Chapter 351 348: Gathering on the Road

Nestled in the heart of North America, Detroit has always been a city of history and culture. More importantly, it earned its place in modern industrial history as the "Motor City." In its heyday, it was hailed as the Paris of the United States. Its rapid economic and population growth transformed it into the famed "Arsenal of Democracy" during World War II, giving it a pivotal role in modern American history.

For historical, economic, and a multitude of globalized reasons, Detroit fell into a deep quagmire after the 2008 financial crisis. The following year, the auto industry—Detroit's financial backbone—suffered a devastating blow and now faces a bankruptcy crisis. In less than two years, the city has decayed to the point of desolation, even earning the moniker of a "ghost town."

The once-glorious "Motor City" has now become a distant memory. Rampant crime and dilapidated infrastructure are slowly devouring the city's soul. But at one time, this was a city at the pinnacle, boasting a team in each of North America's four major professional sports leagues—

The NBA's Detroit Pistons, Major League Baseball's Detroit Tigers, the NHL's Detroit Red Wings, and the NFL's Detroit Lions.

Among these four teams, the Detroit Red Wings are the undisputed powerhouse of the hockey league, having won the NHL's Stanley Cup eleven times. To this day, they remain the American team with the most championships in the league. Detroit is a city mad for hockey, so much so that its fanatically passionate fans earned it the nickname "Hockeytown."

The Detroit Red Wings' last championship was in the 2007-2008 season. Amid the economic downturn, the team remained the soul of the city.

In comparison, football has the smallest fanbase in the city. Although the Detroit Tigers' last World Series championship in the baseball league was way back in 1935, they had at least won one. The Detroit Lions, on the other hand, have never managed to win a Super Bowl.

Despite that, things were a little different this year.

Starting in the preseason, the Detroit Lions had achieved an incredible nine-game winning streak, which included five straight wins in the regular season, defeating two divisional rivals along the way. Last week, the Detroit Lions hosted the visiting Chicago Bears, and the game was featured on Monday Night Football—the first time in history that Ford Field had ever appeared in a Monday Night Football broadcast. In the end, the Lions Team did not disappoint their fans, securing a decisive 24-13 victory.

Because of this, the team won the cheers and support of the fans, and attendance at their home stadium, Ford Field, was steadily climbing—gradually putting distance between them and the Cincinnati Bengals' home attendance and allowing them to escape the nightmare of being at the bottom of the rankings.

This week, the undefeated 5-0 Detroit Lions and the 4-1 San Francisco 49ers were about to face off in a pivotal showdown. The entire league was watching, the most direct proof being that the league commissioner, Roger Goodell, had personally arrived in the Motor City to watch the game live.

The game was set to kick off at 1:00 PM Eastern Time on October 16th. A total of four games were kicking off at the same time, with another eight games kicking off simultaneously that morning. Out of twelve total games, Roger Goodell chose this one, a testament from every angle—from media attention to the league's focus—to its importance.

Early on, the Detroit Lions fans sensed the pre-game tension and suspense. They all showed their support with concrete actions, hoping their team could continue its unstoppable momentum, defeat the visiting opponent, and maintain their undefeated record to stay hot on the heels of their other divisional rival, the Green Bay Packers, and keep the pressure on.

Starting on Friday, large crowds of fans began to gather in downtown Detroit and around Ford Field, building hype for the week's clash of titans and showcasing their powerful confidence and unwavering belief.

"Go! Go! Lions! Let's go! Go! Go! Lions! Let's go!"

The synchronized chants were deafening. Colorful thundersticks were beaten together, their powerful, rhythmic beat adding to the momentum. The vast sea of blue was a breathtaking sight, like wandering across the surface of a boundless ocean.

The official uniform of the Detroit Lions features light blue jerseys paired with silver pants—officially called "Honolulu Blue," corresponding to the deep and captivating sky blue of Hawaii. When they play at Ford Field, the vast, deep blue, shimmering with silver, looks like a moonlit, sparkling sea. What's more interesting is that all the seats in Ford Field are a uniform navy blue, making the endless expanse of blue seem even more magnificent.

Today, however, a massive tide of white flooded into this sea of Honolulu Blue. Inlaid with red and gold, the white was like an unyielding lighthouse standing firm on a turbulent coastline. No matter how rough the waves or how fierce the storm, the lighthouse would still guide lost travelers in the vast ocean to a warm harbor.

