The Programmer Cultivator

”Hidden within the Brocade Road, where Dragon and Snake dance in the Array. A fish leaps the Dragon Gate, as scales unite heart to heart! Array Dao: Dragon Fish Brocade Array, activate!”

Zhang Deming plunged headfirst into the Light Gate. In a daze, his vision shifted. Before he could get a clear look at his surroundings, he heard a familiar, explosive shout.

He subconsciously turned his head to look. Not far ahead, a surreal-looking battle was unfolding.

’Three silvery-white robots, with a distinct sci-fi aesthetic, were holding Spiritual Light Sabers... hmm... the official term should be Quantum Energy Light Swords.’

The Quantum Light Sabers in their hands pulsed with Spiritual Power as they surrounded and attacked a group of people.

The besieged group consisted of about twenty people. They were all gathered together in a strange formation, led by none other than the Array Department’s Steward—Fang Qing—whom Zhang Deming had met several times before.

The positioning of the twenty or so people, by itself, looked very abstract; it was impossible to describe its specific shape.

However, Fang Qing, standing at the center of the group, was using a peculiar Array to link them all together, enveloping them in a transparent Energy Light Curtain.

’The interconnected Light Curtain formed a Dragon Fish with a strange aesthetic... hmm, the kind you’d see in an ancient, traditional New Year’s painting.’

By linking everyone together, Fang Qing controlled the Dragon Fish formed by the Array, using it to battle the three silvery-white robots.

To be precise, they were just stalling. Two scrapped robots already lay on the ground, and Fang Qing’s group seemed to be in very poor shape, perhaps from the effort of destroying them.

A faint Power of Computation rose from the body of the ancient-painting-style Dragon Fish. With this power, they were able to fight the three silvery-white robots while minimizing their expenditure.

But because they had to stop the three robots from approaching the Light Gate behind them, the Dragon Fish couldn’t dodge completely and was forced into a battle of attrition, trying to conserve as much energy as possible.

Zhang Deming glanced at the battle and saw that while their condition was poor, the situation wasn’t critical. They could probably hold on for a long time.

Therefore, a gray mist swirled around Zhang Deming’s body as he ignored them, quietly creeping westward instead. The constant tremors and explosions rocking the entire Secret Realm Grotto Heaven were all coming from that direction.

As Zhang Deming passed the group, neither side seemed to notice him. Only Fang Qing frowned slightly and glanced toward the entrance. He had sensed a fluctuation but saw no one.

The entire Secret Realm wasn’t large, but it wasn’t small either—about the same size as the core area of the Cyan Wood Secret Realm. However, its architectural style was somewhat different.

A few scattered buildings sat at its center, all constructed from silver and black metal components. At the very heart of the complex stood a pavilion, its style and construction identical to the Turtle Water Scripture Pavilion.

In a corner of the building complex was a sizable plaza where a Light Gate was currently shimmering.

There were actually quite a few such Light Gates throughout the Secret Realm. However, the others were all located on the peripheral Space walls, appearing as breaches in the spatial barrier—just like the one Zhang Deming had used to enter.

Only this particular Light Gate stood independently at the center of an Array Platform in the plaza. Furthermore, it appeared the Array Platform beneath it was designed to be detachable. That platform alone was likely worth as much as a Three-Star Magical Artifact.

After a careful look, Zhang Deming cautiously skirted past the scattered buildings and arrived at the western side of the Secret Realm.

The once-lush green grass of the western plains had completely vanished. As if it had suffered some terrible devastation, the ground was now pockmarked with craters and covered in scorch marks.

It looked like a battlefield that had endured an apocalyptic bombardment, and the shelling hadn’t even stopped.

In a corner of the plains, Dang Ketao was covered by a Fiery Red, transparent Shield, constantly weaving and dodging across the terrain.

Behind him was Duan Fangchun. Despite only having a Human Realm Cultivation and being a Martial Artist, he was wielding a large, silvery-white blade and violently hacking at Dang Ketao, a cultivator at the Earth Realm.

All around them, countless knee-high Earth Puppets coordinated with Duan Fangchun to corner Dang Ketao.

The Puppets weren’t large and were made entirely of earth. Unlike the one he’d seen before, these were just like simple mud dolls. No disgusting slime oozed from them, nor did they have scabby skin; they were just Ordinary earth dolls.

As Dang Ketao dodged, bizarrely shaped, Fiery Red flying birds constantly emerged from his body, pouncing on either the Puppets or the pursuing Duan Fangchun.

The moment the birds made contact, they would detonate in a violent explosion.

If Duan Fangchun ever stopped his pursuit, Dang Ketao would immediately halt, unleashing dense swarms of Firebirds from his body. He would stand his ground and let loose a frenzied bombardment, his firepower terrifyingly immense.

And so it went: when Duan Fangchun gave chase, Dang Ketao ran. If Duan Fangchun ignored him to go mess with the Light Gate, he would stand his ground and unleash a bombardment.

It looked as though the Martial Artist and his field of Puppets were overwhelming Dang Ketao. However, because his opponents specialized in Close Combat Techniques, Dang Ketao was able to employ master-level kiting tactics: ”When the enemy advances, I retreat; when the enemy camps, I harass; when the enemy tires, I attack; when the enemy retreats, I pursue.”

He alone was effortlessly keeping his opponents tied down. Compared to the struggles of Fang Qing and his group, this scene, while appearing intense, was actually being handled with relative ease.

After observing for a moment, Zhang Deming hesitated, then took a step forward, beginning to sneak toward the battlefield. But halfway through the step, both he and the swarm of Puppets chasing Dang Ketao froze in unison.