Crossing Worlds

Returning to his apartment with the joy of a breakthrough, Huang Tian washed himself another apple and crunched into it.

Whoosh~

Whoosh~

As he ate, several messages suddenly came in on his phone.

Huang Tian tapped to open them and saw that they were from his girlfriend, Zong Wenjun.

[Patting cat's head.gif]

[Are you free for a video call? I kind of miss you]

Huang Tian: [I'm free]

The second he sent the message, his phone vibrated. Huang Tian tapped to answer.

Zong Wenjun's fair, delicate face appeared on the screen. She seemed to be sitting on a brown bench, with a pond shimmering with silver ripples behind her. Cool light illuminated her profile from the side, and her orange-yellow dress swayed gently in the night breeze.

Zong Wenjun didn't speak. She just looked at him quietly, a tender smile on her face.

Seeing her smile, Huang Tian couldn't help smiling too. The two gazed at each other through the screen without saying a word, yet it was as if they were holding each other in their arms.

It seemed like a long time passed before Zong Wenjun finally spoke softly. "It's been so long since I saw you."

The last time they had met was in early August, when they'd gone to Hang City together for two days. Then Huang Tian had been called back to Chang City by a phone call from his company.

Since parting, they'd only chatted now and then on their phones. Huang Tian was simply too busy, working overtime for long stretches, and Zong Wenjun didn't want to disturb him, so they rarely chatted. They'd never even had a video call.

"How have you been lately?" Zong Wenjun asked.

Huang Tian thought for a moment. He didn't feel there was anything to hide. "Not bad. The company just donated my talent to society, so I'm getting ready to find something else to do."

Zong Wenjun's delicate brows furrowed slightly. "A new job might be good. Your old company had you working overtime almost every day. How could anyone keep that up?"

Huang Tian smiled. "That's just how things are these days. Everywhere's a rat race."

Zong Wenjun pressed her lips together, saying nothing. After a long while, she finally asked, "Do you have any plans for National Day?"

"Nothing for now. Maybe I'll look into where to go for interviews, or maybe I'll take some time off?"

Zong Wenjun blinked. "Then I'll come to Chang City to see you."

Huang Tian was surprised. "Our little busybody actually has time to come to Chang City?"

Every time she had a break, Zong Wenjun either stayed in the library reading research papers or took on freelance translation work. She rarely had any free time.

Zong Wenjun rolled her eyes at him. "I just miss you."

Huang Tian knew she wanted to come keep him company and cheer him up. Warmth stirred in his heart, and he joked, "Then I'll await the pleasure of our little busybody's visit."

At that, Zong Wenjun puffed out her cheeks and raised her tender, pale fist at him.

Her sudden burst of cuteness made Huang Tian laugh. "Where do you want to go once you get here?"

They had spent four years studying at Chang University and had visited just about every scenic spot nearby.

Zong Wenjun thought it over. "I don't want to go too far. Let's just wander around Chang City and have a look."

"All right. We'll go to Wanshou Palace and Tengwang Pavilion. There's not much else to do in Chang City anyway."

"Mm-hmm." Zong Wenjun nodded. "Then I'll see you over National Day."

"See you then."

After ending the video call, Huang Tian leaned back on the bed and thought about what to do next.

He still wasn't in a position to live without a steady income, and it was clear he wouldn't be able to manage that anytime soon. So having a proper career was still important to him.

"Should I do what the protagonists in those webnovels do? Take up boxing, enter competitions, treat people's illnesses, play the charlatan, or grow spirit herbs to sell?"

He fell into deep thought, but even after mulling it over for a long time, he still couldn't make a decision. "No rush. I'll wait and see. When the boat reaches the bridge, it'll go straight across."

At dawn, the sky gradually shifted from pale blue to orange-red.

Up early, Huang Tian sat cross-legged in meditation, his lips lightly closed. His chest slowly rose and fell with each breath, and wisps of invisible spiritual energy flowed into him, circulated through his body, and gathered in his Yellow Court.

