Chapter 387: Meeting in the cafeteria

“Is it time?”

Li Qi didn’t react at first.

But he soon realized—

It really was.

Counting the time, the Lu Mountain God should be arriving in the Holy Flame World soon.

There was a difference in cosmic time between the two sides, with different flow rates. Half a year had passed here, but over a year had passed there. Even without a fast Universe, those national lords should have arrived by now.

“Indeed, I’m about to go on holiday here. According to the original plan, I’ll bring some Imperial Academy students and another Fifth Grade to help out. We shouldn’t be afraid. By then, we might not even need to act; everyone can just mediate,” Li Qi said to the rabbit.

“It’s good that you have arrangements, but you can come earlier. I’m just worried that the passages nearby might be blocked, and then it might take time to get here. Although I’ve already set up a large formation with world barriers nearby, it should be fine for two or three years, but it’s still better to come sooner,” the rabbit said.

Li Qi naturally agreed.

The two then discussed some serious matters, including the specific arrangements for the Holy Flame World, the current world situation, what Li Qi was currently doing, and his progress in cultivation.

Although they tacitly avoided discussing Li Qi’s disappearance for the past half a month, there was still much else to talk about.

After about half an hour, the serious matters finally concluded.

Both of them were people who knew how to distinguish between important and unimportant matters, so there would be no rambling.

But this also created a problem—

That is, after these conversations, which carried no psychological pressure, concluded, the scene immediately fell into an awkward silence.

How to put it…

Neither of them knew how to speak.

Logically, they should be discussing daily life now, but they weren’t careless people. What happened to Li Qi couldn't be ignored; it was impossible to skip over it and talk about what they ate for dinner tonight.

Deliberately talking about daily life now would only make both of them uncomfortable, giving them a feeling of self-deception.

But they couldn’t really talk about that matter either, because Li Qi had already said it couldn’t be discussed.

Shen Shuibi, who understood high-grade Cultivators, naturally knew that it really couldn’t be discussed.

What Li Qi was involved in was very likely a struggle between First Grade and Second Grade. The mere existence of this matter already made Shen Shuibi extremely anxious, and she had no mind to talk about trivial things.

After all, many things don't need to be said between smart people. If Li Qi were to ask, “Are you doing well over there?” it would only be more awkward.

Didn’t they both know whether she was doing well or not? The rabbit, a dignified Fifth Grade, would bring immense pressure to a Sixth Grade world just by existing. Who could make her not do well?

So, the two of them were stuck in this awkward situation.

What they wanted to say couldn’t be said, so they could only stare at each other.

However, it was Li Qi who finally broke the awkward silence.

“On my end, there’s nothing major. The conflicts are mostly resolved. However, I contacted a Fifth Grade Flower God, and with her mediation and promotion, Sacred Flame and Shamanic Silkworm Artifact should have no trouble with sales.”

“Look, in just over two years, we’ve earned the equivalent of a Sixth Grade world’s wealth. If we continue this approach, in two or three hundred years, earning a Fifth Grade world shouldn’t be a problem.”

“Money, this thing, will definitely grow more and more. Once the scale is built up and the snowball rolls, not to mention paying off debts, at least the lives of the Mount Luofu people will be better, not to the point of having to borrow money for healing,” Li Qi said.

Seeing Li Qi approach it from this angle, Shen Shuibi nodded: “Hmm, if it develops, it can indeed be like this, but we still need to take precautions. If our strength isn’t enough, it’s like a child carrying gold through a bustling market, prone to many incidents.”

After all, this was still a world with individual power. If someone really wanted to act, there was nothing they could do.

Moreover, the high-grade Cultivators Li Qi currently interacted with were all good people, or at least had their own principles. But that was because he only interacted with major Dao Orthodoxy, and these Dao Orthodoxy themselves were a guarantee.

But in the Myriad Worlds, there were many Dao Orthodoxy that didn't care about personal morality. If you walk the night road too much, you’ll always encounter ghosts.

So, Li Qi interjected: “I’ve considered this point too. We have our teacher’s backing. Without saying too much, at least a Fourth Grade world should be manageable. At that point, we’ll stop and use these resources to rebuild Mount Luofu’s power first. Doesn’t Granny Mei still have Fourth Grade? The remaining hundreds of people, plus Spirit Beast, certainly number in the thousands, and they can definitely support a mountain sect.”

