Naturally, there was nothing but silence even after the Japanese press secretary left the press room… as there was no one else but him in the room.On the other hand, there was clamor and cheers in the White House press room.Most of the press members were locals, and this particular incident looked pretty bad; it really brought shame as a compatriot just thinking about it.However, with the Japanese taking most of the blame already, that was about ninety percent of the public backlash and international criticism taken off the board.Naturally, the foreign media, which were keen to see some sort of dramatic development, were left disappointed.They wanted to see the press secretary come under fire as they pelted her with questions and tried to distort the facts, only for the press secretary to pull the rug from under their feet.And now, she was smiling at them triumphantly.Amidst the rowdy clamor, she returned to the podium with her prim, professional smile."Having seen and

Pausing, the press secretary sighed and continued solemnly, "It is as you said—we violated the Antarctic Treaty, and it's the indisputable truth. However, the Japanese press secretary's statement and my explanation also hold water. The deployment is not intended for any hostile takeover or deliberate violation of the treaty."It is an obligation towards allied nations, the South Pole and all of humankind. That's why we will submit a report to the UN at a later date and willingly accept any sanctions imposed in response. Naturally, there's no question that our boys look like they went too far—even if it was done specifically under the Japanese's request. "That will be investigated with all due procedure, with proper apologies and compensation issued to the victims and their families. Thank you for your question, sir. Next question…"Her smooth response left all the press in the room stupefied, as none of them expected the press secretary to resolve every standing issue in a single s

On the other hand, Barlin wouldn't ever have the chance to rule should Fleur catch on.Even then, it was wishful thinking.Barlin knew all too well what Fleur was like and how she did things—she would never trust him again after he hid something this important from her, and he might even lose his position in the Qing Eliminating Society.The more he thought about such questions, the worse Barlin felt… And so he failed to focus enough to cultivate at all.This icy cave really wouldn't have been an issue—once he went into a trance, he wouldn't even feel what's going on around him.But he couldn't focus enough to go into a trance, and being cramped in an icy hole only added to his frustrations.It was like suddenly getting claustrophobic, leaving him endlessly restless.Worst of all, the weather was screwing with him too.He could faintly see the aurora's glow despite staying under the ice, so he wouldn't feel like he was trapped in total darkness… And yet, the aurora left in j

Taking a rough estimate of the distance by observing the glow's fluctuation around nine hundred feet under the ice, Barlin had the feeling that it was at least another three thousand feet deep. Those ancient ruins might really have been built on the ice cap at that depth, on the south pole's lithosphere. And the thought left him depressed. For the best cultivators before the Degenerate Age of Dharma, they might have been able to tear through the surface of the ice sheet to the depths in the blink of an eye. Barlin, however, had yet to free his pineal gland and gain that exponential leap in power—even directing his flying sword with Reiki to cut into the ice was taxing. And if he had to keep going like this, he might burn through all his Reiki reserves. Even so, the thought of finding relics left by ancient cultivators before the Degenerate Age of Dharma motivated him. The way he saw it, if they could build their city thousands of feet under the ice and survive th

However, Vera remained vigilant—it was polar night, and an elder from the Qing Eliminating Society was wandering the same continent. She would pull up the curtains whenever she had to use light, exactly as she did now.She was using an electric kettle to boil water, after which she poured it into a pot of kombucha tea.Turning off the light, she then opened the curtains that blocked out the light completely.Once she did, she realized in shock that the aurora was once again shining, instead of the usual starry night!Delighted, she rushed over to the room where Charlie, Ruby, and Penny were secluded, knocking on the door and calling out, "Mr. Wade, the aurora is back!"Charlie promptly broke out of his trance—finally!For days, his Reiki was so abundant it threatened to overflow, and it was high time to trade the accumulated Reiki with that mysterious entity for more hand seals.Ruby and Penny left their trance too, and looked at Charlie. Penny asked, "The aurora's back?"Cha