After the television interview concluded, the people of Yuzhou began to discuss it enthusiastically. They had never expected the news about aliens to be true, and with the City Lord vouching for it, they had no choice but to believe it.
"So, there really are aliens in the universe. I wonder what they look like. Do they have two eyes and one mouth like us?"
"You're overthinking it. Aliens might not look like humans. Many intelligent beings develop independently. Humans just happen to have this shape. It's impossible for aliens to be exactly like us."
"What's the point of discussing that? Let's talk about how these aliens went extinct. Since they could send meteorites to Earth, their technological level must be very high, surpassing humans at least. If their technology was so advanced, how did they go extinct?"
The people of Yuzhou engaged in fervent discussion. Initially, they were utterly shocked to learn of the existence of aliens. They also worried that if aliens invaded Earth, their current capabilities would be insufficient to resist. However, they soon discovered that the aliens who had sent the meteorites had all gone extinct. If that were the case, what was there to worry about?
Besides Yuzhou, other Chinese-speaking regions also received this sensational news almost immediately. Although it was the apocalypse, people had grown accustomed to the internet. With the internet, information could spread across thousands of miles in mere seconds, allowing them to get the latest updates promptly.
However, to go online, a local signal base station was required. Without one, it was impossible to access the internet, and even making phone calls was impossible.
In other cities where internet access was available, many people remained skeptical upon hearing the news. They simply did not believe in the existence of aliens, and even Shen Feng's testimony did not convince them.
"It's not April Fools' Day, yet they're still telling such jokes. I doubt even children would believe this kind of story." Many scoffed.
However, some believed it to be true for a simple reason: "Based on what Fengshen has said on television, we can see that the logic is sound. It was the aliens who sent the meteorite, which caused the mutations in Earth's various creatures. I believe Fengshen would not lie!"
"Then believe it if you want. Anyway, those aliens are already extinct, so it has nothing to do with us," others replied casually.
Whether it was Ice City, Jinling, Meizhou, or Pudong, all cities received news from Yuzhou, including the information on the alien cards.
The leaders of these cities were the first to learn of this matter. They now understood why the apocalypse had occurred. They had initially thought it was a natural disaster, but it turned out to be a disaster caused by aliens. However, upon reflection, it made sense. A meteorite that caused global mutations certainly wouldn't appear out of nowhere.
"I never imagined Shen Feng had such sensational news hidden. He really knows how to keep secrets, hiding this for so long," He Qiu'an couldn't help but shake his head and sigh upon hearing the news.
Gong Changfa, standing beside him, frowned and said, "So, there's already a solution to the apocalypse: retrieve the meteorite. But in my opinion, this is impossible. Only ability users can enter the divine realm, meaning only ability users can end the apocalypse. Yet, retrieving the meteorite is fraught with danger. Who can retrieve it?"
"Your outlook is too pessimistic. Just think about it from another perspective: if we can retrieve the meteorite, we'll be immortalized in history!" He Qiu'an said with a smile.
"You're quite optimistic to be thinking like this at a time like this. Haven't you considered that if we can't withstand the locust attacks, we'll be overthrown by the people below?" Gong Changfa said calmly.
Under He Qiu'an and Gong Changfa, the most crucial region was actually the three northeastern provinces. Despite the onset of the Little Ice Age, it had not significantly impacted agriculture in the northeast. This was due to the incredibly fertile black soil, which allowed crops to grow easily. With fertilizers and machinery, large amounts of grain could be obtained rapidly. Although no crops could be planted in winter, and any planted would freeze to death, expanding the planting area was enough to feed most people.
However, He Qiu'an and Gong Changfa were now facing a formidable challenge: locusts. Autumn was fast approaching, and the locusts were increasing in number, with a tendency to move towards the northeast. Once these locusts crossed the Great Wall and reached the northeast, they would undoubtedly cause immense damage.
He Qiu'an scratched his head and said, "Isn't this matter already assigned to Yue Hengyi? He's such a powerful ability user; he should be able to quickly resolve any danger he encounters, right? Mere locusts are nothing."
"Heh, you're thinking too much. His strength is indeed immense. Even if I create distance from him, it's difficult to get close. Basically, I'm no match for him. But you must also understand that locusts are everywhere in the North China Plain now. How many insects can one person kill? Even if all the insects in his path are crushed, after a few days, locusts from other areas will quickly flood in, and those places will still be overrun by locusts!" Gong Changfa shook his head helplessly. If locusts could be easily dealt with, the north would not have become a living hell.