Cliff Hart raised a flag high and waved it with commanding presence. The red banner, fluttering in the wind amidst the sea of white and blue, looked like a breathtaking, burning flame. But the icon of Little Deer Bambi on it, caught in a surrounding circle of ubiquitous Lions, seemed to be in a perilous and difficult situation.

But Jeff Locke wasn't afraid in the slightest. He raised his right hand high, clenched it into a fist, and roared fiercely, "We are! Niners! We are! Warriors!"

The San Francisco 49ers are often shortened to "Niners." Every player and every fan is a "49er," and also a "Niner." At this moment, all the Niners were united, standing tall and unyielding in the vast sea of sky blue, guiding their team toward the shores of victory.

It wasn't just Cliff, and it wasn't just Jeff. There was also Chris Wilson, Jonathan Baldwin, Danny Rice, Nate Chandler, Noah Parker... One by one, the familiar faces appeared outside Detroit's Ford Field, none missing, all shouting and cheering themselves hoarse.

This was a group trip to an away game, organized by "Joe's Bar." The number of fans wasn't huge—only eighty-one people ended up signing up, not even a hundred. But considering this wasn't an official event but a trip spontaneously organized among fans, such a number was truly remarkable.

After arriving in Detroit, they quickly discovered they weren't the only "outsiders" in the city. In their hotel, in the bars, and on the city streets, the number of Niners just kept growing. The number of fans who had spontaneously organized their own trips to cheer at the away game was far beyond what they had imagined.

At Ford Field today, more than a thousand Niners had gathered, united as one. They shouted with all their might and cheered in unison, their powerful roar announcing their unparalleled presence. Gradually, other Niners who had come for the away game joined them, and the group continued to expand.

This was the Detroit Lions' home turf, and their fans undoubtedly had the absolute advantage in numbers. But they were like a plate of loose sand, unable to organize an effective, concentrated wave of support. In the pre-game battle of presence, they were actually losing. For the Lions fans, this was definitely not good news.

As if by unspoken agreement, all the Niners were wearing the team's white away jerseys, which had red numbers and gold cuffs. The specks of color only served to accentuate the flamboyance and magnificence of the white expanse. The tide of white pouring in from all directions continued to grow, and that white ocean was seizing the initiative at Ford Field.

Finally, some people couldn't stand it anymore. Four or five Black men in Lions home jerseys rushed forward and started taunting, spittle flying. "Go on, get back! You wet-behind-the-ears brats, don't let your knees go weak and just kneel on the field. That'd be a real disgrace."

"Those last few games were just flukes, but let me tell you, there are no flukes today! This is where it ends for you. Better run away now, while you still have time."

"Shut up, shut up! This isn't the place for you to run wild. Hurry up and get back to the Bay Area! Californians are too soft, they can't take a beating. Don't go crying when you lose the game!"

The vulgar words sparked a shameless war of words. But Chris wasn't intimidated in the slightest. He took a long stride forward and shouted down at them, "What, you forgot that loss in the 2009 season so quickly? Who was it that went crying to their mamas after losing that game? And now you have the nerve to come here and boast! If you want to be humiliated again, today's your lucky day. We taught you a harsh lesson at our home stadium, and now we're here at yours to teach you how to behave!"

There was no historic rivalry between the San Francisco 49ers and the Detroit Lions. Especially over the past decade, both teams had been in a slump, and their matchups were far from exciting. They were simply regular-season opponents. In 2009, the San Francisco 49ers had beaten the Detroit Lions at home with a score of 20-9. That was the only time the two teams had faced each other in recent years.

Today's game, however, was clearly different. Both teams were in top form and determined to win. The atmosphere was growing more and more explosive. No one was going to give up a victory easily.

Just as the few fans were about to roll up their sleeves and start pushing and shoving, Jeff quickly waved his hand, and the fans' chant rose up once more. "We are! Niners! We are! Warriors!" The roar was like a tsunami, crashing down with an earth-shattering effect. A surging wave of sound assaulted them head-on, and the powerful display immediately made the other fans' knees go weak as they fled in disarray.

The cheering didn't stop; it only grew louder and louder. "We are! Niners! We are! Warriors!" On their rivals' turf, the San Francisco 49ers fans had powerfully declared their presence.