Those who face the wall, but are in the Nascent Soul stage.

Chapter 4 Cultivation No Longer Exists
In Luo Qing's divine sense, it was less that the anti-aircraft shell hit the escort fighter jet, and more that the two F-22s deliberately collided with the shell that was waiting in front of them.

The time allotted to them was so short that the fighter pilots couldn't even perform tactical evasive maneuvers.

The fighter jet that was hit first was like being struck by an invisible giant hammer, and the pilot was caught in the fireball. The rain of debris and fuel fireballs fell to the ground. Another fighter jet flying side by side had its left wing cut off by shrapnel, and quickly lost its balance and tumbled downwards. The two pilots struggled futilely for a while after the fighter jet lost control, and finally ejected from the cockpit.

Air Force One was also impacted by the shockwave of the explosion. Luo Qing felt a violent tremor, but the most shocked and furious person was undoubtedly the US president standing to the side. The president, who was staggering, uttered words indistinctly.

"What the hell?"
Several bodyguards pounced on the president in an instant, protecting him and frantically trying to put an oxygen mask and an emergency parachute on him.

"Escort squad, report the situation!" a bodyguard in a suit shouted urgently, looking at the firelight outside the window.

"Air defense firepower against enemy attack, repeat, air defense firepower against enemy attack."

"Where's the early warning aircraft that was clearing the way? Why isn't it responding?!"

"No radar scans or fire control radar locks were detected across any frequency band, no suspected missile launch sources were detected, no electromagnetic pulse interference of any kind was detected, and the scanned airspace is normal."

"So where the hell is the enemy?"

A few hoarse static crackled from the fighter jet formation, followed by a silent reply.

There is a fishing boat at sea.

A black fishing boat, invisible to radar but visible to the naked eye, drifted swaying in the Pacific Ocean, becoming the only black dot in the azure sea and sky, overshadowing the entire world.

...

The remaining six fighter jets scattered like a flock of birds, with two F-22s skimming diagonally to the north and south. They then gathered together below like magnets, taking over the duties of the two previously lost fighter jets and becoming the new shield in the belly of Air Force One.

"Team B is in position, chaff and flares ready."

"release."

"Wingman Group C has located the target ship. Let's go and take care of that damn wrecked vessel."

Just as the escort formation had completed its four missions of reconnaissance, defense, engagement, and counterattack, a second anti-aircraft shell pierced through the protective curtain of chaff and flares that rained down like fire, and accurately struck the new escort aircraft group under Air Force One, detonating in a delayed explosion that engulfed two F-22s.

This time, all the remaining fighter jets saw that what was coming was not anti-aircraft missiles, but ancient anti-aircraft artillery shells.

The chaff used to attract and detonate the missile warhead was smashed to pieces by this old-fashioned projectile that was powerful and relied solely on kinetic energy. The only thing that could intercept the anti-aircraft guns was the two F-22s below, which were also turned into two rolling flames by the explosion of the high-explosive shells.

"Damn it, anti-aircraft guns? How did these old things hit us? We're at an altitude of 10,000 meters, and we should be invisible to radar!" came an incredulous voice from the last remaining escort aircraft.

As Group C charged toward the enemy, two F-22 fighters from Group D followed the already fallen Groups A and B, mimicking their actions, and flew side by side under the belly of Air Force One, forming the last steel shield.

The third anti-aircraft shell followed, but whether it was because Air Force One and its escort aircraft were taking an emergency climb to avoid it, or because the gunner made a mistake in aiming, the third anti-aircraft shell passed through the tail flame of the chaff and exploded after losing its target.

A dense cloud of smoke and debris rained down on Air Force One, creating a series of loud impacts.

The two F-22s that went to intercept it quickly descended to an altitude of over 3,000 meters at a high speed of nearly Mach 2.2. From there, the pilots could see the surface of the 'Kuroshio' with the naked eye.

This is an extremely dilapidated deep-sea fishing vessel, with nothing on board except for a lone German Type 88 anti-aircraft gun.

"They used this thing to shoot us down?"

"I can't believe it!" asked Machine Number One.

"The Trisolarans have manifested themselves." Unit 2 revealed the truth in one sentence. They had already seen the anti-aircraft gun adjusting its elevation and lowering, indicating that the enemy had targeted them.

"Don't rely too much on performance. In the eyes of the Trisolarans, we are just crawling snails! Perform evasive maneuvers, -GBU-39 small diameter bombs ready!"

But the enemy's reloading speed still exceeded their expectations. Since the attack on Air Force One, the timeline of this war had not even ticked by a minute.

The fourth and fifth shells followed in quick succession.

That 88mm gun has an incredibly fast loading speed and high sensitivity.

