53: Chapter 53 *Dongshan County Gazetteer (Republic of China Edition)*

In the afternoon, Mother took Chen Zhen to the community Library.

The Library was not large, but it was very quiet.

Mother went to the work area to attend to her work, and Chen Zhen wandered among the bookshelves by himself.

He first found the science section and borrowed a few advanced physics tutorials and books on Mathematical Modeling.

Then he moved to the social sciences section, looking for materials related to geology, folklore, and local gazetteers.

[Anomaly Perception] activated from time to time, scanning these old books.

Most of the books were ordinary, but among a row of local gazetteers, he sensed one emitting a faint, abnormal fluctuation.

It was not energy, but rather more like an aura of "the accumulation of time."

Pulling it out, it was the "Dongshan County Gazetteer: Republic of China Edition," with yellowed pages and worn corners.

He flipped through it quickly. In the "Disasters and Anomalies" column, he found a brief record:

"July, 22nd Year of the Republic (1933): A blue light appeared at night on the southern foothills of Dongshan. It emerged from the ground, several zhang high, and lasted for a quarter of an hour before extinguishing. The villagers were terrified, thinking it was ghost fire. The next day, they went to inspect it, but there were no traces on the ground. In the autumn of that year, a small-scale landslide occurred in that area, with no casualties."

1933.

Chen Zhen's heart stirred.

This point in time was exactly ten years before the last entry in that historical observation record (1943) and twenty years before the first entry recorded by Engineer Gu (1953).

It seems... were the nodes particularly active during that period?

He noted down this discovery.

He flipped through it some more, but finding no further valuable information, he returned the book.

When leaving the Library, Mother got him a Library card: "You can come by yourself from now on; read whatever you want."

"Thanks, Mom."

"What are you thanking me for?" Mother smiled. "Reading more books is a good thing."

...

Before heading home in the evening, Chen Zhen went to the Secret Base.

Opening the door, he first nourished the Mint.

He slowly injected his Qi, and the plant's lustrous sheen became more apparent; the golden edges of the leaves were now clearly visible.

[Continuous Qi Nourishment]

[Mint Quality: Mortal Item · Top Grade → Quasi-Spirit Plant (Transitional State)]

[Effect: Refreshing effect +800%, Duration +200%, slightly nourishes the mind, slightly increases Qi activity]

[Cultivation Progress: 45/100]

Almost halfway there.

At this rate, in about half a month, this pot of Mint will officially promote into a "Spirit Plant."

By then, the effect will undergo a qualitative change, and it might even sell for a good price.

He walked to the small table, took out the physics book he borrowed today, and began to read rapidly.

Under the dual blessing of the [Eidetic Memory (Temporary)] state and [Knowledge Fusion] ability, his reading and comprehension speed was astonishingly fast.

Complex physical models, mathematical derivations, and experimental designs—he could understand the core principles after reading them once and build a clear knowledge structure in his mind.

In two hours, he devoured a competition tutorial that would normally take a week to digest.

Closing the book, he shut his eyes, and all the knowledge points were automatically categorized, integrated, and merged into his existing network of physics knowledge.

Refreshing.

The sense of accomplishment brought by this efficient learning was even stronger than beating a game.

...

Returning home in the evening, Mother had already prepared dinner. After eating a little, Chen Zhen returned to his room to continue studying.

[Eidetic Memory (Temporary)] state had a few hours left; he couldn't waste it.

He took out his math competition book and began his final sprint.

Until 10 PM, when the state ended.

His brain slowly exited that super-high-speed operating state, and a slight sense of fatigue washed over him.

It wasn't sleepiness, but normal fatigue after intense mental concentration.

But his harvest was huge:

In one day, he had devoured a professional book that would normally take a month to finish, and the depth of his understanding far exceeded that of ordinary reading.

This was the terrifying aspect of the System's abilities.

...

After washing up, Chen Zhen began today's Cultivation.

He first stood in a horse stance for five minutes and ran the Simplified Microcosmic Orbit ten times.

Under the dual blessing of [Internal Vision] and the Fire Jujube Pit, the Qi circulation was smoother than yesterday, and the nourishment effect was better.

Then, he took out the five pebbles and began his Qi control training.

Today, he challenged a new height: making all five pebbles perform different movements simultaneously.

The largest one performed circular motion, the smallest one performed vertical vibration, and the middle three performed elliptical, figure-eight, and random trajectory movements, respectively.

Using one mind for five tasks, he also had to precisely control the movement trajectory of each pebble.

The difficulty skyrocketed.

Chen Zhen was fully focused, and fine beads of sweat soon seeped from his forehead.

He could feel his Mental Energy being consumed rapidly, but he could also feel his control precision slowly improving under the pressure.

The five pebbles danced crazily above his palm, like a miniature aerial ballet.

Although there were occasional trajectory deviations, on the whole, it maintained an orderly chaos.

He persisted for fifteen seconds before his Mental Energy reached a critical level.

He ended the technique, and the pebbles fell.

[High-Intensity Qi Control Training]

[Initial Glimpse of Spirit Control effect improved: Qi control precision +8% (Current 23%)]

[Mental Energy significantly increased]

The results were significant.

Chen Zhen wiped the sweat from his forehead and nodded with satisfaction.

Challenging his limits every day, making progress every day.

Finally, he summoned the system panel to summarize:

[Day 25 (Day 4 of Qi Refinement Stage) Summary]

[Cultivation harvest: +18.1 (Morning run +0.82, Learning +1.28, Learning upgrade +15, Cultivation +0.5, Other +0.5)]

[Current Cultivation: 126.81/500 (Qi Refining Stage 1)]

[Qi value: 9.2/10 (Will recover to 11.5/11.5 tomorrow)]

[Health Dimension: Lv.4 (93/500)]

[Learning Dimension: Lv.5 (95.7/1200)]

[Social Dimension: Lv.1 (118/200)]

[Skill Dimension: Cooking 98/100 (close to upgrade), Organization 72/100, Hand-drawing Lv.2 (150/300), Structural Drafting Beginner (60/100), Formation Beginner (1/100)]

[exploration dimension: Lv.2 (135/400)]

[Spell proficiency: Cleaning Spell (11/100), Water Condensation Spell (9/100), Eye-Brightening Spell (26/100)]

[Special Status: Qi Refining Cultivator; Initial Glimpse of Spirit Control (23%); Runners Heart; Integrated Power Initial Success; Physical Optimization; Anomaly Perception; Literary Perception; Internal Vision; Knowledge Fusion]

[Storage Space: 1 cubic meter (Black Lumps ×1)]

[Main Quest: Qi Refining Stage 1 (126.81/500)]

Learning Dimension is now Lv.5, unlocking [Knowledge Fusion].

Cooking is also close to upgrading, just 2 points away.

Initial Glimpse of Spirit Control reached 23%; at this rate, he would be able to break through to the next stage in a few days.

Everything is advancing rapidly.

Chen Zhen lay on the bed and closed his eyes.

In the state of Internal Vision, Qi slowly circulated within his body, nourishing his body and mind.

The shouzhong token was warm, the residual heat of the Fire Jujube Pit still lingered near his heart meridian, and the Qi in his Dantian was active and solid.

In his mind, the massive knowledge network spread out quietly, with various clues appearing and disappearing within it.