The survivors underground saw animals transform into colorful light and disappear into the earth, and plants representing life rapidly grew out of the light. Before they could even be amazed and marvel at this beauty and wonder, they heard a dragon's roar that seemed to resound throughout the heavens and earth.
The dragon's roar startled all the survivors in the underground world. After a moment of stunned silence, Wang Daqiang, Xiaoyun, Xu Lei, and the others wanted to go to the underground center to check on Gou Fugui and Xie Tianlang, since only the two of them remained to deal with the blue dragon.
However, before they could run, they heard the sound of a great earthquake, a sound even more terrifying and powerful than a dragon's roar, and in addition to the shaking, there seemed to be the sound of rushing water.
Then, the tense and vigilant people underground saw a giant wave rolling in from the front, which engulfed them all in an instant.
...
When Lu Xuesi opened his eyes again, he was still in a daze for a moment, but he quickly came to his senses and his heart was suddenly filled with extreme worry.
"Dad!! Awen!! Guoguo!! Guoguo, where are you! Where are you?!"
He cried out in alarm and soon saw several people lying on the ground not far from him.
Lu Xuesi rushed over, picked up her little daughter who was not even a year old, and tremblingly reached out to touch her breath before letting out a sigh of relief and sitting down on the ground.
It's good that you're alive, it's good that you're still alive!!
Then he carried his daughter to his wife and father, bent down and gently called to them. Afterwards, he saw his parents-in-law not far away and called to them as well.
Finally, the family gathered together, looked at each other, and couldn't help but laugh with emotion. But as they laughed, tears welled up in their eyes.
"Ah! Ah..."
Little Guoguo, who is less than a year old, can't speak yet, but she can open her big, round eyes and look at the sky in amazement.
She doesn't have a long memory, but she knows that for a long time recently, when she looked up at the sky, it wasn't such a bright and beautiful sky blue, but rather a black like the night sky.
Lu Xuesi, his wife, and their family also looked up at the sky, following their daughter's little hand.
The sun in the sky was still bright and dazzling, but what brought tears to my eyes was that it was no longer as scorching as it had been a few months ago, no longer seeming to be dragging everything toward destruction.
"So, have we survived this disaster?"
After a long while, Lu Xuesi slowly spoke: "Probably."
At that moment, the others who were also swept to the surface by the sudden surge of underground river water were asking the same question:
"Dad, is the disaster over?"
The middle-aged man, whose face was bruised and burned, reached out and touched his daughter's head, whose hair had grown longer again: "Hmm."
"The disaster is over, but we must start anew."
Although the sunlight had returned to normal by this time, the intense heat that had lasted for more than two months had nearly wiped out all the animals and plants on the ground.
Even among humans, who pride themselves on being the spirit of the earth, perhaps less than one or two out of ten will survive this disaster.
However, life is always the most tenacious thing; as long as there is a sliver of a chance to catch one's breath, everyone can struggle to survive.
Then, rebuild the world.
The first day after the end of the solar doomsday.
The 109 survivors of the underground world of Changshi, along with the more than 100 chickens, ducks, geese, cats, dogs, and groundhogs that had grown to over 100, gathered together again. After failing to find the three brothers, Gou Fugui, Xie Tianlang, and Song Sanchuan, they packed up all the things they had brought up from underground and started their lives anew in the Jinyu residential area.
Life on the surface is not much different from life in the underground world, except that whenever they encounter problems or difficulties, they always subconsciously call out to Xie Tianlang or look for Fugui'er, and when the machines malfunction, they always want to ask Song Sanchuan.
The 30th day after the end of the solar apocalypse.
The survivors in Chang City made contact with the people at the capital's underground base and learned that although the survivors there had dug a sufficiently deep underground base, many had still died due to food and water shortages. However, at least nearly a million people were still alive at the capital's underground base.
The 99th day after the end of the solar apocalypse.
New shoots sprouted anew on the once dry and cracked earth, and trees that had been scorched by fire and seemed to have died sprouted new branches.
