The square was packed with people, and countless eyes turned upward toward the heavens. Through the drifting sea of clouds, a colossal steel fortress broke through, rising and sinking slowly under the light of the midmorning sun.

At that moment, whether they were citizens of the New Alliance or travelers passing through, everyone instinctively lifted their gaze in reverence toward the sky.

Standing before the floor-to-ceiling windows of the command bridge, Chu Guang felt his heart surge as he met those thousands of expectant gazes.

“Little Seven.”

“What is it, Master?” came the light, airy voice in his ear, as gentle as a summer breeze.

Perched on his shoulder guard, Little Seven swung its tiny legs like a pair of chopsticks, resting its cheeks in its palms as it gazed at his profile with a cheerful smile.

Chu Guang narrowed his eyes slightly and said with a faint smile, “Nothing. I just suddenly wanted to call your name.”

Little Seven giggled. “Heehee, is Master feeling emotional right now?”

“Mhm. A little.” Chu Guang nodded honestly, his gaze fixed on the sight outside the window.

Watching the little sapling he had once planted grow into a towering tree... The joy was beyond words.

He believed that it wasn’t just him, every citizen of the New Alliance, whether player or NPC, had to have felt the same surge in their hearts at that moment.

They had conquered the curse etched into this land. They had defeated the so-called eternal threat, and they had turned a brand-new page in the history of this world.

Though their path had been full of twists and hardships, the people who lived on the land had finally come together as one.

Chu Guang could almost hear the synchronized heartbeat of thousands, beating as one, pulsing with shared resolve.

Wherever they stood, whenever they lived. From now on, they would advance and retreat together, sharing both honor and shame.

A pale-blue holographic screen unfolded before him.

As the countdown reached zero, Chu Guang raised a finger and pressed the broadcast button, linking to every loudspeaker across the square and aboard the Heart of Steel, and poured his voice into it, a voice that shook the heart.

“Celebrate, all of you who stand upon this land! We have conquered the returning Tide that rose again and again! We have ended the feud that has lasted for two centuries!”

“Victory is ours, and it will always be ours!”

The moment the administrator’s declaration rang out, waves of thunderous applause and cheering erupted across the square. Men, women, elders, and children, all faces shone with the brilliance of joy and triumph.

“Long live the New Alliance!”

“Long live the Administrator!”

“Long live all survivors who have suffered!”

“We will bring an end to this wasteland!”

“YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!”

As the voices of victory filled the air, people threw flower petals and streamers into the sky, their unified roar seemed to shake even the clouds above.

Even newcomers visiting the settlement for the first time couldn’t help but be swept away by the fervor, joining the chorus with excitement blazing in their eyes.

They might not have shared the deep affection that longtime residents felt for the New Alliance or its leader, but their yearning for order, and an end to chaos, was the same.

At least at that moment, they saw the glimmer of an ideal becoming reality.

It was, perhaps, the shortest speech Chu Guang had ever given at a celebration since the New Alliance’s founding, but also the most meaningful.

And the applause that followed was louder than ever before. It was more passionate, more thunderous, and more alive!

Whether they were survivors in Clearspring City or citizens of the older factions, all could feel the magnitude of the miracle, and how hard-won it was.

Atop the towering Ideal Grand Hotel, the executive lounge on the upper floors provided the best view of the celebration.

Unlike the ordinary people who came full of hope from Ideal City, the entrepreneurs and businessmen there preferred not to squeeze into the noisy crowd. Yet their curiosity about the event was no less than anyone else’s.

Where there were people, there were markets, and people full of faith in the future were the richest veins of gold.

To accommodate them, the hotel manager had even stocked the lounge with monocular telescopes, so the guests could see clearly from above.

Through the windows, the guests looked down at the crowded streets and the packed square, whispering softly to one another, their faces equally filled with astonishment and awe.

Part of it was amazement at the New Alliance’s unity, part of it was awe at the sheer creative energy and imagination that unity reflected.

Many business owners from Ideal City had once doubted the young power, fearing it would die prematurely amid the dangers of the wasteland.

But the course of events had surprised everyone.

