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

Chapter 354 Chaos Resumes. No one is born a slave.

The group of holy sons and daughters disguised themselves and infiltrated the underground city. All of them were Saint-level beings with exceptional skills; taking advantage of the chaos of the battlefield, infiltrating the underground city was a piece of cake.

To their surprise, there were other humans in this underground city who looked just like them—black hair, black eyes, and yellow skin. Before long, they blended in, settling into Chinatown and adopting fashionable American hairstyles and clothing.

To their astonishment, they discovered that there were all sorts of cultivation techniques in this world, and many of the secret techniques of their sects, which could only be practiced by inner disciples or even true disciples, were readily available here.

"There's actually a complete version of the Ice Crystal Peach Blossom Technique?" Luo Feifei's cheap master, Su Xuanji, was extremely shocked. You see, in the Qingling Star Region, only the Ice Soul Sect on her planet possessed this technique. She obtained it from the ruins of an ancient powerful being's cave. With this technique, she founded a sect and cultivated many leeks (victims of her desires).

Yes, the beginner version is readily available, and the advanced version is also easy to obtain. As long as you don't commit crimes or kill or set fires without cause, you can get it after passing an inspection. However, since most of the extraordinary individuals here are below the sixth rank, only the cultivation techniques from the first to the twelfth ranks are currently circulating. The techniques from the thirteenth to the eighteenth ranks, as well as those above the Saint rank, are simply nowhere to be found.

If they could obtain them, they would also like to observe the breathing techniques and unique skills of other sects.

Then, surprisingly, there are many amazing "electronic products" here, as well as the amazing internet.

These people were, after all, holy sons and daughters, all powerful figures at the Saint rank, and their learning abilities were extremely strong. They not only quickly mastered a simple language like English, but also learned to use various electronic products and the internet.

As for Chinese, they already understand it. It's simply a matter of converting traditional characters to simplified characters and elegant language to standard Mandarin.

They discovered that this planet contained countless underground cities. And not long ago, there was even a sun. These weren't native demons, but humans from a new world who, through technology alone, allowed ordinary people to fly high into the sky.

Meanwhile, this great Eastern nation is the birthplace of the Breathing Technique. There's a man named Li Xiang there who is also a Saint-level expert.

They speculated that the powerful eastern nation in this star system was likely a branch of the Azure Spirit Star Region, though they didn't know which predecessor had established it here. And that Li Xiang was probably a descendant of that predecessor, or perhaps he had received the true inheritance of that predecessor.

The underground city in the United States was chaotic and poorly managed. It was discovered by alien beasts and attacked several times. Gradually, the stockpile of high-powered weapons was depleted, and the production capacity of the arsenal could not keep up.

Even in peacetime, the United States' manufacturing industry was hollowed out because manufacturing is too arduous and laborious, and the profits are slow to come by. Where can you find the quick money in finance? Therefore, finance is the core business of the US leadership, and the behind-the-scenes bosses on Wall Street are the real emperors.

The military-industrial complex is rotten to the core; even a coffee cup can be priced at $1280.

This coffee cup is relatively inexpensive; there are even more outrageous examples. For instance, a metal washer that sells for 7.89 RMB on Taobao in China cost the US military a staggering $90,000, a price difference of over 110,000 times. There's also a small refrigerator worth nearly $17,000 and nine Italian goats worth $6 million... Auditors went to check the accounts, but were shot down by "terrorists" en route, resulting in the deaths of all members.

Yes, this practice was common in ancient China, and any shady dealings behind it would be immediately apparent to an ordinary Chinese person.

Now, the underground city has run out of powerful weapons, and ordinary firearms are not very effective against monsters of level six or above. Meanwhile, tens of thousands of space monsters, mostly of level six or above, have attacked again. Everyone in the underground city is in a panic, and order has collapsed. Many people are carrying guns and looting, killing, and setting fires everywhere, having a final frenzy.

"It's time for us to step in and turn the tide!"

“Yes, this is our opportunity. We need a city like this to establish a foothold and provide cover.”

These holy sons and daughters suddenly appeared, firmly guarding the entrance to the underground city, repelling several waves of attacks from the alien beasts, and even killing several holy-level alien beasts.

Soon, they used force to quell the chaos in the city and became the true behind-the-scenes rulers of this underground city.

To conceal their identities, they put forward a puppet mayor.

