Twenty-three locations, including Mount Wutai, a sacred Buddhist site, Mount Changbai, a dragon vein land, and Mount Longhu, a Taoist sacred land, etc.
On this day.
A grand resonance echoed from all of them, not loud, but melodious and lingering, as if to spread throughout the Great Xia, ascend to the nine heavens, and announce to the heavens in the thirty-third layer.
Also on this day.
Many ghost exorcists and powerful ghosts across the Great Xia looked up at the clear blue sky.
They all saw it.
A brilliant radiance invisible to ordinary people, like meteors flowing upstream, tore through the sky. The light came from different directions, carrying immense power, bearing the national destiny of the Great Xia, and converging towards one direction of the Great Xia.
That was the direction of Xiamen City.
At the same time.
In the operating room of a hospital in Xiamen City.
As Zhang Wei uttered the words "and the entire Great Xia" to Old Master Qiu, everyone present looked up sharply, their expressions changing.
They saw majestic and brilliant lights.
Like a waterfall of the Milky Way cascading from the nine heavens, one after another, twenty-three in total, converging here, forming a brilliant golden dragon named "Great Xia."
"Roar!!!!—"
The dragon's roar echoed through the nine heavens, piercing the gate.
The dragon's roar, accompanied by the golden dragon, charged towards the gate sealed by the heavenly shackles. The dragon's roar shook the nine heavens, as if to send the heart of "Great Xia" to the nine heavens and the nine netherworlds, announcing to the underworld – the heroes of our Great Xia are returning to the Yellow Springs.
"Heaven, do you see this? This is the voice of our Great Xia."
Zhang Wei roared.
The brilliant golden dragon 'knocked' on the gate, and everyone was shaken. They all saw…
They broke.
On that gate, hundreds of chains were breaking, one after another, like dominoes falling. As the wall collapsed, the chains snapped one by one.
One…
Two…
Five…
Ten…
Thirty…
Fifty…
Ninety-nine…
In an instant, the hundreds of chains on the gate shattered inch by inch.
Old Master Qiu was stunned. His aged body froze in place, unable to speak for a long time, but his trembling body testified to his unrest.
Immediately after, he felt someone place a hand on his shoulder. Old Master Qiu turned to look:
"Master, senior brothers."
It was his master and senior brothers. They were also unsettled, excited, their eyes red as they murmured:
"Did you see, Zhi Xing?"
"This is why I always said there was no regret in joining the Great Xia."
"This is the Great Xia behind us, Zhi Xing, we are not sacrificing in vain."
As if sensing the words of Old Master Qiu.
The dragon veins of Mount Changbai and other places in the Great Xia roared, their cries echoing through the heavens, as if responding to Old Master Qiu… You sacrificed for the Great Xia in the past, and now the Great Xia protects you.
On the other side.
Lu Lianxue and the others were also excited.
"They did it, they really did it."
They gazed at the breaking iron chains, at Zhang Wei pushing the gate, and even Wu Nian, with his expressionless face, showed a trace of excitement and exhilaration.
However.
Before they could celebrate for long, a murmur came:
"It's still not enough."
It was Zhang Wei speaking. He was looking at the gate he was pushing, and there was still one chain that hadn't broken.
However.
Just as Zhang Wei was contemplating whether to use a miracle.
The fat man, who had been lurking in the shadows, also noticed the unbroken chain. His eyes flickered, and he finally sighed:
"Zhang Wei, why did you make such a big fuss? You've made me feel passionate too."
"But this is a moment that will go down in history, and I, the villain, should be recorded in it. Let me join in."
As the words fell.
The fat man unleashed his full power against his own full-power attack.
The surging yin energy was like a tsunami, rolling like a river, transforming into a great dragon of yin energy. It came from afar, descending from the sky, and to everyone's surprised gaze, it struck the chain on the gate.
This scene.
Left Lu Lianxue and the others bewildered.
Zhang Wei, however, subtly glanced in one direction, where the fat man was, and a smile curved his lips.
[Ding! An unknown ghost lamented, "Even as a villain, I have a patriotic heart."]
[Host gains System Points +200]
Instantly.
With a crisp snapping sound, the last chain binding the gate broke.
Seeing this.
Zhang Wei roared and unleashed his full power, channeling the newly acquired 200 system points into himself, pushing the sealed, closed gate.
[Ding! Ability 'Miracle' used.]
Rumble.
As if two mountains were being pushed open, a deafening roar ensued.
The two closed gates were pushed open, and under Zhang Wei's push, they slowly opened.
"It's opening, it's almost open."
Lu Lianxue and the others were nervous, their palms sweating. They all saw Zhang Wei sweating profusely, his clothes soaked, but he was oblivious, struggling to push the gate.
Although the gate was slowly opening.
They felt no excitement, only tension, because as Zhang Wei pushed the gate open, it opened slower and slower, as if it were not two gates, but two mountains. As they pushed towards the back, the two gates became heavier and heavier.
Opposing heaven was not so easily dealt with.
Even with the help of the golden dragon and the yin dragon, they couldn't completely push open the gate. The gate remained half-open, and Zhang Wei could no longer push it any further.
