349: Chapter 341 (Anti-theft Chapter) (The main text will be updated in a few hours; the previous chapters have already been changed.)

On the empty lunar surface, craters of various sizes were scattered haphazardly.

The xuan niao ship was parked by a certain crater. The three astronauts, having just finished their work, stepped through the hatch and returned to the cockpit to remove their spacesuits and rest for a moment.

Through the side wall that had turned transparent, they watched Immortal Xu, who looked as if he were on an outing, holding up his Mobile Phone and walking across the soft lunar surface to take photos.

"Even though the facts are right before my eyes, I still feel a bit... uh..." The captain seemed at a loss for words to describe his feelings, hesitating for a long time without finishing his sentence.

"A bit mind-blowing." The young female team member next to him often went online and was quite familiar with modern internet slang, so she helped him out.

"Hmm... I don't quite understand that, but it feels quite appropriate." The captain scratched the back of his head.

Another male team member spoke of official business: "Everything has been moved. According to the plan, the captain and I will start building the lunar base in an hour, while Xiao Sun pilots the xuan niao ship back to Blue Star to transport the next batch of supplies and personnel."

The carrying capacity of the xuan niao ship far exceeded that of the most advanced rockets from any country. However, the materials needed to establish an extraterrestrial base were no small amount; even for the xuan niao ship, it would take several round trips to finish the transport.

Plus the subsequent construction workers, researchers, and so on, the xuan niao ship was responsible for bringing them all to the moon.

Fortunately, there had been a major breakthrough in the technology of the xuan niao ship. Even those with average physical constitutions didn't need to train in advance to adapt; they could simply board the ship.

"By the way, I heard from Director Li that Immortal Xu will be returning to the Mountain Gate soon. Is someone else protecting the base?"

Blue Star's current aerospace technology was not sufficient to build a safe base on another planet.

There were many unexpected situations, such as moonquakes. Encountering an earthquake on the moon, where there was a lack of manpower and resources, would inevitably lead to the destruction of the base and the death of its inhabitants.

There were also meteorites everywhere in the universe.

Earth was rarely hit directly by meteorites, not because of good luck, but because the moon was there to guard it.

Now that they were on the moon, there was no longer a guardian deity to block the meteorites.

Humans had not mastered weapons to effectively defend against meteorites, so theoretically speaking, they currently lacked the ability to colonize other planets.

Fortunately, there was the supernatural.

During the preparation stage for the xuan niao ship's departure, the Director found Zhang Mu and explained the difficulties of establishing a lunar base to mine ore—the lack of means to resist danger.

War was about to break out with Lake, and Zhang Mu was in desperate need of precious metals to mass-produce magic-conducting weapons, so he naturally wouldn't sit idly by.

After some thought, Zhang Mu said it would be easy to handle; he would just send someone to stand guard nearby.

It was certainly not feasible for him to go personally, as he couldn't leave the situation at Lake. At this time, the Puppets he had manufactured before came in handy.

Ordinary Puppets wouldn't do; they weren't equipped with many spells. If they encountered a larger meteorite, they wouldn't be able to shatter it at all.

After thinking it over, Zhang Mu felt that the two high-level Puppets he had made during the Magic School competition should be enough.

At that time, Zhang Mu was playing the role of "Mr. Gao," and the Puppets' appearances were "Dumbledore" and "Immortal Xu."

Originally, Zhang Mu intended to tell the Director that he would provide protection himself. That way, he could just take the "Immortal Xu" Puppet and use it, saving the trouble of changing its appearance.

However, on second thought, staying on the moon every day seemed somewhat inconsistent with Immortal Xu's persona.

"Immortal Xu" was currently the highest person in charge of the Mountain Gate, overseeing all affairs both inside and outside the sect.

He had more than enough to do at home; what would it look like for him to stay outside all day?

So, at the moment the words were about to be spoken, he changed his mind and said, "Senior Nephew Zhou happens to have nothing to do lately; having him there will be enough."

Later, Zhang Mu modified the appearance of a high-level Puppet, planning to bring it out and place it near the base for protection once the three astronauts on the xuan niao ship had established a foothold.

The three of them chatted for a while inside the xuan niao ship. Then the captain and the male team member stepped off the ship and began to build the living quarters, while the female team member piloted the xuan niao ship into the sky to return to Blue Star.

"Alright, let's work hard." The captain watched as the silhouette of the xuan niao ship gradually shrank until it completely disappeared before withdrawing his gaze and giving himself a boost of encouragement.

Turning around, he saw Immortal Xu holding a Mobile Phone in one hand and keeping the other behind his back, so he didn't start working immediately.

Even through the visor, the white-clad back was still clear. His movements were as natural as if he were on Blue Star, occasionally changing angles to take photos.

"Captain, what..." The male team member who walked over looked in the direction of the captain's gaze and also stopped his movements.

Immortal Xu seemed to sense them, and he turned around to walk toward them: "What is the matter?"

