Journey to the West: Building a Celestial Empire Starting from Lion Camel Ridge

After Fan Qiming left, the shelter fell silent again.

Zhao Gou'er huddled in the corner, head drooping, saying nothing.

He dared not provoke Ali, who was still angry, nor did he dare to go up and greet Chen Ping'an rashly.

At this moment, Chen Ping'an sat down next to the purification platform, preparing to calm his mind and try to feel the aura emanating from the platform, as Fan Qiming had told him before leaving.

Fan Qiming said that one should guard one's mind and concentrate on meditation.

How to guard it? I've already explained.

He also explained how to focus on meditation.

Chen Pingan felt that he had done so.

Close your eyes and slow your breathing.

He tried to focus his attention inward, attempting to feel the surface of his skin to see if there was anything unseen flowing within it.

The result was... nothing.

There wasn't even a breeze in the shelter.

Chen Pingan tried for a while longer, but still nothing happened. He didn't know what was wrong.

Fan Qiming said that he has good physical constitution and that it would not be a problem for him to draw qi into his body before the rainy season, so there is no need to rush.

Chen Ping'an opened his eyes and pondered for a while.

...Then he climbed onto the purification platform and closed his eyes again.

It's probably because of the wrong posture; all your efforts will be in vain.

------

Ali observed quietly for a while, then looked at Zhao Gou'er, who was as still as a statue, and lowered her voice.

"Let's go catch some fish."

Zhao Gou'er paused for a moment, then asked in confusion, "Where to?"

Ali pointed to the hole covered by a stone slab. The two of them moved it open, revealing a cellar.

Zhao Gou'er scratched the back of his head. The local temple also has a cellar, but where did the fish come from?

"Hurry up and go."

Ali slid down first, and Zhao Gou'er, though confused, obeyed and quickly followed the rope down into the cellar.

As he walked along the passage to the underground river, he was so astonished that he couldn't close his mouth.

Who would have thought that an underground river was hidden beneath this shelter!

Zhao Gou'er excitedly scooped up a handful of water, which was slightly cool and sweet, but without a trace of lifelessness.

"This place feels like a dream."

Zhao Gou'er took several large gulps of water and muttered to himself.

He secretly compared the living environment of the local temple with this place, and felt that one was like heaven and the other like hell.

It wasn't until Ali tapped him on the head with a twig that he came to his senses.

"Ping An is practicing his spiritual cultivation; we shouldn't disturb him. Let's catch some fish to take back; that will solve our lunch problem."

"Um."

Zhao Gou'er nodded vigorously, "Sister Ali, just you wait and see."

He took the branches that Ali handed him, stood steadily by the stream, staring intently at the water, and soon caught two small fish.

This is much more efficient than Chen Ping'an and Ali.

"You used to catch fish?" Ali asked in surprise.

"Yes, I learned a little fishing from my father; after White Bone Town was gone, I stopped fishing, but I still have some skills."

A-Li nodded, seeing how skillful the other person's movements were, and sat alone on the shore, pondering Chen Ping'an's cultivation.

Ali didn't hear what Chen Ping'an's qualifications were.

I was daydreaming at the time.

However, if Fan Qiming's judgment is that Chen Ping'an can draw qi into his body and begin cultivation before the rainy season, that is, within ten days, then his aptitude should be above average.

It took me twelve days to sense the spiritual energy.

"His aptitude is a bit better, but only slightly better than mine."

Ali pursed her lips and muttered to herself.

......

Chen Ping'an didn't know how long he had been sitting there.

Attention comes and goes.

A moment later, the sound of the bone demon wandering outside reached its destination.

A moment later, they ran to the location of the third arrow tower.

It drifted away again a moment later...

It's hard to calm down anyway.

It's true that it's easier said than done.

Chen Ping'an took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing those thoughts one by one, and focused his attention back on his breathing.

Just then, a notification popped up on the panel.

Chen Ping'an opened his eyes, his face filled with utter despair.

Okay, let's look at this first.

He glanced around, saw the moved stone slab, then looked away and refocused on the panel.

New features have been unlocked.

[Record of Shelter Residents]

[Unlock condition: The number of people living in the shelter is ≥3]

[Note: Lords can view an overview of basic information about residents within the shelter, including name, age, personality, skills, and loyalty.]

Resident register?

Like a household registration booklet?

Chen Ping'an's eyes lit up. However, this function was obviously more powerful than the household registration book or the population census. The accuracy of the information detected and recorded by the system was beyond doubt.

His gaze was fixed on loyalty.

This is the biggest bottleneck in the expansion of the shelter.

The territory can be expanded, and the barrier can be upgraded.

But you can know a person's face but not their heart. If a traitor is brought into the shelter, the consequences will be unimaginable.

The reason I haven't thought about bringing the people from the local temple over is twofold: firstly, the shelter here is limited in size, and secondly, I'm worried that if any of the people from the temple are truly treacherous, it would be tantamount to inviting a wolf into the house.

Chen Ping'an's principle is simple: the right people are far more important than a lot of people.

This feature came at just the right time.

Open the function page.

Currently, only three records are available.

Chen Ping'an, Ali, Zhao Gou'er.

Chen Ping'an was the first to open his own, eager to take a look.

【Chen Ping'an. Lord】

[Personality: Calm and resolute, decisive and ruthless, cunning]

[Realm Level: Mortal (Not Yet Entering Cultivation)]

[Body structure: Excellent]

[Talent: Immunity to All Poisons (Lord's Bonus Attribute)]

[Skills: None]

......

When Chen Ping'an saw the scheming man, he was completely puzzled.

Calm and resolute, good words, no problem.

Decisive and ruthless, well, being able to survive in Lion Camel Ridge is a compliment.

Cunning?

What do you mean by "scheming"? How am I scheming?

Chen Pingan made a couple of sarcastic remarks, then fixed his gaze on Ali's information.

Click to open.

Name: Ali

[Personality: Stubborn and resolute, gentle and kind]

[Realm Level: Qi Refining (Level 3)]

[Body structure: Excellent]

[Talent: None]

[Skills: Archery (Mastery), Prey Tracking (Mastery), Cooking (Proficient), Taunt (Grandmaster)]

Loyalty: 120%

[Note: Skill levels are ranked from lowest to highest as follows: Beginner, Proficient, Expert, Master, and Grandmaster]

After a quick glance, Chen Ping'an nodded. The Ali in the system records was pretty much the same as what he knew.

Chen Ping'an had already experienced the mastery of archery while hunting wild boars.

The mastery of prey tracking—he should have realized this long ago.

Ali never gets lost in the vast ruins; her sense of direction is so accurate it's like she has a sixth sense. No wonder I've been trying to imitate her, but I can never learn that composure.

As for the taunts from a grandmaster level...

Chen Ping'an was taken aback. It seemed that A Li usually kept her skills to herself. He wondered what she would be like when her skills were fully unlocked.

and many more.

Chen Ping'an's gaze finally settled on that loyalty rating, and he wondered if he was seeing things.

Loyalty score is 100 out of 100.

These 120...

What the heck?!