I fabricated myths to guide the revival of spiritual energy.

[Jiangnan Province, Linjiang City, Old Town]

This is a small, underdeveloped third-tier city, where Gu Qing was born and raised. It lacks the hustle and bustle of Changsha, offering only the everyday life and slow pace of city life.

At four o'clock in the afternoon, the sunlight slanted onto the red brick apartment buildings built in the 1990s.

Gu Qing stood downstairs at her apartment building, carrying a simple suitcase.

Looking at the mottled wall paint and the colorful bed sheets drying on the balcony, a feeling of being in another world welled up in my heart.

Two weeks ago, he was helped downstairs by his parents. At that time, he had to stop and catch his breath after every step, his lungs felt like they were filled with rotten cotton, and every breath tasted bloody. At that moment, looking at this building, he thought: This might be the last time I see it.

And now.

Gu Qing looked up at the fifth floor.

It was an old building without an elevator. Those five flights of stairs were like climbing Mount Everest for him, an insurmountable chasm.

But now.

He took a step forward, as light as a swallow.

Level 1, Level 2, Level 3...

He barely used his strength; a light touch of his toes was enough to leap several steps. If he weren't worried about startling the neighbors, he could even "fly" up like in martial arts novels.

In less than ten seconds, he stood in front of the security door of room 501.

His breathing was steady, his face was not flushed, he was not out of breath, and he didn't even break a sweat.

Gu Qing raised her hand, about to knock on the door, but stopped.

Because of his exceptionally keen hearing (a passive skill of his innate Daoist body), he clearly heard the conversation inside the door.

"…Old Gu, the house has been listed for half a month, why hasn't anyone inquired about it yet?" It was his mother's voice, filled with anxiety and exhaustion. "The agent said our building is too old and they have to lower the price."

"Let it be lowered then." The father's voice was low and hoarse, accompanied by the sound of a lighter lighting a cigarette. "As long as we can raise the money. Qingzi's new course of targeted therapy needs to be bought again. One bottle costs tens of thousands of yuan, and even after medical insurance reimbursement, we still have to pay a lot out of pocket... We can't stop."

"But if we sell the house, where will we live? And what about Aoko's future...?"

"We'll talk about the future later! As long as he's still alive, I'd be happy even if we had to sleep under a bridge!" The father's voice suddenly rose, then quickly fell back, as if he was suppressing a sob. "I'm just afraid... I'm afraid that even if we sell the house, we won't be able to keep him..."

Outside.

Gu Qing's hand froze in mid-air.

His heart clenched sharply. This pain was different from the stomach cancer he'd experienced before. It was guilt, heartache, and an impulse to overturn this damned fate.

His previous "deception" was to save his own life.

But now, he is grateful that he has this power.

"call--"

Gu Qing adjusted her expression, the coldness in her eyes disappearing, replaced by a warm smile that belonged to her son.

"Knock knock knock".

He knocked on the door.

"Who is it? They're here."

The sound of slippers scraping the floor came from inside. A few seconds later, the security door clicked open.

Gu's mother's face, etched with worry and wrinkles, appeared behind the door. Most of her hair was white, and her eyes were puffy; she clearly hadn't had a good night's sleep in a long time.

When she saw the person standing at the door, she froze instantly.

She initially thought it was another agent or salesperson.

She was even subconsciously afraid of receiving a critical condition notice from the hospital.

But what did she see?

She saw a tall, ruddy-faced young man with sparkling eyes.

That was... her son before she got sick?

No, she looks even more energetic and better-looking than before she got sick.

"Qing... Qingzi?"

Mrs. Gu rubbed her eyes, her voice trembling violently, "Is it you? Am I dreaming... or..."

Or is it just a last gasp before death?

This is the scene that families of terminally ill patients fear most: a sudden improvement in a patient's mental state often means that their time is near.

"Mom, it's me."

Gu Qing dropped his bag, stepped forward, and hugged the petite woman tightly.

Warm body temperature, a firm embrace, a powerful heartbeat.

All of this tells the mother: this is real, a living person.

"I'm back," Gu Qing said softly. "I'm starving! Is there braised pork for dinner?"

……

[Ten minutes later, in the living room]

Mr. Gu sat opposite him on the sofa, oblivious to the fact that his cigarette had burned down to his fingers. He stared intently at Gu Qing, as if he were looking at an alien.

"You mean... you're better?" Mr. Gu's voice was hoarse. "Completely better?"

I guess so.

Gu Qing picked up the apple on the table, took a big bite with a "crunch," and chewed it with relish.

This action greatly comforted the two elders.

It should be noted that since being diagnosed with late-stage cancer, Gu Qing has been unable to eat anything due to the side effects of chemotherapy, and would vomit at the smell of cooking oil.

"I met an old traditional Chinese medicine doctor in Changsha."

Gu Qing began weaving the lies he had already prepared.

You can't talk to your parents about the system or cultivating immortality. That would scare them and put them in danger.

"He was a reclusive master from western Hunan. He used a folk remedy on me, saying it was a secret recipe from Miao medicine."

