Rejecting Tsinghua and Peking Universities: I Will Lead Harbin Institute of Technology to World Lead

Lin Feng held the grandest ceremony to commemorate the heroes.

Three days after the war ended, a new monument to the heroes was erected on every human-inhabited planet in the solar system.

The black monument stands a thousand meters tall, piercing the sky. Its surface is densely covered with the names of the fallen—the soldiers who died in the war, the heroes who were assimilated and then wiped out, and the warriors who fought until their last breath.

Each name shines with golden light in the sunlight, like countless eyes forever watching over the homeland they protected with their lives.

In the square on Earth, the area in front of the monument was covered with white flowers, stretching from the center of the square all the way to the edge of the city, like a white ocean, pure and solemn.

On the Martian plains, tens of thousands of eternal lamps were lit around the monument, their flames swaying in the wind like countless undying stars.

In Jupiter's spaceport, a monument stands at the very center, where every passing warship sounds its horn in salute, the sound echoing through the starry sky. Beside Saturn's rings, a monument stands silently, its ice crystals refracting the sunlight into a rainbow of colors, like a wreath offered to heroes.

He led all the surviving humans to pay tribute to the fallen warriors.

The memorial ceremony was held in the largest plaza on Earth. Lin Feng, dressed in a black tuxedo, stood before the monument to heroes. Behind him were billions of living humans—weary warriors, weeping mothers, silent fathers, and bewildered children. Tears welled in everyone's eyes, and everyone's heart was filled with those loved ones who would never return.

"Today we are here to commemorate the heroes who sacrificed their lives in the war." Lin Feng's voice was low and hoarse, carrying through the communication channel throughout the entire solar system, to every human planet, and to the ears of every living human being. "Some of them fought to the last moment on the battlefield, using their lives to block the enemy's advance. Some of them, even after being assimilated, retained their human will and chose self-destruction in their final moments rather than firing on their comrades. Some of them worked continuously for dozens of days and nights in factories, collapsing beside the machines and never getting up again."

"Each of them is a hero of humanity. Each of them deserves to be remembered forever. Each of them is the reason why human civilization has been able to continue to this day."

Lin Feng bowed deeply. Behind him, billions of people bowed simultaneously. On the square, white flowers, like snow, covered every inch of the ground. In the starry sky, white candles were lit on every human planet, like countless stars, flickering with a faint but firm light in the darkness.

The memorial ceremony lasted for a full week.

On the first day, Lin Feng lit the first incense stick in front of the monument to Earth.

He read out the names of the generals who had sacrificed their lives in the war one by one—Wang Zhen, the commander of the 12th Expeditionary Force, who, after being assimilated, still retained his last shred of will and detonated his flagship at the last moment, perishing together with hundreds of enemy ships.

Li Gang, a soldier in the Third Expeditionary Force, shot down thirty-seven enemy planes in battle before being pierced by an enemy beam and sacrificing his life at the young age of twenty-four. Zhao Xue, the attending physician at the Mars Medical Station, worked continuously for dozens of hours at the operating table before collapsing from exhaustion and never waking up again.

As each name was read, a deep chime rang out in the square. The chimes echoed through the starry sky, comforting the departed souls and resonating in the hearts of every living person.

The next day, Lin Feng went to the Martian monument. On the Martian plains, tens of thousands of eternal lamps flickered in the wind. Lin Feng lit each lamp, one by one, those that had been extinguished in the war; each lamp represented a fallen soldier. His movements were slow and gentle, as if afraid to disturb the resting souls.

On the third day, Lin Feng traveled to Jupiter's spaceport. He boarded every warship that had survived the war and visited every soldier still recovering from their injuries. He held their hands and told them that their sacrifices had not been in vain, that humanity had won, and that the solar system had been saved.

On the fourth day, Lin Feng went to the rings of Saturn. He stood silently before the monument for a long time, without saying a word. He knew that the fallen soldiers didn't need tears or mourning; what they needed was to be remembered, for humanity to live well, and for human civilization to continue forever.

Everyone was immersed in grief, and some were immersed in fear.

On the fifth day, grief began to spread among the crowd. Families who had lost loved ones wept before the memorial, holding their portraits, day after day, from morning till night, their tears seemingly never ceasing.

Those soldiers who survived the battlefield sat in a corner of the square, their eyes vacant, their hands trembling; the shadow of war was deeply etched into their souls. Those who had lost their homes stood before the ruins, gazing blankly at their former homes, unsure of what the future held.

On the sixth day, fear began to fester among the people. Those who had lost everything in the war began to fear the future.

