I fabricated myths to guide the revival of spiritual energy.

[U.S. Washington, D.C. - Pentagon Underground Command Center]

[Time: 22:00 UTC/10:00 EST]

On the huge screen, a blurry video from the far East is playing on a loop.

The video's background is the misty summit of Kunlun Mountain, and the image is violently shaky, clearly taken from a distance. But this doesn't stop the elderly Chinese man (Li Guozhong) in the video, dressed in coarse linen clothes, from smashing a granite slab with a single palm strike.

It wasn't tools, it wasn't explosives, but that hand that looked covered in age spots.

The granite cracked like tofu, sending debris flying everywhere.

The meeting room was filled with smoke, and dozens of generals in sharp military uniforms and intelligence chiefs in suits looked grim.

"Has the CIA's analysis report been released yet?"

The defense minister, seated at the head of the table, tapped the table, his voice tinged with suppressed anxiety. "I want to know, was that special effects, or magic?"

"Sir, I'm sorry."

An intelligence chief stood up, his face more ashen than a corpse. "After six hours of frame-by-frame analysis by the technical department, no traces of CGI were found. Thermal imaging satellite data from the scene also showed that at the moment the old man struck out, the thermal energy in his arm area instantly surged to 400 degrees Fahrenheit—which is biologically impossible unless his veins were filled with magma."

A collective gasp filled the conference room.

"Furthermore," the supervisor swallowed hard, pulling up another document, "regarding that 'Human Potential Development Guidance Technique,' which they call 'Kung Fu'... oh no, 'Xiu Xian' exercises. Our linguists are going crazy."

The short 800-word article "Changchun Gong" appeared on the big screen.

Even though it has been translated into English, its vocabulary, full of Eastern philosophical metaphors, is practically incomprehensible to Westerners.

"'Qi sinks to Dantian'..." A general read the translated text with a frown. "Stare at three inches below your navel? Then imagine a rat running down your spine? What kind of damned witchcraft is this?"

"That's the problem, General," the intelligence chief said with a wry smile. "We consulted the best traditional Chinese medicine practitioners in Chinatown and sinologists from Harvard University. They told us that these terms cannot be understood literally; they require 'enlightenment.' However, our special forces tried practicing them all night, and apart from two who suffered from chest tightness and were sent to the ICU, no one experienced any so-called 'qi sensation.'"

The defense minister rubbed his throbbing temples.

"The dragon of the East has not only awakened, but it has also learned to breathe fire. We, on the other hand, don't even know how to strike a match."

He suddenly stood up, his eyes turning sinister.

"Pass down the order: activate 'Operation Prometheus.' Since we can't get the 'Fire Seed,' we'll steal it, we'll rob it. No matter the cost, I want every single stone, every blade of grass, every clod of earth from that Kunlun Mountain! Send out all our undercover agents; lock onto that coordinate!"

"But Minister, that area is now completely surrounded by the Chinese army..."

"Then let's throw money at it! Let's use status to buy it! I don't believe that everyone in that so-called 'Kunlun' is a saint!"

……

【Kunlun Mountain - Outer Gate Square - Stone House Area】

[Time: 23:45]

At high altitudes in the dead of night, the cold wind is like a knife.

The temperature here has dropped to minus twenty degrees Celsius, and water freezes instantly.

The nine lucky individuals who had just obtained the status of "outer disciples" were currently huddled in a row of extremely simple stone houses.

There is no heating, no down comforters, only hard, cold stone beds and thin, coarse linen clothes.

"It's so cold..."

Old Zhang, the veteran with the broken leg, hugged his knee, his teeth chattering uncontrollably. His severed limb was in excruciating pain from the cold, as if countless ants were gnawing at it.

"Is this where the immortals live?"

Beside him, the math lecturer, who had been in a state of high excitement, had also wilted. He had originally thought that after coming up here he would be living in a magnificent palace and eating delicacies, but he didn't expect that the treatment would be worse than that of the refugee camp down the mountain.

"Not only am I cold, but I'm also hungry."

In the corner, Zhao Tiezhu rubbed his rumbling stomach. On the table in the center of the stone house sat nine dry, hard steamed buns and a pot of cold water—their dinner for the day.

"This steamed bun is so hard you could kill a dog with it, how are we supposed to eat it?"

Just as everyone was complaining, a soft chewing sound came from behind them.

Everyone looked in the direction of the sound.

There sat a cold-blooded young man named Chen Ping, sitting cross-legged on the stone bed. He expressionlessly picked up the stone-like steamed bun, moistened it with a meager amount of water, and then slowly stuffed it into his mouth, chewing and swallowing it forcefully.

His movements were mechanical and precise, as if he were not eating, but refueling a machine.

