Chapter 52: New Facilities

During this period, Zhaoge repaired the city walls while interviewing newcomers, gradually adding around a thousand people to its population. Among these new arrivals were both practitioners and mortals. The vast majority of the practitioners were over thirty years old, and most of their cultivation was at the second level of Qi Refining, while most of the mortals were under thirty. After all, true mortals who still had not summoned a life-bound artifact after passing thirty were rare.

Chi Yixuan was only in Foundation Establishment, so the range of his divine sense was not broad enough to cover Zhaoge’s entire current territory. To inspect the state of his territory, he still had to rely on his life-bound artifact.

Fortunately, his connection with his life-bound artifact was now extremely strong. With just a turn of thought, the situation in Zhaoge appeared before his eyes. He observed his territory from an overlooking angle.

By now, it was already evening. At the construction site, the workers gradually stopped work under the foremen’s shouts and rested for dinner.

Lai Er, who was transporting stones, heard the sound and hurriedly sped up. He delivered a cart of stones to the half-built city wall, then ran over to line up in front of the communal cauldrons.

Lai Er was a mortal who had yet to summon a life-bound artifact. Because his physique could not compare to those who had entered the Dao, he had never been able to find a good job outside. Even when doing physical labor, he could not compete with others, and no matter how hard he worked, he could barely scrape together enough to eat. It was only after his clan uncle sent him a letter that he learned there was a place called Zhaoge, and he had come all the way from the countryside.

At the time, the neighbors in the village had all said they had lived most of their lives and had never heard of Zhaoge. The wages and benefits were so good that they were afraid something shady was going on, worrying that he would be sold the moment he went there.

But Lai Er had not thought that much about it. He was not a smart man. He was even a little slow. He could never beat others to anything he tried to do, and he also trusted his clan uncle very much. He felt that a hard-labor job that included food and lodging and paid better than elsewhere must have been work his clan uncle had gotten for him through acquaintances.

So Lai Er packed his bundle and came along with the person who delivered the letter. Once he arrived and took a look, there were so many people lining up and begging to enter Zhaoge, and many practitioners among them too. That only made him feel even more that his clan uncle had pulled strings to help him. After entering Zhaoge, he worked very hard.

Zhaoge’s treatment of workers had indeed not been exaggerated. Three meals a day, with meat and vegetables at every meal. Although he rose early and worked late at heavy labor every day, his stomach was full and warm every day. In less than half a month, he had gained two jin.

During the day, he went to the construction site to work. In the evening, after eating from the communal cauldron, he went to stay at his clan uncle’s house.

His clan uncle’s son had originally worked at Strange Treasure Hall. Back then, in order to send their son into Strange Treasure Hall, their family had spent quite a bit of money. Their whole family had lived very tightly, barely any better off than Lai Er, who had lost both parents.

Now his clan uncle’s son had become a junior steward in Zhaoge and had brought his whole family over. Their family had a house with front and rear courtyards in the best area of Zhaoge. It was bright and comfortable. Lai Er stayed at their home and likewise enjoyed the benefits of that house. He was deeply inspired and resolved that he would also earn himself a little courtyard like that in Zhaoge.

However, although Lai Er was not a bad person, because his parents had died early and no one had disciplined him, he had inevitably picked up some bad habits.

On his second day in Zhaoge, because he was too lazy to find the latrine, he relieved himself by the roadside and was reported by the neighbors. He received a harsh scolding from the Guard.

The Guard was the Xuanyuan Guard. Their jurisdiction was very broad. Apart from guarding the city gates, they also patrolled everywhere. Whoever was unclean outside would be dragged out by them and lectured.

That day, Lai Er was fined by being made to scrub the ground and also had two days of wages deducted. His heart ached terribly, and at the same time, he was a little resentful. Wasn’t it just taking a leak by the roadside? Wasn’t the punishment too harsh?

His clan uncle saw the resentment in his heart and said that the master of their Zhaoge was a Perfected One. If he still refused to change, being driven out would be a small matter. If one day he was seen by the Perfected One, whether he could keep his little life would be uncertain.

His clan uncle’s words frightened Lai Er badly. After all, in the eyes of mortals, cultivators had heaven-reaching abilities and stood high above them. They had never cared about mortals. If you made them unhappy, they could kill as they pleased. The law could not manage them, and there was nowhere to seek justice.

Besides, those Foundation Establishment cultivators were already terrifying enough. Wouldn’t a Golden Core Perfected One be even more frightening?

After that, Lai Er would wake in a cold sweat whenever he dreamed of relieving himself by the roadside. He had completely quit that indecent habit of doing it wherever he pleased. But when he went out and saw a man going outside bare-chested and getting caught and lectured by the Xuanyuan Guard, he still took pleasure in the other man’s misfortune.

