When attacking enemies with a psychic assault, his mental power, which registered a peak of ten thousand Qiaogu Index, could erupt with a formidable attack of 6.5 million points after being condensed and amplified by his Domain!

Six point five million points! That was the strength of a mid-to-high level Earth-rank individual! Even the grotesque, half-human, half-monster creations surrounding Yuliss possessed only that level of power! That was terrifying strength, enough to directly withstand a small meteorite dropped from outside the atmosphere!

“Swallow…” Gu Xechen sucked in a sharp breath. He finally understood why the Bearded Captain immediately gave him the position of First Deputy Commander upon learning of his successful integration, and why Bolbot harbored such deep jealousy towards him, even going so far as to mobilize his family forces for revenge!

The strongest recorded result for the purple crystal sphere was only twenty-five times the potential development and energy amplification. What about the even rarer black crystal sphere, which surpassed the purple one?

Thirty times? Forty times? Or perhaps… fifty times… maybe even higher?

“Sith, how do I use the Domain to amplify my mental strike?” Gu Xechen shouted at Siren.

Siren hurriedly stepped to Gu Xechen’s side and imparted the secrets of using Domain power for condensation and amplification during an attack. Looking at Gu Xechen with a mixture of envy and jealousy, he sighed, “The first time might not be smooth… but the crystal sphere’s amplification capability is fixed. Just use it a few more times, and you’ll stabilize your mental attack at a constant amplification multiplier!” After pondering the method Siren had taught him for a while, Gu Xechen turned to the Bearded Captain. “How about it, Uncle Beard, shall I give it a try?” The Bearded Captain took a sharp breath, swallowed hard, and said in a dry voice, “My dear Evil Dragon, try it boldly! The black crystal sphere, I too want to see if this treasure, valued at no less than twenty first-tier battleships, is truly worth the price! You… try it boldly!” Banruo glanced at Mohe, who silently emerged from behind the bulletproof glass and shot out the four surveillance cameras in the corner of the hall.

Banruo lightly clapped his hands and stated gravely, “Deputy Commander Evil Dragon, feel free to try. This data will not leak out.” The Bearded Captain gave Banruo an appreciative look and boomed, “Yes, try it without worry… hehe, hehe, I think I need to prepare a few more ears of corn.” Gu Xechen found the Bearded Captain’s obsession with large corn cobs baffling. However, now was not the time to consider such matters.

Standing before the measuring instrument, Gu Xechen followed Siren’s guidance, slowly compressing his powerful mental shockwave into a bright blue sphere of light within his Sea of Consciousness. Compress, compress, and compress again. Simultaneously, all his attention was immersed in his Sea of Consciousness, constantly communing with the boundless power of the Domain.

Vast amounts of purple mist surged in from all directions. Under Gu Xechen’s mental command, this mist slowly coalesced into fine, tiny purple crystals. Countless purple crystals pieced themselves together to form a massive purple crystal sphere. The blue sphere of light formed by the compressed mental shockwave was enveloped, and Gu Xechen slowly adjusted the shape and size of the crystal sphere.

With a single sound, the mental shockwave erupted within the crystal sphere, sending waves of blue light surging towards the core of the sphere.

All the mental shockwave energy was absorbed by the purple crystal sphere. Then, the sphere shuddered, and powerful blue light waves sprayed out from its inner wall. The light waves shot fiercely towards the core of the sphere, re-condensing into a blue light ball. Almost the instant the light ball formed, it disintegrated again into surging currents that rushed towards the inner wall of the crystal sphere.

This cycle of agitation repeated nearly a hundred times, until the blue light ball within the crystal sphere shone as brightly as a small sun, illuminating nearly half of Gu Xechen’s Sea of Consciousness.

Xin Jia and the others, who were sitting cross-legged around the giant Taiji diagram revolving in the void, cultivating diligently, looked up in surprise at the small sun suddenly appearing in the sky. However, moments later, all their attention returned to the slowly rotating, profound and mysterious Taiji vortex. Invisible streams of energy quietly seeped into Xin Jia and the others' bodies, slowly repairing their depleted primordial spirits, and gradually restoring their shattered comprehension and control over this Heaven, this Earth, this Universe.

The mental shockwave agitated within the crystal sphere for hundreds more cycles, and Gu Xechen could no longer control the purple crystal sphere condensed from the purple energy.

