[Do you wish to open the token?]
I said yes in my mind, and a green light surged all around me. When I looked again, two sets of squared walls had appeared. The outer wall was 5 meters tall and 1 meter thick, with spaced towers for defense and four strong gatehouses, one at the center of each side. The inner wall surrounded a small palace, also with spaced towers, but it had only one gatehouse.
With so much space, I was lost as to what to do next, so I asked Elizabeth to plan the city.
"Master... no, I should call you governor, maybe? Well, the city should be divided into three rings. The outermost one could be where the industry develops, the middle one for residential areas, and the zone closest to the palace should be for commerce. It will also need water and sewage systems, roads, basic facilities, schools..."
"Okay, okay, Elizabeth, I'll leave the construction to you. Oh, yes—I'll summon the rest of the people now."
[Do you wish to summon population x200?]
I thought yes, and suddenly a large group of people appeared.
"Xiao, talk to them and organize a census. Find two literate individuals to help categorize their abilities. Choose 50 strong men to train under Yue Fei; give them the spears and armor from the resource pack. Those with farming skills should start tilling the land, and the rest can assist Elizabeth with construction. I almost forgot—assign some as cooks to prepare meals with the provisions from the pack."
"Yes, sir!"
"Yes, sir!"
"Yes, sir!"
After giving the orders, I went to the small palace to explore. On the first floor, I found a kitchen, a storeroom, a dining room, and a living room. On the second floor, there was a large bedroom, a bathroom, and an office. Sitting behind the desk in the office, I started reading the cultivation manual. It was something entirely new.
The manual described nearly infinite ways to gather energy and cultivate, beginning with the most basic technique for creating a reservoir to store energy—commonly referred to as the gathering phase. The word "basic" might be misleading, as this foundational cultivation served as a blank canvas for future techniques.
I closed my eyes and tried to completely relax. After some time, when I began to breathe automatically, I sensed it. I felt as though I was swimming, but at that moment, I awoke. My lack of control caused me to lose the ethereal sensation.
Throughout the night, I repeatedly entered and exited that feeling, making no progress. After sometime, I ate the food prepared by the cooks and decided to sleep.