524: Chapter 459: Civilizational Resonance, Millions of Soldiers Resist Orders

On the third day after the closing of the Guixu Rift, on the Wall of Heroes of the Iron Wall Fortress, the sword light of one hundred Firewood Swords turned from dim to bright. It was not because Lin Zhou had injected Divine Power, but because the runes on the city wall were glowing on their own—it was the Great Wall of Civilization resonating with the Fire of Civilization in the hundred thousand towns of the New Universe. The flames in every town were leaping at the same frequency, like a hundred thousand hearts beating in unison. Lin Zhou stood above the city gate, looking in the direction of the collapsed bronze gate. The Guixu Rift had already disappeared, and the grayish-white mist was dispersing, revealing the clear starry sky at the edge of the New Universe.

But he did not relax. Night Owl was dead, the Lord of Nothingness was dead, and the Guixu Rift was closed, but there was still one unsolved problem—how many remnants of the Void Sect were still left in the Expeditionary Force Command? Night Owl was the Vice Marshal; his accomplices could not be limited to him alone. Those Advanced officers recommended, promoted, and corrupted by him were still hiding in the command Systems of various war zones. They would not abandon their plans just because of Night Owl's death. They would wait, wait for everyone to lower their guard, and then open the Guixu Rift once more.

In the early hours of the fourth day, Lin Zhou's premonition came true. An emergency order arrived from the Expeditionary Force Command—not for Lin Zhou, but for all legions of the Seventh War Zone. The order, signed by the Acting Marshal, required all legions of the Seventh War Zone to withdraw to the core area of the New Universe for rest and reorganization within three days, and to hand over the defense of the Iron Wall Fortress to the logistics troops. The reason given was that "the frontline threat has been resolved, and the troops need rotation and rest."

[Headquarters Order · Summary]

- Signee: Acting Marshal Chen Tianyou (General)

- Content: All legions of the Seventh War Zone withdraw to the Core Area for rest and reorganization

- Reason: Frontline threat resolved

- Time: Execution within three days

Lin Zhou looked at the order and remained silent for a long time. Chen Tianyou, the Acting Marshal of the Expeditionary Force, was Night Owl's deputy. After Night Owl went into hibernation, he took over the position of Marshal. Among Night Owl's accomplices, he was the most suspicious. He had no evidence, but the Fire of Civilization throbbed slightly in his chest. Deep within Chen Tianyou's godhead, there must also be remnants of guixu energy.

"Captain, there is something wrong with this order." Qin Qing stood beside him, her brow furrowed. "The Guixu Rift has only been closed for three days, and there are still a large number of Chaos Beast remnants at the edge of the Chaos Star Domain. Withdrawing the troops now is equivalent to handing over the Iron Wall Fortress on a silver platter. If the remnants of the Void Sect take this opportunity to counterattack, the consequences will be unimaginable."

"That consequence is exactly what Chen Tianyou wants." Lin Zhou put away the order and turned to look at the twelve thousand soldiers below the city wall. "He wants the Iron Wall Fortress to fall, he wants the Guixu Rift to reopen, and he wants the Lord of Nothingness to be resurrected."

"Then what do we do?"

"Disobey."

Lin Zhou's voice was not loud, but it reached the ears of every soldier clearly. No one spoke on the wall, and the silence lasted for a moment. Then Wang Meng raised his battle-axe and roared, "Disobey!"

"Disobey!" the soldiers of the Vanguard Battalion roared in unison.

"Disobey!" the War Hall Battalion, the Law Enforcement Team, the Heavy Armor Legion, and the Civilization Sword Cultivators—twelve thousand people roared at the same time.

Lin Zhou raised his hand, signaling for silence. "The Headquarters' order is to withdraw within three days. We will not withdraw, but we cannot resist openly. Chen Tianyou is the Acting Marshal, and disobeying is equivalent to rebellion. We need a reason—a reason that the entire army and all war zones cannot refute."

"What reason?"

"The Guixu Rift has not completely closed."

Li Mo's projection emerged from the communication link. "Captain, the Guixu Rift has indeed closed. The detectors show that the spatial rules at the crack have stabilized, and the concentration of guixu energy has dropped to five times that of the outside world. There are no energy fluctuations, and no rule anomalies."