The shell perfectly predicted Group C's evasive maneuver. At the critical moment, the pilot of the second aircraft pulled the control stick drastically, which was beyond the norm. The fighter jet crashed haphazardly to the ground like a falling leaf. This behavior, which could be regarded as a standard negative example in the history of fighter jet piloting, gave the fighter jet a sliver of hope. The tail of the aircraft was grazed by the anti-aircraft shell and burst into a burst of fire.

However, the main body of the fighter jet remains intact.

The first aircraft was not so lucky. Its conventional evasive maneuvers, which were close to the limits of its performance, were also precisely blocked by the shell. The pilot realized in despair that if he did not take any evasive action, the shell would not hit him.

Another burst of fire erupted in the sky, and two parachutes were launched at the last possible moment before being hit by the shells.

"Fire control radar locked, target calibration, counterattack, counterattack, counterattack!" The crew of the second aircraft roared, their tail flames burning as two GBU-39 small-diameter missiles hurtled toward the brown, wrecked ship. Then, before the damaged F-22 went completely out of control, the pilot steered it toward the enemy, following closely behind the two missiles as it hurtled toward the target at supersonic speed.

After doing all this, they pressed the ejection button.

"It can't escape! It can blow this wrecked ship into the sea and feed the fish in four seconds at most!"

As the aircraft was ejected into the raging wind, the pilot of the second unit stared wide-eyed at the direction the missile had gone, but then his smile froze.

The 'Kuroshio' made no attempt to dodge, but instead slightly adjusted its cannon and fired another shot.

A shell velocity of just over 1,000 meters per second is not very high, and is even far lower than the initial firing velocity of shells from active main battle tanks. However, compared to the GBU-39 small diameter bomb, which has not yet been fully accelerated, this velocity is indeed sufficient.

The shell flew past the launch centerline of the two missiles faster than the missile, then smashed the missile and exploded. The flames and shrapnel from the explosion acted like flares, detonating the second GBU-39 small diameter bomb missile. The F-22 fighter jet behind it, which was already completely unmanned, was also shaken off course and finally plunged into the sea 500 meters away from the 'Kuroshio'.

The second pilot stared blankly at the scene until the deploying parachute yanked him sharply, bringing him back to his senses. He muttered to himself, as if his mind had been severely shaken: "How can a cannonball intercept a missile... This isn't a close-in weapon system..."

The Kuroshio was clearly uninterested in the white parachute flowers in the sky. The penultimate shell was carried into the now crimson-red ready-to-fire magazine. Then, this gifted video game expert, following the arrow's direction, once again slowed the progress bar to its slowest speed. Even before the Somo gave the ignition command, he proactively pulled the thimble rope.

In the sky, Air Force One and its escort aircraft, which had just made a sharp turn to escape the airspace, were quickly overtaken by the seventh anti-aircraft shell.

"Group D, prepare to sacrifice yourselves."

"Group D received."

With groups A, B, and C wiped out by an old-fashioned anti-aircraft gun, group D decides to fulfill its duty as a soldier.

Just as the anti-aircraft shell, like a death knell, was about to strike the last escort fighter, a slender figure suddenly appeared between them. It was Luo Qing.

"If you want to test my strength, there's no need to involve the President. Even the Demonic Cultivator's Myriad Souls Coil knows not to accept mortals."

Luo Qing sighed softly, took off his gold-rimmed glasses, and habitually put them into his cuff. When he found that he couldn't tuck them into his suit sleeve, he put them into his trouser pocket instead.

Time seemed to stand still. Whether it was the fighter jets in the sky, the 'Kuroshio' ten thousand meters below, or the chaff and anti-aircraft shells that had not yet been extinguished in the sky, everything seemed to be slowed down countless times, drifting quietly in a slow manner.

The only unaffected, sharp sword light easily shattered the anti-aircraft shells. Due to its extremely high speed, the gunpowder inside the shells did not even have time to ignite before it, along with the shell casings, scattered across the sky, creating a rain of nitrated gunpowder.

Wearing a suit and tie, Luo Qing vanished into thin air in a flash.

The sword light continued its relentless advance, transforming into a thousand-meter-long rainbow. Covering tens of thousands of meters in a flash, the sword light, carrying unparalleled power, completely annihilated the entire 'Black Tide'.

That magnificent sword light was the last thing the dozen or so ETO members of the 'Kuroshio' saw.

The cleaved seawater maintained its mirror-like fracture until the sword light completely disappeared into the sea, then, as if the sword light had returned to its sheath, the seawater closed up under the influence of gravity. All traces of the 'Kuroshio' were completely swallowed up.

The enemy threatening Airborne One has been eliminated.

"Where is Professor Luo Qing..." the US president asked in a trembling voice, pressed against the observation window.

“At the edge of the eastern horizon,” a bodyguard replied silently.

