In winter, Yuzhou was as peaceful as usual, the land a vast expanse of white, completely covered by ice and snow. Venturing out in such weather was a disadvantageous endeavor, as it would needlessly consume body heat with uncertain rewards. Consequently, most people remained indoors.
At the Wind God Palace, however, a large family was enjoying hot pot. The Wind God Palace, once quiet and deserted, was now lively and bustling. Shen Feng's family was present, along with many of his disciples. They ate and chatted merrily, far from any semblance of silence.
At this moment, someone from the communication department of the Wind God Palace arrived and approached Chang Jianyi directly, saying, "Madam, the City Lord is on the line. He says there's something important you need to attend to."
Chang Jianyi nodded, then gestured to Chu Chaoyan and Li Keyi beside her before leaving the dining hall.
For over a month, Shen Feng had sent no word. However, Chang Jianyi and the others were not worried. They knew Shen Feng was invincible at sea, and that he would not be attacked by sea beasts in the sky, so it was impossible for him to be in danger while out.
But as the three followed the communication personnel to the communication room, they received dire news. Shen Feng spoke to Chang Jianyi on the phone, saying, "I might not be back for a while. Wang Feiying and I have both sustained serious injuries. We must recover outside, and we will return once our injuries have mostly healed."
Upon hearing Shen Feng's words, Chang Jianyi immediately grew anxious and asked, "What happened to you? Did you encounter any danger?"
Shen Feng recounted his experiences. When he mentioned encountering a nuclear explosion at sea, everyone's hearts were in their throats. Nuclear bombs were humanity's most powerful weapons. A direct hit would likely have vaporized them. Fortunately, Shen Feng and Wang Feiying were far from the blast zone, thus surviving by chance.
"Didn't you say you were hunting sea beasts in the Indian Ocean? Why did you go to the Atlantic Ocean?" Chang Jianyi couldn't help but ask.
Shen Feng replied helplessly, "It's because many sea beasts have gathered in the Atlantic Ocean. It's difficult to find enough sea beasts in other oceans, so we ventured into the Atlantic. Who would have thought we'd encounter such a thing?"
Nuclear bombs today were different from those a century ago. The "Little Boy" could only destroy a city, but modern nuclear bombs could obliterate a small country. However, such attacks had never been tested on humans, and Shen Feng never imagined he would become a victim.
"If you are injured, then rest well outside and make sure your injuries completely recover!" Chu Chaoyan quickly chimed in at this point. As long as Shen Feng could return to normal health, it would be a good thing.
However, at this moment, Chang Jianyi suddenly remembered a very important matter: her brother's wedding needed to be expedited. But Shen Feng was still away, and it was uncertain how long it would take for him to recover. If his injuries couldn't heal within a year or a half, would Chang Haojie remain unmarried indefinitely?
Therefore, Chang Jianyi immediately inquired, "If you can't return in time, what about Xiao Jie's wedding?"
"If that's the case, then hold his wedding first! His marriage is more important. I just won't be able to attend the wedding. As for his gift, I'll have to wait until I return to Yuzhou," Shen Feng said with resignation.
In Shen Feng's original plan, his trip would last at most one or two months. But now, he was severely injured and had to recuperate outside, unable to return to Yuzhou anytime soon. Chang Haojie's wedding was very important and could not be postponed just for Shen Feng's return.
"Alright, we'll do that. I'll explain it to the child. Take good care of yourself outside and remember to call us often!" Chang Jianyi said.
Li Keyi suddenly added, "Afeng, when you're outside, be sure to pay attention to the surrounding areas for mutated insects. I heard that on the plains of North America, a species of mutated red fire ants has appeared. They reproduce very quickly and have already killed many people, even conquering a city!"
"Mutated insects? If it's something like that, I'll definitely be careful!" Shen Feng immediately became concerned upon hearing Li Keyi's words.
After the call ended, Chang Jianyi felt a mix of joy and sorrow. She was surprised that Shen Feng had encountered such an absurd situation while hunting sea beasts. She was happy that he had survived the nuclear attack but worried that he wouldn't be able to return for a considerable time.
"From now on, the few of us must stabilize the situation in Yuzhou. Don't say anything to the children, and quietly wait for Shen Feng's return. It's the same for outsiders; don't reveal Shen Feng's condition. As long as Yuzhou remains stable, that's enough," Chang Jianyi then said to the two beside her.
Chu Chaoyan and Li Keyi quickly nodded in agreement. During Shen Feng's absence, they had to maintain stability and prevent anyone from exploiting the situation to disrupt Yuzhou's order.
Meanwhile, after hanging up the phone, Shen Feng went to the ward. Wang Feiying had already woken up and was staring blankly at the ceiling. His appearance was also quite pathetic, with his body covered in bumps, and most of his hair and feathers had fallen out, making him look like an ugly monster.
"Master, you're here? When can I go out?" Wang Feiying asked eagerly upon seeing Shen Feng.
