Chapter 375: Anxious to Return Home

The location of the Dawn Celestial Association’s home Secret Realm.

The Holy Spirit and Qin Xiaoxia stood on the peak of Taishan, observing the sky through the Secret Realm.

The former’s Magic Power had been raised to its peak. Its body pulsed with a brilliant radiance, and streams of light spilled from the corners of its eyes like long, dissipating trails of white dust.

As the sole Weaver of the home Secret Realm, the Holy Spirit possessed the highest authority here, and the wondrous powers it could wield were naturally at their greatest.

Thus, through the Secret Realm, it projected the image from its eyes onto the Secret Realm Wall in the sky.

Viewed from this angle, the “Star of the Dark” was already larger than the sun in the sky.

Ignoring Earth’s rotation, the Holy Spirit could always see this ominous, orange-red presence in the same position no matter where it looked up!

Because what the Holy Spirit saw was not an ordinary star from Earth’s sky. It was looking through the World Wall.

“It’s already this close!”

Qin Xiaoxia’s tone carried a clear note of worry and resignation.

‘Just what kind of world is Earth about to face? And why is this bizarre world rushing toward Earth as if pulled by gravity?’

‘He truly knew more than most, but it was for that very reason he had even greater concerns about the things he didn’t know.’

The only silver lining was that, thanks to Pipi’s tireless efforts, there was a steady stream of intel coming from the Outer World. At the very least, they could confirm that the approaching world wasn’t one of the well-known ones.

In those worlds, if a collision with an Outer World was imminent, it would be impossible for no one to know.

“Master Sage, I sense its approach is constantly speeding up. It’s like… the sensation of acceleration caused by a force!”

After holding on for a moment, the Holy Spirit closed its eyes.

The projection above the Secret Realm vanished instantly. By the time it opened its eyes again, the fluctuations of Magic Power in its luminous eyes had subsided.

Qin Xiaoxia pulled his gaze away and turned to look out at the scenery of Taishan.

Within his line of sight, the once-present traces of human construction had mostly vanished in just half a year.

Some of the small paths developed for tourism were now overgrown with lush greenery. Any remaining tracks were simply paths the Celestial Traveler Disciples had incidentally cleared while passing through the mountains.

“Yes, our Mother of the World has likely realized this as well. The changes are accelerating…”

“However, the evolution of living things doesn’t happen overnight. Such rapid speed isn’t necessarily a good thing!”

‘The balance has been shattered too violently, but it can’t be helped.’

The Holy Spirit seemed lost in thought, subconsciously glancing up at the sky and then at its surroundings.

“Your wisdom is as profound as the sea. No matter how dire the situation becomes, I believe Dawn can contend with it!”

“Heh, don’t flatter me. I’m only human, after all. But at least you’re right about the last part.”

Qin Xiaoxia looked at his own right palm.

“Dawn is no longer just a simple name or a symbol. It is a form of hope and faith. As long as humanity and the world still have the will to resist, this light will not be extinguished.”

‘Play the part of a mystic for long enough, and you start getting into character. I bet the ancient swindlers were pretty much the same.’

“Pick up the phone, pick up the phone~”

His ringtone, which hadn’t changed in years, went off. The call was from Huang Jiutian.

“Hey, Little Hero, it’s me. The World Alliance plans to formally announce the doomsday warning after the Spring Festival!”

Jiutian got straight to the point as soon as the call connected. After all, at this point, it was impossible for anyone in the world to steal or wiretap Qin Xiaoxia’s phone.

Hearing this news, Qin Xiaoxia subconsciously frowned for a moment before his expression relaxed.

“Announcing it early is for the best. The timing they’ve chosen is good, too.”

Christmas has a wide reach, but it’s too early. The Spring Festival is the only suitable time. Its influence is growing daily, not just in Hua Country but in other regions as well—all it would take is for foreign governments to be willing to declare a holiday for it.

And according to the latest observations, the “point of collision” shouldn’t be any later than March or April.

“Yeah, it was decided after a lot of discussion. In a day or two, the World Alliance will ask for Dawn’s opinion, out of respect. If Dawn’s prediction for the Dark Tide changes, the Alliance’s announcement date will be adjusted accordingly.”

“That can’t be all you’re calling about, right?”

At his home in Kyoto, Huang Jiutian was lounging on the sofa, staring at the ceiling with his phone in hand. He pulled the socks off his feet and flung them into a washing machine over ten meters away.