"Eat."

Chen Ping swallowed a mouthful of cold, hard dough, his voice hoarse, "There's something mixed in this steamed bun. It's not ordinary flour."

"Did they add something?" Zhao Tiezhu was taken aback.

"It smells like herbs, and there's also... warmth." Chen Ping closed his eyes, feeling a warm sensation slowly rising in his stomach. "If I eat this, at least I won't freeze to death tonight."

Upon hearing this, the others no longer hesitated and grabbed the steamed buns, wolfing them down.

Even if their teeth were broken and aching terribly, no one dared to spit it out.

And in the very corner of the stone house.

The sick girl, Lin Xiaowan, was looking at her own face in the moonlight and the reflection of the pot of cold water.

Although the "Marrow Cleansing Pill" bestowed upon her by Gu Qing was only a low-grade version in gaseous form, its effects were still astonishing. The perennial sickly pallor on her face had faded, replaced by a healthy rosy glow.

She's not like Gu Qing; she doesn't have a systematic body data system, and a single "Marrow Cleansing Pill" would be more than enough to completely cure her.

She didn't eat the steamed bun.

Following the guidance of the "Changchun Gong" in her mind, she assumed an extremely awkward posture—five hearts facing upwards.

For ordinary people, entering a meditative state in such extreme cold and hunger would be an impossible dream. But Lin Xiaowan did it.

For her, this cold stone house was paradise compared to the drafty basement she used to live in.

"Qi...sensation..."

She silently recited it in her heart.

Perhaps it was because she possessed the extremely rare "dual spiritual roots of water and wood," or perhaps it was because of her pure and unwavering will to survive.

While the other eight people were still shivering from the cold.

Lin Xiaowan felt that the floating, invisible blue specks of light in the air were gradually approaching her, like fireflies.

The first ray of light entered her pore.

Cool and refreshing.

Then came the second one, the third one...

If a powerful figure from the cultivation world were here, they would be astonished to discover that this little girl, who was just starting out in cultivation, had completed half of the "qi-introduction" process overnight without any guidance from a master!

This is what Gu Qing called the "seed".

……

[At the foot of Kunlun Mountain, outside the cordon, Qiudao Town (in its early stages)]

[Time: 02:00 AM the following day]

Nine people on the mountain were freezing, while those below were celebrating, or rather, building a crazy new order.

Logically, those who are eliminated should leave.

But no one left.

Even though the army had repeatedly warned them to turn back over the loudspeaker, these people remained rooted to the edge of the fog-shrouded area like nails.

"I'm not leaving! I'll die here! What if the Immortal Master is in a good mood one day and takes in more people?"

"Yes! We'll wait here! Even if it's just guarding the gate for the immortals, it's fine!"

Since we can't drive them away, we can only manage them.

Li Guozhong didn't sleep all night. He stood on the high platform of the temporary command post, looking down at the tents and fires stretching for kilometers, his eyes deep in thought.

"Chief, the situation is under control."

Zhao Feng, sporting dark circles under his eyes, ran over to report, "The supply convoy has arrived. Also, as you instructed, we've divided the area into zones. Now, this camp has a rich area, a civilian area, and even... a black market."

"The black market?" Li Guozhong raised an eyebrow.

"Yes." Zhao Feng gave a wry smile and pulled a small shard, about the size of a fingernail, from his pocket. "Look at this."

It was a dusty, gray stone fragment that looked like some kind of scrap from a building.

"This is a piece of rock that rolled down the mountain. It's said to have been shaken off during a battle between some powerful beings (actually, it was scrap material that Gu Qing threw away when he was renovating the main hall)," Zhao Feng said. "Just now, this rock was being sold for three million in the black market down below."

"Three million? To buy a rock?" Li Guozhong found it absurd.

"Because someone tested it with a detector, and it turns out that this stone has a weak magnetic field. Wearing it for a long time can improve sleep and even enhance male virility..." Zhao Feng said somewhat awkwardly, "Those rich people have gone crazy. Now, they are willing to exchange gold bars for anything related to Kunlun, even if it's just a handful of dirt."

Li Guozhong remained silent for a long time before letting out a long sigh.

"The chaotic world... has truly arrived."

"This is still the situation under our control. If one day in the future that person opens up more resources, or even that kind of 'longevity pill'... the world's monetary system and social classes may collapse overnight."

He turned around and looked at the bright national flag behind him.

"Zhao Feng, let Bureau 749 expand."

"We need more manpower, not only soldiers, but also economists, sociologists, and psychologists."

"In this era of mythological revival, we must redraw the nautical charts for the great ship of our nation."

"Since we can't stop the tide, let's become the tide riders."