For the past few days, Wang Feiying had been confined to the underground ward. It was winter, and the solar power plant's electricity supply was insufficient, so the room was dimly lit. He had been there for a long time and no longer wished to stay. It was too boring. Even the books he wanted to read were all in foreign languages, which he couldn't understand.
The people in this region primarily spoke Persian, a language Wang Feiying had never learned. Therefore, at this time, he couldn't even communicate with the nurses and doctors.
If he could move around outside, Wang Feiying would have been more accepting. After all, seeing foreign scenery and experiencing the local culture would have been good choices, improving his mood significantly. However, he had no other option but to stay in his room.
To prevent the radioactive elements in Wang Feiying's body from harming others, he was even ordered to remain in the ward and not go out. The doors and windows were tightly shut, and the entire building was sealed with cement and lead plates. This way, the radiation from Wang Feiying's body would not harm anyone else.
"For your health, you should continue to stay here. I've also been undergoing treatment during this time, and I can't go anywhere either. If you have nothing to do, how about we play chess?" Shen Feng quickly comforted his disciple.
Among the world's four renowned board games, Shen Feng only knew chess, and his skill level wasn't particularly high. He could hold his own against ordinary players, but against masters, he was quickly defeated. Since he was idle, he might as well pass the time by playing chess.
Wang Feiying had no other choice and could only follow Shen Feng's suggestion and start playing chess. In the first few days, Shen Feng, relying on his experience, always had the upper hand. Wang Feiying, being a beginner, naturally lost repeatedly. However, after a few days, Wang Feiying's chess skill improved dramatically. After all, he was young and quick-witted. Once his experience caught up, it was no longer easy for Shen Feng to employ his usual tactics.
Winter passed quickly. During this period, Shen Feng and Wang Feiying continued to clear the radioactive elements from their bodies. As the radioactive elements in their bodies gradually decreased, Shen Feng felt his body becoming more comfortable, as if it had regained its vitality and was no longer listless.
Long Qian, in order to entertain Shen Feng and Wang Feiying, specifically asked Shen Feng if he needed the care of beautiful women. His implication was that with more attentive care, Shen Feng would recover faster and be mentally healthier.
However, Shen Feng directly refused. He was no longer at an age where he was prone to such desires, nor could he do anything to betray his wife. As for Wang Feiying, he was still a minor and could not be subjected to such corruption, so refusal was necessary.
Long Qian was the absolute ruler in this kingdom of hundreds of thousands. There were a few ability users in the city, but their combat capabilities were not particularly strong, and they obeyed his commands. The rest of the people depended on these ability users for survival, as ordinary people found it difficult to survive in this perilous world.
Long Qian had over twenty wives, which was considered a restrained number. He had even told Shen Feng that if he wished, he could find hundreds of beautiful women to fill his harem, so that his bed partners wouldn't be the same person for an entire year. However, Long Qian did not want to flaunt his prowess through this, so he eventually stopped at a reasonable point.
Logically, Long Qian should have been content with such a life. However, as spring arrived, he became very distressed. Recently, a very strange phenomenon had occurred in his kingdom: hunting parties he dispatched frequently had people go missing, with dozens of people disappearing each time without a trace.
Large animals were generally not found in the cactus forest. Even humans had to carefully clear a path when moving through the forest, as they could easily be pricked by thorns. This was also the advantage of establishing a city in the cactus forest; large mutated beasts could not penetrate the forest. This forest stretched for tens of kilometers, and large wild animals would avoid it.
The cactus forest also contained many prey animals, such as long-eared rabbits. These animals liked to burrow in the ground and were numerous. Capturing them could supplement their food supply. The entire city had no animal husbandry, so hunting was the only way to obtain meat.
"These people couldn't have escaped. Even if they wanted to escape, they would have brought their families with them. So, they must have been attacked by some monster," Long Qian finally concluded. However, Long Qian hadn't figured out what kind of monster might exist in the cactus forest for some time.
Long Qian eventually decided to use his abilities to investigate the matter. He could rule a kingdom of hundreds of thousands, so he wasn't famous for nothing. Although his abilities were sometimes completely useless, the climate here was hot, and insects were present year-round, so his abilities could be maximized here.
In the following period, Long Qian found a beehive. The bees in this hive were mutated and all under his control. He then controlled hundreds of bees to fly into the sky and explore the outer regions of the cactus forest.
The locations where people went missing were scattered, not concentrated in one area where they were attacked by a specific animal. Therefore, Long Qian could only explore in all directions simultaneously.
After exploring for several days, Long Qian still found nothing unusual. It seemed as if there was no danger in the cactus forest, and there weren't many mutated birds in the vicinity. The hundreds of missing people couldn't have vanished without a sound.
"This is really strange. If there's no danger in the forest, then why did these people disappear?" Long Qian was puzzled. Had these people decided they no longer wanted to live in this city and had all fled?
As he was pondering, the bees in the sky suddenly discovered an anomaly on the ground. On a patch of yellow earth, there appeared a large swarm of insects. Upon closer inspection, these insects turned out to be desert army ants. The reason for this name was that they had no fixed nests and were on the move their entire lives.