168: Urban Upgrading and Tremendous Changes

Shen Xiaochuan had just finished with the System upgrade, his hand still resting on the console, fingers hovering near the publish button.

The Main Hall was quiet, the light from the sand table flickering across his face.

He didn't move.

The System had just popped up too many notifications, one after another, almost causing the terminal to freeze. He had quickly clicked confirm, processing six upgrade messages in one go, a light sheen of sweat forming on his forehead.

"Skydome City... four hundred square kilometers," he whispered.

The map had changed. The original boundaries had expanded, the city walls had regenerated, and obsidian was being built automatically. He opened the defense data; the values had increased fivefold, and even simulated lightning strikes only caused sparks to fly upon impact.

He nodded and continued reading.

The farmlands had finished upgrading; crops grew faster, and their quality had improved. In the future, the food produced would not only be enough to satisfy hunger but also provide people with strength. He remembered how some Believers had been so hungry they couldn't walk, and now, that issue was finally resolved.

The trade function was also enabled. He could now exchange resources with other divine domains. He clicked agree, and the System pulled up a new page showing what could be sold. He took a glance but didn't rush to act; this matter would be handed over to a specialist later.

The Awakening Hall had been built, suspended in the air on the east side of the Divine Kingdom, looking like a bronze tower. The description read: It can increase the probability of ordinary people's Awakening. He frowned; he didn't know the effect yet, but having it was better than not having it.

What surprised him most was the next line—newborns would definitely obtain an F-grade talent.

He stared at it for a few seconds.

Previously, whether children were born with talent was purely a matter of luck; many were born as mortals with no future ahead of them. Now, it was different. From this day on, children born in his divine domain would have at least an F-grade talent. Even the worst ones would have a starting point.

This was a huge change.

He took a deep breath and looked down. The last item read "Hidden change: Pending trigger," with no further information. He tried to check, but the System said his authority was insufficient.

"Interesting," he murmured, not dwelling on it further.

At that moment, the communication device rang.

"Lord Shen," Carl's voice came through, slightly distorted by static, "A large group of people has been discovered in the Northern Wasteland. Preliminary assessment suggests they are refugees, numbering about one hundred thousand."

Shen Xiaochuan looked up, and the large screen on the west wall of the Main Hall switched images. On a gray-yellow wasteland, dense clusters of small red dots were slowly moving south. As the camera zoomed in, one could see people carrying bags, old men leaning on canes, and children held in arms.

"Where are they coming from?"

"Mostly Loose Cultivators and civilians who have lost the protection of their divine domains. Some are injured. They have almost no supplies; many are surviving by eating tree bark."

Shen Xiaochuan was silent for two seconds. "Have Qingyan City prepare to receive them. Open the north gate."

"Understood."

"Allocate two hundred thousand units of building materials and fifty thousand units of food to set up temporary shelters first. The Medical Team should arrive in advance; epidemic prevention is the most important thing. The patrol team will conduct a three-level inspection: register identities, measure faith fluctuations, and cross-reference the feature database. Not a single person can be missed."

"Understood. What if someone intentionally hides their faith fluctuations?"

"The System will sound an alarm. Anyone with issues is to be taken to the isolation zone for seventy-two hours of observation. It is better to be slow than to be chaotic."

"Understood."

"Are you doing this to set a precedent?" Carl asked.

"No," Shen Xiaochuan looked at the crowd on the screen. "They came because they believe they can survive here. If we search them and give them food with cold faces the moment we open the door, how would that be any different from those rotten divine domains?"

Carl didn't speak. After a few seconds, he replied: "I'll go handle it right away."

The communication cut off.

Shen Xiaochuan leaned back in his chair and rubbed his forehead. He knew this was no small matter. Feeding and housing one hundred thousand people would be a challenge, and it could easily turn into a mess. But he also knew that if he didn't take them in, these people would either die on the road or be captured and used as cannon fodder.

He would rather bear the burden himself.

Just as he was thinking, the terminal vibrated again.

White Snow Princess sent a communication request.

He connected.

"The talks are over," her voice sounded a bit hoarse. "The other side admitted that the blockade was illegal but refused to pay compensation and refused to cede territory. They only said they would 'consider withdrawing troops.' Their attitude is very tough."

