The Programmer Cultivator-Chapter 71 - 69: Arrival

Zhang Deming nodded and said, "Right. It shouldn’t be a problem."

Zhang Deming studied it for a moment, his expression shifting slightly. A tiny vine extended into the eyeball in the snake’s head.

Immediately, the snake’s eye actually blinked a few times, no longer looking so hollow.

Zhang Deming began experimenting, manipulating the vines inside the snake’s body. After several practice runs, the Shocking Water Snake truly seemed to have come alive.

With everything ready, Zhang Deming glanced at the faintly lit sky, coiled the snake’s body, and withdrew the Growth Technique.

As the vines turned into motes of light, the plump Shocking Water Snake deflated.

Zhang Deming left the Cave Mansion, returned silently to his room, lay down on his bed, and fell asleep.

When he woke again, it was already morning.

As usual, he got up early, sealed his Spiritual Power, and practiced a set of martial forms in the courtyard for exercise.

He didn’t stop until he was sweating lightly and felt a little tired.

Pei Xiaoxiao was already up, watching Zhang Deming practice his forms.

The moment Zhang Deming stopped, Pei Xiaoxiao couldn’t help but ask, "Senior Brother, what kind of martial art is that?"

"For some reason, I feel like... I feel like..."

She trailed off, unable to find the right words.

Zhang Deming smiled. "You feel like it’s all for show, right?"

Pei Xiaoxiao gave an embarrassed laugh. "Um, it’s probably because I only know Saber Techniques. I must not understand the profound aspects of your martial art, Senior Brother."

Amused, Zhang Deming said, "What profound aspects? It really is just for show. I use it to stay in shape."

"Stay in shape?" Pei Xiaoxiao looked completely confused.

Zhang Deming shook his head. ’We’re from two different worlds; she has no idea what I’m talking about.’ He couldn’t be bothered to explain.

However, once he had more Contribution Points to spare, he could indeed go to the Scripture Pavilion and find some Close Combat Techniques.

Practicing Close Combat Techniques for exercise would be better than the martial arts from his past life, and it would also increase his strength.

After the two of them finished breakfast, Zhang Deming looked at Pei Xiaoxiao and said, "I had a bit of an insight yesterday and need to pursue my Enlightenment Dao alone."

"I’ll probably be in seclusion for half a day to a full day. The Qingshui Prefecture is a quiet place, so I’ll borrow it for a day."

Pei Xiaoxiao said, "Senior Brother, there’s no need to be so formal. I wasn’t formal with you when you were sharing things."

"Oh, right, do you need a Protector?"

Zhang Deming shook his head. "I need to quietly pursue my Enlightenment Dao, and disturbances are the last thing I need. I’ll set up two warning Arrays, so don’t just wander in."

Pei Xiaoxiao nodded. "Got it."

After that, Zhang Deming parted ways with Pei Xiaoxiao and went to the Qingshui Prefecture alone.

He activated a warning Restriction at the entrance of the Cave Mansion and another at the mouth of the small cliffside path.

Once that was done, Zhang Deming lay down inside the snake’s belly, tossed out several seeds, and activated the Growth Technique with a flurry of hand movements.

A moment later, the deflated Shocking Water Snake became plump once more. It swam around a bit to get used to its body, then dove straight into Qingshui Lake.

Washed by the lake water, the snake’s head, which had started to smell faintly, lost its odor.

It swam a few laps in Qingshui Lake, and as it grew more accustomed to its body, it stopped dawdling and shot straight downstream.

On the snake’s back, two pairs of miniature Light Wings faintly appeared. Its swimming speed suddenly increased, even creating a channel in its wake on the water’s surface.

Over half an hour later, the Shocking Water Snake arrived at Xiashui Town. At the river mouth outside the town, the entire settlement was already bustling with activity.

Outside the town, a huge crowd had gathered. More than half the town’s population was craning their necks, eagerly awaiting something.

At the very front and center of the crowd, Zhang Deming spotted several Cultivators.

However, they were all Junior Apprentices.

