"What's going on with Shen Feng? Why is he completely still? Should we pull him away?" Yu Renshu was stunned when she noticed Shen Feng had stopped moving. She couldn't understand what was happening. Even if he were feeling sentimental, it shouldn't take this long. Besides, Shen Feng was usually quite cheerful and wouldn't be so dejected.
"Don't go near the meteorite carelessly. What if the meteorite has other terrifying aspects?" Mu Ying quickly said. "Why don't we let Lin Yue come over? Have him shout loudly using his sonic waves!"
Yu Renshu exchanged a glance with Chang Haojie beside her. They both nodded in agreement, thinking it was a good idea that could be executed without any issues. They both nodded in approval.
Lin Yue then called out to Shen Feng, only to discover that even using sonic waves couldn't wake him up.
"Is he hypnotized? How about we find a way to pull him over?" Jin Zijue suggested.
"We absolutely cannot move him right now. He is currently communicating with the machine inside the meteorite. If we disturb him or move his body, it could even turn him into an idiot!" Suddenly, a female voice rang out. Everyone turned to see that the speaker was Fei Siya.
Yu Renshu quickly asked, "Explain this to us in detail!"
Fei Siya then said, "My ability is to communicate with other species through brainwaves. As long as a species can emit brainwaves, I can communicate with it. Therefore, I can sense that Lord Shen Feng is currently resonating at the same frequency with this machine, allowing for communication. He is now immersed in a strange dream. Only when he wakes up on his own will he return to normal. If we interrupt him, his brain might be harmed."
"I understand. Shen Feng is currently under a mental attack. We need to find an esper with this ability to wake him up or help him. Otherwise, we have to wait for him to wake up on his own!" Mu Ying reacted quickly.
"So, that means we have to hold our ground here. Even if we face attacks from these people, we must defend ourselves and wait for Shen Feng to wake up. Only then can we resolve the final crisis, and we can't move him!" Yu Renshu said with difficulty.
Everyone felt as if a huge rock was pressing down on their hearts because they realized the situation had become dire. If Shen Feng could still act, they wouldn't need to protect him and would even have a powerful combatant. However, now that Shen Feng was trapped in an illusion, they could only protect him, making them a burden. If they were subjected to continuous attacks, they would be in danger.
"No matter what, we must hold on. We just need to wait for the City Lord to wake up, and then we can leave together. However, the enemy still has over 100 people, and with the addition of others, our side is also very strong. If the two sides fight, defending this iceberg will be quite simple!" Guo Pinming said seriously.
The others shared the same sentiment and were determined to hold their ground.
However, apart from the espers from Yuzhou, the other espers from China felt very unlucky. They thought they had found a towering tree to rely on, but upon arriving, they realized it wasn't a towering tree at all, but an old one that might fall if it couldn't withstand the strong winds. By then, it would be too late to escape.
Unfortunately, it was too late to regret it now. They could only hold on, otherwise, they would definitely be branded as traitors and dealt with.
Chang Haojie thought for a moment, then used his ability. A large area of dense fog was generated nearby. After all, this was the sea, and the moisture in the air was abundant. Now, thick fog had spread out, covering countless areas around them. Beyond five meters, not a single shadow could be seen.
Tom and Andorf in the distance were very confused when they saw this. They couldn't understand what the other party intended. They had already obtained the meteorite, so why weren't they leaving? Did they still want to continue fighting? This was exactly what they wanted.
The two of them huddled together and exchanged a few words before taking out a box from their bodies. They hadn't taken out this box when facing the octopus's attack. This box was made of graphite material and steel alloy to block all electromagnetic wave interference. Now, they opened the box.
The electromagnetic field on the sea had disappeared for some reason. Perhaps it was because the outer stone layer of the meteorite had vanished, making it difficult to maintain the electromagnetic field. In any case, they could now transmit electromagnetic waves to the distance.
After opening the box, there was a button inside. Pressing this button would automatically transmit a message to the distance. People in the distance would then receive the message and take action. Although it was a one-way transmission, it was convenient to carry.
"Since these people haven't left yet, it's our opportunity. Let's quickly go and surround this fog so they can't escape. We must monitor them closely, even from the sky. I will immediately have fleets from various military bases come over!" Tom said.
"It's the same here. The final military forces of European countries are all here. Tens of thousands of troops are waiting at sea. As soon as I press this button, they will rush over from various military bases!" Andorf also said.
The two of them clearly understood that if they were both injured in a fight with the sea beasts, their strength would not be enough to deal with Shen Feng. Therefore, they had made preparations beforehand, which was to use various high-tech means to attack Shen Feng. The most effective of these were fleets and fighter jets.
When the two of them transmitted the electromagnetic waves, various military bases in the distance received the command. They immediately gathered according to the plan and rushed towards the location where the electromagnetic waves were transmitted, forming a vague encirclement. The gathering of American and European forces even brought along the forces of other countries, as if humanity was united at this moment.
Atlas also made a move, then took out his communicator and issued instructions into it: "Everyone, immediately board ships and head to the depths of the Arctic Ocean. Follow the markers I've left along the way. I've dropped many buoys, so you can catch up. Anyone who has meteorite fragments or anything else in their hands, snatch it all, and kill them!"
Tom and Andorf heard this and said, "You guy, do you still have any backup plans? Why are you so dishonest? You still have trump cards at this time?"
Atlas replied, "There's no other way. The path I'm taking is destined not to be understood by people. So, in recent years, I've been conducting experiments on criminals. But to be precise, I'm just using people as my test subjects. My goal is to cultivate more advanced humans. During this process, many lives will be sacrificed to forge my achievements. Therefore, I will not trust anyone, and no one is willing to trust me."
