Chapter 151: Magic Barrier, Deploy!

Yu Yuangui led Zheng Meng and Qiao Xixin into the luxurious reception parlor.
This parlor required supervisor-level clearance to unlock and was specially designated for entertaining distinguished guests visiting the All-Sea Base.
Mili hurried over upon hearing the news, bringing with her all the documents related to the Ice God Cult, particularly the official paperwork authorizing the cult to preach within the All-Sea Base.
Yu Yuangui glanced over them nonchalantly, grasping the full picture of the situation.
"Let us discuss official business first."
Looking at Zheng Meng and Qiao Xixin, Yu Yuangui said, "You wish to spread the faith of the Ice God within the All-Sea Base, and the base extends a warm welcome. However, there are certain details that need to be ironed out."
Zheng Meng stated, "We are here precisely for this matter. I believe Mili has already informed you of the Ice God Cult's requests."
Yu Yuangui continued, "First, you wish to construct an Ice God Temple within the All-Sea Base—that is acceptable, but building it in the commercial district is not. This concerns the overall urban planning of the All-Sea Base. The plot of land Mili has allocated to you is quite suitable."
"Second, the All-Sea Base does not interfere with anyone's religious beliefs. Consequently, there can and will be only one faith within the All-Sea Base; to this, we cannot agree."
"Third, we welcome any member belonging to the All-Sea Base to participate in the base's affairs—this poses no problem. However, participation does not equate to governance. This is the fundamental principle of the All-Sea Base, unless one day the administrative body of the All-Sea Base is overthrown."
At this mention, a faint smile played on Yu Yuangui's lips.
Zheng Meng opportunely remarked, "Please rest assured, the Ice God Cult will only participate and will not interfere with the administration of the All-Sea Base."
Yu Yuangui replied, "My Lady, I am delighted that you understand my stance. Fourth, the Ice God Cult intends to station a contingent of armed personnel within the All-Sea Base. This is acceptable, but when necessary, these armed forces must submit to the command of the All-Sea Base, and on a daily basis, they are also required to contribute to the construction and development of the All-Sea Base."
"I trust the Ice God Cult can understand that the All-Sea Base has just emerged through an extremely brutal war, and manpower is desperately needed everywhere."
"I believe this will be a win-win cooperation."
Zheng Meng and Qiao Xixin exchanged glances: "No problem."
They felt a lingering sense of shock. Judging by Yu Yuangui's attitude, he seemed to know a great deal about the Ice God Cult.
Conversely, had Zheng Meng not been rescued by Qiao Xixin, she would never have known that such a thing as the Ice God Cult existed in this world.
Furthermore, looking at the All-Sea Base, it was virtually certain that before the Ice God Cult arrived here, the vast majority of people had no inkling of the cult's existence.
Zheng Meng could not help recalling how her father, Zheng Kaicheng, had joined forces with Yu Yuangui to establish the Vulcan Base; even back then, Yu Yuangui had harbored numerous secrets.
As for what Yu Yuangui intended to do by utilizing this armed faction of the Ice God Cult—which aimed to seize control of the entire All-Sea Base—Zheng Meng did not care in the least.
She found herself growing more and more curious.
Zheng Meng asked, "Yu Yuangui, aren't you worried that once they arrive, they will try to usurp control of the entire All-Sea Base?"
Mili, who was busy taking meeting notes, paused her pen. Was Miss Zheng Meng really speaking so bluntly?
Qiao Xixin, who was drinking water, nearly spat it out on the spot.
Is it really fine to just blurt the truth out like that?
Yu Yuangui replied, "I made full preparations for this possibility the moment I gave my consent. My Lady, you are welcome to let the Ice God Cult give it a try."
Zheng Meng said, "Very well, let us move on to other matters."
During the time that followed, Yu Yuangui brought up many other detailed clauses.
