Super Rich: Starting the game by going back ten years to buy Bitcoin

There was a full five seconds of silence on Gu Shounian's end.

"You mean—all of them? Fifteen?"

Li Yichen gave a light, nasal "hmm".

Gu Shounian's mind went blank. Fifteen F-35Cs, each costing $120 million, amounting to a loss of $1.8 billion just for the aircraft. All fifteen pilots were killed in action.

If this gets out, the American navy will lose face completely.

He forced himself to calm down, lowering his voice to a whisper.

"Dude, the crucial question—you didn't reveal your identity the whole time, right? You didn't speak to them? You didn't show your face?"

"The mask was never turned on. No traceable communication frequencies were used, and there were no national markings or response codes on the armor."

Ling'er added at the opportune moment: "Brother's armor's radar reflection characteristics do not match any of the known military equipment in the world. At most, the other side can only confirm that it is an unidentified flying entity."

Gu Shounian breathed a sigh of relief.

Fifteen fifth-generation fighter jets were wiped out by an unidentified object—this is something the US would find incredibly embarrassing if it told anyone. They'll most likely have to swallow their pride and suffer in silence.

He was gathering his thoughts and preparing to hang up the phone.

Li Yichen spoke again.

"Brother Gu, actually... it's not just about fifteen planes."

Gu Shounian's heart leaped into his throat.

"What else did you shoot down? Reconnaissance planes? Early warning aircraft?"

"Neither." Li Yichen paused. "To be honest, I'm not sure if that thing has sunk or not, since I left right after I finished."

"What exactly did you type?"

There was a two-second silence on the phone.

Li Yichen's voice was flat, no different from announcing what he ate that day—

"I shot down their aircraft carrier."

Gu Shounian was stunned for a moment.

Then he laughed.

"So what if we attacked? An aircraft carrier is very thick-skinned; your laser can only give its deck a minor beautification at best..."

"Brother Gu," Li Yichen interrupted him, "I've shot through the deck. Five meters below that deck is the ammunition depot."

Gu Shounian's smile froze on his face.

"When I left, I saw the ammunition depot explode. Flames shot dozens of meters high, and the whole ship was listing to starboard."

A loud "bang" came from the other end of the phone.

The chair tipped over.

Gu Shounian jumped up, his voice booming, "What did you say?! You shot down the American aircraft carrier's ammunition depot?! It exploded?!"

The staff officer in the next office was so startled by the shout that his pen flew two meters away.

Li Yichen's ears were ringing from Gu Shounian's roar.

"Brother Gu, don't get agitated. I broke three ribs. Those bastards bombed me with cluster grenades first, and I wasn't supposed to fight back?"

At this moment, Gu Shounian had no time to care about his ribs.

Ammunition depot explosion. Even if the aircraft carrier doesn't sink, it means structural damage to the hull, zero combat capability, billions of dollars in repair costs, and potentially hundreds of casualties.

This is the most severe single-ship attack suffered by the US Navy since the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor during World War II.

"You—right now, immediately—return as quickly as possible."

Gu Shounian spoke slowly and deliberately, squeezing each word out through his teeth.

"Do not stop en route, do not contact anyone, and do not land in any public area. Do you understand?"

"Okay, it's flying back now."

The phone hangs up.

Gu Shounian stood in the office and spun around three times, his left hand on his hip and his right hand rubbing his forehead back and forth.

Then he picked up the secure phone on the table and dialed Commander-in-Chief Xiao Jingshan directly.

The dial tone went off one and a half times.

"Commander, something terrible has happened."

on the Pacific.

Thick smoke billowed from the USS Ford. The chain reaction from the ammunition magazine explosion hadn't stopped, and the ship was listing twelve degrees to starboard. The entire damage control team was rushing into the fire with fire hoses.

The floor of the CIC command center was sloping. Major General Jeffrey was holding onto the control panel, his legs wobbling.

