Chongqing - From snowy passes to today's western frontier, the spirit of the Red Army's legendary journey lives on.

This October marks the 90th anniversary of the victory of the Long March. Between 1934 and 1936, the Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Red Army crossed some of China's most forbidding terrain, and the video “The Backbone of the West” pays tribute to that journey.

It shows the crossing of the Jinsha River, the forced crossing of the Dadu River, the capture of the Luding Bridge and the battle of Lazikou Pass. Soldiers waded through the Songpan Grasslands before the Red Army's main forces reunited in Huining, Gansu province. Along the way, stories of sacrifice became part of the march's legacy.

90 years on, the contrast is striking. Once, soldiers crossed snow-capped mountains on foot and rivers under enemy fire. Today, troops can deploy across the country by land, sea and air in any weather.

On China's western frontier, a new generation stands guard at high altitudes, patrols the borders and rushes to the most dangerous disaster zones. For them, the spirit of the Long March remains a backbone that keeps the nation's mountains and rivers safe.

"My pure love is only for China."