In the hidden forest, the small animals cautiously poked their heads out.
The ocean, where large numbers of fish had once died due to excessively high temperatures, is now seeing new life emerge from its depths.
The houses destroyed by the explosions and the countless corpses were burned and scattered across the land, and then homes were rebuilt.
Eight years after the end of the solar apocalypse.
A movie called "Underworld" became a global phenomenon and swept numerous film awards.
The fantastical and magnificent underground world captivated everyone who saw it, and the enormous white tree and the serpent that eventually transformed into a dragon in the underground world pushed that fantasy and mystery to its peak.
Because every detail is so realistic, many people believe that the world might actually exist.
Some crazy people even actually dug holes in hopes of finding the underground world, but of course, they returned empty-handed and left with nothing but sighs.
Only the filmmakers and investors know that on their beautiful planet, besides the vibrant world above ground, there truly exists an even more magnificent and dazzling underground world.
Of course, the three movie protagonists they couldn't find no matter how hard they searched were also real people—
There's a guy named Sanchuan with super strong mechanical and computer skills, a cool and powerful boss named Xie who's a king in battle, and of course, there's Fugui'er, a beautiful woman with stunningly colorful hair who has a mysterious bloodline and can transform at crucial moments. She's the most popular character among domestic and international audiences.
Although they and that world cannot be found, they will always remain in their memories.
***
The world where the Gate of Doomsday is located.
March 13, 2222.
One month and three days have passed since Gou Fugui and Xie Tianlang entered the doomsday gate in Xinjiang Province on February 10th.
Researchers from the Doomsday Gate Research Institute and soldiers from the Special Ninth Legion have been stationed here for one month and three days.
From initial anxiety to despair, and now to the realization that no news is good news, Minister Tu and the people at the research institute have experienced a rollercoaster of emotions before finally settling into a state of steadfast calm.
"How's the situation today? Have you gotten the results from the analysis of the energy that escaped from inside?"
Minister Tu questioned Si Wuyuan, the young head of the research institute.
The young researcher pushed up his glasses: "The results are not much different from the previous analysis. The power emanating from this doomsday gate is extremely similar to the solar thermal energy."
However, the overflowing energy was even more chaotic and difficult to control, feeling like…” Si Wuyai thought for a moment, then looked up at the brilliant sun over Xinjiang Province, “like the sudden burst of solar energy affecting the Earth.”
Minister Tu couldn't help but frown: "According to you, the apocalyptic world inside this Gate of Doomsday is very likely related to the sun? What kind of apocalypse can the sun cause? It can't possibly kill people by scorching it, can it?"
Si Wuyai shook his head upon hearing this: "Minister, do you know how many tens of thousands of years it took for the current Earth-Sun distance to stabilize at the most suitable distance for life to grow?"
"All life on this earth, or rather everything, arose because of this most appropriate distance."
"If this optimal distance were not present, whether closer to the sun or farther away, even if it were just a tiny point or a single step in the universe, it would be enough to destroy everything on this planet."
"If we were a little closer, the sun's energy would explode, and the Earth's temperature would rise above 100 degrees Celsius, making it impossible for most life forms to survive. If we were a little farther away, or if the sun's energy weakened, the Earth's temperature would plummet. In a world with temperatures as low as -100 or even -200 degrees Celsius, what life could possibly survive?"
Si Wuyai looked up at the sky: "To this world, we are nothing more than tiny passersby in its billions of years of life."
"And humanity, or the magnificent life on Earth, is ultimately nothing more than a miracle of time and space."
Minister Tu interrupted the science-loving, artsy young man: "That's precisely why we need to live better. I don't care how insignificant we are to the Earth or the universe, but as long as we live, we are responsible for our own world and future!"
"Tell me, what do you think about the situation inside the Doomsday Gate? Is it possible for Sirius to bring Sanchuan and Fugui to safety?"
Si Wuyai paused, his expression somewhat uncertain.
"If this is really the kind of apocalyptic situation I'm thinking of... it probably won't be easy."
