Reverse flow of the Yellow Springs

In fact, Li Yelai could have chosen an easier method to complete this challenge.

Their goal was to bring back valuable items, and the best choice would be forbidden items.

Secondly, there are the powerful technological creations from those mysterious warships.

These are all ways for Li Yelai and Jing Lin to complete the challenge and gain access to the fourth ring.

Zhao Gang himself possessed forbidden items and was willing to provide them to the two of them.

The fleet carried three forbidden items with it when it set sail.

Although two items were lost later.

However, a pocket watch that could regulate the target's emotions was still retained. Its purpose was to ensure the soldiers' mental health, but it could not resist corruption.

During their exploration of the Dead Sea wrecked ships, the survivors also found several forbidden items.

An ice coffin, capable of freezing the entire ship's hold, was placed deep within the ship to preserve the remains of the soldiers.

A stone hammer that can repair non-precision items. With every ten strikes, the first nine strikes will gradually repair the struck area.

The price to pay is that the tenth strike will unleash considerable damage.

If not handled properly, it could completely ruin what was originally intended to be repaired.

The survivors used this stone hammer to repair the warship.

Therefore, the warship was well preserved, with no visible shell craters, but the control console could not be repaired.

Zhao Gang intended to give the emotional pocket watch and the repair stone hammer to the two of them.

This allows the two to easily complete the challenge, with the sole purpose of relaying the information back to the giant city.

This was his only request.

He knew very well that the two of them, with their five senses, could not reverse everything; on the contrary, they would only waste their lives in vain.

It would be better to let them leave sooner.
However, Li Yelai did not accept this offer of kindness, but instead gave Zhao Gang an alternative.

"To restore the glory of the border fleet?"

Zhao Gang repeated the sentence, as if he could see the former First Fleet of the border city before his eyes.

What an honor! That was a powerful fleet that even creatures in the forbidden zone feared!
But... but all of that is gone.

Zhao Gang shook his head with a bitter smile: "Now, the border fleet is down to just me, and I'm not even really alive anymore. How can I possibly restore its glory? I... can't represent the fleet."

“Yes, it’s possible.” Li Yelai took out the black jade horn and looked at Zhao Gang seriously.

"If you are willing, I will fight alongside the border fleet against a powerful enemy!"

"I will also witness the unparalleled glory of the border fleet!"

Yes, Li Yelai could easily complete the challenge, take the forbidden item, and leave. All he would need to do is relay a message to the giant city.

He didn't even need to speak; Jing Lin would relay the message for him.

He can complete the challenge with ease.
But he didn't want to do that!

Humanity's heroes are trapped and die here, their once glorious warships have become tombs, and the only remaining captain guards their last shred of dignity.

How could he leave so easily?

He has the power to change all of this, the power to make heroes shine with their glory once again.

If he doesn't do this, his heart will become heavy with resentment, and his thoughts will no longer be clear!

So he made his choice: if the captain agreed, he would fight alongside him and witness that unparalleled glory!

Jing Lin glanced at Li Yelai, and the corners of his mouth under his helmet involuntarily turned up.

'Sure enough, this kid is just my type!'

When Zhao Gang looked at the horn in Li Yelai's hand, a glimmer of light seemed to appear in his lifeless eyes.

"Because of this forbidden item?" Zhao Gang asked, "What miraculous effects does it have?"

“Indeed, this is the Styx Horn!” Li Yelai responded. “As long as the brain is well preserved, it can awaken the dead! Although they will turn to dust after eight hours.”

"So please think it over carefully. You can reunite with your comrades, but eight hours later, their bodies will be gone."

"As long as the brain remains intact, they can wake up? Good! Good!" Zhao Gang's arms trembled as he tried to prevent his comrades' bodies from being desecrated. They were all frozen in the chamber. Their brains were neither decayed nor missing—they met the criteria!
Zhao Gang calmly continued, "Such powerful abilities, what is the price?"

“The user will have the urge to piece together their body, and eventually, their reason will be torn apart, turning them into a monster filled with countless corpses!” Li Yelai responded.

