Brother, just how powerful is our family?

In the late autumn of the 4920th year of the Yellow Emperor's reign.

The news reached the Yanhuang Continent on a peaceful morning.

On that day, the sky over the Yanhuang Continent was exceptionally blue.

Since all the factories on Earth have been moved to space, the air quality has improved day by day, and blue skies and white clouds have become the norm.

But that morning, the sky seemed clearer than ever before.

Perhaps it was the wind, perhaps it was the clouds, or perhaps it was simply people's later memories that gave that morning a special glow.

The quantum communication network transmitted the message to every corner of the Yanhuang civilization in 0.001 seconds.

From the Yanhuang continent to Earth, from Earth to starports in the Kuiper Belt of the solar system, from starports to every node galaxy hundreds of light-years away, from node galaxies to even more distant colonies, two hundred billion descendants of Yanhuang received that brief message at the same moment:

"The entire Beast Clan has been annihilated. The Lord of the Calamity Nest has been killed. The expeditionary fleet is on its way back."

There are no fancy words, no sentimental parallelisms.

Only cold, military-style statements.

But those few dozen words made 200 billion people hold their breath at the same time, and then erupt in deafening cheers.

The square in front of the administrative center on the Yanhuang Continent.

The news arrived just as the daily flag-raising ceremony was taking place in the square.

A blue flag with a golden dragon slowly rises in the morning breeze, the golden dragon fluttering on the blue flag.

Beneath the flagpole, the honor guard soldiers stood ramrod straight, their gazes resolute.

They were unaware that the news had arrived. They were simply performing their daily ritual.

But the crowd in the square was already in an uproar.

"We won! We won!"

I don't know who was the first to shout it.

The sound came from a corner of the square, like a pebble thrown into a calm lake, creating ripples.

Then, more people started shouting, more people started yelling, and more people started crying.

"The Kuzu has been destroyed!"

"Revenge has been achieved!"

"Four and a half billion compatriots, can you hear us? We have avenged you!"

Someone was laughing, laughing until tears streamed down their face.

Someone is crying, crying until their voice is hoarse.

Some people hugged each other and patted each other's backs forcefully.

Someone knelt on the ground, covering their face with their hands, their shoulders trembling violently.

Someone was running around the square holding a blue flag with a gold dragon on it. The flag fluttered in the wind like a burning flame.

A young man over a hundred years old stood in the corner of the square, holding a bunch of white chrysanthemums in his hand.

His son died in that disaster.

His son was a gunner at the orbital artillery position in the Tian Shu star system. When the Qiong Beasts attacked Heng Xing, he held his position until the very last moment.

After the black hole formed, the orbital gun emplacement was torn apart by gravity, and his son never returned.

He comes to the square every month and leaves this bouquet of white chrysanthemums.

He has persisted for decades. Today, he has come again.

But today, his steps were lighter than ever before.

He walked to the monument in the center of the square, bent down, and placed a white chrysanthemum on the base.

Then he looked up at the densely packed names on the monument.

His son's name was also on it.

"Child, did you hear that?" His voice was very soft, so soft that only he could hear it. "The beasts have been destroyed. Your great revenge has been avenged."

He stood there for a long time, then turned and slowly walked away. There was no smile on his face, but there was a light in his eyes. It was the light that only someone who has laid down their burdens could have.

Yanhuang Continent, Global University City.

The news arrived during class time.

In a lecture hall, a professor is lecturing students on the history of the Yanhuang civilization.

He has been teaching this course for decades, and he teaches it meticulously every time.

Today, he talked about the chapter about the invasion of the Kujira Beasts.

"In that battle, we lost twelve star systems and 4.5 billion compatriots." The professor's voice was low and steady. "That was the most tragic loss since the founding of the Yanhuang civilization. 4.5 billion people were reduced to nothingness in just a few hours."

The classroom was silent. The students listened attentively, some with tears in their eyes.

Then, the message arrived. The professor's data panel vibrated. He glanced down at it, then looked up.

His lips were trembling, his eyes were red, and his voice was choked with sobs.

"Students," his voice was hoarse, "we've just received news. The entire Beast Clan has been annihilated. The Lord of the Calamity Nest has been killed. The expeditionary fleet is returning."

The classroom was silent for a full three seconds. Then, cheers nearly lifted the roof off.

The students jumped up from their seats; some cried, some laughed, and some hugged each other.

A girl squatted on the ground, sobbing uncontrollably. Her family members had all perished in that disaster.

The professor stood on the podium, looking at the cheering young people. Tears finally streamed down his face.

He didn't speak, he just watched quietly. Slowly, very slowly, the corners of his mouth curved into a smile.

That was the first time he had smiled in decades.

Solar System, Kuiper Belt, Superport.

When the news arrived, a routine meeting was being held in the Starport command center.

The commanders sat around a round table, discussing the next steps in their defensive deployment.

No one knows if a new enemy will appear.

Then, the news came.

There was a full ten seconds of silence in the command center. Then, a young staff officer stood up, his voice trembling, and said, "We...we won."

No one spoke. Everyone stared at him. He repeated, "We won. The Beasts have been wiped out. The expeditionary fleet is returning."

A deafening cheer erupted in the command center.

Those commanders who were usually stern and unsmiling, those soldiers who were used to being calm and restrained, at this moment, let go of all pretense.

They hugged, they high-fived, they shouted.

Some people threw their hats into the air, some slammed their fists on the table and cheered loudly, and some turned away to secretly wipe their tears.

"Notify all units," the commander-in-chief's voice rang out amidst cheers, "to lower the flag to half-mast."

"Fly the flag at half-mast?" The adjutant was taken aback.

"Yes, lower the flag to half-mast. A moment of silence for our fallen comrades. Then—" he paused, "then, the entire fleet flies its flags. Celebrate victory."

"Yes."

On the outer wall of Star Harbor, the blue flag with a gold dragon was slowly lowered to halfway.

All the warships anchored in the port also lowered their flags at the same time.

At that moment, the entire Starport fell into a solemn and dignified silence.

But in everyone's heart, the names of those who sacrificed their lives were being silently recited.

After the moment of silence, Star Harbor came alive again.

Colorful flags were hung on the flagpole, lights were turned on, and music began to play.

The soldiers left the barracks, and the engineers left their workstations.

Everyone was laughing, everyone was cheering.

Some people played the accordion, some sang, and some danced.

The entire Starport was transformed into a sea of ​​joy.