Chapter 130: The Whole Village Ascends, the Nation Shakes!

The command came from the east, purple qi spreading, covering one side of the sky, as if the purple firmament had sunk and settled upon the human world.

As for the villagers who worship me, how much benefit they ultimately gain depends on their own fortune.

Ye Qin no longer concerned himself with it, turning his gaze inward; his golden core within continuously rotated, that weighty power shuttling back and forth through his body, every inch of bone having undergone tempering and forging, becoming more resilient, like jade stone.

He could feel his connection with the golden core strengthening, now able to freely manipulate the powerful force within his body as he wished.

Originally green scales, as if covered with a layer of hard armor, became impervious to blades and spears, immune to water and fire.

"I don't know what level of thermal weapon I can withstand now?"

At the same time, Ye Qin felt something on his forehead finally breaking through its constraint, slowly growing out, though slightly itchy, it was not uncomfortable.

He came to a clear spring not far off in the mountains, gazing at his own reflection.

The green serpentine body twisted continuously, like fine translucent jade, most importantly, a horn had grown at the center of his forehead.

It happened to be at the position of the thunder scales, this is the rhythm of being replaced.

It looks somewhat abrupt, yet inexplicably harmonious, blending with the surrounding green scales, within which an inexplicable power constantly surges.

"After the golden core, divine ability power greatly increases; next time I release thunder, it might be as terrifying as the Five Thunder Method!"

I never expected that after condensing the golden core this time, horns would grow on his head; at first glance, it somewhat resembles the legendary creature, but the difference is still great, and he still needs to proceed step by step.

"Who knows whether the future path will be to transform into a dragon, or to maintain the serpent form?"

"Although dragons are divine, demonized dragons are still demon dragons. Although snakes are common, in mythology there are also forms like Teng Snake, Ba Snake, and Nüwa."

"Now the body has begun to change, the future path needs to be decided quickly..."

Ye Qin fell into deep thought, regarding his future cultivation evolution path, a choice must be made when the time comes.

Under the sunlight, the purple mist refracted with a strange radiance, enveloping the entire mountain peak, like a light gauze covering, heavenly sweet rain descended, nourishing all things.

Countless plants flourished, spreading their branches and leaves to welcome the rain and dew, leaves tender green almost dripping water, like jade inlaid among the mountains.

The small animals previously hiding in the forest all poked their heads out, joyfully leaping, sucking tiny water droplets from the air, their furry animal faces showing expressions of full satisfaction.

These sweet rains contain the existence of heavenly and earthly qi, as well as the effect of the eastern purple qi.

Ye Qin had just broken through and advanced, still with much heavenly and earthly qi not fully absorbed, all of it overflowed outward, combining with the purple mist rising, condensing into tiny water droplets, creating this wondrous sight.

When the qi pellet was formed earlier, there was already such a spectacle, let alone now having truly condensed into a golden core, even attracting eastern purple qi comparable to imperial flowing broth.

"The small beasts of this mountain should also benefit; I hope they can also become demons in the future, otherwise I would be too lonely!"

Ye Qin murmured, looking at this mountain thriving and flourishing with joy.

Heavenly and earthly qi like a spring surge, all returning to nourish heaven and earth, spiritual qi gathering here, all things growing endlessly.

Purple qi auspicious clouds, encircling the immortal mountain as spoken of, is precisely today's scene.

The entire mountain range and land received the gift, those animals shuttling through the forest, their small paws occasionally brushing dew from the leaves.

Everyone says 'One attains the Dao, chickens and dogs ascend to heaven,' and this saying is indeed correct.

This mountain forest was originally a place of outstanding spiritual elegance, and because of Ye Qin's presence, heavenly and earthly qi became even more concentrated, invisibly already affecting this land.

Even these plants grow more lush than elsewhere, like genetic mutation; any botanist coming over would be amazed.

……

At the same time, not only the mountains and rivers, but the village at the mountain foot also finally began to be affected.

This day also happened to be the day Sun Zhenbang came to the Mountain God Temple to worship.