"Become a monster that threatens the world? Hahaha." Zhao Gang laughed, "So be it, I'm already like this. I'll take the blame! Even if it means becoming a monster."

"No, I'll bear the consequences! We can't trouble you with something like this, senior," Li Yelai replied with a smile.

“Young man, don’t gamble with your life!” Zhao Gang said seriously. “The cost of reviving them will naturally be borne by the fleet. You are too young, and it is far too late for you to pay the price.”

Li Yelai shook his head: "Please don't misunderstand, senior. I have the Philosopher's Stone, which can offset these costs."

As for you, whether you succeed or not, I hope you can live on.

You represent the Frontier Fleet, and as long as you exist, the Frontier Fleet will not perish.

One day, humans will set foot on this land!
One day, the border fleet will announce its return to the world!

After a few seconds of silence, Zhao Gang laughed and said, "It's really strange. You could have just taken the forbidden item and left, but you chose to drag yourselves into danger."

"Perhaps it's because they're unwilling to accept it," Li Yelai replied.

“I am indeed unwilling to accept this,” Zhao Gang smiled. “Then… I ask you all to be my witnesses.”

"The glory of the First Fleet!"

"I'm looking forward to it!" Li Yelai responded, and then, no longer concealing his spiritual energy, he fully activated the Styx Horn!
At that moment, a mighty horn sounded from the warships, and the sound traveled further and further, echoing through the wrecked ships of the Dead Sea.

Hundreds and thousands of flesh-and-blood mutants were alerted at the same time, and their bloodthirsty and cruel gazes were cast toward the Yan Yun warship!
They were surprised, they were delighted, they let out sharp roars, waking up more of their kind.

Even the terrifying monsters more than ten kilometers away were alarmed.

The hunt has begun!

A massive number of flesh-and-blood mutants went into action, roaring as they surged toward the warship like a tsunami!
Within the silent, derelict ship of the Dead Sea, any sound or psionic fluctuation could alert the flesh-and-blood aberration.

But at this moment, the vast horn and intense psionic fluctuations appeared without any concealment.

This is simply courting death!

But the bugle call never stopped; it continued to echo, like a war song, carrying further and further away!
The echoes reverberate above the lonely graves, in the quiet cabins, and on countless silent ships.

The echoes reverberate in the ears of the eternally sleeping hero!

At that moment, hundreds of eyes opened in the darkness.

At that moment, terrifying psychic energy surged within the wrecked ship in the Dead Sea.

At that moment, the Iron Guards' power armor roared to life once again!

At that moment, the heroes of the First Fleet awoke from their eternal slumber!
Go to Quantai to recruit old troops, and kill Yama with a hundred thousand banners!
They looked at each other in confusion. They were clearly dead, so why were they here?
"I'm alive? Holy crap, you're alive too!"

"I see. So you failed to escape from here?"

"The bugle. It is this bugle that is waking us up."

"Has the giant city found us?"

Who brought us here?

"It's Xiao Zhao, he's the last one."

"When I died, his body had already begun to contort."

"He's really worked hard, going from a trainee political commissar to a ship captain."

But soon, all the confusion turned into fighting spirit.

Because the mighty bugle call disappeared, and in its place sounded the charge of the giant city!
The bugle call to charge has sounded!
Then they need not hesitate!

One by one, the hatches opened, and the resurrected warriors rushed out of the cabins and onto the warship!
Without any hesitation, they pounced directly on the nearest flesh-and-blood mutant!

Fearlessly, they crashed head-on into the massive numbers of flesh and blood mutants!
In that instant, a bloody war broke out!

Those flesh-and-blood mutants that approached the Yan Yun were wiped out by the Night Scouts who suddenly rushed out before they could even put up any resistance!
On the bridge, Zhao Gang looked at those familiar figures and let out an extremely excited howl.

"It's them, it's them! They're really back! Our border fleet is back!" He drew a chainsaw sword, roared, and charged out of the bridge. Li Yelai and Jing Lin followed closely behind.

