Chapter 252
The gunfire in Nanjing gradually subsided, and the air was no longer filled solely with the stench of rotting corpses; it was now a mixture of gunpowder smoke and the joy of revenge. Lu Er stood in the middle of the corpse-strewn street, his fiery red hair clotted with blood, his eerie yellow-blue eyes gleaming with an icy light. He trod on the head of the last Japanese officer, the blood still lingering on his two swords.
Not far away, Rong Zhou leaned against a broken wall, his eyes still somewhat empty, but compared to the dead silence and blankness before, they were now a little clearer. He looked at the blood-soaked Lu Er and whispered, "Is it over?"
"For them, this is just the beginning." Lu Er walked over and wiped the blood off Rong Zhou's face with his sleeve. "The account of Nanjing cannot be settled by killing a few thousand executioners."
Rong Zhou fell silent. He knew Lu Er was telling the truth. Their revenge in Nanjing had merely plucked out a few of the invaders' fangs, but had failed to shake their fundamental position. Those decision-makers far away in Japan wouldn't even truly grieve over the deaths of those thousands.
A few days later, news reached them through underground channels: To avenge the "loss" of Nanjing and completely destroy the will of the Chinese military and civilians to resist, the Japanese army secretly launched brutal biological warfare experiments and massacres in Northeast China. Countless unarmed civilians died in agony, a scene even more horrific than the Nanjing Massacre.
When Rong Zhou read the intelligence, his eyes, which had just regained some of their sparkle, instantly froze again. He crumpled the information into a ball, his knuckles turning white from the strain. "They don't feel any pain..." he said hoarsely. "No matter how many Japanese troops we kill in China, they're still living happily on their home soil."
Lu Er sat beside him, gazing out the window at the still-shattered city of Nanjing. A flicker of determination flashed in his strange eyes beneath his red hair. "Then let them suffer," he spoke slowly, his tone calm but filled with unquestionable determination. "Let them know that the price of aggression is destruction they cannot afford."
"How can we make them hurt?" Rong Zhou looked up at him, and for the first time, a fire rekindled in his eyes, a fire mixed with endless hatred.
Lu Er didn't answer, simply extending his hand. A faint yet exceptionally pure energy slowly emerged from his palm. It was the power he had condensed after absorbing the resentment of countless Japanese soldiers and the murderous aura of the battlefield. Rong Zhou subconsciously extended his hand as well, and a similar energy, though darker in color, rose from his palm.
"The power within us comes from the pain and hatred of this land." Lu Er looked at the energy in his palm. "It is powerful enough, powerful enough to... overturn the entire world."
Rong Zhou instantly understood what he meant. He looked at Lu Er, his eyes free of hesitation, only a desperate madness and relief. "Okay."
They found a secluded cave deep in the mountains outside Nanjing. Far away from the war, with only the whistling wind and the occasional roar of beasts, it became their final secret base.
In the days that followed, they began to frantically absorb the energy scattered in the air. The aura of death, resentment, and pain that permeated Nanjing, as well as the remaining killing force from the battlefield, surged towards them like a tide.
Lu Er's red hair grew even brighter, like a blazing flame, and his yellow-blue eyes grew even more eerie, as if they could see through life and death. A faint blood-red aura surrounded his body, and his two swords, nourished by energy, had fine lines appearing on their blades, emitting a chilling aura.
Rong Zhou became even more silent, the energy around him more restrained, yet also more terrifying. He was recovering the accumulated cancer from the multiple worlds beneath his home.
His eyes were no longer empty, but sharp as an eagle's, as if they could reduce everything to ash. The wounds on his body healed rapidly under the repairing energy, and his entire body exuded a cold and powerful sense of oppression.
They seldom spoke, spending most of their time cultivating with their eyes closed. Yet, they could sense each other's inner thoughts—hatred for the invaders, pain for the innocent, and a calmness about the impending end.
Half a month later, the energy within the cave reached a peak of concentration, practically solidifying into a solid substance. Lu Er and Rong Zhou opened their eyes simultaneously, their gazes meeting in mid-air. Without needing words, they reached a consensus.
They sat facing each other, their palms touching. The blood-colored energy within Lu Er and the dark energy within Rong Zhou slowly merged, forming a black and white energy vortex. The vortex grew larger and faster, and the cave began to shake violently, with debris falling from the top.
"ah--!"
The two men simultaneously let out a long roar, and energy circulated frantically within their bodies, constantly compressing and purifying. Their bodies began to become transparent, gradually merging into the energy vortex.
