Hermit in the Mountains

The security personnel responsible for the Suiyue Courtyard noticed three strangers approaching. One of the security guards widened his eyes the moment he saw Gu Changsheng's face.

Gu Changsheng's photo was firmly imprinted in his mind, and he was also the target of their mission. Without the slightest hesitation, he raised his right hand, pressed his right ear, and whispered a few words, waiting for Gu Changsheng to come over.

At the same time, the door of an office in the State Administration of Cultural Heritage in Chang'an City, a hundred kilometers away, was pushed open and a middle-aged man in a black outfit and with a burly build walked in.

The middle-aged man was Zhang Tianhu, the director of the National Spirit Bureau. Since the start of the Probing Bureau, he had been staying at the National Spirit Bureau in Chang'an City so that he could rush to the scene as soon as Gu Changsheng came down the mountain.

Upon seeing Zhang Tianhu, the office staff all stood up and bowed, "Director Zhang, Director Zhang..."

Zhang Tianhu raised his right hand and returned a standard military salute. His gaze fell on the photos sent back from the courtyard of years. They were indeed of Gu Changsheng, as well as Zhang Yuanfu and Yang Dashan, whom he knew.

"Arrange a helicopter; I need to head to Xiahe Village in three minutes."

"Notify our personnel stationed in the courtyard to turn off all cameras and remove all devices that can take photos to prevent information leaks."

After handing over the task, Zhang Tianhu turned and left the office, heading towards the helipad.

It wasn't that he was overly cautious, but rather that he respected Gu Changsheng.

The eighteen small elixirs obtained five days ago have long been sent back to the capital. Multiple research teams have conducted studies but have still not been able to reverse engineer Gu Changsheng's alchemy skills.

The answer given by multiple research teams is that Gu Changsheng possesses core technologies that they are unaware of.

That's not the main point. Multiple research teams have also analyzed that Gu Changsheng possesses the true method for refining elixirs.

This result is the result of multiple verifications and analyses.

First-grade Qi-Nourishing Pill, First-grade Yang-Boosting Pill;

Second-grade Qi-Nourishing Small Elixir, Second-grade Yang-Boosting Small Elixir;

The name itself reveals that Gu Changsheng has mastered complete alchemy methods of different qualities.

An internal investigation by the National Spirit Bureau revealed that the small group that collected resources and information for Gu Changsheng had members who were able to purchase higher-quality Spirit Pills.

They were still struggling with the quality of the first-grade minor spirit pills, but when they heard that Gu Changsheng might have mastered a refining method that surpassed the minor spirit pills, their hearts were shattered.

What does it mean to be far ahead? This technological gap is what it means to be far ahead.

Gu Changsheng is an overpowered individual. With his exceptional comprehension and divine sense, he deduced an unconventional method of alchemy involving decay and prosperity. Otherwise, he wouldn't be able to make alchemy seem like child's play.

If Gu Changsheng had followed the traditional fire refining method, he probably could only have refined small spirit pills, because the rules of the environment did not allow it. The spiritual energy in the world was thin, and there were no spiritual herbs, medicines, or fires, so there were no conditions for refining spirit pills.

Knowing that Gu Changsheng might have mastered the true method of refining elixirs, the Purple Gold Pavilion held another secret meeting and listed Gu Changsheng as the "Zero Observation Target for the Resurgence of Spiritual Energy," making every effort to build a good relationship and deepen cooperation.

To this end, the National Spirit Bureau has a small team stationed two kilometers away from Xiahe Village to liaise with Gu Changsheng.

The National Spirit Bureau also has another line of communication, secretly sending out an individual with no direct connection to the state to infiltrate Zhang Yuanfu's inner circle and keep a close eye on Gu Changsheng's movements.

They didn't want to go through all this trouble, but Gu Changsheng's attitude forced them to do so.

After extensive and lengthy investigation, analysis, and verification, it was found that only Yang Dashan and Zhang Yuanfu were truly able to speak with Gu Changsheng, with Yang Mancang, the old clan chief of Xiaohe Village, being considered as half a person.

Others could only contact Gu Changsheng through Yang Dashan and Zhang Yuanfu.

In addition, Gu Changsheng has a withdrawn personality and does not like to communicate with outsiders.

The final conclusion is that one must be extremely cautious when communicating with Gu Changsheng, as a single word or action might touch upon his sensitive points.

They weren't afraid that Gu Changsheng would rebel and cause trouble that would endanger social security, since the mushroom could solve 99% of the problems on Blue Star.

