"Xie County, Peach Blossom Village: A Liu clan family of three moved into the city, carrying several precious pearls with them. They presented the pearls to the governor, who praised them as worthy tribute. The three members of the Liu family then vanished under mysterious circumstances."
"Xie County, Peach Blossom Village: A wandering Daoist came here, begging for rice and water. Under everyone's watchful eyes, he turned rice into gold. The crowd swarmed him, but the Daoist disappeared without a trace."
"Xie County, Peach Blossom Village: A ferocious beast entered the village. In a single night, more than half the men, women, old, and young disappeared. The living could not be found, and the dead left no bodies behind."
"Xie County, Peach Blossom Village: A Golden Armored Divine General appeared in the ancestral shrine and carried away three pairs of boys and girls."
"Xie County, Peach Blossom Village..."
These were the contents Yun Huaqi had dictated and translated after working overtime through the night, combing through a vast number of county records. Lan Yi had then picked out the noteworthy similarities from the complicated, chaotic records.
If one isolated them.
The contents of those county records were more or less on the level of rural ghost stories.
Presenting precious pearls, turning rice into gold, refugees vanishing and dying, ancestors manifesting—all of these could basically be viewed as the desperation of the common people of this era, driven by exorbitant taxes, disasters, and calamities until they no longer dared dream of making a fortune, nor dared hope that scratching food from the soil could feed their whole families. All they had left was the despairing hope that gods and ghosts might carry them away from this bitter world.
They all shared one thing.
Peach Blossom Village.
People disappeared.
Supernatural factors.
Peach Blossom Village was nowhere near the sea, so where had the pearls offered as tribute come from? Had they grown on trees? As for turning rice into gold, whether through Daoist arts or martial arts, anyone who cultivated to a certain level of power could achieve it temporarily. As for the Golden Armored Divine General and ancestors manifesting, that was even easier to explain: autonomous combat robots, the kind that solved all your worries.
From the perspective of a psychokinetic cultivator.
Lan Yi strongly suspected that Peach Blossom Village was very likely like the village Huo Yuanjia had accidentally entered—a remnant facility left behind when the Artificial Divine Realm was first created, or the product of a Mythical Species, Void Refinement power, or celestial sphere convergence.
If the Artificial Divine Realm were likened to a large house.
Then these products were more or less like mouse holes.
Opening a mouse hole was like opening a mystery box. Inside, there might be creations from the previous era or a manual for cultivating lifeforms. There might also be nothing at all—or even lethal danger.
It mainly came down to luck.
Without knowing the activation conditions, getting oneself smoothly carried into a mouse hole was no easy matter.
Whether it existed or not, Lan Yi would beat the grass to startle the snake first.
Lan Yi had no intention of sparing the beauty. He simply had Yun Huaqi set out with a squad of Qi Cultivation Practitioners to Peach Blossom Village in search of relevant clues. With martial artists' stamina, they only needed to maintain contact with the Jinling garrison once a week. Whether they found any clues or not, Lan Yi would receive word immediately.
According to the experience of psychokinetic cultivators.
People who possessed Innate Qi or psychokinetic power were actually very likely to attract inexplicable things.
Put more mystically.
The entire world was a great web, and every person had a different weight upon it. Some people were heavier than others. Even if they did nothing, once they sank into the web, they would naturally draw cause and effect onto themselves.
Clearly, Innate Qi and psychokinetic power were excellent ways to add weight.
Before leaving, the eyes of the respectable young lady Yun Huaqi had been so aggrieved they seemed ready to drip with tears.
She understood now.
Immortal Master Lan Yi did not treat her as a woman, but neither did he treat her as a person. He did not care about anything at all. Since she was suitable, he simply grabbed her and put her to use, like a handy tool that he would keep using for as long as possible.
If Yun Huaqi proved incapable, he would replace her with someone else.
Most first-generation psychokinetic cultivators were practical, even cruel. As pioneers opening up the Artificial Divine Realm, they faced risks that were often enormous and unpredictable. To solve problems more effectively, so long as the survival of their own civilization was not involved, they could completely set aside personal preferences and sever themselves from their original emotions.
Old Demon Lan did not reject the lovely women around him.
He kept them around to please the eye and let them flatter him.
But when serious business was involved, if they were suitable, then even women had to go do their work.
Of course, Lan Yi was not some perverse monster who had extinguished all human desire.
If he found a suitable partner with an emotional foundation between them, he would not mind exploring things with her in depth.
It was just that such partners were exceedingly rare.
One especially important point was that.
Whenever Lan Yi wanted to explore things with someone in depth, there was a high probability that he had already beaten her to death with his endless Daoist arts. Even if he had not killed her, he had turned her into a sworn enemy. This left Lan Yi utterly speechless. He clearly only wanted to find a normal woman—why was it so difficult?
"Immortal Master."
Just as Lan Yi was lamenting the hardships of his pursuit of a mate, Zhao Sikong's voice came from outside the study.
"Hmm?"
Lan Yi raised an eyebrow.
He remembered that Zhao Sikong had gone to deal with Liu Bian and the others.
Apparently, he and Zhao Jian planned to use the Ten Tortures over the next few days to send the Qing Imperial Court loyalists in Jinling on their way: skinning, waist severing, dismemberment by chariot, slicing, five punishments, and more. Each had its own unique technique, and each had its own secret weapon. They would definitely make those stubborn men weep bitterly and turn over a new leaf.
Although it was a little cruel, it was not cruel enough to reach the level of "keep your hair or lose your head." It already counted as quite civilized.
Besides, they were martial artists.
If there was no murderous aura in their chests, what were they practicing martial arts for? Lan Yi was quite satisfied with the martial artists under his command. At least the people of this era were not lacking in murderous aura, nor were they naively saintly. Unlike certain apocalyptic Artificial Divine Realms, where they still had to cultivate murderous intent—and the murderous intent born of those apocalypses was uncontrollable.
Outside the door, Zhao Sikong let out a sigh of relief.
He had just seen Yun Huaqi leave with a Dharma Sword and a group of people, so he had come over.
He had probably avoided disturbing the Immortal Master's romantic affair.
"Immortal Master, someone says he is your... fellow villager. He also brought a message, saying that you would meet him once you heard it. I found his speech clear and his choice of words similar to yours, so I took the liberty of disturbing you."
"What message?"
Lan Yi suddenly grew interested.
During this period, far too many people had wanted to establish ties with him. Not to mention those claiming to be his fellow villagers—even swindlers claiming to be his relatives, fellow disciples, brothers, or parents had been plentiful.
It was just that most of these people could not reach Lan Yi.
Any Qi Cultivation Practitioner could activate Innate Qi and test the other party's mettle.
In other words, this fearless warrior at least had some skill. He had managed to make even Qi Cultivation Practitioners—monsters that surpassed the limits of the human body—let him through. He had even alarmed Zhao Sikong and successfully convinced the powerful Spirit Refining expert who held the authority to make decisions.
"He said, 'Love you as you walk alone down a dark alley.'" Zhao Sikong's expression was somewhat strange. For some reason, saying those words made him feel inexplicably embarrassed.
"..."
Lan Yi fell silent.
"Immortal Master?" After a while, Zhao Sikong spoke again.
"Bring him in to see me."
"Your command shall be honored, Immortal Master."
Zhao Sikong could not help muttering inwardly, Was it an illusion? He seemed to hear a little more happiness in the Immortal Master's voice. Could that person really be the Immortal Master's fellow villager?
Looks like it's related to psychokinetic power. Inside the study, Lan Yi had already more or less guessed the truth.
Before you continue