The Programmer Cultivator

If these Five Elements Remnants were truly planning some unspeakable, major event and ended up causing a stir, it would be nigh impossible for the Celestial Spirit Sect to remain uninvolved.

In fact, it was highly likely they would be the first to bear the brunt of the disaster, the primary targets. After all, even if they were just scavenging, they were scavenging someone else’s legacy.

To put it another way, they were practically vultures feeding on a carcass.

If the original owner were truly dead, it would be one thing. But if they came back to life after being half-dead, the act would transform from scavenging a carcass to tearing the victim apart alive. Was it possible for there not to be a grudge?

Having understood the situation, even the perpetually lazy Yue Mengsheng began to state his position. To be precise, Yue Mengsheng was likely only taking the matter to heart because he feared it would disrupt his idle lifestyle.

Upon hearing this, Dang Xiangjun glanced at the others and said, "In that case, I will go and take a look at the situation first. If there’s nothing to it, then so be it.

But if there is an issue—one that I cannot resolve myself—then it is a major affair that requires the Sect’s intervention."

Hearing this, they all breathed a collective sigh of relief.

But before they could finalize their decision, Zhang Deming paused. The consciousness of his main body, which had been away, now returned.

The business with Elder Huang would be a long story to tell, but in truth, it had all transpired in a mere moment. Even their combat, an intense exchange, had concluded swiftly. The whole process hadn’t taken long at all.

After coming to his senses, Zhang Deming looked at the four, who were about to finalize their plan, and said with a wry smile, "I’m afraid if you go now, Master Dang, the place will already be empty."

The four of them froze, looking at Zhang Deming in confusion. Guk Liancai couldn’t help but interject, "Why? Don’t tell me you held back half the story, Junior Brother Zhang?"

Zhang Deming shot Guk Liancai a look, momentarily speechless.

’This is a huge deal, and a Supreme Elder of the Sect is right here. To tell only half the story? I’d have to be insane! Trying to build suspense at a time like this... If I wasn’t out of my mind, I’d have to be completely insane!’

Guk Liancai’s lips twitched under Zhang Deming’s gaze. He was about to offer a retort, but then he seemed to remember something. Glancing at the silent Dang Xiangjun, he simply closed his mouth.

Zhang Deming looked at the four of them and began, "Of all the Noble Families affiliated with the Celestial Spirit Sect, I’m unfamiliar with most. However, I have a bit of a history with the Qu Family of Celestial Spirit City, so I’ve kept an eye on them."

"The reason I said there’s no need to go is because... well... Master, you’ll understand when you see this."

As he spoke, Zhang Deming raised a hand, once again conjuring an illusory Light Screen.

"The Qu Family? You mean that Tai Chi Clan from Celestial Spirit City?" The four of them watched the newly formed Light Screen with confusion. Only Gan Zili, in a moment of thought, posed the question.

Zhang Deming paused and looked at Gan Zili. "Senior Brother Gan, you truly live up to your reputation as the one managing Spirit Nurturing Peak. You even know of such a minor, peripheral family."

"Not exactly. I just happened to come across them before."

’Actually, ’happened to’ wasn’t the right way to put it. To be precise, it was because he had been routinely compiling and reviewing Zhang Deming’s profile that he noticed the Qu Family and decided to look into them as well.’

’After all, Zhang Deming didn’t have many social connections within the Sect. The Qu Family, however, was suspected of being the recipient of Zhang Deming’s own advancement resources.’

’Since Zhang Deming was merely recovering his strength, he didn’t need the resources for advancing to the Duality level. The intelligence suggested it was highly probable that he had given those resources to the Qu Family, even though he had no use for them himself.’

’But in Gan Zili’s view, the fact that Zhang Deming would go out of his way to do this indicated their relationship was far from distant—in fact, it was likely quite close.’

’It was for this reason that he had paid special attention to the Qu Family.’

As the two spoke, the Light Screen fully materialized. This time, due to the circumstances of the combat with Elder Huang, Zhang Deming didn’t create some polished, narrative video.

Instead, he used the power of a Basic Illusion Array to display the scenes from when Elder Huang had first arrived: the moment he met Qu Wenbai, the moment the other party conjured the altar, and the gruesome scene in the plaza.

When the images appeared, the four men, who had been relaxed moments before, were all startled.

Gan Zili shot to his feet in shock, demanding gravely, "When did this happen?"

The other three turned to Zhang Deming, clearly sharing the same question.

"Just now, in the time we’ve been talking. Factoring in the delay from when they triggered my monitoring array, this happened minutes ago at most," Zhang Deming replied quickly.

"Are you certain?" Dang Xiangjun asked, his voice grave.

Zhang Deming replied, "How could I dare to joke about something like this?"

"Let’s go!" Seeing this, Dang Xiangjun took the lead. A Jade Disc appeared beneath his feet, and with a flicker, he vanished from Spirit Nurturing Peak, flying out of the Sect.

The four of them exchanged a look. Light Wings materialized on Zhang Deming’s back.

Spinning snowflakes formed beneath Yue Mengsheng’s feet.

A bubble enveloped Gan Zili.

Guk Liancai had the flashiest departure, as two spinning Fire Wheels materialized beneath his feet.

The four followed closely in Dang Xiangjun’s wake, transforming into streaks of light as they shot out of the Spirit Nurturing Main Hall, soared into the sky, and departed from Spirit Nurturing Peak.

None of the four made any effort to suppress their auras, creating a considerable disturbance that drew the attention of many.

Ordinarily, the plight of a single Tai Chi Clan wouldn’t warrant such a grand display.

But when the Five Elements Remnants were involved—and powerful figures like them had just learned of it—their immediate mobilization at such a critical juncture was perfectly normal. After all, an Affiliated Family was still part of the Sect.

······

Celestial Spirit City was not far from the Celestial Spirit Sect, and all four of them were using Law Level Flying Techniques, so their speed was anything but slow.

Even Zhang Deming, whose cultivation was the lowest, had not been left in the dust by Yue Mengsheng and the other three by the time they reached their destination. Or perhaps, the other three had deliberately slowed their pace.

Guk Liancai, the contrarian, had at least slowed down. With the speed of what was suspected to be his Heavenly Gang Earth Evil Wind-Fire Wheel Escape Technique, he, a Three Talents cultivator, could have absolutely matched the Four Symbols-level Dang Xiangjun for a short burst of speed had he gone all out.