Zheng Meng and Qiao Xixin raised no objections, and the negotiations between the two parties drew to a close in a highly cordial atmosphere.
"The final point, and also the most crucial one: regardless of whatever plans you harbor—even if you are plotting to take over the All-Sea Base—under no circumstances is that Witch to be involved in your plans. On this matter, there is no room for negotiation whatsoever."
Yu Yuangui stood up, pressed both hands on the table, and stared directly into Zheng Meng's eyes. "Zheng Meng, I believe you have already witnessed the terror of that Witch. I have no wish to witness the destruction of the All-Sea Base."
At that moment, Zheng Meng felt an unprecedented wave of pressure.
She remained silent.
Qiao Xixin spoke up, "Rest assured, our plans will never involve that Witch."
How could they dare involve her? They had only glanced at her from afar, and had nearly lost their lives.
Unless...
Zheng Meng said, "No problem. Should she truly become involved, it will not be the All-Sea Base that suffers, but the headquarters of the Ice God Cult."
Wasn't this still involving her, for heaven's sake?
And to drag her directly into the Ice God Cult's headquarters, no less—Qiao Xixin felt his scalp go numb.
Yu Yuangui said, "Very well, official business concluded, My Lady. Now let us speak of personal matters."
Zheng Meng remarked, "The Vulcan Base was destroyed long ago, Yu Yuangui. If you consider me a friend, just call me by my name."
Yu Yuangui replied, "No, I find calling you My Lady rolls off the tongue much more easily."
Zheng Meng smiled. "As you wish."
Yu Yuangui continued, "My Lady, you and Qiao Xixin came to the All-Sea Base ostensibly to plot against it, but in reality, you came to seek refuge, did you not?"
Zheng Meng answered, "Yes. Qiao Xixin saved me when I was nearly frozen to death and made me a priest of the Ice God Cult. Now, many within the Ice God Cult want him dead, so I suggested he come to the All-Sea Base."
Qiao Xixin felt completely paralyzed.
My Lady, please have some human decency and stop spilling every single secret!
Yu Yuangui asked, "Is it because he simultaneously awakened both ice and fire abilities?"
Disregarding Qiao Xixin's pleading gaze, Zheng Meng continued, "That is not all, but I cannot disclose the specifics."
Qiao Xixin protested, "Hold on, discussing me like this while completely sidelining me, the party concerned, isn't quite right, is it?"
Zheng Meng asked, "Do you have any objections?"
Qiao Xixin hastily shook his head. "No objections."
Zheng Meng said, "Then that settles it."
Yu Yuangui smiled. "Provide me with a roster of the Ice God Cult's armed personnel when the time comes, and I will help you eliminate everyone on that list."
Zheng Meng said, "Agreed."
Qiao Xixin chimed in, "Let me interrupt for a moment, Supervisor Yu. This Ice God Cult intends to vie for dominance against the Vulcan Cult, yet you are agreeing to this so readily?"
Yu Yuangui smiled faintly. "Three months from now, a scorching heat catastrophe will descend, and even the Ice God will melt. Will you still worship the Ice God then?"
Qiao Xixin's eyes widened. "Extreme heat in three months?"
Zheng Meng asked, "Will this trigger massive floods?"
With a gentle smile, Yu Yuangui replied, "With snow and ice melting in an extremely short period, massive floods are an inevitable consequence."
Observing the reactions of Zheng Meng and Qiao Xixin, Yu Yuangui was rather surprised. Could an Ice God Cult with such grand ambitions truly be unaware of the extreme heat catastrophe, or did they know and deliberately conceal it?
This Ice God Cult was becoming more and more intriguing.
Qiao Xixin muttered thoughtfully, "This might present an opportunity for us. Amidst a disaster of blinding snow and bitter cold, rather than worshiping the Ice God, we might as well praise the sun."
Zheng Meng was speechless.
She turned to Yu Yuangui and asked, "By the way, regarding the Witch..."
