124: Chapter 124 The Middle-Aged Taoist Priest of Zhongnan Mountain

The conference hall.

Over a hundred people stared solemnly at the old man in the head seat; they were the upper echelons of the Great Xia Kingdom, and they felt somewhat nervous.

Although the Great Xia Kingdom was not a one-man show, if the leader made a decision, they would certainly have to set an example and cooperate...

Leader Xia, sitting in the head seat, swept his cloudy yet bright eyes casually across everyone in the conference hall. Only after taking in everyone's expressions did he speak.

"Since the appearance of the 'Super Red Moon', the bright moon has remained a red moon. We have been unable to determine the reason for this..."

"Mysterious and unknown things are always the most terrifying... No one knows if supernatural events like the 'Super Red Moon' will happen again, leading to even more horrific disasters..."

"So the matter is very clear. We must either study the spiritual energy in the air and the strange substances brought by the red moon, and prepare for potential supernatural mysteries in the future..."

The Leader of Great Xia paused for a moment before continuing, "But obviously, it has been over three months since spiritual energy abruptly appeared in the air of Blue Star, yet even now we cannot analyze the reason for its appearance. We only know that spiritual energy can cause biological evolution..."

"If any supernatural entities appear later, our current technological civilization will most likely be unable to analyze them either..."

"Therefore—there is only one path to survival before us: to actively accept the evolutionary effects of spiritual energy and strengthen the physical constitution of everyone in the country! This way, the hope for our citizens' survival will significantly increase under unknown future crises..."

If these words had come from the Minister of Scientific Research, they would surely have been refuted by those with differing opinions or political enemies. However, since it was the high-ranking Leader of Great Xia Kingdom speaking personally, all the Great Xia officials in the conference hall began to weigh the implications...

Mayor Lin of Jianghai City was the first to stand up and speak, "I agree with the proposal to let spiritual energy evolve our Great Xia citizens!"

"Spiritual energy only makes organisms stronger. Now that we've experienced the 'Super Red Moon', we humans can also accept the evolutionary effects of spiritual energy. This is a good thing for us!"

"If we don't catch up with the first echelon of evolution right now, humans will certainly become food for powerful creatures in the future!"

Standing there, Mayor Lin couldn't help but recall that golden figure.

He continued.

"Facts have proven that the second piece of information from the mysterious organization was correct, so the first one should also be true... Giant beasts capable of destroying cities will appear in the future, as well as mysterious creatures likely beyond the reach of our modern technological strikes. Therefore, I support the suggestion to encourage Great Xia citizens to use spiritual energy for evolution!"

His words were like a thunderclap in the hearts of the Great Xia leaders who were weighing the pros and cons. Seeing Mayor Lin's serious expression, it didn't look like he was just sycophantically sucking up to the leader...

Subsequently, more and more leaders from Jianghai City chose to support this suggestion.

Because this supernatural red moon eclipse had inexplicably caused over 600 million deaths in the Great Xia Kingdom, not only was the public panicking, but even these big figures who had weathered many storms were filled with dread. If such supernatural phenomena occurred a few more times, the Great Xia Kingdom might face national extinction!

No, humanity would vanish from the planet Blue Star!

Then, the Leader of Great Xia in the head seat, satisfied with the cooperation of the leaders from various cities in the conference hall, gave a subtle nod to the Minister of Scientific Research sitting nearby.

The Minister of Scientific Research, receiving the signal, stood up once again.

"Since it seems most of you agree with this proposal, I will go into detail..."

"Earlier, I mentioned that there are some special people whose efficiency in absorbing spiritual energy far exceeds that of the general public..."

"These people are either those with transcendent states of mind or those whose bodies have undergone years of training. The most obvious among them are the Taoists and monks in the deep mountains..."

"What?! Minister of Scientific Research, don't joke around. We are discussing national affairs, and you're talking to me about Taoists? Monks?"

Someone spoke up in surprise, and almost everyone looked at the talkative Minister of Scientific Research with skepticism.

Having lived nearly a century of modern life, who still believes in that metaphysical and traditional stuff?!

Moreover, in recent years, news related to Taoists and monks has rarely been good; it's usually negative.

Those Taoists and monks are outright charlatans, swindling under mysterious banners. Even some "masters" of traditional martial arts are the same.

The Minister of Scientific Research shook his head. "The Taoists and monks I'm talking about are ascetics who live in deep mountains and old forests, detached from worldly affairs..."

"Let me show you a video..."

With a press of the remote control in his hand and a "ding," a video was projected onto the front wall of the conference hall.

In the video, surrounded by mountains and shrouded in white mist, towering peaks rose from the ground to the sky, making one feel insignificantly small.

Seeing this, some of the elderly men in the conference hall spoke up!

"This is Zhongnan Mountain in the ancient land of Anxi!"

"Zhongnan Mountain?!"

No one in the Great Xia Kingdom was unfamiliar with this name; it was a mountain name that frequently appeared in various strange novels and storybooks.

In modern times, some ascetic Taoists have lived deep within it to practice. Many tourists once climbed the mountain out of curiosity to find those ascetics, but Zhongnan Mountain is vast and high in altitude; most people didn't even make it halfway up.

Even if some found the practicing Taoists by luck, those world-detached Taoists refused to communicate with these immature 'chuunibyou' seekers.

In short, Zhongnan Mountain is a sacred site of Taoism, imbued with a layer of mystery.

As the camera moved, the terrain became increasingly steep, and then the footage began to fast-forward...

Finally, in a corner of the mountain, a few wooden cabins appeared.

On an open patch of ground sat a middle-aged Taoist in gray robes, cross-legged.

The middle-aged Taoist's chest rose and fell rhythmically, and the white mist in the air seemed to be drawn in, flowing into his mouth and nose...

As time passed, the middle-aged Taoist emitted a slight aura. White mist swirled around his body, obscuring his face. At the same time, his presence underwent a subtle change, filled with a transcendent, immortal-like quality, making him look as if he were about to ascend to immortality!

Suddenly!

The middle-aged Taoist opened his eyes, and between the opening and closing of his lids, a blinding light shot out!

Thump!

A sound like muffled thunder echoed in the conference hall.

Everyone who stared at that blinding light felt their hearts skip a powerful beat involuntarily...