The Programmer Cultivator

Li Shifan took out a Command Token similar to Zhang Deming’s. It was the same emerald green color, and the front bore a special symbol, which was probably the insignia of the Five Elements Blessed Land.

However, the back was slightly different. Zhang Deming’s had a tree on it, while Li Shifan’s had a sword.

Li Shifan held out the Command Token and said, ”Here. There’s still some third stage I haven’t completed. As for how long I’ve been out... more than half a day, I guess!”

Hearing this, Zhang Deming nodded. ’So our timings were about the same. If I hadn’t skipped resting that one night, we probably would have come out together.’

”You chose the Extreme Sword Dao, right?” Zhang Deming asked.

Li Shifan nodded and said, ”Aside from the Sword Dao, I barely know any other Techniques. If I hadn’t chosen the Sword Dao, I would’ve had no hope at all.”

”What about you, Senior Brother Zhang? The comprehensive Summoning one?”

Zhang Deming nodded. ”I did choose the comprehensive option, but it didn’t focus on Summoning. The comprehensive option doesn’t have any specific categories; it’s a compound trial.”

Li Shifan nodded and didn’t press for more details.

Zhang Deming looked around and asked, ”Have you figured out the situation here?”

Li Shifan shook his head. ”That Array Light Curtain at the entrance... it looks one-way to me. I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to get back in if I left, so I didn’t risk going out.”

”When I first arrived, I saw the display up there and figured you’d be finishing soon too, so I waited here for a while.”

”And what do you know, here you are.”

Looking at Li Shifan, Zhang Deming pointed to the Light Curtain beside him and asked, ”This is...?”

Li Shifan pointed to the two largest Light Curtains and said, ”The one on the left should be the trial display for the people outside—the Blessed Land’s Inner Sect Trial.”

Zhang Deming followed his gesture and saw that the Light Curtain was densely packed with lines of text, all saying ”In Trial.”

Zhang Deming stepped forward and touched one, and the Light Curtain displayed the words, ”Please present corresponding authorization.”

Seeing this, Li Shifan said, ”When I first got here, I also thought these things were just like the Sect’s monitoring Arrays.”

”I also tried to view the corresponding trial-taker’s screen.”

”The result was the same as yours—it wants some damn authorization.”

”But even though I don’t know the details, looking at all this, it’s obvious these are the people who came with us.”

”Because we cultivate the Core Cultivation Technique, the Cyan Wood Divine Refining Technique, we were directly classified as Blessed Land Disciples. We didn’t have to go through that outer trial—the Inner Sect Trial, I mean.”

Zhang Deming looked at the Light Curtain, pointed to a number in the bottom-right corner, and said, ”So, this number here represents the number of people who have passed?”

”Why is it only over a thousand?”

”Between the Sect and the surrounding areas, there must have been tens of thousands, maybe even hundreds of thousands of people who came, right?”

Li Shifan shook his head. ”I’m not sure about that. I guess the assessment is just really difficult.”

”After all, even if it’s the ’outer’ trial, it’s still the Blessed Land’s Inner Sect Trial. It’s probably a lot harder than the Sect’s own Inner Sect Trial.”

Hearing this, Zhang Deming stopped dwelling on it. He turned to look at the equally huge, blank Light Curtain on the right and asked, ”What about this one?”

Li Shifan said, ”This one should be the Light Curtain for monitoring the Inner Sect’s core trial. When I arrived, there was only one message, saying ’Stage Two Trial in Progress.’”

”That’s why I guessed it was you, Senior Brother. Just as it disappeared, you came out.”

”So this Light Curtain must be for monitoring the core trial.”

Hearing this, Zhang Deming’s brow furrowed slightly. ”So you’re saying that over a thousand people passed the Inner Sect Trial, but not a single one has entered the core trial?”

”Why is that? Did none of them find the Flower Demon Elf Clan’s territory? Is the forest area outside the Flower Demon Elf territory that big?”

Li Shifan said, ”I actually know something about that.”

Zhang Deming looked at Li Shifan in surprise. Li Shifan led Zhang Deming away from the two largest Light Curtains to a corner with many other screens.

He pointed to two of the Light Curtains and said, ”Take a look.”

Zhang Deming stared at the Light Curtain, slightly stunned. One Light Curtain was displaying a bird’s-eye view of the Flower Demon Elf territory. ’Hm, a satellite surveillance view would be a more fitting description.’

Zhang Deming stepped forward and tapped it a few times. This one, surprisingly, didn’t require authorization and could be zoomed in and out slightly.

Zhang Deming examined it for a moment and found that the Flower Demon Elf territory was still just as deserted. Aside from a few Flower Demon Elves, there wasn’t a single member of the Human Race to be seen.

Zhang Deming was a little confused. Li Shifan reached out and pointed to the second Light Screen, gesturing for him to look.

Zhang Deming turned to look at the second Light Screen. It showed a complex of buildings, where a number of scattered people could be faintly seen.

Li Shifan stepped forward and adjusted the camera’s view, focusing on the front of one of the buildings.

The building’s plaque read: Celestial Eye Yuya Pavilion.

Zhang Deming’s expression shifted. Looking at the much-magnified view, he said, ”This is?”

Li Shifan said, ”If I’m not mistaken, this should be the very Jade Pavilion we’re in right now.”

Zhang Deming said, ”You mean, everyone who passed the trial was thrown in here? Why? Weren’t they taking the Inner Sect Trial?”

”Why were they thrown into the core area with us?”

Li Shifan said, ”I think it’s perfectly normal. When we first joined the Outer Sect, we weren’t assigned to the Outer Sect Headquarters.”

”Didn’t we still have to report to the Outer Sect Headquarters first, get our identity files established, and only then get assigned to our respective Outer Sect mountains?”

Hearing this, Zhang Deming nodded in sudden realization. He’d forgotten about that.

Li Shifan pointed to the Light Screen and said, ”This is also why I didn’t rush outside.”

As he said this, Zhang Deming noticed that in the video feed, there were Light Curtains in front of many of the buildings. The other Disciples were trying to get in repeatedly, but not a single one had succeeded.