Chapter 3614 The Tu Emperor

Under the influence of psychological suggestion, the somewhat elderly Captain Sato willingly stripped naked and walked to the bow deck in full view of everyone.

The research vessel was venturing deeper into the strait into the night. The temperature was dropping lower and lower. Although the captain was frozen stiff and his body was turning purple, he still stood there hunched over like a grotesque, borderline statue.

Seeing that he was about to die from hypothermia in the cold wind, Wu Bolin ordered Matsushita Heikichi to carry him back.

When the captain was carried back, he was already stiff, but fortunately he was still breathing. Once his body warmed up, he wouldn't die.

Wu Bolin found him annoying, so he simply had someone throw him back into his cabin to rest. Then he called Matsushita Heikichi over and asked him, "How many days will it take to reach the Antarctic continent?"

Matsushita Heikichi respectfully replied, "It will probably take another three and a half days."

Wu Bolin said coldly, "Find a way to compress it to three days. I don't have that much time to waste at sea."

"Yes, sir!" Matsushita Heikichi agreed without hesitation. The research vessel's original voyage and prescribed speed had a safety margin, so the speed could be increased appropriately. Reducing three and a half days to two days was basically impossible, but reducing it to three days wouldn't be a problem.

So the ship immediately sped up and headed towards the Antarctic continent.

At this moment, on the Antarctic continent, Ye Chen was driving a snowmobile, carrying three people towards a gentle hill south of the Nordic research station.

The magnificent aurora borealis has appeared, and Ye Chen plans to go up the hill to get a closer look at it.

Upon reaching the top of the hill, he took a Qi-Nourishing Pill, intending to once again circulate the earliest set of hand seals to exchange the spiritual energy within his body with the mysterious entity within. The remaining five pills were a safety net he set for himself; no matter what, he had to ensure that he had five pills on hand for emergencies.

This time, the Four Directions Treasure Banner once again imparted sixteen hand seals to Ye Chen through the aurora. This set of Great Sun Tathagata hand seals now has a total of eighty seals.

The eighty hand seals of the Great Sun Tathagata significantly improved the overall efficiency of spiritual energy acquisition. After returning to the research station, Ye Chen planned to go into seclusion for a period of time and exchange the remaining hand seals when he had accumulated enough spiritual energy in his body.

Once you enter a state of seclusion, time seems to cease to exist; a few days pass in the blink of an eye.

Three days later, the Japanese research vessel docked at the edge of the Antarctic continent.

Its docking point is about 200 kilometers away from where the Iliad previously docked.

The Japanese research team was also waiting there. Similar to the process on the Iliad, they would first deliver the supplies and then complete the personnel exchange.

When Wu Bolin first came to Antarctica, he was amazed to see the aurora borealis in the long night sky.

Upon seeing this desolate continent, he became even more convinced of the story he had heard more than a hundred years ago: perhaps the Gate to Ascension really was in this endless desolation.

However, he underestimated the size of the Antarctic continent. Its coastline alone stretches for 20,000 kilometers, and its interior extends for thousands of kilometers. Searching for relics in such a place would be as difficult as climbing to heaven.

For a moment, he didn't even know where to begin.

Not knowing where to start, he simply began with what was in front of him, and these Japanese research team members became his ideal lackeys.

So they simply gave everyone psychological suggestions, and coincidentally, they found someone among the team members who stayed behind who was fluent in Chinese, so they kept him and Matsushita Heikichi as their two henchmen.

Originally, the Japanese scientific expedition team that came with the ship was tasked with replacing the team members who stayed behind and then returning to Japan. These people had been in Antarctica for half a year and were all extremely homesick. In addition, the journey back would take more than a month, so they were all eager to go home.

But Wu Bolin had no intention of letting them leave, not even those scientific expedition members who had already worked and lived in Antarctica for a summer and were now preparing to return home to rest.

This is because, to him, these scientific expedition team members were nothing more than cattle and slaves.

He had easily gained control of everyone, and from then on, these people would obey his every command, becoming his helpers and laborers in his exploration of Antarctica.

What's even more valuable is that these research team members are the most knowledgeable about Antarctica. With them on duty, our plans can be twice as effective, so losing even one of them would feel like a huge loss.

Since he was going to leave the ship behind, he might as well leave everyone behind as well. He needed more lackeys to obey his orders, so that he could become a local tyrant in the vast, frigid Antarctic.

On the other hand, he could not let the Japanese research vessel leave Antarctica. Otherwise, if he needed to leave before winter arrived and could not find a ship that could break through the ice and cross the devilish Roaring Forties, wouldn't that be awkward?

So he called Matsushita Heikichi over and asked him, "How long can your ship stay here at most?"

Matsushita Heikichi said, "Boating is not a problem. Our supplies can last for at least half a year, and our fuel can last for more than half a year if we don't make long voyages. However, if the ship stays here, as the temperature gets colder and the ice-covered area along the coastline gets larger and the ice layer gets thicker, once the ice layer thickness exceeds our icebreaking limit, the ship may not be able to move. If we want to move again, we can only wait for the weather to warm up and the ice layer to melt."