Mount Luofu was, after all, a force that once had a Second Grade expert. As one of the ten great grotto-heavens of Dao Orthodoxy, with a top Second Grade presiding, and multiple Third Grade, including Empress Luofu, its foundation was profound.

Even if it was split by the human emperor sword, a starved camel is still bigger than a horse. After enduring this period, allowing the Mount Luofu people to participate and resume the normal operation of the mountain sect, Li Qi would no longer need to worry.

This was Li Qi’s idea.

How could Li Qi have the ability to just earn money and pay off debts? The cost of treating Empress Luofu, a Third Grade, and the money for a Spirit Peak on Shaman God Mountain and hundreds of grotto-heavens, Li Qi might not earn in ten thousand years.

Therefore, Li Qi’s plan was to pave the way for them and help Mount Luofu overcome its current difficulties.

After enduring this period, the remaining people of Mount Luofu would also recover, and they could continue to expand along this path. Not to mention paying off debts, at least they could maintain the mountain sect from falling.

“Hmm, I thought so too. That’s why when Yang Ning came last time, I told her about this and asked her to go back and inform Granny Mei and the others that they might have to develop outside the domain in the future,” the rabbit said.

Hearing this, Li Qi finally remembered.

When he saw Yang Ning on Shaman God Mountain before, Yang Ning said she was going to the Holy Flame World. From the looks of it, she had already arrived, talked, and gone back?

“Has Yang Ning gone back already?” Li Qi asked.

“She’s gone back. I was also thinking that relying solely on the two of us won’t work. We’ve already opened a path here with your strength, but the rest still needs to be walked by ourselves,” the rabbit said.

While saying this, Shen Shuibi was also observing Li Qi’s situation.

Li Qi was still the same, but… he was a bit paler than before.

Speaking of which, the matters of the Holy Flame World truly relied entirely on his help… Shen Shuibi herself certainly wouldn’t have thought of it; she simply didn’t have that concept.

From the implementation of the plan, to the determination of the goal, and then to the subsequent arrangements, it was basically all handled by Li Qi. The rabbit was only responsible for providing effort, as she truly didn’t understand these things.

The goal was determined by Li Qi’s friend, the Diviner, Zhong Minglou.

The measures for the Holy Flame World were also decided by him.

“What do you mean, relying on my strength? If you say so, I also survived by relying on your strength. We are already one now; how can we distinguish it so clearly?” Li Qi corrected after hearing the rabbit’s words.

The rabbit listened, then thought for a moment.

Then, she also nodded: “That’s true… Then let’s finish the current matters first. When exactly will you arrive here?”

“By the end of this month at the latest,” Li Qi said.

“That’s good. Also… although I can’t say it for now, I do know more secrets than you. If you really encounter something important that you can’t figure out, you should still tell me,” the rabbit deliberated, but still spoke these words.

Li Qi heard this and fell silent for a moment.

Some things, just by knowing them, would involve bearing Karma.

“You also said, we are one, so what is there that cannot be said?” the rabbit added.

Since the words had reached this point, Li Qi no longer feigned modesty: “Okay, if there’s anything I can’t solve, I won’t hide it from you.”

“En.” The rabbit said no more, only extended her hand: “Then I’ll wait for you here.”

“I’ll come as soon as possible,” Li Qi answered seriously.

The two said no more, closing their communication.

Most of what needed to be said had been said.

And Li Qi lay on the bed, pondering how to deal with this matter.

Forget it. Since they agreed, if he really encountered something he couldn’t handle, he would tell her.

As for bearing Karma…

The rabbit herself said they were one, so what was there for him to be coy about?

It was better to seize the time to cultivate. He had just learned so many things recently, and he needed to apply them quickly.

Li Qi got up, sat cross-legged, and began to examine the small Universe of the human body.

The transformation after advancing to Seventh Grade was not yet complete, and now there were additional changes brought by the concept of boundaries. All of these needed to be put into practice to become actual combat power, and also to verify whether what he had comprehended was useful.

Four days wouldn’t change too much, but he could experiment locally.

For the next few days, Li Qi wasted not a minute, dedicating almost all his time to improving the small Universe of the human body.

