Preparations

Seven days passed in a flash.

Qiu Wuji stood atop the mountain, gazing up at the moon.

Time did not pass the same way for everyone... Chu Ge could write "seven days later" in an instant, but she had truly lived through all seven days.

Of course, during those seven days, "the characters were doing their own things in scenes the story hadn't covered."

Qiu Wuji made no further attempts to cross between worlds during those seven days. Thanks to his "patch," breaking through no longer seemed quite so difficult or dangerous. The problem now was that her Divine Soul had not been tempered enough, leaving her unable to stay for long.

Chu Ge could extrapolate from her actions and give her new traits, but he could not forcibly raise her actual strength. That required a process consistent with "logic."

So she settled down to temper her Divine Soul, while also observing Chu Tiange's performance in the Scripture Pavilion.

-He had reached the third floor, but unfortunately, the sect had its reasons for arranging the floors as it did. They were not simply there to divide people into ranks. His cultivation was insufficient, so even on the third floor, he could comprehend little. All the cultivation methods there were too profound for him.

Chu Tiange was not discouraged. As agreed, he selected a cultivation manual he liked and kept it to study in the future. Then he returned to the second floor and diligently practiced what he ought to learn at his current level.

An excellent quality.

Qiu Wuji sighed, feeling no particular admiration for that quality. All of Chu Tiange's qualities were products of that bastard Chu Ge's wish fulfillment. He piled every good trait onto his protagonist-what was there to praise?

Just as there seemed to be nothing worth praising about her own qualities. Her resolve, compassion, pride, even her beauty-all of it had been designed by him.

Never mind. For now, Qiu Wuji could not be bothered to think about those things.

What truly warranted a sigh was what that barrier between floors revealed.

Chu Tiange had reached the third floor but could not learn anything, leaving him no choice but to return to the second... Was that simply natural, or was heaven's will holding him back?

After all, Chu Ge had written the second floor, making it heaven's predetermined decree. If he said the second floor, could it only ever be the second floor?

Then what about her battle with the Poison-Hand Demon Lord?

Chu Tiange had not "seen through reality." It was understandable that he could not break through the unseen will of heaven.

But I've seen through it. I know what's coming... What will happen then?

Chu Ge's words flashed through her mind. "This test of ours is precisely to ask... what will heaven's will do?"

Qiu Wuji took a deep breath and sent her voice ringing through the mountains. "Set out."

For a cultivation sect traveling with a whole entourage of disciples, a journey of ten thousand miles was not something they could complete in an instant.

Qiu Wuji flew through the air on her sword, watching the disciples crowded onto magical artifacts behind her. She wondered how fast the flying machines in that other world traveled, and which was better.

Deep down, she still felt that being able to fly through one's own cultivation was naturally superior.

But for a society, enabling ordinary people to soar through the skies and travel beneath the earth without any cultivation at all was an extraordinary achievement. That was what it meant to carry the world.

Each had its advantages.

It was precisely because that world had so many fascinating things that she wanted to understand it.

The next time she went over, she would be better prepared.

Only perhaps... the difficulties would become increasingly clear as well.

Chu Ge was talking to a friend.

Yang Dingtian: "An ID card? If you lost it, just apply for a replacement. The processing fee's twenty."

The guy using the Ming Cult leader's name as his username was Chu Ge's college classmate, whose real name was Lin Wuyang. After graduation, he had passed the civil service exam and become a proud member of the People's Police. Chu Ge had no idea why guys like Lin Wuyang and Zhang Qiren always liked usernames that bragged about their dicks. Was it because they were actually tiny?

Nanjiang City was a provincial capital. Although it was only a third-tier city nationally, one advantage was that few of their college classmates had scattered across the country after graduation. Most still lived and worked in the same city. Unfortunately, these days, college classmates rarely stayed in touch after graduating. Aside from the occasional reunion, even their WeChat group was dead.

