Chapter 38: Departure

After lying on the shore for a while, Zhang Ji managed to regain some of his strength and stood up to look ahead.

Under the moonlight, the babbling brook had transformed into a surging river. This treasure site was clearly connected to Lake Gester; once the Moon Cup was removed, it triggered a mechanism that sent the lake water rushing out through the karst cave. He wondered who had designed all of this, and what the ultimate purpose was. If this were a game, he could blame it on some incompetent game designer, but in the real world, there had to be a logical explanation.

Zhang Ji felt it might be a test. The big shot who left the cup behind probably felt it was too easy to just give it away, so they added some difficulty. Only those who weren't killed by the surging flood were qualified to be the masters of the Moon Cup. Such things were not uncommon in the ancient history of this world’s setting, and it wasn't just in the Dongji Kingdom; many other nations had similar traditions.

Once he had rested, Zhang Ji opened his backpack to check his gear. He had prepared a full set of wilderness equipment, but most of it was now useless—not because it had been damaged by the water, but because it had been crushed. The gear was waterproof, but it wasn't impact-resistant.

The Moon Cup, however, remained completely unscathed. It looked like it was made of gold, but its durability far exceeded that of gold. Zhang Ji had accidentally bumped it several times earlier—to the point where he had hurt himself—yet the cup showed no signs of damage.

Zhang Ji was soaked to the bone, but he remained calm. He narrowed his eyes, and his senses began to perceive the air and the moisture clinging to his clothes. With a thought, the water within his garments began to rapidly coalesce, eventually forming a ball that landed in his palm. Zhang Ji flicked his wrist, and the water ball flew out, dissipating automatically after traveling three meters. That was the current limit of his control.

His mental strength was limited, and the techniques of the "Water Flow School" required immense mental fortitude; only a powerful mind could sense, borrow, and drive the forces of nature.

"I suppose I’ve finally touched the edge of it," Zhang Ji muttered to himself. "I can now perform basic sensing and manipulation of water flow. With more time, I should be able to truly master it."

He had spent a long time studying the "Waterfall" meditation chart without making any headway until now. He felt this breakthrough was linked to his progress in the "True Qi Cultivation Technique." His mental attribute had finally reached the standard required to practice this skill. For now, however, he could only crudely drive small amounts of water. He couldn't yet manifest the water into high-speed, metallic-like blades of destruction as the water monsters did. Still, it was already a significant help in his daily life.

Without any functioning terminal devices, Zhang Ji was temporarily out of contact with the outside world. He decided to rest here for the day and look for a way out tomorrow. He found a flat spot and gathered some firewood. The wood was damp, but Zhang Ji easily expelled the moisture from it. He then managed to light a fire using the half-practiced method of friction.

It was a pity he hadn't been able to bring the meat of that centipede along; he might have been able to roast a bit to eat. But on second thought, he decided against it—the difference between reality and the game was vast, and he didn't want to risk it being poisonous.

Zhang Ji took out the Moon Cup and examined it closely. Its craftsmanship was exquisite, especially the two blue gemstones embedded in it. He suspected these were the keys to its ability to absorb moonlight and transform it into lunar essence. Suddenly, the light dimmed as the bright moonlight shining down upon him was drawn into the cup, converging into a single beam. Zhang Ji stood up and held the cup high. The gemstones sparkled brilliantly. He noticed that the moonlight within a radius of about five meters was being pulled toward the cup.

After holding the cup up for several minutes, a dark cloud passed overhead, and the cup dimmed instantly. Zhang Ji checked the interior and found not a drop of lunar essence, just a slight dampness. He licked it, which barely moistened his tongue, but it did slightly alleviate his exhaustion. He had traveled all the way from the valley with the water; the mental strain had been immense. If he hadn't consumed half a cup of lunar essence earlier, he doubted he could have held on.

Feeling somewhat unsatisfied, he moved the cup from his lips and muttered, "I’ll get a drone later and strap this thing to it so it stays above the cloud layer. That should minimize the impact of the weather."

The drone technology in the Dongji Kingdom was quite advanced; reaching the stratosphere would be easy. Thinking about it, the plan seemed highly feasible. He would no longer be at the mercy of dark clouds. He might not achieve complete freedom in harvesting lunar essence, but at least he wouldn't have to rely on the heavens' mood.

By the next morning, as the sun rose, the fully awake Zhang Ji tried aiming the Moon Cup at the sunlight. According to his knowledge, moonlight was merely reflected sunlight, so theoretically, the cup should be able to absorb sunlight as well. However, the cup remained indifferent.

"Is the moon in this world different?" Zhang Ji couldn't grasp the reason, so he gave up. He tucked the cup safely against his body, shouldered his pack, and set off. Without navigation, and with the path destroyed by the flood, he could only vaguely recall the direction. His only consolation was that Zhou Hao had packed a few bags of compressed rations for him; otherwise, he would be facing a true survival situation. While he wasn't afraid of the beasts, he didn't want to eat them without salt or seasoning.

