I started by submitting to the Douluo Continent, and the nation helped me become a god.

With a soft hissing sound of pressure release, the transparent hatch of the hibernation pod slid open to the sides. A rush of cool air, carrying a slight smell of disinfectant, flooded into the pod, contrasting sharply with the warmth emanating from the nutrient solution.

Li Fulan sat up from the layer of pale blue viscous liquid. The nutrient solution slid down his contours and gathered into a small puddle at the bottom of the cabin.

The nano combat suit sensed the change in environment, and a layer of fine ripples immediately appeared on its surface. Hundreds of millions of microfibers began to vibrate at high speed, instantly evaporating the liquid attached to the fabric.

The entire drying process took less than three seconds, and Li Fulan's clothes were restored to a dry and clean state, without even a single wrinkle.

Before he could fully adjust to the bright incandescent lights of the base, an old face appeared too close to his eyes. The face was flushed red with excitement, and the wrinkles on the forehead had smoothed out, making him look like an old child who had just opened a favorite gift.

Old Yuan's eyes, which were usually half-closed and cloudy like two cataracts, were now frighteningly bright, almost like searchlights. His hands were haphazardly wiping the white coat, which was covered in unidentified stains.

The oil stains, ink stains, and spots that looked like medicine residue on the white coat seemed to record countless days and nights that the old scientist had spent working tirelessly.

"Where is it? Did you bring back that soul bone?" His voice became sharp with urgency, and he spoke so fast it was like he was speaking at double speed, his spittle almost hitting Li Fulan's face.

Looking at the old man's impatient appearance, Li Fulan shook his head helplessly. He raised his right hand, and with a slight thought, an ancient storage ring appeared out of thin air at his fingertip. The ring glowed with a faint blue light under the lamp, and the storage array patterns carved on its surface were faintly visible. He casually tossed the ring over, and it drew a graceful arc in the air.

Old Yuan reacted with astonishing speed, his hands reaching out like hungry tigers pouncing on their prey, but he nearly dropped it due to his extreme nervousness. He frantically rummaged around in front of his chest several times before finally managing to hold the storage ring steadily in his palms. His posture was so careful, as if he were holding not a ring, but a priceless treasure that could shatter at any moment.

He probed a wisp of his spiritual energy into the storage ring, sensing the energy fluctuations emanating from the soul bone inside. The next second, this scientist, who usually looked like an old scholar, suddenly let out an excited scream. The sound was so shrill it was like a pig being slaughtered, startling several researchers operating the instruments nearby so much that they almost dropped the test tubes they were holding.

Holding the storage ring, Yuan Lao turned and rushed towards the laboratory, his speed unlike that of an elderly man over seventy. The hem of his white coat fluttered behind him, and his slippers slapped the ground. Halfway there, his left slipper was flung off, tumbled a few times on the ground, and then lay quietly in the middle of the corridor.

But Yuan Lao didn't bother to pick it up at all, and didn't even turn his head. He disappeared behind the automatic door of the laboratory with one foot in a slipper and the other bare.

"This old man treats research materials like his own father."

A cheerful voice came from the side. Lin An walked over carrying two steaming cups of coffee. The coffee had a rich and mellow aroma; it was made from freshly ground Blue Mountain beans, one of the few luxuries on the base.

He handed one of the cups to Li Fulan, who had just come down from the hibernation pod, while holding the other cup himself, with his signature foxy smile on his face—his eyes were slightly narrowed, and the curve of his lips was just right, making him look harmless, yet always giving people the feeling that he had everything under control.

"This time it was quite fruitful." Lin An took a sip of coffee, his tone as relaxed as if he were talking about the weather. "By the way, regarding the promotion of that 'quantum meditation method,' we made some minor 'localization' modifications to adapt it to the national context."

Li Fulan took the coffee and sipped it. The slightly bitter, mellow aroma spread across his tongue, effectively dispelling the lingering drowsiness after his nap. He raised an eyebrow and asked, "Improved? What did you change it to?"

"The seventh set of national middle school broadcast gymnastics," Lin An said solemnly, his expression as serious as if he were reporting some major scientific research achievement. He even put down his coffee cup and demonstrated a standard stretching exercise posture, raising his arms to the sides and then slowly raising them, his movements so perfect that he could be a physical education teacher.

