The Yuzhou laboratory, after conducting experiments, successfully analyzed the composition and effects of the phoenix egg. By the time the experiments concluded, the sky had already brightened considerably.
The researchers were all utterly exhausted, sporting deep dark circles under their eyes, looking as if they were pandas. Professor Niu also breathed a sigh of relief, realizing that the task assigned by his superiors had been completed, a mission accomplished without disgrace.
Professor Niu immediately left the laboratory and headed to the City Lord's mansion. He found Chu Chaoyan and Chang Jianyi seated in the office. Chu Chaoyan was the primary person handling documents, while Chang Jianyi offered guidance. Luo Qing stood nearby holding a folder. At this moment, the three ability users were in the office, requiring no guard protection. It was unheard of for anyone to assassinate three ability users simultaneously.
"The experimental results are out. The rhizome of the fern has no side effects and can be eaten with confidence. Moreover, this fatigue-relieving substance needs to be planted as soon as possible. This thing is truly effective!" Professor Niu said hurriedly as he entered the office.
Chang Jianyi nodded and said, "It's good that there are no problems. I'm relieved. However, Professor, can you explain how the phoenix egg works?"
Professor Niu nodded and explained, "The fern is actually a type of traditional Chinese medicine. Its water extract has antibacterial properties, which many people know. It's fine for treating burns and cuts. However, there was no previous evidence to prove that the fern could relieve fatigue. But after our research, this fern is a mutated fern. Its underground rhizome contains a saponin, which, after being absorbed by the body, helps decompose lactic acid. Have I made myself clear?"
Although Chu Chaoyan was a liberal arts student, she understood the general meaning. She nodded and said, "So, this mutated fern is effective? Luo Qing, go to the communication room immediately and contact Guo Pinming. Tell him the phoenix egg is useful and has no side effects."
Chang Jianyi, worried that Chu Chaoyan might not fully grasp the reason, explained, "After strenuous exercise, the body produces lactic acid, causing fatigue and muscle soreness. However, the saponin in the phoenix egg enters the body and helps decompose lactic acid, allowing muscles to continue functioning and reducing the feeling of fatigue."
Chu Chaoyan nodded. Although she was a liberal arts student, she had learned the necessary subjects in high school. While she didn't understand many of the technical terms, knowing the true effect of the phoenix egg was enough for her.
Professor Niu, with his dark circles, said earnestly, "I've observed many goods in Yuzhou. Apart from steel products and evolution bases, other items cannot be sold in large quantities. Therefore, I suggest planting the fern and allowing private transactions. This way, the phoenix eggs can also be sold, which is good for increasing income. Most importantly, the fern can only grow in the south; it won't grow well in the north. Currently, only a few southern provinces are stable. We must seize this opportunity and plant it as soon as possible!"
Chang Jianyi understood and agreed, "In a few days, I will recruit personnel to undertake this task. Many of the farmers who were previously idle at home can be given something to do. However, it's impossible to plant in the plains. I've already extracted most of the fertility from the soil using my abilities. From now on, we can only plant on the mountains!"
Professor Niu nodded, rubbed his eyes, and said, "As long as it's helpful to you, that's good. I need to go to sleep. I've been busy for a day and a night. If I don't rest, I'll die of exhaustion!"
Chu Chaoyan was also very polite and escorted Professor Niu out of the City Lord's mansion. She had great respect for researchers and intellectuals. Perhaps they liked to put on airs when they had nothing else to do, and their occasional arrogance could be annoying, but the fact remained that these people drove social progress.
Chu Chaoyan escorted Professor Niu all the way out of the City Lord's mansion before turning back.
Unbeknownst to them, in a distant corner, a man codenamed Pangolin witnessed this event and then sent a message to headquarters: "The Yuzhou laboratory may have experimental results. Chu Chaoyan attaches great importance to this!"
An excellent intelligence operative only needs a few clues to discern the truth of a matter, and Pangolin was clearly such a talent. After collecting the relevant information, he directly deduced what was happening.
Headquarters was very annoyed that Yuzhou was not under their control. If it weren't for the crisis in Yanjing last year, headquarters would not have had to promise Shen Feng benefits, and Yuzhou would never have been allowed to fall into Shen Feng's hands. Now that Yuzhou had fallen into Shen Feng's possession, headquarters would be seen as killing a meritorious official if they acted against Yuzhou. However, headquarters could not ignore Yuzhou.