’Looks like they’re the Cultivation Family of Xiashui Town,’ he thought.

As for who they were waiting for, Zhang Deming didn’t even need to guess.

It was obviously Lu Ze’s party—the Celestial Spirit Outer Disciples who had accepted the mission and were only now, after several days, about to arrive.

Within the Celestial Spirit Sect, an Outer Disciple might not be much.

But as a member of one of the Four-Nine Upper Sects, even a mere servant would have more influence in the outside world than an ordinary Loose Cultivator.

A grand reception like today’s was the norm when an Outer Disciple visited a Cultivation Family for a mission.

The situation Zhang Deming had encountered before was only because they had been doing so poorly.

’Well, "poorly" doesn’t even begin to describe it.’

’If not for the fortunate coincidence of Pei Xiaoxiao appearing, the Qingshui Town Cultivation Family wouldn’t even exist anymore.’

...

Half the town’s population waited for half a day.

After the initial excitement of seeing Immortals wore off, most of the crowd grew impatient. The members of the Cultivation Family at the core, however, remained patient.

They strictly commanded the militia to maintain order.

It wasn’t until noon that three figures finally made their belated appearance on the main road at the town’s entrance.

"Senior Brother Lu, is a round trip of six or seven days really worth it for a mission that only gives three or four Contribution Points?"

For an ordinary Outer Disciple, three Contribution Points were worth three Spirit Stones. Forget six or seven days; even ten days to half a month would be worth it for a net income of three Spirit Stones.

But for them, or at least for Lu Ze, traveling for six days for just three Spirit Stones really wasn’t worth it.

Besides, there were three of them, which meant they would only get one Spirit Stone each.

After all, Lu Ze’s current monthly side income was already stable at around five to eight Spirit Stones.

Hearing this, Lu Ze smiled. "This place is so far away, and it’s a Demon Beast crisis, yet they dared to post the mission for only three Contribution Points. Do you know why?"

"Aren’t they afraid the mission would be ignored until their town was wiped out?"

Behind Lu Ze, Zhang Xiu’s expression flickered. "Senior Brother, are you saying there’s more to this than meets the eye?"

Lu Ze smiled. "The founding ancestor of the Cheng Family of Xiashui Town was Senior Brother Cheng Li, from our Sect two hundred years ago."

"Senior Brother Cheng didn’t have any special skills or much Talent."

"He was eventually dispatched to establish a Cultivation Family."

"But as a veteran Spirit Medicine Farmer, his planting skills were quite good."

"Moreover, when choosing resources for his assignment, this Senior Brother Cheng was also very ambitious and daring."

"He directly chose a Spirit Pearl Fruit Tree sapling."

"The Spirit Pearl Fruit is a type of Spiritual Material, a versatile ingredient that can be used for advancing to the Tai Chi realm."

"Now, after two hundred years of cultivation, this Spirit Pearl Fruit Tree can bear several fruits every fifty years."

"For them to post the mission like this obviously implies that they intend to use Spirit Pearl Fruits as an additional reward."

Zhang Xiu heard this and asked, confused, "Why not just state it outright? Wouldn’t that attract more people?"

Lu Ze gave Zhang Xiu a faint glance and said:

"The first reason they don’t state it outright is to not flaunt their wealth. If they announced it, many ordinary Outer Disciples would find out they have Spirit Pearl Fruits."

"For an ordinary peripheral family, being coveted by a bunch of Outer Disciples is not a good thing."

"The second and most important reason is that it acts as a filter."

"After all, their Spirit Pearl Fruit Tree is registered with the Resources Department."

"Anyone who knows they have Spirit Pearl Fruits and still chooses to accept a three-Contribution-Point mission clearly doesn’t have an ordinary status within the Sect."

"And ordinary Disciples wouldn’t accept this kind of beast disaster mission for a mere three Contribution Points; it’s a thankless task."

"This way, they can effectively filter the candidates."

"So, from all this, you can see that the Cheng Family of Xiashui Town seems to have a pretty sharp Manager."