They feared the enemy would reappear, feared the war would break out again, and feared that their hard-won rebuilt homes would once again be reduced to ruins.

Those soldiers who survived the battlefield began to fear the night. Whenever they closed their eyes, they would see their comrades who had been assimilated, their compatriots who had vanished in the beams of light, and their brothers who would never return.

Those mothers who lost their children began to fear tomorrow. They didn't know how they would live without their children, or what meaning their remaining lives would hold.

Sadness and fear, like two mountains, weighed heavily on the hearts of every human being. The white flowers in the square began to wither, the eternal flames began to extinguish in the wind, and those once resolute eyes began to become lost. Although human civilization had won the war, it seemed to have lost the courage to continue moving forward.

Lin Feng had no choice but to step forward, to awaken everyone's hope and will, and to strive once again for the growth of humanity.

On the seventh day, the final day of the memorial ceremony, Lin Feng stood once again before the monument to the heroes, with billions of living humans behind him. But this time, his voice was no longer low, his gaze no longer sorrowful; his eyes burned with fire.

"My compatriots, I know you are sad. I know you are afraid. I know you are afraid of the future, afraid of war, afraid of loss."

"But I want to tell you—those heroes who sacrificed their lives did not exchange them for our sorrow and fear. What they exchanged their lives for was the continuation of human civilization, the safety of the solar system, and our future."

"If we remain forever immersed in grief, their sacrifice will be in vain. If we remain forever dominated by fear, their lives will have been wasted. If we remain forever stagnant, their blood will have been shed in vain."

"What we need to do is not grieve, not fear, but move forward. For the heroes who sacrificed their lives, for the comrades who will never return, for the loved ones who protected us with their lives—we must move forward."

"We must rebuild our home, making every planet more beautiful than before the war. We must strengthen our power so that no enemy will ever dare to invade our solar system again. We must venture into the universe, letting the light of human civilization illuminate every corner."

"This is the best way to honor the heroes, the best way to commemorate the victims, and the path that human civilization should take."

Lin Feng's voice grew louder and more resolute, like a war drum resounding in everyone's heart.

In the square, the weeping people raised their heads, tears still streaming down their faces, but a glimmer of light appeared in their eyes. The bewildered warriors straightened their bodies, their hands no longer trembling, and their fighting spirit rekindled in their eyes. The terrified mothers wiped away their tears, hugged their children tightly, and hope returned to their eyes.

"Fellow countrymen, the heroes have passed away, but their spirit will live on with us forever. Their sacrifices will not be forgotten, and their names will be forever engraved on the historical monument of human civilization."

"Now, it's our turn. It's our turn to move forward, our turn to rebuild our homes, and our turn to make human civilization stronger."

"For the heroes, for human civilization, for our future—stand up and move forward!"

Lin Feng's voice echoed in the starry sky, above every human planet, and in the hearts of every human being.

In the square, billions of people stood up simultaneously. Their eyes no longer held confusion, fear, or despair. Instead, they held hope, determination, and confidence in the future.

Families who lost loved ones wiped away their tears, embraced each other, and encouraged one another. They knew their departed loved ones wanted them to live well. The surviving soldiers clenched their fists, their eyes rekindling with fighting spirit.

They knew their fallen comrades wanted them to continue fighting. Those who had lost their homes turned back to the ruins and began to rebuild. They knew that only by rebuilding their homes could they honor the heroes who had protected them.

Lin Feng stood in front of the monument, looking at his compatriots who had stood up again, at their eyes that had rekindled their hope, at their steps that had taken another stride, and his eyes shone with a sense of relief.

The war is over, but the road of human civilization is long. The sorrow has passed, but hope must continue. The fear has dissipated, but the march forward cannot stop.

"Pass down the order." Lin Feng's voice echoed in the command center. "The reconstruction plan is to be activated immediately. Every human planet must be restored to its pre-war state. Technological development must be accelerated across the board. The compressed space device and the Heavenly Emperor weapon must be mass-produced. Human civilization must continue to grow stronger. For those heroes who sacrificed their lives, for the future of human civilization—we must become stronger."

"Yes!" Everyone responded in unison, their voices echoing throughout the command center and the entire solar system.

In the starry sky, the sun, five thousand times larger than itself, radiated a warm light. The light illuminated the homes being rebuilt, the warships returning home, and the families reuniting.

Human civilization rose from the ruins, emerged from sorrow, and broke free from fear. With remembrance of heroes, hope for the future, and the belief that human civilization will endure, it continues to move forward.