Chapter Four: The Sick Man of East Asia?

For hundreds of thousands of years, humanity gazed up at the stars, proclaiming that our path lay among the cosmic seas. Yet the universe is vast beyond measure. So vast that the material vessels painstakingly assembled within the solar system, attempting to cross distances measured in light-years and enter the unknown, are met with a desolate intensity that breeds despair and fear.

Faced with astronomical units that generations of people could never traverse in a lifetime, the dream of the cosmic sea appears unrealistic. It seems that the civilization of Earth—born from mountains, rivers, and oceans—can only circle within the solar system, prisoners trapped in a cage with no escape.

This situation may persist for centuries, millennia, perhaps even hundreds of thousands of years. Until a breakthrough in technology. Or the collapse of civilization.

An iron wall stands before humanity—look up, down, left, right, and all is boundless and unreachable. Yet the emergence of the Conquest Space pierced countless holes through this iron wall!

Compared to the distant and unattainable cosmic sea, the Dimensional Ocean is pressed directly against everyone’s face. Beyond its shores lies infinite matter, boundless energy!

Everyone around the world, even those in a vegetative state, is granted a chance—to accept the summons of the Conquest Space, enter the Artificial Divine Realm for trials. All wealth and power gained in these trials belong to you. Even if you fail and lose your qualification on your first attempt, it matters not; as long as you complete Life Cluster cultivation afterwards, you can apply to enter the trials again.

It is easy to imagine. When such a transformative opportunity is set before them, every person feels a yearning surge from the deepest recesses of their soul. This yearning, on the day the Conquest Space descends, compels tens of millions to enter the Artificial Divine Realm for trials; within just seven days, nearly all 8.4 billion people across the globe embark on a wondrous journey through an alternate world.

Of these billions, few succeed on their first trial, but there are always the fortunate, the capable, the prepared—those who quickly rise to prominence, bringing earth-shattering changes to the world in mere months, becoming crucial and deadly forces in a new era.

Among the 8.4 billion, Lan Yi was just one.

Lan Yi’s first trial in the Artificial Divine Realm was of moderate difficulty. He was not fortunate, not powerful, nor prepared. He entered the Divine Realm as someone who had reached a dead end, bereft of hope, making a desperate last stand—ruthless with himself, reckless in resolve.

Even during his first trial, the Life Cluster awakened within him barely functioned due to his lack of cultivation methods or protective arts; instead, it was his martial prowess and robust physique that became Lan Yi’s foundation. At that time, there was someone who was both mentor and friend to him.

That person was Huo Yuanjia.

In the time of the Artificial Divine Realm, it was the year 1909.

Feudal rulers, steeped in dreams of celestial supremacy, were rudely awakened by two humiliating wars with foreign powers. Treaties stripped the nation of rights and dignity, exploiting its resources for foreign gratification. The court became a tool for outsiders to suck the marrow from the land, and national pride was utterly shattered.

The Starhan people were forced to confront their own backwardness, learning that weakness invites punishment. Beaten by the whip, they could not help but either hate or idolize those who wielded it.

Faced with ironclad ships and cannons representing scientific advancement and punitive superiority, the celestial dreams of the nation collapsed. Many suffering from severe psychological dissonance chose not hatred, but fervent adulation of all things foreign.

Foreign rifles, foreign gunpowder, foreign tea, foreign cloth—no matter what, as long as it bore the mark of the foreign, it was considered the best. Some even wished themselves and their very footsteps transformed into something foreign, believing that would make them advanced, scientific, and superior.

Even the once-glorious martial sects disappeared without a trace, unable to utter a word against foreigners in this climate.

At this time, in Pu Hai.

Thanks to the mutual protection policy, Pu Hai was spared from wartime devastation. In fact, prioritizing the safety of foreign nationals brought it much praise, making it one of the safest cities along the coast. The International Anti-Opium Conference further elevated its status, and the ironclad gunships dominating the Yangtze were glad to anchor here, protecting the property and safety of expatriates.

Aside from the Anti-Opium Conference, Pu Hai was now host to another event stirring national pride. At the racetrack ring, martial artist Huo Yuanjia had defeated a foreign strongman and was now preparing to found the Jingwu Physical Culture Association. In the twilight of the Qing dynasty, amid national decline, slogans were raised—promoting martial arts, studying physical culture, forging strong and resolute citizens. Only by training body and mind could the people revive national fortune.

This was the backdrop of Lan Yi’s first trial in the Artificial Divine Realm.

Sixteen Wharf, Kaitai Dock.

Lan Yi stood out conspicuously.

In 1909, the average height was around 164 centimeters, while foreigners—whether Eastern or Western—who could come to China were mostly privileged, well-nourished, with meat, eggs, and milk aplenty, towering above the oppressed, malnourished Starhan populace.

Lan Yi, however, stood at 188 centimeters.

Moreover, when choosing his trial, Lan Yi had not accepted the Conquest Space’s service to alter his short hair and shirt; thus, in the eyes of many gaunt dock laborers, this giant figure in Western attire was a person of great importance not to be trifled with.

Nearby rickshaw pullers considered approaching to earn a fare, but seeing Lan Yi’s expression as he gazed at the passing warships, these shrewd men sensed an unusual atmosphere. Some, timid and cautious, simply pulled their rickshaws away from the dock.

Creatures at the bottom of the food chain possess sharp instincts.

Lan Yi’s mood was indeed poor.

He had entered the Artificial Divine Realm at the wrong time. According to memory, he should have arrived in Jinmen a month before Huo Yuanjia’s match with the strongman, but now he was in Pu Hai, at the eve of the Jingwu Association’s founding.

This must be the result of dynamic difficulty balancing in the Conquest Space.

"Your bearing is impressive, watching the ships by the river, concerned about the dominance of white warships, stirring within me a desire for friendship and discussion of the future competition between the yellow and white races. I am Tasuo Koichi. May I know your esteemed name?" (East Ocean language)

A man, shorter than Lan Yi but clearly sturdier and taller than the local laborers, observed him for a moment before approaching. Evidently, Tasuo Koichi mistook Lan Yi, with his shirt and cropped hair rather than the traditional queue, for an East Ocean native.

Most importantly, Lan Yi possessed a national air rarely seen among Starhan people of this era.

Lan Yi glanced at Tasuo Koichi but did not respond.

Accompanied by a female companion, Tasuo Koichi immediately felt the pressure from a superior. Instead of growing angry, he became more respectful, switching to honorifics.

"Are you disturbed by these sickly East Asians? I can have them all dispersed for you."

"Sickly East Asians?" Lan Yi grinned, his teeth gleaming white and sharp in the sunlight.