After entering the forum, Zhao Yuan discovered that even though there were mistakes in the registration test, the forum's graphic design was actually quite good!
The background was the same ethereal landscape painting from before.
The various sub-forums didn't seem out of place against this background. Instead, they were cleverly designed as trees, pavilions, fishing boats, and other shapes, blending perfectly with the landscape painting to create a rather elegant feel. The forum also had background music—a melodious tune played on a zither. Although it was unclear who was playing, it had the effect of clearing one's mind and calming one's spirit. While not as effective as the Soul-Stabilizing Incense, it was still quite good.
Zhao Yuan glanced at the forum's sections and found an "Idle Talk of the Martial World" for cultivators to gossip and chat; a "Rakshasa Ghost Market" for everyone to trade goods; and a "Morning Enlightenment, Evening Death" for serious cultivation discussions... All in all, the sections were quite comprehensive.
He then looked at the alt account he had gotten from Hao Li. The username was, as expected, very much in Hao Li's style: "Bro Just Loves to Eat."
Seeing this, Zhao Yuan couldn't help but observe a three-second moment of silence for Hao Li's naming sense.
He had originally planned to go to the Forum Affairs section to report the problem, but after clicking into it, he discovered he wasn't qualified to post there. It turned out that Hao Li had only just successfully registered this alt account. It hadn't been leveled up yet and was still at the lowest "Junior Daoist" rank. To post in the Forum Affairs section, he needed to reach the rank of "Human Immortal," which was a full three levels higher than Junior Daoist.
Zhao Yuan opened his profile to check his permissions and found that this alt account could post in "Idle Talk of the Martial World." That was the section for chatting and gossip, so it didn't have any rank restrictions.
'Alright, I'll just post in Idle Talk of the Martial World then.' Zhao Yuan clicked open the section and glanced around. He found that the topics discussed were either boasts like, "Dude, I got a treasure today," gossip about "Which Cultivation School is the strongest in the world today," or polls for the "Top Ten Most Beautiful Female Cultivators"... It seemed that when cultivators chatted online, they weren't much different from ordinary people.
Zhao Yuan didn't click on any of these threads, as he wasn't interested in idle gossip.
He went straight to the "New Thread" option and began to edit his post. He listed the questions from the test that had errors, providing detailed elaborations, analyses, and explanations for each. Once he was done, he added the title, "The Standard Answers for the Registration Test Are Wrong. Recommend Immediate Correction," and hit the send button.
The moment the thread was posted, it got a reply. He refreshed the page and saw that Hao Li had used his main account, "Little Fatty Mengmengda," to post a single word in response: "Bump."
'Damn it, you really are just bumping it, aren't you?'
Zhao Yuan was speechless. He shook his head, closed the thread, and clicked on the Rakshasa Black Market, wanting to see what kind of good stuff was for sale there.
Unfortunately, because his account rank was too low, he couldn't enter that section. To get in, he needed to raise his account to the second rank: Master.
It wasn't just the Rakshasa Black Market; he couldn't get into several other sections either.
For now, this alt account could only hang around in "Idle Talk of the Martial World" and "Bounties & Questions."
Zhao Yuan clicked on "Bounties & Questions" and saw that it was a place to post bounties for answers.
When cultivators encountered problems they couldn't solve in their cultivation, Artifact Creation, Alchemy, or other areas, they could come to this section. They would detail their problem and offer rewards like money, materials, Elixirs, or even Magical Artifacts, pleading for an expert to help them find a solution.
'This section is pretty interesting, but how do they verify if a bounty question has been solved? Do they just rely on the integrity of the person who posted it? What if they refuse to pay up?'
Zhao Yuan figured the Cultivator Forum must have a system for it; he just hadn't figured out the rules yet.
Just as he was about to continue browsing the forum, his phone rang. It was Lin Xue.
As soon as he answered, he heard Lin Xue ask, "Zhao Yuan, where are you? I don't see you."
"Huh?" Zhao Yuan froze for a moment, then suddenly remembered he had promised Lin Xue a couple of days ago that he would go see a movie with her today. He quickly glanced at the time on his computer; it was indeed almost time. He didn't dare say he was still in his dorm, so he lied, "I'm almost there. Be right there. Just wait for me."
After hanging up, he frantically shut down his computer, bolted out of the dorm, and sprinted at full speed toward the movie theater in University City, using the speed of a hundred-meter dash combined with a Shrinking Earth Talisman!
Luckily, he had been smart enough to grab a hat on his way out. He pulled the brim down low as he ran, so he wasn't afraid of being recognized. However, his ghostly speed still drew gasps of surprise from many people along the way.
Once he was near the movie theater, Zhao Yuan slowed down, took off his hat, and put it away in his Storage Ring.
Just as he walked into the movie theater lobby, he saw Lin Xue holding two Cokes and a bucket of popcorn, craning her neck as she looked around for him. He hurried over, took the items from her, and apologized, "Sorry, sorry, I'm a little late."
"It's okay, I just got here too," Lin Xue said gently. She wasn't angry, but she was quite surprised by his bald head. "What happened to your hair? And where are your eyebrows?"
"Ah, don't even ask," Zhao Yuan said with a wry smile. "I ran into a little accident today and ended up losing all my hair and eyebrows. When I got back to the dorm, the guys all made fun of me, asking if I was planning to become a Monk at a temple."
Lin Xue was amused and burst into laughter. She looked Zhao Yuan up and down a few times, then nodded and said, "You're still handsome even without hair. You kind of have a 'Brother Yu Di' vibe."
"I wouldn't dare compare myself to the Tang Monk," Zhao Yuan said, waving his hands dismissively. "He was the reincarnation of the Golden Cicada, and he was especially popular with female Demons."
After joking around for a bit, the two had their tickets checked and entered the theater.
Lin Xue had picked the movie; it was a romance she had been wanting to see for a while.
About seven or eight minutes into the movie, a couple arrived late. Their seats were in the same row as Zhao Yuan and Lin Xue. However, the two of them were laughing and talking as they walked, and they were incredibly rude when passing by. Instead of saying something like, "Excuse me," they just gave a commanding, "Move your feet," as if everyone owed them money and had to obey them.
Even after taking their seats, they didn't quiet down, chattering away nonstop and making it impossible for anyone to watch the movie in peace.
After a while, the woman started whining that she wanted a drink and popcorn. The man flirted with her for a bit before getting up to go buy some, passing in front of Zhao Yuan and Lin Xue once again.
Although Lin Xue had carefully tucked her feet in, the man still stepped on one, making her cry out, "Ouch!" But not only did the man not apologize, he even snorted and said, "Serves you right. Who told you not to put your hooves away? Haven't you ever heard that a good dog doesn't block the path?"
This arrogant and rude attitude instantly infuriated Zhao Yuan.
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