Gu Qing said, half-jokingly:

"I was just trying anything before I went there. I didn't expect that after drinking the medicine, I would break out in a thick sweat, and then... I felt that I was no longer short of breath and I had energy again."

"This...how is this possible?" Although Mr. Gu was an old worker, he knew some basic medical knowledge. "That's late-stage cancer! Big hospitals have given it a death sentence. How can Miao medicine cure it?"

"The world is so big, there are all sorts of wonders."

Gu Qing smiled, stood up, jumped twice on the spot, and showed off the muscles in his arms.

"Dad, do I look like I'm sick right now?"

Facts speak louder than words.

Regardless of what medical theories say, the fact that their son, standing before them full of energy, is the greatest truth at this moment is the truth itself.

"Okay...okay! Great!"

As Gu's mother wiped away her tears, she kept muttering, "Thank God!" But her joy was still mixed with a lingering fear.

This fear is not directed at Gu Qing in the present moment.

Rather, it is the fate of falling again at any time after "losing and regaining".

Looking at Gu Qing's rosy complexion and his strong, muscular arms, she suddenly recalled the rumors circulating among the families of many terminally ill patients—

People often suddenly feel very energetic before they pass away.

Like a lamp in its last moments before going out, it was blindingly bright.

"Qingzi..." Gu's mother hesitated before speaking, her eyes full of caution, "Shall we... go to the hospital to get her checked out?"

"Please, I'm begging you."

Mr. Gu took a deep breath, suppressing his excitement, but his voice grew even hoarseer: "Yes. Let's get a second check-up, an X-ray, some tests. We're happy you look good now, but we're also worried..."

He didn't finish speaking.

But all three people in the room understood that word.

Gu Qing was silent for two seconds, then nodded.

"OK."

He knew that this trip to the hospital wasn't for medical reasons, but to put his parents at ease.

[That evening, Linjiang City First People's Hospital]

Registration, blood tests, imaging, tumor markers, CT scans, contrast-enhanced imaging... I did everything I was supposed to do.

The corridor was noisy, the fluorescent lights were blinding, and the smell of disinfectant was overwhelming. Gu's mother held the payment slip, her hands trembling.

As always, Mr. Gu was stern, but he sat on the bench as silent as a stone. He didn't smoke even when he had a craving for cigarettes, but just crumpled the cigarette pack in his hand.

He dare not.

He was afraid that if he raised his hand to light a cigarette, he would hear the same thing that happened half a month ago—"Family members, please be prepared."

Gu Qing sat between the two, unusually quiet.

He could hear the sound of keyboards being typed at the nurses' station, the ticking of the electrocardiogram monitor in the next examination room, and even his mother's heart pounding uncontrollably with anxiety.

once.

twice.

It's like praying.

…………

[Chief Oncologist's Clinic]

"Gu Qing?"

The middle-aged director looked up and glanced at the young man who had sat down.

He frowned at that glance.

It's not because it's abnormal—quite the opposite, it's because it's too normal.

This face, this complexion, this posture... no matter how you look at it, it doesn't look like a patient with late-stage stomach cancer.

The head doctor looked down and flipped through the medical records, his brows furrowing more and more as he did so.

The previous medical record clearly stated: late-stage stomach cancer, multiple metastases, malnutrition, and severe anemia.

But now—

The blood test results were normal.

Liver and kidney function are normal.

All tumor markers were normal.

Enhanced CT scan showed no definite tumor lesions.

He looked up and stared at Gu Qing.

After a long pause, he finally uttered a sentence:

"...Are you sure it's you?"

Mrs. Gu was so frightened she almost stood up: "Doctor! Doctor, he's my son! We haven't made a mistake!"

The director waved his hand, his throat dry: "No, what I mean is... your results—don't conform to medical principles."

He picked up the report and looked at it again and again, as if trying to find even the slightest crack in the paper that could prove the "error".

but no.

Every single piece of data is brutally accurate.

The director remained silent for a long time before finally pushing all the reports back, his tone clearly incredulous:

"Based on all the test results..."

"You are in good health."

This sentence is like the sky collapsing and then suddenly being held up by someone.

Gu's mother immediately covered her mouth and burst into tears, crying like a child; Gu's father's eyes were red, and he pressed his hands heavily on his knees, his shoulders trembling slightly.

He has never really believed in gods or Buddhas in his life.

But at this moment, he wanted to kowtow to anything, as long as his son could live.

The director watched this scene with mixed feelings.

He has been a doctor for over twenty years and has witnessed countless life-and-death situations, but he has never seen such an outrageous and almost absurd "reversal".

He sat up straight again, his tone slow and cautious:

"But I have a question... What exactly have you been doing these past few months? What medications have you used? Have you participated in any clinical trials? Which hospital? Which specialist?"

His eyes grew brighter and brighter, like a doctor's innate excitement for "unknown cases".

This isn't gossip, it's professional instinct—

If he can find the cause, it might even rewrite the conclusions of certain medical fields.

But the instant his words fell—

In Gu Qing's view, the system panel flickered silently.