Suddenly, he spotted smoke rising in the distance. He quickened his pace and soon found the source: a young couple on a road trip, cooking a meal over a fire in the wild. Seeing Zhang Ji approach, the man and woman exchanged glances and stepped forward to greet him.

"Hello, my name is Zhang Ji. I’m a traveler. I got caught in a flash flood last night and my equipment was ruined. May I borrow your phone?" Zhang Ji asked with a polite bow.

"No problem. Xue, give me the phone," the man said.

"Sure!" The woman quickly retrieved a phone from their tent and handed it to the man, who then passed it to Zhang Ji.

Zhang Ji thanked him and made a call to the Five Forms Sect, reaching Zhou Hao. After explaining the situation, Zhou Hao told him not to wander off and to wait where he was, promising that someone would come to pick him up within two hours.

After finishing the call, Zhang Ji returned the phone. "Thank you for the trouble."

"It's nothing. We're all travelers; helping each other is just the right thing to do," the man said, taking the phone back. "I'm Yu Han, and this is my wife, Wang Xue. If you don't mind, why don't you join us for a bite?"

"Then I’ll take you up on that." Zhang Ji didn't refuse; he had only eaten dry rations since yesterday and was craving something hot.

Yu Han provided utensils and served Zhang Ji a bowl of the fish soup he was boiling. Zhang Ji took a small sip and found it incredibly fresh.

"How is it?" Yu Han asked.

"Very good," Zhang Ji praised.

"It’s mostly because the fish is fresh. I caught it in Lake Gester just last night," Yu Han laughed.

"Are you here specifically for fishing, Brother Yu?" Zhang Ji asked.

"You could say that. I like to travel around; staying in one place for too long gets boring," Yu Han explained, then asked, "What about you, Brother Zhang? Given your age, are you on a study trip?"

"Something like that," Zhang Ji replied. "After studying for so long, I felt like getting some air, so I came out to wander alone."

"Your generation has guts. When I was your age, I wouldn't have dared to travel alone. Though, I suppose the society has become much more convenient now..." Yu Han sighed.

Zhang Ji nodded in agreement. Despite its flaws, the Dongji Kingdom had made genuine progress in the welfare of its people in recent years. As they chatted about various things, with occasional input from Wang Xue, time passed quickly.

Suddenly, Zhang Ji heard the sound of helicopter rotors. He stood up and looked into the distance, spotting the approaching aircraft. Yu Han’s phone rang, and after answering, he handed it to Zhang Ji.

"Disciple Zhang, this is Zhang Xiangyu, a core disciple of the Five Forms Sect. Are you alright?" the caller asked.

"I'm fine. Sorry for the trouble," Zhang Ji said.

"It's no trouble at all. Serving the sect is my duty," Zhang Xiangyu replied politely.

Zhang Ji hung up and handed the phone back to Yu Han. "Thank you both. I will send you a token of my gratitude later."

Yu Han was stunned; the arrival of the helicopter had left him speechless. This area was remote, and a trip like this couldn't have been cheap—it likely cost over a hundred thousand. A rope ladder dropped from the helicopter, and Zhang Ji leaped up five or six meters, grabbed it, and climbed into the cabin in a few swift motions.

Inside, he met Zhang Xiangyu, a middle-aged man. Like most core disciples of the Five Forms Sect, he was someone who had hit a ceiling in his martial arts training and had shifted his focus to the sect's administrative affairs. Being a core disciple meant he was at least a professional level six and likely held a significant fortune in the area.

"Disciple Zhang," Zhang Xiangyu bowed.

Zhang Ji nodded and said, "Contact the people who helped me earlier and send them two hundred thousand. I'll transfer it to you later."

Two hundred thousand was not much to Zhang Ji; the Five Forms Sect gave him two million in pocket money every month, which he had no way of spending. Most of the time, he just charged everything to the sect's account. Zhang Xiangyu didn't ask questions or offer false modesty; he simply nodded in agreement. Knowing when to be efficient and when to handle social niceties was crucial, and Zhang Xiangyu knew exactly how to treat someone like Zhang Ji.

...

Meanwhile, watching the helicopter disappear into the distance, Wang Xue suddenly exclaimed, "Honey! That was Zhang Ji!!!"

"I know, so what?" Yu Han asked, puzzled.

"He's the champion of this year's Dongji Martial Arts Tournament! We were just watching his videos!" Wang Xue said.

Yu Han finally realized, and felt a surge of disbelief. A person from such a completely different world had coincidentally crossed paths with them here. Just as he was thinking about this, his phone rang. It was an official corporate number. After the caller verified their identity and requested his bank account information for a "thank-you payment," he tentatively provided it. Moments later, a notification pinged on his phone.

Yu Han opened his phone and stared at the string of zeros, raising his eyebrows. Even as a high earner, the amount of this unexpected windfall left him moved.

"All I did was offer him a bowl of fish soup, and I ended up with more than a year's salary. If I had known, I would have offered him a few more bowls," Yu Han remarked with a sigh.