Chapter Forty-Six: The Power of Great Xia
Lin Fan gave a few more instructions. He couldn’t help but blame himself for not arriving at the scene in time, which had led to the sacrifice of those young soldiers. Even though they had rushed over as fast as they could, nearly burning out the engine, and it had taken only five minutes in total, every second meant a life was at stake.
“For the time being, none of you should stay holed up in the command center,” Lin Fan said, sweeping his gaze across the group. “Soon, someone take Wang Hu back, and have Gongshu Ming from First Squad fill in. Including myself, everyone will be stationed at intervals of three hundred kilometers, patrolling and moving along the line.”
“Also, call in the disciples from your sects and clans. Arrange a group every three kilometers, covering the entire two-thousand-kilometer Ludong border. If anything happens, they can hold the line until we get there.”
Dao Wanqian suddenly asked, “What about the Godslayer Demon Subduing Technique?”
“You should have some understanding of it by now. Teach this method to the disciples of your clans and sects,” Lin Fan replied without hesitation. After all, this technique was meant to protect the country. If he could, Lin Fan would have spread it to everyone, but while the technique could be simple, it also had its complexities; it had to be taught face-to-face, making widespread adoption a gradual process.
If it were possible, Lin Fan would have printed copies and distributed them to every citizen in Daxia. But on one hand, to cultivate the Godslayer Demon Subduing Technique, one needed a solid foundation—ordinary people would need months of physical training to prepare. On the other hand, cultivation itself was fraught with danger. A single mistake in directing one’s internal energy could be fatal, so it was not something that could be taught by handing out a manual—it had to be conveyed in person.
“Understood!” The others responded in unison. None of them wanted to see such tragedy strike again.
Just then, Lin Fan’s phone rang again.
He was beginning to dread the sound of his ringtone. Gritting his teeth, he answered, “What is it, Elder Jin?”
“There’s been another incident,” Elder Jin’s voice was complicated. “Area 0124, Wang Family Village…”
“I’ll bring a team over immediately!” Lin Fan’s voice was resolute.
“No need,” Elder Jin coughed. “It’s not dangerous, no need to bring anyone with you. It’s just… the fishing village called Wang Family Village is proving troublesome. Go take a look yourself. You don’t need to worry, though—it’s complicated, but not dangerous.”
With that, Lin Fan felt a little at a loss.
After hanging up, he assigned everyone their posts and immediately set out for Wang Family Village.
On the way, Lin Fan glanced at his phone.
Online, the footage of the Corpse King, Jiang Chen, had gone viral.
Lin Fan wasn’t surprised. He hadn’t ordered anyone to surrender their phones—he saw no reason to hide the truth. Furthermore, the people of Daxia deserved to know the state of their own country.
He tapped open one of the videos.
A viscous, pitch-black stone tablet suddenly stretched out a massive, youthful hand and seized a worker—
Grotesque and terrifying, the rotting figure of Jiang Chen slowly emerged.
Five meters tall—though it might not sound impressive, when one truly looked up at him, that feeling of insignificance was palpable, even through a screen! Like a looming mountain!
When everyone looked up, they barely reached his knees!
Such oppression came from a difference in the very order of life—standing before them was something other, something that transcended humanity, a being high above.
For a moment, the barrage of viewer comments exploded.
“What… what is that?”
“Is that a god?”
“No, I just heard the official Daxia statement. They called it a ‘Mysterious,’ not a god…”
“I heard from the authorities too—this is the Corpse King, Jiang Chen, awakened from a weakened state!”
“No way, the Corpse King Jiang Chen? That legendary being is real?”
“I didn’t believe it, but after seeing this video… If Jiang Chen is real, then gods must exist as well.”
“Wait, does that mean Sun Wukong is real, too?”
But soon, the comments fell silent.
The next scene—
Within the grayish mist, the fallen were rising one by one, their wounds still bleeding, standing in unnatural postures. Their gray-blue eyes were utterly vacant, and they charged at the living with feral howls, driven by little more than instinct.
As all the workers were evacuated, fleeing for their lives, a group of young figures charged toward the zombies, exchanging their own lives for the chance for others to escape.
Their youthful faces were marked by fear, their bodies trembling, yet still, they smiled.
At that moment, there were no more comments.
Silence.
Not even background music—only the tragic, youthful shouts.
“We are soldiers!”
“Come on!”
Every person in Daxia who saw the video watched that scene in silence.
These were the soldiers of Daxia.
They rushed forward, one after another, and fell.
When they stood up again, they had become mindless corpses, but more young figures kept charging forward.
“They’re all heroes.”
“They… after all, they’re just kids. Not much older than my own child.”
“I’m going to the site to help!”
Soon after, Situ Hong appeared.
The firepower net that symbolized Daxia’s might shredded the zombies like a metallic hurricane.
The comments became fervent again.
But then—
“Jiang Chen isn’t afraid of bullets?”
“Not even short-range missiles work? How…”
Watching that decaying body stride through the smoke and flames, everyone who saw it could scarcely believe their eyes.
“Guns are useless. Against this kind of enemy, what are we supposed to do?”
“What can we do?”
“We have no weapons left!”
Yet, as the comments still debated what to do, the veteran soldiers led by Situ Hong, each piloting armored vehicles weighing several tons, charged straight at Jiang Chen, willing to be smashed to pieces if that was what it took!
Then, drawing their short blades, they used their bodies and lives to ensnare the Corpse King.
Fearless.
For a moment, the comments fell silent.
These veterans, with their very lives, told everyone:
When faced with the unknown and the powerful, when all weapons have failed—
The people of Daxia will never retreat!
Our lives, our bodies, are the final weapons!
Our resolve is the greatest power of all!
This is the true strength of Daxia.
It was this force that allowed the Daxia of old to become the giant it is today.
It was this force that enabled the unarmed people of Daxia to defeat the well-equipped invaders.
Guns, artillery—these weapons are formidable, but for Daxia, it is the will that has been passed down through generations that is the true power the great nations of the world truly fear!