Every month, he takes a day to come here, praying for blessings and burning incense for his family.

But every time he comes, he hides his whereabouts a little, to avoid being watched by those with ill intentions, lest his job be lost.

This day, upon entering the village, a refreshing breeze greeted him, dispelling all the fatigue of recent days, this feeling especially special, making Sun Zhenbang feel clear-headed and refreshed.

And upon seeing his arrival, the village head became somewhat excited, "Officer Sun has come? You don't know, yesterday something big happened here."

At this moment, the mountains had already returned to calm, completely without the previous terrifying rain and storm.

The beautiful, winding mountain ranges undulated and coiled, like a giant dragon in deep sleep, overlooking the village below, white clouds drifting, like a fairyland beyond the world.

Sun Zhenbang looked at this beautiful scenery, feeling somewhat strange, "What happened? Isn't this quite good?"

The village head spoke in a mysterious tone, "Today is actually fine, but yesterday the mountains suddenly had dark clouds gathering, lightning flashing and thunder rumbling, feeling like the Mountain God was angry, Officer Sun, you say it's nothing?"

Sun Zhenbang was somewhat speechless, "Weather changes aren't that abnormal, right? Can't one always be suspicious and ghost-just because of guarding the Mountain God Temple?"

Sun Zhenbang then hurried to comfort the village head, but just as the two were talking, a cry of alarm came from not far away.

"Village head, come quickly and see, another strange thing has happened!"

The village head and Sun Zhenbang exchanged a glance, then hurried out, not waiting for the two to inquire, they seemed to sense something and lifted their heads to look.

Not far on the horizon, countless purple qi came from the east, mighty and vast, coiling above the mountain peaks.

The towering, dark green mountains, with forests dense and shady, and the vast, azure sky, were all covered with a layer of purple gauze, appearing extremely holy.

At this moment, everyone nearby stared with mouths agape, standing in place, heads tilted back, gazing as if dazed and intoxicated.

The hazy rain mist floated in the air, being too fine to be caught by the naked eye.

Yet the people could feel the moisture in the air, that sense of clarity and refreshment difficult to describe in words.

The fatigue in their bodies and previous minor ailments seemed to vanish instantly, bodies becoming unprecedentedly light and comfortable, clear-headed and refreshed.

"Yesterday when I went down to the fields, I accidentally twisted my waist, but now it's actually healed?"

"I suddenly feel a bit hungry..."

"Who has a mirror? Let me take a look, why do I feel like I've become a young lady?"

The villagers chattered, faces full of bewilderment.

Most young people had gone out to work, leaving mostly the elderly in the village.

Ordinarily, minor aches and pains are inevitable, these being the lingering effects of years of hard labor, although not serious, they have indeed troubled them all along.

But now, those minor aches and pains have all disappeared at once, bodies seeming to return to youth.

This is too miraculous!

"Last year, I remember there was a period like this too—seems like it was one morning, suddenly I felt refreshed and clear-headed, especially energetic."

"Yeah, yeah, I remember, but back then I just felt a bit more energetic, my body didn't change this much!"

"Yeah, could this be a blessing from the Mountain God?"

The villagers recalled a scene from last year, somewhat similar to now, but not quite the same—far less exaggerated and miraculous than this.

Sun Zhenbang looked at the distant green mountains; though he didn't wear glasses, he had always had about a hundred degrees of myopia, which he'd grown used to, but now he unexpectedly discovered he could clearly see the distant scenery.

Wildflowers in clusters not far away were breathtakingly beautiful; a butterfly that had flown from who knows where rested on the flower stamens, and he could even clearly see the butterfly's antennae trembling.

If it were before, he could at most see only a rough outline. Sun Zhenbang even thought he was hallucinating and couldn't help rubbing his eyes.

The colorful patterns on the butterfly's wings were clearly visible, giving him the sensation that the whole world had been magnified before his eyes.

The villagers' voices were crystal clear, and he could even hear the lowing of cattle in the distant fields with perfect clarity.

The wind rustled the trees, blowing gently toward them, and he could even trace the wind's path.

