I fabricated myths to guide the revival of spiritual energy.

At noon, the sun was blazing on Kunlun Mountain.

Inside the First Dining Hall, the atmosphere was as somber as if a protracted war was underway.

There's none of the relaxed atmosphere of a typical university cafeteria, filled with laughter and romance. Instead, there's a sense of urgency akin to a military campaign, and a pervasive smell in the air, a mixture of sweat and the fermentation of large amounts of carbohydrates.

"Another bucket of rice, please!"

A disciple from the sword cultivation department slammed the empty stainless steel bucket heavily against the window, his voice hoarse and tinged with a sense of helpless weariness.

The person in charge of serving the food wasn't a human auntie, but a two-meter-tall, bronze-colored [Yellow Turban Warrior]. Expressionless, it wielded a massive ladle, like a snow shovel, scooping up a full spoonful from the mountain of rice behind it, precisely shoveling it into the bucket, and then mechanically uttering three words:

"Next."

The disciple, carrying a bucket of rice, squeezed through the crowd with a worried expression and found a corner to sit down.

This is already his third "bucket" of rice.

Since they began cultivating and engaging in high-intensity sword-wielding training, all the new students have undergone an extremely awkward change in their bodies—they have become veritable "gluttons."

A normal meal for an adult male might consist of two bowls of rice.

However, for cultivators who have just entered the Qi Refining stage and whose body cells are frantically absorbing energy for reorganization, their basal metabolic rate soars to more than five times that of ordinary people.

"I'm going crazy..."

Sitting across from him, Zhao Feng mechanically stuffed a steamed bun into his mouth while mumbling a complaint, "Out of twelve hours a day, I spend four hours eating and one hour... well, you know."

He pointed to the toilet in the corner of the cafeteria, where there was always a long line.

"There's nothing we can do about it."

A girl specializing in talismans next to him smiled wryly. The empty plates piled up in front of her were no less than those of the boys. "This is the law of conservation of energy during the Qi Refining stage. Our bodies are like a high-powered engine, but the fuel is still the most primitive charcoal. To maintain a high speed, we can only keep adding charcoal to the furnace, which will also produce a lot of... waste."

This is the biggest dilemma currently facing Kunlun University.

The feeding efficiency is too low.

Ordinary Wuchang rice, pork, and vegetables, although considered healthy foods in this era, contain far too little energy for cultivators.

They had to spend a lot of precious cultivation time chewing and swallowing like ruminating cows, overloading their stomachs and intestines just to extract that pitiful little bit of bioenergy to power their bodies.

"If only I had a pill that could help me fast."

Zhao Feng sighed, looking enviously at the tightly closed floor-to-ceiling window on the second floor of the cafeteria. "I heard the dean hasn't needed to eat for a long time..."

……

[Second Floor of the Dining Hall - Dean's Private Room]

In stark contrast to the noisy, crowded, and smelly atmosphere on the first floor, the private rooms on the second floor were filled with the fragrance of sandalwood and the melodious sound of a zither.

The floor here is covered with handmade monster fur carpets, and the walls are adorned with calligraphy and paintings by famous artists (available for exchange in the system shop).

Through the huge one-way glass, you can clearly see the entire cafeteria hall and the group of students wolfing down their food.

Gu Qing was sitting by the window, holding a pair of ivory tusks in her hand.

On the rosewood table in front of him were four dishes and a soup, exquisitely arranged like works of art.

【Steamed Spirit Lake Silver Fish】: Taken from the system-generated Spirit Lake, the fish has transparent flesh that melts in your mouth and contains pure water spirit power.

【Hundred Flowers Brew】: Brewed with the morning dew of a hundred kinds of spiritual flowers, every sip tastes like spring.

【Amethyst Grapes】: Each one is worth a fortune and can nourish the spirit.

Gu Qing picked up a silver fish and elegantly put it into her mouth.

The delicious flavors burst on his tongue, but his face didn't show much expression; it was just a faint, taken-for-granted enjoyment.

In fact, at his level, he had already achieved "abstinence from grains".

The spiritual energy of heaven and earth is directly inhaled through the pores, without the need to obtain energy through food.

He continues to eat it purely out of habit.

He swallowed the silverfish and glanced down at the group of students downstairs who had to loosen their belts because they had eaten too much.

The system panel displayed lines of data on his retina:

[Current Student Status Monitoring]

Average daily eating time: 3 hours

Average daily excretion time: 0.8 hours

[Percentage of effective practice time: decreased by 15%]

"The efficiency is too low."