He Qiu'an then asked, "What about those ability users you've trained? How are they doing now? Do they have powerful abilities?"
"They're doing quite well. One of them can control infrared rays, meaning they can roast a person from a long distance. This ability is very rare, and it's a nature-type ability user!" Gong Changfa recalled some good news.
Nature-type ability users were generally the strongest, unless certain abilities were countered by others. Otherwise, nature-type ability users were undoubtedly the strongest among humans. With proper training, they would surely perform exceptionally well in the future.
He Qiu'an then said, "In that case, train this ability user quickly and help him become stronger to deal with the locusts. For now, if there's no other way, prepare to kill them with large quantities of pesticides, or even poison!"
He Qiu'an would not resort to spreading poison unless absolutely necessary. However, at this time, locusts had developed strong resistance to ordinary pesticides; regular pesticides could no longer kill them. Therefore, they had no choice but to use poison. The north was already devastated, with many places uninhabited by humans. Spreading poison there would kill these insects.
He Qiu'an suddenly thought of something and frowned, asking, "You said, why did Shen Feng release such sensational news at this time? He can't find or retrieve the meteorite, so what is he trying to convey by revealing this?"
Gong Changfa pondered for a moment and understood. He then said, "Actually, this is very simple, and it becomes clear with a little thought. Yunnan Province is in chaos now, with countless insects causing trouble. Shen Feng wants to help these people, but he cannot do so in a short period because his subordinates will constantly oppose him. Therefore, he must release a new sensational piece of news at this time to gain understanding and support for his decisions!"
Upon hearing this, He Qiu'an shook his head and said, "It seems Yuzhou is not peaceful either. Their environment for stable development is gone!"
As a night passed, the people of Yuzhou flocked to newsstands early the next morning to buy the latest newspapers. In reality, newsstands had long since disappeared across the country, and even many bookstores had closed down, let alone small newsstands. However, in the apocalypse, these newsstands had experienced a resurgence. Since opening bookstores was not profitable, many people chose to open newsstands, selling whatever was in high demand.
When people arrived at the newsstands, they began buying newspapers, as almost everyone wanted to know what incredible news was contained on the cards sent by the aliens.
Major newspapers had already been producing this content overnight, but by the next day, over 400,000 copies of newspapers were snapped up. Countless people were scrambling for them, but the newspapers were sold out, and it was impossible to print more at that moment.
People immediately saw the news about aliens, finally understanding: "So, the reason aliens went extinct was that the resources on their planet were depleted, but they lacked the ability to traverse the stars. In the end, they met a tragic end after exhausting their resources. To prevent newly discovered planets from following the same path, these aliens sent a gift, allowing intelligent life on Earth to evolve faster, ideally to quickly acquire the ability to navigate the universe."
However, after reading this, people also saw new information: a commentator's words, "Humanity is not the only intelligent life on Earth at present. It's just that our intelligence far surpasses that of other creatures. If our evolution slows down and we are surpassed by other animals, then those other animals might occupy Earth and drive humanity to extinction."
Upon seeing this, people began to panic.
In Fengshen Palace, Yu Zhijing and his sister, along with Feng Shicheng, sat in a pavilion. The commentary that appeared in the newspaper today was deliberately written by him. He had received a mission to make people take the threat of insects seriously. For a long time, the Chuan-Yu region had not experienced many mutated insect invasions, making it too stable compared to other places. Shen Feng knew that to get people to voluntarily support Sichuan Province, he needed to make them actively worry about the danger of insects, thus orchestrating this event.
Yu Zhiling had also grown up now and found everything in Fengshen Palace novel. However, her brother always appeared sickly. He always carried a snuff bottle with him and would inhale the powder from it whenever he felt tired, then fall into a deep sleep.
There was no other way. Yu Zhijing was a genius, but he had a problem: his brain was constantly working, making it difficult for him to fall asleep. Even if he managed to sleep, he would be woken up quickly. This was a consequence of incomplete evolution; his brain had evolved, but his body had not kept up.
Originally, with his identity as an advisor to Shen Feng, Yu Zhijing would not have had trouble finding a wife. However, he disdained superficial women, and girls from wealthy families did not like him, this sickly individual. Thus, Yu Zhijing was still single. Even though he had come to Fengshen Palace today, he had not forgotten to bring a book. Reading could alleviate his anxiety and help him maintain a calm state.