Chapter Ninety-Seven: Just Do It

Lan Yi had discovered a problem some time ago.

It was a problem that only those who had been reborn would encounter.

Because the influx of knowledge regarding Daoist arts was so overwhelming, the subconscious of the human body tended to favor the cultivation of martial arts rather than Daoist arts. This directly resulted in all reborn individuals, during their first experience with the Artificial Divine Realm, being limited to the "Life-叢" and "Human Aspect" stages. Attempting to transcend this level would inevitably lead to a conflict between the acquired knowledge and the body's physical cognitive framework.

It was not a major issue.

It simply affected the spirit—the fundamental mode of perceiving the world—often leading to internal conflicts that manifested as vomiting blood or even intracranial hemorrhaging. As long as one did not advance too rapidly, this problem would naturally resolve itself over time.

After all, one's cultivation realm was not synonymous with combat capability.

Therefore, most reborn individuals were not in a hurry.

Ji Ning, for instance, was a typical example of someone who specialized in martial arts early on. Jin Shi, in pursuit of short-term combat efficacy, had specialized to an extreme degree in martial arts. Even at only the "Spirit-Refining Human Aspect" stage, their martial prowess was so far beyond the martial artists of the 1909 Artificial Divine Realm that they hardly seemed like the same species.

It could be said that if Lan Yi were to leave the Artificial Divine Realm of 1909 as it was back then, Jin Shi alone could speed-run and slaughter the previous world. By flying through the air at four times the speed of sound and carpet-bombing the surface, obliterating the entire world would be a trivial task.

As for Lan Yi himself, there was no need to elaborate.

While his martial arts were not his most brilliant feat, his mastery of Daoist arts had reached a level of artistic perfection. He frequently leveraged forces hundreds of times greater than his own. Having walked out of a nuclear explosion and mastered a "Tsar Bomba (Pseudo)," he brought the entire world to its knees, forcing it to accept the cruel reality that the world-ending "Old Demon Lan" had become the commander of the River Civilization.

Regardless, the early-stage conflict between these two orthodox paths remained a thorn in his side. It was not particularly noticeable, but it would occasionally remind you of its presence.

Lan Yi was now determined to pull that thorn out.

He had already found the way to do it.

The second major stage of Daoist arts: Cultivating the Heavenly Palace.

The so-called "Cultivating the Heavenly Palace" refers to the practice of building one's own defenses against external demons. This defense is the "Heavenly Palace." Only by forging this palace to be incredibly sturdy and powerful can one hope to traverse the mundane world with the palace as a vessel.

However, because every "Life-叢" is different, the Daoist arts practiced are different, and the schools of origin are different, the methods of cultivating the Heavenly Palace vary greatly. It can be said that "Cultivating the Heavenly Palace" has always been a description of a realm or a level, rather than a single, orthodox method.

Lan Yi chose his current location for this period of secluded cultivation.

The environment on the aircraft carrier was excellent.

The food standards were incredibly high, one could enjoy various social interactions at any time, numerous games were available to play to one's heart's content, and when bored, there was beautiful natural scenery as well as the most intense and exciting pastime of all: fishing. Not to mention, the commander’s personal tomboy and the saintly elder sister were always waiting for orders.

This did not sound like secluded cultivation.

It sounded like a vacation.

But this, as it happened, was a perfectly reasonable way for a psionic cultivator to break through in cultivating their Heavenly Palace.

Because the purpose of cultivating the Heavenly Palace is to defend against external demons.

What are external demons?

Any external factor that might interfere with a psionic cultivator—such as the seven emotions and six desires, tangible or intangible enemies, or any obstacle to cultivation—are all external demons.

Psionic cultivators transplanting "Life-叢" are inherently unstable; "Life-叢" maniacs are a testament to this. If, during the breakthrough to cultivate the Heavenly Palace, a cultivator fails to rapidly adapt to their drastically changing senses, they are highly likely to go insane, transforming into a monster drowning in a specific sensation or fear.

Excessive sensory acuity might not sound like a big deal.

But for a cultivator whose carbon-based body is flooded with psionic energy, it is as terrifying as a normal person summoning the courage to have a wisdom tooth extracted.

And now, Lan Yi was about to face such fear.

Few people knew of his seclusion.

In fact, even when Commander Lan Yi had already begun his seclusion, almost no one noticed he was breaking through. He maintained his regular daily routine; the only change was that everyone noticed Lan Yi seemed more inclined to mingle with the crowd.

Not to kill, but to mingle.

One morning, at breakfast time.

The cooks, who were the first to rise, stared in astonishment at the kitchen. Commander Lan Yi was using [Canghua] to operate over a dozen kitchen stations simultaneously, preparing ingredients and cooking. A mouth-watering aroma already filled the kitchen, and Lan Yi, seasoning and cooking at the same time, wore a slightly peculiar expression.

"Commander, you... how could you possibly be the one doing this..."

"You may leave now." Lan Yi’s voice was gentle, yet brook no argument.

The cooks looked at each other and eventually retreated.

Appetite was the first external demon Lan Yi had to face.

Enjoying good food is not a big deal; it is an instinct carved into the human soul.

But if one's mind consists only of food, one becomes nothing more than a dung-making machine.

Lan Yi struggled immensely with this stage.

His body was tainted with the Dao-rhyme key of the Divine "Life-叢" [Luo Qian]. For Lan Yi, eating was not just an instinct, but a path of the Dao. The two combined to create an external demon that nearly turned Lan Yi into a gluttonous devil, uncontrollably pouncing on anything edible... including humans.

