The Programmer Cultivator

After all, not everyone was like Li Shifan, blessed with a protagonist’s fortune and able to keep up with his Cultivation.

Feng Mingyou, on the other hand, had navigated the Outer Sect for many years and was extremely smooth in his dealings. He wasn’t the type to feel he was losing face or to put on airs.

Otherwise, the moment he had first noticed something unusual about Zhang Deming, he wouldn’t have decisively pulled him into the small courtyard and closed the door to clear the air.

But precisely because of this, because he was so self-aware, it was fated that he could no longer interact with Zhang Deming with the simple mindset of an old friend.

Beyond the disparities in their status, position, and strength, it was also because their rapport had never progressed beyond a nascent, gentlemanly friendship—one as mild as water.

They hadn’t been classmates, nor were they childhood friends who’d grown up together, and they certainly didn’t share a life-or-death bond forged by entrusting their lives to one another.

For all these reasons, if nothing unexpected happened, this friendship—born of compatible personalities yet as mild as water—would likely fade over time, just as his friendship with Zong En once had.

Such things were inevitable. In any world, throughout your life, you meet all sorts of people as you grow.

Due to changes in status, time, and position, most of them become mere passersby, arriving and departing in a flash, with only a rare few ever staying.

Perhaps much later, their paths might cross again, but that original bond—be it friendship or romance—would have faded, changed, and become something else entirely, so long as it had never reached a certain depth.

This is life—the ordinary human experience and relationships that exist in any world. This is the world of people, the world of adults!

······

One of them was intentionally trying to close the distance—or, to put it more bluntly, to curry favor—while the other didn’t mind much, given their prior friendship. As a result, they got along quite harmoniously.

And so, the two of them chatted idly as they searched. Since the area was mostly ruins that had already been looted, they made quick progress.

After the better part of a day, the five of them regrouped on the mountaintop, having finished searching the entire ruin.

”How did it go? Did you find anything, or spot anything worth noting?” Zhang Deming asked once the five of them had gathered.

Nangong Cheng was the first to shake his head. ”Forget about finding anything,” he said. ”I didn’t even see a single broken Magical Artifact. This place is a complete wreck, looted by who knows how many people.”

Li Shifan also shook his head. ”We did find something,” he said, ”but it was just two Magical Artifacts, so broken they were barely recognizable. They aren’t worth more than a few Spirit Stones.”

Zhang Deming and the other two glanced at Li Shifan and his partner in surprise. ’As expected of someone blessed with a protagonist’s fortune,’ Zhang Deming thought. ’We didn’t see a single scrap, yet you actually managed to find usable Magical Artifacts.’

After a brief discussion, Zhang Deming said, ”Since that’s the case, let’s head to the second mission location. The sooner we complete this mission, the sooner we can return to the Sect.”

”This deep into the back mountains is still very dangerous for us. If we run into a Great Demon, it won’t be a lucky day for anyone.”

The others heard him and nodded in agreement with his decision.

So, Zhang Deming took out his map and selected the second marker—the final location for their mission. Once again, he took the lead, performing Reconnaissance up ahead, while the other four followed closely behind at a rapid pace.

After the five of them left, the area fell silent once more. The massive Hidden Breath Array continued to operate slowly. Deep beneath the mountain range, unknown to anyone, endless lava flowed, even though it was clearly not a volcano.

······

After traveling like this for another two days, the group harvested several more batches of One-Star Spirit Grass along the way under Zhang Deming’s guidance. While it didn’t amount to many Spirit Stones for them, the extra income was enough to cover the expenses for this trip.

After two more days of travel, as they neared their objective, Li Shifan’s confusion grew heavier. Finally, just as they were about to arrive, he spoke up. ”Senior Brother Summoning Spirit, this place...”

Zhang Deming heard him and looked back at the puzzled Li Shifan. ”Looks familiar?” he asked.

Li Shifan nodded. ”I think we’ve been here before.”

Zhang Deming nodded. ”That’s right. I knew the moment I saw the marker on the map. We have indeed been here before.”

”The mountain we emerged on after leaving the Secret Realm during our first adventure together isn’t too far from our second mission location.”

”When we left back then, I put a marker on my map-type Magical Artifact, so I recognized it as soon as I saw the mission marker.”

Li Shifan’s expression shifted to one of dawning realization. Seeing the confused looks on the other three faces, Zhang Deming began to explain.

”Painted Sword and I once teamed up to explore a dilapidated Secret Realm. The random teleportation exit we used was nearby, which is why this place seems familiar to me.”

”A dilapidated Secret Realm? Is it still there?” Nangong Cheng asked, his expression flickering with interest.

Zhang Deming shook his head. ”Probably not. I reported it to the Sect afterward. Even if it was still there, the Sect would have likely cleared it out by now.”

”Besides, even if it were, the entrance isn’t here. This was just a random exit. You’d also need a set of Command Tokens to get in.”

By this time, the five of them had arrived in the vicinity and came to a halt.

Looking at the surrounding mountains, Nangong Cheng frowned. ”So we’re searching again? Could the place on the map be the same one you two went to before?”

Zhang Deming hesitated for a moment before replying, ”I don’t think so. Although that mountain was also a ruin, with a style somewhat similar to our first location...”