Just after 5 o'clock.
More and more people are gathering at the side entrance of Central Park. The guests and those with tickets for the event are directed to enter through the side entrance. While some have already entered earlier in the morning or afternoon through the main entrance, many leaders arrive at this time. After all, they're leaders and wouldn't want to show up early and wait around. The crowd is relatively concentrated, and the police officers quickly try maintaining order.
People are steadily entering the park.
Due to a staff shortage, ordinary officers are not being escorted inside, but higher-ranking city leaders and provincial officials are being accompanied by personnel from Jiaolin County.
“Please show your event ticket.”
“Ah, it’s Director Zhang. Apologies, please come inside.”
Some people already have their tickets and can enter them after they are shown them. Others only arrived today and didn’t have time to get their tickets but can still enter by simply mentioning their names. The staff in Jiaolin County have records of which leaders from which counties and cities can bring how many people, and this is all clearly noted in the notebook. Although there were some extra tickets for this event, they were not overly restrictive. If leaders did bring one or two extra people, they would still be allowed inside. However, there are exceptions. A specific list provided by Director Dong includes appointment tickets, which are a bit special. The names of leaders on this list are marked with a red pen, with some names reserved for one ticket and others for two. The staff knows that any officials listed here cannot be accommodated if they bring additional people. Extra individuals must be turned away, with no exceptions.
This is a case of preferential treatment.
But who could blame them for not giving face to Jiaolin County in the beginning? When they invited these leaders, they didn’t show up, so they had to be unapologetic. Everyone knows that Director Dong has a reputation for holding grudges.
“Hey, you there, stop!”
“Officer Wang, stop him! No ticket!”
Some people without tickets discover this small entrance to the park. Many people try to sneak in, hoping to evade the ticket requirement.
Another chaotic scene unfolds.
The staff and police escort several ticketless individuals out.
These individuals are not deterred; they stand outside with scowls, looking for an opportunity to sneak inside. They have not given up yet.
Dozens of people are glaring, ready to sneak in without tickets. The staff faces increasing pressure, having to watch them closely. The workload is significant. At the same time, many can’t help but glance towards the large entrance not far away. The park’s small, previously unopened gate has been found, and dealing with dozens of people has them feeling exhausted. And then there’s Director Dong. He faces a crowd of at least a thousand people—perhaps now two thousand, including newcomers.
The densely packed crowd is dizzying to even think about.
Can Director Dong handle it alone? Can he stop all those people?
While Director Dong has immense physical strength, he’s still only human, with limits to his endurance. Half an hour has passed since the crowd tried to force their way through the gate. No one knows if Director Dong can hold out much longer. People’s hearts are heavy with worry. If something happens on Director Dong’s side—a stampede or mass congestion—the entire event will be disrupted. All their current efforts and the work over the past few days will have been for nothing.
Zhang Dong has already escorted the investors to their seats for the event.
This side is handled by Chang Lin, who is also anxious, frequently glancing towards the distance.
However, many of their concerns seem unwarranted because they don’t fully understand Director Dong’s true fighting prowess.
The atmosphere now is beyond the imagination of anyone not present.
There is already a pile of cigarette butts around Director Dong’s feet—perhaps a dozen or so. He maintains the same stance as before, completely unchanged. One hand grips the gate, while the other hand still holds a cigarette.
The crowd of one or two thousand people across from him is not as other people imagine. The aggressive pushing and shoving have ceased. Almost in a daze, each person stares at Director Dong with a look of terror and amazement, gasping for breath and unable to utter a word.
The remaining Jiaolin County staff also seem stunned. Their breath has been coming in short gasps for half an hour now, and they are repeatedly astonished by Director Dong’s incredible strength and endurance. They may appear calm now, but just ten minutes ago, the scene was completely different. They relentlessly crashed into the gate repeatedly, full of fury and anger.
Even someone shouted a slogan, “Everyone, concentrate your strength won’t work. Listen to me, together now! One, two, three, one, two, three, one, two, three!”
Another round of impact.
But Director Dong doesn’t even move. He remains there, still gripping the gate, his eyes not even on them. Instead, he seems to be contemplating what magic trick he’ll perform later.
One or two thousand people—none of them can even make him budge. They’re completely helpless against him.
My God, who is this man?
Slowly, more and more people stop moving.
One hundred. One thousand. One million—everyone freezes.
Why? Because it’s meaningless. Even a fool can see now, facing such a god-like figure, there’s no point in repeatedly crashing into the gate.
“Encountered a ghost.”
“Today, we met a tough one.”
“Sigh, at least it wasn’t a wasted trip.”
“I’m convinced, truly convinced.”
“How can there still be such a person? Is this even a human?”
“I think we should all just leave. No point in wasting time here.”
“Yeah, can’t you see? They’re not even using all their strength. Just one hand.”
Most of the crowd gives up, leaving with their tails between their legs.
Many others and passersby are still stunned by Director Dong’s incredible strength, staring at him with wide eyes as the crowd thins. No one remains near the gate now, and everyone has dispersed. But Director Dong hasn’t moved. He still grips the gate, keeping watch.
So many almost cry, just wanting to shout at Director Dong, “Everyone’s gone! Big Saint, please retract your powers now.”