The seven emotions and six desires are all amplified to the extreme during the process of cultivating the Heavenly Palace.

Lan Yi's approach to this was to accelerate the construction of his Heavenly Palace while simultaneously sharing these amplified emotions with others, adapting by creating a more comfortable and pleasant environment.

"Commander’s cuisine—from now on, your ship has one more signature dish," Lan Yi said with satisfaction after finishing his stint as a chef.

"Long live the Commander!"

The Commander had personally made them breakfast!

Ask yourself, are you moved? Damn it, are you moved?!

Loyalty!

Amidst the sincere cheers of the crowd, the external demons that had nearly overwhelmed Lan Yi subsided significantly, and he joined the meal. Observant soldiers noticed that the portion size of Commander Lan Yi's meal was much smaller than in previous days, and the smiling commander was more willing to chat about everyday life and share his fishing tips.

Li Wanzhou, who had squeezed in next to Lan Yi to eat, had been staring at Lan Yi’s face from start to finish.

It was as if the tomboy wanted to pierce through that skin to probe for some unfathomable danger.

Then, she was immediately fed a pork chop by Si Lingluo, who was sitting beside her, right into her cherry mouth.

"Here, eat more, it’s good for your health and will help you grow taller." Si Lingluo felt sorry for the little girl; she was short and thin, yet spent her days flying in fighter jets on missions.

"Are you kidding me! What makes me inferior to you?!" Li Wanzhou was enraged and, in a fit of anger, turned her head.

The tomboy turned her head abruptly, and her face buried itself into Si Lingluo's... southern hemisphere region.

She was indeed a bit short.

It wasn't very obvious when standing, but when sitting, the contrast was clear.

The tomboy, with her longer leg-to-body ratio, clawed and scratched as she ate furiously. She no longer wanted to turn her head toward the saintly woman who radiated a gentle glow. This person was not fun at all; she seemed to have no temper, no sense of crisis, and certainly no malicious intent—she was the natural nemesis of chaotic evil.

This kind of "Saint."

I really don't know how she was raised.

Si Lingluo watched the tomboy, who had taken an extra portion, and tilted her head with a faint smile, her hands clasped. There seemed to be an invisible light radiating from her that soothed the heart. This made Li Wanzhou even more annoyed.

If she had known.

She wouldn't have deliberately squeezed between Si Lingluo and Lan Yi.

Eh? Wait a minute?

Li Wanzhou, sensing something, started and quickly looked the other way. Immediately, she saw Lan Yi's deep, dark gaze fixed on her, specifically on the tomboyish features that were so sharply accentuated.

Crystal-clear lips, brush-like eyelashes, snow-white, healthy skin, and long, steel-whip-like legs.

"Yo~~"

Li Wanzhou whistled, winked and flashed a look at Lan Yi, then her supple lips parted slightly.

"I have a new swimsuit in my room, a bikini~~"

Lan Yi’s eyes grew even darker.

However, his gaze shifted to Si Lingluo.

This senior, who was almost like a "white moonlight" to him, did not seem to understand what Lan Yi’s gaze meant. Seeing Lan Yi looking directly at her, she immediately opened her clasped hands and, ignoring the short person in the middle, wore an expression of total acceptance, as if he could come to the big sister for a hug at any time.

Doing this in public was a bit embarrassing, but she truly felt for her junior, Lan Yi!

So, even with a blushing face, she boldly reached out to wipe the corner of Lan Yi's mouth.

Another graceful and beautiful figure walked over carrying a tray.

And then...

The cross-dresser Jian Ziyue.

Forget it! I don't like this one from the bottom of my heart! Not looking!

For once, Lan Yi felt as if he had swallowed a fly.

"Cultivating the Heavenly Palace is really hard, isn't it? Good thing I don't have to suffer this." Jian Ziyue was clearly there to tease the "Old Demon Lan."

He was actually already in the process of cultivating his Heavenly Palace.

All his "Life-叢," including his soul, were being externalized onto [Tengyun] step by step; this was the path of his sword cultivation.

"If you think this is fun, I don't mind letting you truly be a woman for once." Lan Yi frowned in warning, but his frown deepened immediately after.

It seemed the other external demons were starting to exert their influence.

Lust. Anger.

The conversation between Lan Yi and Jian Ziyue seemed shocking to outsiders, especially to the tomboy and the big sister. Lan Yi had yet to make a move on them; could it be that he had a preference for this?

How could this be? This was absolutely forbidden!

That was a path to perdition!

"We are all experienced people; I’m just reminding you—the bystander sees clearly. If you don't wear these clothes, how will all living beings know that your worldly ties have been severed and your golden sea has dried up?" Only Jian Ziyue dared to speak to Lan Yi in this tone.

Because in terms of power and mutual interests, they were essentially equals.

"In the end, one must give it a try." Lan Yi nodded.

They were all reborn; before the world ended, their strength was basically on par, making it particularly easy to communicate.

Jian Ziyue was reminding "Old Demon Lan."

If you don't just do it, how will you know if the external demons have been blocked by the Heavenly Palace?

Lan Yi, whose execution was terrifyingly efficient, was a man who did as he said. He stood up immediately and strode toward his room.

The bewildered tomboy was like a stray Shiba Inu, limbs flailing.

Si Lingluo, looking worried, thought Lan Yi was going to punish Li Wanzhou, so she quickly followed.