Seven days passed in the blink of an eye.
Qiu Wuji stood atop the mountain, gazing at the moon.
Everyone's time was different… Just as Chu Ge could write "Seven days later" in a flash, seven days had truly passed for her.
Of course, during these seven days, "the characters did their own thing, the plot wasn't written out."
Qiu Wuji didn't attempt to break through the boundary again during these seven days. Thanks to his "patches," breaking through the boundary no longer seemed so difficult or dangerous; the current problem was that her divine soul wasn't sufficiently tempered, and she hadn't stayed in the realm long enough.
Chu Ge could deduce additional characteristics for her based on her behavior, but he couldn't forcibly increase her raw strength; a logical process was needed.
Therefore, she calmed down and focused on tempering her divine soul, while also observing Chu Tiange's performance in the Scripture Pavilion.
He reached the third level, but unfortunately, the sect's tiered system had its reasons; it wasn't purely for stratification. His cultivation wasn't sufficient, and even at the third level, he couldn't comprehend anything. The techniques on this level were too profound for him.
Chu Tiange wasn't discouraged. As promised, he took a technique he liked and kept it for future study. Then he returned to the second level to diligently cultivate what he needed to learn.
Excellent qualities.
Qiu Wuji sighed, offering no praise for these qualities. All of Chu Tiange's qualities were figments of Chu Ge's imagination—piling all sorts of excellent qualities onto his protagonist. What was there to praise?
Just like his own qualities seemed unworthy of praise either—steadfastness, compassion, pride, even his beauty—all were creations of Chu Ge.
Forget it, Qiu Wuji was too lazy to consider those things for now.
What was truly lamentable was the information revealed by these three barriers.
Chu Tiange couldn't learn the technique even after entering the third level, and had no choice but to retreat to the second... Was this inevitable, or was it an obstacle thwarted by fate?
After all, Chu Ge wrote "second level," meaning it was predetermined by fate. Did his mention of the second level mean it was the only option?
What about her battle with the Poison Hand Demon Lord?
Chu Tiange hadn't "discerned the truth," so it was understandable that he couldn't break through the unseen will of Heaven.
But I have discerned it, I foresee it... what will happen then?
Chu Ge's words flashed through her mind: "Our test is precisely to ask... what fate has in store?"
Qiu Wuji took a deep breath and transmitted her voice through the mountains: "Let's go." A distance of tens of thousands of miles wasn't a short distance for a cultivation sect with families and disciples.
Qiu Wuji flew through the air on her sword, looking at her disciples crammed onto magical artifacts behind her, wondering what the speed of the flying machines in that world was, and which was superior?
Deep down, she still felt that being able to fly through her own cultivation was definitely better.
But for a society to enable ordinary people who don't need cultivation to fly and teleport is remarkable; it's what it means to be able to carry the world.
Each has its own advantages.
It's precisely because that world has so many fascinating aspects that we need to understand it.
Next time I go, I'll definitely be better prepared.
But perhaps… the difficulties will become clearer.
... Chu Ge is on the phone with a friend.
Yang Dingtian: "ID card? Lost it? Just get a new one. The processing fee is 20." This guy using the Ming Cult leader's ID is Chu Ge's college classmate, named Lin Wuyang. After graduation, he passed the civil service exam and became a proud people's police officer. Chu Ge doesn't know why Lin Wuyang and Zhang Qiren always like to use boastful little brothers as their IDs. Is it because they're actually quite small?
Nanjiang City is a provincial capital. Although it's only considered a third-tier city nationally, one advantage is that not many college classmates scatter to different places after graduation; most still work and live in the same city. It's a pity that these days, college classmates rarely keep in touch after graduation. Aside from the occasional gathering, even WeChat groups are practically dead.
The longer it's been since graduation, the more completely those groups disappear… Close friends will have smaller, more intimate groups.
Lin Wuyang and Chu Ge had only a casual relationship; they hadn't spoken for years. Chu Ge didn't even know which department Lin Wuyang was in now. This sudden visit made him feel a little embarrassed, and the other party's lukewarm attitude was expected and perfectly normal.
"Uh, it's not that I lost my ID card, I just got into a forum argument about the census, so I'm consulting an expert."
"Tsk, this great writer is really passionate, even having the leisure to argue about the census on a forum." Lin Wuyang casually replied to someone on a forum with "SB, NMSL," while righteously telling Chu Ge, "Unlike us, the burdens of life are weighing us down, making us more and more Buddhist each day."
Chu Ge: "Want to go from Buddha to demon in a few days? It's easy, just publish a book on Qidian, get a recommendation, and look at the comments."
"Come on, I don't have that time. Speaking of which, I think your little white novels are really badly written, if you can make money from this, maybe I can too..."
"Yes, yes, yes, then the census..." "Check..."
"I'm not an expert on this either. I'm not in household registration, but I know a little about the basics. What specific aspect are you asking about?"
"People say that these days, population censuses are just for show because there are practically no unregistered households anymore. I think there are, maybe abandoned babies picked up by scavengers or beggars in the old days..."
"Are you writing a story?" Lin Wuyang said helplessly, "What you're describing might have existed a long time ago, but I'm afraid it's really nonexistent now. However, people who have never been registered might still exist in small numbers in impoverished mountainous areas, but even now they are very rare."
"Yes, yes, that's it. That's why the country needs a population census, right?"
"Yes... You can go reply to the other side on the forum now. It's a bit... "Hey."
"So, in this kind of census, you just register someone's household registration?"
"I'm not entirely sure about the specifics, but it should be possible, as long as their identity is confirmed."
"When is the next census?"
"Usually once every ten years, just last year." Chu Ge: "..." Lin Wuyang sensed something was off: "Is this something you need to ask to start a fight?" Chu Ge remained calm: "We're just chatting about this, so I'm just adding a few more words. It's called social research." Chu Ge's identity as a writer gave him an advantage in questioning, and Lin Wuyang obviously didn't think too much about it: "Shouldn't a writer say they're doing field research to have that feel?"
"Then let's do field research. By the way, if it's not during a census period..." "Can those unregistered residents register their own households?"
"I really don't know. I'm not in the household registration department, and this kind of thing is so rare that I think even the household registration department would have to send a letter to ask their superiors. Speaking of which, if you're really researching and writing about this, it's just making up an online novel; there's no need to be so serious. Just make something up. I've seen people even have 'Guardian Gods of War' these days, and nobody says it's impossible."
"That's true… Let's have dinner together sometime."
"Speaking of which, we might have a gathering soon, it's our fifth anniversary, right? Old Hong and I were talking about it the other day… We'll see in the group chat then."
"Okay, we'll talk about it later." Lin Wuyang exited WeChat and checked the forum, finding his account had been banned.
He skillfully created a new account and started a thread: "Just a passerby, to be honest, wasn't that post normal? It really is a private forum, banning people arbitrarily…"
A knock sounded at the door.
Lin Wuyang quickly closed the forum, got up, and opened the door, his expression quickly becoming somewhat obsequious.
The woman before him was so beautiful. It was a pity he was already married. Sigh… If only they had met before he was married.
"President Gu, hello, hello. What are your instructions?"
Gu Ruoyan smiled politely. "Section Chief Lin, you're too kind… I don't know about the materials I requested a while ago…"
"Well, to be honest, they are indeed a bit difficult… We need time."
"I will stay in Nanjiang City for a while longer. Hopefully, there will be good news."