Sun Zhenbang was so astonished that even after the village chief shouted several times, he didn't hear a word.

"What are you thinking about, Officer Sun, so lost in thought?"

Sun Zhenbang's gaze fell to the northwest, where he saw leaves constantly swaying, and he instinctively said, "Village chief, the wind is rising."

The village chief felt bewildered, "There's no wind right now."

As soon as he finished speaking, a mountain breeze came from the northwest, gently brushing over everyone's faces.

Both were stunned; the village chief looked at Sun Zhenbang and gave an embarrassed smile, "Well, I'll be damned, what a coincidence."

But Sun Zhenbang shook his head, "Not a coincidence—listen carefully, you can feel it too."

The village chief listened intently and realized all surrounding sounds flooded into his ears, even distant noises became exceptionally clear, and his vision sharpened.

Not only did his eyesight improve, but his hearing also improved significantly.

Eyes and ears sharp, it felt as if his whole body had been cleansed, becoming pure and spotless.

But even more astonishing things were yet to come, as cheers kept erupting from the crowd.

It turned out someone had lifted a stone roller.

This stone roller required strong young men to barely lift it, yet now seventy-two-year-old Old Man Liu from the village entrance easily picked it up.

Old Man Liu appeared relaxed, as if the object weighed only a few jin, leaving onlookers stunned.

You know Old Man Liu is old—let alone lifting a stone roller, even moving random things could easily strain his back, so he usually takes extra care.

But now he looks like a seventeen- or eighteen-year-old strong youth, his strength unbelievably great.

Originally thought this was already astonishing enough, but then a figure staggered out from the village.

Seeing him appear, all villagers stared as if seeing a ghost, and even their speech became stammering.

"Old, Old Li, why are you coming out like this?"

Old Man Li had worked at a construction site years ago, accidentally injured his leg, and since his family couldn't afford treatment, minor injuries worsened, leaving him dependent on a cane for decades, disabled.

Yet now he appeared before everyone without his cane, walking openly.

His gait was slightly limp, but likely due to not being used to it yet.

Old Man Li grinned broadly, "My leg healed—mysteriously healed—do you say this isn't divine?"

The villagers gathered around him like discoverers of a new continent.

"This is nothing short of a miracle."

Moreover, even the village guardian living at the village tail, who used to be foolish, has regained mental clarity.

For a moment, the village's myriad wonders left everyone dazzled and overwhelmed.

"Quick, go check the fields—this year's a bumper harvest!"

A villager ran from the fields, shouting all the way, drawing many curious villagers who rushed to their own fields.

These fields lie at the mountain foot, and soon a crowd gathered, all stunned—seeing the crops as if pulled up by their shoots, seemingly sprouting overnight.

Now it's early spring, just after sowing, harvest won't come until summer or autumn, yet the fields are already covered in tender green shoots, delighting to behold.

Such an abnormal scene leaves people bewildered, but if this growth rate continues, this year's yield might increase manyfold.

"Regrowth from nothing! This is an auspicious sign for the new year!"

Even the dried herbs Wu Yuan had drying in his courtyard unexpectedly sprouted tender green roots, the lost moisture returned, and they renewed with new vitality—this is no longer a miracle, but beyond belief.

Wonders followed one after another; if Sun Zhenbang hadn't seen them himself, he wouldn't believe such things could happen to him.

At this moment he felt his body full of strength, vital essence abundant, as if many hidden ailments from work had vanished.

"Too miraculous."

Sun Zhenbang drifted into thought.

Little did they know, the village's changes were entirely due to the eastern purple qi.

As an extremely special kind of qi between heaven and earth, it flows abundantly like imperial nectar, and even reviving the dead and healing white bones is no exaggeration.

Yet since ancient times, no one has had the chance to inhale heaven and earth's qi—not even the ancient sages.

Because in ancient times, no cultivators were ever born!

But now, because Ye Qin bestowed blessings, everyone in Longyuan Village who worships the Mountain God temple has received favor.

If this happened in ancient times, it would be enough to make the ancient sages envy.

