I can receive unlimited protection; my parents handed me over to the state.

"Ahem!" Lu Yuan coughed twice to interrupt Zhao Qingxuan as he spoke more and more outrageously, and waved his hand, saying, "Alright, I know. I'll just stay in the villa."

Are you kidding me? He's practically a national treasure in all of China now. If he were to wander around aimlessly and get targeted by some unscrupulous enemy, things would get really messed up. It's much better for him to stay safely in this S-0 villa and be a happy, lazy couch potato.

"By the way," Lu Yuan seemed to remember something and asked, "What about Gu Tianye and the others? And how are those three newcomers doing?"

"During your three-day rest, Dean Qian has arranged everything perfectly for them." Zhao Qingxuan's face revealed a gloating smile. "Dean Qian, under the pretext of 'consolidating combat results and stimulating their potential limits,' has devised a month-long 'devil training plan' for them. Right now, they're probably being chased all over the world by thousands of star beasts in some unknown high-risk instance."

"Pfft..." Lu Yuan couldn't help but laugh when he heard this. He could totally imagine the comical scene of Gu Tianye and Xiang Batian crying and begging for kills while fighting each other.

"As for those three newcomers," Zhao Qingxuan continued, "after witnessing your 'miracle' in the Northern Territory, their attitude has completely changed."

"Mr. Liu Wuhen now locks himself in the 'Wanfa Pavilion' every day, and apart from eating and sleeping, he frantically studies various spatial theories. It is said that his 30,000-word reflections have reached their fifth edition, but he is still not satisfied and is preparing to scrap them and start over."

"Miss Chilian has completely taken on that pile of 'Yin Phosphorus Wood.' She even took the initiative to apply to the research institute for a small 'constant temperature barrier,' locking herself and the pile of charcoal together, saying that she wouldn't come out until she could light the wood."

"And that sorcerer..." Zhao Qingxuan said, a strange expression on his face, "In the three days you've been resting, he's taken over the entire kitchen of Villa S-0. Every day he's been researching all sorts of 'dark cuisine' that you mentioned to him before, and now the whole villa area is filled with an indescribable, eerie aroma."

"The day before yesterday, he even brought me a bowl of 'perfect tonic soup' that was supposedly made from 'the nerves of a centipede' and 'the tentacles of a highly venomous jellyfish,' insisting that I try it." Zhao Qingxuan's face turned a little green as he said this. "After I tested the poison on myself, I lay in the medical tank for a whole day."

Lu Yuan listened to Zhao Qingxuan's tearful accusations, feeling both amused and exasperated. This witch doctor was truly a man of action, but it was for the best; the three newcomers had finally found their goals and were now fully integrated into the team.

"Oh, right, Mr. Lu," Zhao Qingxuan said, as if remembering something, "there's one more thing. Just before you woke up, General Su specially sent you something from the Northern Border. He said it was your 'spoils of war'."

"Spoils of war?" Lu Yuan asked curiously.

With a wave of his hand, Zhao Qingxuan conjured a transparent container made of top-tier spatial stabilization technology in the center of the living room. Inside, a palm-sized, purplish-black membrane floated silently. The membrane looked unremarkable, but Lu Yuan's pupils constricted sharply the moment he saw it!

Because from that thin membrane, he sensed an aura of abyss that was both incredibly familiar and incredibly pure—that was the very core of the Abyssal Moss, the only "seed" left behind by the terrifying being who called himself "Gaia" after being severely injured by the God-Slaying Fire!

"Elder Su said that Instructor Tang Long and Instructor Yan Ji found this in the deepest part of the fungal carpet ruins while cleaning up the battlefield," Zhao Qingxuan explained. "The research institute's preliminary analysis suggests that this thing possesses almost unlimited evolutionary and devouring abilities, making it the most dangerous and most valuable abyssal creation known. They originally wanted to destroy it completely, but Elder Su overruled everyone's objections and insisted on keeping it for you."

"Old Master Su said..." Zhao Qingxuan looked at Lu Yuan, his eyes filled with admiration, "Only in your hands can this most dangerous 'poison' be transformed into the most powerful 'weapon'."

Lu Yuan stared silently at the quiet, purplish-black film within the container. He knew that Su Lie was presenting him with a difficult problem, but also with an immense opportunity! If he could successfully analyze and control the core essence of this [Abyssal Moss], he might be able to create a living artifact with true "life" and "evolution" capabilities, its value even surpassing that of [Asura]! However, the risks were equally enormous. A slight misstep could result in him being devoured and assimilated by this thing, becoming a new "Abyssal Spokesperson."

"I understand." Finally, Lu Yuan took a deep breath, his eyes becoming incredibly firm. "Please thank Grandpa Su for me. I really like this 'gift'."

