I changed the world.

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Upon arriving at Changchun Temple, Zhang Jing first placed the two boxes into the storeroom and instructed the Taoist priests guarding the storeroom to put them away. Currently, these Taoist priests at Changchun Temple are not real people. If they were to be defined, they should be considered a kind of magical puppet or magical servant, similar to the maids in Zhang Jing's household. They do not have any extraordinary abilities; they simply obey orders and possess a certain degree of intelligence.

These magical servants came from an abstract ancient mural depicting people dressed as Taoist priests or sorcerers living in temples and monasteries. The mural was acquired through the foundation's channels; the foreign seller felt it was a mural with a distinctly Eastern flavor. However, such murals are a niche collectible, and the foundation acquired it for only 30,000 yuan.

This mural, which Zhang Jing named "The Taoist Priest," is somewhat similar to the "Maid Scroll" that Zhang Jing had previously obtained; both are relatively practical treasures.

After putting the box away, Zhang Jingshun went to the back hall of Changchun Temple, where Zhang Taihe was currently studying Buddhist scriptures.

Upon arriving at Zhang Taihe's study in the rear hall, Zhang Jing knocked on the door.

"Come in," came Zhang Taihe's voice from inside.

Upon entering, Zhang Taihe was sitting at his desk writing something. When he saw Zhang Jing come in, he put down his pen and stood up.

"Thank you for your hard work, teacher." Zhang Jing said, cupping his hands in greeting. He knew that Zhang Taihe had been working extremely hard recently, classifying, identifying, and sealing various Buddhist artifacts and treasures that the foundation and several previous sites had successively sorted out.

In fact, the amount of work behind Zhang Jing's goal of establishing a system is enormous. So far, Zhang Jing has discovered seven hidden realms and caves. Some of these have been fully explored, some have only been partially explored and are still under exploration, and some have not yet been explored.

Volume Two: The Truth Hidden Behind History Books: Chapter 756 Restoring the Ancient Alchemy Laboratory

Among the caves that have already been explored, Zhang Jing plans to gradually transform them. For example, the Lishan Cave has already been transformed into the Kunlun Cave, and the transformation is now basically complete. The transformation of the Changchun Cave, where the Changchun Temple is located, is also basically complete. Another secret realm has been transformed into the Zhebi Peak Secret Realm, and as for the others, one is currently under transformation.

Furthermore, the other caves have not been fully explored; that is, all the resources, dangers, and prehistoric relics inside have not been thoroughly investigated. Fortunately, Zhang Jing currently has several high-ranking terracotta warriors as assistants, with Gu Shunzhi as the main figure, and they are steadily advancing this work.

“You’ve come at the right time. Take a look at this…” Zhang Taihe smiled and nodded at him, reaching for a stack of documents on the table and handing them to Zhang Jing.

Zhang Jing took the documents, found a round-backed chair, and quickly began to browse through them. Zhang Taihe didn't urge him, but went to the side to brew two cups of tea, placing one on the table next to Zhang Jing, while he himself sat down in the other round-backed chair and slowly sipped his tea.

About fifteen minutes later, Zhang Jing finished reading the documents in his hand, looked up and exclaimed in admiration, "You've actually outlined the manufacturing process of the terracotta warriors so quickly! Teacher, you've really put in a lot of effort these past few days!"

Zhang Jing knew that one of the important tasks Zhang Taihe had been working on recently was to try to reconstruct the manufacturing process of the terracotta warriors.

Based on the information collected so far, Zhang Jing can confirm that terracotta figurine technology did not develop into a mainstream and important technology in ancient times. Instead, it was developed as a peripheral technology and, along with many other technologies of the same era, did not have a significant impact on history.

There were coincidences involved. For example, according to Zhang Jing's speculation, the secret laboratory that developed the terracotta warriors was attacked and destroyed by the evil god's kin. As a result, under the social conditions at the time, this technology may have lost its important driving force for further progress due to the disappearance of the main researchers.