"Coordinating with a specific breathing rhythm, it can not only strengthen the body but also subtly cultivate mental strength. Most importantly, no one will doubt that this set of twisting movements on the playground is some kind of unparalleled secret technique, with perfect concealment."

"puff--"

Li Fulan nearly spat out his coffee. He struggled to swallow the liquid, then looked at Lin An with the gaze one would give a genius. His eyes held a mixture of shock, speechlessness, and a hint of undeniable brilliance.

"Radio calisthenics? Aren't you afraid spies will learn it? This stuff is supposed to be promoted nationwide. If it gets out, wouldn't that be aiding the enemy?"

"Have you forgotten? We also have 'Shadow Guards'."

Lin An's harmless smile faded slightly, replaced by a cold, commanding presence. It was the aura of an intelligence chief, every word radiating confident mastery.

"We've been watching those lurking parasites, whether they're from overseas or domestically, for a long time. They think they're lying in wait, but little do they know they're the prey. We've got solid evidence, and we're having our shadow guards track them down. Want to come watch a 'live broadcast'?"

"Sure." Li Fulan became interested, picked up her coffee cup, stood up, and walked to sit down next to the large leather sofa in the lounge area. The sofa was soft and comfortable, and sinking into it made one feel completely relaxed. "It'll be a good opportunity to see how your security work is going."

Lin An followed and walked over, picked up a simple black remote control from the coffee table, and pressed it lightly.

The huge LCD screen on the wall lit up immediately. The screen was a full two meters square, with an astonishingly high resolution, so high that even the pores on the faces of the people in the image were clearly visible. The image was transmitted in real time through a miniature camera carried by the shadow guard. The camera was only about the size of a grain of rice, but it integrated a series of cutting-edge functions such as night vision, image stabilization, and zoom.

The camera wobbled a few times before settling down. The scene revealed a campus filled with cherry blossoms, their pink and white petals drifting in the breeze, tracing graceful arcs across the lens. Afternoon sunlight filtered through the petals, casting dappled shadows on the cobblestone path. The scenery was quite elegant, yet it possessed a deliberately crafted exoticism—the upturned eaves of the buildings were clearly Japanese in style, starkly different from the typical college architecture found in China.

An elderly man with gray hair, dressed in a Zhongshan suit, appeared in the frame. He was furtively making his way through a winding corridor, his footsteps so light as if afraid of disturbing something. He walked slowly, stopping every few steps, his head darting left and right like a radar, glancing around furtively. His guilty conscience was laid bare under the high-definition lens; he looked exactly like a wary mouse.

After confirming that no one was around, he quickly walked to a rockery. The rockery was uniquely shaped, with a few moss plants dotting the rugged rocks, looking no different from an ordinary garden landscape. The old man's hand groped among the rocks for a while, his fingertips pressing a few times at a certain spot.

With a low, mechanical hum, a crack silently appeared on one side of the artificial hill, revealing a deep, secret passage. The old man glanced around one last time, then plunged inside, his figure quickly swallowed by the darkness.

Meanwhile, the shadow guard's camera followed silently, like a persistent, lingering leech, relentlessly pursuing the target.

Li Fulan thought to herself, "This kind of high-up view, where you're not being observed by others, is truly a divine audience!"

The secret passage was dimly lit, and the walls on both sides were made of some kind of sound-absorbing material, making footsteps almost inaudible. After passing through a long, narrow passage, the view suddenly opened up.

This is a fairly large underground chamber, decorated in a cool and minimalist style, with several warm-colored lights embedded in the ceiling. In the center of the chamber is a huge round conference table, the tabletop of which is made of some kind of dark wood and polished to a mirror shine.

By this time, quite a few people were already seated around the round table. Some were dressed in suits, looking like social elites; others were casually dressed, as if they had just come from a golf course; and a few were wearing scholar's robes with the badges of well-known universities pinned to their chests. Without exception, their expressions were solemn, and a sense of oppressive tension permeated the air.

The person sitting in the main seat was particularly eye-catching.

He was a middle-aged man with a Jintan mustache, dressed in a dark gray kimono, with a decorative short sword at his waist. He sat upright, his hands neatly placed on his knees, his face expressionless, yet exuding an air of condescending arrogance.