The more years passed after graduation, the deader the group became... Classmates who were genuinely close had their own smaller groups.

Lin Wuyang and Chu Ge were only casual friends, and they had not spoken in years. Chu Ge did not even know which section or department Lin Wuyang now worked in. Contacting him out of the blue like this made him feel a little embarrassed. The other man's lukewarm attitude was expected, and perfectly normal.

"Uh, I didn't lose my own ID. I was just arguing with someone on a forum about the census, so I thought I'd consult an expert."

"Tsk, you big-time writers really are passionate. You even have the leisure to argue on forums." Lin Wuyang casually replied to someone on a forum, "Dumbass, your mom's dead," while solemnly telling Chu Ge, "Not like us. The burdens of life weigh us down so much, we get more zen by the day." Chu Ge said, "It's easy enough to go from zen to demonic in a few days. Publish a book on Qidian, get it featured, then read the comments."

"Oh, please. Who has time for that? Honestly, the prose in those popcorn novels you guys write is terrible. If that can make money, maybe I could too..."

"Yes, yes. So, about the census..."

"I'm no expert on that either. I don't work in household registration, though I know a little about the basics. What exactly are you asking?"

"Someone said censuses these days are just for show, because there aren't any unregistered people left. I figured there must be, right? Like an abandoned baby picked up by a scavenger or beggar years ago..."

"Are you writing a story here?" Lin Wuyang said helplessly. "That sort of thing might have happened a long time ago, but probably not anymore. There might still be a few people in impoverished mountain regions who've never been registered, though. Even that's extremely rare now."

"Right, right, that's what I mean. That's why the country still needs a census, isn't it?"

"Yeah... You can go reply to that guy on the forum now. Keep it civil."

"So when the census finds people like that, do they get registered straight away?"

"I don't really know the specifics. I suppose they can, if their identity is established."

"Then when's the next census?"

"Usually once every ten years. We just had one last year."

Chu Ge: "..."

Lin Wuyang sensed something was off. "You need to ask all this just to argue with someone?"

Chu Ge remained perfectly calm. "We got onto the subject, so I asked a few more questions. It's called social research."

Being a writer did give Chu Ge an advantage when asking questions and seeking advice. Lin Wuyang clearly did not think much of it. "Shouldn't a writer call it gathering material? That sounds more authentic."

"Then I'm gathering material. Say, outside the census period, can those unregistered people go and get themselves registered?"

"I honestly don't know. I don't work in household registration, and this is so rare that I reckon even they'd have to send an inquiry up the chain. Anyway, if you really are gathering material to write about this, it's only a webnovel. No need to be so exacting. Just make something up. I see people writing about nation-protecting war gods these days, and nobody says they can't."

"True enough... Let's grab a meal sometime."

"Speaking of which, we might have a reunion soon. It's our fifth anniversary, right? Old Hong mentioned it to me a while back... Keep an eye on the group."

"Sure. We'll talk then."

Lin Wuyang closed WeChat, refreshed the forum, and discovered that his account had been muted.

With practiced ease, he switched to an alternate account and started a thread. "Just an impartial passerby speaking honestly: wasn't that last post perfectly normal? A private forum really can mute people whenever it likes..."

There was a knock at the door.

Lin Wuyang hurriedly closed the forum and got up to open the door, his expression swiftly turning somewhat obsequious.

The woman before him was stunning. Unfortunately, he was married. Ah... if only they had met before he married.

"Hello, President Gu, hello. What can I do for you?"

Gu Ruoyan smiled politely. "You're too kind, Section Chief Lin... About the materials I requested a while ago..."

"Well, to be honest, it really is a little difficult... We need time."

"I'll be staying in Nanjiang City for a while longer. I hope there'll be good news."

Thanks to Qingzhouzhouzhou for the 2,000 tip, and to This Is Grassland, Melon-Munching Bookworm, and Suifeng Raorao for the 500 tips...

(End of chapter)

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