However, this was not a task that could be completed in three or four days; it might take decades to completely reconstruct the small Universe of the human body. Therefore, Li Qi focused most of his work on a small part of the task.

First, he calculated the boundary between the virtual and the real within the small Universe of the human body.

This was not difficult. Li Qi quickly found this subtle boundary, but… this boundary was incredibly large.

The calculated boundary, if he wanted to transform the virtual Qi into a physical entity… even if Li Qi was completely drained, he couldn’t produce a small stone.

So, the transformation from virtual to real could be temporarily abandoned for now, and he would accumulate more foundation first.

Then, based on various boundaries, he began to divide the Meridians, Bloodline, and various Qi convergence points within the body, making them distinct and no longer interfering with each other, achieving perfect operation.

Although current control couldn’t achieve true perfection, this might reduce many ‘compensations’.

For example, often when lifting heavy objects, if the muscles can’t hold up, the ligaments and bone joints will compensate, allowing a person to hold on, but this causes a lot of wear and tear.

Temporarily eliminating such connections allowed him to focus on training the specific part he wanted during exercise.

At the same time, when needed, eliminating these planned boundaries and allowing compensation to become a whole-body action would enable him to withstand greater pressure.

Having determined the approach for this overhaul, Li Qi immediately began his secluded cultivation.

He adjusted the circulation of various Qi, arranging the energy operation mechanism within his body in a more Dao-aligned manner.

He changed muscles and bones to correspond with the inner small Universe of the human body…

He solidified the foundation bit by bit, preparing for future changes.

During these few days, Li Qi was doing this.

However, during leisure time, such as meals, he also used it to think about other things.

That was… the ‘boundary’ between mental entities and material entities.

The question of ‘I am I’ was still not understood, but he could continue to delve deeper, unlike before when he was completely aimless.

In a tangled mess, there was finally a thread, and he would take the time to sort it out. Perhaps there would be special gains?

He still ate at the Imperial Academy these past few days.

No choice, he had an agreement with Peng Hai Cauldron; he needed to write him a testimonial every time.

Initially, Li Qi felt that simply writing these might not be meaningful, but now he knew.

Many times, in front of cultivation, there would be a problem that left one in a tangled mess.

When Li Qi first encountered the “Zhu” Book, he saw that there were no so-called ‘checkpoints’ on it, so he thought cultivation was smooth sailing, without Bottleneck.

But looking at it now, what hindered cultivation wasn't some checkpoint, some Breakthrough Meridians, or some strange setting of condensing something, but intelligence.

If you could figure it out, there was no Bottleneck.

If you couldn’t figure it out, there were Bottleneck everywhere.

On the third day at noon, Li Qi went to the Imperial Academy for lunch as usual.

As always, as he walked, he was fully immersed in thought, constantly deducing the boundary between mental and material entities, thus appearing somewhat distracted.

He got his meal, chatted casually with Peng Hai Cauldron, and then started eating.

He ate while deep in thought; after all, this was the cafeteria.

The Imperial Academy cafeteria was essentially a grotto-heaven. Li Qi just found a tree stump with his meal and ate outdoors.

However, as he ate, he suddenly felt something he couldn’t bite through.

Hmm? Brother Guo’s cooking wasn’t bad, so how could something be too tough to bite?

He regained a bit of his senses, looked up, and found himself surrounded by four or five people.

He only recognized two.

His classmate, Li Lieqi.

And Yu Zao, the Eclectic School Cultivator he had met before, whom he had seen once and heard was one of Shen Shuibi’s doctors.

The remaining three men were standing beside him, looking blank, their expressions identical.

Li Lieqi stood with those men, while Yu Zao squatted in front of him, dumbfounded.

“Um… Classmates? Why are you all standing here?” Li Qi asked, surprised.

“Classmate, why don’t you look at what you’re chewing?” Yu Zao pointed at Li Qi’s hand.

Li Qi looked down and found that he was chewing an iron bar, which was already deformed from being chewed.

Under the biting force of a Seventh Grade, mere common iron was indeed difficult to withstand.

He had been so engrossed in thought, so serious, that he hadn’t even noticed the food in his hand being swapped.

“Classmate, what are you thinking about?” Yu Zao crossed her arms: “I heard them say you’re famously aloof, and I didn’t believe it, but I didn’t expect you couldn’t even see us waving in front of you.”