They were afraid that Gu Changsheng would resist cooperation. They needed Gu Changsheng's alchemy techniques, or the elixirs he refined, or the secrets of spiritual energy revival that Gu Changsheng possessed that they did not know.

More than a month has passed since it was confirmed that the spiritual energy of Blue Star has been restored, and the number of cultivators emerging in various places has tripled.

They also discovered that the spiritual energy that only exists in the mountains is showing signs of spreading to the outside world, and the vegetation around some rural areas has already shown some signs of growth.

They can predict that the area covered by spiritual energy will only grow larger in the future, and the concentration of spiritual energy will likely increase over time.

The probability of events such as plants and animals gaining intelligence, experiencing a surge in strength, and technology failing occurs is as high as 90%.

It is not impossible that one day, the scene from the myth will be recreated.

As the first to discover the revival of spiritual energy and the first to embark on cultivation, Gu Changsheng's status is equivalent to that of the future founder and leader of the cultivation world.

The National Spirit Bureau compiled statistics on the time all cultivators entered cultivation, combined with an analysis of Gu Changsheng's unusual behavior.

It can be confirmed that Gu Changsheng is the first cultivator in China.

Whether there are even earlier ones in remote and sparsely populated areas is unknown to them, and they no longer have enough funds and manpower to collect information. What they need to consider now is how to stabilize the public, get them to accept, and smoothly transition from the technological age to the spiritual revival age.

When 1.5 billion people learn that spiritual energy has been restored, that they can seek immortality, fly through the heavens and escape the earth, and achieve immortality, one can imagine what will happen.

How to maintain social stability is a major challenge that has been placed before the top leadership.

What they need to do now is to unite all the cultivators who can be united, and to establish an internal management organization for cultivators (National Spirit Bureau), a training organization for cultivators, etc., to deal with what may happen in the future.

The National Spirit Bureau has begun to compile basic Qi cultivation methods by combining various classic texts. These methods for strengthening the body and improving health will be popularized nationwide and subtly integrated into people's daily lives, so that they will be psychologically prepared for major changes in the world in the future.

Gu Changsheng was unaware of the country's plans, and even if he knew, he would only smile. He didn't have many relatives or friends, as long as they didn't interfere with his cultivation.

As Gu Changsheng approached the security personnel, his hearing had already picked up on their report. He pretended nothing had happened and went up to greet them.

"Hey bro, I heard there are a lot of celebrities in the yard up ahead. We've never actually seen a celebrity in person before. Can we go over and take a look?"

"Hello, I need to report to the director. You can only pass if the director approves." The security personnel were all trained and used this excuse to delay.

In the director's control room, the National Spirit Bureau personnel received orders from above, instructing the chief director to notify everyone to shut down all cameras, confiscate all equipment, and proceed with the event as normal.

At the same time, the chief director was instructed to inform He Jiong to take them to welcome Gu Changsheng's arrival.

The National Spirit Bureau personnel followed He Jiong toward the outer cordon.

Teacher He truly lives up to his reputation as a veteran host; judging from the serious expressions of the two people beside him, he guessed that the visitors were no ordinary individuals.

He Jiong and his group walked to the cordon, and he looked at the three visitors.

The young man in the lead had an indescribable, stunning presence, and his attire also gave off a strange vibe.

The newcomer wore a bamboo hat, had long black and white hair, wore a light blue ancient-style robe, was barefoot, and had his hands tucked into his sleeves.

He Jiong suppressed his doubts, smiled, and extended his right hand to greet them, "I'm He Jiong, you're from the village, right?"

Gu Changsheng smiled faintly, extended his right hand to shake hands with the other person, and said, "Teacher He, hello, my name is Gu Changsheng."

"I didn't expect you to look even younger than you do on TV."

He Jiong's smile widened when he heard Gu Changsheng praise his youth. "Welcome to visit us. The director has already agreed. Come on, I'll show you the big star up close."

Gu Changsheng raised his hand in a gesture of respect. He followed beside He Jiong, glancing at him out of the corner of his eye, thinking to himself, 'Interesting. There's a faint fluctuation of spiritual energy within him.'

As the thought arose, Gu Changsheng opened his Dharma Eye and looked towards He Jiong's dantian, where a spiritual root that was about to disappear came into view.

He predicted that the other party's spiritual root would be eroded by acquired turbidity within half a year, until it was annihilated.

The two staff members from the National Spirit Bureau did not interrupt. They were currently working for the program and simply followed quietly, only intervening if any unusual situation arose.