay, Chiba Yukio was extremely gentle and used all her skills to try her best to please him.

When Li Xiang left, Chiba Yukio, Chiba Asaru, and Chiba Yugiri were extremely reluctant to see him go, but they knew that it was impossible to hope that Li Xiang would stay. He had too many things to do, and they were already very satisfied that he could come every now and then.

……

In my previous life, at this time, the country had already begun constructing a lunar base.

However, in this life, knowing that the end times were coming, the plan was cancelled.

If we can't even stay on Earth, why would we go to the moon?
Li Xiang, on the other hand, arrived on the moon all by himself.

At this time, there are several Chinese probes on the moon, as well as the Queqiao relay satellite, which can provide Earth-Moon communication services and data transmission on the far side of the moon.

Li Xiang came alone, not out of boredom, but on official business.

He didn't need a spacecraft; he flew up on his own. After reaching the Saint Rank, his spiritual power deepened daily, and his endurance also increased accordingly. He could fly at a top speed of Mach 40 for more than ten hours without rest.

Although the distance between the Earth and the Moon fluctuates slightly depending on the orbital position, the average distance is about 384400 kilometers. It took Li Xiang about 8 hours to reach the far side of the Moon.

"Mach" doesn't actually have a strict physical meaning in space; perhaps it's more appropriate to use kilometers per second directly.

He intends to build a lunar base and a radio telescope array, codenamed "Candle Dragon," here all by himself. The main purpose of this deep-space array is to serve as an outpost to monitor abnormal gravitational waves outside the solar system, predict the location of the Black Mist star field, and detect the invasion of alien space creatures.

The process of Li Xiang building the lunar base was naturally broadcast live, causing a global uproar.

People from all over the world were filled with endless surprise and envy.

"Damn it, China is even more amazing now. They were already the only ones on Earth capable of building a lunar base, and now with the armored men, they've accelerated that process ahead of schedule."

American netizens (CNN comment section):

"This is simply cheating! They didn't even need the space shuttle; they went straight to the moon in their own bodies? While the White House is still struggling with the budget, the Chinese have already had 'Superman' build a villa on the moon!"

"The FBI should investigate whether that armor stole our technology! (2.1 likes, reply: Wake up, you guys have already blown up the Space Fork's rocket three times!)"

A Russian netizen (VK Hot Post): "Does Li Ka-shing need teammates? We can even dig through the permafrost in Siberia with earth-based superpowers! (Image: Polar bear lifting weights.jpg)"

"This Eastern superpower can even solo the lunar base; next time, take us to develop Martian mineral resources, and we'll split the resources 50/50! (doge)"

Some people retorted: "You're ugly, so why would anyone want to split the profits 50/50 with you?"

Indian netizens (Twitter trending #Chandrayaan4VSChina):
"Our Chandrayaan-4 is still just a PowerPoint presentation, while they've already installed WiFi on the far side of the moon! Motorcycle God, quickly send a yoga master to fight the armored men! (Number one hot comment)"

"No need to be envious, Boss Li is also a messenger of our God Shiva."

"Don't try to claim kinship with him. He might be even more powerful than Shiva. Shiva is more like his servant god."

"Exactly, has your god Shiva ever been to the moon? Has he performed such miracles?"

European scholars (BBC interview):
"The great Eastern power is redefining the 'infrastructure maniac'—from the Yangtze and Yellow Rivers to the far side of the moon, Li Sheng's earth-based superpowers have even overturned the principles of engineering. But we must be wary that this 'one man equals civilization' model could lead to the world becoming overly reliant on his individual abilities."

African netizens (TikTok short video):

"Hey boss, could you help us dig for groundwater? The desert's about to swallow us up! (Background music: African drumbeats + 'To the Moon')"

……

Amidst the world's attention, on the desolate plains of the far side of the moon, Li Xiang stood proudly, his demeanor unparalleled. The blue-gold patterns of the Giant Whale Holy Armor contrasted sharply with the gray-white lunar soil.

He stomped his feet slightly on the ground, and an earthy yellow light shone forth. Saint-level spiritual power rippled outwards, and he uttered a low shout: "Starfall Sands - Earth Pivot Manifestation!"

In an instant, the lunar soil within a ten-kilometer radius boiled as if it were alive!
Amidst the dust storm-like swirling of the moon, countless grains of sand automatically coalesced into a hexagonal honeycomb structure, layer upon layer forming the main body of the base. The wall thickness adaptively adjusted with gravity, and pale golden inscriptions appeared on the surface.

……

In just half an hour, the base was initially formed. If humans wanted to come up in spacecraft, that would be possible. Li Xiang could assist in establishing an ecological cycle system and an oxygen-rich enclosed space.

However, his immediate priority is to install a radio telescope.

Clad in the Giant Whale Holy Armor, Li Xiang hovered in the center of the crater, the dimensional warehouse behind him unfolding like a black hole. He shouted in a deep voice, "Rise!"

Thousands of silver-white radio telescope units roared out, each ten meters in diameter. He formed hand seals, and his spiritual power transformed into golden threads, drawing the mirrors together to form a butterfly-shaped array...

Twenty minutes later, as the last mirror was in place, Li Xiang pressed his palm against the main control panel, and the array was instantly activated. An invisible wave pierced deep space, and the live broadcast simultaneously displayed: "Gravitational wave signal captured, positioning accuracy reached 0.001 arcseconds!"

The global live stream chat was flooded with various comments:

"Li Ka-shing: I just came up here for a stroll and, incidentally, to get a property certificate for the moon!"

"I suggest next time you do a live stream, go to Mars and grow potatoes, and choose a location next to the Zhurong spacecraft! (doge)"

There is also a multilingual translation section:
"The project he completed by himself in less than an hour is enough for NASA to work for two hundred years!" (Spanish)

"It turns out that the ultimate goal of the 'infrastructure maniac' is physical sanctification... (Arabic)"

"This is not just showing off, it's a blatant show of force. From now on, let's see who dares to disobey us?"

"Li Sheng is telling everyone in a different way: Anyone who disagrees, stand up! Come on, you don't need to walk around, just raise your hand."

"You don't have to raise your hand, just make a sound."

Li Xiang went to the moon, single-handedly built a lunar base and the "Candle Dragon" telescope observation array, and broadcast it globally. This was indeed intended to demonstrate the power and deterrence of the Saint-level.

Because he has a big plan coming up soon.

Any major initiative requires a combination of both carrot and stick tactics.

(End of this chapter)