Chapter 295

295. Chapter 292 Publicly announced, the nation in an uproar

The heavenly and earthly catastrophe will open in half a year!

Ye Qin had previously predicted the timing of the catastrophe's outbreak, but due to lack of certainty, he was not sure; however, this time after wandering through the universe and returning, he obtained a roughly definite result.

This news was undoubtedly a heavyweight bomb, leaving Hua Tiancheng unable to regain his composure for a long time.

Half a year is neither long nor short, yet there is much that can be done.

Hua Tiancheng's expression gradually became solemn, 'Is this news certain?'

Dasheng Houwang nodded, 'Of course.'

He had originally been quietly cultivating in Mount Hua, preparing to use the coming time to raise his cultivation level by a small stage, and also intended to begin setting up, revising the formation anew to counter the heavenly and earthly catastrophe.

Later, encountering problems in his cultivation, the Monkey King planned to make a trip to Longyuan Mountain Range, when he received Ye Qin's message, asking him to convey a sentence to Hua Tiancheng.

Hua Tiancheng bowed deeply to the Monkey King, 'Thank you, please convey my gratitude to the Demon Master; for such major news, if I ever have the chance I will certainly thank him in person.'

The Monkey King had no intention of lingering here; after saying that, he turned into a long rainbow and vanished into the dark night.

Hua Tiancheng took a deep breath; although he had already made preparations, confirming that the heavenly and earthly catastrophe was imminent still made his scalp tingle, feeling immense pressure.

This news is neither good nor bad for them; at least they still have time to prepare, after all many things remain unfinished.

Especially now, as the most important link in Greater Xia's defense line, the Nine Provinces Immortal Cauldron has not yet been completed.

If the Monkey King said the heavenly and earthly catastrophe was about to arrive immediately, it would likely scare them half to death.

'This is a blessing in misfortune; at least we still have time to prepare going forward, but we cannot be careless.'

Hua Tiancheng's face sank like water; he produced a cigarette from somewhere and lit it lightly.

'Click!'

The lighter flashed, igniting the cigarette; pale green smoke swirled, Hua Tiancheng's brows and eyes shrouded in the mist, his expression inscrutable.

'First report this to the superiors, then notify the other relevant high-level officials; the heavenly and earthly catastrophe will begin in half a year, our plan must continue to advance and be completed with quality and quantity assured.'

The secretary received the order and swiftly reported the news here to the Greater Xia high officials.

'It will start in half a year!'

'Fortunately it's half a year rather than a few months.'

'This may be the best news in recent times.'

'We also cannot let our guard down; send people to urge the Immortal Cauldron side, we must seize the time to complete its construction.'

'Also, regarding the health cultivation methods, many people's physical qualities are far from reaching the expected improvement.'

Countless Greater Xia high officials who received the news had varied reactions.

Previously they did not know the exact timing of the catastrophe; it was like a sword hanging over their heads, ready to fall at any moment, making it hard for them to eat or sleep, tossing and turning through the night.

Now that they know the catastrophe will open in half a year, they feel relieved, yet they have not lowered their guard because of it.

They immediately convened an emergency meeting.

Hua Tiancheng gave a rough overview of everything that had happened before.

'The heavenly and earthly catastrophe will arrive in half a year.'

'Do any of you have any suggestions?'

Many of Greater Xia's top officials' faces turned solemn.

The first to speak was the Greater Xia Chief of Food Supply: 'Regarding food, reserves are now basically sufficient; the nation has built countless granaries, basically covering all towns and cities of Greater Xia.'

'The stored food is absolutely enough for all citizens to eat for more than three years!'

The Greater Xia Chief of Energy then spoke: 'Regarding energy fuel, there is no problem either; we have now stockpiled sufficient fuel oil and coal, and the snow-wind trains have also been completed.'

'Even under extremely harsh, freezing weather they can still operate normally.'

'Moreover, all nuclear power plants in Huaxia have already made preparations for extreme cold and storms; the erected steel defenses can withstand gales of force eighteen and extreme cold below minus one hundred degrees.'

'Medical supplies are also fully prepared; various precious medicinal materials and special-effect drugs from around the world have backups, and if needed they can be transported via the snow-wind trains.'

For a moment, the heads of all major departments of Greater Xia spoke up one after another!

Now most of the framework has been established; only some details remain to be perfected, none of which are particularly major issues.

The most important issue at present is the Nine Provinces Immortal Cauldron.

Its manufacturing process is overly complex and tedious, especially the inscription of its runes, which is extremely complicated; even a slight engraving error would render all prior effort wasted.

Facing this problem, Hua Tiancheng also pondered for a long time: 'We must not panic, lest we disorder our ranks; we still have half a year. I believe that within this half year we will certainly be able to repair and complete it.'

After this meeting ended, everyone had a clear idea in mind of what needed to be done in the future.

As for who should be the happiest, it should be the people constructing the Nine Provinces Immortal Cauldron; the original schedule was to finish within three months, but because it was too difficult, their progress hadn't even reached one third.

Everyone was like ants on a hot pan, anxiously running around.