However, Lai Er had too many bad habits. His clan uncle helped him quit some of them, but there were others he could not quit in such a short time. For instance, when he ate, he subconsciously spat the bones onto the ground.

With a smack, the bone hit the ground, and all the commotion around him seemed to be pressed to a halt.

Lai Er raised his head blankly and saw that all the workers around him were looking at him. There were even people whose eyes shone with excitement.

Before he could figure it out, several people put down their bowls and chopsticks and ran into the distance, shouting as they ran, “Xuanyuan Guard, hurry over! There’s someone here spitting bones onto the ground!”

Lai Er cursed, hurriedly picked up the bone from the ground, and stuffed it into his mouth. At the same time, he memorized those people’s faces, secretly gritting his teeth and thinking, I’ll keep a close eye on these bastards. I refuse to believe they won’t make mistakes!

…

Chi Yixuan watched this scene from the side and found it rather funny and exasperating. “So Zhaoge’s hygiene enforcement team is this strict?” Hygiene enforcement team was Chi Yixuan’s way of putting it. In reality, there was no such department. It was just that the Xuanyuan Guard had many newcomers, so while patrolling, they also took on this duty.

[If you feel it is too strict, you may issue an order to adjust it.]

Chi Yixuan shook his head. “No, I think this is good too.” Who did not love a clean living environment? He believed most people did. It was just that maintaining a clean environment required a cost, because there were simply too many people without basic manners.

As Zhaoge’s population grew larger and larger, the number of such people would also continue to climb.

However… “Civilized development starts with the small things!” Chi Yixuan said. “Best to make them all compete with each other! Zhaoge is short on workers right now anyway. This saves us from having to divert labor to clean up the trash these people create.”

“I hope everyone in Zhaoge develops the good habit of caring for the environment. That way, even if they want to run away in the future, they won’t be able to stand the environment elsewhere.”

The life-bound artifact’s tone was full of admiration. [You truly plan deeply and far ahead. However, I believe no citizen of Zhaoge would be willing to leave this place.]

Chi Yixuan felt that the life-bound artifact was far too confident. He gave a snort. “Who knows!” Forget it. Anyone registered in Zhaoge was all his points. Want to leave? No way!

At that moment, Chi Yixuan saw another person get caught by the Xuanyuan Guard. It was an old man sitting at his own doorway smoking a rolled cigarette. This kind of rolled cigarette was made by cutting tobacco into thin strips, then rolling it with paper into a slender stick. It was quite crude. The tobacco came from a plant that was not graded. After inhaling it, it brought a slight sense of pleasure, so there were quite a few lower-class people in this world who were addicted to smoking.

At this time, the old man was caught by the Xuanyuan Guard and hurriedly cried injustice, saying he had never heard that smoking was not allowed. The squad leader, Xia Youxin, lectured him, “Did you look carefully at the notices? If you want to smoke, smoke inside your own home with the door closed. Who permitted you to smoke outside?”

The old man mumbled, “If I close the door, it chokes people.”

Xia Youxin mocked, “So it makes sense to choke other people instead?”

Seeing that all the neighbors had come out to point and gossip, and that his children were also implicated and had a day’s wages deducted, the old man hurriedly raised his hands and begged for mercy, saying he would never smoke again. He also took out all the rolled cigarettes in his home and handed them over.

Only then did the Xuanyuan Guard let the matter rest. They left with their heads held high, taking the criminal evidence with them.

Chi Yixuan quietly watched this scene, then suddenly heard the life-bound artifact say, [You are smiling. Are you feeling gratified?]

Only then did Chi Yixuan discover that the corners of his mouth were lifted. He did not hide it from the life-bound artifact either. “No. I just suddenly remembered something happy.”

He told it about something from his childhood.

One year during the New Year, a relative came to his home. The man had not spoken more than a few words after sitting down before he started puffing away. The living room quickly became foul with smoke. No one in Chi Yixuan’s family smoked. At first, his dad even wanted to find a paper cup for that person to use as an ashtray. At that moment, Chi Yixuan came out of his room and curiously inhaled a mouthful of smoke.

His parents’ expressions changed on the spot. His mother urged that relative to put out the cigarette, saying children could not breathe secondhand smoke. But that person did not take it seriously. He said he had smoked every day when his own wife was pregnant and gave birth, and nothing had happened. Between the lines, he disliked them for making a fuss over nothing.

Then his mother drove him back into his room. Before long, he heard the sound of arguing outside. Later, he never saw that relative again.