This underground city, vast in scale, is known as Los Santos. At the time of the apocalypse, it originally had around 1800 million inhabitants. Now, with constant warfare, the collapse of order, and many fleeing—some dead, some escaped—only about three million remain.

Even so, it still exceeds the combined population of the three mortal kingdoms under the jurisdiction of the Ice Soul Sect.

With this solid foundation, Su Xuanji once again taught the accelerated and advanced versions of the "Ice Crystal Peach Blossom Technique" for free. She took in many disciples and even established a new branch of the Ice Soul Sect on Earth.

The version she taught was faster to cultivate than Li Xiang's complete version, and it also included advanced techniques that directly led to the Saint rank, which is why many people flocked to it.

Within a month or two, the aura of the Ice Crystal Peach Blossom Technique began to rise throughout Los Santos. A dense, frigid fog even formed in one urban area, far more impressive than the hundred or so people from the main sect. Su Xuanji couldn't help but feel smug. With this foundation, reaching the Meteorite God Tribulation Realm was just around the corner. She was almost forgetting about home and no longer cared about the Ice Soul Sect's meager resources.

Seeing this, the other holy sons and daughters followed suit, establishing their own sects, recruiting many disciples, and spreading the great teachings far and wide.

As Saint-level experts, modifying their techniques slightly and leaving a loophole is no problem for them. They learned this from Su Xuanji.

In a cramped apartment in Los Santos' underground city, a white man was practicing the "Golden Sun Technique." He had killed many innocent and weak people before and knew that he could not pass the examination for advancing to the level of a superhuman. Therefore, he became the disciple of the sect leader of the Golden Sun Sect and learned the subsequent techniques.

The breathing technique taught by his new master progressed rapidly, and he soon broke through to the fifth level. When the fifth vortex of spiritual energy condensed, he did not notice, or rather, was completely unaware, that a unique crimson pattern from the Azure Spirit Star Region flashed deep within his pupils. It wasn't until he meditated late at night that he would sometimes hear a strange murmur in his ear. However, he didn't pay it any mind.

……

In the Los Santos underground city, inside a magnificent hotel's presidential suite, the saints gathered to discuss important matters.

“I performed a divination, and it seems that Li Xiang possesses an extremely precious treasure. Otherwise, he couldn’t have reached the Saint Rank in just a few years,” a man skilled in divination said, his eyes gleaming. “If we could seize it, it would be a great opportunity.”

Su Xuanji chuckled: "Even without this treasure, Li Xiang still has complete versions of various martial arts techniques."

The others' eyes burned with anticipation; after all, obtaining thousands of precious, complete versions of breathing techniques would be an immense opportunity for them. Many major sects might not even possess so many profound texts in their library.

Although passing the review would easily grant them access to the subsequent cultivation techniques, Li Xiang is incredibly cunning. He divides each technique into more than a dozen segments, and the versions currently circulating are all low-level. They are all Saint-level cultivators, some almost reaching God-level. Waiting would be too slow, and if they were to apply for the assessment, they would likely fail the review, since they are all unregistered.

Forging an identity might work, but if you want to obtain the cultivation techniques beyond the Saint rank, where on Earth are there so many powerful superhumans? Wouldn't that arouse Li Xiang's suspicion?

"Why don't we just storm over there, capture that kid, torture him, and force him to tell us what happened?" one of the holy sons suggested.

“Brother Zhu is absolutely right. We outnumber him, so we can lure him out, swarm him, and kill him to steal his treasure. That would be the most direct and simple approach,” one of the holy sons agreed.

One of the female cultivators hesitated and said, "I saw online that there are rumors that his speed can reach Mach 80. Even if he is no match for us, if he wants to escape, we probably can't stop him."

"This must be a rumor, right? How could it be that fast? Mach 80, even the peak of the God-level couldn't reach that, could it?"

This group had been in Los Santos for a long time, and their clothing, mannerisms, and speech were no different from those of Earthlings. They had also learned a lot of scientific knowledge from Earth, and they even knew what Mach was. Therefore, they started using this fashionable terminology.

Among them, Su Xuanji is the fastest, reaching Mach 3. The others are all at Mach 1 to 2, already considered top performers in their respective sects. They simply can't believe that a cultivator of the same Saint rank could reach such an abnormal speed as Mach 80.

"If he really has Mach 80, it must be the effect of that treasure."

"If that's the case, then that treasure is even more precious."