With a sharp crack, the crystal sphere shattered. A small portion of the purple mist was swallowed by the blue light ball, and the purplish-blue sphere transformed into a fierce current that rushed out of Gu Xechen’s Sea of Consciousness. A burning sensation flared at his glabella, and an extremely powerful ray of light shot out—a dazzling blue beam comparable to the high-energy beam emitted by a large-caliber high-energy light cannon.

With a dull thud, like two wooden posts colliding violently, the light shield projected by the measuring instrument was forced back an inch by Gu Xechen’s mental impact. Gu Xechen himself was thrown backward by the recoil force generated by the mental shockwave, crashing awkwardly against the bulletproof glass behind him. The meter-thick bulletproof glass cracked with a faint line.

The fierce current swept through the hall. Sith and Aredia were instantly swept away and knocked back. Penghua gritted his teeth, striving to maintain the image of his senior disciple, using all his strength to stand firm. But as wave after wave of the blue shockwave struck, Penghua cried out, “Ow-woo!” and was also sent flying by the surging torrent.

Several minutes later, the turbulent airflow in the hall slowly subsided. A string of bright numbers flickered on the light screen projected by the measuring instrument: 868,140!

Siren looked dazedly at the line of text, then suddenly burst into giggles.

“Black Christo Crystal Sphere? Hehe, it’s not as bizarre as the legends claimed! Eighty-six thousand-plus points, hehe, it’s even less than my current strength, uh, only eighty-six thousand-plus points!” Aredia’s delicate fingers gently pinched Siren’s waist, eliciting a sharp howl from him. Penghua stared blankly at the numbers, rubbing his eyes in disbelief.

Gu Xechen slid down from the bulletproof glass in disarray, landing heavily on the floor. A wave of ecstasy surged through him, and Gu Xechen laughed heartily, “Eighty-six thousand, eight hundred and ten points! According to the data just tested, my amplification multiple exceeds sixty times!” Giggles! The Bearded Captain suddenly clutched his neck; he nearly choked to death on his own saliva. “Sixty times amplification! Giggles!” The Bearded Captain swallowed with difficulty and howled hoarsely, “Not just twenty first-tier battleships, a hundred first-tier battleships will have buyers! Heavens above!” Banruo and Mohe exchanged a look, and the two brothers lightly punched fists.

Linghu, Popov, and the other main captains who had fought alongside Gu Xechen on Paradise Star revealed knowing smiles. They understood in their hearts: the stronger Gu Xechen and Gu Mou were, the greater their future benefits would be. Sixty times amplification! If this data leaked, those bureaucrats in the Federal Special Management Committee would go mad!

Next came a series of physical examinations conducted by Maria on Gu Xechen, Penghua, Siren, Aredia, and the others. The outstanding physical data and formidable strength of the four individuals drew everyone’s attention.

Gu Xechen’s True Qi and mental power figures needed no further elaboration. His physical strength, nourished by the primordial essence blood, had already exploded to fifteen tons. According to Maria’s measurement, after completing the Marrow Cleansing chapter of the cultivation method, the strength of his bones was sufficient to withstand nearly one hundred tons of physical load; it was only because the strength of his muscles and tendons was insufficient that his physical power was currently only fifteen tons. Penghua’s strongest True Qi intensity was a pathetic fifteen standard Zakla Index points, which nearly made Gu Xechen drop his jaw in surprise. However, Penghua’s single-arm pushing strength reached a terrifying two hundred and thirty tons, his single-leg kicking force reached five hundred and seventy tons; Penghua’s mental power intensity reached five thousand, four hundred and thirty points. As for Penghua’s actual maximum attack power, it was incalculable—this fellow was clearly holding something back…

Gu Xechen accepted this data. After all, no one ever claimed a zombie relied on True Qi to live. And Penghua’s monstrous physical strength was likely related to the primordial essence blood he had absorbed. At least when Gu Xechen first met Penghua, his strength, while already outrageous, was definitely not this high.

Siren: True Qi intensity, eight thousand seven hundred points; mental power intensity, nine thousand nine hundred fifty points. Siren’s physical strength was a bit too weak; his maximum strength was less than one ton. He was a pure ability-user Jieshi. But Gu Xechen knew he had clearly concealed his strength. His True Qi and mental power intensities were definitely higher than this—but it was understandable he would hide them. With the immense power derived from Yuliss, he would be foolish to expose it. The current data was likely his actual baseline strength!

