The author of the book "The Book of the Dead"

Chapter 216 A Man of This Era, a God of a Past Life

The year of the Yellow Emperor is 4721, which corresponds to 2024 in the Gregorian calendar.

Zhu Hongtao, Zhao Hong, and others watched the two videotapes frame by frame, along with the photos of the moon landing from that year.

The moon landing photos differ from the official Zhu Daorong footprints, and these footprints also include animal tracks.

"Based on the information we have learned so far, there really are gods in the world. What we need to solve is the clues to the disappearance of the gods, to understand why they came and why they went."

The team delved deeper into the archives and discovered that not only were the moon landing records missing, but even the technology used to land on the moon could not be replicated.

"why?"

Everyone was puzzled.

Zhu Hongtao put down his manuscript and said, "The astronaut Zhu Daorong died in a car accident three years after landing on the moon, the project leader Liang Changming died of a brain tumor, and the first person in charge Zhao Wei passed away five years before landing on the moon."

Is it possible that the scientist didn't actually die, but rather faked his death like Einstein?

"Perhaps there is still one person who knows the truth of the matter."

"Who?" everyone asked in unison.

Zhu Hongtao looked at Liang Jixue and said, "The donor of the Central Plains Museum, Liang Jixue's grandfather, Liang Changyun, is the chairman of Penglai Royal Fashion Group, Dynasty New Energy Vehicles, and Central Plains Light Chip Company."

"Huh? My grandfather?" Liang Jixue asked in surprise.

How is it related to his grandfather?

“Brother Changyun is currently living in seclusion in Kuaiji City. Let’s all pay him a visit, consider it a publicly funded trip.”

……

The eastern part of the Kuaiji Mountains.

There is an ancient Taoist temple on the edge of the cliff. It is said that this place was the site of the Jingming Taoist sect, which was destroyed by war.

There are strange restrictions around the Taoist temple; it cannot be scanned by celestial instruments, nor can people see this place.

Inside the Taoist temple, the ground was covered with a light dust, as if it hadn't been cleaned for a long time.

There were no statues of gods in the main hall of the Taoist temple, only an empty altar.

The master bedroom was dark inside, with the door tightly closed.

A handsome man dressed in shorts and a t-shirt, with long hair like that of an ancient person, lay on the bed.

Wow!
The man suddenly stood up, his eyes filled with a purple light.

The man got up and stretched.

"This longevity compound has significant side effects."

Liang Yue exhaled a breath of stale air and went to the mirror, where his youthful face was reflected.

He was ninety-seven years old that year.

His physical body is equivalent to that of a fifty-seven-year-old, but with his true energy and the Sun and Moon Celestial Body, he looks to be only about seventeen or eighteen years old.

"Finally, the side effects of taking the medication have been resolved. It seems we should rely less on technology in the future."

As early as 2022, Liang Yue woke up and went to the mountain to build a Taoist temple.

Although longevity compounds slow down aging, they indirectly extend lifespan for a period of time.

After waking up, my physical vitality had not recovered. I kept waking up intermittently, playing games and then falling asleep again.

It has now fully recovered.

"Sixty years have passed, and we don't know if they have developed more advanced compounds."

Liang Yue went to the computer and glanced at the time.

He had been asleep for a few years, waking up occasionally. At that time, the internet was just emerging. Liang Changming prepared an account with extremely high privileges, almost exploiting system vulnerabilities. He could access and edit residents' information, playing a role of invisibility in this internet age.

This computer is connected to Huaxia Starlink, so there's no need to worry about network issues.

"2024, it's time to gather everyone."

Technology at this time had developed to a certain level, but it had encountered a bottleneck in materials.

Now is the time for him to emerge from seclusion.

After World War II, the countries lived in peace for a period of time.

Judging from the news in recent years, the hidden forces behind the scenes have begun to instigate wars and reshape the world order.

"There might be a world-class nuclear war... Before that, let's take a stroll through this familiar era."

Liang Yue turned off his computer and left the house.

