In a world that appears peaceful, countless ancient mysteries lie hidden beneath the surface.

From the Triassic period 230 million years ago to the present-day Quaternary, from the prehistoric myths of the desolate ancient eras to the urban legends and strange tales that permeate modern cities, there are always many bizarre and incredible things lingering in the world.

In ancient myths, there were immortals who summoned thunder and strongmen who could uproot mountains. They could call the wind, summon rain, move mountains, and overturn peaks. Although these deeds have been passed down through generations, they are too ethereal and are thus regarded as illusory myths.

However, even entering the historical Middle Ages, history books also record fierce generals who could fight a thousand alone, charging through a million-strong army seven times; heroes who could shatter bridges with a roar, lift tripods, split carriages, and pull nine oxen with their arms.

The power wielded by these beings completely surpassed the limits of humanity. Even with the most scientific training methods of modern society, it is impossible to reproduce warriors and generals of that level.

These all sound like stories and mythical legends, fabrications born from exaggerated narratives, so everyone dismisses them.

But are these truly false?

If there were no real examples, would the ancients have truly let their imaginations run wild, conjuring such vivid and seemingly real fantasy stories?

Whether it be giant snakes that devoured hundreds of cattle and sheep in one night or demonic tigers that could consume elephants daily, such deeds, which even novelists would hesitate to write, why have they persisted to this day if they were truly nonsense?

Is it possible that the ancients were not lying, not fabricating, and that those deeds were genuine, a 'truthful' record of what they saw?

But if this is really the case, then why are there no similar events happening in modern times?

No, no—this premise is mistaken.

Have these seemingly vanished mysteries truly disappeared in modern times?

Have those legendary stories of summoning wind and thunder, of fighting against thousands of soldiers, those monstrous and terrifying demons and monsters that wreaked havoc on one side, truly vanished completely?

That's not necessarily the case.

Tianjing, Tian Prefecture, a secret area, the conference hall of the National Security Bureau.

A total of twenty-four officers with ranks are sitting in their seats, watching the current affairs information being displayed on the large screen in the hall.

The first case.

[July 11, 2014, 3:22 AM]

[Near the Tianshan Desert Expressway, drivers witnessed a giant insect shadow appearing in the sand sea and chasing their cars, but because of the large speed difference, they quickly shook it off]

Below the explanatory text is a short interview video.

"You absolutely don't know how scary that was!"

Mr. Wang, who was seeking help from the police and being questioned by relevant staff, said with red eyes, waving his hands: "At that time, there were no clouds in the sky, and the moonlight was red. I saw a big worm at least ten meters long jumping out of the sand next to the expressway from the rearview mirror, and then wriggling like a snake and following my car—this is too much! I floored the accelerator and shook it off!"

"Lie? Speeding? I'm lying my ass! If I didn't speed up and run away, would I still be here talking to you! You can deduct as many points as you want, is a driver's license more important than my life!"

[According to the description, what is reviving in the Tianshan Desert may be the 'death worm' from ancient Mongolian legends. This ancient annelid creature was active in prehistoric coastal arid regions 170 million years ago and possessed amazing muscle strength and vitality.]

[According to classical records, the death worm should be a degraded branch of the ancient super-giant spiritual energy predator 'Codename: Qu Long' that appeared in the Early Devonian period. It possesses some dragon bloodline but no intelligence and cannot be communicated with. Classified as a Grade B Upper-level demon. Recommended action: Kill on sight.]

[Estimated suppression force per individual: 4-12 White Emperor Guards, 1 Awakened-level transcendent.]

The second case.

[July 19, 2014, 1:18 AM]

[In the coastal fishing area of the East China Sea, multiple fishermen witnessed high-light discharge phenomena along the coast. They claimed to have clearly seen giant jellyfish trying to leave the water and take off, but ultimately failed and fell back into the sea.]

"At that time, with a crackle, the lights on the shore went out, the internet was cut off, and videos couldn't be taken!"

Mr. Liu, who was walking along the beach with his lover at the time, excitedly accepted the interview: "Wow, you can't imagine it. A big blue circular罩 suddenly lit up on the distant sea level. I was stunned and thought the country was testing some new type of weapon, thinking, oh my god, this is bad, but a few seconds later, I saw several large white translucent tentacles (Mr. Liu swallowed his saliva when he said this) bursting out of the sea, echoing the clouds in the sky with lightning!"

"I told my lover to leave quickly. When I turned back while leaving, I took a glance and found, good heavens, wasn't that just a big jellyfish! It made a gesture to fly into the sky, but before it even started, it ran out of strength and sank back with a gurgle!"

