I Can Control Resources

...

It was only after Gao Neng and Fang Tangtang officially began their dual cultivation that he discovered she was different from before.

The first difference was her Spiritual Power.

It was as if some force was pulling on Fang Tangtang’s Spiritual Power, causing it to grow at an incredible rate. This hadn’t been the case before they entered the Underground City.

The second was that Fang Tangtang’s body seemed to contain some kind of energy.

’It feels a bit familiar!’

Just like the energy from a magnetic pile.

But in reality, Gao Neng vaguely recalled that Fang Tangtang hadn’t come into contact with any magnetic piles recently. It was truly unbelievable.

’Could it be? Did Fang Tangtang get "evolved" during her battle with the Dark Ghost Vine?’

’How strange!’

Gao Neng couldn’t be sure, but it was the only explanation he could think of. After all, whenever he asked her about it, Fang Tangtang would just say, "I, Death God Fang Tangtang, am a natural-born genius."

"..."

He couldn’t get a straight answer out of her.

So, Gao Neng didn’t press the issue. It was just like how Qin Lei didn’t question him about his Alchemy methods. Everyone has their own little secrets.

A night of cultivation passed.

Fang Tangtang’s progress was almost visible to the naked eye.

Gao Neng estimated that in three or four days at most, Fang Tangtang might break through to the next level. Compared to her previous cultivation speed, it was like she was a completely different person.

However, Fang Tangtang’s rapid cultivation speed wasn’t a bad thing for Gao Neng.

Time flew by.

Three days later, the Celestial King Group officially began selling medicinal pills to the public.

Meanwhile, Wu Qingjing had expanded Gao Neng’s research laboratory in the Underground City again, as some Alchemists from other sects and prominent families had chosen to stay behind.

Research into Pill Formulas began to advance at a rapid pace.

Additionally, these Alchemists were also responsible for guiding Shaximo, Wei Ya, and others in preparing the ingredients for Gao Neng’s pills.

As for Gao Neng, all he had to do was fire up the cauldron, perform Alchemy, fire it up again, and perform more Alchemy.

A batch of low- and mid-tier pills could be completed in about five hours, while high-tier and top-grade ones took anywhere from ten to twenty-four hours.

The efficiency was astounding!

In just three days, Gao Neng had already used up half of the three thousand high-tier ingredients.

Of course, during these three days, personnel from the Military Department had already moved into the wilderness zones outside the Underground City and begun formal harvesting operations.

「The fourth day.」

Fang Tangtang broke through.

And Gao Neng met a legendary figure.

The Commander-in-Chief of the Military Department, Qin Jianfei.

Gao Neng’s first impression of Qin Jianfei was that he was "resolute" and "tough," and he carried a very sharp aura about him.

Their meeting was not a private one.

Qin Jianfei brought a Military Department medal and a new set of rank insignias.

"Congratulations, Major Gao!"

"Thank you, Commander-in-Chief!"

That was the extent of their conversation.

They had no further interaction, but it was clear that Qin Jianfei had come this time solely to bestow Gao Neng’s new rank upon him.

Because after the ceremony, Qin Jianfei left.

Li Tiannan’s explanation was...

The pressure on the surface was growing greater and greater.

As for how great it was, Li Tiannan didn’t elaborate.

「The fifth day.」

Gao Neng received a formal appointment from the Federation Government.

He was officially appointed Chairman of the Elixir Medicine Federation and a member of the Supreme Council. The order was delivered directly into Gao Neng’s hands by Wu Qingjing.

Gao Neng didn’t have much of a reaction to this.

It wasn’t because Chairman Sheng had lost to him. Rather, it was because a day earlier, the West Alliance Yi Family, along with several other prominent families and sects, had officially announced they would be entering a strategic partnership with the Celestial King Group.

Gao Neng guessed that Yi Qinglian’s mother, Luna, might have had a hand in it. But in reality, it was more likely due to the tacit approval of Qin Lei and Fairy Liu.

His entry into the Supreme Council and gaining eligibility to run for Speaker went very smoothly.

The Alchemy process also proceeded without any other incidents.

Logically, Gao Neng should have been happy. However, the successive departures of Li Tiannan, Sword Elder, and others gave him a nagging feeling that something major was about to happen in the City of Hope.

「The sixth day.」

Wu Qingjing found Gao Neng and told him he was leaving the Underground City.

Gao Neng naturally had no standing to stop him, but this only made him feel the external pressure even more acutely.

’Winter has officially arrived! The Underground City is getting colder and colder!’ He watched Wu Qingjing leave, carefully clutching the USB drive Wu Qingjing had pressed into his hand.

Everyone was desperately cultivating and improving.

Six days had passed, and more and more people had left the Underground City, such as Shaximo, Wei Ya, and Zhou Jin.

Once the Celestial King Group started officially selling pills, Shaximo, Wei Ya, and the others naturally went all out, snapping up a large number of the low-priced pills at once.

Thus, leaving the Underground City to seek a breakthrough was the next thing they needed to do.

Gao Neng did not leave.

Because he still had one more thing to finish.