Wu Bolin frowned and said, "That won't do. I need you to be on standby at the Antarctic coastline at any time, in case I need you. You better think of a way to meet my requirements."

Matsushita Heikichi said obsequiously, "That's simple. I can have the ship move outwards every day as the ice expands, always staying within a controllable ice thickness. This way, we can respond whenever you need the ship. In this way, we only need to move a few kilometers at most each day, and the fuel consumption is not much, so we can still go on for a long time."

Wu Bolin nodded in satisfaction, then asked, "Let me ask you, if I asked you to change your plans and not return to Japan for the entire winter, would the Japanese side contact you immediately?"

Matsushita Heikichi said, "The research vessel we are piloting is national property. If we refuse to comply with the order to return home, the country will definitely come after us, and may even send in the army. We will certainly be accused of treason."

Wu Bolin stroked his beard and clicked his tongue, saying, "This is a problem. You need to think carefully about how to reasonably keep all these people and the ship in Antarctica."

Matsushita Heikichi thought for a moment and said, "Well... I can't think of any good solution either. It would be easy to say that we're leaving a few days later due to some unforeseen circumstances, but if we don't go back for the entire Antarctic winter, no reason will hold water."

Wu Bolin asked him, "What if the boat breaks down? What if the boat freezes and can't get out?"

“Well…” Matsushita Heikichi said respectfully, “The country can monitor the location of the research vessel in real time through positioning. If we report to them that the ship is frozen, but in fact we are moving slowly every day to prevent the ship from freezing, the country will realize that we are lying after detecting it, and will definitely send troops to investigate.”

Wu Bolin asked, "If the ship is really frozen, is your army capable of coming to Antarctica for a rescue?"

Matsushita Heikichi shook his head: "Our ship is the only heavy icebreaker in the country. If our ship is really frozen, the country can't send any ships to rescue us. Even if we ask the United States for help, it will be too late. By the time their icebreaker arrives after a journey of several dozen days, the ice will probably be hundreds of kilometers thick. Even the best heavy icebreaker in the United States can't get in. At most, it can only dock on the outer edge of the ice layer and help evacuate the personnel."

Wu Bolin nodded and said, "That makes things easier. You can report back to China that the ship has a mechanical problem and needs repairs. Then just keep delaying until the ice freezes over. When the ship can't leave, have the research team consult with China. Let's all be generous and not let your country waste resources coming to rescue it. Let's all stay here and work hard, and take this opportunity to speed up Japan's exploration of Antarctica."

Matsushita Heikichi naturally obeyed his every command, but this lackey was also very dutiful, saying respectfully, "You just said that the research vessel should be on standby at all times, but if we really freeze the ship, I'm afraid your need for the ship will not be met."

Wu Bolin sneered: "A mere ice blockage might be a problem for your icebreakers, but it's nothing to me. Your ships are just sitting here. If you really need to move them, I can break the ice myself!"

Wu Bolin's strength was such that it wasn't difficult for him to cleave a crack in the ice; the difficulty lay in crossing the devilish Westerlies alone without any supporting force.

In that kind of environment where one can neither fly above nor step on the water, and one can only float on the surface of the water by relying entirely on spiritual energy, coupled with towering waves and gale-force winds of level 11 or higher, even Wu Feiyan would not be able to withstand it.

Therefore, Wu Bolin must remain on this ship in Antarctica.

Therefore, he immediately ordered Matsushita Heikichi to deliberately delay the loading and unloading of supplies and postpone the departure time as much as possible. When the departure time could not be delayed any longer, and if it was certain that the ship could be repaired, he should deliberately sabotage the ship's propulsion system. By then, the ice would have frozen for several kilometers or even more than ten kilometers, with the ice layer being more than two meters thick. Even if the ship was repaired, it would be grounded.

Fortunately, the ship has plenty of fuel and supplies, so staying here ensures uninterrupted power, heating, and water supply.

There's no need to worry about the research station either. It has a safety margin in terms of supplies, and a large number of new supplies have been added this time. Although there are more people, it can definitely handle the workload.

Even if supplies run out later, we can ask Japan to find a way to airdrop supplies using military aircraft.

If all else fails, we can just make these research team members cut back on food and clothing. As long as they don't die and can still work, that's fine. Anyway, Wu Bolin himself doesn't need to eat.

Having made up his mind, Wu Bolin instructed Matsushita Heikichi to stay on the ship and carry out his orders. Then he called over Kikuchi Kohei, another member of the expedition team who was fluent in Chinese, and instructed him: "Kikuchi, you are responsible for arranging for all the expedition members to return to the research station. Also, starting today, spend three hours every day teaching them Chinese. Make sure they study with all their might, so that I won't have to give orders to you alone in the future. Do you understand?"

Polar scientist Kohei Kikuchi bowed deeply at a ninety-degree angle and said respectfully, "Please rest assured, I will definitely complete the mission!"