After defeating the Army, the New Alliance had gone on to repel the southern threat of the Torch Church. And instead of collapsing under the weight of war, they had grown stronger, even the mighty Hive entrenched in the heart of Clearspring City had fallen before them.

The Tide was no longer the storm hanging over the survivors’ heads. Now, they could finally focus their energy on rebuilding the wasteland.

Nothing could stop their rise anymore.

“What a pity... All the cake’s already been sliced up. If only I had come sooner!” said someone with a face full of regret.

He had hesitated for months, worried about the New Alliance’s risks. But after watching the Amplemoon Group flourish and Moonlike Group’s market value skyrocket, greed had finally pushed him to board the flight to Dawn City.

What he saw before him confirmed it, the settlement was no longer the shabby little village it had once been.

The people in Dawn City looked healthy and spirited, their clothes were clean and tidy, and their posture upright. The pursuit of a better life had woven itself into every corner of this place.

The old kerosene lamps had been completely replaced by modern electric lights. The red-brick houses were painted in vibrant colors, and the once-bare streets now glittered with neon steel signs.

Traffic lights and painted lane markings had been added after the public transport system was built.

And the engines and steel once made for war had now flowed into the civilian automobile industry.

Private cars were still rare, but electric scooters and bicycles were common. The bustling commercial zones had begun adding parking lots and universal charging ports.

Some wealthy survivors even owned detached houses with garages, while even the poorest refugees had free prefabricated housing to live in.

The New Alliance’s aggressive credit expansion might make some worry about the future, but for the time being, the borrowed wealth had truly been invested into projects that benefited the majority.

What most stunned the businessmen in the lounge was that, even though these people had already surpassed the wastelanders of Clearspring City in living standards and culture, they were still not satisfied. They were striving with every ounce of imagination to recreate the wonders of the old world in this city born of the wilderness.

Whether from the hotel lounge or from the bustling streets below, one could clearly see it, the light of order spreading, inch by inch, across the land.

With it came tangible prosperity, and hope.

“It’s not too late to invest now... I heard the Academy’s planning to establish a joint development zone with the New Alliance in the Wandering Swamp.”

“The Academy?!” said another businessman from Ideal City in surprise.

He wasn’t the only one intrigued. Almost everyone nearby perked up at the word.

“Those creatures? Since when were those swamp slugs interested in commerce?”

“I thought they only cared about potatoes and scrap metal.”

“They still don’t care about trade. The zone’s for research purposes, apparently to study the hibernating Hive near Ice Sea City. But hey, what they don’t care about, we can handle, right?”

“Sounds promising...”

“Indeed. The slugs might be poor at production, but their technological reserves are valuable.”

“The real question is, how do you do business with people who don’t even have currency?”

“Well, that depends on the negotiation.”

As they spoke, a few entrepreneurs turned their eyes toward two figures standing in the corner of the lounge.

One was Yi Chuan, the representative of the Enterprise stationed in the New Alliance, well-known to many Ideal City residents who often dealt with Chu Guang.

The other, however, was a far more prestigious guest, Luo Yong, CEO and board director of Silver Wing Corporate Group, and a sitting member of the HIghest Council.

Though he alone couldn’t represent all of Silver Wing Corporate Group, the conglomerate itself represented one-fifth of the Enterprise!

In a sense, his words carried more weight than a deputy head of the Enterprise Management Group, for the Highest Council was the true decision-maker of the Enterprise.

No one had expected him to show up. Even if the New Alliance was a strategic partner of the Enterprise, his level of presence was remarkable.

Peering through his telescope at the sea of people filling the square, Luo Yong chuckled, “Now I understand why they won the war so smoothly last year.”

Behind him, Yi Chuan smiled politely. “Back then, Dawn City wasn’t anything like this. I remember Ideal Group even helped them build their first roads.”

Luo Yong smiled faintly and said in a soft voice, “Concrete and steel are the results of progress, but the foundation of progress lies in people’s hearts. Though I’m a materialist, the longer I live, the more I’ve come to believe in the power of faith... especially after seeing the young men and women aboard the Pioneer, and those who continue to follow in their footsteps.”

That included his own son. He had never imagined that the same boy who once wasted his days in bars would one day cross an entire desert under the pursuit of the Army, for the sake of others.