Casualty reports keep coming in—

Thirty-seven people were killed and more than one hundred injured in the ammunition depot area and adjacent compartments.

Multiple sections of the bulkhead below the waterline on the starboard side were deformed and flooded.

The area of ​​the flight deck that was punctured has a diameter of more than eight meters, completely rendering it unable to take off or land.

This supercarrier, which cost $13 billion to build, was reduced to scrap metal by a laser beam that lasted less than ten seconds.

The Quadrilateral Headquarters. The Situation Room, three levels underground.

The National Security Advisor stared at the live feed of the USS Ford on the big screen; the eight-meter-wide hole in the deck was still glowing red and billowing with black smoke.

He took off his glasses and pressed hard on his brow bone with the heel of his palm.

Fifteen seconds. No one dared to utter a sound.

Dr. Lane, the head of DARPA, stared at the energy analysis report, his hands trembling uncontrollably under the table. Based on the melt-through rate, the laser's power reached tens of megawatts—a level their own laboratory projects hadn't even scratched the surface of.

The National Security Advisor finally spoke.

"Two instructions."

Everyone looked up.

"First, the Ford incident is top secret. The official explanation is that the ship's ammunition detonated accidentally."

It paused for a moment.

"Second, immediately freeze all military operations against this unidentified entity. Until we figure out what it is, we must not provoke it further."

No one objected.

At an altitude of 30,000 meters.

Li Yichen flew eastward at Mach 3. His chest converter was completely destroyed, the melted lens assembly solidifying into a twisted lump of metal. His broken ribs rubbed against the surrounding soft tissue with the vibrations, causing him to clench his molars in pain.

Ling'er suggested slowing down the speed several times, but he rejected them all.

"Brother, the 'Linyi' has safely departed from the port with 137 people on board and is returning at full speed."

Li Yichen twitched his lips.

Worth it.

At 8:30 a.m., the armored vehicle crossed the airspace border of the Great Xia Dynasty. Ling'er completed the friend-or-foe identification handshake in advance, without triggering any alarms.

Tomson Riviera.

The armor landed silently from the balcony. The armor plates bounced off, and the moment Li Yichen stepped out, he clutched his chest with his left hand. After the adrenaline subsided, the pain of the broken bones turned into real, agonizing torture.

I put away my armor, washed my face, and changed into clean clothes.

Take the elevator down to the first floor.

Li Nian was wiping the coffee table. Miao Miao was curled up on the sofa watching cartoons, her little legs swinging back and forth.

"Brother Li." Li Niannian looked up and greeted him. Just as she was about to continue wiping, she stopped and stared at Li Yichen's face for two seconds.

Why do you look so pale?

Li Yichen waved his hand, walked around the coffee table, and sat down on the sofa. The moment his buttocks touched the cushion, the broken stump on his left side poked him, making his brow twitch with pain.

Miao Miao turned her head. "Brother, you're back!"

"Um."

He leaned back into the sofa, trying to keep his breathing shallow.

My throat is itchy.

He coughed twice.

The next second, a warm liquid dripped from the corner of her mouth.

Red.

The rag in Li Nian's hand fell to the ground with a thud.

"Brother Li! You're bleeding!"

She rushed over, squatted down beside the sofa, and reached out to help him. Miao Miao stopped watching the cartoon, slid off the sofa, and scrunched up her little face.

"What's wrong with my brother? His mouth is bleeding!"

Li Yichen wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and saw a red, wet stain on the back of his hand.

After breaking my ribs, I've been flying at high intensity, and the turbulence is quite severe. If the broken pieces were displaced and punctured internal organs, it would be a serious problem.

"It's nothing serious." He stood up, using the handrail for support. "I'll go to the hospital to get checked out later."

"I'll go with you!" Li Niannian had already gone to get her bag.

Miao Miao ran over and grabbed his trouser leg. "I want to go too!"