After all, this time is different from before. In the past, they would come out of the Doomsday Gate in two or three days, but this time a month has passed and they still haven't come out.
It should be noted that Qin Feng's second squad had already emerged from both post-apocalyptic worlds.
Although they ultimately failed to repair the world's core, they did manage to reclaim it and close the two doomsday gates.
Minister Tu disliked the young researcher's words: "Why are you always talking such pessimistic things! No result is the best result, you know?! Besides, they're not novices anymore. Even if they can't repair the world's core, they can at least take it back, right?! They definitely won't..."
Just as Minister Tu was angrily telling Si Wuyai not to plant flags recklessly, both of their communication wristwatches rang simultaneously, and even an excited researcher's voice could be heard from the research institute behind them:
"Minister! Senior Brother!! There's energy fluctuation at the Gate of Doomsday!! And it's a benign, decreasing fluctuation!! Captain Xie and the others might be coming out soon!!"
Just as the researcher shouted these words, the second largest doomsday gate in China, which covered most of the basin, began to shrink visibly!
When it shrank from what seemed like an eye of the earth to the size of a well opening, it finally spewed out three people that Minister Tu and his colleagues had been longing for for over a month.
As the colossal Gate of Doom vanished from the earth, all the warriors and researchers present cheered loudly.
Minister Tu's face was full of wrinkles from smiling, and he opened his arms to hug Xie Tianlang, who was closest to him, and patted him hard.
"You little rascal! Haha! You brat! I knew you'd live a long and prosperous life, no matter who dies, you're the one who survives! Hahaha, you guys have worried us for over a month! It's good you're back! It's good you're back!!"
Xie Tianlang hadn't received such enthusiastic and positive praise from Minister Tu, his former legion commander, in a long time. Any other soldier would probably have been so excited that they would have immediately stood up straight and given a military salute to show their service to the people.
But the werewolf's first reaction was to turn around and look for his Yuanyuan. When he saw Yuanyuan being surrounded by the pretty boy who was the leader of the research institute and asked about her rainbow hair, he pushed away Minister Tu, who was about to praise him, without hesitation. He went straight to Si Wuyai and Gou Fugui and told these strange researchers not to covet his Yuanyuan.
"Your hair doesn't look dyed...it looks more like a natural ombre. What happened over there?"
"You're wearing so little, but your skin hasn't gotten darker. Isn't that the scorching heat disaster I imagined over there?"
"Why don't you pluck a single hair from my head and let me examine it..."
Seven-Colored Wealth twitched his lips, regretting that he hadn't deactivated his bloodline buff when he passed through the Gate of Doomsday, which made his hair look incredibly dazzling and strange now.
Just as he was pondering how to deal with the situation, Big Wolf, his reliable partner for a future world trip, arrived.
"This is a unique dye from over there; it's useless but looks nice. You can't study it without bringing it back. You should spend your time studying the Doomsday Gate instead."
"Alright, we're exhausted from saving the world, we need to rest first."
"We can talk about anything after we've rested. We almost didn't make it back from this apocalypse."
After Xie Tianlang finished speaking, he immediately pulled his Yuanyuan away.
Before leaving, he precisely slapped away Si Wuyai's hand as he tried to secretly pluck a strand of the seven-colored hair.
Si Wuyai sighed. His intuition told him that it was extraordinary hair.
What a pity. Oh well, let's give the hero some special treatment.
Afterwards, Gou Fugui and the others underwent a simple physical examination at the temporary research institute, confirming that all three of them were in good health.
However, all three of them experienced a significant improvement in their physical condition.
Song Sanchuan excitedly hugged his computer and shouted, "I feel like my brain has become superhuman!! I can understand any new technology from any country at a glance! I can even apply it to other situations!! My God, my brain has been boosted! I am a genius among geniuses!!"
But the biggest change is in Xie Tianlang.
"Is this really your actual physical data?!" Minister Tu was both surprised and delighted: "You can practically be considered half a superman now, right?!"
