48: Chapter 48 The Great Tribulation of a Thousand Years! The whole world is helping me fill in the gaps in the setting!

Command Center.

The semi-circular conference table had thirty-two seats, and every one was filled.

The lowest-ranking person present had at least one star on their shoulder.

On the six-meter-wide projection wall, the changing light illuminated faces that were either suspicious or grave, casting them in flickering shadows.

Professor Zhou stood in front of the projection wall.

The sixty-one-year-old veteran archaeologist had a raspy voice, yet it carried a penetrating power like digging through thousand-year-old permafrost.

"Everyone, please look."

The screen switched.

The internal footage of the Qin Province ruins began with that golden light gate that had appeared out of thin air.

"The entrance does not exist in any geological survey records. It was activated by a Kindling bronze piece and opened on its own."

The footage went deeper, revealing the full view of the octagonal domed hall.

"According to preliminary carbon-14 dating, the murals inside were carved in the mid-Northern Song Dynasty. The content entirely depicts scenes of Kindling members fighting against 'evil entities'."

The footage froze on a rubbing of the inscription on the largest broken pillar.

It was in ancient seal script, written vertically, with vigorous strokes.

"In the Gengzi year, demons wreaked havoc in Guanzhong, and Kindling disciples suppressed the demons here."

Professor Zhou's gaze swept over the leading authority on paleography in the center of the first row.

"Old Li, what do you think?"

Old Li adjusted his glasses, his voice steady.

"The font style, carving technique, and the degree of stone weathering highly match the characteristics of the mid-Northern Song Dynasty. It is ironclad evidence."

These two words were like two railroad spikes, pinning down time itself.

In the conference room, the flow of air slowed by a beat.

"1060 AD was exactly the fifth year of the Jiayou era of Emperor Renzong of the Northern Song Dynasty, the Gengzi year."

Another historian, Professor Shen Zhengqing from the Institute of History at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, took over.

His hair was half-white, and his glasses were thick enough to serve as a magnifying glass.

"I checked the 'Treatise on the Five Elements' in the History of Song, as well as local gazetteers from the Renzong era."

On the screen, the data switched.

A summary chart of disasters from the Northern Song Dynasty appeared, densely packed.

"During the Qingli era, large-scale plagues swept through the Central Plains. For three consecutive years, heavy snow covered the areas south of the Yellow River. Reports from various places of 'strange lights from the sky', 'demonic fog from cracked earth', and other bizarre celestial phenomena were countless."

A general frowned and raised a question.

"Professor Shen, why are there no clearer records of such a large-scale apocalyptic disaster in the history books? Surely millions of people couldn't have died, and it all just be brushed off as a 'natural disaster'?"

"On the contrary."

Professor Shen shook his head, his gaze sharp behind his lenses.

"Everyone has overlooked the historical context. The Northern Song Dynasty was one of the periods in Chinese history where folk beliefs and legends of ghosts and gods were most prevalent."

"What were those strange beasts and anomalies in the eyes of the common people and historians of that time?"

"They were demons, divine punishments, and mountain spirits or wild monsters."

"And what about the transcedents of Kindling?"

"They were wandering Taoist priests, immortals who subdued demons and exorcised evil."

He paused, his voice dropping half a tone.

"During the reign of Emperor Renzong of Song, the Song, Liao, and Western Xia were constantly at war, civil unrest was rampant, and war and natural disasters were intertwined. It is perfectly reasonable that an apocalyptic catastrophe killing millions would be recorded by historians as casualty figures from war and plague."

"Because in that era, no one would suspect that 'demons' could truly destroy the world. They would only think that the gods and Buddhas they believed in were not effective enough."

The atmosphere in the conference room changed completely.

A military intelligence analyst stood up abruptly and called up another file.

"Europe! In the 11th century, in the chronicles of various European countries, descriptions of the 'arrival of Judgment Day' appeared repeatedly!"

The screen split, and a scanned copy of a parchment appeared.

"Large-scale Crusader movements, the Inquisition and exorcist groups urgently established by the Holy See. Folk historical records are filled with accounts of 'black fog swallowing villages' and 'bloody rifts splitting the sky'."

"At that time, everyone thought it was God's final judgment, and the order of all of Europe was on the verge of collapse."

Professor Shen's speaking speed increased, as if he had found the golden thread connecting all the clues.

"Astronomy! Look at the astronomical records!"

The screen switched again.

An ancient star map was displayed side-by-side with a modern astronomical simulation.

"In 1006 AD, the brightest supernova explosion in human history occurred! Every civilization on the globe, without exception, left epic records of it!"

"The 'Treatise on Astronomy' in the History of Song calls it the 'Zhoubo Star', as bright as a half-moon, bright enough to read by at night, and it lasted for several years!"

"In the ancient Japanese text 'Meigetsuki', its position is also described in detail!"

"One of the greatest astronomers of the Western Regions desert kingdoms left the most precise observation logs!"

"The brightness of this supernova still cannot be fully explained by modern physics to this day!"

"And there's more!"

Professor Shen's finger tapped heavily on the tabletop.

"In 1110 AD, there was a total lunar eclipse. But that time, the moon didn't turn red; it simply 'disappeared' from the night sky! For an entire night, it was nowhere to be found! The 'Anglo-Saxon Chronicle' records that 'everyone felt a great fear'!"

"Immediately afterwards, dense fog, extreme cold, and crop failure occurred globally for several years! A great famine swept across the three continents of Europe, Asia, and Africa!"

"The most outrageous evidence—Baghdad! In Baghdad, which has a tropical desert climate, history books record that in the winter of that year, knee-deep snow suddenly fell, the Tigris River froze for several days, and 'the heavens brought extreme cold, countless people and livestock froze to death'!"

