The Programmer Cultivator

To think that just as you completed your mission, and before the Alliance even had a chance to investigate, the Five Elements Remnants would stir up trouble. And this time, it seems very different from the past.

Now, Elder Huang has issued a regional disaster relief mission on behalf of the Alliance. Even though the Alliance is currently operating in the shadows, as Hongmeng Cultivators, we still need to do our part in matters like this."

"Even without the mission and rewards, we would still give it our all!" Li Shifan was the first to reply.

"Don’t worry, Steward. We will do our best," Qin Shizhong also said.

Then, one by one, they all voiced their agreement. Even ten-year-old Qian Xiaogong hesitated before speaking up. "Even though I’m grounded, if I use my special move, I should be able to help a lot."

At his words, everyone turned to stare at him. The way he’d said "special move" had drawn their attention. Many of them sized him up, and the same thought popped into all their heads: ’Is his special move bursting into tears?’

Zhang Deming nodded. "I’m not too worried about the Cultivators. With aid from the major Upper Sects, this Martial Calamity won’t last long, no matter how chaotic it gets. After all, their power level is in a different league.

It’s the mortals I’m most worried about. I called you all here today to specifically remind you to do your best to look after them."

With that, Zhang Deming waved his hand. An image materialized in the center of the large, round table, flashing quickly. It showed the disaster relief process he and the others had undertaken—only the parts dealing with mortals, of course.

Since they were all present in their spiritual forms, communication was inherently fast, making the processing of such information even quicker. The playback finished in a mere moment.

"These were the initial disaster relief efforts of Painted Sword, Dragon and Snake, and Summoning Spirit. I’m showing you because it’s an effective method. If possible, you should follow this model.

Furthermore, if we can successfully organize the mortals, it will also benefit our Alliance. When the time comes, in addition to the standard rewards, there might even be a surprise waiting for us. Do any of you have suggestions on this matter?"

They all mulled it over. None of them seemed particularly concerned with the details of how to handle the mortals, so they just shook their heads. Qu Qingxian said, "I have no objections; it seems fine. But I can’t create that Square Seal."

Zhang Deming smiled. "That’s no problem. Just build the framework and leave a space for it. I’ll complete that step myself later, through your Celestial Spirit Sect."

"In that case, we have no problem. I’ll probably be out on a Sect mission with the senior brothers from the Elixir Department, as part of a healing team. I can work with my fellow disciples to set up plenty of these along our route.

If I bring it up, I doubt anyone will object. After all, the senior brothers in the combat teams aren’t likely to offend us on the healing team over something that’s so easy to do along the way," Feng Mingyou said.

One by one, they all agreed.

...

A moment later, Zhang Deming nodded. "Alright then, let’s consider the matter settled. I hope our relief efforts go smoothly and that we earn a generous reward from the Alliance."

Zhang Deming looked around at the group, then waved his hand. The Light Screen at the center of the table changed; the image vanished and was replaced by a few lines of text.

’Note: In addition to standard rewards, special rewards may be available. Completion conditions are unknown. All members are encouraged to strive for excellence.’

Everyone paused as they read the text. Even those with the worst memories recognized it as the notice from the mission briefing they had just seen in Xuanhua Tower.

As they were wondering, Zhang Deming spoke. "And for the third and final matter, I have some good news for you all. Due to certain circumstances, I’ve received a piece of information from the higher-ups.

A while back, the Alliance’s high command created a number of ’Heaven and Earth Seals.’ You could say these are one of the Alliance’s most valuable resources. For some unknown reason, the higher-ups plan to allocate a portion of them to our Celestial Spirit New District.

Therefore, these seals will be distributed as rewards soon, through some as-of-yet unknown method. Naturally, the difficulty of obtaining one won’t be nearly as high as it usually is.

So... I wish you all the best of luck. Frankly, if I weren’t obligated to share this information, I wouldn’t be telling you.

I no longer have need of one, but there are always others who do. The fact that I’m willing to say this to your faces should tell you just how precious these seals are.

Let me put it this way: of all the people in the Alliance who have obtained a Heaven and Earth Seal—excluding those who have since perished—the one with the least Talent still reached the peak of the Three Talents realm within a century and is now advancing toward the Four Symbols realm.

And the one with the best Talent... heh... not even I know what became of them!"

As Zhang Deming finished speaking, the eyes of everyone present burned with fervor. Many of them were already forming new plans, their motivation for the disaster relief mission now soaring.

Zhang Deming scanned the room. Seeing that he had finally gotten them fired up, he nodded in satisfaction. "That’s everything on my agenda. Let’s move on to open discussion. Does anyone have anything to add?"

After a moment of thought, Tong Hou spoke up. "Steward Zhang, you said we were free to open shops anywhere. Does that freedom extend to the region as well? For example, could I open a shop in another Blessed Land?"

Everyone was taken aback and turned to look at Tong Hou.

Zhang Deming tilted his head toward Tong Hou and smiled. "Within the Hongmeng Realm, if you have the means, you can sell your wares all the way to the Hongmeng Holy Land. For now, however, you’re on your own for transportation."

Tong Hou nodded. "I understand."

The others all had mixed expressions as they watched him. ’One hundred Spirit Nurturing Beads, and Tier One at that... would the profit even cover the travel expenses to another Blessed Land?’

After all, since the end of the ancient era, there were no more Teleportation Arrays in the Hongmeng Realm... Well... that wasn’t entirely accurate.

To be more precise, traditional Teleportation Arrays had all lost their function after the great war of antiquity. Newer methods of teleportation, however, were still viable.

What was a traditional Teleportation Array?

In layman’s terms, it involved establishing two arrays, initiating a state of quantum entanglement between them, and then teleporting goods or people.

In more scientific terms, it was the act of breaking through spatial barriers to establish a wormhole directly connecting point A to point B.

This was a traditional Teleportation Array. And after the great war of antiquity, just like the Divine Dao, the methods for creating such arrays still existed, but the underlying Dao had been severed. It was cut off at its very root, on a conceptual level, and from the Dao Spiritual Network itself.