The mountains are lush and green, shrouded in a thick white mist.

In the distant void, the Dharma Eye can see the flying satellites.

"Modern, I'm back!!"

This is the era he misses so much, the era he has waited for for seventeen hundred years.

What changes have occurred in the world under my influence? How will future generations judge me? How will they definitively conclude the story of my past romantic escapades?

History is truly fascinating, especially witnessing one's own power firsthand.

He is a man of this era, and also a god of a past life.

Fate seems to have formed a closed loop.

……

Down the mountain, in the Liang family ancestral home, within the Wutong Garden.

The entire scientific expedition team gathered here.

A robust old man with white hair lay lazily in a chair, basking in the warm and gentle sunlight.

"Xue'er, Jixue, show these young people around," Liang Changyun said slowly, without opening his eyes.

"Oh……"

A pretty young girl with a high ponytail and a quirky personality spoke in a drawn-out voice, seemingly reluctant to take on the job.

Soon, only Zhu Hongtao and Liang Changyun remained.

"Moon landing? Wasn't the moon landing a success? Brother Zhu, don't ask me about such old, trivial matters."

"Changyun, it's just you and me here, aren't you going to tell the truth? I was also someone who encountered immortals back then."

Zhu Hongtao was both amused and exasperated.

Liang Changyun didn't reply. After a long while, he opened one eye halfway and, seeing that his old friend was still there, said helplessly:
"I can't say too much, and I don't know much of the truth."

"The moon landing was actually a setup. Back then, my brother Changming discovered that the headquarters of a mysterious force might be in the Yin Kingdom in the Americas. So, taking advantage of the military competition between the two countries, he proposed the moon landing plan and secretly released false information, claiming that there were traces of immortals on the moon."

"Did your brother make up that picture of footprints on the moon?" Zhu Hongtao asked in astonishment.

"What else?" Liang Changyun said, half-jokingly.

As history records, both countries landed on the moon simultaneously; China succeeded, while the Yin Kingdom's spacecraft exploded.

The dangers involved are too great to describe to humankind.

From then on, both sides went into hiding, and the world was in turmoil, awaiting the next confrontation.

"Back then, your brother..." Zhu Hongtao wanted to ask something else.

"Go on, there's nothing here that you're looking for. There are no gods in this world, just strange people."

Liang Changyun waved his hand, indicating that he should not ask any further questions.

"You go to Qingshan Garden first. You can wander around the neighborhood for the next few days. I'll change my clothes and come back later."

"Row."

After Zhu Hongtao left, Liang Changyun could no longer hold back and coughed violently until he coughed up a pool of black blood.

"Time is running out."

He was poisoned, by some unknown toxin. By the time it was discovered, the disease was already terminal and no treatment could save him.

Thinking of this, Liang Changyun looked sad.

As the head of a multi-trillion-dollar business empire, his annual security costs exceed one hundred million.

Every ingredient undergoes rigorous testing; if someone still gets poisoned even with all that, it can only be someone close to them.

With three sons, one daughter, and fifteen grandchildren, which one is it?

I fear that this business empire will collapse after his death.

Liang Changyun unearthed a palm-sized jade box under a sycamore tree.

"Sixty years..."

This is a secret gift left to him by his elder brother, Changming.

Before he died, my older brother promised that he would definitely return.

Can they really be resurrected and return?

This box was left by my elder brother. He said that after 2023, if you encounter any unsolvable problems, you can open the box for help.

"I can't die yet."

Liang Changyun opened the jade box, inside which lay a black iron token, with a yellow talisman pasted on it. In the center of the talisman was written the ancient character "Liang," with the footnote "Dongshan."

What's in Dongshan?

……

Dongshan, twenty miles away.

On the edge of the cliff, a long-haired Taoist priest dressed in sportswear meditates and practices breathing exercises.

The moment the box was opened, the Taoist opened his eyes, his double pupils flashing with mysterious divine light, and at the same time the words "East Mountain" appeared on the yellow talisman in the box.

(End of this chapter)