Chang Haojie said helplessly, "It's all my fault for being too eager for success, which caused my powers to go out of control. I already felt my powers were about to go out of control before, but I didn't care. I continued to evolve, and the result is that I am now a sixth-order esper, but my powers are completely out of control. Simply put, I am not qualified to wield stronger power at the moment."
"What will we do then? Are we all going to walk with crutches from now on?" someone suddenly asked.
Everyone let their imaginations run wild at this moment, imagining how life would be severely affected if the fog continued to shroud the city. Especially in the mountain city, it would be very easy to fall from a high place to a low one if one was not careful, making it impossible for most people to live normally.
Shen Feng quickly explained, "Everyone, please rest assured. Before the celebration banquet, I had already discussed with Chang Haojie. Chang Haojie will enter the mountains and will not leave until he can completely control his powers, unless Yuzhou encounters danger."
Upon hearing this, everyone reacted. As long as Chang Haojie left Yuzhou, the fog shrouding the city would also dissipate, allowing Yuzhou to regain its light. However, doing so meant that Chang Haojie would likely not be able to return to the city for a long time.
Chang Haojie said, "In the southern mountains, there are many villages on the mountains, but they are already uninhabited. I plan to find a village to live in. If there are any wild beasts in the mountains, I can handle them alone. Everyone need not worry."
Everyone praised him afterward. Chang Haojie, at such a young age, already had the thought of sacrificing for others, which was a rare thing. At the celebration banquet, Shen Feng found ten people who had performed outstandingly in the war and awarded them esper potions on the spot, a scene that made many envious.
Shen Feng continued, "Everyone, please continue to work together in the future to strive for the peace and prosperity of Yuzhou and create a haven."
Everyone applauded. Following a rather generous city lord, they were sure to have a brighter future. Yuzhou now had over forty espers, which was an immense power. If Shen Feng had ambitions, he could even expand his territory.
After the celebration banquet ended, Chang Haojie prepared to depart. Before leaving, he brought two companions: Qu Zhaoqian and Wang Xiqiang. Among the three youths, Chang Haojie was the oldest, and the other two served as his followers. The three were about to enter the mountains to live.
Hua Jingran originally wanted to go with them, but she was still the steward of the Wind God Palace. If she left now, things in the Wind God Palace would be in disarray. So, Chang Jianyi stopped her, saying, "If love is everlasting, does it matter if they are together day and night?"
Hua Jingran did not dare to disobey Chang Jianyi's orders and could only prepare departure items for Chang Haojie.
"It's okay. Even if I go to the mountains, it's not like we'll never see each other again. I've brought many communication devices in my luggage, so we can still call each other," Chang Haojie said earnestly to Hua Jingran.
A large expanse of clouds appeared in the center of the Wind God Palace's open space. There was no fog in the Wind God Palace, as Shen Feng was the Wind God, and any amount of fog would be blown away. This white cloud was formed by Chang Haojie using his own power, and it could not be blown away. The cloud was equipped with many devices, such as wind turbines and many electrically powered communicators. Even if he went to the mountains, with a signal base station, he could directly contact Yuzhou.
"Brother-in-law, Sister, I'm leaving now. I'll be back when I can fully control my powers," Chang Haojie said to Shen Feng and Chang Jianyi.
"Be careful in the mountains, especially at night. The mountains are not like the city. There will be many dangers, and you must always guard against surprise attacks by wild beasts," Chang Jianyi earnestly warned her brother.
Wang Xiqiang also bid farewell to his sister Wang Xiran, "Sister, I'm going to live in the mountains. You study hard and strive to use your powers as soon as possible. We'll be back soon, so don't be sad."
Wang Xiran looked at her brother very sadly at this moment. After the doomsday descended, Wang Xiran had never been separated from her brother. Now, they were facing separation, and Wang Xiran's eyes were already filled with tears, almost crying.
"Brother, you must come back soon," Wang Xiran said with a crying voice.
Qu Zhaoqian entrusted Shen Feng with the care of his aunt and uncle, to which Shen Feng had already agreed.
After saying goodbye, the three youths prepared to leave. They stood on the clouds, and Chang Haojie used his powers to fly up, then headed south. Chang Haojie had already surveyed the terrain of the southern mountains earlier and was ready to leave Yuzhou early.
Shen Feng and the others waved at the three on the clouds. After the three youths left the city, the fog above the city also dispersed. The fog always followed Chang Haojie. The three youths were also espers, and even living in the mountains would not be a problem, as their strength was sufficient to ensure their safety. If they encountered serious danger, Chang Haojie could take the two of them to the sky to avoid it.
"I wonder how long it will be before they return. Alas, this is the result of power going out of control," Li Keyi couldn't help but sigh.
In fact, similar situations of power going out of control had occurred with Xiao Sheng and others before, but the loss of control they experienced was milder. Most of the time, they were able to control their powers. Chang Haojie was different. His talent was not as high as these people, and he forcefully evolved, resulting in him completely losing control of his powers.