Shen Xiaochuan didn't speak.

"I've done my best," she said. "They insist it was a 'strategic misjudgment' and not intentional, so they shouldn't be held responsible."

"Heh," he chuckled softly. "A strategic misjudgment? Circling a newly built city for over fifty days, neither attacking nor retreating—is this what they call a misjudgment?"

"That's how they've defined it."

"Do you think they will withdraw?"

"It's hard to say. There are internal disagreements, and the pro-war faction still wants to drag it out. But they don't dare to make a move now for fear of triggering a chain reaction."

Shen Xiaochuan nodded. "Okay, I understand."

"What do you plan to do?"

"They don't want to compensate, and they won't admit their mistake." He stood up and walked to the console. "Then I will let everyone see how they 'misjudged' things."

He opened the Blue Star Channel interface, and the global deity activity map appeared. The Huaxia region was a solid golden color, very stable. On the NATO side, several countries were flashing red and yellow, clearly not peaceful.

"I'm going to post an announcement," he said.

"What will the content be?"

"The truth. Accompanied by the construction records of Skydome City over the past fifty-plus days, from the first brick to the current obsidian walls. Let everyone see how this city survived."

White Snow Princess paused. "You want to use public opinion to pressure them?"

"They aren't afraid of fighting, but they are afraid of losing face." He swiped the screen to open the video editing function. "A group of major powers surrounded a novice deity for over fifty days and ended up getting nothing, only to watch them build the first city on Blue Star, brick by brick—tell me, do they look good?"

"But this tactic might not work. Some people don't care about their reputation."

"But their Believers do." He smiled slightly. "Ordinary people don't want to fight wars, nor do they want to die in vain. Once the news spreads, the pressure will rise. I don't believe their deities can suppress public opinion forever."

White Snow Princess was silent for a few seconds. "What do you want me to do?"

He deleted the title and retyped: I am Shen Xiaochuan. This is my city.

Then he dragged the fifty-plus days of construction records into the video frame and added a note: They said I wouldn't survive ten days. Today is the fifty-fourth day.

"Fine. But I must warn you, once you speak out, you will formally step onto the stage. Everyone will be watching you from now on."

"I've already been watched," he glanced at the System panel. "The Galaxy side has already labeled me as a B-grade threat; do they care about a few more eyes?"

She sighed softly. "Then be careful."

The communication cut off.

Shen Xiaochuan stood in place, not moving.

The Main Hall only had the sound of machines running. The light of the sand table was still flickering, the city wall progress bar slowly rising, and the obsidian was being piled up section by section, like a black wall.

He raised his hand and tapped in the air.

"Activate level-two defense mechanism."

A circle of dark red lines lit up on the edge of the sand table, deeper and heavier in color. The energy didn't explode, but all the nodes were ready, like a blade hidden in a scabbard.

Enough.

He walked to the west console; the screen was already prepared. The draft of the announcement was one-third done; the original title was: "Explanation regarding the fifty-day blockade of my Skydome City by certain divine domains."

He deleted the title and retyped:

I am Shen Xiaochuan. This is my city.

Below was a video frame, and he put the construction record into it. The first frame was a broken brick in the ruins, and the last frame was a panoramic view of the now brightly lit main city.

He added a note:

They said I wouldn't survive ten days. Today is the fifty-fourth day.

The countdown for publishing was ready, waiting only for him to press confirm.

He didn't rush to click.

His finger hovered in the air, staring at the screen for a long time.

He knew that once he pressed this, he would no longer be someone hiding in the back, quietly developing. He would become a target, a topic of discussion, a thorn in someone's side.

But he also knew that some things could not be avoided.

The city was built, the people had come, and trust had arrived. He could no longer hide.

It was time to act.

He took a deep breath, and his finger slowly descended.

Outside the Main Hall, the wind blew across the high walls, fluttering the cloth banners on the flagpole. The newly carved characters had not yet been painted, but the large characters [Skydome City · First City of Blue Star] were vaguely visible in the night.

The small line of text below could not be blown away by the wind.

[City Founder: Shen Xiaochuan]

He finally pressed his finger down.

The cursor stopped on the publish button, one inch, half an inch, one millimeter.

In the next second, all of Blue Star would hear his voice.