Isn't This a Game? Why Are You All Cultivating for Real!

Chapter 106: Chapter 106: Developing the Beginner’s Village

Shuitan said nothing.

’When facing someone of this High Level, it was impossible to guess their intentions. Staying silent was the best course of action.’

Senior Sister Ming narrowed her eyes at him. "Why so quiet all of a sudden?"

Shuitan pursed his lips. "I don’t know what to say."

"At least you’re honest." Senior Sister Ming seemed amused. She suddenly reached out and tossed something. A glowing object flew right in front of Shuitan.

Shuitan focused his gaze and saw it was a Jiezidai.

It looked exquisite, not like a simple one.

"This is a Third-Rank Jiezidai. It’s one I no longer use, so it’s not much good to me anyway. Take it as a greeting gift."

Shuitan was astonished.

The system was shocked too. "Is this for real?"

’Hold on, aren’t Cultivators in the Cultivation World supposed to be cold and aloof? How come the ones the players run into are so friendly?’

The system conveniently forgot about the unscrupulous Jin Shu, whom Song Jiulai had encountered at the very beginning.

Shuitan, however, didn’t show much excitement. He simply accepted Senior Sister Ming’s gift naturally. "Thank you, Senior Sister."

Senior Sister Ming looked Shuitan up and down, then left him with a final sentence: "Junior Brother, I wish you luck."

With that, she turned and left.

After she was gone, the system couldn’t help but click its tongue. "Are people from the Sea View Sect this generous?"

"Generosity means there’s a problem."

Shuitan said, "The Sea View Sect has so many disciples. Is she going to take care of every single one of them?"

’Is there something special about me?’

’No, there isn’t.’

’His talent wasn’t particularly stunning in the Sea View Sect. Reaching the Qi Refinement Realm at his age already made him trash in many people’s eyes.’

’And Senior Sister Ming is a disciple of the Second Peak.’

’The only thing special about him was that he was a disciple of the Fifth Elder.’

Shuitan said, "There’s a huge problem with the Fifth Elder, isn’t there? You just haven’t told me."

Shuitan had known for a while that the system was aware of this but hadn’t mentioned it.

Besides, he’d seen enough TV shows in the real world to know—the Fifth Elder was clearly not a good guy.

He had been a soldier in real life, and he had a natural aversion to that kind of malevolent aura.

It now seemed the Fifth Elder’s problems were far from trivial.

’Senior Sister Ming’s gift was either out of pity or because she’s looking forward to a good show.’

’Shuitan had a strong feeling it was the latter.’

’Especially considering her parting words.’

The system was aghast. "You’re actually pretty smart."

"..." Shuitan was a bit speechless. "No one is nice to you for no reason, especially not in the Cultivation World. Isn’t that obvious?"

System: "It’s fine. If someone gives you something, just take it."

Shuitan: "I know."

He would hold onto these things. Not only could he use them himself, but if things went south, he could just donate them to the Sect at the last minute.

That way, no one could take them from him. So now, whatever people gave him, Shuitan would just take it.

The system told Song Jiulai about what happened with Shuitan, but it started by just mentioning that Senior Sister Ming had given him a gift. Song Jiulai was alarmed. "This smells like a trap, doesn’t it?"

The system was puzzled. "Why do you think so too? Back then, Mu Qiu took stuff from another Cultivator, and you didn’t think there was a problem."

"How is that the same?" Song Jiulai retorted. "Mu Qiu took the belongings of a dying Cultivator—the person was already on their way out. But who is this in Shuitan’s case? Senior Sister Ming from the Second Peak. Why would someone give him a greeting gift for no reason? Shuitan’s character face isn’t even that good-looking, so it’s definitely not for his looks. You can’t tell me Senior Sister Ming has such a discerning eye she could see the resolute heart beneath Shuitan’s plain exterior at a single glance, right?"

System: "..."

’That’s true.’

System: "It seems we were too optimistic before. I think the other peaks in the Sea View Sect know something about the Fifth Elder’s situation."

"Whether they know the details or not, they probably know the Fifth Elder treats his disciples poorly. After all, people in high positions sometimes develop twisted behaviors, and the other peaks can’t really interfere." Song Jiulai’s eyes darted around. "We just need to ask about the Fifth Elder’s other disciples. Shuitan probably isn’t the first."

The system went, "Tsk. Looks like the players’ luck isn’t half bad."

The Cultivation World places great stock in things like karma and luck. Those who managed to snag a game slot early on all had a bit of mystical fortune on their side.

For example, Zhen Weida died the first time but still managed to grab a spot a second time.

How could you not call that lucky?

No one from the base got a spot, yet Shuitan somehow managed to. That was also interesting.

Song Jiulai slapped his thigh in a huff. "Then why is my luck so bad?"

The system replied meaningfully, "The fact that you haven’t run into any trouble-making players yet is, in itself, a stroke of good luck."

"..."

Song Jiulai actually thought that made sense.

After all, the players were operating under the Longevity Sect’s name. If they went out to train and caused trouble while using the Sect’s reputation, it could easily lead to disaster.

But right now, aside from having a lot of ideas, the players were all quite well-behaved.

This was probably related to their desire to keep playing the game long-term.

I mean, they had already gotten into a full-dive virtual reality game. Causing trouble could lead to the game being shut down, and no one was willing to take that gamble.

Besides, no truly bizarre players had emerged within the Sect.

Except for Su Daqiang, who had really screwed up big time at the beginning, everyone was now behaving themselves in the Sect, like obedient little Blue Elves.

The system then asked, "When are you planning to let in the next batch of players?"

Song Jiulai calculated the time. "I was originally planning to wait until I reached the Foundation Establishment Stage, but now that I think about it, that’s too long."

The system’s mission required a player in the Sect to reach the Foundation Establishment Stage within half a year.

And this batch of new players had already spent nearly two months in the game, which was almost a full month in the real world.

Normally, a game’s open beta test would have ended long ago.

But everyone knew, deep down, that this game would likely never leave its testing phase.

The more people there were, the harder they were to manage. Song Jiulai came up with a terrible idea. "I’ve been thinking about something. Since I can send players to be undercover agents, can I place them directly into other sects without any contact with the Longevity Sect? Shuitan, for instance, first appeared in the Longevity Sect, which still leaves traces that people can follow."

System: "The distance would be too great, making them difficult to manage. Placing them in places like the Taohua Sect might have some potential, but Major Sects like the Sea View Sect are out of the question right now. Their administration is extremely strict. Even mortals are registered on file. A sudden new person would definitely arouse suspicion."

The Sea View Sect even requires visiting Cultivators to register and limits their stay to just seven days.

Sending new players who only have Qi Refinement level cultivation over there would get them exposed in minutes.

We can’t just have new players start the game in hell mode.

Song Jiulai narrowed his eyes. "So you’re saying the Taohua Sect is a possibility? I remember our neighbors also include the Netherworld Sect and the Liuyun Sect."

System: "It should be possible, but the players definitely wouldn’t be as safe as they are in the Longevity Sect."

Song Jiulai clapped his hands. "Easy. We’ll offer them higher point rewards and let them choose whether to go or not. But for now, it’s just an idea. Once I reach a higher cultivation level, I’ll go scout the locations first."