As Chi Yixuan spoke, he slowly fell silent, so the life-bound artifact also fell silent. The room was quiet for a moment before Chi Yixuan suddenly said, “Should Zhaoge introduce some forms of entertainment?”

The life-bound artifact voiced its question. [Why did this thought suddenly occur to you? With all due respect, Zhaoge currently has no spare capacity to develop the entertainment industry, and I also do not recommend using your current unlock opportunity on entertainment functions.]

Unlock chances came according to cultivation. One stage automatically granted one unlock opportunity. The three unlock opportunities in Qi Refining had been given respectively to the Artifact Refining Workshop, the Medical Workshop, and the drainage system.

Foundation Establishment likewise had three unlock opportunities. In early Foundation Establishment, he had unlocked the Heavenly Garment Workshop. And in the past two days, he had collected the points obtained from solving employment, opening up spiritual fields, increasing livestock breeding, and so on. He gathered thirty thousand points, advanced to the fifth level of Foundation Establishment, and obtained the mid-level Foundation Establishment unlock opportunity.

Hearing the vigilance in the life-bound artifact’s tone, Chi Yixuan found it funny and exasperating. “Am I the kind of person who starts indulging in pleasure and squandering everything right after starting out?”

The life-bound artifact apologized at light speed. [Please forgive me. Concern threw me into disorder.]

“It’s fine. I forgive you with great compassion and mercy.” Chi Yixuan waved a hand.

The life-bound artifact even started putting on an act with proper form. [Thank you for your forgiveness.]

Chi Yixuan laughed so hard he coughed once, then said, “I only thought of it after seeing that old man smoking just now.”

He explained it.

Zhaoge’s overall daily schedule was very regular. Work began at daybreak, stopped at dusk, and everyone ate dinner. By the time it was dark, work had stopped almost everywhere. The nighttime was free time. As long as they did not violate the rules, everyone could do whatever they wanted.

First, it was not easy to work after dark. They could not see clearly, and it also used up lamp oil.

Second, no matter how urgent the schedule was and no matter how hardworking the workers were, they had to have time to rest. Chi Yixuan believed this was a person’s basic right.

Third, there were more and more mortals who had entered the Dao, and everyone also needed time to cultivate.

Chi Yixuan had originally thought his arrangements were very reasonable, but he had forgotten that not everyone had the ability to be diligent and self-disciplined, and not everyone had a goal to strive for.

Some people, even if they knew very well that having higher cultivation brought benefits, would rather wander around aimlessly and gossip after work than cultivate.

Some people were ambitious, but had no self-control. The slightest sound from a neighbor’s home could draw away their attention.

There were also people who did not like gossip and did not like wandering around, but simply found cultivation dull and troublesome. They only liked lying flat. Yet there was still a long time after dark, and the stretch of time when they could not fall asleep was also hard to endure.

In the past, Zhaoge had nothing. After everyone got off work, they were busy tidying up their new homes, making furniture, weaving straw mats, mending clothes… In short, there was plenty to keep them busy if they wanted to get a household properly in order.

But ever since his subordinates brought their families over, many more shops had appeared inside Zhaoge. Add to that the circulation of currency, the joining of outsiders, and people from every trade beginning to emerge. Without needing guidance, the market automatically developed a division of labor. Many things now had other people to help do them. Everyone slowly became idle at night, and a great many people did not cultivate. Naturally, there arose a demand for entertainment. Even if this demand had not yet emerged on a large scale, Chi Yixuan had already seen the first signs.

He said to the life-bound artifact, “Zhaoge doesn’t sell rolled cigarettes. Qiu Ping’an always considers practicality when purchasing goods, and he wouldn’t buy something like that either. That old man must have exchanged for those rolled cigarettes through some other channel. The long night is endless, and without other ways to amuse himself, he can only obtain a little pleasure through smoking.”

“So I think it’s time to arrange some forms of entertainment to consume this portion of people’s time and energy.” After all, there were many old people and children, and quite a few who had yet to awaken their life-bound artifacts. No matter how many measures Zhaoge introduced to encourage cultivation, they would be useless for these people.

“Although I’ve never governed such a large place and population before, anyone who’s studied history should know that too many idle people will cause problems.”

The life-bound artifact swiftly reflected on itself. [My apologies. I did not think of this layer.]

“You’ve already helped me a lot.” Chi Yixuan waved a hand. “This doesn’t require wasting an unlock opportunity either. Finding people to organize an event, or inviting performers from outside, are both methods that save money and effort.”

“Record this matter. Remember to remind me at the next meeting.”

The life-bound artifact quickly agreed.

Once this matter had been settled, Chi Yixuan began handling another matter. That was where to use the next unlock opportunity.