So, he walked back into the research lab. However, he didn’t go to the pill research center, but instead headed straight for the genetic weapons research center led by Dr. Lan.

"I might need to stay here for a month," Gao Neng said, looking at Dr. Lan.

"A month? Last time you only stayed for half a month." Dr. Lan was a little surprised, but her eyes lit up when she saw the USB drive Gao Neng handed her. "Alright, I understand. I’ll make the arrangements. But will this cause any delays with the pills?"

"It won’t. One day a week will be enough."

"Okay. One more question. If you’re always in the research lab, will it affect your cultivation progress?" Dr. Lan asked.

"It won’t affect it..." Gao Neng smiled.

His cultivation didn’t require any deliberate effort.

Besides, Fang Tangtang now ran over every night to pester him into dual cultivation. Adding the half of the ’Golden Tree Heart’ that Gao Xiaomeng had fed into his body, if one were to talk about cultivation progress, his was currently the fastest.

"That’s good, then." Dr. Lan nodded, then glanced out the window. "Actually, you really don’t need to participate in the election for Speaker. It’s too much of a waste of time and energy."

"With the Celestial King Group pushing things for me, it’s actually not so bad," Gao Neng said as he walked toward the lab bench.

"I hope so. But you’re a council member now. You’ll have to attend the meetings held by the Supreme Council sometimes, right?"

"Teacher Wu said they’ll only call me for extremely important meetings."

"I see. Then let’s officially begin."

"Alright!"

...

「Time: One month later.」

In the Supreme Council conference room at the Federation Government Building.

"The evacuation of the North District’s population has begun. About 80% of the civilians have been transferred so far, but nearly twenty million people still remain in the North District," a voice reported.

"Twenty million? How much longer can the North District City Gate hold out?"

"Three days at most."

"The Alien Race Alliance Army attacking the North District also includes forces from the Eastern, Southern, and Western Districts. It seems they’re determined to break through in the North District this time. All we can do now is shrink our defensive perimeter and temporarily abandon the North District region!" a council member stood up and declared.

"What do we do about the twenty million civilians?" another council member asked.

"There’s nothing we can do! The North District can’t be held. If we don’t pull our troops back, once the North District’s forces are depleted, we’ll be facing a real crisis!"

"Can’t the other war zones spare any troops at all?"

"The most important thing right now isn’t troops, but high-tiers... The Military Department’s high-tier experts. Although their numbers have grown rapidly recently, the harvesting of materials near the Underground City is also consuming them. Some harvesting areas can only be accessed by high-tiers. Therefore, we have to make a choice this time."

"Abandoning twenty million civilians is something no one wants to see. But now, with the supply of pills from the Celestial King Group, the bottleneck from mid-tier to high-tier has become much easier to overcome... We just need a little time. As long as we can buy a little more time, we might not lose this war!"

"Shrinking the battlefield and temporarily abandoning the North District is the only path we can take now."

"Let’s put it to a vote."

"I approve!"

"I approve!"

"I object!"

"Approve."

"..."

Soon, the results of the vote were in.

The motion passed with seventy-five percent approval.

"Since the majority approves of shrinking the battlefield and temporarily abandoning the North District, then..." Wu Qingjing gritted his teeth and rose from his seat.

"Wait a moment!" Just then, the doors to the council chamber were pushed open.

A man in a black military uniform walked in. On his shoulder was a brand-new general’s star, clearly indicating a recent promotion.

His gaze swept over the council members and the Speaker.

"Shen Fei, Major General and Commander of the Military Department’s Second Corps, reporting to Speaker Wu and the esteemed council members!" As the man spoke, he gave a standard military salute.

"Commander Shen, what brings you here?" Wu Qingjing asked, looking at Shen Fei.

He, of course, knew who this was.

He was a true son of a great general.

Six months ago, Shen Fei was merely a division commander. But in that short span of time, he had already been promoted to the position of Commander of the Second Corps—and it was an active command, not just a title.

This was naturally related to his father, Vice Commander Shen Changsheng of the Eastern District Battlefield. However, what truly earned Shen Fei his promotion were his own military achievements.

"By order of Vice Commander Shen, I am here to take charge of the civilian evacuation in the North District," Shen Fei answered directly.

"Take charge of the evacuation? But didn’t the war zones report they couldn’t spare any troops?" Wu Qingjing was momentarily stunned by Shen Fei’s response.

"That is correct. Which is why I only brought a single regiment with me," Shen Fei nodded.

"A regiment? Two thousand men?!" Wu Qingjing froze for a second before it dawned on him. "No, that’s absolutely impossible! To evacuate all twenty million civilians, we need at least five days. The garrison in the North District has already suffered heavy casualties and can only hold for three days at most. That leaves two more days, and your single regiment... I cannot approve this. I absolutely cannot! Commander Shen, please return!"

"I’m sorry, Speaker Wu, but I am here today under orders. Furthermore, this order was issued personally by Vice Commander Shen. I cannot disobey it! I ask for your permission, Speaker Wu!" Shen Fei’s expression was calm, but his tone was firm and resolute.