Of course, there is an even more important factor, which is that Zhang Jing previously discovered from the diary of the great wizard Nornir, who successfully developed the terracotta warriors, that the terracotta warrior technology has a so-called "principle of power equivalence".

The extraordinary matrix used to construct the body of the 'terracotta warrior' can only be constructed with materials of the same or higher order, and cannot be constructed with relatively low-order materials.

In other words, the input and output are not proportional, and the cost is too high.

The combination of excessively high technological implementation costs, the deaths of key R&D personnel, and even the destruction of important laboratories led to the extinction of terracotta warrior technology in history.

However, for Zhang Jing, if he could restore the craftsmanship of the terracotta warriors, then the high cost would not be a problem.

Zhang Jing needed terracotta warriors not to wage a protracted war of attrition against a powerful enemy, but to use them as the core to construct a mythological system hidden within history.

In general, not too many terracotta warriors are needed. Under such circumstances, even if the cost of making terracotta warriors is extremely high, it is still acceptable.

Of course, even restoring this technology would be an extremely difficult task at present.

"I have to thank you for finding the diary of the great wizard Nornir. This ancient researcher had the habit of keeping a diary, which recorded many of his research steps and insights, and even some of his erroneous experiments. It has been a great help to me."

Zhang Taihe took a sip of his tea and said, "When we were building Changchun Temple, we were quite careful when dismantling the original facilities in this site, so there wasn't much damage. After dismantling, they were all sealed off. It can now be confirmed that this was indeed an ancient alchemical laboratory used to study terracotta figurine technology. It's just a pity that it was damaged by external forces at the time."

"Can we restore it?" Zhang Jing asked with some anticipation.

“I had hoped to do that before,” Zhang Taihe sighed. “Even in that era, terracotta warriors represented a relatively cutting-edge technology. So, even with the technological path and manufacturing process, simply restoring those tools would be an extremely difficult and massive undertaking. Therefore, relying on this damaged laboratory to restore it is actually our best option at present.”

“However, this is not easy.” Zhang Taihe shook his head and said, “This alchemy laboratory has a distinct academic style that blends Eastern and Western elements. It contains a large amount of Valding School technology. The Valding School was the school of wizards at that time that focused on alchemy as its main research direction. This shows that academic exchanges between different schools were indeed taking place at a considerable level at that time.”

"I've done a quick overview, and this alchemy lab involves techniques from more than 11 academic branches, including alchemy, runeology, golem making, spiritualism, occultism, mystical rituals, and weapon crafting. The information we've collected so far doesn't fully cover all of these techniques."

Seeing Zhang Jing's brows furrowing, Zhang Taihe changed the subject and smiled again: "However, there's no need to worry too much. Fortunately, at least the alchemical core of this alchemy laboratory is intact, and the rune altar that accompanies it should be able to be repaired. This is the most crucial facility in the entire laboratory."

“If these two facilities are also damaged, it will be difficult for us to rebuild them with our current technical capabilities,” Zhang Taihe said.

Zhang Jing nodded slightly upon hearing this. Compared to modern technology, which has more specialized disciplines and higher requirements for manufacturing, ancient humans also developed their own technological systems. In Zhang Jing's view, the biggest difference lies in the fact that the ancient system was built upon strong personal cultivation. Therefore, the requirements for tools and implements were greatly reduced compared to modern times, while the requirements for personal cultivation were greatly increased. From the perspective of restoration technology, this has both advantages and disadvantages.

For ordinary human researchers, such an ancient technological system built upon personal cultivation would seem daunting. However, for Zhang Jing, restoring this technology is relatively easier compared to restoring a purely technological system like modern human science.

Otherwise, Zhang Jing would be completely lost if he simply wanted to establish a complete industrial system.

After thinking for a moment, he asked, "Since the teacher says so, then the reality must be much more optimistic?"

Volume Two: The Truth Hidden Behind History Books: Chapter 757 It's Our Turn to Get Rich!

Zhang Taihe nodded and said, "Based on the normal operation of the Refining Gold Core and the Rune Altar, I checked the remaining equipment and found that some of them could be partially replaced by current human technology. However, my knowledge in this area is insufficient, and it would be best to have an expert in biology join us."