You Ye didn't look back, surprised by Zhao Gang's physical condition.

"Little Zhao, hey, you've had a tough time."

"Little Zhao has gotten so old. You were only eighteen when I died."

"How long have you been dead, bro? I'm almost a decade older than you, you should call me bro!"

"Even though he's turned into a zombie, he still has some presence when he puts on the captain's uniform."

"Come on, Political Commissar Zhao, no, Captain Zhao! Give the order!"

The soldiers laughed loudly, completely ignoring Zhao Gang's physical changes.

A zombie? It's a human zombie!
Even as a zombie, Zhao Gang felt his eyes burning. He had seen his comrades again; he was not alone, the border fleet had not disappeared!
He roared, "Comrades, let these two young comrades witness the glory of our border fleet! Crush that monster! We only have eight hours!"

"Eight hours? That's enough! If the casualties hadn't been so great back then, it wouldn't have had the chance to run rampant!"

"Border Fleet, break through these monsters! Slay the enemy of humanity!"

The soldiers shouted and roared.

Their coordination was impeccable; dozens of psionicists simultaneously unleashed their power, causing the entire Iron Curtain to tremble and sending numerous anchored ships crashing down. The resulting mass of flesh-and-blood aberrations was utterly crushed!

At the same time, the psionicists stepped in to cover the Iron Guards and human soldiers as they landed on the ground.

Li Yelai and Jing Lin also made their moves at the same time.

They not only have to witness the glory, but also fight alongside the soldiers!

"I'm sorry, Jing Lin, I've dragged you down." Li Yelai brandished his black and gold dragon-patterned halberd, instantly shredding several flesh-and-blood mutants.

"It's alright, I also want to fight alongside the heroes! Otherwise, I would have grabbed my things and left long ago!" Jing Lin's eyes flashed, and the crimson flames ignited on the flesh-and-blood mutants, instantly engulfing dozens of them.

It's been a long time, Spirit Eye - Heavenly Fire Eye!

"You two are quite skilled!" one of the fleet's psionicists laughed. "Let me show you our level too!"

After all the warriors arrived on the ground, thousands of flesh aberrations were alerted and swarmed forward like a tsunami of flesh and blood!
But the fleet's soldiers cooperated extremely well.

Soldiers set up firing positions, Iron Guards became metal defensive lines, and psionicists became steel blades for carving out the formation.

Even when the enemy outnumbered them tenfold, they did not flinch and efficiently eliminated the flesh-and-blood mutants.

Stealth? Backstab? No, they'll fight with the most ferocious ferocity, cleaving through enemy lines and charging right up to the monster! To bring glory to the border fleet!

As the war broke out, more and more flesh-and-blood mutants joined the battle.

Some of these mutated individuals even possess different abilities.

Some have thick skin and amazing defense, serving as meat shields for the flesh-and-blood mutants behind them.

Some were extremely fast, leaving afterimages in the passage, and exploded with a bang when they got close.

Some of them employ ranged attacks, spitting out liquid spheres with a strong corrosive effect.
This resulted in some unavoidable casualties among the fleet's soldiers, but the soldiers did not falter in the slightest. Even those whose legs were blown off would continue to fire their guns.

Even when they run out of ammunition, they will fight hand-to-hand with the flesh-and-blood mutants using bayonets or entrenching tools.

At the very front of the fiercest battle, Li Yelai, Jing Lin, and the fleet's psionicists were locked in a frenzied fight.

Thousands of flesh-and-blood mutants were destroyed and eliminated.

Jing Lin's eyes had become dim and lifeless, but a vertical eye materialized on his forehead.

That was Jing Lin's five sense abilities, the Eye of Truth.

As the Sky Eye swept across, a massive amount of flesh and blood mutants were ignited, creating an opening for the team!
Li Yelai charged directly into the gap, his black and gold dragon-patterned halberd swirling, and a golden dragon shadow roared forth, tearing apart all the approaching flesh-and-blood mutants! This widened the gap!

After reaching the fifth level of enlightenment, Li Yelai was able to utilize the abilities of the Black Gold Dragon Pattern Halberd.

