Chapter 85: Paper (3)
85 – Paper (3)
Looking at this symbol, Lin Xun vaguely had a guess in his heart.
He left the System Space and picked up the keyboard from his backpack.
Sure enough, the keyboard logo in reality had also turned into that small red sword.
He ran his hand over the symbol, and the next moment, it grew slightly warm. The air before his eyes seemed to ripple with a faint disturbance, and the keyboard in his hand underwent a surprising transformation. The keycaps slowly retracted, eventually disappearing into the dark silver base. Then, the base and frame shifted, accompanied by the sound of metal grinding as they stretched, combined, and extended, finally turning into—
A sword.
A dark silver sword, without any patterns, the blade about fifty centimeters long—a bit short, but its narrow blade gave it an elegant and smooth appearance. Overall, it was very simple, without a single decorative pattern, looking almost like a crudely made children’s toy. Yet it was quite heavy, almost the same weight as his keyboard.
Well, a sword keyboard.
Lin Xun began exploring how to use programs with this sword keyboard. He felt the system understood his level and wouldn’t cut off his path to survival.
Sure enough, the interface representing his own program could be controlled with his mind—copy, paste, select, run.
Lin Xun felt this liberated his hands. He tried inputting something new—if he could rely entirely on mental input, this upgrade would be perfect. Being able to write programs just by thinking was probably the dream of many programmers, much like how authors wish that providing an idea would automatically fill a document with three thousand words.
However, when he attempted to input the first letter with his mind, the hilt in his hand trembled slightly, reverting back to its keyboard form.
At the same time, a mechanical voice sounded: “Current magical artifact does not support this function.”
That’s fine too. Lin Xun knew his hope was almost a pipe dream. Being able to somewhat reduce complex operational procedures and appear more in line with the style of a Cultivation practitioner in front of the elders of the cultivation world was already a great gift from the system.
Steadying his mind, Lin Xun ate something quickly, tidied up a bit, and headed out to the West District.
The location was opposite Qi Yun’s talent agency. They gathered at a KFC, with over twenty people in total according to the list. As soon as Lin Xun got out of the car, he saw Chang Ji approaching from the same direction.
They exchanged greetings, and Lin Xun asked, “Qi Yun didn’t come?”
Chang Ji: “Still a fish.”
Lin Xun: “What’s he doing?”
Chang Ji: “Sleeping.”
Lin Xun: “Sleeping this long?”
It was already afternoon.
Chang Ji replied, “The bathtub was uncomfortable, so he couldn’t sleep at night.”
Lin Xun felt a slight urge to laugh.
They walked side by side into KFC. First, they saw Old Man Huo with a cup of Coke in front of him, sipping it leisurely as if it were premium oolong tea, perhaps even with goji berries added.
Senior Xiaoyaozi, a believer in health preservation, had no food in front of him, only a large scroll. Butterfly Madam sat on a high stool, wearing oversized sunglasses and talking on the phone with someone, saying things like “coordinate the venue.” Gushan Jun seemed to have a crush on her and was trying to curry favor. Bihai Xianzi wore a light, ethereal gauze dress, her jet-black long hair adorned with a seashell accessory. She was counting bottles and jars: “Spirit Recovery Pills, Spirit Gathering Pills, Hemostatic Herbs… should be enough.”
The group was a mix of modern attire, Taoist robes, square scarves, and feathered crowns, wielding all sorts of weapons. Fortunately, this was an area clustered with film and television companies, and the nearby patrons seemed to take it all in stride.
“Disciple,” Old Man Huo called out affectionately, beckoning him over as he arrived. “Why are you hiding?”
Lin Xun coughed lightly, glanced around the restaurant, and still didn’t remove his mask. Online rumors about him were spreading like wildfire, and he wasn’t sure just how far they’d gone. It was one thing for his photos to be leaked, but if he were caught with a whole table of eccentrically dressed seniors from the cultivation world, things would get far too lively.
Lin Xun replied, “Your disciple is allergic to the air.”
Old Man Huo remained unperturbed, ignoring his nonsense. “I haven’t seen you return home these past few days, no idea where you’ve been wandering off to. Come, let your master check your cultivation progress.”
Lin Xun stepped forward.
Old Man Huo extended his hand.
Lin Xun offered his right wrist.
Old Man Huo, calm and composed, closed his eyes and brought his index and middle fingers together, lightly sweeping them across Lin Xun’s wrist. His movements flowed like clouds and water, exuding an air of natural grace and an aura of immortality.
Lin Xun watched his master silently, counting down in his mind.
Three, two, one.
Suddenly, Old Man Huo’s eyes snapped open!
“Unworthy disciple!” Old Man Huo glared at him, his gaze cold and sharp as an arrow, and hissed in a low voice, “Have you been dual cultivating with some demonic fiend?”