Historical records from different civilizations, different languages, and different continents were projected onto the same wall.

From the disasters of the Northern Song Dynasty to the Judgment Day in Europe.

From the brightest supernova to the disappearing moon.

From the global famine to the snowstorms in the desert.

These "isolated pieces of evidence" scattered throughout global history books were, at this moment, connected by an invisible thread, pointing to the same answer that made everyone's blood run cold.

The Millennium Catastrophe was never regional. It was global!

Those beings recorded as "immortals", "paladins", and "wizards"—they were Kindling!

In the conference room, you could hear a pin drop.

More than thirty elites standing at the pinnacle of their respective fields were like they had been collectively hit by a freezing spell, motionless.

Their worldviews were being crushed and reconstructed, inch by inch, by these ironclad proofs that spanned a millennium.

Section Chief Han Zheng stood up.

His voice broke the suffocating silence.

The screen switched, and two newly created files were projected onto it.

One had a grey cover.

[File Number: UBC-003 Name: Silence-Eroding Spirit (Tentative) Rank: E-Rank Discovery Location: Underground ruins of the Ancient Observatory in the Taibai Mountains, Qin Province Physical Characteristics: No fixed form, condensed from black fog and a dark purple core. The face is a waxy, greyish-white mask, with green ghostly fire for eyes. Can release psychic shrieks, ghost fire projectiles, and corrosive smoke whips. Possesses rule-level corrosive power. Termination Method: Pierced through the core mask by a Kindling paladin using a holy light Cross Slash, completely purified. Data Source: The Seventh Division field recorder, full footage from the archaeological team, energy fluctuation spectrum records. Combat Summary: Conventional physical attacks are completely ineffective; psychic shocks can suppress ordinary humans. Has a fatal weakness to holy light attributes. A relatively strong individual among E-Rank Anomalies, cannot be handled by conventional human military force.]

The other was a glaring deep red SSS-Rank.

[File Number: SSS-003 Name: Kindling Paladin (Confirmed) Gender: Female Age: Estimated 26-28 years old Appearance Characteristics: Wears a full set of silver-white Brightshield battle armor, helmet covering the face, holding the Sword of Judgment and an Oath Tower Shield. The armor shimmers with holy light, and the chest plate is engraved with the totem of spark. Known Abilities: 1. Holy Light Protection (Reduces damage from Anomaly erosion) 2. Holy Sword (Holy light attribute, special attack against Anomalies) 3. Shield Guard (Can withstand E-Rank physical and psychic attacks) 4. Cross Slash (Large-area holy light slash wave, can insta-kill E-Rank Anomalies). Combat Evaluation: Standard E-Rank frontline combat unit, perfectly counters Anomaly-type entities, extremely high tactical proficiency and willpower. Affiliated Organization: Kindling (Confirmed as an official core combat member). Current Status: Withdrew on her own after completing the mission, whereabouts are secret.]

"Conventional firepower is ineffective."

Section Chief Han Zheng's voice was as hard as iron.

"This means that our existing military power is equal to zero when facing these Anomalies."

"Can we only rely on Kindling?"

someone muttered to themselves.

"No."

Section Chief Han Zheng shook his head.

"Before this paladin withdrew, she left behind one sentence."

He enunciated each word clearly.

"She said, 'Perhaps in some ruin, there remains a method left by our predecessors to deal with the great catastrophe'."

This one sentence was like chiseling a breathing hole into a frozen lake of despair.

Everyone's eyes reignited.

"Comrades!"

The old man sitting at the head of the table stood up slowly.

His hair was full of white, but his back was straighter than any of the generals present.

His gaze swept across the room, and his voice was not loud, but it struck everyone's heart like a heavy hammer.

"Kindling's words have already made the logic clear!"

"Humanity's fate should never be in the hands of others! The sword must be carried on our own shoulders!"

He slammed his hand on the table, and the papers jumped.

"Starting today, execute three ironclad orders!"

"First! All known Kindling-related ruins and abnormal coordinates across the country are to be designated as top-level military restricted zones! Anyone who dares to trespass will be dealt with by military law!"

"Second! Establish a special 'Pangu Project' research task force! Concentrate the nation's top scientific research, archaeological, and military industrial strength, and at all costs, find me a way for ordinary people to also be able to fight against Anomalies! This is a national mandate!"

"Third! The Seventh Division is to be expanded immediately! Deploy a nationwide network! Once any abnormal movement occurs, respond immediately and protect the people immediately!"

His voice rose to its highest pitch, drowning out the breathing of everyone in the room.

"Kindling is guarding the world, and we must guard our own home even better!"

"Not relying on gods or Buddhas, not relying on immortals, we rely on ourselves! Grip the initiative for survival firmly back into our own hands!"

"—Execute!!"

More than thirty people rose abruptly and responded in unison.

The wave of sound hit the four walls of the conference room, vibrating the fluorescent lights on the ceiling until they hummed.

The meeting adjourned.

Section Chief Han Zheng walked out of the main door, the cold night wind hitting his face, blowing away the heat from the conference room.

His phone vibrated.

An encrypted message from a subordinate had only one line of text.

"Section Chief Han, the energy fluctuations from the Qin Province ruins have been synchronized with the 'Echo' center. The comparison results—out of fourteen global coordinates, three have shown weak energy resonance in the past seventy-two hours."

"One is within the country."

"The other two—one is in Europe, one is in the Middle East."

Section Chief Han Zheng's steps were frozen in place.

Europe, Crusader movements.

The Middle East, the snowfall in Baghdad.