Yu Yuangui's expression turned grave. "I advise you not to attempt to learn any more about her. Now then, I have matters to attend to. I hope the reinforcements from the Ice God Cult arrive as soon as possible."
Zheng Meng nodded. "No problem."
Several days later, the All-Sea Base was decked out in colorful lanterns and festive decorations, preparing for the Spring Festival.
A massive shipment of supplies from the Ice God Cult, escorted by over two hundred followers, was transported in from afar.
Pei Fu watched the incoming Ice God Cult guards and said, "Yu Yuangui, you had better hope you are not inviting wolves into the house."
Yu Yuangui replied, "The All-Sea Base is short on people. When manpower is delivered right to our doorstep, it would be foolish not to take it."
Pei Fu stated, "The Ice God Cult thinks rather highly of us; they have hidden four supervisor-level ability users within this contingent. This clearly shows they either do not trust Zheng Meng and Qiao Xixin at all, or Zheng Meng and Qiao Xixin have been lying to us."
Yu Yuangui smiled lightly. "These are mere trifles. My only concern is that they might go and provoke the Witch."
Pei Fu felt a shudder run through his heart.
Yu Yuangui added, "Furthermore, there are other formidable enemies lingering near the All-Sea Base. I worry they might harbor other intentions once they catch wind of the situation here."
...
"New Year's Eve!"
Gazing at the newly pasted couplets on the front door, Su Miao offered a soft smile.
In the past, she used to watch her grandfather paste them; later, her grandparents watched her paste them; then, she pasted them all by herself; and now, she was still doing it alone.
The myna bird stood at the doorway, looking at Su Miao and the couplets, hopping about in the snow as if in high spirits.
"Your Highness, what are we having for dinner tonight?"
"Wontons."
Su Miao replied.
Before the apocalypse began, she had purchased a large quantity of frozen wontons from the supermarket. They were a bit pricey, but tasted exceptionally good.
On New Year's Eve, she favored wontons.
Returning to the villa, Su Miao retrieved the wontons from her magical space and set about cooking them.
A sprinkle of scallions, a dash of rendered lard cracklings, a touch of MSG, soy sauce, sesame oil, and boiling water to mix the broth. Drop the cooked wontons into the soup—the aroma alone was mouth-watering.
Oh, looking at it made her appetite soar!
"Your Highness, mine, mine!"
The myna bird was filled with eager anticipation.
Su Miao scooped out a bowl of wontons for the bird.
"Dig in!"
That familiar flavor—delicious!
While eating, Su Miao casually opened her laptop, connected it to the generator, and pulled up an anime to watch.
For a moment, time felt as though it had rewound to before the apocalypse.
Huh?
That girl looked a lot like Xia Xiaoan.
Su Miao glanced at a girl on the screen wearing a JK uniform; she bore a striking resemblance to Xia Xiaoan in her JK attire.
Wonder how Xiaoan was doing at this moment? Was she also able to eat wontons?
"Your Highness, are there more wontons?"
The bowl of wontons in front of the myna bird was already licked clean.
What an appetite.
Since it was New Year's Eve, she had cooked a slightly larger batch, and she certainly couldn't finish them all by herself.
Su Miao served the myna bird another bowl.
Oh, had it gotten this dark outside already?
Right!
She still needed to set off fireworks.
Su Miao remembered that along the road here, she had gathered a batch of unexploded fireworks and firecrackers.
Considering that they might be unavailable in the future, Su Miao only took out a single set of two-hundred-shot fireworks, which would be plenty for a fun display.
The fireworks shot into the sky, exploding into brilliant, dazzling blooms.
"So pretty!"
Su Miao stared up at the fireworks in the sky with a starry-eyed gaze, her mood lifting.
This truly felt like celebrating the New Year!
Beholding the gorgeous fireworks, a flash of inspiration struck Su Miao. She raised a hand and cast the magic spell, Starlight Burst.