However, the eastern purple qi's blessing on people is slight—each person retains only a trace, almost negligible.

This is only because Ye Qin is in charge; otherwise, not even a trace would touch ordinary beings.

But even that trace is extraordinary!

Just like the villagers' changes, the village's transformation—it's as if the entire Longyuan Village is being elevated.

And this is the miraculous effect of that single trace of eastern purple qi.

Unfortunately, the villagers are ordinary mortals; even with a trace of eastern purple qi in their bodies, they cannot activate its marvels—temporarily, it only brings them some obvious innate changes.

For example, improvements and recovery in aspects such as lifespan, health, and vitality.

However, there is one exception, and that is Hu Xiaocao.

She is quite different; upon receiving the blessing of the Eastern Purple Qi, she unconsciously began practicing the movements described in ancient texts, sitting cross-legged.

Perhaps due to her wholehearted devotion to the Dao, or perhaps because of her close relationship with Ye Qin, the Purple Qi within her body is slightly more abundant than that of ordinary people.

Like the other villagers, her hearing and eyesight have improved significantly, but that is not all—she also discovered that when reading, she can read ten lines at a glance, even achieving photographic memory.

Previously obscure knowledge and classical Chinese in ancient texts, which were hard to understand, now become clear at a glance; evidently, her comprehension has improved.

This mental transformation brought about by the change is even more delightful to Hu Xiaocao than the physical changes.

As her mental state changed, her very being underwent some subtle transformations—for instance, her aura and facial features became more refined.

Though her appearance remains the same as before, there is an indescribable change, like seeing flowers through mist—elusive yet striking.

When Hu Xiaocao put down her book and hurried outside to find the village chief, seeing her appearance, the villagers were stunned.

Hu Xiaocao's features had long been open, and she was naturally pretty like her mother, but due to frequent farm work, her skin was relatively dark.

Now her skin is fair and delicate, like fine porcelain, as if transformed from within and without, her entire being elevated.

After only a short time apart, Xiaocao seemed to have become a completely different person.

"Xiaocao, slow down—what's the matter?"

"Such a great change has occurred in the village; it must be the blessing of Mountain God Grandfather. I intend to go to the Mountain God Temple to pay my respects."

This statement gained the agreement of all villagers; gazing at the auspicious clouds surrounding the distant mountains, their reverence for the Mountain God reached its peak.

Soon after, all villagers of the village gathered at the Mountain God Temple, without distinction of seniority, following behind Hu Xiaocao, kneeling and bowing devoutly.

"Thank you, Mountain God, for blessing Longyuan Village; your great kindness and virtue—I will repay you in the next life as an ox or horse."

"Thanks to the Mountain God Elder, I now have greater vigor in my farm work."

"If not for the Mountain God Elder, I would probably still be a cripple now; you gave me a normal life."

"Thank you, Mountain God Elder, for restoring my consciousness and granting me rebirth."

Sun Zhenbang was also among them; although he did not chatter incessantly, he continuously prayed in his heart, hoping the Mountain God would bless his entire family with peace and health.

At noon that day, under the village chief's call, the village held a grand banquet in celebration.

The villagers' lives were significantly affected by this event; indeed, one could say the entire village underwent a earth-shaking transformation and was elevated.

Likewise, this incident sparked heated discussion online.

The cause was a video.

Yesterday, on the mountain road, a dashcam captured the celestial phenomena and uploaded it online; this morning, someone captured the wondrous sight of Eastern Purple Qi staining half the horizon.

The two clips were widely shared, instantly generating considerable traffic.

The scene in the video is truly shocking—descending lightning, as if it would split the entire mountain.

At the same location, the next morning, auspicious clouds surrounded the sky, and vast Purple Qi came from the east, like a fairyland, forming a stark contrast with yesterday's thunder.

If only the scenery were taken out alone, perhaps it would not be so shocking.

But clearly, it is the same mountain; before and after, it seems like two worlds, forming a strong contrast that instantly caught netizens' attention.

"I don't know which Daoist friend is undergoing tribulation here—could you come out and exchange a few words?"

