13: Chapter 13: This is not a new technology, it's a new world

Professor Chen rushed in front of Jiang Ning like a gust of wind, his hair a mess, completely devoid of his usual scholarly appearance; he looked like a child who had just seen a beloved toy—no, even crazier than that.

The detector in his hand, which he and his team had rushed to build overnight based on the energy fluctuations they had first encountered, was screaming incessantly, its needle pinned directly to the red zone on the far right, vibrating as if it were about to fall apart.

"Jiang... Comrade Jiang Ning!" Professor Chen's face flushed red as he grabbed Jiang Ning's arm, ignoring any gap in their status. "Tell me quickly! This energy... this 'spirit particles', what exactly is it? Is it a particle or a wave? What physical laws does it follow? Why can it directly alter matter and decompose pollutants? This... this is something only God could do!"

The barrage of questions left Director Zhao Lixin and Chief Engineer Wang Jianguo standing there, dumbfounded.

They were focused on the major event of the sky turning blue, while Professor Chen, a top-tier physicist, had already begun to ponder the principles behind this miracle.

Jiang Ning frowned.

This old man was a bit noisy, even more annoying than the alchemy elders in her sect arguing over a pill formula.

"I don't know what 'spirit particles' you are referring to," she replied simply. "Where we come from, this is called 'spiritual energy'. It is the fundamental energy that constitutes all things in the world."

"Spiritual energy..." Professor Chen muttered the word, his eyes growing brighter. "Yes! Yes! That's the word! It's more fitting than 'spirit particles'! It's a form of energy, and also a form of matter! Heavens, could this be a manifestation of the cosmic dark matter and dark energy we have been searching for for so long?"

The more he spoke, the more animated he became, completely lost in his own academic conjectures, beginning to mutter to himself.

"It can purify the environment, which means it can react with ordinary matter in ways we don't understand. It can be gathered by that 'Spirit Gathering Array', which means it can be constrained by specific fields. It can be absorbed by you, which means it can interact directly with living organisms..."

"This... this isn't just a new discipline; this is a brand new edifice of physics! Everything we know now—Newtonian mechanics, relativity, quantum mechanics—might just be a small stone in the foundation of this new edifice!"

Professor Chen's voice grew louder and louder, until he was almost shouting at the end.

He turned his head and looked at Jiang Ning with an almost pleading gaze: "Comrade Jiang Ning! No, Teacher Jiang! I beg you, let our team move in here to study this 'Spirit Gathering Array'! I promise, we will absolutely not interfere with its operation; we just want... we just want to watch from the sidelines and collect some data! This is an opportunity for human physics... no, for the advancement of all human civilization!"

After speaking, this national treasure-level academician, who held a revered status in the Chinese scientific community, bowed to Jiang Ning, a twenty-year-old young woman.

The group of young scholars and doctoral students behind him all followed suit, bowing in unison.

In their eyes, the previous confusion and suspicion were gone, replaced only by a longing for unknown truths and reverence for a pioneer.

This scene left Director Zhao Lixin and Chief Engineer Wang Jianguo stunned.

If what Jiang Ning had displayed before was a miracle of "engineering," then what she had revealed now was a miracle of "science."

The former could change a city, a country.

And the latter could change all of humanity.

Director Zhao Lixin swallowed hard. He finally understood the true weight of the words the General Bureau director had spoken on the phone last night.

"Little Zhao, remember, what we have gained is not just a technology, but an entirely new civilization. Treat her like the spark of civilization—cautiously, respectfully, and at all costs!"

The spark of civilization...

Director Zhao Lixin looked at this young woman, whom a group of top-tier scientists addressed as "Teacher," and felt a complex mix of emotions. He suddenly felt that his previous so-called "tests" were truly laughable.

How do you test a god?

Jiang Ning looked at this group of fervent "seekers of knowledge" before her, but felt nothing.

In the world of cultivation, this was a common occurrence. A high-level cultivator would occasionally give a lecture, and the crowd below would be packed with low-level cultivators, each listening with rapt attention, some even achieving sudden enlightenment on the spot.

She said to Professor Chen, "Very well. You may collect data on the periphery. However, you are not allowed to approach the core area without my permission. Also, anything you discover must be shown to me first."

She didn't want these people to go down the wrong path and come up with some chaotic nonsense. Technology must be kept in the hands of those who understand it.

"Yes! Yes! We understand! Thank you, Teacher Jiang! Thank you, Teacher Jiang!" Professor Chen nodded repeatedly in excitement, like an elementary school student who had just received permission from a teacher, and immediately led his people off to set up their instruments nearby with great enthusiasm.

After dismissing the group of scientists, Jiang Ning looked back at Director Zhao Lixin.

"The engineering inspection is complete, and the data meets the standards. Next, we should discuss the next step of our cooperation." Her tone returned to that of a pragmatic "foreman."

Director Zhao Lixin immediately gathered his focus, stood up straight, and assumed an extremely solemn expression.

"Chief Consultant Jiang, please go ahead." He now placed Jiang Ning in an equal, or perhaps even higher, position.

"This Spirit Gathering Array is only the first step," Jiang Ning said. "Its purification range is limited, and the energy it produces is also limited. My goal is to restore this world to a state without 'turbid qi'."

Director Zhao Lixin's heart skipped a beat.

Restore to a state without turbid qi? What kind of concept was that? Solving global environmental pollution problems completely?

"To achieve this, we need to build more, larger, and stronger Spirit Gathering Arrays. Connect them to form a purification network that covers the globe." Jiang Ning's tone was very calm, but what she said was a plan that would make any leader in the world stop their heart if they heard it.

"Moreover," she shifted her tone, "purifying the air alone is not enough. Soil pollution and water pollution must also be solved. These require other technologies."

"Other technologies?" Director Zhao Lixin asked.

"Yes." Jiang Ning nodded. "For example, spirit plants."

She looked at the surrounding land that had been purified; although the air was clean, the surface was still bare.

"Some special plants, when nourished with spiritual energy, can take root in polluted soil, absorb heavy metals and toxic substances within, and convert them into harmless components. They can also improve soil quality and stabilize water and soil."

"This technology, where we come from, is called the 'Spirit Plant Cultivation Method'."

Director Zhao Lixin stared in disbelief.

Plants that can purify soil and water?

If the technology to purify air was strategic, then this technology to purify soil and water was simply civilization-level! This meant that countless lands abandoned due to pollution could be reused, and countless polluted rivers could be restored to life!

The value behind this could not be measured by money at all!

Just then, in Jiang Ning's mind, that mechanical system prompt, which hadn't sounded for a long time, finally arrived.

[Ding! Phase 1 Main Quest: 'The First Cry of the Steel Forest' has been completed.]

[Quest Evaluation: Perfect.]

[Calculating merit points...]

[Project Name: Chengnan Second Industrial Park Renovation Project (No. 1 Spirit Gathering Array).]

[Project Scale: Large.]

[Project Impact: Regional strategic level.]

[Comprehensive evaluation, reward: 500 merit points.]

[merit points store has been opened, beginner's gift pack has been issued.]

Jiang Ning's thoughts sank into her mind, and an interface like a game store appeared before her.

On the store's shelves, there were many items, but most of them were gray, displaying "Insufficient Permission."

Only the first few slots were lit up.

Among them was a book glowing with a faint green light, with four large characters written on the cover: "Primary Spirit Plant Cultivation Method."

Price: 500 merit points.