"Let's quickly discuss important matters. According to Professor Zhou, mutated birds will continue to appear. What should we do then? We can't surround the city with fog every time. If we can't completely eliminate the mutated birds, then Yuzhou's future will still be threatened," Shen Feng said urgently.
"It's really difficult to handle. Who told us we don't have strong aerial forces?" Chu Chaoyan spread her hands helplessly, indicating her inability.
Although Shen Feng himself was powerful, he couldn't go and attack alone. When winter fully arrived, the mutated birds would migrate to the Southern Hemisphere. Mutated birds had the ability to cross oceans, but Shen Feng did not have such capabilities. He could at most fly for a day, but not for a month.
Seeing that his three wives could not come up with a solution, Shen Feng frowned and decided to go to the laboratory to inquire further. He found several scientists and asked them for a solution: "How can we completely solve the threat posed by mutated birds? If we continue to be attacked by mutated birds, won't it be endless?"
Professor Niu first offered his opinion, "City Lord, to solve the threat of mutated birds, the first thing to do is to reduce their numbers. However, the most troublesome thing is that these birds have extremely strong reproductive capabilities. As long as they are given a certain habitat, they can quickly restore their numbers. Therefore, I believe the most important thing is to find a way to reduce the birds' fertility rate."
"This is a good idea, but I personally think it's very difficult to achieve. How can mutated birds easily reduce their fertility rate? Mutated birds are basically not threatened effectively and move in flocks. It's difficult to eliminate even a portion of them. How can we reduce their fertility rate?" a professor was dissatisfied and directly refuted.
"In my opinion, controlling the number of these mutated birds is bound to be a long-term process, with no hope in the short term. Moreover, even if the number of mutated birds in one region is controlled, if the mutated birds in other regions are not controlled, it will still be useless," Professor Zhou said seriously.
Shen Feng agreed more with Professor Zhou's explanation and then asked, "Does Professor Zhou have any suggestions?"
"My suggestion is very simple: global cooperation. If global cooperation cannot be achieved, then it's fine. As long as the major countries in Asia participate in this action, the crisis of mutated birds can be alleviated," Professor Zhou replied.
Shen Feng could only force a smile. Currently, countless people were struggling to survive, so it was unrealistic to ask them to participate in a plan to control the number of mutated birds. Yuzhou currently had some strength to fight, but eliminating all mutated beasts in Asia was completely impossible.
"Then we'll take it one step at a time. It's not easy to eliminate mutated birds in the short term," Shen Feng could only sigh.
Winter finally arrived. In previous times, the people of China least wished to see winter arrive because, with winter, snow would cover the ground. While one could build snowmen and have snowball fights, entertainment options would be greatly reduced, and one had to dress warmly when going out, or risk frostbite.
But times were different now. People were looking forward to winter's arrival as soon as possible. The reason was simple: only when winter arrived would the mutated birds be forced to migrate south.
After snow fell in most northern regions, the mutated birds finally migrated to the Southern Hemisphere, giving the people of the Northern Hemisphere a reprieve. As for what the Southern Hemisphere would be like, it was unclear.
Although the mutated birds had left, the damage they caused was permanent. According to statistics, the large-scale war brought about by the mutated birds had killed at least ten million people, a damage that no one could have imagined.
At this point, everyone realized that to completely solve the threat posed by mutated birds, everyone had to cooperate. Only then could they withstand the attacks of the mutated birds.
The Chinese region began a conference, with Jinling taking the lead. They did not dare to command other forces but only issued a call, forming a collective. Major forces participated in the meeting, including Yuzhou. The meeting was conducted online, and the sole purpose was to discuss how to deal with the attacks of mutated birds.
Jinling immediately stated, "Regarding the methods to deal with the attacks of mutated birds, we have a suggestion: to reduce the fertility rate of mutated birds. Why have a flock of birds become our major concern in just a few years, even destroying our Yanjing? The reason lies in this flock of mutated birds, which possess strong reproductive capabilities. Therefore, even if the number of mutated birds is reduced by viruses and bacteria, they can still pose a great threat."
"So, what's the use of knowing this? Are we supposed to catch the birds and castrate them?" someone impatiently asked.
The representative from Jinling smiled slightly and said, "Please allow me to introduce someone to you. Of course, Mr. Shen Feng most likely already knows her. She is Gu Yanxiao, the wife of Master Ke Yiming. Please welcome her to say a few words."
Everyone at the meeting was very surprised because they did not expect such an important occasion to introduce a woman, even if she was the wife of an esper, she should not be that important.
Gu Yanxiao appeared on the screen with a faint smile. She truly lived up to her name and said, "Hello everyone, I am Gu Yanxiao. Now I would like to introduce my invention to you: a new type of mealworm. This mealworm is harmless to humans, but if birds eat it, their egg-laying frequency will significantly decrease. With the existence of this mealworm, solving the crisis of mutated birds is no longer a problem!"
The attendees of the meeting were stunned by this astonishing news because they did not expect Jinling to possess such an important weapon. Although it was just a simple mealworm, it could be of great use against mutated birds.
"How much does this new type of mealworm cost?" everyone began to inquire at this moment.