"Could this be the Purple Qi from the East mentioned in the《Dao De Jing》? It's truly shocking! Does anyone have coordinates? I'd like to observe up close."

"Wanting to observe up close—aren't you afraid of being struck dead by lightning?"

"Being struck by lightning? Maybe it could even open the Ren and Du meridians—if one is lucky enough to gain an opportunity."

"The person upstairs is a tough guy—probably just read too many novels."

"Just missing an old man riding a green ox; otherwise, I'd almost believe someone is cultivating immortality."

Although many joked that someone was cultivating and undergoing tribulation, more people were simply attracted by the magnificent scenery.

As the video spread, more and more people saw it.

Some said it was a special celestial phenomenon; others said it was related to the local terrain, thus forming such a scene.

Opinions varied, but to this day, no definitive explanation has emerged; many tagged the official Weibo of the Meteorological Bureau, hoping they could explain the cause of this strange phenomenon.

This video thus entered the view of the astronomical community.

Wu Du Astronomical Bureau naturally learned of this, but regarding this thunderstorm weather, they found it unremarkable, as the weather here is inherently changeable, and previous forecasts had already reported it.

Only the Eastern Purple Qi truly amazed them; they marveled at nature's supernatural craftsmanship—such a celestial phenomenon is as rare as the previous heavenly fire, and they have never witnessed it in their lifetimes.

"This mountain feels somewhat familiar, as if I've seen it somewhere before."

"I remember now—isn't this the mountain where we previously captured the heavenly fire?"

A colleague remarked in surprise, immediately going to check the materials: "Although we originally captured the scene at night, I still remember that road—it's this mountain road."

Looking at the photos and images from both sides, upon comparison, they discovered it was indeed the same mountain.

Initially, the astronomical bureau staff intended to photograph the lunar eclipse, but by mistake captured another special heavenly fire phenomenon; that video also sparked considerable discussion online and even trended.

Since the formation of this celestial phenomenon remains a mystery to this day, their impression of it remains relatively deep.

"It really is the same great mountain."

"What a coincidence—you previously captured a special celestial phenomenon nearby, and now this video also shows a similarly rare scene."

"Several consecutive special celestial phenomena—what makes this mountain so special?"

"Earlier, I felt that this great mountain has a special geographical environment; perhaps this time it is also due to local geology causing a natural phenomenon."

The astronomical bureau staff discussed this at length but reached no conclusion.

……

Moreover, similar scenes were also staged by the风采 column team of the neighboring province.

As the situation continued to ferment, the column team also came across this video and even developed the idea of coming here to film an episode.

"Why not film our next episode here? If we capture this奇景, the popularity and traffic will be completely secured……"

But before he could finish speaking, the more he looked, the more something felt off.

"That's not right! Don't you guys feel like this place looks familiar? The episode of our show that went viral a while back was filmed right here."

It was actually the cameraman who first noticed the anomaly, after all, that episode left a deep impression on him.

Even to this day, whenever he dreams back at midnight, he can still recall that pair of eerie green eyes, and thinking of this place makes him shudder involuntarily.

Upon hearing him say that, everyone suddenly realized something.

"Yeah, now that you mention it, it does look a bit familiar."

That episode brought extremely high popularity and traffic, so the production team's impression was also very deep, after all, besides the beautiful scenery, they had also captured some strange footage.

"Why is it this mountain again? It's quite strange. Why don't we go to Wu Du again and do a follow-up episode? We might even ride this wave of traffic."

The cameraman responded evasively: "Forget it, reheating cold rice isn't fun. If you want to go, you go—I won't. Don't you remember that eerie green ghost fire?"

Hearing that, everyone couldn't help but shudder.

"Then let's just forget it. This mountain feels really weird. The footage we captured last time was indeed somewhat eerie. What if we really encounter something?"

"I agree. Besides, our recent traffic has been decent—there's no need to chase this heat again."

The director had originally wanted to do another exploration episode, but hearing everyone's opinion, he quickly dismissed the idea—he didn't want to keep having nightmares for another month straight.

