Chapter 94 - 94 - The Snowstorm Subsides, Greenery Revives, Weapons Fall Silent

Xin Yu walked alone through the streets of Belobog. He had parted ways with the others precisely because he wanted to see this city by himself. He wanted to understand the spirit in which its citizens lived. Faced with an apocalyptic scene, with a life-and-death crisis gradually closing in, could the people here still live with smiles on their faces? Along the way, Xin Yu saw neatly lined-up guards in uniform patrolling the streets. He even saw children smiling and greeting these soldiers. He passed a flower shop, looking at the various types of flowers, at the brightly colored blossoms in full bloom. He also passed a small newsstand selling all sorts of books and reports. Although the script was different from Earth's languages, Xin Yu could still understand it. Speaking of which, ever since regaining his memories, Xin Yu seemed to have never encountered any difficulties due to language barriers. When he had first awakened, he had assumed he naturally mastered the language of the Far East. But now, he was slowly realizing that he seemed to possess some special ability to understand the languages of all intelligent beings and read the scripts of civilizations. After all, when he had previously emerged from the Void Land and communicated with Huangquan, the language she spoke was not any language he knew, yet they could communicate normally. This latent ability did not originate from Honkai, nor from the Void. It was likely a gift from some existence behind him. Xin Yu closed the book. He had read some of this world's fairy tales and stories. On the roads, not a single person looked pale and sallow, nor did anyone have a face full of despair and pain. While not everyone was brimming with hope, they still lived their peaceful daily lives. Some people, though hurrying and showing anxiety, did not display much panic. Even with doomsday woven into their lives, even with monster attacks never ceasing, the people of this city still maintained their will to live, still had not fallen into panic and despair. Xin Yu sat down by a fountain in the square. If one wanted to understand the face of a civilization most directly, then one should look at what its children were like. The education children received from a young age represented the face of that civilization. Children wouldn't hide their thoughts and feelings, so often their unintentional words and expressions could reveal what a family was like, and from a small family, one could extrapolate to the face of the entire civilization. Xin Yu could still see the children's smiles, see them greeting those soldier-like people. He knew that even if the previous leader had taken a wrong path and brought some harm to the city, it had not broken the people. The people still stood firm in the storm, still stood tall in this land of ice and snow. ...This was what ought to be protected. Xin Yu could strongly feel that this city stood tall in the wind and snow not because of a divine miracle, not because of some mighty power, but because of the Will of Preservation passed down through generations. It was the will of those soldiers who, even in the biting cold, fought fiercely against monsters, solely to protect the only home behind them! Even facing an endless, protracted snowstorm, people would persevere, solely for the hope of tomorrow. And now, the people's hope had arrived. And hope was not the primary reason for saving these people. The true reason was those individuals who, even when facing long and endless despair, were still willing to step forward; it was those romantic idealists; it was those who were willing to guard continuously, who even in death, still awaited the arrival of hope. "This is what I should learn. Even if facing a storm of unimaginable fury, even if facing an enemy of unimaginable strength, one must still possess the unwavering will to fight for what one desires to protect." "This is the Will of Preservation." Xin Yu looked at the Everwinter Monument erected in memory of the city's builders, standing opposite him. He sensed within it the Will of Preservation, which perhaps existed, or perhaps did not. Inside Qlipoth Fort, Xing stared blankly at the Flame Lance that had suddenly appeared before her. Looking at the faint flames flickering upon it, she could feel the will within it resonating with someone, as if someone had comprehended the will of the city's builders. And by the fountain, Xin Yu closed his eyes. He felt as if he had arrived in a world covered in ice and snow. On that vast snowy plain, many figures with indistinct backs stood before him. Some of those figures were incredibly small, unable to even hold their weapons steady. Others, however, stood tall and straight like pines and cypresses, a long spear in hand, unyieldingly confronting the wind and snow. Among those figures were the weak, the strong, the small, the withered, but every single one of them walked forward resolutely. Even if nothing lay ahead, even if only endless wind and snow lay ahead, they did not stop their steps. This was the Will of Preservation left behind by every Great Guardian. From these martyrs, Xin Yu learned what Preservation truly meant. Wisps of heat spread from Xin Yu's body. He, who had his eyes closed, opened them, then stood up and slowly walked towards a deserted corner. Only after no one was paying attention to him did his figure instantly vanish. Outside the city, although the Star Core had been dealt with, the planet's environment had already been altered. The wind and snow had not stopped, and the cold still persisted. It would perhaps take a very long time for this planet to return to the warmth it had before the Star Core disaster erupted. Xin Yu could feel the rewritten laws in a large part of the city. "Even though we have never met, even though a long time separates us, you have still taught me some truths, still shown me your will to protect these ordinary people. Then, as a latecomer, this is my return gift to you." The Honkai energy and Void power within Xin Yu surged wildly. Simultaneously, the cultivation power that neutralized both began to rapidly strengthen. Within the crystal core in his body, the heart that had been beating faintly began to pound violently. "Wind, cease." The Silvermane Guards on patrol were lamenting that today's wind was still quite strong when they suddenly found that the biting cold wind that had been blowing had abruptly stopped. They were somewhat taken aback, but after pausing for only a moment, they continued their way through the ice and snow. "Snow, melt." People in the city were astonished to find that the accumulated snow on the rooftops and the snowdrifts in street corners were rapidly disappearing, turning into water vapor and floating into the air. The Silvermane Guards venturing outside were also shocked to discover that the snow beneath their feet was beginning to melt rapidly. "Greenery, revive." The soil, which had turned into permafrost where few plants could survive, began to soften. Its rich nutrients were reawakened. People were astonished to find grass and trees growing at an exaggerated speed, and countless tender green shoots sprouted from the previously ice-sealed remains. "Weapons, fall silent." The Silvermane Guards battling the remaining monsters in the Fragmentum were astonished to find the monsters before them suddenly let out a fierce roar, then their bodies shattered into countless beautiful petals dancing in the air. Then, people looked up in bewilderment and found that the sun was already shining down, and at the same time, the abnormal feeling that had always surrounded them had vanished. All the Fragmentums within Belobog city vanished without a trace at the exact same moment. People were stunned by this transformation of heaven and earth for a long time. Finally, when they reacted, some shouted the names of their local deities, some shouted the name of the Aeon of Preservation, and some shouted the name of the new Great Guardian. Because at this moment, they truly knew. The wind and snow were indeed about to stop. A brand new future was about to turn a new page at this very moment.