Free Web NovelChapter 308: Chapter 221: Mysterious Existence
Luo Feifei’s cheeks were flushed, her intelligent eyes sparkling as she gave Li Xiang a "challenging" look.
"Got a rebellious streak, have we? Who are you looking down on?" Li Xiang said, flicking her smooth forehead gently.
The two of them planned their route. They would roughly follow the Ryukyu Islands, passing through the Philippines, Indonesia, and Australia. Once they reached the waters near New Zealand, they would rest for a bit before making the final sprint to Antarctica.
Following the landmasses was safer and more convenient, making it harder to get lost.
Otherwise, the vast ocean could easily lead them astray. A wrong turn would mean long detours and wasted time.
Besides, it was easier to rest along the way on land. Out on the vast Pacific Ocean, finding an island to stop at wasn’t always a guarantee.
Although Luo Feifei wanted to test Li Xiang’s Endurance, she didn’t want to work him too hard.
A strange, enormous ship appeared ahead. Its hull was about one hundred and twenty to one hundred and thirty meters long, topped with several large "spheres." Judging by its tonnage, it was at least six or seven thousand tons, and it was loitering in the waters off the coast of Japan.
Li Xiang, holding Luo Feifei and shrouded in a protective sphere of Black Light, paid it no mind and shot right past the vessel.
WHOOSH~
He couldn’t help but glance back, noticing several young women on the bridge who looked valiant and competent.
Luo Feifei tapped him lightly with her delicate fist. "What are you doing? You’ve got one in your arms and you’re still looking at others?"
Li Xiang didn’t dare look again and sped away at Extreme Speed.
Aboard the strange ship, a few crew members came out on deck for some fresh air. In the starlight, they saw a black shadow on the sea’s surface, speeding away like a speedboat cutting through the waves.
Although they couldn’t make out Li Xiang’s figure, the churning, glittering water left a visible trail.
"What was that? It was so fast!"
The crew members were astonished and hurried back to report. On the bridge, everyone exchanged bewildered glances. None of the equipment had sounded any alarms.
"Could it be some advanced weapon from the Americans? How could we not pick up any signal?" a crew member asked.
An experienced first mate pondered for a moment before quickly dismissing the idea. "Impossible. If they had something this powerful, knowing the Americans, they would have shown it off long ago."
"Yeah, they’re the type to brag about a PowerPoint presentation a decade in advance."
"If it were really that advanced, that aircraft carrier in the Sasebo Base wouldn’t be letting us keep it bottled up." ƒrēewebnoѵёl.cσm
"Regardless, all hands on alert! Ready for combat at any moment!"
Instantly, a flurry of signals was sent out, and vast resources were mobilized in a heartbeat. Satellites in orbit were redirected to focus their search on this area of the sea.
Unable to sleep that night, Jiang Cai’Er was using her robot dog to hack into the school’s network, using it as a springboard to surf the internet.
Next to her dorm was a faculty housing building. A teacher had left their computer on, downloading something, but it was too far for Jiang Cai’Er to connect to directly. So, she sent out her robot dog to act as a "wireless bridge" and "repeater," successfully entering the "Metaverse."
This was a mysterious virtual world that Elder Qian had named the "Spirit Realm."
Yes, that same Elder Qian whose prestige only grew with time, a man worthy of the highest national honors. Elder Qian had once joked that the term had a "distinctly Chinese flavor," a unique sort of romance for his countrymen.
Elder Qian had come up with the name over thirty years ago, back in 1990, when computers were not yet common in China and many people had never even seen one.
For Jiang Cai’Er, most of the internet was a Land of No One. But there were certain special places she didn’t dare approach.
Suddenly, she sensed a mysterious presence stir. It was located in a "forbidden zone" she had never dared to venture into before.
The presence was immense, far more powerful than her own.
’What the hell? Is there an AI this powerful on the internet?’ Jiang Cai’Er was startled. She immediately went dormant, disguising herself as a mundane piece of code.
Soon, something strange happened.
Previously, the forbidden zone had been connected to the internet through several "one-way bridges," but they were heavily guarded, and Jiang Cai’Er hadn’t dared to force her way through.
Now, the "one-way bridges" suddenly vanished, and the forbidden zone disappeared along with them.
It was completely gone, likely air-gapped from the network.
But Jiang Cai’Er could still feel that a powerful presence was active somewhere.
Even though the forbidden zone was gone, Jiang Cai’Er remained extremely cautious, slowly withdrawing under layers of digital camouflage.
When she finally exited the internet and her consciousness returned to her body in the dorm room bed, she realized she was drenched in a cold sweat.
’I need to be more careful from now on. I can’t be so reckless,’ Jiang Cai’Er thought, her heart still pounding with fear. She resolved to be more prudent. ’I can’t get arrogant just because I have such a rare Extraordinary Ability.’
’What on earth was that mysterious presence? I should tell my brother about it next time.’
She had no idea that the mysterious presence had been dormant until her brother was the one who drew it out.
At that moment, after receiving the signal from the strange ship, the mysterious presence mobilized countless resources. It was as if thousands of invisible tentacles had extended out to blanket the several-thousand-kilometer radius of the sea where Li Xiang had just appeared, conducting a sweeping search and running countless calculations.
Meanwhile, Li Xiang and Luo Feifei had already reached Indonesia and were now on Sulawesi Island.
Luo Feifei seemed to sense something. She pointed to the dense tropical rainforest and said, "Let’s hide in there."
Li Xiang was surprised, but he knew Luo Feifei had extraordinary talents, so he took her into the rainforest.
Li Xiang was quite familiar with the islands of Indonesia. He immediately found a hidden spot for them to rest and took out some snacks, Spirit Fruits, and mineral water to share with Luo Feifei. ƒгeeweɓn૦vel.com
Luo Feifei’s elegant brows furrowed slightly. Instead of eating right away, she took out a Turtle Shell and some Copper Coins and performed a Divination on the spot.