……

【Kunlun Mountain - Summit - Taiqing Hall】

[Time: The darkest hour before dawn]

Gu Qing sat alone on that chilling jade throne.

The entire hall was empty, with only the eight dragon-carved pillars standing silently in the shadows, like eight silent guards.

He opened the system panel.

The string of numbers was jumping wildly, so fast that it dazzled him.

[Sources of growth: the global "Kunlun craze," the spread of Changchun Gong, and the sense of awe brought about by the "Ladder of Inquiry."]

[Evaluation: The host has successfully torn a massive rift in a materialistic world. Myths are no longer just stories, but a reality that has arrived.]

This huge sum of money is enough for Gu Qing to do a lot of things.

But he didn't show any elation. Instead, his face bore a deep weariness and worry.

"System, bring up the 'Void' observation map. Correct the prediction model."

[Initiating... Model reconstruction...]

A magnificent holographic star map appeared before Gu Qing. It was the edge of the solar system, the Kuiper Belt. What should have been a desolate, dark void now bore an eerie purple shadow. The shadow was still very far away, so far that even the Hubble Telescope couldn't detect it. But in Gu Qing's system vision, the shadow was like drops of ink seeping into clear water, slowly, steadily, and irreversibly seeping towards Earth.

[Warning: The Void Main Force (Star Annihilator) is expected to arrive in 100 years.]

[Warning: Void scouts anticipate the arrival of the beast tide in 1 year.]

"One hundred years..." Gu Qing looked at that distant number, a cold smile curling at the corner of his mouth. "It seems very long, long enough for humanity to think that it can take its time, to do some research, and even to have some internal strife."

His gaze shifted downwards and locked onto the bright red "1 year".

"But System, you and I both know that if we can't even stop the 'vanguard beast tide' a year from now, humanity is not qualified to face the war a hundred years from now." Gu Qing's fingers gripped the armrests of the jade throne tightly, his knuckles turning white.

"Too slow, the pace of human evolution is too slow."

Although today looks very lively, with everyone cultivating immortality and getting excited.

But Gu Qing knew in his heart that this amount of power was not even enough to fill a tooth gap in front of a real void army.

Those nine outer disciples, even if they practice day and night, will at most reach the Foundation Establishment stage after a year. Unless I recklessly use the system to empower them—although with the recovery of spiritual energy, the faith points required to use the system will decrease—how much faith point do I have enough to fill the holes left by billions of people?

What can one do during the Foundation Establishment stage?

In the void battlefield, Foundation Establishment stage cultivators are nothing but cannon fodder.

"We must speed things up."

A ruthless glint flashed in Gu Qing's eyes.

"Boiling a frog in lukewarm water may seem like a safe approach, but it's too late."

"Now that we've given them sweet dates, it's time to show them the real deal."

He stood up, waved his sleeve, and shut down the star map.

As I walked to the entrance of the main hall, I looked at the pale light of dawn breaking in the east.

"The prologue to the mythological age has ended."

Gu Qing whispered to the empty sea of ​​clouds, as if conversing with an unseen destiny.

"What follows will no longer be this kind of childish adventure game."

"I want to turn this world into a military camp."

……

[System notification: "Mythical Revival" has been completed.]

[Settling interim rewards...]

[Congratulations, host, you have obtained a special building blueprint—[Demon Refining Tower (Beginner)]].

[Congratulations, host, you have obtained a special item—[Heart of the Spirit Vein (Medium)]].

[Next main quest phase begins: [Establish a sect, cultivate together throughout the nation]]

With the system's cold, indifferent notification sound.

Gu Qing raised his hand, and in his palm, the [Heart of the Spirit Vein], radiating boundless vitality, slowly emerged.

"Go."

He pressed down with his hand.

The heart of the spiritual vein transformed into a long rainbow and fiercely pierced into the body of Kunlun Mountain.

Rumbling--

This time, the tremors were no longer confined to Kunlun.

From the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau to the Yellow River and the Yangtze River, and then to the coast of the East China Sea.

At this moment, the earth's veins throughout the entire land of China emitted a joyful dragon's roar.

At the foot of the mountain, the people who were camping out were surprised to find that tender green grass had sprouted overnight on the originally desolate Gobi Desert.

The air became moist and sweet.

People with pre-existing health conditions suddenly felt lighter.

And in more distant places, those famous mountains and rivers—Mount Tai, Mount Hua, Mount Emei…

At this moment, it seemed that a faint resonance had been formed.

The dawn sunlight finally pierced the darkness, shining on the golden glazed tiles of the Taiqing Hall, refracting countless golden rays.

Gu Qing stood in the center of the light, his shadow stretching very long.

The mythological age has officially begun.