“The running water system we talked about for so long before still hasn’t been built. Right now, residents either draw water up from wells or find bamboo pipes themselves to divert water into their homes. It’s a little chaotic. Fortunately, the drainage system is very useful, so for now, there’s no need to worry about wastewater on the ground seeping down and polluting the lakes or groundwater. There won’t be any problems with residents’ drinking water in the short term.”

“Looking at it this way, the running water system can be placed a little further back. Compared with that, raising my subordinates’ cultivation and increasing everyone’s enthusiasm for cultivation are more important.” After all, when his citizens’ cultivation improved, he could really receive points. Though there were very few, he did not mind.

“It won’t be long before the city walls are completed, and management personnel in every aspect inside the city have basically been trained. We can begin introducing population in large numbers.” Right now, anyone who wanted to enter Zhaoge had to be interviewed and also had to pass the Book of Truth’s inspection. Because of that, almost a month had passed, and they had only added one thousand people.

“With a larger population and more management personnel, the Xuanyuan Guard also needs to expand greatly. If their cultivation is too low, they won’t be able to control the ever-increasing number of outside practitioners. But cultivation isn’t something that can be raised casually. Unlocking the national defense function is urgently needed!”

The national defense function included protection, armaments, and so on. Previously, there had been no spare unlock opportunity. For protection, he had temporarily used an array barrier, and with the title of Golden Core Perfected One suppressing things, no one had dared come to provoke them. As for armaments, they were uniform armor and long spears. The latter were made by Chi Yixuan through the Artifact Refining Workshop after breaking down some magic artifacts.

The reason he equipped the Xuanyuan Guard with long spears was, first, to help cover up everyone’s true life-bound artifacts. Chi Yixuan had already emphasized this point in a previous meeting. Second, not everyone’s life-bound artifact was suitable for battle, and the Xuanyuan Guard kept expanding. There was no way to be picky, so he could only equip them with weapons.

Now, they could no longer get by with muddling through. His subordinates’ cultivation had to be raised quickly. Chi Yixuan’s gaze fell on one option under the national defense function.

[Facility: Jade Dragon Platform

Current Level: Yellow Grade.

Description: A building with an array carved at its base, capable of rapidly gathering nearby spiritual qi. Those who enter the Jade Dragon Platform may receive a blessing, increasing cultivation speed by twofold, focus by twofold, and granting a chance of improved comprehension. It also possesses a weapon drill ground, making it the best choice for training soldiers.]

There was also a high-definition image of the Jade Dragon Platform on the panel. This was a building whose area was equivalent to three times the current valley drill ground. It was two stories tall. Atop the central staircase was the drill ground, while below was the horse field. Around the drill ground was a ring of buildings, quiet rooms for people to cultivate and regulate their breathing. To the left and right of the staircase were two doors, the weapon storehouses.

The moment Chi Yixuan saw this high-definition image, he could not help letting out a wow.

…

Two days later, at the general assembly, after Chi Yixuan listened to his employees’ work reports and adjusted Zhaoge’s construction direction and hiring standards, he announced something.

“In addition to the Xuanyuan Guard, we will establish a Black Tortoise Guard to guard the city together with the Xuanyuan Guard.” Chi Yixuan looked at the Tie Di sisters seated on the right. “You two will respectively serve as the left and right envoys of the Black Tortoise Guard.”

As his words fell, the hall was completely silent. The two Tie Di sisters were somewhat surprised. Qiu Ping’an’s eyes widened in disbelief. Ma Hongxuan, Ren Rubi, and the others were a little astonished. Guo Qianshan and Fan Huilan, however, remained calm, as though what their employer had just announced was not some major matter that divided the Xuanyuan Guard’s authority, but simply a comment that the weather today was not bad.

Qiu Ping’an’s heart rose into his throat. “Employer, is there something the Xuanyuan Guard hasn’t done well? Why…”

Chi Yixuan waved a hand. “There is nothing they haven’t done well. I only think that the Xuanyuan Guard’s duties are somewhat heavy right now, and I hope there can be more people to share the burden. That way, everyone will have more time to cultivate.” Previously, the Xuanyuan Guard worked during the day and rested at night, with two days off each week. But Chi Yixuan decided that was not enough. So he decided to add a Black Tortoise Guard, adjust everyone’s work schedule, and change it to two days of shifts per week, leaving the rest of the time for cultivation and improvement.

He thought this was a wonderfully good thing. Work hours were reduced, and there was time to improve oneself. Workers should be so happy they practically flew. Yet when he looked at everyone’s expressions, he found that there was no joy on his employees’ faces.

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