Li Yichen didn't refuse and patted her head. "Let's go."

The three people went downstairs. The car keys twirled in his hand.

He watched as the U8 drove out of the underground parking garage and merged into the morning rush hour traffic. Ling'er was in charge of the car the whole time, while he lit a cigarette, held it in his right hand, and took a deep drag. His other hand rested on his ribs, silently pressing against the spot that hurt the most.

Li Niannian sat in the passenger seat, stealing a glance at his face every few seconds.

His lips were pressed tightly together, and he dared not ask a single question.

Miao Miao sat in the back seat, the seatbelt tightening around her small body. She gripped the back of the front seat with both hands, her little head peeking out from the gap.

"Brother, does it hurt?"

"It doesn't hurt."

Miao Miao pouted. "Liar. Your face turned pale just now."

Li Yichen glanced at her in the rearview mirror, smiled, and didn't reply.

The car was parked in the underground parking garage of Pudong New Area People's Hospital.

I went to the emergency room. I registered. I waited in line for three minutes.

The doctor on duty led him into the examination room, touched his rib area a few times, and his expression changed.

"Get a CT scan."

CT scan room.

Li Yichen lay on the scanning bed, and the machine hummed twice.

Ten minutes later, the video came out.

The doctor on duty clipped the CT images onto the light box and pointed to the few white lines with his index finger.

"The fifth, seventh, and eighth ribs on the left side are fractured. The fifth rib is slightly displaced, but it did not puncture the lung tissue. The sixth and ninth ribs also have cracks."

He took off his glasses, wiped them, and looked back at Li Yichen.

"What happened to you? A car accident?"

"Something hit us at the construction site."

The doctor looked him up and down but didn't ask any further questions.

"The misalignment isn't serious; surgery isn't necessary. Use a chest bandage for immobilization and rest for six to eight weeks. After returning home, avoid strenuous exercise, lifting heavy objects, and—"

"Understood." Li Yichen sat up from the examination bed, the movement pulling on his ribs, causing his lips to twitch.

The doctor prescribed painkillers and anti-inflammatory drugs, and then wrapped a wide chest strap around his left rib area three times. He gasped when it tightened, almost cursing out loud.

I got my medicine and left the consultation room.

Li Nian stood in the corridor holding Miao Miao, waiting. When she saw him come out, both of her eyes swept over him.

"How so?"

"Three tendons broke, but the lung wasn't damaged. It'll heal with rest."

Li Nian's face paled. "Brother Li, where did you go? How did you manage to hurt your ribs, and break them?"

"You can't know about this." Li Yichen stuffed the medicine bag into his pocket. "Let's go home."

Li Niannian opened her mouth, but ultimately didn't ask any further questions.

Miao Miao leaned halfway out of Li Nian's arms and reached out to touch his left arm with her little hand.

"Brother, can I blow on it for you? Mom said it will make the pain go away."

Li Yichen looked down at her. The little girl's eyebrows were furrowed and her lips were pouting.

He reached out and ruffled her hair. "No need to blow on it. I'm not that delicate."

The three people walked out of the hospital.

The sunlight shone down on me, warm and comforting.

Li Yichen narrowed his eyes.

My whole body aches, my ribs feel tight and swollen, and the painkillers haven't worked yet.

But it wasn't a bad deal. Three ribs were exchanged for fifteen fighter jets and an aircraft carrier from the United States. That's pretty awesome!

One hundred and thirty-seven people also survived.

He took the car keys out of his pocket and pressed the unlock button.

at the same time.

Shanghai Military Region Headquarters. Emergency conference room on the second basement level.

Xiao Jingshan sat in the center of the long table, his military uniform crisp and his hands folded on the table.

Gu Shounian sat to his left, and Liu Guoliang sat to his right.

A thin intelligence report was spread out in front of the three people.

There were only eight characters on the paper.

"The USS Ford aircraft carrier was paralyzed after being attacked."