Chapter 213: Five Minutes

What is Yang Yi going to do?

This was the shared question in everyone’s mind.

Ten seconds later, all text on every screen vanished.

The presidential guards dragged the president along the underground passage toward the emergency command center, when suddenly the entire ground shook, the presidential mansion swayed violently, and they halted.

Many soldiers surged out from the underground entrance—they were supposed to be on 24-hour duty at the underground command center, using modern communication equipment to assist the president and senior officials in directing operations during threats.

But now, they were all fleeing out.

“What’s happening?” shouted the commander of the presidential guards.

“The emergency command center has been destroyed!”

“All facilities were instantly shattered—definitely that female superhuman!”

The president, protected by the presidential guards, stood frozen in place.

Emergency lights beside the underground passage flickered green, casting shifting shadows across their faces, making their expressions of shock and disbelief even more pronounced.

The emergency command facility on the sixth underground level was ordered built by the 32nd president of Ark during the last world war. It could withstand all attacks except direct nuclear explosions, endure intercontinental missile strikes, and served as the president’s emergency sanctuary.

Destroyed in an instant?

Suddenly, Vice President Alan Anderson answered a video call, trembling as he turned the screen toward the president. On the video was a command center—everyone was frantically rushing about, every face bearing the expression of those facing the apocalypse:

“Mr. President, Mount Yan Strategic Command Center—all nuclear retaliation facilities destroyed!”

“Mr. President, Crow Mountain ‘Underground Hexagon Building’ Emergency Command Center—destroyed!”

“Mr. President, Weather Mountain Command Center, Federal Emergency Management Agency—destroyed!”

…

Suddenly, booming explosions echoed from above.

The president’s face turned ashen. “Who gave the order? Did you retaliate against her?”

“No, Mr. President, those were missiles accidentally launched—intercepted and detonated midair by an invisible force,” said General Omar Asher, a four-star general in the command center, his face ashen.

The video flickered; the camera shifted to the sky: above the capital, several scattered missiles flew toward the tiny figure standing in midair, then exploded suddenly as if hitting a barrier, forming a deathly fireworks display lasting minutes—reminding everyone that annihilation was within reach.

“Back to the office!” The president’s voice was hoarse, as if scraped raw by sandpaper.

The presidential guards obeyed almost mechanically, each face twisted with a mixture of panic and confusion.

Back in the oval office, the president swiftly ordered the immediate evacuation of all military bases in the capital and in Watson County.

He kept trying to contact the Xia government—but the line remained busy the entire time.

Vice President Alan Anderson ordered his secretary to open the large screen and connect to the command center inside the presidential mansion.

The liaison officer responsible for connecting to nearby military bases was drenched in sweat, his uniform soaked through at the chest. He trembled, forgetting even to salute:

“Mr. President, Bomo Air Force Base in the Capital District has been destroyed!”

“Capital District, Army MacFort Base—destroyed!”

“Capital District, Andrew Air Force Base—destroyed!”

…

The large screen split into nine smaller panels, each displaying surveillance footage from different military bases in the capital.

Under high-definition surveillance, “Eagle” fighter jets, “White Eagle” stealth bombers, space shuttles, and “Wasp” drones—representing the world’s most advanced and elite military weapons—had turned into mere iron sand, cascading like waterfalls to scatter as piles of dust on the ground.

One by one, the world’s most fortified military bunkers slowly crumbled into powder and drifted away with the wind.

Yet nearby residential buildings remained intact, their windows unbroken; swings in the park still swayed gently in the breeze.

Though so close, they seemed divided by an invisible barrier into two separate worlds.

The president asked weakly, “How many minutes?”

“What did you say?” the secretary asked cautiously.

“I said—since she appeared in the sky, how many minutes—” the president suddenly roared, hurling the phone on his desk to the floor.

“Five minutes…” Vice President Alan Anderson glanced at his wristwatch, speaking numbly.

“Mr. President, we must do something!” General Omar Asher in the command center said solemnly. “I request activation of the newly developed high-power laser defense system—launch high-power microwave cannons to retaliate against the enemy!”

“Mr. President, I request immediate retaliatory strikes against the capital of Xia—to force the enemy to defend themselves!”

Another four-star general, Harry Arnold, his hair gray, dark bags under his eyes, his cloudy gaze sharp as a blade.

Defense Minister Seth Griggs hurriedly interrupted: “No. So far, she has only destroyed nine military bases—no civilian lives lost. If we truly enrage her, not just everyone in the presidential mansion, but every citizen in the nation lies at her mercy. For the sake of the bigger picture, Mr. President, endure this for now!”

The four-star generals ignored him. This defense minister had once been a news anchor, rising to power by flattering the president on air. His so-called “bigger picture” was merely self-preservation.

But who in this room didn’t value their life? Those who reached this position treasured their lives more than anything else. Even international reputation, national dignity, or the nation’s future could be sacrificed.

They could ignite wars for ambition and profit, disregarding billions of lives; they could scheme and betray each other for power—but when their own lives were at stake, everything else had to retreat.

Nearly a century has passed since the last world war. The prolonged peace of today’s world exists only because under nuclear weapons, all are equal.

Before the apocalyptic power of nuclear weapons, all material differences and social hierarchies vanish completely, achieving in some sense true “equality among all beings.”

The elite hide safely behind the lines, able to command millions of ordinary people to fight and die for their ambition, profit, and power, manipulating them with fabricated narratives, making them believe they fight for some noble cause.

Those good days are over. Under the deterrent of nuclear weapons, these life-obsessed elites have been forced to abandon direct violent warfare, turning instead to subtler, more convoluted methods to compete for interests, resources, and power.

Now, a threat greater than nuclear weapons exists—and it hovers above them right now.

Who dares retaliate?

The screen continued broadcasting, each new report like a funeral bell tolling, announcing the fall of a mighty empire—in merely five minutes.

“Watson County, Army Ellis Base—destroyed…”

“Watson County, Huit Island Naval Air Station—destroyed…”

“Watson County, Everet Naval Base—destroyed…”

“Watson County, Bange Nuclear Submarine Base—destroyed…”

“Watson County, Mac Air Force Base—destroyed…”

“Watson County, Feld Air Force Base—destroyed…”

…

At this moment, across every internet-connected region of the world, every person’s phone screen streamed live via satellite the precise, silent, emotionless “divine punishment.”