Gu Qing put down the ivory cup, picked up the Hundred Flowers Wine beside him, and took a sip.

"The current state of these kids is like driving a Ferrari to haul coal, and they're using 92-octane gasoline."

In Gu Qing's plan, these students are the "spark of civilization" for the future, and also the "core battery" for him to harvest trust.

If the battery charges too slowly, it will directly affect the operating efficiency of the entire Kunlun machine.

"Now that you've entered the path, it's time to give up the mundane grains and cereals."

Gu Qing tapped her fingers lightly on the table, making a crisp sound.

"System, what is the current output of the 'Monster Breeding Farm'?"

[Answer: Farm No. 1 (Iron-skinned Bulls) has reached the slaughter standard, with a stock of 500 head.]

[Answer: The number of rabbits in Farm No. 2 is increasing too rapidly; population reduction is recommended.]

"very good."

Gu Qing pulled out a napkin and elegantly wiped the corner of her mouth, even though there was no oil stain there.

"Notify the Yellow Turban Warriors in the kitchen that the menu will be changed starting tonight."

"No need for fancy cooking techniques, and no need to worry about color, aroma, and taste."

"What I need is efficiency. The ultimate compression of energy."

Gu Qing stood up, looking down at the group of young people below who seemed somewhat clumsy in this era in their pursuit of immortality, and murmured to himself:

"Since you call me Dean, then I have to make sure you're well-fed."

……

[4 PM - Dining Hall Kitchen]

This is off-limits to ordinary students; only faculty and staff with special privileges are allowed to enter.

Meanwhile, a scene of "food processing" full of violent aesthetics is unfolding here.

It lacks the lively atmosphere of a traditional kitchen; it's more like a sophisticated and ruthless slaughterhouse.

Boom!Boom!Boom!

Heavy footsteps echoed in the kitchen.

Twelve extra-large Yellow Turban Warriors are busy at work.

They were system-generated puppets, devoid of pain, fatigue, and emotion. They stood two and a half meters tall, their muscles bulging like rocks, their skin shimmering with faint runic light.

On control panel number one, a [Iron-skinned Bull] that had just been hunted and brought back was lying there.

This is a beast that has undergone a spiritual transformation; its fur is as hard as iron, and an ordinary kitchen knife will only bend when it is cut into it.

But the Yellow Turban Warriors didn't need kitchen knives.

Sizzle—!

A Yellow Turban warrior stretched out his large, fan-like hand and grabbed the bull's back. His arm muscles bulged instantly, and golden runes shone brightly.

With a sickeningly sharp tearing sound, this one-ton behemoth was actually ripped apart by its bare hands!

Before the blood could even gush out, it was instantly burned and sealed by the high-temperature spiritual energy released from the warrior's palm.

Then, it skillfully tore off large chunks of beef without any hesitation. The bones were thrown into the nearby grinder (actually a small gravity array), where they were instantly crushed into white bone powder.

On the other side, a bronze cauldron with a diameter of three meters had already been preheated.

The gas burning beneath the cauldron is not ordinary coal gas, but purple earth fire drawn from the earth's veins.

"Recipe Loading: Basic Psionic Package (Code Name: Feed 1.0)."

"Objective: Maximize the retention of bio-energy and eliminate impurities."

The second strongman mechanically carried out Gu Qing's instructions.

It dumped hundreds of kilograms of beef, a large amount of bone meal, and several baskets of freshly picked low-grade spiritual herbs into the giant cauldron.

There was no stir-frying, no deep-frying.

Only the most primitive and brutal method—pressure boiling.

The Yellow Turban Warrior lifted the lid of the cauldron, which weighed a thousand catties, with one hand and slammed it down.

Then, it placed its hands on the handles of the cauldron, and the spiritual power within its body surged into the runes on the cauldron like a tide.

Om-!

The bronze cauldron began to tremble violently.

The internal pressure instantly soared to tens of atmospheres, and the temperature exceeded 400 degrees Celsius.

In such an extreme environment, the tough fibers of the monster's flesh begin to disintegrate, the calcium and spiritual energy in the bone meal begin to leach out, and the medicinal properties of the spiritual herbs are forcibly injected into the flesh.

This is not cooking.

This is alchemy.

Or, to put it another way, it's like using alchemy techniques to create a pot of high-energy "biofuel".