That is the sixth sense ability of the Myriad Paths, Mythical Mimicry - Five-Clawed Golden Dragon!
If it were the original mythological mimicry, Li Ye could simply overtake it all the way.

However, its power diminishes after it is made into a psionic weapon.

But each time he wields the halberd, he gains the power of the golden dragon.

This makes the halberd's attack range much larger; with each thrust, a dragon claw extends, and with each horizontal swing, a dragon tail lashes out.

This allowed Li Yelai to easily crush a large number of flesh-and-blood mutants.

But as the group advanced, the resistance they encountered became increasingly fierce.

As the psionicists killed hundreds of flesh-and-blood mutants, they suddenly heard a somewhat familiar voice.

The next second, a fleet psionicist roared, "Take cover! Fire!"

Almost simultaneously, some abandoned warships in the distance suddenly came to life, their flesh-covered cannons moving and pointing their 400-millimeter muzzles toward the direction where Li Yelai and the others were.

The next second, the cannon roared!

The terrifying roar of the ship's cannons filled the air.

The psionicist at the forefront was hit directly by the shell, the terrifying impact slamming into his psionic barrier.

It nearly tore through his thick barrier, but still managed to send him flying, crashing heavily into a fishing boat dozens of meters away, actually breaking the boat in two.

At the same time, with the roar of cannons, the structure of the wrecked ships was completely destroyed, and large areas of the ships that were originally stacked up collapsed.

Fortunately, everyone here is a psionicist, and their reactions are incredibly fast.

Otherwise, this collapse would have buried all the Iron Guards and soldiers.

"It's a 406mm gun!"

"Damn it! They're taking advantage of me because I don't have a warship!"

"Can these World War II relics still be used?"

The psionicists roared in fury and quickly dodged the collapsing ships and the enemy's artillery bombardment.

These warships had been controlled by flesh and blood, and they turned their cannons on Li Yelai and his group, bombarding them relentlessly. They were temporarily tied up here.

Even psionicists would have a tough time against a ship's main gun.

Li Yelai hid behind the keel of an overturned cruise ship, his mind racing. He was about to activate his facial recognition.

As long as Huo Qubing's face is activated, he can withstand the bombing and approach the ship, or accelerate his approach to the warship.

The only problem is that if the vehicle killer is too effective, it might affect other people. If it causes this entire area to disintegrate, then we're doomed.

At this moment, one of the night watchmen suddenly spoke up: "Did you hear anything?"

What? Li Yelai and Jing Lin were taken aback, while the other psychics in the fleet were shocked.

At the same time, Li Yelai heard the vast sound of the steam whistle!

Everyone looked back in shock, where the collapse of nearby wrecked ships allowed them to see the towering iron curtain in the distance.

Meanwhile, inside the Iron Curtain, a warship is roaring!
That's the Yan Yun!

It had clearly exhausted all its fuel, and even its control system was completely destroyed, lying silently amidst the ruins like a metal tomb.

At this moment, however, it emitted a heart-stirring roar.

It seems to be announcing its arrival!

The thrusters, which should have stopped, roared wildly. They broke free from the iron curtain of the wrecked ship and, to everyone's astonishment, straightened the capsized hull and slid down from the iron curtain with a crash!

"I knew it! I knew it! It's alive!" Zhao Gang shouted with delight. "Yan Yun! Launch missiles! Destroy the enemy ship!"

It appears to be in response to the captain's order.

The missile silos on the deck, which had been dormant for a long time, were suddenly activated, like giant beasts awakening and baring their fangs!

In the next instant, seven missiles were launched!
The seven missiles, launching with sonic booms, streaked across the Iron Curtain at speeds that even psionicists couldn't dodge, striking the roaring warships!
They directly and violently destroyed those warships covered in blood and flesh!

This cleared away the obstacles in front of Li Yelai and the others!

Border Fleet, destroyer Yan Yun, returns to the battlefield!

Reclaim the glory of the border fleet!

(That's about 5k words) (End of Chapter)