In response.
Lu Lianxue and the others could no longer sit still and rushed forward to help Zhang Wei push the gate. Even if touching the gate would cause them greater harm, they didn't care.
"Move, damn it!!"
Zhang Chao roared, his face full of unwillingness, but even with their combined efforts, the gate remained unmoved.
Lu Lianxue's eyes turned red. As she pushed, she cried out in distress, "We've come this far, are we going to fail? Heaven, you are so cruel."
Zhang Wei said nothing, his hands pressed against the gate, pushing with all his might. He was waiting, waiting for the so-called miracle…
And as he struggled to push the gate.
Huh?
Zhang Wei, along with Zhang Chao and the others, froze. They suddenly noticed a pair of hands on the gate.
No.
Not only on this side of the gate, but on the other side of the gate, there was also a pair of hands pushing to pull it open.
This sudden development stunned Zhang Chao and the others. They instinctively turned their heads to look, and in an instant, they were stunned, their noses stinging and their eyes welling up with tears.
They were people emitting white light.
Their attire confirmed their identity: they were the people of the Great Xia.
And on the other side of the gate.
Their attire was the same as Qiu Qingshan and the others – they were the heroes of the War of Resistance!
A miracle had occurred…
This was the 'will of the Great Xia.' The vast land of the Great Xia felt what was happening here, and that will of the land condensed into millions of 'people of the Great Xia.'
Rumble.
The gate moved.
Although Zhang Wei and a few others couldn't push it, what if it were all the people of the Great Xia?
This scene.
Was witnessed by the leaders of the twenty-three locations.
On Mount Changbai.
The majestic middle-aged man laughed, "Heaven, can you stop us? If one person from our Great Xia is not enough, then the strength of a nation!"
Finally.
With a roar.
Driven by the countless wills of the Great Xia, even heaven couldn't stop it, and the gate was completely opened.
The sealed gate.
At this moment, it shone brightly, radiating holiness.
"Grandpa Qiu, let's go."
Zhang Wei stood before the opened gate, revealing a row of white teeth. Beside him stood millions of people from the Great Xia, all nodding and smiling at Old Master Qiu.
Old Master Qiu was deeply shaken.
Faintly.
Old Master Qiu, along with Qiu Qingshan and the others, heard it.
Twenty-three voices echoed in their ears.
At the same moment, the leaders standing in the twenty-three locations of the Great Xia all bowed towards Xiamen City and said in unison:
"This prosperous era is as you wished. Thank you for your sacrifices, allowing us to live in peace. Please rest assured, heroes, and step into the Yellow Springs."
It wasn't until Qiu Qingshan and the others walked into the gate and waved to Old Master Qiu that Old Master Qiu came back to his senses.
Looking at his master and senior brothers inside the gate, and the former comrades beside him, Old Master Qiu smiled with red eyes.
He nodded.
And walked into the gate.
Perhaps even heaven was moved, touched. The moment Old Master Qiu walked into the gate, he transformed. His figure was no longer aged, but returned to his seventeen-year-old self.
That was the age when he and Qiu Qingshan participated in the War of Resistance.
Watching his master and senior brothers approach him bathed in light, still smiling, and his senior brothers still as radiant as ever…
The young Old Master Qiu seemed to have returned to the past, saluting them and shouting:
"Militiaman Qiu Zhixing of the Thirty-Seventh Militia Corps, requesting to rejoin the team!"
Finally.
To prevent heaven from stopping them, Zhang Wei also stepped through the gate, leading Old Master Qiu and the others onto the Yellow Springs.
With Zhang Wei's roar.
"Heroes of the Great Xia enter the Yellow Springs, all specters and ghouls in front, please make way!"
They entered the path to the Yellow Springs.
Faintly visible.
Wherever they passed, the彼岸花 (shore flowers) bloomed by the roadside, brilliant and beautiful, as if even this netherworld was bidding them farewell.
…
Epilogue:
In the not-too-distant future.
In a wealthy family in the Great Xia.
At this time.
This wealthy family was gathered together, looking at a baby held in a woman's arms.
It could be seen.
The woman placed the baby on the ground, and on the ground, many items were placed, including an abacus, a brush, a flag, RMB, and so on.
This was the baby's first birthday grasping ceremony.
In the Great Xia, there was a custom where, on a child's first birthday, symbolic items were placed for the child to grasp. Whatever the child grasped symbolized the achievements they would have in the future.
For example, if the baby grasped a brush, because the brush symbolizes a scholar, if the baby grasped a brush, it would mean that the baby might become a scholar in the future, or achieve great success in literature.
As the baby was placed on the ground.
"What do you think Zhi Xing will grasp? I guess it'll be RMB."
"Haha, do you think Zhi Xing is as greedy as you are?"
Many people spoke.
And under everyone's gaze.
The baby named Zhi Xing crawled, crawled straight towards a flag printed with a five-star red flag, and picked it up.
At this moment.
His pure and innocent eyes curved into a smile, and he let out a baby's tender laugh, happily playing with and waving the flag in his hand.
…