Outside the cave, the sky shifted, lightning flashed, and thunder roared. A massive column of energy shot up into the sky, piercing through the clouds and illuminating the entire night sky of Nanjing. The Japanese troops inside the city watched in horror, unsure of what was happening. Meanwhile, the surviving Chinese prayed silently in the darkness, as if they had seen a glimmer of hope.
When the energy column dissipated, the cave was flat. Only two pitch-black spheres, their surfaces covered in strange patterns, remained. One was smaller, emitting a scorching heat; the other, larger, carried an icy, oppressive aura. They lay there quietly, seemingly imbued with the power to annihilate the world.
As if they had come to life, the two spheres slowly rose into the air and flew towards the east. Their speed was so fast that it broke the sound barrier and left two long trails in the air.
At this time, mainland Japan was still immersed in the frenzy of war. Newspapers were filled with false news of "great victories for the Imperial Army," and on the streets, people talked about their "grand blueprint" of conquering China and dominating the world. Little did they know that a catastrophic disaster was quietly approaching.
The first sphere (Lu Er) reached Hiroshima first. It hovered in the air for a moment, then fell like a meteorite.
"boom--!!!"
A deafening roar erupted, a thousand times more terrifying than thunder. A massive mushroom cloud rose into the sky, instantly engulfing the entire city of Hiroshima. The blinding light dimmed the sky and earth, the intense heat reduced everything to ash, and the powerful shockwave, like a tsunami, swept through the surrounding area, reducing houses, bridges, and trees to rubble in an instant.
Before the people inside could react, they were vaporized by the intense heat or ripped apart by the shockwave. The bustling city instantly turned into a sea of fire. Wailing and screaming filled the air, but were quickly drowned out by the roar of the explosion.
A few hours later, the second sphere (Rongzhou) arrived at Nagasaki. The same scene was repeated: a huge explosion reduced Nagasaki to ruins, and countless lives were lost in an instant.
This time, Japan finally felt the pain, the kind of pain that went deep into its bones and could never be erased.
Inside the Imperial Palace in Tokyo, the Emperor and his ministers were terrified, their bodies trembling as they read the reports in their hands. The destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki left them trembling with fear, wondering which enemy had wielded such devastating power.
Panic spread across Japan like a plague. People began fleeing cities and flocking to the countryside. The once enthusiastic war spirit disappeared in an instant, replaced by endless fear and despair.
The atmosphere within the Japanese military headquarters was extremely oppressive. The generals argued endlessly, some advocating continued resistance, others arguing for immediate surrender. But no matter how they argued, they could not change the facts before them: their homeland had suffered a devastating blow, and continuing the war would only lead to the destruction of all of Japan.
On the third day after the two spheres exploded, the Japanese Emperor issued the "Imperial Rescript on the Termination of the War" and announced unconditional surrender.
When the news reached China, the nation rejoiced. Inside Nanjing, the survivors emerged from hiding, looked up at the sky, tears welling in their eyes. They didn't know who had brought this victory, but they knew the war was finally over and peace had finally arrived.
And in the distant sky above the Pacific Ocean, the residual energy after the explosion of the two spheres gradually gathered into two blurry figures.
"It's over." Lu Er's voice was a little tired, but also full of relief.
"Yeah." Rong Zhou responded softly, his eyes finally regained their former clarity. Although there was still a hint of sadness, there was more calmness.
They looked at the world below that was gradually returning to order, and at the people who were smiling again. They felt no pleasure of revenge in their hearts, only a heavy sense of relief.
"Can we still go back?" Rong Zhou asked.
Lu Er shook his head. He could feel his energy dissipating. "I'm dreaming! It would be great if I could see my son, daughter, Lao Wen, Xiao Liu and the others."
Rong Zhou curled his lips and said nothing more. Their figures gradually became transparent, and finally turned into a sky full of light points, which sprinkled on the land of China.
These spots of light merge into the mountains, rivers, and the soil, as if guarding this land that has experienced many vicissitudes of life and the hard-won peace.
Years later, people still speak of the mysterious explosion that changed the course of the war. Some say it was divine punishment; others, a manifestation of heroism. But few know that two young men, Lu Er and Rong Zhou, willingly transformed themselves into the forces of destruction to protect this land and avenge their fallen compatriots, forever etched their lives in that tragic war.
In the Nanjing Memorial Hall, models of the two spheres are displayed, with the words "Dedicated to the heroes who sacrificed their lives for peace" written next to them.
Outside the memorial hall, the fiery red maple leaves bloom as scheduled every year, just like Lu Er's flying red hair, telling the dusty past in the wind.
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