Therefore, headquarters made a simple decision: to not pay attention to Yuzhou on the surface, but to secretly dispatch many people to observe Yuzhou's movements. Previously, when Shen Feng occupied Jiangyang, headquarters only sent Pangolin to gather intelligence. But now, dozens of people within Yuzhou were monitoring the situation in different positions, especially paying attention to the movements of Shen Feng's family.
Upon receiving Pangolin's message, headquarters quickly issued the following order: "Continue to gather information, ascertain what kind of scientific research results have been achieved, and report at any time!"
Upon learning the effect of the phoenix egg from Yuzhou, Guo Pinming was greatly relieved. As long as the thing worked, it was fine. Last night, he had people excavate enough phoenix eggs in the mountains. Afterward, he packed his rations, ate a phoenix egg, and set off.
Relying on the phoenix egg, Guo Pinming reached his destination in just three days. He had stationed sufficient soldiers to guard important areas along the way and met up with Yang Chang in advance.
Yang Chang was stunned when he saw Guo Pinming. He couldn't imagine that Guo Pinming could arrive so quickly! The roads were so rugged, and the food supply was insufficient. How could he complete the mission so rapidly? Lu Xian was still on the way!
One must remember that Lu Xian chose the easiest route, with half of the journey along roads and railways. Under such circumstances, Guo Pinming's swift arrival was almost like flying!
Yang Chang then looked at Guo Pinming's men. Although they were travel-worn and many of their clothes were torn by the jungle, their faces were radiant, showing no signs of fatigue. This was truly astonishing.
"Damn it, Lao Guo, how did you do it? You completed the most difficult mission the fastest. This means the encirclement is foolproof!" Yang Chang couldn't help but admire Guo Pinming at this moment. He had taken on the most challenging script and executed it perfectly. Was he not human?
The advance route from the east was one that anyone would sigh at. Yang Chang himself was unwilling to take this route, so he would rather choose to intercept the mutated beasts moving south than lead his soldiers through the mountains from the east. And this most difficult mission was ultimately undertaken by Guo Pinming.
He had expected that even if Guo Pinming completed the mission, he would still have taken a considerable amount of time and arrived in a sorry state. But now, things had exceeded Yang Chang's predictions.
Guo Pinming said with a smile, "Just good luck. The first half of the road was hell. I almost wanted to travel light. I didn't expect to find the phoenix eggs halfway."
After speaking, Guo Pinming also explained the effect of the phoenix egg. No matter how far they traveled, as long as they ate a phoenix egg, they would never feel tired. It was precisely because of the phoenix egg's effect that Guo Pinming's group was able to complete the encirclement.
"Now, we're just waiting for Lu Xian. As long as he arrives on time, the encirclement will be complete. The next step is simple: push forward, and we can eliminate the threat in the mountains!" Yang Chang said, rubbing his hands together.
Perhaps the threat brought by Shen Feng from the north was too great, and the mutated beasts were terrified. They fled south day and night, attempting to escape from the south in just a few days. Fortunately, Yang Chang had already arrived in the south to block their escape routes and drive them back. The mutated beasts were in disarray, charging and crashing within the encirclement, but they were constantly being shot.
Lu Xian arrived to rendezvous with Yang Chang a day later. When he learned that Guo Pinming had arrived ahead of schedule, he was utterly astonished. He never expected it! Guo Pinming was so adept at leading troops that he could complete the encirclement in such a short period!
"Since the encirclement has been formed, we should notify the City Lord's mansion to discuss the next course of action. It's time to reel them in!" Yang Chang said with a smile.
It was now late autumn. The cold wave had moved south, causing Yuzhou to experience several autumn rains. The days were muggy, but the nights were extremely cold, so much so that one could be woken up by the chill even under a blanket.
What Shen Feng worried about most was not being able to complete the task of clearing out the mutated beasts before the snow fell. Yuzhou's strength did not support a protracted war. As the saying goes, "The firing of cannons costs a million taels of gold," which describes the cost of warfare. Shen Feng's war effort had consumed the advantages accumulated over half a year. Now, he was counting on eliminating all the mutated beasts to regain his footing. If the mission ultimately failed, it would shake his authority.
