In the digital era, the proliferation of social media has strengthened the connection and integration of digital and physical spaces, and reshaped human-place interactions. Flow has become a key element driving local social and economic development. This paper takes Zhanqi village in Shexian county, Huangshan city, Anhui province as an example, and uses qualitative research methods such as non-participatory observation, in-depth interviews, and user-generated content (UGC) text analysis to examine the evolution process of flow production of fish lantern folklore in Zhanqi village, reveal its spatial restructuring characteristics, and elucidate the underlying mechanisms of flow production. The findings indicate that: (1) The flow production of Zhanqi village follows the development logic of "self-organization, bidirectionality, and dispersion", progressing through three stages of entry, breakout, and survival. This process has transformed local folk customs into a global spectacle, significantly expanding its scale and influence. (2) Through the spectacle-oriented communication and symbol coding mechanisms of digital media such as Douyin and Xiaohongshu, Zhanqi village has been endowed with spatial images like "New Year atmosphere", "prosperity" and "good fortune", accelerating the spectacularization and symbolization of the fish lantern folklore. To cater to the "gazing" and consumption demands of online users, local governments and villagers have carried out aestheticized and multi-functional renovations of the physical spaces in the village. In addition, with the local transformation of online traffic, the virtual and real spaces in Zhanqi village are also intertwined with complex conflicts arising from the imbalance between space supply and demand and differences in inheritance concepts. (3) The flow production in Zhanqi village benefits from the internal empowerment of the village's resource background and the external drive of multiple subjects. The sustainable production of the village's flow economy is driven by the local government's allocation of resources, publicity and guidance from mainstream media and opinion leaders, villagers' empowerment through popularity and deep engagement, and tourists' meaning production and emotional connection to the place. In an era where the flow economy has supplanted traditional tourism development as a key driver of local development, this research has significant theoretical and practical significance for promoting the historical and cultural inheritance and multi-dimensional spatial activation of traditional villages in China, as well as achieving the high-quality and sustainable development of internet-famous villages.

Against the twin backdrop of the digital economy and rural revitalization, the tourism spaces of traditional villages increasingly exhibit assemblage processes in which heterogeneous elements co-constitute and become deeply embedded in consumption practices. Examining the interaction mechanisms among these elements is crucial for reconciling heritage preservation with development and for advancing sustainable renewal and revitalization. Using Liugou village as a case, this study mobilizes assemblage theory and employs semi-structured interviews and participatory observation to interrogate the generative logic and evolutionary mechanisms of rural tourism consumption. The findings show that: (1) The assemblage of rural tourism consumption integrates human actors-tourists, governments, villagers-with non-human elements such as cultural resources, digital platforms and material infrastructures; their interactions not only transform consumption patterns but also activate cultural resources, becoming an endogenous driver of village renewal. (2) Consumption has evolved from linear to decentralized forms, as tourists' "evaluation-feedback-sharing" participation and platform guidance jointly reconfigure interactional dynamics and spatial configurations, enabling the living use of cultural symbols and expanding regional consumption networks. (3) Four mechanisms-desire generation, structural organization, relational negotiation and meaning reproduction-operate in a nested, mutually reinforcing way to produce a cyclical and generative system of consumption dynamics, thereby coordinating heterogeneous elements and reproducing culture within the constraints of historic spatial layouts and heritage assets, and ultimately facilitating renewal and the living transmission of traditional villages. The study extends assemblage theory in rural tourism research and offers a framework and practical insights into how consumption-driven dynamics can foster renewal and revitalization in traditional villages.

Inadequate resource transformation constitutes a critical bottleneck to the revitalizing characteristic protection villages. The scientific questions underlying these bottlenecks, "what to transform" (object), "who transforms" (subject), "what constitutes transformation" (essence), and "how to transform" (mechanism), urgently require theoretical responses. Based on theoretical review and progress analysis, this paper constructs a "planetary gear" theoretical model from the "idea-action-outcome" perspective to analyze resource transformation. It clarifies the object types, subject characteristics, essential forms, and mechanism composition of resource transformation in characteristic protection villages and proposes research prospects from three aspects: idea reconstruction, action strategies, and outcome measurement. The results show that: (1) Resource transformation refers to resource orchestration actions aimed at inheriting traditional culture, ultimately forming rural characteristic industries. This action essentially constitutes innovation and entrepreneurial behavior at both individual and collective levels, fundamentally representing the development of new quality productive forces in rural areas, which can be divided into three stages: capitalization, commodification, and industrialization. (2) The objects of resource transformation are agricultural heritage, vernacular built heritage, intangible cultural heritage, and related natural raw materials presented as "bundle of resources". The subjects of resource transformation are individuals possessing innovative and entrepreneurial spirit and capabilities, proper values of righteousness and profit, and charisma, such as social entrepreneurs. (3) The resource transformation mechanism manifests as a causal chain of "windows of opportunity-vital few-individual innovation and entrepreneurship/collective cognitive liberation-collective action", influenced by exogenous factors including major structural relationship changes and external organizational interventions in rural areas, endogenous factors such as village resource endowment, location conditions, economic foundation, organizational capacity, and institutional arrangements, as well as "black swan" events.