"Uh, no, nothing."

"Mhm." Immortal Xu nodded and looked around. "Nephew."

"Uncle." The figure of Senior Brother Zhou slowly emerged from the void nearby. "I will watch over this place; you may rest easy, Uncle."

Immortal Xu didn't say much. He handed the Mobile Phone to him, then soared into the sky, chasing after the xuan niao ship.

After he had flown far away, Senior Brother Zhou turned his head and looked at the two with a smile: "I am right here. If you need anything, just call me."

"Ah? Oh, okay. Thank you, Senior Brother Zhou."

Senior Brother Zhou was no stranger to the two of them.

He had appeared in the video of the encirclement and suppression of the calamity, and the Director had specifically introduced him to them before they set out.

"Let's get to work." With a supernatural being looking after them, the captain didn't have to worry about danger. He led the male team member to open the metal crates, took out the parts inside, and began to assemble them on a relatively flat piece of ground.

This scene was transmitted back to Blue Star without omission through the Mobile Phone held by Senior Brother Zhou. The host and the viewers in the live stream room were all ecstatic.

"Is that really a lunar base? Holy crap?!"

"Can we farm on the moon?"

"I remember... it seems like we can't."

"What a disappointment."

"Disappointed +1."

"I just want to know now if our generation can live to see the day when lunar tourism becomes the norm."

"Then I'd rather hope the Mountain Gate holds more three-day tours of Jinshui Town. There's no difference between that place and the Other World, right?

Go to the moon and go to the Other World compared, the latter seems a bit cooler?"

"Replying to the person above: forget about it. Our country's history experts are lining up; you'd better look forward to the three-day moon tour."

"The moon... going to the moon isn't easy either. The physical constitution of astronauts is top-tier. A normal person's body probably wouldn't even pass the preliminary training."

"I can only hope for a quick technological breakthrough so that an otaku like me has a chance to go to space."

"Going to the sky isn't that hard; the rooftop terrace welcomes you."

The bullet chat drifted further and further off-topic. The host was not affected at all and asked the questions one by one according to the script: "Is the person who took over the Mobile Phone Team Leader Luo's martial uncle?"

The expert smiled and waved his hand: "It's the other way around.

Well... I'm not quite sure if the Mountain Gate's seniority is based on age or strength, but Senior Brother Zhou always calls Group Leader Luo 'Uncle'."

"Why? Is it because..."

"Yes." The expert seemed to guess what she was going to say. "Group Leader Luo is a Personal Disciple of Immortal Xu. Other than that, there's no other possibility."

The host showed a look of realization and then continued to ask: "The xuan niao ship has just started its return journey. When will we go to the moon next time?"

"Soon." The expert said those two words meaningfully and then ended the interview.

...

Launch base.

The Director stood in the lobby on the first floor, arms crossed over his chest, looking down in deep thought.

Yue Ruo and Zhao Qi ran over from the side corridor pulling suitcases: "Director, when are we leaving?"

"Huh?" Awakened from his thoughts, the Director was stunned for a moment. After reacting, he said, "We'll leave as soon as the helicopter arrives."

The first flight of the xuan niao ship had concluded successfully, and with the Mountain Gate providing protection, he didn't need to personally oversee the subsequent second and third flights.

In the morning, the Director gave some instructions to the person in charge sent from Jingdu, and then he prepared to return to the cave base in NH to preside over the construction of the second spaceship.

Hearing that the helicopter would take a while to arrive, Yue Ruo stood her suitcase upright: "They left yesterday?"

Although she didn't mention them by name, the Director understood who she was talking about: "It would be strange if they could stay."

"Hehe, they must have been stunned by the xuan niao ship." Zhao Qi grinned.

Yue Ruo pinched his arm: "Are you stupid? The technology of the xuan niao ship is advanced, but they also have supernatural support; it's not like they can't build one.

They were definitely frightened by Immortal Xu."

"Uh, that's not necessarily the case. They should know Immortal Xu can go into space. I heard Immortal Xu say that magicians can go too. What were they frightened of?"

The Director said: "Immortal Xu flying alongside.

Russia's contact with the supernatural has just begun, so let's set that aside for now. As for the remaining three countries, including us, things look calm on the surface, but in reality, the competition over the path of the supernatural has never stopped.

Now that we have managed to invite Immortal Xu, if America and Ying Country can't invite their own supernatural beings later—whether the supernatural beings are unwilling, or willing but tied up with other things—it means they have fallen behind us.

At least the public will think so."

The two were a bit puzzled, thinking to themselves, Does it matter if we fall behind a bit in this?

Just as they were about to ask, a person walked in from the main door and told them the helicopter had arrived. They could only interrupt their conversation and go to the airport to board together.

The facts were just as the Director had speculated.

After NW returned to her country, she spent all day worrying about how to speak to Dumbledore.