Time passed slowly.

At exactly noon, Huang Tian emerged from his meditative state, his eyes clear. With a thought, he immediately heard all kinds of voices calling out around him.

Suddenly, a familiar voice reached his ears.

"The Blue Heaven is dead, the Yellow Heaven must rise. In the year of Jiazi, may all under Heaven prosper!!"

Huang Tian thought it over for a moment, then tried, just as he had last time, to gently touch the voice from the Late Han Dynasty World with his thoughts.

He felt dazed again. A tiny fragment of consciousness left his body and slammed hard into a crystal-like barrier.

Crack~

The sound of crystal shattering rang out. The fragment of consciousness passed through the spacetime barrier without a hitch, then followed the voice into the vast, unseen void.

The seventh year of Guanghe, seventh month.

Jizhou, within Guangzong City.

Zhang Jiao, his face gaunt and withered, clutched the Nine-Section Staff tightly in his right hand and struggled to rise from his sickbed.

"Elder Brother, why... why force yourself? I can handle all matters concerning the city's defense." Zhang Liang knelt nearby, his eyes red-rimmed as he reached to support Zhang Jiao.

"Right now, I'm afraid defending the city isn't even our most pressing concern." Zhang Jiao sighed. "Lu Zhi has Guangzong surrounded on all sides by now, hasn't he?"

Zhang Liang lowered his head. "The Han Army has been building walls and digging deep trenches day and night. I've sent men out several times to destroy the ramparts and fill the trenches, but we've achieved little. Now Guangzong... I'm useless!"

Zhang Jiao laid his withered hand on his younger brother's arm. "If anyone's useless, it should be me. If I hadn't suffered defeat after defeat against Lu Zhi, he wouldn't have been able to surround me in Guangzong with his army and trap me like a bird in a cage."

He slowly freed himself from his brother's support, using the Nine-Section Staff to steady himself. His expression was remarkably calm.

"We've been sheltering in Guangzong for over a month, yet no reinforcements have come. It seems none will come in the future, either.

"Without reinforcements, we can't keep ourselves cooped up in this isolated city. If we hold out too long, it's bound to fall. Our only option now is to meet the Han Army in a proper battle and defeat them."

Zhang Liang looked uncertain.

If they could have beaten the Han Army in open battle, how would they have been driven back to Guangzong?

Zhang Jiao saw what he was thinking and spoke gently. "While I can still move, I'll personally lead the troops into battle and make one last gamble.

"If I win, the siege will be broken.

"If I show signs of defeat, escape Guangzong while everything is in chaos."

Zhang Liang's face flushed with indignation. "How could I abandon you and run away alone?!"

He abruptly drew a short knife from his waist and held it to his throat. "If you insist on making me flee, I'll kill myself right here to prove my loyalty!"

Zhang Jiao let out a long sigh and gripped his arm. "Then come with me."

Zhang Liang's expression turned resolute. "I'll die alongside you, Elder Brother!"

A short while later, the thunderous boom of drums rose within Guangzong. Yellow Turban soldiers scattered throughout the city converged like countless streams joining to form a surging river.

The heavy city gates creaked open with a grating sound. Countless Yellow Turban soldiers, dressed in thin tunics or bare-chested, surged out of Guangzong City, carrying crude pitchforks, farming tools, spears, and other weapons. Amid shouts and calls, they formed ranks.

Before long, more than a dozen banners bearing the titles "General of Heaven," "Great Virtuous Teacher," "General of People," and "Yellow Heaven Descends" appeared before them. Gazing at the towering standard of the General of Heaven as it fluttered high above, tens of thousands of Yellow Turban soldiers cried out with fervent zeal:

"The Blue Heaven is dead, the Yellow Heaven must rise. In the year of Jiazi, may all under Heaven prosper!!!"