Zhang Jing thought for a moment after hearing this, then nodded: "I will try to solve it."

“Okay, I also need a wizard to assist with the research.” Zhang Taihe looked at Zhang Jing.

“No problem.” Zhang Jing nodded and said, “Mr. Jean Plantard will cooperate with your research.”

Mr. Jean Plantard is currently busy with a lot of things in the Western Continent, but the research project on restoring the terracotta warriors is, after all, Zhang Jing's most important work, and Zhang Jing naturally knows how to prioritize.

After exchanging a few more words, Zhang Jing took his leave. He pondered to himself that he would need to make appropriate use of the power of the Wish Book to accelerate Zhang Taihe's research.

* * *

承和三十七年 2016年4月6日14:53 建安省晋安市永兴坊

Yongxingfang is located in the north of the old city of Jin'an and is the site of the largest slum in Jin'an.

This area was originally a low-lying swamp. It is said that when Jin'an was first established as a city, there were no buildings here because of the low-lying and muddy terrain. It was not until later, as Jin'an's maritime trade gradually developed and the city expanded, that Yongxingfang was developed by some maritime merchants who wanted to use it as a cargo yard.

It's impossible to know who originally developed Yongxingfang, but according to local oral tradition, the initial merchants lost everything. The reason was simple: their goods were all flooded.

Yongxingfang is located in a low-lying area. Although the swamp was later filled in, the rainy climate of Jin'an still makes Yongxingfang a place where rainwater easily collects during the rainy season. Heavy rains often cause major floods, and light rains cause minor floods. Naturally, the goods of the maritime merchants suffered huge losses in the repeated floods.

As a result, the Yongxingfang area has never been developed, and locals are unwilling to live there.

Until modern times, with the improvement of drainage infrastructure, few people were willing to live in Yongxingfang. It is said that a developer once tried to develop real estate there, but unfortunately, a super typhoon hit just as the project was about to open, causing Yongxingfang to flood again. This directly resulted in the developer's project being ignored and forced to sell at a loss. Since then, few developers have been willing to invest in this area.

Currently, housing prices here are much lower than in other parts of Jin'an. Some locals rent land here to build inexpensive buildings and rent them to outsiders, which is quite popular due to the low prices. As a result, this area has become the first choice for many migrant workers coming to Jin'an to work. Over time, as more and more of these inexpensive buildings appeared, it gradually became the site of Jin'an's largest slum.

It's said to be a poor neighborhood, but in reality, it's a melting pot of all sorts of people. It's far more than just a simple residential area for outsiders. Besides migrant workers who rent cheap rooms here, there are also numerous underground casinos, prostitution rings, drug trafficking, smuggling, organ trading, and many other shady dealings…

In a long alley called Plum Blossom Alley, located south of Yongxingfang, many young women in tattered clothes stand on the street from evening onwards. Usually, each young woman stands in a fixed position, every few meters. Once a man passes by and glances at them, they will walk up to him and, whether enthusiastically or shyly, pull him towards a house not far away.

Outside a house at the end of Plum Blossom Lane, a crooked wooden sign with the handwritten words "Amao Clinic" hangs. Upon closer inspection, the sign also contains several lines of small print such as "Painless Abortion" and "Specializing in the Treatment of STDs".

The room was crammed with five people, four men and one woman, and filled with smoke. In addition to these people, there were some simple medicines and equipment in the room, and an operating table in one corner. It was clearly an unlicensed clinic.

"Brothers, we've all thought this through. This is a big deal, one million per person. Opportunities like this are hard to come by," a man with tattoos on his arm said excitedly, taking a drag of his cigarette.

"Is it reliable?" asked a pretty woman in a nurse's uniform standing nearby.

“Last time, five stillborn babies sold for 500,000 yuan. They paid without even blinking an eye. Am I right, Ah Mao…” The tattooed man glanced at the tall, thin man next to him wearing a stained white coat.