If she didn't mention it, her own spaceship hadn't even flown yet, and her momentum was already inferior to others. If she did mention it, she was worried about being rejected or even causing Dumbledore's resentment.

What? Asking me to protect your spaceship? Do you think I'm your subordinate?

In her inner trepidation, the Queen agonized for a whole day before finally deciding to try mentioning it to Dumbledore for the sake of the Kingdom.

Dumbledore's reply soon came from the Owl's mouth, and the result was quite good.

The old man agreed, but he had important matters to deal with recently and wouldn't be able to find time for at least a year.

The Queen breathed a heavy sigh of relief.

To not be inferior to others, one year was acceptable. Moreover, the completion date of the spaceship was still more than half a year away, so the actual waiting time would only be about three months.

With this matter resolved, NW's gloomy mood immediately brightened, and she went to enjoy her afternoon tea while humming a little tune.

On the other side, Neo was having a hard time.

He like NW, wavered for a long time between speaking and not speaking, and finally decided to tentatively bring it up.

It was just that the results the two of them got were not quite the same.

Mr. Gao did not refuse outright but instead said, "Finish the school first; as for other things, we'll talk about them when the time comes."

Neo couldn't figure out what this "when the time comes" referred to.

The day the spaceship was completed?

Unable to figure it out alone, Neo simply gathered his allies to analyze it together.

After sitting in the conference room for two full days, they reached a relatively reliable conclusion—Mr. Gao felt they were too greedy.

Currently, Mr. Gao had only given them two tasks.

One, build a school. Two, build a spaceship. The nuclear bomb also counted as one, but that was a transaction where both sides benefited.

Of these two tasks, not even one was finished yet, and they were already mentioning this and that all day long; no wonder Mr. Gao's attitude was ambiguous.

He had made his warning very clear: if they continued to push their luck, he would probably change to another country to support.

America was indeed a technological powerhouse, but Neo didn't feel at all that this slight advantage was enough for Transcendent Valley to spare them a glance.

Based on the Solar Storm Mr. Gao had unleashed when repelling the calamity at the seaside, even two Americas wouldn't be enough for him to destroy.

After some discussion, the group decided not to disturb Mr. Gao until the two tasks were perfectly resolved.

For now, everything else was set aside to focus on building the school and constructing the spaceship. If they performed excellently, would they still need to worry about Mr. Gao being angry?

So everyone quickly got up, split into two groups, got into cars, and went their separate ways.

Zhang Mu didn't see this scene. If he had, he would probably have been quite speechless.

His ambiguity wasn't because of those messy reasons; it was simply because the completion date of the American spaceship was unknown, and he wasn't sure if he would be free then.

Of course, Zhang Mu didn't have time to deal with them at the moment.

After escorting the xuan niao ship back to Blue Star, he turned and entered "The World," taking a trip to Geoffrey's laboratory to check the research progress on magic-conducting weapons.

Geoffrey was working very diligently. Not only had he perfected the magic guidance sniper rifle and the gun array, but he had also started the development of magic-conducting heavy weapons.

The so-called magic-conducting heavy weapons were actually mortars, howitzers, and the like with modified internal structures.

The results were good. Testing samples had already been made, and after further improvements based on the collected data, they could be manufactured in large quantities.

After listening to the report, Zhang Mu was prepared to take a look at the arsenal, but he was grabbed by the arm by a very excited Geoffrey.

"What are you doing?" Slapping his hand away, Zhang Mu asked in confusion.

"That... tank, can you give me one?"

"What do you want that thing for? To convert it into a magic-conducting series? You have a mountain of things on your hands already."

"It doesn't matter, I'll just sleep a few hours less every day!"

Zhang Mu's mouth twitched: "I heard from your subordinates that you only sleep three hours a day now?"

"What's wrong with that?"

"What's wrong? I'm afraid you'll drop dead."

Geoffrey was a Professional, but his level was not high, only Trainee, and a very subpar Trainee at that.

For example, with the Meditation Method, he was very unfamiliar with it himself, and his physical strength and energy recovered very slowly when running it. Strictly speaking, he was only slightly stronger than an ordinary person.

With a body like that staying up late for long periods, Zhang Mu was really worried that he might suddenly pass away one day.

However, Geoffrey didn't seem to care: "Mr. City Lord, do you know? I have a great concept. Explaining it from the beginning is very complicated, so I won't say it. You just need to understand that if you give me a tank, before long, any legion of Professionals below the high level will no longer be an obstacle to your unification of the Saul Continent!"

"I never intended to unify the continent... forget it." Zhang Mu shook his head helplessly. "You want a tank, right? I'll send one over to you tomorrow.

Also, doing research requires a good body. Your level... I still don't expect you to be able to practice on your own initiative."

Zhang Mu thought to himself that he would have to brew some potions to improve his level and physique for him to use.

Meanwhile, he moved to another area of "The World," called out a Portal, and stepped inside.