Upon learning that the heavenly and earthly calamity would begin in half a year, it also meant they still had time; everyone exerted themselves fully, not wanting to hold back the Great Xia.

Time flowed, seasons turned, moments slipped by; only one month remained until the arrival of the heavenly and earthly calamity.

During this period, Great Xia did not introduce any new measures or regulations; people's lives remained as usual, except that health cultivation practices had become a checkpoint item that needed to be done every few days.

The masses had long grown accustomed to its existence; even if they didn't practice for a few days, they would instead feel their bodies lacking vigor.

As for those people at the Cultivation Academy, they were already incomparable; moreover, the military personnel undergoing secret national training had seen their physical fitness greatly improve.

Other preparations were ready, and the Longyuan Immortal Sect had also been completed construction.

Great Xia had thought of everything that could be prepared; it could be said that nothing was overlooked, everything was meticulous, yet at this moment he made a decision.

"There's still one month until the heavenly and earthly spiritual energy recovers; it's about time to let the populace know some things."

"Announce the Soldier Dao level."

Announce the distribution of Soldier Dao levels?

Upon hearing this, everyone was stunned, and then their expressions gradually turned solemn.

The so-called Soldier Dao level is actually established by the Great Xia authorities!

It is the rank of many cultivators!

It is divided into ten ranks total!

From the first to the tenth rank, they are respectively: Jia, Yi, Bing, Ding, Wu, Ji, Geng, Xin, Ren, Gui, according to the hierarchy established by the Ten Heavenly Stems.

Each rank also has five sub‑layers.

Not only will we announce the military Dao ranks, but we will also publicly release all remaining cultivation techniques.

Upon hearing this, everyone's expression grew even more solemn.

They are not unwilling; rather, announcing these would be tantamount to declaring to the whole nation that cultivation truly exists in the world!

If a national government department announces these things, there is no doubt it will definitely cause a huge uproar!

Should we really announce it? Announcing now has both pros and cons.

The people have already laid a foundation with the previous cultivation method; if they rashly come into contact with other profound cultivation methods and gain greater ability, what if they try to use this power to cause trouble?

Great Xia is vast and rich in resources, with a huge population; now it has ten14 billion people. Even if cultivation techniques are extremely difficult, with such a large population base, there will always be some who can learn them.

The government also cannot monitor these people in real time; if they use their power to commit illegal crimes, the consequences would be immeasurable.

If it is learned by those with ulterior motives, it would be even worse; this is also why the government previously did not announce it rashly.

Hua Tiancheng nodded and said, "What you say makes sense, but it is only an extremely isolated phenomenon; as long as we keep strict oversight, there will definitely be no major trouble."

Our nation's population base is truly enormous; wanting to reduce civilian casualties relying solely on our military and government is impossible; we must make the people cautious.

Zhao Hai pondered for a moment and said, "I agree with Bureau Chief Hua; the heavenly and earthly catastrophe still has one month, and we should also announce all of this now; we cannot wait until the catastrophe arrives to announce it."

Everyone looked at each other; some supported disclosure, some opposed it; each person had their own considerations, weighing the pros and cons of the two options.

Finally, the elder chief spoke: "In that case, let us vote; those who agree to announce all of this raise their hands, otherwise it is considered disagreement."

As soon as the words fell, seven or eight people raised their arms, and even the elder chief was conspicuously among them.

Seeing this, a few more senior members hesitated for a moment, then slowly raised their hands.

Finally, in the entire council hall, only seven officials did not raise their hands; the result was already clear.

The elder chief looked around, spoke in a low voice: "In that case, Comrade Hua Tiancheng, draft a statement and announce all of this."

Yes!

Hua Tiancheng gave a respectful salute, turned and walked out.

The action of Great Xia's government department was still swift; Hua Tiancheng's speech draft was prepared even more quickly, almost within ten minutes after the council, he had finished the draft, gave it to the elder chief for review, and after confirming there were no problems.

Through various major social media networks and official news, the complete cultivation techniques and military Dao ranks were widely published.

It is worth mentioning that during this period, the Longyuan Immortal Sect also received the news that the government was preparing to release, and planned to face the world and widely recruit disciples.

【Announcing the entire content of the health cultivation technique, it is indeed a true cultivation technique, and there are also many other cultivation techniques in existence.】

【Nowadays, our country, according to relevant experts and high-level officials, has divided cultivators' ranks into ten levels, each level having five sub‑layers.】

As expected!

Almost as soon as the government's this news came out, countless people in Great Xia exploded in discussion, the entire internet surged with a huge uproar, and everyone was talking about this matter.

What cultivation technique? Isn't it just a health cultivation technique? How did cultivation suddenly appear?

Is this the kind of cultivation I imagined? Has the official account been hacked? The hacker seems to enjoy reading fantasy cultivation novels.

Are there really cultivators in the world? Today isn't April Fools' Day, is it? This joke is a bit too big.

Turns out the health cultivation technique I practiced is actually a cultivation method, and there are cultivation ranks; just thinking about it feels absurd, this world has completely become fantastical.