"But didn't you say you've already cultivated new humans? Then why are you still competing for the meteorite? If you truly aren't after power, then leave now. We won't care what experiments you do. If you want to capture people, go ahead and capture them in South America. There are tens of millions of people there for you to experiment on!" Tom was still playing the game of alliances, seemingly trying to persuade the other party to leave with his eloquence.
"The new humans I've cultivated have indeed appeared. Not only has their brain capacity increased significantly, but their physical fitness also far surpasses that of ordinary humans. Whether it's mental or physical strength, they are a level higher than ordinary humans. However, I forgot to tell you that these people I've cultivated also have a fatal flaw!" Atlas seemed unwilling to hide it any longer and revealed the truth.
"What kind of flaw do they have?" Andorf also asked curiously.
Atlas's ideas were always unique. In his view, only through continuous evolution could humanity ultimately break free from Earth's limitations, travel to other planets, explore the universe, and roam the entire galaxy. Therefore, he hoped humans could perform better. All of this required better physical strength and brains, surpassing biological limitations in all aspects. That's why he captured people for experiments. Although he restrained himself after being threatened by Shen Feng, he still captured criminals for experiments.
"All the new humans I've produced have no emotions, not a single trace of emotion. So, although I can communicate with them normally and give them orders, they all seem like machines. I need to figure out why this is happening, so I need to obtain the information from the meteorite. With the necessary data, I can then adjust my experiments!" Atlas said with a gloomy expression.
Now, he had finally revealed the most truthful situation. It turned out that the reason he participated in the meteorite acquisition plan was not because he coveted the benefits the meteorite brought, but because he hoped to resolve his doubts.
"It will take some time for the fleet to assemble, and those Chinese people on the other side are all hiding in the fog and dare not come out. Should we go and scout the situation?" Tom suddenly changed the subject.
Atlas replied, "All I need now is the information I want, so there is no fundamental conflict between us. We can cooperate, why must you exclude me?"
Tom looked at Andorf, and Andorf nodded. Then he said, "Then I hope we have a pleasant cooperation. This is always our territory in Europe. If we add the new humans you've created, our strength will have an overwhelming advantage. We can use advanced technology to force Shen Feng to cooperate with us. We absolutely cannot let him launch the meteorite into space!"
"Just now, I saw something unusual. Shen Feng is standing motionlessly by the meteorite. I suspect he is currently acquiring information. We cannot just sit and wait now. If he acquires the information and then destroys the meteorite, we won't be able to get any useful knowledge! I suggest we act quickly!" Atlas said.
"What you said makes a lot of sense. Shen Feng is definitely capable of doing such a thing. If he takes away the only copy of the data and destroys the machinery inside the meteorite, then we've come all this way for nothing. We absolutely cannot let him complete his plan smoothly. Everyone, listen to my orders, surround this mountain from several directions, and attack at all costs!" Tom, after being reminded, realized that he couldn't give the opponent any breathing room. He had to pursue them and force them to hand over the meteorite quickly.
Thus, the European and American espers took the lead, followed by espers from other factions. They launched attacks towards the fog-shrouded mountain from different directions in rubber boats.
The battle began in the fog. As soon as people met, they would launch the most vicious attacks to kill each other. The two sides were still clearly distinguishable because the facial features of Asians and Europeans are different. One could tell if someone was their own by their appearance.
Shayaka, with Shen Bowen, hid to the side, not rushing to attack. This was because with two tigers fighting, they were at best foxes and no match for them. Rushing forward would surely make them sacrifices. It was better to hide to the side and observe the situation.
Tom was worried that Shen Feng would make a move, but Shen Feng had not shown himself, which made him even more suspicious that Shen Feng was transferring the information stored in the meteorite.
Therefore, Tom had a sudden inspiration and began to attack Shen Feng's mind. "Mr. Shen, please consider carefully. If you destroy the meteorite or launch it into space, you will be an enemy of all humanity. I know you have a large population and a powerful force, but you will be subjected to all sorts of attacks. I can tell you that if you dare to launch a rocket, the missile bases deployed in South Korea will definitely launch intercontinental missiles to shoot down the rocket. Your plan will also fail!"
What he said now was not wrong, because he had indeed done so. Originally, the villains from North America had used various islands to surround the Chinese region, forming the so-called "first island chain." Originally, the island nations were also supposed to deploy missiles, but later, due to the simultaneous eruption of Mount Fuji and Sakurajima volcano, many nearby areas became desolate. Therefore, the missile deployment location was moved to South Korea.
"If we continue fighting, we will only intensify the internal strife among humans. More than a dozen of your disciples have already died. If you continue to be stubborn, all your subordinates will be in danger. Please think carefully about this matter!" Tom continued to speak.
Battles between espers were extremely dangerous because a single mistake could lead to someone being killed. Humans had many weaknesses, whether it was the brain, heart, or other important arteries. If any of these were injured, they would die within a few minutes, even espers were no exception. Therefore, more than 20 people had been killed since the battle began, with casualties on both sides.
Yu Renshu, deep in the fog, saw this and felt heartbroken. These children were the same age as her daughter, yet they were now fighting on the battlefield, risking their lives at any moment. Although they all looked as if they were ready to die, the thought of them being so lively just moments ago made her feel uneasy.
"Shen Feng, wake up quickly! The situation is already very dangerous. These children are sacrificing their lives to protect you!" Yu Renshu murmured, looking towards the mountainside.