The Programmer Cultivator

When Zhang Deming poked this solidified Sword Shadow, it offered noticeable resistance compared to the others. He had to put a good deal of power into his strike before it finally shattered.

As Spiritual Light scattered, a physical Spirit Bead dropped out. Seeing this, Li Shifan gestured with his hand and collected it.

At that moment, the crack-like spatial entrance began to fluctuate. The two of them no longer hesitated and stepped straight through the opening. In a daze, they found themselves back in the middle of the cave passage.

Behind them, the previously invisible membrane of space began to ripple faintly. It shimmered with a silver luster as it slowly closed, vanishing without a trace moments later.

When the two started moving again, the cave had reverted to an ordinary one. The interior was just a simple Cave Mansion; the Sword Qi, Sword Shadows, and everything else had completely vanished.

In fact, because the torrent of Sword Qi that had been gushing from the cave was gone, the chaotic air currents at the cliff path’s entrance had begun to pour back in, causing the entire environment along the path to become unstable.

For Li Shifan and Zhang Deming, who were now both at the Duality stage, the joint protection they created made dealing with the swirling air currents no longer very difficult.

The two exited the cave and arrived at the cliff path. Instead of returning the way they came, they stood at the cliff’s edge. Zhang Deming’s Light Wings emerged from his back, and he then looked at Li Shifan.

With his Duality cultivation and Tier Four Sword Control Skill, Li Shifan no longer needed Zhang Deming to carry him. To be more precise, in terms of Escape Skills, Li Shifan had already leapfrogged ahead of him.

A miniature sword flew out from between his brows, expanding to the size of a door panel in front of them. He stepped onto it, looked at Zhang Deming, and said, "Senior Brother, how about I give you a ride?"

’It was clearly a sincere question, so why do I feel like he’s showing off???’

’Is something wrong with me, or is something wrong with Li Shifan?’

Zhang Deming shot Li Shifan a glare, leaped directly off the cliff path, and flew downward as the half-formed Light Wings on his back began to beat.

Behind him, Li Shifan paused for a moment before the Flying Sword beneath his feet transformed into a streak of light and soared into the sky.

"Woooow..."

Flying on his sword for the first time, Li Shifan was so excited he completely let loose, frolicking wantonly across the sky like a stallion in heat.

Zhang Deming looked up speechlessly at the streak of light in the sky. ’Li Shifan, you’ve changed. You were never this kind of person before!’

’Damn, I’m a little jealous!’

’Nope, my next Law-Level Technique has to be an Escape Skill. If he keeps showing off like this, I’m gonna lose it.’

’Ever since Little Qing Mountain, none of the disciples from my generation have shown me up, not even unintentionally.’

’That’s why my next Technique has to be an Escape Skill. I really don’t want to lose it!’

His half-formed Light Wings beating, Zhang Deming flew down toward the forest below. There should still be quite a few Sword Shadows inside; he had promised Li Cheng he would help clear them out as part of their resource allocation agreement.

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「In the Celestial Spirit Sect’s Cyan Wood Secret Realm.」

Ever since entering the Secret Realm and seeing firsthand the urgent need for the Agility Technique, Pei Xiaoxiao had been focused on her Enlightenment Dao.

But after living in the Secret Realm for over half a year, her comprehension of the Agility Technique had seen little progress, perhaps due to her aptitude.

Eventually, Zhang Deming couldn’t bear to watch any longer, feeling it was a disgrace that someone serving him didn’t even know the Agility Technique.

Besides, she had gone through so much hardship to serve him, a position with treatment fabled to be on par with a Peak Master’s, yet she hadn’t reaped any benefits. It all seemed a little unfair.

Therefore, in the days after he reached the Duality stage, Zhang Deming bestowed a few Agility Technique Spirit Nurturing Beads upon Pei Xiaoxiao. Of course, he didn’t play favorites; Yi Huaihai also received a reward, and he surprisingly chose Spirit Nurturing Beads for Oratory: Word Spirit.

After a period of preparation, Pei Xiaoxiao successfully used the Spirit Nurturing Beads to achieve the Enlightenment Introduction for the Agility Technique.

Recently, the Flower Demon Elves had been cataloged by the Sect. Although they hadn’t been collected yet, they no longer required nurturing and care from Zhang Deming’s group. The Sect had assigned dedicated personnel to look after them.

Out of one hundred and seven Flower Demon Elves, excluding three special little ones, there were a full one hundred and four. And the Spiritual Agriculture Department of the Miscellaneous Affairs Department transferred exactly one hundred and four Spirit Farmers to look after them.

Hmm...

This particular job was one that the farmers of the Miscellaneous Affairs Department would have fought tooth and nail for. For these one hundred and four positions, even Duality-stage Spirit Farmers had cast aside their pride to enter the fray and compete alongside the Tai Chi Disciples.

Why was this the case?

One person to care for a single Flower Demon—wouldn’t that lead to a severe surplus of manpower?

After all, the Elves of the Cyan Wood Flower Sea didn’t actually require much care in their daily lives!

In truth, the fundamental reason was that while the Sect called it "caring for them," it was actually equivalent to a first-round assignment.

In other words, barring any surprises, the Elf each person was assigned to care for would become their future partner—the kind with whom they would farm and live. This was the reason for such fierce competition.

Also for this reason, the Flower Sea now required no tending at all. Having newly learned the Agility Technique and just adapted to high-speed movement, Pei Xiaoxiao was still in a phase of excitement.

With little else to do, she had taken to gleefully dashing through the Flower Sea, occasionally teasing the numerous Flower Demon Elves and filling the air with laughter.

She was often seen running through the Flower Sea, a crowd of Flower Demon Elves flocking around her.

Because she was one of Zhang Deming’s attendants, considered a semi-Child, her status was rather respected.

Thus, the Spiritual Agriculture Disciples who entered the Secret Realm all treated Pei Xiaoxiao as a senior sister of their generation.

Coupled with two years of grooming and her not-inconsiderable looks, the Pei Xiaoxiao of today was no longer the grimy country girl from before, the kind who exuded a rustic air and looked like she’d just been scrubbing gourds.

After nearly two years of cultivation, she had developed the air of the Immortal Family. With her grooming having caught up as well, the Pei Xiaoxiao of today had the aura of a celestial maiden... hmm... or rather, a grown-up Immortal Child.

She was widely known as the Elf of the Cyan Wood Secret Realm and was expected to become the new "Flower of the Celestial Spirit Sect" within twenty years. Truly, in the eyes of the other disciples, she was an elfin figure.

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