The Programmer Cultivator

”Today, I’m going to see for myself just what gives someone with your meager Cultivation the confidence to think you can get the better of us.”

With that, Lu Ya wasted no more words and clumsily formed several spell seals.

On his puppet’s body, the four colors of the emblem—the black of water, green of wood, brown of earth, and metallic gold-and-silver—flowed like liquid from the altar, seeping out in wisps to suffuse its entire form.

The puppet’s original Cultivation was at the level of Four Symbols in One Life. With this change, its aura climbed once again, only stopping when it reached Four Symbols Second Life.

After the nauseating slime on its body became mixed with the four colors, a fiery red, transparent wave of heat began to rise from the puppet.

It stood within the heat wave, which enveloped it and flickered like a rising flame. After completing this power-up, Lu Ya directly controlled the puppet to charge at Elder Huang.

Elder Huang extended a hand, and thread-like Jade Vines spread from his palm, weaving themselves into a Jade Long Sword in the blink of an eye.

Elder Huang tossed the Long Sword. It transformed into a streak of light and shot toward the rapidly approaching puppet.

They were not far apart, and with a short-distance burst from the Tier Three Sword Control Technique, its speed was extreme.

Thus, in the blink of an eye, the Jade Long Sword was before Lu Ya, stabbing down at the puppet’s strange, spherical metal head.

Alerted by Qu Wenbai’s reaction, Lu Ya’s expression turned grave and he stopped. He shot out a hand, his entire arm turning silvery-white like steel as he reached out and snatched the Jade Long Sword from the air.

After grabbing the Long Sword, he squeezed. He felt some resistance, but only a little. The Long Sword was crushed, exploding into a shower of Spiritual Light.

Feeling the power of his own technique, he was slightly stunned. He looked at Elder Huang and said, ”All show and no substance. What gave you the right to be so arrogant?”

But Elder Huang, who had just made his probing attack, froze the instant his sword touched the puppet Lu Ya controlled. Immediately after, an exceptionally intense light flickered in his indifferent eyes.

Elder Huang didn’t seem to care at all that his Long Sword had been so easily crushed. In fact, after that brief contact, his tense nerves inexplicably relaxed.

All traces of tension and gravity vanished. He became exceptionally relaxed, watching Lu Ya with an air of indifference. His inner state matched his outward demeanor, becoming utterly transcendent.

He made no further probing attacks. To be precise, he didn’t attack again at all.

He completely ignored the onrushing Lu Ya. Instead, with his hands clasped behind his back, he turned his head to the solemn Pu Hua Bodhisattva and said, ”If my old eyes don’t deceive me, you must be Pu Hua Bodhisattva of Xuande Temple, correct?”

Pu Hua Bodhisattva, who had been gathering his full power to face the enemy alongside Elder Huang, paused. When he turned and saw Elder Huang’s calm demeanor, his building momentum faltered.

Before he could reply, Lu Ya had already closed in on Elder Huang and brought a fist crashing down.

Elder Huang’s figure flickered. A Substitute appeared to block the attack as his body dissolved into countless Spirit Species, only to reform a short distance away.

After reforming, he was still standing with his hands behind his back, looking calmly at Pu Hua, completely ignoring Lu Ya as if he were of no consequence.

Watching Elder Huang’s actions, Pu Hua nodded in astonishment. ”I am indeed. Elder, why don’t we join forces and deal with this vile beast before we talk?”

Elder Huang shook his head. ”No need. I just wanted to ask you from Xuande Temple: for a lingering evil such as this, is it your policy to kill it outright, or to capture it first and decide its fate later?”

Pu Hua hadn’t even answered when Lu Ya exploded with rage. Seeing Elder Huang completely disregard him, the flame-like aura surging around his body shot up several notches.

”You’re courting death!!!”

Enraged, Lu Ya charged at Elder Huang again. This time, before Elder Huang could use a Substitute Technique, he attacked preemptively, making a grasping motion from afar.

An endless wave of fire erupted abruptly, forming a hollow Fireball that surrounded Elder Huang, then surged inward toward him.

”SIGH...” Elder Huang looked at the wave of fire, shook his head slightly, and sighed. ”I was going to leave the decision to the Bodhisattva. Why must you be in such a hurry to die?”

As he spoke, Elder Huang raised his hand slightly. A massive amount of his Spiritual Power was rapidly consumed, yet not the slightest hint of a Technique was produced.

”PFFT...”

Before the nearby Pu Hua could move to help, a strange sound rang out.

The enraged Lu Ya froze, and the Fireball surrounding Elder Huang vanished in an instant.

Lu Ya turned stiffly to look behind himself. A Jade Vine was growing out from an... unmentionable place on his body. It swayed and swelled slightly, giving him a novel new experience.

Lu Ya: ”??????”

Staring at the continuously growing and swelling Jade Vine, feeling the invasion of a strange energy within his body, Lu Ya was utterly dumbfounded. He was completely stupefied.

Pu Hua: ”...”

He looked at the bizarre state of Lu Ya’s puppet, then at the indifferent Elder Huang, who stood with his hands behind his back while his Spiritual Power drained away rapidly. Pu Hua was also at a complete loss.

”I have to admire your courage. You were incredibly lucky to escape after being hit by my Spirit Seed Skill.

But you didn’t bother to clean it out. You just suppressed it with an Artifact and came rushing back to show off in front of me. Did you think I couldn’t bear to use this Skill again?

Or did you believe that this altar, which hasn’t even accepted you as its master, could use external suppression to control the Spirit Species I planted deep inside you?” Elder Huang said with an air of indifference, looking at the dumbfounded Lu Ya.