Fortunately, at this moment, Shen Feng heard Yang Chang's reply from the communication vehicle: the encirclement had been formed! He immediately relaxed. Since the encirclement was formed, the next step was the mopping-up operation!
Shen Feng's previous calmness vanished. He had been idle for some time and felt his abilities were becoming rusty. Now that he was on the battlefield, he felt a surge of excitement. He immediately rushed to the front line, holding a long sword, and shouted, "Brothers, charge!"
With that, Shen Feng took the lead and charged out. A "Wind King Barrier" condensed around him, protecting him while he used "Swiftwind Movement" to disappear into the crowd like a black shadow!
Seeing this, both the soldiers and the mercenaries were filled with fighting spirit. Their highest commander, the City Lord, had charged out. If they, his subordinates, were to cower, were they still men? Thus, the soldiers were about to follow him.
From ancient times to the present, those who lead from the front in the army have always been respected. If an officer charged at the forefront, the soldiers below would follow him to the death.
Now, Shen Feng leading the charge was equivalent to the commander leading his men forward, which immediately sent his subordinates into a frenzy. They shouted and followed him.
Fortunately, at this moment, Lu Kaiyang calmed everyone down and shouted, "Don't charge, don't charge! If you charge out, there will be an opening on the flanks! Advance slowly!"
Lu Kaiyang was a military enthusiast and had a particular fondness for weaponry. Therefore, the first time he held a firearm, he achieved excellent results. Subsequently, he became Shen Feng's most trusted sniper. Now, Lu Kaiyang was serving as a commander and had to bite the bullet and direct his subordinates. Even without experience, he could only push forward.
The soldiers couldn't be held back and charged with Shen Feng. Even Chang Haojie couldn't resist throwing grenades into the sky to bombard the mutated beasts.
Lu Kaiyang was worried about an opening on the flank. However, fortunately, the mercenaries were too slow. The mercenaries remaining on the flank advanced slowly, and the encirclement on the flank did not reveal a significant gap. The mutated beasts in front had already collapsed and were now fleeing.
Shen Feng, in a fit of excitement, seemed to have awakened a bloodthirsty instinct within him. His eyes turned red, and he charged towards the front line, his speed increasing. He left the pursuing soldiers far behind. The soldiers didn't even know Shen Feng's direction and had to slow down.
Shen Feng charged out alone with just his long sword. Wind blades were constantly condensing around him. Before the mutated beasts could react, their bodies were already cut by several wind blades. The long sword in Shen Feng's hand was specifically designed to deal with large mutated beasts. The mutated wild bull was over five meters tall, larger than an elephant. Shen Feng brought the sword to break through the defenses of large animals.
"Moo..." The mutated wild bull sensed the danger. Perhaps due to its confidence in its own strength, it charged towards Shen Feng. Its horns were very sharp and stained with blood and flesh, indicating that many mutated beasts had died under the bull's horns! The bull aimed its horns at Shen Feng, preparing to pierce him.
Shen Feng did not dare to underestimate the strength of the mutated wild bull. He suddenly changed direction, dodging the bull's attack. With a "thud," the bull crashed into a tree, its horns stuck in the trunk.
However, the bull suddenly went berserk and struggled continuously. With a "crack," the tree trunk broke off at the position of the bull's horns.
With a loud "boom" and a cloud of dust, the tree trunk fell to the ground, and the bull once again charged towards Shen Feng.
"Damn, such immense power!" Shen Feng exclaimed in surprise as he saw the fallen giant tree. Who would have thought that a bull could break a tree?
Facing the mutated wild bull's attack, Shen Feng did not dodge or evade. But just as the bull was about to reach him, Shen Feng instantly began to use "Swiftwind Movement" and disappeared in the blink of an eye. The bull, unable to stop itself, crashed into another tree.
The bull wanted to pull out its horns and struggled continuously.
At this moment, Shen Feng made his move. As the art of war states, "Avoid their sharpest point and strike when they are weary." The same applies in combat. The bull charged foolishly, its immense power seemingly invincible. If one were to be hit, it would result in broken bones at best, and disembowelment at worst. Shen Feng dared not use his Iron Cloth technique to withstand the bull's charge but instead dodged the bull's assault.
Then, Shen Feng rushed to the bull's side, took a deep breath, and aimed his long sword at the bull's neck, thrusting it forward.