Chapter 67

Today is a bit late, I apologize.

There's more to come, it might be even later, please bear with me.

...

A month isn't long, but it isn't short either.

Under the full control of the Star Spirit, the transformation and development of this world proceeded quite smoothly.

With just two "base vehicles," in less than a month, the original two bases had expanded to over a hundred.

Although these bases were still a drop in the bucket compared to the entire Earth's surface, with these bases spread across various regions, the once desolate Earth finally showed some signs of life.

What surprised Liu Rui a little was that human survivors were found all over the world during this time.

Even though the total number of these survivors was pitifully small and their conditions were miserable, it had to be admitted that human survival skills sometimes rivaled those of cockroaches.

In addition to these survivors, places similar to the 49th and 52nd towers were also quickly inventoried.

Ironically, after the alien AI Tet self-destructed, not only did the drones lose control, but the towers and the accompanying aircraft also became unusable.

In this situation, the clone Jack Harbors and Vika stationed at the towers had to face the problem of whether they would starve or die of thirst over time.

Liu Rui didn't really care about these clones.

There was no way around it; even without the Star Spirit's forced arrangements, these guys would expire and die due to the limitations of cloning technology.

However, it turned out that either the alien AI's brainwashing was too successful, or it was an instinctive reaction to the unknown.

When the search force occupied these towers, they encountered significant self-defense resistance.

Fortunately, the search force consisted of improved U** spy drones, so although they suffered some losses, it was within acceptable limits.

After spending some time dealing with these clones, a network with the towers as nodes and strategic satellites as the main body was quickly established.

Once the production lines for clones and intelligent robots were set up in the bases, with sufficient manpower, all the bases entered a rapid and efficient development mode.

Despite the fact that the Earth in the "Oblivion" world was almost destroyed by the alien AI, its actual value did not decrease much.

For example, the buildings and ruins buried under the dust were excellent resources for the Star Spirit.

Moreover, with the cooperation of the Punisher-class frigates, the Star Spirit even established bases on the Moon and other terrestrial planets in the solar system.

To say nothing of the resources provided by just one asteroid belt, which were more than enough to support the transformation and development of the "Oblivion" Earth and still have plenty left over.

After confirming that all the survivors in the "Oblivion" world were captured and the mining and reconstruction plans for Earth and the Moon were on track, Liu Rui, who had been basking in the "sunlight" at the Mercury base for over half a month, finally returned empty-handed.

Indeed, unlike the previous times, this time Liu Rui returned to the Marvel Cinematic Universe with nothing.

Even the materials and technology for building the towers were only stored in Liu Rui's mind.

As for items and technologies like the hydroelectric platform, fuel cells, energy weapons, and drones, they were all left in the "Oblivion" world.

Even the various technologies obtained from different dimensions and the Marvel Cinematic Universe were left behind due to the preparations made in advance.

Unlike the previous worlds, in Liu Rui's plan, the Earth in the "Oblivion" world would become the main development dimension in the true sense.

In terms of importance, it was even higher than the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which he had to return to after each穿越.

At least, there wouldn't be any superheroes popping up to ruin his plans, nor would there be any terrifying enemies to cause trouble.

For Liu Rui, whether the Earth was almost destroyed was not important; what mattered was that there would be no one to interfere with his peaceful development.

So, upon returning to the Earth in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Liu Rui immediately had the Star Spirit pause all ongoing research projects.

Only mature technologies like biological beverages, power armor, civilian nuclear fission, special alloys, and artificial intelligence were retained as future business projects for the Umbrella Corporation.

Despite the fact that these retained technologies were few in number and mostly "obsolete," they were enough to ensure that the Umbrella Corporation maintained a significant social status and enormous annual profits.

Fortunately, since the establishment of Umbrella Technology, the only products truly launched on the market, besides the "Succubus" and "Dragon Blood" adult products, were the biological beverages, which had reached an annual output value of hundreds of millions in just a few months.

The rest had not even been launched yet, so Liu Rui's series of actions did not attract much attention.

"Haotian, have you completed your research?" Skye, who received the message, rushed to the luxurious residence and looked at the guy who had just come out of the bathroom with surprise.

"There are some preliminary results; this month wasn't wasted," Liu Rui, wrapped only in a towel, nodded and said.

Liu Rui, who had already been informed by the Star Spirit while showering, was not surprised by her appearance and had already learned about her activities over the past month.

Whether it was genuine appreciation for her "kin" or emotional reasons, Skye had not left the Umbrella Technology building for over a month.

Every day, besides training in the gym under the Star Spirit's guidance to improve her combat skills, she occupied a laboratory to conduct in-depth analysis and research on the Terrigen Crystals in the obelisk.

Although a month was not long, Skye made surprising progress in both combat, firearms, and her abilities.

As for the research on the Terrigen Crystals, while there was no significant breakthrough, some preliminary results were achieved.

At least, it was known that the obelisk containing the Terrigen Crystals was not just a container and a map; the patterns on it had more functions, such as communication.

However, who it communicated with remained a mystery.

Fortunately, before "seclusion," Liu Rui had specifically chosen a laboratory that could shield various signals for Skye to use and repeatedly instructed her not to take the obelisk out of the laboratory. Otherwise, real kin would have already shown up.

"By the way, where is the Imarisan?" After pouring champagne for both of them, Liu Rui asked as if he didn't know.

"No idea. I haven't seen him since you started your research," Skye said, shaking her head, with a strange look on her face.

"However, I heard he and Natasha Romanoff are getting pretty close."

"Natasha Romanoff?" Liu Rui feigned surprise and asked, "You mean the Black Widow?"

"Exactly," Skye nodded.

"Ha ha... He sure has a good appetite," Liu Rui said with a playful smile, shrugging. "Is he not afraid of being eaten by the Black Widow?"

"No, your friend seems to be enjoying himself. He's either at nightclubs or out picking up girls," Skye said, a hint of confusion in her eyes.

"Alright, let's not talk about him," Liu Rui said, waving his finger and then said seriously, "Skye, I might have to leave Earth for a while."

Skye, who didn't expect the topic to turn to this, asked uncertainly, "You mean leave Earth? Or leave America?"

"You heard right, I mean leave Earth, not just America," Liu Rui nodded, knowing his idea was sudden and a bit exaggerated.

Seeing that she hadn't misheard, Skye asked anxiously, "Why? Why do you have to leave Earth?"

"If I say this world is too dangerous and I want to leave for a while to develop myself, would you believe me?" Liu Rui pointed to the window and smiled.

"Too dangerous?" A smart person like Skye immediately associated it with S.H.I.E.L.D., Hydra, and other dangerous figures hidden in human society.

Seeing her expression, Liu Rui knew what she was thinking and said, "Skye, the Star Spirit told me you've been training at the base this whole month and haven't gone anywhere."

"How about coming with me for a vacation?"

"A vacation?" Skye looked at him with a dazed and somewhat cute expression, unable to follow the sudden change in topic.

"Exactly, a vacation, just a bit far," Liu Rui nodded and smiled.

"How far? You don't mean..." Skye, regaining her composure, couldn't help but connect it to the previous topic.

"Smart!" Liu Rui gave her a thumbs up and said with a smile, "This time, we're going to Mercury for a vacation. How about it?"