[Strong external investigation intent detected]

[Initiate: Cognitive Intervention (Low-Level)]

[Cost: 10 Faith Points]

Gu Qing's heart stirred.

confirm.

The next second, just as the director was about to continue questioning, he suddenly paused.

His throat felt like it was being blocked by something invisible.

"...Of course." He blinked, a brief look of confusion on his face. "It could also be...a misdiagnosis? Or the test results could be contradictory?"

As he spoke, he became more and more fluent in his speech.

It was as if an invisible hand had forcibly twisted all the "unreasonable" into "reasonable" for him.

The director raised his hand to adjust his glasses, his tone becoming objective, calm, and even carrying a firm conviction of self-persuasion:

"Hmm... we can't rule out the possibility that there was a discrepancy in a previous examination."

"In addition, the patient is young and has a strong immune system, so it is not entirely impossible for false negatives or misdiagnosis to occur."

In conclusion, the current situation is: good health.

He nodded after he finished speaking, as if he had finally mentally reconciled everything within the medical system.

But deep within those eyes, a fleeting sense of confusion and unease still lingered.

It's like a memory that was forcibly deleted, leaving behind an inexplicable void.

The director stood up, handed a stack of documents to Mrs. Gu, and resumed his professional tone:

"Go back and rest well, and attend your follow-up appointments on time."

On my way home, it was getting dark.

Gu's mother clutched the medical report tightly, as if it were a talisman that could save her life, and tears streamed down her face uncontrollably.

Mr. Gu lit a cigarette and inhaled it very slowly, as if he were exhaling the stone that had been weighing on his chest all his life.

With reddened eyes, he whispered:

"Qingzi... let's not sell the house."

Gu Qing smiled but didn't say anything.

He simply added silently in his mind:

It's not just about houses.

From now on, I won't even have to sell my fate.

As soon as Gu's mother entered the door, she habitually walked to the drawer next to the TV cabinet.

That drawer was crammed with all sorts of medicine boxes...

"Oh right, it's time to take your medicine."

Mrs. Gu took out an unopened box of imported targeted drugs, her hands trembling slightly. This box of drugs represented two months of Mr. Gu's retirement income.

"Although you seem to be getting better, you can't stop taking this medication. The doctor said you'll have to take it for life to control it..."

As she spoke, Gu's mother went to pour water.

A long, strong hand gently pressed down on Gu's mother's hand.

Gu Qing looked at the white medicine bottle in her mother's hand.

It was printed with complex chemical formulas, warnings of "extremely severe side effects," and the despair this family had once endured.

"mom."

Gu Qing's voice was soft, yet it carried an undeniable firmness.

"Throw it away."

Mrs. Gu was stunned for a moment: "What?"

"Throw all these medicines away."

Gu Qing took the medicine bottle from her mother's hand.

"I don't need this anymore."

"Qingzi, stop fooling around!" Father Gu exclaimed anxiously. "That's life-saving medicine! Even if you're a little better, you need to consolidate the treatment..."

"Dad, Mom."

Gu Qing looked at the two elders with clear and deep eyes, revealing an unprecedented confidence and domineering aura.

"Believe me."

"Your son is no longer that useless person who needs pills to prolong his life."

"From now on, our family will no longer need to worry about these medical expenses."

After saying that, Gu Qing's wrist twitched slightly.

The plastic bottle filled with pills traced an arc in his hand.

"Thump."

It landed precisely in the trash can in the corner.

Immediately afterwards, Gu Qing opened the drawer full of medicine and swept out all the painkillers, chemotherapy adjuvant drugs, nutritional solutions, etc.

slam-la-

Colorful medicine boxes filled the trash can.

To Gu's parents, this scene was absolutely breathtaking.

But in Gu Qing's heart, this was the last shackle he had to break free from in the mortal world.

"I don't take medicine."

"I only eat rice."

Gu Qing turned around and gave her mother, who was staring in disbelief, a bright smile:

"Mom, add more sugar. I want sweet braised pork."

……

sunset.

The long-lost aroma of meat wafted from this old residential area in Linjiang City.

Gu Qing sat in the small bedroom, listening to the sounds of chopping vegetables in the kitchen and her parents' excited, hushed conversation.

He glanced out the window.

A sparrow perched on a telephone pole, chirping away.

In his eyes, every heartbeat of the sparrow, the trembling of every feather, and even the slightest changes in the airflow around it were clearly visible.

Gu Qing leaned back in his chair, took out a coin from his pocket, and flipped it between his fingers.

"Next, I will stay at home with my parents for a while and do my best to be filial."

"But that doesn't mean my 'script' will stop being updated."

"I have already given the official concept of 'cultivation of immortality' and provided them with samples of 'awakened beings'."

"Now, they must be looking for me (that old Taoist priest) all over the world."

Gu Qing flicked his finger, and the coin flew up, making a crisp sound in the air.

"If they can't find the Taoist priest, they'll look for the 'traces' he left behind."

"Next time, let the world see what it means for...when one person attains enlightenment, even their chickens and dogs ascend to heaven."

"It's time for every blade of grass and tree around my old home to benefit from my good fortune."