In an instant, an even larger fireworks display burst forth across the starry firmament, breathtakingly gorgeous.
Watching this firework-like spell, Su Miao fell into deep thought, feeling as though she had comprehended something, yet grasping nothing tangible at all.
Su Miao cast Starlight Burst once more, but this time, it lacked the sensation she had felt moments before.
Indeed, this Starlight Burst spell had hidden depths; it wasn't merely meant for simple entertainment.
She cast it a few more times in succession, but still felt nothing unusual.
Nevertheless, looking at the brilliant display of Starlight Burst, Su Miao gained a completely new insight into defensive magic.
Subconsciously, she extended her hand, and a unique magical barrier unfurled before her.
"I think I've got it!"
Su Miao deployed multiple magic barriers in rapid succession, thrilled.
The essence of this defensive magic was the outward extension of the full-body mana coating. At a certain distance from the body, a brand-new "full-body mana coating" was deployed. Unlike the standard mana coating already in use, this outward-extended "full-body mana coating" required an injection of greater mana, as well as refinement and compression to form a solid magic barrier, ensuring its defensive strength was robust enough.
Su Miao gracefully altered her hand gestures, allowing the magic barrier to deploy at any position around her body, though deploying it behind her back proved slightly awkward.
Should she use the umbrella sword?
Su Miao experimented briefly, but even with the umbrella sword, deploying a magic barrier behind her back remained somewhat unsmooth.
"I think I understand why mages in video games require magic wands, staves, or spellbooks."
Wands and magic swords were exceptional for frontal combat, but executing a prompt backward defense presented certain difficulties.
Spellcasting items like spellbooks imposed exceptionally high demands on the user; those capable of wielding them were bound to be immensely powerful individuals, so she didn't need to consider those for now.
Staves were different. You could bash people with them in close combat, cast spells from afar, and deploy magic barriers behind your back for defense without needing to turn around.
After pondering for a moment, Su Miao retrieved a phoenix tree log from her magical space.
This log came from a mutated giant phoenix tree, and she intended to use its material to craft a magic staff.
After all, using that unmutated "Holy Phoenix Sword" for concocting potions had always felt remarkably smooth; there was no reason a mutated phoenix tree wood wouldn't work.
The myna bird silently fluttered aside, watching with wide-eyed curiosity as Her Highness Su Miao crafted a magic staff.
Whenever Her Highness was deeply focused, it would maintain absolute quiet unless someone disturbed her.
"This section of phoenix tree branch will do nicely."
Su Miao selected a branch, severed it with her umbrella sword, and trimmed away the unwanted twigs and details.
Next, she pulled out materials for carving magic arrays from her magical space, including mithril, platinum-silver, and pure silver.
Channeling mana into the phoenix tree branch, she sensed its internal structure to determine the foundational magic array best suited for it.
"First, the foundational magic circuitry, followed by storage, convergence, compression, amplification, acceleration..."
"These pieces of mithril should suffice."
Su Miao returned to the villa, placed paper before the fireplace, and began designing the required magic circuitry.
Because the materials like mithril and platinum-silver in her magical space were scarce—every bit used was a bit less, and finding more in the future was an uncertain prospect—she wanted to succeed in crafting the staff on her very first attempt.
After three hours of design work, Su Miao brought out her *Pharmacology* textbook and cross-referenced it multiple times. Convinced there were no errors, she conjured a small fireball to melt down all the materials—mithril, platinum-silver, and silver—into liquid form.
Using her mana to control the high-temperature molten solution, Su Miao began carving the magic array onto the phoenix tree branch.
Throughout the entire process, Su Miao also had to continuously channel mana into the branch to ensure it wouldn't be damaged during fabrication.
Finally, after two more hours of painstaking effort, the carving was complete.
Su Miao gripped the 166-centimeter-long staff, channeled her mana into it, and the magic barrier fully expanded!
"Success!"