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Willow Town.
Li Qingshan forcefully pushed open the wooden door.
Creak——
A harsh friction sound echoed in the Courtyard.
Having sprinted all the way here, Li Qingshan was panting heavily, his forehead covered in bean-sized beads of sweat. He walked anxiously into the Courtyard, his gaze sweeping across the surroundings.
After separating from the two Floating Life Painting members, Li Qingshan ran back to Willow Town without stopping for a moment. Just as those refugees said earlier, the people of Willow Town had basically all left. Along the way, he only saw countless empty houses, and the entire town was dead silent... This made the unease in Li Qingshan's heart grow increasingly stronger.
"Generals of the Yang Family sacrifice themselves to protect the nation, their loyal and heroic names praised for ten thousand years~~~ Bearing the mission to defend the country and pacify the people, the rivers and mountains remain picturesque through the long years~~~"
The squeaky Opera Vocals from the Radio came from the small house, just as in his memory, circling in the sky above the Courtyard. Although sometimes hoarse and unclear, it could give people a familiar sense of security.
"Grandmother!"
In the dim small house, a white-haired Old Man was leaning against the head of the bed, her eyes closed, listening to an Audio Cassette Tape of Traditional Opera, unconsciously shaking her head and swaying her body, seemingly intoxicated by it.
She didn't hear Li Qingshan push the door open and enter, nor did she hear that pleasant surprise call. She just listened to the tune on her own, a trace of a nostalgic smile still on her lips.
Li Qingshan knew his Grandmother's hearing was bad, so he simply quickly walked forward and called out again:
"Grandmother!!"
The Old Man's eyes slowly opened. Seeing the familiar face before her, she seemed somewhat surprised. "Good grandson... You've returned home??"
Her only remaining, presbyopic right eye looked Li Qingshan up and down for a long time, and a smile broke out on the corners of her wrinkled mouth.
"Good grandson has gotten chubby, this colorful costume of yours... is pretty!"
Li Qingshan's Theatrical Robe still had the bloodstains from the fight just now. Looking blurrily, it seemed like dotted flying red butterflies, indeed possessing a unique beauty.
Under the current circumstances, Li Qingshan had no time to discuss these things with his Grandmother, immediately asking loudly:
"Grandmother!! What about Mister Qian next door? Did they not come looking for you?"
Before Li Qingshan left home, he specifically entrusted the family of Mister Qian next door to take good care of his Grandmother for him. He was a highly respected Teacher in Willow Town with a good character. Plus Li Qingshan had also given him money, he should have taken good care of Grandmother...
But now, the family next door had already emptied out, and Grandmother was still left here alone.
"Little Qian huh? He came... He wanted to take me to some... city. I wasn't willing to go. I just laid on the bed and poked him with my Walking Stick!" Grandmother waved her hand. "Later, he left!"
"Ah? Why weren't you willing to go?"
"I'm old... My home is here... I'm not going anywhere!"
As she spoke, Grandmother lay down at the head of the bed again, her head shaking lightly to the melodious Opera Vocals, muttering and singing along.
Seeing this, Li Qingshan let out a long, helpless sigh.
To an Old Man, she didn't understand any Realm War, nor did she understand fleeing to the Main City... She only knew that she had lived in Willow Town her entire life, and this was her home. Grandmother's age was considered long-lived even placed in the entire Red Dust Domain. At this stage, she no longer cared about life or death... She only wanted to stay in her homeland.
This kind of Old Man's stubborn persistence made her the last person left in Willow Town, and also disguisedly protected her.
Actually, from the moment he stepped into Willow Town, Li Qingshan vaguely felt that this place was a bit different from before... Even though the flowers and plants had already withered, Embroidery Threads still drifted down onto the branches. They emitted a mysterious and powerful Aura, as if warning against something.
Just as Chen Ling had said... Right now, Willow Town was the safest.
No matter what, knowing Grandmother was fine, Li Qingshan completely relaxed. He sat down by the bed:
"Grandmother, have you received all the money I sent you during this period?"
"I received it, good grandson!" A kind smile appeared on Grandmother's face, and she stroked Li Qingshan's hair. "Good grandson is promising... Earning so much money. Grandmother hasn't touched a single cent, keeping it all for you to marry a wife!"
As she spoke, she got up, dragged out a locked, heavy box from under the bed, took out a key from under her pillow, and tremblingly opened it.
The upper layer of the box was a bundle tightly wrapped in cloth. After opening it, inside were numerous neatly stacked bank notes, like solid bricks... This was the money Li Qingshan earned in the Main City during this period. Every time he received his salary, aside from keeping a very small amount for his own use, he sent the rest back here.
His original intention was for Grandmother to use this money to improve her life, eat something good, and change to a new Radio... He didn't expect that it would be kept here without a single cent touched.
Li Qingshan let out a long sigh. Just as he was about to say something to Grandmother, the corner of his eye suddenly fell on the lower layer of the box, and a trace of doubt flashed in his eyes.
"This box underneath... What is it again?"
"This? This is our family's ancestral treasure!"
Li Qingshan was stunned. "Our family is so poor we only have four bare walls... Where did this ancestral treasure come from?"
Grandmother smiled mysteriously, the wrinkles on her face piling up. She tremblingly moved out the dust-covered box, rubbed it in her arms for a moment like a precious treasure, and then handed it to Li Qingshan.
"Good grandson, open it and take a look."
The doubt in Li Qingshan's heart grew increasingly dense. He opened this box, and a musty smell sealed by the years assailed his nose... He endured this strange smell, looked inside, and froze slightly.
In the box, was a neatly folded piece of cloth... Or rather, a Banner.
"What is... this?"
Li Qingshan carefully took out that Banner. The surface of the Banner was somewhat smooth, as if soaked in some kind of oil, but even so, the Banner itself was still extremely stiff and fragile, unknown how many years it had been preserved.
Li Qingshan tried to unfold this Banner, but found its area was truly too large... Left with no choice, he could only walk to the Courtyard and slowly unfold and restore it on the spacious ground.
That was a huge Banner. It required at least two people holding the poles separately to fully raise it in the air. Its width was equivalent to a dozen people standing shoulder to shoulder in a row. After Li Qingshan fully unfolded it, it almost covered the entire Courtyard...
The vast majority of the Banner's area was covered by a massive number of signatures. Some of them were solemn and square, some were crooked, but they all had one thing in common...
These names were all written with fresh blood an unknown number of years ago.
Beneath these densely packed signatures that had oxidized to a dark purple, a few lines of bright, Dragon Soaring And Phoenix Dancing large characters were like a mixture of countless shouts, engraved in the long river of history.
"We swear by our identities as children, as parents, and as those holding burning hearts."
"We voluntarily offer our youth, flesh, and lives to clear the path for the future of human civilization, lay the foundation for the peace and stability of future generations, step into the wasteland, and rebuild our homeland."
"We will not turn back, we will be invincible, we will never return."
"May the high tower we build reproduce the glory of humanity."
Li Qingshan's pupils slightly contracted.