"Then we will fabricate one." Lin Zhou looked at the Firewood Swords on the Wall of Heroes. "Can your reverse device simulate the energy fluctuations of the Guixu Rift?"

Li Mo froze for a moment, then calculated quickly. "Yes, but it requires the Fire of Civilization as an energy source. The simulated fluctuations can fool conventional detectors, but they cannot hide from Chen Tianyou himself. If he comes to inspect in person, he will find out."

"He won't come. He doesn't dare to come. He is afraid that my Fire of Civilization will detect the guixu energy in his godhead."

Lin Zhou walked to the Wall of Heroes and pressed his hand against the city wall. The river of civilization gushed out from his divine kingdom, injecting into the runes on the wall. One hundred Firewood Swords buzzed in unison, the cyan-gold light on the blades intertwining with the gold of the city wall. Li Mo's reverse device was placed above the city gate, its silver-white light fusing with the river of civilization to simulate the energy fluctuations of the Guixu Rift.

[Reverse Device · Fluctuation Simulation]

- Simulation Target: Guixu Rift energy fluctuations

- Fluctuation Frequency: Consistent with the crack before closing

- Coverage Range: 1,000 kilometers in diameter

- Consumption: 10,000 Divine Power daily

- Can Deceive: Conventional detectors, low-Rank deity perception

Chen Tianyou's envoy arrived at the Iron Wall Fortress the next day. He was a middle-aged colonel, with a godhead Rank of LV400, expressionless, holding a handwritten letter from the Acting Marshal. Lin Zhou received him on the city gate.

"General Lin, the Acting Marshal ordered you to withdraw within three days. Why are you remaining inactive?"

Lin Zhou pointed to the void outside the city. "The Guixu Rift has not completely closed. Look over there." The envoy looked in the direction of his finger. Li Mo's reverse device was simulating the energy fluctuations of the crack, with a grayish-white light flickering in the void. The envoy's detector also showed an abnormal concentration of guixu energy; although it was not as intense as before, it indeed existed.

"This..." The envoy frowned.

"Although the Guixu Rift is closed, residual energy is still leaking. The Civilization Guardian Legion needs to stay behind to monitor it. Please inform the Acting Marshal that the withdrawal will have to wait until the crack is completely stable."

The envoy hesitated for a moment, then finally nodded. He turned and left, his figure disappearing into the teleportation array.

On the fifth day, Chen Tianyou's second order arrived. This time, it was not a written order, but a personal communication from him. The projection of the Acting Marshal floated above the headquarters, his face majestic and his eyes icy.

"Lin Zhou, you are disobeying orders. Are you trying to rebel?"

"The Guixu Rift has not completely closed; I cannot withdraw."

"The detectors show that the concentration of guixu energy at the crack has dropped to five times that of the outside world. That is a normal level. Your Fire of Civilization detector has malfunctioned."

"My fire will not malfunction." Lin Zhou took a step forward, the Fire of Civilization condensing in his palm. "Acting Marshal, if you do not believe me, you can come and inspect it yourself. My fire can detect remnants of guixu energy, including those within a godhead."

A trace of imperceptible nervousness flashed in Chen Tianyou's eyes. He knew that deep within his godhead, there were remnants of guixu energy. If he went to the Iron Wall Fortress in person, Lin Zhou's Fire of Civilization would expose him. He remained silent for a moment, then sneered.

"Fine. Since you insist, then stay. But the Headquarters will not provide you with any supplies. Your people will have to support themselves."

The communication cut off.

"Captain, he cut off our supplies." Qin Qing pulled up the inventory list. "Food, godhead repair fluid, rune armor Materials—all suspended. With our current supplies, we can only hold out for a month."

"A month is enough."

"Enough for what?"

"Enough to let the entire army know the truth."

Lin Zhou turned and walked toward the Wall of Heroes. Standing before it, he pressed his hand against the wall. The river of civilization gushed from his divine kingdom, pouring into the runes on the wall. The sword light of the one hundred Firewood Swords surged wildly, a cyan-gold glow shooting straight into the sky. Within the light, countless images emerged—not of his own memories, but of the memories of all the soldiers of the Civilization Guardian Legion. The faces of comrades who had sacrificed themselves in the suppression of the Void Sect, the list of officers contaminated by guixu energy, and the Souls of prisoners killed by Night Owl.