……

Due to the video footage being truly shocking, the heat remained high, and many netizens kept asking for the location.

It must be said, the power of netizens is strong—the video's location was quickly uncovered. But if this were only the beginning, then a tech blogger's posted comment pushed everything to a climax.

【Don't you guys still remember the heavenly fire incident from two years ago, or that viral wind-seeking variety show from last year? Adding these two videos now, I compared them—they're actually all the same place: an unnamed big mountain in Wu Du, called Longyuan Mountain! I've put the comparison image below—please like it.】

This blogger didn't just post the comparison image, circling similar locations, but also provided a well-reasoned analysis. For a time, many netizens rushed over and flooded the comments below.

Since the heavenly fire incident happened at night, while the variety show team filmed during the day, the two actually had nothing similar at first glance, so for a while, netizens couldn't mentally connect them.

But after the blogger's comparison and analysis, they really did find many clues.

"Heavens, did all this actually happen in the same place? What's so miraculous about this big mountain that so many strange things have occurred in recent years?"

"Could this not be the legendary feng shui treasure land? Otherwise, other mountains would be peaceful, but this one keeps producing strange events one after another."

"The heavenly fire incident could still be explained by science, but the variety show team's episode? Truly unexplainable. That final eerie footage scared the hell out of me."

"Why not broaden our perspective—could it really be that someone is cultivating there? First heavenly fire, then eerie phenomena, now purple qi coming from the east—this is huge!"

"Is there anyone who wants to team up with me to go check out that mysterious big mountain?"

The curiosity of netizens is limitless. After learning the exact coordinates, many wanted to check in, especially internet celebrities.

But this isn't the end. As the situation fermented, local netizens from Wu Du also came forward to share, recounting what had happened in Wu Du over the past few years.

A Wu Du netizen, ID 【Scorpion Lai Lai】: "Actually, you guys don't know—Wu Du has had more than just this in recent years. We have a Taoist temple called Shangqing Temple. It was previously ignored, but a few years ago, there was suddenly a June snowstorm, which made it famous overnight. Now it's Wu Du's most renowned Taoist temple—every day, luxury cars line up to visit."

A Wu Du netizen, ID 【…………】: "Do you guys still remember the viral idiom story 《Chiseling the Boat to Seek the Sword》 from last year? The historical mystery event of 《Chiseling the Boat to Seek the Sword》 is still a hot topic among supernatural discussion bloggers online! Have you forgotten? This also happened in Wu Du! Waiting at the Gu Wang Village ruins! Hahaha!"

A Wu Du netizen, ID 【Xiao Ma Eats Cream Puff】: "Let me add one! The story of Zu Ci's tomb—does anyone local from Wu Du know about it? This is also quite spooky, though it hasn't spread much outside."

A Wu Du netizen, ID 【Gegege Ge Na】: "I'm from a town near Longyuan Mountain—this mountain is really spooky. A few years ago, quite a few people died, but supposedly they were all bad people. To this day, all cases remain unsolved—not one cracked. You guys think that's scary? And it doesn't even have a name yet. Before, Longyuan Mountain had a fire—three or four years ago, maybe? Do locals still remember?"

A netizen, ID 【Jay Chou's Fan】: "To be honest, I went there a few days ago with my company to survey the mountain for tourism development. Later, I encountered some strange things—I'm not in a position to say much, but I still want to remind everyone: curiosity needs caution!"

"Damn, Wu Du netizens are on fire—I've been refreshing the comment section for an hour and still can't get out!"

"666, I'm addicted to refreshing comments—any other stories?"

"I fucking figured it out—these past few years, so many hot searches, and turns out a lot of them are from Wu Du?"

For a time, Wu Du completely blew up because of this—Longyuan Mountain and its surroundings became popular tourist spots, with visitor numbers surging, and even GDP began to grow effectively.

But this didn't make the leaders of the Wu Du Bureau of Culture and Tourism happy—instead, they started to worry, because he vaguely sensed that the direction of this development might not be good……

(End of Chapter)