"Actually, even if he's fast, it doesn't matter. Let's test him out first and assess his abilities. If it really doesn't work out, we can still..."

"What else can we do?"

"All men are lustful. These fairies are all beauties. With a little effort, he will definitely take the bait."

Su Xuanji and the other female cultivators' expressions darkened. Were they being asked to use their femininity? However, if they succeeded, they wouldn't mind; they could simply kill the boy with a sword afterward. They immediately agreed.

Subsequently, several other people offered suggestions, totaling seven or eight schemes, all of which were extremely cunning and ruthless. If successful, Li Xiang would be completely at their mercy.

As for the fact that there were so many of them, but only one treasure, no one mentioned how they would divide it. After all, the goose hadn't been shot down yet; how they would eat it, or how they would turn against each other, would have to wait until the goose was cooked. Each of them had their own thoughts. The more excited they became, the more they forgot that the front-facing cameras on their phones, which were on the table, had secretly taken pictures of their faces.

……

In Dungeon No. 03, Jiang Cai'er gently pursed her lips: "After all, they are outsiders, and they only have a superficial understanding of Earth's human technology."

When it comes to cyber warfare, no one on Earth today can surpass Jiang Cai'er. Of course, this isn't cyber warfare, but rather one-sided surveillance.

Los Santos was frequently embroiled in major battles, various conflicts, and chaos. Jiang Cai'er had been paying attention to this place for a while, and soon discovered the anomaly. In recent days, she had been secretly monitoring these twenty or so holy sons and daughters.

In fact, there had already been a brief exchange during this process, but the other side was unaware of it.

One of the holy children, while learning about electronic products, actually tried to use his spiritual sense to hack into the phone's chip in order to find out what was going on. However, he triggered the quantum encryption trap set by Jiang Cai'er, and his spiritual sense withdrew as if he had been electrocuted.

At that time, the holy child wondered, "Is the electricity on Earth really that magical? It seems that not only can't we touch it with our hands, but we can't even probe it with our spiritual senses."

Yes, I suffered from a lack of education, mainly due to insufficient expertise in physics, chemistry, and computer science.

"Brother Xiang, come here for a second, I need to talk to you." Jiang Cai'er called Li Xiang.

Li Xiang was assisting Zhao Xueqing with work and scientific research at the underground farm, cultivating crops more suitable for the current underground city environment. Upon receiving the call, he immediately rushed back.

"What, you missed me?" Li Xiang hugged his wife and immediately kissed her a few times.

“Let’s go deep underground,” Jiang Cai’er said.

Li Xiang was immediately aroused. However, once they reached the depths underground, Jiang Cai'er was actually talking about serious matters, not about wanting that.

With a thought, Jiang Cai'er projected the faces of those people in front of her.

Li Xiang carefully examined the situation and gasped in shock. Several of these people were renowned Saint-level experts from his previous life. It turned out they weren't native to Earth. He wondered how they had managed to infiltrate the area.

Jiang Cai'er: "They are plotting to deal with you and torture you severely."

Li Xiang: "I'm not afraid of severe torture. Who knows who will be torturing whom in the end?"

Jiang Cai'er: "They plan to use a honey trap. Look, there are a few women here, and they are quite pretty."

"Tch~, you think I'd fall for that?" Li Xiang thought to himself. "I've had so many women, all stunning beauties. I've seen it all, and I'm not that greedy anymore." Of course, he couldn't reveal these thoughts.

Jiang Cai'er: "They come from outer space, I don't know where, but if we can find out the way there, maybe... we can find a new home. Why don't you sacrifice your charm and find out their background first, since you're a guy, you won't lose out."

Without a second thought, Li Xiang immediately refused: "Let's just arrest him and torture him!" He knew that Jiang Cai'er was testing him, and if he agreed now, or hesitated even a little (was tempted), he would suffer the consequences.

Sure enough, Jiang Cai'er laughed and glared at him, saying, "You're smart to know what's good for you."

The two had been plotting for a long time and devised corresponding countermeasures against the various schemes of the "outsiders." They would deal with any situation that arose. To reward Li Xiang for his "sensible" behavior, Jiang Cai'er gave him a new pose.

Unlocking new positions, the dual cultivation method of "Starry Sky Concerto - Luan Ming Jiu Shao" seems to be becoming more and more effective. Both of them feel that their spiritual power has become much deeper and more agile and smooth than before.