"But how come your physical abilities have suddenly increased so much? Is it related to that world consciousness? But Qin Feng and the others retrieved the two world cores and brought back a lot of data and information from the other two worlds, and we didn't see anyone in their team change so much!"
Xie Tianlang and Gou Fugui were lying on the sofa in the research institute eating watermelon. Each of them was holding half of the watermelon and scooping it out with a spoon, enjoying their meal.
Xie Tianlang replied nonchalantly to Minister Tu's question, "Recycling and repairing are different. Didn't Fugui'er tell you that before?"
"Only when the repair is successful will there be a dialogue with the world consciousness and a reward. Thanks to my family's wealth and prosperity, I had my first direct dialogue with the world consciousness."
Minister Tu and the researchers from the institute, including Si Wuyuan, all widened their eyes and prepared to take notes:
"Tell me about what it feels like to communicate with the world's consciousness!!"
Previously, the existence of world consciousness had only been mentioned by Gou Fugui; now, finally, someone else has heard it too. Could there be some other discoveries?
Xie Tianlang twitched his lips at this moment: "What's there to say? He's just asking me what I want, and he can give me a little something as he sees fit."
“I told Him I wanted to be Superman, and He rejected me. I said I wanted to cultivate immortality, and He told me not to dream about it.”
"In the end, I just let Him decide what to give..."
Minister Tu wanted to slap Xie Tianlang on the head, hearing his nonchalant tone. That's world consciousness! It's world consciousness!! Can't you at least show some respect?!
As Gou Fugui listened to Xie Tianlang's words, he also thought of the conversation scene back then, and couldn't help but roll his eyes.
Because this time it was he and Xie Tianlang who stopped the Azure Dragon from crashing into the tree, it can be said that the two of them completed the most important task of repairing the core of the world together. Therefore, when they were teleported back, the world consciousness was communicating with the two of them at the same time.
The world consciousness first asked him what reward he wanted. Since his pocket was big enough, he didn't think about expanding it, but he still shamelessly asked if he could raise fish in his pocket.
The world consciousness remained silent for a few seconds before light appeared in his pocket space, bringing with it the changes of day and night.
If you really want to raise fish... you also need something to stimulate life, something to sustain life, and something to nurture life.
This is the most basic elemental source of the "world." Even though you've repaired the core of the world, I can only give you a portion of the "light source."
[The rest, you will need to search for other worlds.]
Gou Fugui was not disappointed at all by this answer; on the contrary, he felt even more motivated and had a greater goal.
Anyway, he's going to other post-apocalyptic worlds, so it would be great if he could repair the world's core and add source elements to his pocket, but it doesn't matter if he can't.
Who knows, in the end, he might be able to create a super portable space that can raise fish, grow crops, and even has a spiritual spring?
He certainly didn't realize that the kind of super-portable space he envisioned in novels was, in a sense, already another "world."
Alright.
Therefore, from the perspective of world consciousness, it is this insignificant human being who is attempting to create the world.
It was novel, and I was also quite naive.
However, He and the other world consciousnesses will be observing him.
As for the other guy who wanted to cultivate immortality and become a superman, and who was incredibly annoying and disliked no matter how you looked at him, after Xie Tianlang made those two requests, the world consciousness of the Blazing Sun World fell silent, and then a huge foot appeared in the void. It was a really obvious huge foot, and it kicked Xie Tianlang away with one kick.
Gou Fugui's eyelids twitched when he saw the big foot. He finally realized that he was the one who was favored—in the end, he was thrown out by a force, not kicked out.
"So what did the world ultimately give you?" Minister Tu was so angry he wanted to kick him.
Xie Tianlang paused for a moment: "As you can see, my physical strength, speed, and physique have increased dramatically... I can probably catch bullets with my bare hands now."
"But most importantly... it seems like my Ren and Du meridians have been opened up."
Minister Tu: "...What the hell?"