“Of course not. There are two other things. First, the World Alliance will most likely be adding a few new member states. Second, if the situation deteriorates and shows signs of spiraling out of control after the doomsday announcement, they might initiate the ‘Star of Hope’ plan!”

‘The what?’

“What do you mean?”

Huang Jiutian scratched his hair.

“Er, well, as long as the situation doesn’t get out of control, they won’t bring this up with Dawn. But if things get too bad, they might want to ask Dawn to make an appearance in the media, on TV… you know, the whole ‘ancient order of World Guardians’ thing… Psychologists figure that in that kind of situation, the public would really eat it up…”

‘Holy crap! Clever… those politicians really get the ‘essence of Dawn.’ A few hundred years ago, they would’ve been prime candidates for the Dawn Seal!’

“I’m just giving you a heads-up. They won’t bring it up right away.”

Qin Xiaoxia didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

“Alright, I get it.”

After the call ended, he exchanged a look with the Holy Spirit. The latter’s eyes were alight with a complex expression.

Qin Xiaoxia himself, however, wasn’t optimistic about the so-called “Star of Hope” plan. It wasn’t that he thought it would be ineffective, but rather that the World Alliance itself probably wouldn’t end up adopting it.

Because, at least at this stage, they were unlikely to openly deify an organization to such an extent. This wasn’t because they were small-minded, but a matter of basic precaution.

“However, just as the tide of the world’s transformation is unstoppable, there are some things that even I can’t predict…”

In the Holy Spirit’s eyes, Master Sage’s aura was not only profound, but it also stirred the flow of the vast light of the world around him.

…

Two and a half months of peace seemed to make the general public around the world forget the panic from a few months prior.

With law enforcement remaining strict, public order both at home and abroad had unexpectedly improved.

In Hua Country, for example, it was now impossible to even try and take someone else’s seat on a high-speed train. Every car had additional law enforcement personnel, some of whom were likely soldiers in different uniforms.

Previously, a railway police officer might have argued uselessly with a troublemaker for an hour. Now, they gave three warnings. If you didn’t get up within two minutes, they’d slap on the handcuffs without another word, unless you were genuinely unwell.

And if you dared to get physical, you’d be the one to regret it.

In this environment, hardly anyone even dared to cut in line for ticket checks, a change that, paradoxically, earned widespread public praise.

People’s lives were getting back on track. The protesters had fallen silent; people were focused on work and life, and any protests that did occur were about the usual things—the financial system, racial discrimination, and a whole slew of other blah-blahs.

Discussions about the apocalypse once again retreated to their main battlefield: the internet.

It was as if the internet and reality were two different worlds. While related discussions no longer dominated the front pages, they grew increasingly intense, because some things were just too strange.

Small towns were being swallowed by greenery, the vegetation along major city roads was growing at an absurd rate, roadside trees grew tall enough to blot out the sun, and wildlife sightings were becoming more and more common…

All of this should have been a boon for the environment, but… it was happening too fast! The changes were just too fast!

The human capacity for “selective amnesia” can be terrifying. The hype around an issue can flare up and die down inexplicably. But these strange environmental changes meant that even as the initial fear faded, a sense of unease grew with each passing day.

…

This year’s Spring Festival was destined to be different.

Half a month before the Spring Festival, Hua Country officials issued the *Notice on Spring Festival Holiday Adjustments*.

The notice extended the Spring Festival holiday from the original 7 days to 15. The holiday would now start 8 days earlier, and those traveling over 300 kilometers could legally take an additional 3 days of travel leave.

And this time, the government wasn’t joking about the mandatory holiday. For industries that absolutely could not shut down, nearly every employer received a notice of direct government intervention beforehand, forbidding them from requiring employees to work overtime during the New Year in any capacity.

The leadership at many companies were already in the know and naturally complied without question. Others, actively or passively, figured out which way the wind was blowing and quickly followed suit.

Even more peculiar, many other major countries around the world, one after another, also announced new national holidays that just so happened to fall during the world-famous Spring Festival, though their holidays weren’t as long as Hua Country’s.

The world’s largest and most spectacular “mammalian migration” was underway once again, and this year’s was even larger than usual.

It was as if some strange, unseen sentiment was stirring, making everyone more desperate to see their families than in years past.

PS: Friday’s second chapter.