[According to the description, what is reviving in the eastern coastal area should be the 'Leize Jellyfish' (also translated as Thor Jellyfish) speculated by paleontology to exist in the Cambrian period 500 million years ago. According to fossil evidence, this jellyfish and various spiritual energy algae of its time should be the earliest super-giant Primordial spiritual energy organisms in the world capable of utilizing spiritual energy. Generally, adult individuals have a umbrella diameter of about 15-27 meters, and the maximum individual size is unknown.]

[The death fossils of Leize Jellyfish will form natural giant thunder runes. According to runology research, its fossil runes should be the origin of various thunder techniques that have survived to this day in human civilization, and the largest known fossil location is located in the Leize of Zheng Guo.]

[Leize Jellyfish are extremely docile super-giant Primordial spiritual energy organisms, generally active in shallow seas, feeding on sunlight and various spiritual energy algae plankton. They have no intelligence, cannot be communicated with, and use spiritual energy extremely simply, but their size and strength are extremely terrifying, and the prospect of bio-electricity generation is considerable. Classified as a Grade A Lower-level demon. Recommended action: Encircle the sea for breeding.]

[Estimated suppression force per individual: 20 to unlimited Black Emperor Guards. The largest individuals require the cooperation of the Saint Seat and the East China Sea Fleet for capture.]

The third case.

[July 28, 2014, 3:25 AM]

[Hongcheng, Hong Prefecture, hundreds of residents were attacked by demon poison gas, evacuated and took refuge under the guise of a gas leak. When Professor Zhang Fucheng of the Zheng Yi Academy and four White Emperor Guards went to suppress it, they found that the mysterious demon was already dead.]

"This new type of demon codenamed 'Wood Centipede' is essentially a peculiar spiritual plant. Although it looks like a worm, it is actually a 'carnivorous plant' that grows out and moves on its own."

Professor Li, who participated in the demon corpse dissection, talked eloquently in an interview: "The person who killed it first weakened its ganglion activity, then destroyed the 'wooden tendons' that control the body, smashed its top carapace with one blow, and finally cut open its energy reserve organs and took away the energy center."

"The Wood Centipede's vitality is actually very strong. If only one or two, or even two or three, of these actions were taken, it would not have caused its death, but this series of actions directly killed it completely—to be honest, compared to this Wood Centipede, I'm more concerned about who was so fierce, killing this Wood Centipede was not enough, and even pulled off its limbs, mandibles, and tail stings. This strength is not something ordinary creatures can have."

[According to the description, the new type of demon 'Wood Centipede' is a special demon that appeared due to the spiritual energy revival. Its companion spiritual plant 'Clean Water Moss' (official name: Black Moss) has the ability to purify sewage and transform filthy yin energy into pure spiritual power. Clean Water Moss itself can be grafted onto most low-level spiritual plants to nourish their growth, and in return, when this spiritual plant spreads its pollen, it also promotes the germination of Clean Water Moss pollen (a strong hypnotic dust).]

[According to the dissection results, the Wood Centipede is a special myriapod-like omnivorous spiritual plant that lives in dark and filthy environments. It has no intelligence, but due to the characteristics of plants, it has certain utilization possibilities. In the pre-spiritual energy revival era, the Wood Centipede had no other extraordinary manifestations other than a strong body, but its powerful vitality still made it a difficult opponent. Classified as a Grade B Middle-level demon. Recommended action: Capture for research]

[Estimated suppression force per individual: 4-6 White Emperor Guards, one Awakened-level transcendent]

[It should be noted that the unknown transcendent codenamed '11' possesses Awakened-level strength even before the spiritual energy revival and is a seed of the Sacred Path. Its importance is even above the Leize Jellyfish. This person's information has entered the 'Security Bureau Confidential Files'. It is recommended that you study and familiarize yourselves with it.]

The fourth case.

[August 4, 2014, 10:25 PM]

[In Chuan Prefecture, wild iron-eating beasts asked local residents for food...]

"Can we pause for a moment, Yansheng, if you'll forgive my impudence."

Just as the big screen was about to play the interview with the person involved, a white-haired senior officer in the front row blinked. He raised his hand to ask if the case playback could be temporarily stopped. After the screen stopped with implicit consent, he stood up and said with some incomprehension: "In the past forty years, haven't we already rounded up all the existing iron-eating beasts? Where did this wild iron-eating beast come from?"

[The local academy负责人负责人 is unaware of this. It may have been missed during a field release. This iron-eating beast is friendly and possesses some intelligence and can communicate. It has now been led back to the local academy in Chuan Prefecture for re-domestication.]