Xie Tianlang thought for a moment and then stood up. He then began to play the tai chi game in front of Minister Tu, Gou Fugui, and the other researchers.
Fu Gui'er and Mei Ren watched his actions with great interest, while Minister Tu had a dark expression on his face, his feet in military boots itching again.
As a result, Xie Tianlang suddenly pushed his hand with a palm wind. Minister Tu, who had not paid attention at first, suddenly felt a gentle force, which did not seem like wind, hit his face.
Minister Tu: "...?!"
Xie Tianlang wiped his face: "Didn't I say I wanted to cultivate immortality? This is probably because... the world consciousness made my body more suitable for cultivating immortality. Anyway, I can already feel something similar to true qi in my body when I practice Tai Chi."
"Perhaps long-term cultivation won't lead to immortality or ascension, but maybe with some effort, one can achieve true qi gliding?"
Minister Tu: "..."
Si Wuyai: "Brother, you're awesome!! Where are your Ren and Du meridians? Let me give you a full-body X-ray and then we'll promote it throughout the entire army!!"
Xie Tianlang rolled his eyes dramatically; this research maniac was beyond saving.
However, if possible, he really wanted to see if he could help others open up their Ren and Du meridians as well. It might take a long time to research, but it wouldn't hurt to give it a try.
Afterwards, Gou Fugui and the other two were allowed to go home and rest, but before they returned, Minister Tu told them about the latest developments regarding their doomsday gates in various countries around the world.
"To be honest, I'm not too optimistic," Minister Tu sighed.
"Based on the time patterns of the previous two worlds, we originally thought that one month in the post-apocalyptic world would be equivalent to one day in our world. But now it seems that this is not certain, and the proportion of time passing between the two worlds is random."
"In the past month, Qin Feng and his team closed two doomsday gates: one was a doomsday world caused by ocean pollution, and the other was a doomsday world caused by volcanic eruption."
"The ocean pollution is not too bad. Although Qin Feng and his team failed to repair the world core, the process went smoothly and no one was injured. When the world core finally appeared, they retrieved it."
But a volcanic eruption-induced apocalypse is extremely rare, with almost all volcanoes erupting simultaneously. Volcanic ash blankets the sky, and the resulting tsunamis and undersea earthquakes directly destroy many countries.
Minister Tu sighed, "If Qin Feng and the others hadn't had their physical abilities enhanced in that world, and if Hu Wen hadn't chosen the correct route, they would have been completely wiped out. Fortunately, Old Ma managed to retrieve the world core that appeared at the last moment, but they're all in the hospital now."
Xie Tianlang and the other two changed their expressions at the same time, and Song Sanchuan even wanted to check on Qin's situation.
"But don't worry, they are almost fully recovered now. They didn't suffer any major physical injuries, but breathing in a lot of volcanic ash affected their lungs."
"More important than that is the doomsday gate they closed."
Gou Fugui glanced at Xie Tianlang, his brows furrowing slightly: "Is there something wrong with that Doomsday Gate? Isn't it supposed to be fine once it's closed?"
Minister Tu's brows furrowed with worry: "I think, just as Fu Gui said, recycling and repairing are different."
"After research and comparison by the institute, it was found that there was no negative energy overflowing around the Doomsday Gate that you successfully repaired and closed in the core of the world. In fact, the environment or feng shui around it had a better and more prosperous feel."
"However, around the Doomsday Gate that Qin Feng and his group closed by reclaiming the world's core, there are still some unstable energy fluctuations and subtle changes in the environment and feng shui."
Minister Tu saw that Gou Fugui and the other two were looking at him with a "what are you talking about?" expression, so he twitched his lips and gave a very simple example: "The environment around the Pearl Tower in Shanghai is getting better and better. Many people have reported that after climbing the Pearl Tower, they feel much better and some lucky little things have even happened to them after they went back."
"But at the Changbai Mountain crater, the air seemed to be filled with the smell of volcanic ash. Many tourists reported feeling a sense of danger around the Changbai Mountain crater, which made Changbai Mountain's tourism revenue plummet over the past month. But what we are concerned about is not the tourism revenue, but the feeling that everyone has, do you understand?"