Anyway, I don't believe it; I'll wait for the official explanation.

Looking at these messages, even though the government released them, many people of Great Xia are now half‑believing, half‑doubting!

Because they have been immersed in a materialist world for too long, it is truly unimaginable for them to suddenly believe that the world has monsters and cultivators.

They looked at the many released messages and went crazy commenting; some expressed disbelief, while others kept making jokes.

Posts and discussion numbers on the topics of immortal cultivation and true cultivation have erupted in a well‑like surge, and continue to skyrocket at an extremely terrifying speed.

"Cultivate immortality, do not forget each other!"

"I've laid my cards bare, I'm not pretending anymore; I am actually an immortal, send me 50, and I will teach you a heaven‑shaking cultivation method!"

"Your abacus beads are about to hit my face; may I ask, is the name of your cultivation technique called 'KFC Crazy Thursday'?"

"I've checked; Li Xiaolong seems to be at most at the Bing rank realm, right?"

"Hahaha, give me a break; you actually believe this absurd thing? If Li Xiaolong had the Bing rank, then I, being just below the Ding rank, who could contend with me?"

"I have concealed this for many years; now I can no longer hide it. Frankly, I tell everyone: I am not an ordinary human, but a cultivator; I am now about to lose control of the primordial power within my body."

"What what? Started cultivating immortality? Starting at eighteen is a bit late, can't you give me a cheat or something?"

"Upstairs, based on my years of reading experience, take out all the old items in your home, drip some blood on them and have a look; maybe there is a white‑bearded old gentleman waiting for you. No need to thank me; my name is Lei Feng."

"I have always felt different from others since childhood, and I keep having a dream; the fortune‑teller said I have extraordinary talent, bearing the aura of a great emperor!"

Facing the government's announced notice, at first hardly anyone took it to heart, basically not believing it; but later, gradually some people noticed something was off.

"Huh? Did you notice? Following the cultivation method recorded here seems to actually work."

"It turns out I'm not the only one; I also feel this thing really works. My old leg ache disappeared after cultivation, leaving me refreshed and pain‑free."

"That's right; before training, I couldn't lift a 500‑jin object, but now I can lift it with one hand!"

"By the way, do you feel a surge of heat flowing, as if your whole body is about to burn?"

Looking at those earnestly discussing people, in Great Xia there are also many who curiously began to cultivate.

At first there was nothing, but after they cultivated a little for a few days, clear effects appeared.

Actually, before that, they daily checked in the health cultivation technique; their bodies had already laid a solid foundation, except that the technique initially released by the government was incomplete, only the first half.

Although their physical fitness was strengthened, it does not count as a true cultivation technique.

The first part of this technique strengthens the body; the second part is true cultivation. As the saying goes, quantitative change leads to qualitative change; once the foundation is solid, learning the latter becomes easier.

This is why, upon contacting the second half of the technique, they are able to produce such effects.

Holy shit! Brothers, an earth-shattering discovery—after just a few days of cultivation, my physical strength and quality have all greatly increased!

Me too! I thought it was just exercise strengthening my muscles, but my myopia miraculously improved! I used to be 800 degrees—without glasses I was blind—but now I see things extremely clearly, as if a door to a new world has opened.

Me too! After exercising, my injuries healed! I used to have a slight hunchback and spinal curvature, but now I'm completely fine!

Earlier I went to the hospital for a checkup; the doctor said I had a tumor in my body—although benign, it could possibly worsen. When I went back for another checkup, the doctor said my tumor had disappeared—it's practically a medical miracle!

Many people came forward to share their experiences.

Seeing this, countless people were dumbfounded!

They hadn't paid much attention before, but now, looking back, they found that their physical fitness had improved to various degrees compared to before.

Especially the civil servants of the relevant government departments, who, under orders from above to train rigorously, saw their physical fitness greatly improve.

Whether eyesight, hearing, reaction speed, muscle vitality, or physical fitness, all showed noticeable enhancement.

They thought it was just the result of their daily training, but now they realize that even training couldn't produce such effects.

What's going on? Could it be that cultivators actually exist in this world?

I don't know if there are cultivators, but the latter half of this cultivation method is way too complicated!

There are also several other cultivation methods; the deeper they go, the more obscure they become—by the end they're completely incomprehensible.

The authorities also released many profound cultivation methods this time; they are utterly impenetrable, and prolonged viewing actually causes physical discomfort.

But there are also many talents whose eyes sparkle and whose emotions run high after viewing them.

While countless people were discussing it heatedly, they had yet to fully digest these cultivation methods and the matter of cultivation levels.

The Great Xia authorities then dropped another bombshell piece of news!

【Due to the detection of related adverse factors, the relevant authorities have decided to initiate a one-month closed-door lockdown; during this month, foreign flights, trucks, pleasure boats, and cargo ships are all prohibited from entering Great Xia.】

【At the same time, all of Great Xia's foreign trade is completely shut down; all overseas Huaxia citizens, please return to the country within a week.】

Everyone who saw this announcement felt their eyes almost pop out in shock, unable to believe their own eyes! (End of chapter)