The tall, thin man nodded, his voice low: "The business that Brother Dafei introduced has been done four times already, and there haven't been any problems. The other party is very quick to pay."

“We’ve cooperated several times already, and the middleman is trustworthy. Besides, even if it’s a setup by the cops, it’s mostly drug trafficking or something like that. Who would buy and sell pregnant women…” the tattooed man known as “Big Fei” continued.

"I just find it a bit strange. If he were buying kidneys or something, I could understand. But he bought stillborn babies before, and now he's buying pregnant women. It sounds really weird. What is he trying to do?" A short, stocky man with a burly face took a drag of his cigarette and flicked the ash onto the ground.

"Brother Chicken, who knows what rich people are interested in... I heard some people like pregnant women... They think it's more fun to play with them..." A man with a pointed mouth and monkey-like cheeks sitting in the corner laughed rather lewdly.

"Hmm... that's not impossible. Maybe they really have money to burn, and they're tired of playing with innocent girls and want to try something different..."

"If you're going to play with pregnant women, then what was the point of buying stillborn babies before? Dafei, you just said that he also collects human blood?" The man known as Brother Chicken was clearly much more cautious than he appeared reckless.

"Yes, only human blood, not separated plasma, the fresher the better. They're offering a lot, and the price is ten times higher than what those blood dealers offered before."

"Damn it... what are they going to do with such a high price?"

"Brother Chicken, why do you care what they do? If we don't make this money, others will be scrambling to make it..." The man with the pointed mouth and monkey-like face next to him was obviously a little anxious.

"Yeah... It's stupid not to make money..." After a moment's thought, Chicken Bro still exhaled a heavy puff of smoke.

"This area is all under our protection, so this matter isn't too difficult. However, there's something fishy about this one, so everyone needs to be careful to avoid being set up by someone..."

“It just so happens that there’s a woman I booked tonight. She’s pretty and doesn’t frequent this area. I can have Jingjing sound her out. If there are no problems, that would be perfect…” the tall, thin man in the white coat said sinisterly from the side.

"That would be perfect! It's time for us brothers to make a fortune!" Big Fei slapped the table next to him and laughed.

Volume Two: The Truth Hidden Behind History Books: Chapter 758 How Should I Know What to Do!

承和三十七年 2016年4月6日11:23 建安省晋安市金融街海商银行总部大厦

Even in the interstellar age, maritime transport, as the world's cheapest mode of transportation, still maintains its position.

After all, current starships, due to limitations in their construction and propulsion systems, rarely operate within the atmosphere. Without the weightless environment of space, the propulsion system would be subjected to an immense load to maintain its enormous weight. In fact, most medium to large-sized ships cannot navigate in planetary gravitational environments. This is not only because their propulsion systems cannot support such power output, but also because the weight of a massive starship would cause irreversible damage to its structure if it were to navigate under gravity.

This is why special vessels like "landing ships" exist, suitable for traveling between space and planets. In short, considering overall efficiency within a planet, the price and maintenance costs of sea transport are far lower than other modes of transportation.

This is also an important reason why Jin'an City still maintains its prosperity even in this day and age.

With the prosperity of maritime trade, related financial services such as settlement, foreign exchange, large-scale guarantees, and insurance have been relatively developed in Jin'an.

Haishang Bank, a well-established and powerful bank, developed against this backdrop, with its headquarters located on Jin'an Financial Street.

As one of the most prosperous streets in Jin'an, Financial Street is incredibly valuable, with numerous banks, insurance companies, and even large corporations operating office buildings there.

The headquarters of Haishang Bank is located in the heart of Financial Street. It is a huge white classical building that combines Chinese and Western styles. In the chairman's office on the 13th floor of the headquarters, Wei Feng was looking at the bustling crowd below with great confidence in front of the huge floor-to-ceiling window.

Looking down from his vantage point, the crowd below resembled countless ants, appearing exceptionally small. Wei Feng subconsciously stretched out a hand, and his outstretched palm completely enveloped these tiny "ants." Thinking about his soon-to-be-successful "plan," a smile involuntarily appeared on his face.