He decided to accept the challenge. However, just as he was preparing to study the "moss seed" carefully, the highest-level terminal on his wrist, belonging to the "Divine Craftsman," suddenly began to vibrate wildly, and at the same time, the entire Zenith World sounded the highest-level red alert!

【warn!warn!warn! 】

[Large-scale unknown spatial fluctuations detected along the East China Sea defense line!]

[Preliminary assessment indicates this is a massive dimensional intrusion incident!]

[Invading race, judgment made—]

Atlantis!

Atlantis!

When those five words were clearly transmitted to Lu Yuan's ears through the piercing red alarm, he was completely stunned. Atlantis? Wasn't that the prehistoric super-civilization that sank to the bottom of the sea in the legends of his previous life? How could it be here? And as an "invader" no less?

"Mr. Lu, something's happened!" Zhao Qingxuan's expression also became extremely solemn. He quickly operated the tactical tablet, and soon, a huge real-time monitoring screen of the East China Sea defense line was projected into the living room.

On the boundless azure sea, a colossal, deep blue vortex, over a hundred kilometers in diameter, spun wildly, its center seemingly connected to another unknown world. Streams of ancient, vast, and powerful water elemental energy surged forth from the vortex, dyeing the surrounding sea a deep sapphire blue. Around the vortex, dozens of interstellar fleets from the East China Sea Naval Region were already on high alert, countless energy cannons aimed at the massive, deep blue vortex—the atmosphere was tense to the extreme!

"This...this is..." Lu Yuan was speechless as he looked at the shocking scene before him, which was comparable to a Hollywood sci-fi blockbuster.

"Just five minutes ago," Zhao Qingxuan said in a deep voice, pointing to the huge vortex on the screen, "the space monitoring station on the East China Sea defense line suddenly detected violent and abnormal fluctuations in the spatial coordinates of this sea area. Before we could even react, this huge 'dimensional portal' appeared out of thin air. According to the information we analyzed from the dissipated energy aura, the other end of the portal connects to a high-level maritime civilization called 'Atlantis'."

"Atlantis..." Lu Yuan chewed on the name, which was both familiar and unfamiliar, his brows furrowing tightly. He had a feeling that things weren't so simple.

Just then! The huge, deep blue vortex on the screen suddenly reached its maximum spinning speed!

"Buzz—!!"

A dazzling blue beam of light shot into the sky from the center of the vortex! Then, before everyone's eyes, a massive fleet composed of countless strangely shaped, streamlined giant "biological warships" slowly emerged from the blue beam of light!

Those "biological warships" looked like various marine creatures magnified countless times: there were giant killer whale warships the size of mountains, swordfish assault ships as swift as ghosts, and huge turtle transport ships like mobile fortresses... Each warship exuded terrifying energy fluctuations that were no less than those of China's main warships!

As the massive fleet sailed out of the dimensional portal, a flagship, larger and more magnificent than all the other warships combined, slowly appeared before everyone! It was a conch-shaped warship carved from a single, enormous, unidentified blue crystal, its surface shimmering with starlight-like brilliance, exuding a dreamlike beauty.

On the deck of that flagship, a tall figure stood with his hands behind his back, clad in magnificent golden scale armor and wielding a golden trident. He had long, deep blue hair like seaweed, and eyes as bright as sapphires; his features were so handsome they seemed otherworldly. Behind him stood a row of Atlantean generals, also clad in silver scale armor and exuding powerful auras.

"That...that's an Atlantean?" Lu Yuan murmured to himself, staring at the god-like man on the screen. He could clearly feel a terrifying pressure emanating from the man, no less powerful than that of Su Lie and Ling Jing—SSS-level! Yet another terrifying SSS-level being!

"Commander-in-Chief of the East China Sea Fleet, Li Qingcang, is here!" Just then, a figure flew out from the flagship of the Chinese fleet. It was a middle-aged man in a white general's uniform, who looked refined and cultured. He was none other than Li Qingcang, the highest commander of the East China Sea Fleet, codenamed "Sea Dragon King," and an SSS-class Star Envoy!

He stood suspended in mid-air, facing off against the Atlantean commander, his voice like thunder, echoing throughout the sea: "Who goes there? Why do you trespass into my Chinese territorial waters?!"

Faced with Li Qingcang's questioning, the Atlantean commander wielding the trident revealed a contemptuous smile: "I am Odin, the governor of the North Sea Fleet under Poseidon, the king of the seven seas of Atlantis."

His voice, transmitted clearly through a special mental fluctuation, reached everyone's ears, arrogant and filled with unquestionable majesty: "By order of my king, I have come to 'reclaim' what rightfully belongs to us."

"Take it back?" Li Qingcang frowned. "What thing?"

"Control of this world."