It's worth noting that this dual cultivation technique is not included in the first volume of the globally published "Li's Breathing Method and Body Techniques." Li Xiang felt that spreading this technique might be inappropriate and could cause many unpleasant incidents.

He also instructed Xu Xuan and Zhang Youyou not to spread the word easily.

In fact, Xu Xuan and Zhang Youyou intended to pass on this family secret as a family heirloom, so they were unwilling to share it with outsiders. Even if Li Xiang hadn't instructed them, they wouldn't have done so.

Xu Xuan and Zhang Youyou are now the leaders of Dungeon No. 32, and they have three sons and two daughters. Their number of children on the surface exceeds that of Li Xiang.

The Xu family patriarch passed away not long ago, so Xu Xuan naturally took over Dungeon No. 32. This was because Xu Xuan and Zhang Youyou were the strongest fighters in that dungeon, both being eighth-tier transcendents, and the Xu and Zhang families wielded considerable power within it.

With transportation disrupted, communication is largely reliant on the internet, and the various "lords" of the underground cities all harbor ambitions of independence. After all, the central government is too far away to intervene effectively.

Currently, no underground city dares to defy public opinion, but if time goes on, say ten or eight years, or even several decades later, it's hard to say.

Li Xiang had no time to deal with these things for the time being. He seized every opportunity to cultivate. If he could not obtain control of Earth and drive out the alien beasts, all of humanity on Earth would die once those few alien beasts at the God King level succeeded.

No matter how sturdy the underground city was, it couldn't withstand a beast at the God-King level. Moreover, once a beast at the God-King level merged with the will of Earth, it would advance even further, and Li Xiang didn't know what that advancement would be.

Jiang Cai'er speculated that it should be "Planet Ruler" or "Earth Ruler".

If China's underground cities are like this, then those abroad are even more so, having long since become independent entities, forming one underground kingdom after another. Some of these countries have long since ceased to exist in name only.

……

The underground city of Bihar, India.

In the stench of decay and blood, Amir used a bone knife to slit the throat of the last armored lizard, its foul blood splattering onto his bronze face.

He wiped his face and roared at the thirteen ragged Dalit youths behind him, “Strip these beasts of their armor! Tonight, let the blood of Brahmins flow over our swords!”

At midnight, in the dim light of the underground city, the group of low-caste superhumans huddled behind a high wall. Amir stroked the gauntlets modified from the claws of the armor-eating lizard; in the faint light from the distant streetlights, a cold glint flashed between the seven steel claws.

He suddenly sprang into action, smashing through the iron gate of the high-caste neighborhood, causing the shotguns of the two Sikh guards behind the gate to explode with a deafening roar.

"Bangalore trash!" Amir grinned savagely, letting the lead bullets explode and sparks fly into his chest, his steel claws piercing the guard's throat like venomous snakes. He was an eighth-tier transcendent, and his body was covered in beast carapace as armor, making him impervious to bullets. Even RPGs couldn't harm him.

As the alarm sounded, Amir roared in his thick Bihar dialect, "Shiva, give us fangs!" A dozen dark figures rushed out from behind him, their beast-like bone knives slicing through the cables, plunging the entire block into darkness.

A bloody, slaughterhouse-like street battle broke out.

A fat Kshatriya merchant had just raised his gilded pistol when he was pinned to the wall by the Dalit girl Puya with the stinger of a lizard's tail.

"My mother has washed your blood-stained clothes for twenty years!" she screamed, stirring her tail spikes as intestines mixed with gold dust gushed from the merchant's abdomen.

In the distance, Amir's furious roar echoed—he was tearing open the roof of a bulletproof jeep with his bare hands, dragging out the municipal official hiding inside to use as a human shield.

More than an hour later, Amir climbed the water tower, stepping on the severed arm of the Brahman city lord. He raised the still-dripping golden seal of the city lord, while more than three hundred blood-soaked Dalits below raised weapons made from the limbs of strange beasts, shouting the same word in twenty different dialects: "The chains of Gath have broken!"

Kathi refers to the hereditary occupational shackles of the Indian caste system, while Dalits are untouchables, often called the "fifth caste," and are not part of the four main castes. Of the four castes, the first two are considered noble, and the latter two are considered lowly. The fourth caste, the Shudras, can only perform lowly occupations such as waiters, servants, and artisans. Dalits are even lower. When a lower caste acquires supernatural power, they will naturally awaken and trample the higher castes underfoot! No one is born a slave.

(End of this chapter)