……

[6 PM - Dinner Time]

As the last rays of the setting sun bathed the summit of Kunlun Mountain, hungry students once again flocked into the dining hall.

After an afternoon of learning and training, they were even hungrier than at noon.

"I'm starving... What are we having for dinner today? Braised pork and rice again?"

"I hope you can give us more meat; the little bit of oil we had at lunch has long been used up."

However, when they lined up and arrived at the window, they were all stunned.

The dozen or so vegetable basins that used to fill the window are gone.

Instead, there were several huge, steaming insulated containers.

The bucket contained neither rice nor vegetables.

Instead, it is something that is dark red, thick, and looks somewhat like jelly, yet also somewhat like paste.

It has a strange smell, not unpleasant, but definitely not fragrant; it's a pure, highly concentrated scent of flesh and blood.

"What's this? Is the pig's blood soup too thick?"

One student was dumbfounded.

The Yellow Turban Warrior inside the window remained expressionless as it picked up a specially made large spoon—half the size of the spoon it had at noon.

"One serving."

The Yellow Turban Warrior said coldly, then scooped up a spoonful of the red "paste" and slapped it onto the student's stainless steel plate.

Just this one spoonful.

It weighs about two ounces.

"Huh? That's all you give me?" the student exclaimed anxiously. "Big guy, are you underestimating my appetite? I can eat a whole bucket!"

The Yellow Turban Warrior ignored his protest and mechanically repeated, "Next."

The student grumbled and walked away with the plate.

"That's incredibly stingy... this is all they give us?!"

He sat in his seat, looking at the clump of red paste in the plate that was still trembling slightly, and the more he looked at it, the more it seemed to be a failed biological experiment.

"Forget it, I'm starving. It's better to be poisoned than to starve."

He steeled himself, picked up a spoon, scooped out a piece, and, with a death-defying resolve, put it into his mouth.

Entrance.

It didn't have the fishy smell I expected; instead, it had a faint herbal fragrance.

Without chewing, the paste melts into a warm liquid the moment it touches the tongue, as if ice and snow are melting, and slides down the throat.

Immediately afterwards—

boom!!!

The student's eyes widened suddenly, and his eyeballs instantly became bloodshot.

He felt as if he had swallowed not food, but a grenade with the pin pulled!

Or perhaps it was a mouthful of lava!

A massive surge of heat exploded in my stomach and then surged wildly through my limbs and bones.

The long-dried-up meridians, washed by this hot current, emitted a long-lost joyful sound.

"Ugh!!"

He couldn't help but let out a muffled groan, his face turning as red as a pig's liver, and visible white steam even rose from the top of his head.

"This...this is..."

He stared at his hands in shock.

Just one bite!

The muscles that were sore from training were instantly relieved, and a trace of pure spiritual energy suddenly appeared in the previously empty dantian!

Hunger?

It's long gone!

Instead, I felt an unprecedented sense of fullness and satiety, even... a little bloated!

"Holy crap! This isn't food, it's a super tonic!"

He suddenly stood up and shouted to the students around him who were still hesitating:

"Eat up, guys! Eat up! This stuff is incredibly potent!"

The cafeteria instantly erupted in chaos.

Everyone started trying this seemingly dubious "red ointment".

Immediately afterwards, gasps and gasps filled the entire hall.

"My God, I feel like I'm on fire!"

"Spiritual energy! I can feel spiritual energy flowing into my dantian!"

"This spoonful is equivalent to eating 20 pounds of beef! And I don't need to go to the bathroom at all!"

……

Gu Qing remained seated by the window, holding the unfinished cup of Hundred Flowers Wine.

He looked down at the group of students downstairs, their faces flushed from excess energy, some even meditating to digest it, and a faint smile appeared on his lips.

He knew the current effect without even looking at the system panel.

This is not just a change in food.

This is an upgrade of the energy structure.

It has evolved from inefficient carbohydrates to highly efficient bio-energy.

This means that they can save four hours each day for eating and excretion, and devote all of that time to cultivation.

This means that their cultivation growth rate will increase by at least 30%.

And this is just the beginning.

Gu Qing glanced at the exquisite steamed silver fish on her table, then at the rough red meat paste downstairs.

This stark contrast did not make him feel any guilt.

He is the one who sets the rules.

They are also the ones who allocate resources.

"Eat."

Gu Qing spoke softly, her voice seemingly reaching everyone's ears through the glass.

"Only when you're full will you have the strength to face the harsh realities ahead."

"After all, my scythe... oh no, my pointer is ready."