[river of civilization · Memory Resonance]

- Coverage Range: 1,000 kilometers in diameter

- Effect: All holders of seed of civilizations within range can perceive each other's memories

- Consumption: 50,000 Divine Power per minute

The twelve thousand soldiers on the wall felt those images at the same time. Their eyes turned red, and their fists clenched. Wang Meng knelt on the ground, weeping uncontrollably. He saw the Civilization Sword Cultivator who had sacrificed himself in the fourth wave of beasts, seeing his smiling face. Qin Qing closed her eyes, tears streaming down her face. She saw the deities of the Third War Zone who had been kidnapped by the Void Sect, seeing the wreckage of their divine kingdoms.

Lin Zhou's voice echoed in everyone's consciousness. "This is the truth. The Guixu Rift has closed, but the remnants of the Void Sect are still here. They are in the Headquarters, in various war zones, and right by our side. They will not give up just because Night Owl is dead. They will wait, wait for us to lower our guard, and then open the Guixu Rift once more."

"We cannot withdraw. We must hold this place, protect the New Universe, and guard the peace that those who sacrificed themselves paid for with their lives."

"This is not disobeying orders. This is guarding."

Twelve thousand people raised their weapons at the same time. "Guard!"

Chen Tianyou's third order arrived on the seventh day. It was not for Lin Zhou, but for all legions of the Seventh War Zone. The order declared Lin Zhou a traitor, relieved him of all his duties, and demanded that all legions arrest him immediately. But after the order was issued, not a single person executed it. The soldiers of the Seventh War Zone, those ordinary soldiers without the Fire of Civilization coating, chose to believe Lin Zhou after hearing his memory resonance. It was not because of the order, but because of those images—the faces of comrades killed by the Void Sect, whom they knew and remembered.

"Captain, a communication has arrived from the Second War Zone." Qin Qing pulled up the projection. The projection of the Second War Zone Commander floated above the headquarters, his expression complex.

"General Lin, my war zone also has remnants of the Void Sect. I need your Fire of Civilization to detect them."

"Of course."

The Third War Zone, the Fourth War Zone, the Fifth War Zone... communications from various war zones came one after another. Lin Zhou's Fire of Civilization, through the memory resonance of the river of civilization, was transmitted to every corner of the New Universe. The Fire of Civilization in a hundred thousand towns burned simultaneously, and the civilization memories of a million soldiers converged into a golden torrent, surging in the void.

[Civilization Resonance · One Million Soldiers]

- Coverage Range: Entire Universe

- Number of Participants: Approximately 1.2 million people

- Memory Torrent: Golden

- Effect: The guixu energy traces of all Void Sect remnants within range are marked

Wherever the golden torrent passed, deep within the godheads of those Void Sect believers hidden in the army, the dark-red traces of guixu energy were illuminated. Their godheads were like fireflies in the dark night, with nowhere to hide. Iron Face of the Inspectorate led the action team to arrest them one by one. Overnight, more than three hundred remnants of the Void Sect were captured, including three lieutenant generals and twelve major generals.

Chen Tianyou was arrested in his office at the Headquarters. Deep within his godhead, the pollution level of guixu energy was as high as eighty percent. He struggled, roared, and threatened, but Iron Face's Fire of Justice made it impossible for him to lie. His confession and Night Owl's account corroborated each other, and the Void Sect's final network within the Expeditionary Force was completely dismantled.

[Suppression · Summary]

- Captured: Over 300 people (three lieutenant generals, twelve major generals, and several below the Rank of colonel)

- Chen Tianyou: Arrested

- Void Sect Remnants: Completely cleared

Lin Zhou stood on the Wall of Heroes, watching the golden torrent surging in the void. The memories of a million soldiers converged into a river, with countless images floating in the water—the battlefields of the Old Universe era, the sweat of building the New Universe, the smiling faces of sacrificed comrades, and the lights of loved ones waiting. That was the memory of civilization, the proof of existence, and something that Ruins Return could never devour.

"Captain, Chen Tianyou has been arrested."

"Yes."

"The Void Sect has been completely wiped out."

"Wiped out. But Ruins Return is still there. A hundred years from now, a new crack will appear again."

"Then what will we do a hundred years from now?"

Lin Zhou looked at the golden torrent. "A hundred years from now, there will be new successors to the Way of Civilization. Their fire will burn brighter than ours."