The Spirit Soil Laboratory is filled with a rich Spiritual Qi that is truly invigorating.
Wang Zhiwen, accompanied by a group of scholars, rushed over with Xu Mu by his side.
"Whoosh!"
The laboratory's electric door slowly opened.
Xu Mu led the bionic white rat robot and carefully placed it into the glass box.
"What are you doing...?"
Yuan Yi walked over and checked the time.
Their research isn't over yet.
" Academician Yuan, I'm sorry to bother you, but we have an experimental sample in our workshop that we'd like to bring in for testing."
"That's the bionic mechanical mouse. Ignore it; it has Spiritual Power sensor Artifact Inscription on its body."
"As long as there is Spiritual Power, there is motivation. We just want to observe how long the soul inside can exist in Spiritual Qi environment."
Wang Zhiwen stepped forward to greet him.
Upon hearing this, Yuan Yi looked at the glass box with surprise.
The experimental progress in the Soul and Consciousness Information Workshop far exceeded his expectations.
He asked instinctively, "Does this... could this be considered the birth of silicon-based life?"
"This... if we had to categorize it, it would be at most a pseudo-silicon-based life form."
Wang Zhiwen smacked his lips.
They didn't dare to create such a big buzz for themselves.
In academic circles, silicon-based life refers to life forms that are born naturally, are composed primarily of non-carbon elements, and possess independent thought.
A mechanical mouse possessing the soul of a white rat is at best a man-made silicon-based...
"Ahem, let's not talk about that. Academician Yuan, how's your progress lately?"
"I'm really looking forward to eating the precious spirit rice you grow!"
"Even if it doesn't prolong my life, it'll at least make my old bones feel young again."
"Hehe..."
Hearing Wang Zhiwen's joke, Yuan Yi waved his hand modestly.
"The spirit rice grows slowly, only ripening once a year as Comrade Lu Li said, so it's still a long way from harvest."
"Don't even think about the first batch, we'll definitely keep them for experimental samples, but..."
"But what?"
Wang Zhiwen's appetite was piqued.
Food is the most important thing for people, and even scientists are very curious about the food in this strange world.
Even if I didn't just look at it, I'd still want to try it.
Xu Mu also looked at Yuan Yi curiously, waiting for an answer.
"Alright, since you're here, I'll let you take a look."
" Xiao Wang, bring out Auspicious Grain No. 1!"
Yuan Yi waved to his team members behind him.
Soon, a small cart made of white metal was slowly pushed out from behind the laboratory.
Xu Mu, Wang Zhiwen, and a group of others gathered around.
At first glance, in a gray soil culture dish about one meter long and wide, several seedlings with shimmering pale blue spots are growing quietly.
These are...
"This is Auspicious Grain No. 1, a product of grafting Lingmi rice and the germ of domestically selected rice varieties."
"Test data shows... its internal spiritual energy is nearly one-thirtieth that of authentic spiritual rice!"
Wang Zhiwen's eyes widened.
His gaze was filled with astonishment.
"You mean... this is... our own spiritual rice from Great Xia?!"
"That's right!"
Speaking of this, Yuan Yi straightened his back a little.
After countless days and nights of hard work, he finally took the first step in the field of Spiritual Power crops.
This is also the most important step.
His tone was slightly arrogant.
"This was originally intended to be reported at the next conference; grafting local spirit rice is nothing special."
"After all, the concentration of spiritual energy is too low, and its efficacy is far inferior to that of traditional spiritual rice."
"But... through our experiments and improvements, the planting environment requirements for Auspicious Grain No. 1 have been greatly reduced!"
"The soil that nurtured it was not the Spirit Soil nourished by the spirit soil, but ordinary soil."
"Ordinary soil!"
Even Xu Mu was surprised.
The idea that ordinary soil can produce crops brimming with vitality is truly terrifying.
Given the agricultural reclamation capabilities of the Great Xia, at this rate, it probably won't be many years.
This Auspicious Grain No. 1 can now be sold on the market?!
He seemed to realize that he had exaggerated a bit.
Yuan Yi added something.
It can't be considered ordinary soil entirely.
"Although this soil is not covered by Spirit Soil, it still enjoys the nourishment..."
"But I also spent several dozen days in the Spirit Soil Laboratory, immersed in the Spiritual Power of the air."
"Slight changes in soil composition are necessary to cultivate Auspicious Grain No. 1."
"That's still amazing!"
Wang Zhiwen gave a thumbs up.
Without saying anything more, he carefully observed the state of the white rat robot.
Xu Mu no longer needed to input Spiritual Power and relaxed slightly.
His gaze swept around and he saw Zhang Xuanqing; the two greeted each other.
After Zhang Xuanqing finished his work and had a little free time, the two of them went out of the laboratory and chatted.
"Brother Xu, when you fainted last time, everyone in the station was saying you were possessed by some kind of Heavenly Dao..."
"Really?"
The two took a high-speed elevator to the mountaintop, where Zhang Xuanqing spoke with a gossipy tone.
Xu Mu remained silent for a moment.
After regaining consciousness, he met with Li Yuanchao alone.
He described every single detail of his dream.
The idea of being possessed by the Heavenly Dao is a complete myth.
Upon waking, he had no memory of anything except that dream.
They don't even know how they fainted.
Seeing Xu Mu remain silent, Zhang Xuanqing did not press the matter further.
Currently, they are the only two cultivators in the entire Bureau 749, so they should be closer to each other.
Xu Mu was taciturn and steady, the complete opposite of him.
When the two chat, it's mostly him talking and the other listening...
"Hey, but Brother Xu, do you think there really is Heavenly Dao in this world?"
Zhang Xuanqing's tone was slightly excited, his eyes looking up at the sky.
"Have."
Xu Mu, unusually, took the initiative to answer him.
What he said startled Zhang Xuanqing slightly, but he quickly understood.
"Yes, they've cultivated themselves; how could they not understand the Heavenly Dao?"
"I wonder if I'll ever reach that level in my lifetime..."
"That's enough!"
"It's good that Senior Lu has cultivated to that level... When he returns as an immortal, have him greet the Ancestral Master for me."
With a sigh, Zhang Xuanqing couldn't help but think of Lu Li again.
In his subconscious, if anyone could cultivate to that level, it would definitely be Lu Li.
Xu Mu did not respond, gazing into the distance.
His gaze was deep as he looked at the myriad lights outside the base, gradually awakening in the morning light—the lights of the homes he had sworn to protect.
Whether or not the Heavenly Dao exists cannot be verified by him.
But he did indeed witness with his own eyes an existence comparable to the Heavenly Dao, in his dream...
Inside the laboratory, Wang Zhiwen was intently recording the fluctuations in the soul data of the bionic white mouse.
The pen tip made a scratching sound.
Yuan Yi carefully nurtured Auspicious Grain No. 1.
The pale blue rice seedlings swayed gently under artificial light.
Deep within the base, on the main control panel for monitoring Spiritual Power, the blue dot representing Lu Dahai's special physique was highlighted.
Together with thousands of other silent monitoring stations across the country, they form a vast network awaiting a response.
Soul research, spirit rice cultivation, constitution exploration, Spiritual Qi monitoring... all of these are like seeds that have just been planted.
We await the day it breaks through the soil.
They were all waiting.
Waiting for an opportunity.
Waiting for someone... who can speed all of this up.
This wait lasted for five years...