[Wild iron-eating beasts are fierce modern spiritual energy predators, generally feeding on spiritual bamboo and bamboo rats. They possess some intelligence, can communicate, and have a certain chance of generating 'demon clans'. Classified as a Grade C Middle-level demon.]

[Estimated suppression force per individual: 1-2 White Emperor Guards, can also be lured and captured by professionals, or suppressed by local armed patrols.]

After these four examples, there were many more, mostly the 18 spiritual energy revival cases that had occurred in the past three months.

After all of them were displayed, the text on the screen reappeared, and the existence respectfully called 'Yansheng' by the head of the Security Bureau calmly said.

[Everyone should know that the 'spiritual energy revival' is intensifying. The connection between heaven and earth is about to reopen. Even prehistoric behemoths from the ancient Cambrian period have revived. According to the 'Number Saint's' calculations, the new era is coming within the next month.]

[To maintain stability, we have concealed the truth for a long time, but soon, the changes caused by the spiritual energy revival will penetrate every corner of the social strata... It is time to reveal the true corner of our society and civilization and announce the arrival of the new era.]

[All of you present are veterans of the hidden front. Your wives, husbands, children, and relatives may not know what your real work is, but soon, you will be able to openly display your identities.]

But all the officers with ranks in the room did not make a sound but continued to wait silently for the next instruction.

Subsequently, the text in Kai style continued to appear on the screen.

[The Thirty-Six Saints Central Committee has decided to establish one to four special Grade A academies in Tianjing, Tian Prefecture, or throughout the country to统辖 and handle all matters related to transcendents and related affairs nationwide.]

[The Zheng Guo National Security Bureau will be merged into this academy in the near future, and all of you present will be the backbone elders of the newly established academy.]

For a time, the entire venue was in an uproar.

Not only that.

Hongcheng, Hong Prefecture, Zheng Guo, the Main Division of the Hongcheng Correctional Department.

"Recently, many strange events have occurred in the city."

In the conference room, Su Beiluo, the patrol captain of the Second Criminal Investigation Brigade of Hongcheng, pointed to the large screen that was constantly flashing pictures and said seriously: "Perhaps you already understand, but now I have to say it again."

"August 1st, the corpse of a 'human-faced cat' found in the He'an residential area in the south of the city."

"August 2nd, the corpse of a 'reverted terror bird' found near the Chigutan Bridge."

"August 3rd, in the alley next to the Yijia Shopping Mall in the west of the city, a total of six 'giant purple poisonous dragonflies' were flattened and smashed remains."

In the slideshow, some confidential pictures that could not be reported flashed quickly. They were a strange cat with an old man's face standing up, a pigeon with pterodactyl-like fangs and feathered bat wings, and the remains of six super-giant dragonflies, each as big as half a person.

When he said this, Patrol Captain Su's eyes were sharp, but his expression was still calm, but with the next pictures, his tone became very serious: "Not only these, look."

Because at this time, the screen showed corpses of human remains.

A huge floating corpse floating in the river, who knows how many days it has been dead—the corpse's head was blown up by someone with something, and the original resentful expression actually looked a little peaceful.

A dry, stiff zombie that climbed halfway out of the ground, but its spine was broken by a tree branch before it could climb out completely.

A...

"These are not ordinary cases!" When the tall Su Beiluo spoke loudly, his voice could almost shake the surrounding glass. His voice rumbled: "According to Professor Zhang Fucheng's statement, whether it's those human-faced cats, semi-dragon birds, or the floating corpses in the water later, the half-awakened zombies, all are awakened evil spirits that should have caused chaos for a while."

"But before they could start to act, these evil spirits were all killed and purified by a mysterious existence."

"Who killed them? I think everyone here is very clear."

In fact, everyone present was very clear about who was one step ahead of the official, expelling those frightening evil spirits.

—That is naturally the unknown transcendent who suddenly became active after the Wood Centipede was destroyed by an unknown transcendent, officially codenamed '11', and locally codenamed 'Xia Ke' (侠客)!

After confirming the reactions of everyone present, Su Beiluo looked around the conference hall and said in a solemn tone: "The First Brigade, to which Chief Inspector Wang Zheng belongs, and Daoist Zhang Fucheng, are currently investigating the strange demon that chops off people's heads, and our mission is very simple."

"The above has issued instructions that those scattered and weak evil spirits are not worth mentioning compared to this good friend who is acting chivalrously for us."

"With all our strength, we need to find this transcendent codenamed 'Xia Ke' as soon as possible."