The Programmer Cultivator-Chapter 112 - 2: Soft, Not Hard?

Zhang Deming’s eyes widened in realization as he looked at the others. A faint Spirit Wind swirled around their feet as well. He chuckled and said,

"What can I say? I’m not a brave person, so I always have to put a little extra effort into my life-saving skills."

Hek Tuan also struck up a conversation in a friendly tone. "Junior Brother, how many years have you been with the Sect?"

Zhang Deming replied without batting an eye, "About five or six years."

Ling’er and Feng Mingyou both glanced at Zhang Deming, but he remained perfectly calm.

"Learning the Agility Technique in just five years and even cultivating it to the Mastery stage... Junior Brother, you truly have an incredible Talent.

That explains it!

I was wondering... we’re all out here looking for resources, yet Junior Brother Feng was still willing to bring you along for experience. You must be a talented junior from his clan."

Zhang Deming was in no mood to get chummy with him, so he decided to skip the mutual flattery.

He looked at the group and said, "Come on, let’s get going."

The others nodded and shot forward like lightning.

Zhang Deming didn’t run at full speed, as his Agility Technique was about twenty percent faster than everyone else’s.

He followed the main group, matching their pace as he ran.

"Senior Sister Ling’er, what exactly are you trying to do?"

Zhang Deming adjusted his position, moving next to Ling’er. The two of them, with a tacit understanding, fell back slightly from the rest of the group.

The others glanced back silently but said nothing.

"What? Are you the only one allowed to come into the mountains for resources? Am I not?" Ling’er asked, her tone feigning anger.

Zhang Deming chuckled. "Is that so? What a coincidence. It must be fate for us to run into each other and even end up on the same team."

"Isn’t it just!" Ling’er murmured.

Zhang Deming: "..."

"With your status, Senior Sister, do you really need to worry about resources for your promotion?

Shouldn’t you just have to wait until your Spiritual Qi is at its peak? Top-tier resources would be delivered right to your door without you even needing to apply, wouldn’t they?" Zhang Deming asked.

Ling’er looked at him in confusion. "What are you talking about?"

’What is this chubby girl playing at?’

’Does she look down on her down-and-out childhood sweetheart, or not? Does she want to be my wife, or is this all some game?’

"Are you playing dumb, Senior Sister?" Zhang Deming asked, exasperated.

Seeing Zhang Deming’s frustration, Ling’er’s mood instantly brightened, her eyes curving into smiling crescents.

She smiled sweetly. "Don’t be so angry, Junior Brother. It won’t work on me. I respond to a soft touch, not a heavy hand."

Zhang Deming was momentarily stunned. The chubby girl’s looks were now off the charts, especially when combined with fantasy-level makeup and beauty techniques.

That smile was devastating.

After a moment’s daze, Zhang Deming replied, "Oh, is that so? Well, faced with a beauty like you, Senior Sister, I suppose I’ll never be able to be ’soft’ enough for your tastes."

A flicker of confusion crossed Ling’er’s eyes. Meanwhile, the four others, who had been straining their ears to figure out what the two were up to, suddenly had the strangest expressions on their faces.

Having said his piece, Zhang Deming immediately sprinted to the front of the group to take the lead.

Ling’er looked at the others’ odd expressions, replaying the last two lines of her exchange with Zhang Deming in her head.

After a long moment, her face flushed red, her cheeks blushing like a sunset cloud. She whispered shyly, "That jerk... he’s teasing me again!"

Her coquettish expression, completely devoid of any real anger, made the looks on the other four’s faces even stranger.

Hua Wei and Hek Tuan shot questioning looks at Yuling and Feng Mingyou, who in turn shared a rare glance with each other.

Without another word, the group sped toward the primeval forest on the back mountain and plunged in without hesitation.

...

The group of six moved swiftly through the dense, primeval forest.

As they ventured deeper, they passed through the designated safe zone and entered the danger zone.

Here, there were no more of the Sect’s Law Enforcement Patrol Teams, nor were there any Disciples completing their daily tasks.

The Outer Disciples who came this far were either exceptionally bold or searching for rare resources.

The Hengduan Mountain Range was a web of intersecting Spirit Veins, which made the distribution of Demon Beasts in the area exceptionally chaotic.

Of course, in these deep mountains where few people ventured, precious resources were far from scarce.

They didn’t necessarily need to find the specific resources for their own promotions; finding any valuable promotion-grade resource would suffice.

If they found something they didn’t need, they could turn it in to the Resources Department in exchange for Contribution points.

Then, they could use those points to acquire what they actually needed. It was the fastest way to earn a large amount of Contribution.

Of course, if one had the right connections, they could also trade materials directly with other people.

After all, trading through the Resources Department involved a significant loss of value on anything other than the primary materials; selling one item and buying another would cost a fair amount of Contribution in the process.

After several hours of travel, the group had moved from running along the forest floor to leaping through the treetops.

As they went deeper, the area had become a true primeval jungle, devoid of any trace of human activity.

The undergrowth below was dense, making travel not only difficult but also extremely dangerous.

"Alright, let’s rest for a moment!

Now that we’re past the outer region, we must always keep over eighty percent of our Spiritual Power in reserve in case of an emergency."

Hua Wei took the initiative to speak as they landed on a massive, broad-leafed tree. As he finished, he made a point to glance at Zhang Deming and Ling’er, who were both only Intermediate Apprentices.

Hearing this, the group stopped, each finding a branch to rest on.

"Let’s head northeast from here. We should stay away from the south," Ling’er said suddenly during the break.

"Why would we—"

"Okay!"

"Okay."

Before Hek Tuan could even finish his question, both Feng Mingyou and Yuling had agreed.

Hua Wei frowned slightly. He looked at the two of them, finding their quick agreement strange.

He didn’t understand why they were willing to let a mere Intermediate Apprentice call the shots.

However, since they had only decided on a general area and not a specific route, he didn’t press the minor issue.

Yuling noted that Feng Mingyou had agreed just as readily as she had.

She glanced at Feng Mingyou again, then over at the silent Zhang Deming, a thoughtful look on her face.

Hek Tuan glanced around at the others, then simply shut his mouth and said no more.

He faintly sensed that he was being excluded.

It seemed that the two pairs—the seniors with their juniors—were forming a clique, implicitly pushing him and Hua Wei to the outside.

Although nothing was said explicitly, their subconscious actions made it clear. Stranger still, this division seemed to stem entirely from some ambiguous entanglement between the two juniors.

He glanced at the smiling Hua Wei, then back at the two young people, lost in thought.

Just then, a massive shadow blotted out the sun from overhead. Everyone looked up in unison.

A giant eagle streaked across the sky, vanishing from sight in an instant.

"Has Demon Beast activity in the back mountains been unusually frequent lately?

Tai Chi Stage Demon Beasts used to be a rare sight in these parts, but they feel more common recently."

Feng Mingyou muttered, but his gaze drifted toward Ling’er and Yuling.

The two women acted as if they hadn’t heard, quietly continuing to restore their Spiritual Power without responding.