Chapter Fifty-Eight: Progress

After discussing the competition with outsiders, Feng Erjin began to bring up internal issues—this was the first goal he set for himself after his promotion.

“President, you are wise,” he said, reverting to the formal address and offering a compliment. “At the time, we also considered hiring their puppet servants, but it was you, Big Brother, who insisted we didn’t. That’s how we maintained Copper Fortress’s independence. It’s just that those people truly are useful, and now our monthly output is falling far behind the three neighboring settlements…”

“Indeed,” Lang Sheng nodded, “Championship Mountain to the north was only half our size five years ago, but now they’re nearly ninety percent as large. They’ve purchased Silver City’s upgrade services three times in a row. By this time next year, they may surpass us in population and strength. Since you’ve raised this issue, I assume you have a solution.”

Naturally, Feng Erjin had come prepared. He would never have brought up the problem otherwise. A competent subordinate must never simply toss trouble up to the boss.

These past days, he’d worked hard, studying diligently and seeking advice wherever he could. At last, he’d found an approach in some old economics texts.

To translate theory into action, he’d made many trips to the slums, seeking out struggling scholars. For a modest sum and some promises of compensation, he obtained a comprehensive solution.

In the wasteland, when the world is reset, the bold outdo the eloquent; professors fare worse than the strong. But once order returns, the thinkers must rise to prominence.

“Yes, President. I had people carefully analyze those puppet servants. They can only manage low- and mid-tier industries—basic service work, assembly line labor, domestic chores, farming, and land clearing. But when it comes to high-end fields, like product design, research and development, or management, they’re incapable.”

Feng Erjin explained methodically, brimming with enthusiasm that filled his slight frame.

He’d never been so proactive before—always timid, always wary of making mistakes.

“I see what you mean—you think we should upgrade our industries and avoid getting bogged down in low-end competition with the surrounding settlements?” Lang Sheng said.

“Brilliant as always, Big Brother. Exactly, we must compete differently. This is the specific plan I’ve organized.”

With that, Feng Erjin produced a flash drive and handed it to Lang Sheng.

Lang Sheng plugged it into his computer and opened three documents:

“Current Industrial Analysis of Copper Fortress.”
“Human Resources Overview.”
“Future Development Directions and Potential Problems.”

“Excellent, Erjin. This is the attitude we need. If everyone can identify problems on their own and propose solutions, we’ll only get better and better!” Lang Sheng said, deeply gratified.

Clearly, since he’d decided to turn over a new leaf, although some had tried to take advantage, many more had become driven and enterprising.

“Thank you for your praise, President,” Feng Erjin replied, genuinely pleased.

“Very well, you’re dismissed. I’ll review these at my leisure.”

…

Time spun on, another week slipping by, and August 1st arrived.

Early in the morning, Fan Bei got up and began checking his own cultivation progress in the bedroom, focusing mainly on two skills: “Bronze Level 2 Meditation Technique” and “Wolf Might Demon-Dispelling Fist.”

He opened “The System’s Father” and directly infused both skills into the book.

Everything he’d learned could be poured into this book; but knowledge and skills that belonged to the book, he had to study slowly to master safely. That was the vast difference in level.

Once infused, the notifications for his two skills changed: “Bronze Level 2 Meditation Technique (Proficient)” and “Wolf Might Demon-Dispelling Fist (First Layer—Mastery).”

Because he hadn’t extracted Lang Sheng’s cultivation progress, the only progress shown was from what he himself had just infused.

If he created a new system or maintained an old one, he could directly bestow the host with skills at his current level.

Seeing his progress, Fan Bei felt satisfied.

His meditation technique had improved swiftly, but his fist technique had advanced even faster. By directly observing Lang Sheng’s cultivation, he’d brought the technique nearly level with Lang Sheng in just two weeks—after all, it was fundamentally an external skill emphasizing technique.

In theory, he could now defeat many Bronze-level evil spirits.

After checking his progress, Fan Bei began to examine the concrete effects of his cultivation.

He started with the meditation technique, closing his eyes and sinking his mind into his inner world. The area of his island hadn’t expanded further, remaining at about one mu in size.

At the center of the island stood a patch of dark, fertile earth, about a hundred square meters, a perfect square situated at the heart of the land.

In that field, a sapling grew, only three inches tall, with a dozen broad green leaves edged with fine fuzz.

Fan Bei had hoped to consult Lang Sheng about which plant to choose for his inner world, but Lang Sheng was then in closed-door cultivation, burning through resources, and unreachable.

It didn’t matter; by checking the skill pages of the Good Man System, he could see most of Lang Sheng’s abilities.

He’d watched Lang Sheng’s cultivation of “Wolf Might Demon-Dispelling Fist,” and before beginning the meditation technique, he’d also reviewed Lang Sheng’s insights while practicing “Bronze Level Meditation Technique.”

This method was superior; compared to direct inquiry, there was no fear of anything being concealed.

Lang Sheng had chosen to plant bamboo—his vast island already boasted several bamboo groves.

“How I regret it now—biting off more than I could chew. I should have cultivated only one plant, and preferably one existing both in reality and myth. The island’s area shouldn’t be too large either; just enough to serve its purpose, since the strength of one’s spirit is what matters most.”

“Trying to shrink the area or uproot the plants now would be too risky—easily damaging the soul. It can only be adjusted slowly with each advancement.”

Seeing these reflections, Fan Bei immediately understood: this was the fate of early mistakes—misallocating skill points without experience…

Countless players ended up restarting their characters later precisely because of poor early choices. But reality afforded no such second chances.

Learning from Lang Sheng’s lesson, Fan Bei was determined not to repeat the same mistakes. He researched carefully and finally settled on his plant: the parasol tree.

In his previous life, his family had planted a parasol tree, growing with him until the age of sixteen when they moved. The trunk was straight, the branches layered, and when it blossomed, the whole courtyard was filled with fragrance.

Moreover, the parasol tree holds a place in legend—linked to the phoenix: “Plant the parasol tree, and the phoenix will come.”

This subtly paralleled his current situation; the system was like the branches of the parasol tree, and each host was a phoenix perching on them. As tenants, they paid rent daily.

After selecting his sapling and nurturing it in his conscious field, two weeks of diligent care had produced a healthy young tree.

Many of the leaves were tinged with a faint bronze hue at their edges, and the slender trunk shimmered with traces of bronze as well.

Such focused cultivation bore fruit.

Lang Sheng’s island, with its vast area and many different plants, had rapidly increased his total spiritual power, but at the cost of slowing his spiritual intensity’s growth.

Having realized his error, Lang Sheng had chosen a single bamboo for core cultivation. Now it stood only half a meter tall, newly transformed into bronze, with some leaves beginning to turn silver, which in turn began transforming the surrounding earth.

Without system assistance, his character would have been effectively ruined, his future prospects limited.

If only Fan Bei could observe Lin Zhongqing’s cultivation—another host who had reached Gold Rank early—surely that character’s path was efficient and nearly without missteps.

With that, Fan Bei withdrew his mind from the inner world, returning to reality.

The next step was to test the demon-dispelling fist in practice. For safety’s sake, it was best to call on Big White and Iron Ball to assist him.