"This subtle difference can only be perceived through the senses."
Minister Tu only gave two examples, but Gou Fugui and Xie Tianlang understood everything immediately.
This is indeed a small but very important difference that cannot be ignored.
“…If that doesn’t work, should we still have Team Two come with us? Or would it be better to repair the world core?” Gou Fugui said.
But Minister Tu shook his head again: "That won't do either."
"We had planned this before you came out, but that was on the premise that you could close a doomsday gate in two or three days."
"It took you a month to get out this time. Although a month is not a particularly long time, within our China, apart from the five Doomsday Gates that have already been closed, there are still eight Doomsday Gates that have not been closed."
"Don't forget that the Doomsday Gate of the Pearl Tower appeared suddenly. Originally, there were only thirteen Doomsday Gates in China, but after the Doomsday Gate of the Pearl Tower appeared, there were fourteen."
"We have no way of guaranteeing that another doomsday gate won't suddenly appear."
"We have no way of guaranteeing that your two teams will have enough time to close the Doomsday Gates one by one."
Minister Tu gave a wry smile as he spoke: "Let alone merging your two teams back into one now, if there are any unexpected situations at the Doomsday Gate, such as a sudden increase in numbers or an energy surge, we might even split the teams into two again or send new warriors into it."
“Fugui, it seems like we still have a lot of time to save the world from the apocalypse, but do you know what? In the month since you entered this third doomsday gate, six doomsday gates around the world have already failed to be saved and collapsed.”
"And every collapsed Doomsday Gate will destroy everything in the place where it is located at the time of its collapse."
"You must have seen the footage of that doomsday gate in America that destroyed a city after it collapsed, right?"
"We thought that was the worst possible outcome."
"But there was a collapsed doomsday gate in Africa before, which released unknown toxins from another world when it collapsed."
Minister Tu took a tablet computer from his bodyguard and showed the footage of the Doomsday Gate collapsing to Gou Fugui, Xie Tianlang, and Song Sanchuan.
"Did you see that? That unknown toxin killed all living things within a radius of several kilometers, including plants, in just half an hour."
"If this unknown toxin hadn't dissipated on its own later, and if it had been allowed to spread, our world might have been destroyed in a short time."
As Gou Fugui watched the black poison gas in the video, which seemed like an invisible grim reaper, bringing countless corpses and plant deaths wherever it went, he inexplicably felt a chill that seeped into his bones.
He couldn't help but wonder if he could come out alive if he entered that collapsing doomsday gate.
He cannot guarantee that.
Minister Tu smiled wryly and closed the video: "The authorities were originally considering whether to recruit some outstanding talents with special abilities from the public to enter the Doomsday Gate, just like you, kid. Maybe you're particularly suitable to be a hero who saves the world?"
"But after everyone saw the video footage of those Doomsday Gates collapsing and being destroyed online, almost no one was willing to enter the Doomsday Gates on their own initiative."
Previously, some desperate individuals seeking wealth attempted to cross the gates of doom, but according to our intelligence, the number of surviving non-governmental, non-official special talents... is less than five in total.
"So now everyone knows that this is not a game you can just quit. You can't save and start over, and there's no possibility of reviving. Even if the government specially recruited civil servants, they couldn't recruit a single one!"
Minister Tu patted Gou Fugui on the shoulder and said with particular solemnity and emotion, "So, considering your hard work and your deep patriotism, the top leader has personally ordered a raise for you."
"Fugui'er! We all have high hopes for you! Make any requests you have! Your country will grant them!"
Gou Fugui: "..."
The wealthy beauty twitched her lips. "Then I really have to thank our country for valuing me!"
If he hadn't been chased like a dog back then, he'd be a rich, carefree nobody now, not having to go through fire and water or risk his life!
Who knew that one wrong step would turn him into a savior!
Waaaaah!
Volume Four: The Abyss of Giants
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