Through the observation window, a humanoid figure could be seen charging at Mach 120 at the horizon. Its speed of 40 kilometers per second caused the clouds along its path to explode into ring-shaped sonic booms, the deafening roar of which only reached everyone's ears several minutes later.

"Eat my sword!"

Enraged, Luo Qing unleashed a net of sword light, slashing towards the Zhi Zi who had deliberately spread out in a lower dimension to lure him into attacking.

It's unclear how many dimensions this sophon unfolded, but it was definitely not three-dimensional. It transformed into a perfectly smooth, mirror-like sphere with a diameter of only about one meter, and it dodged through the clouds at a terrifying speed of hundreds of Mach.

The sword was initially just a very thin golden thread. When it pierced the sky, the cirrus clouds surged violently as if boiling mercury. Layers of sword intent spread out from the sky, and the aurora borealis became a mere backdrop to this sword strike.

Without a doubt, this sword strike could easily obliterate the sophons currently unfolding in a lower dimension.

But Zhi Zi's reaction was too fast, faster than humans and cultivators expected. With his escape route completely blocked, Zhi Zi instantly shrank back to the eleventh dimension before the sword light touched him, escaping Luo Qing's ultimate attack zone at the speed of light, crossing the Carmen Line, and entering the vast universe.

Luo Qing attempted to give chase, but could only halt his pursuit at a distance of 100 kilometers above the ground. Escaping at the speed of light, the proton-sized sophon had already shaken off his divine sense's location and completely vanished.

Luo Qing wandered aimlessly at the Carmen Line, the boundary between Earth and the universe. He looked up at the endless black starry sky.

How can this thing reach the speed of light?!

Even a Mahayana cultivator's escape speed isn't this terrifying, is it?

Luo Qingdao's heart skipped a beat, as if a stone was lodged in his chest.

"Damn you, Heavenly Venerable! Don't let me catch you!" Luo Qing cursed in a low voice. He became angrier the more he thought about it, and finally swung his sword in the direction where Zhi Zi had disappeared.

This sword energy, which could have cleaved mountains, wandered alone in the vacuum of space, eventually fading away like burnt incense in the vast universe.

Looking down at the flowing, azure planet with wisps of white glow, Luo Qing silently disappeared into the void.

Three minutes later.

There was a knock on the door of Air Force One.

The US president and his bodyguards looked at each other in bewilderment.

"It should be Professor Luo Qing. I'll go open the door. Everyone, fasten your seatbelts and protect the President."

One of the bodyguards, steeling himself, took a safety rope, tied it around his waist, and after confirming that the president was safe, forcefully pried open the mechanical hatch.

A fierce gust of wind instantly rushed into the cabin, blowing the bodyguard so badly that his mouth and face were twisted, and even the safety rope could barely hold him down.

It was indeed Luo Qing standing outside the door. His suit, enhanced by magical power, was covered in burn marks, his tie was gone, and his hair was a mess.

The Nascent Soul stage cultivator walked in looking lost and dejected. He glanced at the presidential cabin, which was in disarray from the wind, and gently waved his hand, instantly calming the gale.

The bodyguard, his heart pounding, closed the cabin door again.

"Professor Luo Qing?" The US president felt his throat was dry and he managed to utter a sound.

Luo Qing didn't reply to him. Instead, she silently walked to her sofa, sank into it, and as if she had lost all her strength, slammed her head against the table in front of her.

"Professor Luo Qing?" the US president asked tentatively.

Luo Qing remained silent, only exclaiming "emo!"

Luo Qing didn't know how much time had passed until the area around Air Force One was crowded with a mixed escort fleet of Chinese, American, and Japanese aircraft that had come to provide support, before he finally came to his senses.

Luo Qing looked up at the US president and suddenly reached out and grabbed the other's shoulder.

The bodyguard was so scared he almost jumped out of his skin.

Luo Qing's voice trembled slightly.

"Mr. President... the cultivation of immortality no longer exists..."

The original text includes a comparison of the times when the three wall-faced individuals were broken through their walls.

Frederick Taylor: In Crisis Era 8 (2014), his wallbreaker was John von Neumann. His true strategic intention—to use ball lightning weapons to quantize the human fleet to fight the Trisolaran fleet—was exposed. He was subsequently convicted of "crimes against humanity" and ultimately committed suicide by shooting himself in Luo Ji's secluded lakeside.

Manuel Rediaz's breakthrough occurred after he awoke from hibernation. During his hibernation, human technology made a breakthrough, eventually creating a stellar-scale hydrogen bomb, but the number was far short of the one million required by his plan. Based on the original timeline, the breakthrough likely occurred in the middle of the Crisis Era (approximately the 2030s and 2040s), during the phase after his awakening when he was verifying the feasibility of his plan.

Bill Hines: The wall was breached around 2212 AD, the year of Crisis Era 205.

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(End of this chapter)