Aredia’s True Qi intensity was only slightly better than Penghua’s, registering just one hundred seventy-five points, yet her mental power reached a terrifying twenty-three thousand, seven hundred-plus! Gu Xechen instantly recalled the horrifying fireball Aredia had launched—a fireball whose power was greater than a tactical nuclear bomb, which had nearly blasted Gu Xechen to pieces! Aredia’s physical strength was too weak, just under five hundred kilograms, which for an ordinary martial artist was barely passable.

The test results of the four warriors nearly caused the Bearded Captain’s jaw to dislocate from smiling so widely. He eagerly pored over the testing reports, constantly muttering about needing to prepare more ears of corn.

A thirty-story building near the center of Copenhagen had been purchased by the Hell’s Angels Mercenary Group a month prior. This was the headquarters of the newly established Hard-Faced Defense Company.

Hard-Faced (Hades Snake Giant) meant an impenetrable wall in English, symbolizing the unshakeable defense force this company possessed. While the original name, Hell’s Angels, sounded magnificent, it was too provocative for a defense company. Thus, the Bearded Captain had racked his brains to come up with this meaningful new name. The first high-level meeting of the Hell’s Angels Mercenary Group since Gu Xechen’s return was officially convened.

At the meeting, the Bearded Captain announced the regulations for reorganizing the mercenary group.

The newly established Hard-Faced Defense Company would be divided into two main departments: the General Affairs Department and the Operations Department. The General Affairs Department would oversee logistics, finance, scientific research, intelligence, and other auxiliary divisions. The Operations Department would have one singular duty: to command the nearly one hundred thousand armed personnel currently belonging to the defense company and be responsible for all military actions.

More importantly, the Operations Department would also be responsible for recruiting, training, and daily management of new personnel.

The current Hard-Faced Defense Company consisted of ninety-nine percent of mercenaries who were former prison inmates, villains, and ruffians. However, upgrading to a defense company allowed the group to receive substantial personnel replenishment annually from retired Federal regular army soldiers. Federal regular army soldiers, especially those from elite or ultra-specialized legions, were inherently unruly individuals. They often joined defense companies simply looking to earn extra pocket money or retirement funds, and every one of them was a troublemaker. Managing these individuals required certain skills.

The Bearded Captain admitted he couldn't handle these “thugs” from the military and thus handed the burden to Gu Xechen.

Linghu became the head of the Hard-Faced Intelligence Department; Maria became the head of the Medical Department and Deputy Head of the Scientific Research Department. Excluding these two, Gu Xechen’s acquaintances from the mercenary group, such as the Banruo and Mohe brothers, were all shuffled into the Operations Department, becoming Gu Xechen’s direct subordinates.

Gu Xechen held command over the Operations Department, and the Bearded Captain managed the General Affairs Department. The two held equal say within the Hard-Faced Defense Company—this was the Bearded Captain’s reward for Gu Xechen’s achievements.

At the meeting, the Bearded Captain explicitly stated that Gu Xechen was better suited to command operations; therefore, he would henceforth only be responsible for the company’s operations and development. All armed forces of the defense company would be under Gu Xechen’s control, and no one from the General Affairs Department would interfere with the work of the Operations Department!

Facing the Bearded Captain’s generosity, Gu Xechen happily accepted.

This powerful armed force was now completely under Gu Xechen’s control. In the coming time, Gu Xechen would develop it to become ever stronger.

The Bearded Captain maintained his mercenary spirit; after reading out the reorganization regulations in less than five minutes at the assembly, he began shouting about celebrating Gu Xechen’s merits.

Virgurd, who was in charge of the logistics department of the Hard-Faced Defense Company, was an old cadre of the mercenary group. He had already booked a table at Copenhagen’s most upscale restaurant—a branch of the chain restaurant established by the Federation’s most famous ‘Culinary King,’ Daozun Dan.

The group joyfully poured out of the building. A convoy of vehicles was waiting for them in front of the structure.

The weather in Copenhagen was gloomy, with the sky filled with thick, dark clouds. Gu Xechen instinctively looked up and caught a fleeting dark shadow on a building across the street.

With a bang, a twenty-millimeter sniper round shot out directly towards Gu Xechen’s brow.