My Cultivation Has a Progress Bar

After Xiao Shan Lord finished what he was doing, his face twisted again, morphing into the likeness of Huishan True Monarch. He reached into the void, drawing upon the power of the Luck-Borrowing Talisman to intercept a mysterious force from the world. With its aid, he cast a Spell.

When the Spell in his hands was complete, a Wood Spirit Sealing Array materialized beside him out of thin air. It seemed he intended to seal a part of his own power. But just as he was about to do so, his face twisted once more, and in the blink of an eye, he had reverted to the form of Xiao Shan Lord. He looked at the Sealing Array beside him, a hint of hesitation on his face.

A few breaths later, he dispelled the Sealing Array. Then, his entire Spiritual Body began to writhe, transforming back into an irregular mass of energy.

One moment, this mass of energy was like a glutton, frantically devouring the surrounding Wood Spirit Qi. The next, it was like a Money Scattering Child, scattering the Wood Spirit Qi within it across the land, causing the Locust Tree Forest on the ground to grow explosively.

After this repeated several times, a Spirit Communication Talisman, a Luck-Borrowing Talisman, a Heaven-Reaching Talisman, a Heaven-Covering Talisman, and a Heaven-Stealing Talisman materialized around the Spirit Vein. Streams of profound power erupted from these five Talismans, causing the Spiritual Qi between heaven and earth to vibrate and become visible to the naked eye.

The vibration of the Spiritual Qi dispelled the spatial confinement previously created by Xiao Shan Lord’s use of the Heaven-Stealing Talisman.

「On the summit of a Nameless Mountain Peak in the south.」

When Wang Ping awoke from his state of mental confinement, he saw a sliver of white light descending from the heavens. The aura of this white light was very familiar, and after a brief moment of thought, he chose to accept it rather than block it.

Wang Ping sensed that this sliver of white light was the key to refining the Celestial Sword. Furthermore, its aura was identical to that of the energy orb that had appeared months ago when Xia Yao inherited the Xia Dynasty’s Divine Technique Formation!

As the white light descended, Wang Ping saw a screen of light that seemed almost tangible. Before he could get a closer look, the screen sank into the space between his brows, merging with his memories and his Spirit Sea.

As a surprised Zi Luan looked on, a strand of Wood Spirit Qi descended from the heavens and flowed into the space between his brows as well.

The expressions on both their faces froze simultaneously.

A small portion of the memories that Xiao Shan Lord had given them was unsealed at that moment. It was a vast amount of information, but even so, a large part of it remained sealed.

Yu Lian repeatedly nudged Wang Ping’s cheek with her head and asked, "Is that a message from Xiao Shan Lord? What happened up ahead?"

Just as Wang Ping was about to answer, the ground suddenly began to shake.

The Wood Spirit Qi ahead grew extremely turbulent, stirring the Spirit Veins within both Wang Ping and Zi Luan. It even showed signs of reawakening the sliver of Spirit Vein Consciousness inside them.

"Keep retreating!"

Zi Luan took the lead, flying south.

Wang Ping rose into the air with Yu Lian. She glanced back toward Shangjing City, where the sky looked as if it were collapsing. It had grown incredibly dim, and the emanating aura made Yu Lian shrink back and decisively dive into Wang Ping’s sleeve.

About fifteen minutes later, the two of them finally stopped when they reached a forward outpost established by the retreating Chu Country army.

By now, a massive vortex had formed in the sky in the direction of Shangjing City. The Wood Spirit Aura was dense at its center, and it was devouring the Locust Tree Forest that stretched for hundreds of miles.

Wang Ping’s Primordial Spirit Consciousness couldn’t probe the specific situation inside.

’Everything that has happened since I entered Shangjing City is completely different from what I had predicted. I had once believed there would be an unprecedented, massive free-for-all in Shangjing City—one involving both Third Realm and Fourth Realm Cultivators.

But in reality, the battle between the Third Realm Cultivators was more like child’s play. I didn’t even get a chance to intervene. All those meticulous preparations I made now seem like a joke.

It just goes to show, when you’re not strong enough, others won’t even give you a second glance, much less waste time dealing with you. Because you’re not worthy of it.’

While Wang Ping was lost in his thoughts, the Energy Vortex at the edge of the sky seemed to reach a critical point. It abruptly stopped devouring the Locust Tree Forest on the ground, and the violent Wood Spirit Qi that had been overflowing now rushed madly back toward the vortex’s center.

"Did Master succeed?" Zi Luan asked in a low voice.

"I don’t know, but he hasn’t failed yet. The memories he just sent are proof of that." Wang Ping couldn’t answer the question, because at that moment, he couldn’t comprehend what a True Monarch was, much less what the correct ascension ritual entailed. He could only state what he knew for certain.

"That’s true!"

Their conversation ended there. Both of them stared with wide eyes, because the sky-blotting energy storm had vanished abruptly. The world returned to clarity in an instant. If not for the lingering dust in the sky, Wang Ping would have thought the whole thing was just an illusion.

Only then did Yu Lian poke her head out of his sleeve. She used Tengyun to hop onto Wang Ping’s shoulder and said, "There’s nothing left in Shangjing City. No sign of life at all. Not even a single fly!"

His Primordial Spirit could now scan Shangjing City... The Locust Tree Forest was gone, leaving only earth that looked like it had been overturned by a great wind. With the rolling waters of the Nong River now irrigating it from upstream, it could be considered a fine piece of land. However, countless Cultivators were currently spying on the area from its periphery.

What concerned Wang Ping the most was that Xiao Shan Lord’s aura had vanished, and he still had no idea what had transpired.

"What do we do now?"

Yu Lian asked while Wang Ping was thinking. She spoke aloud, so the question was directed at Zi Luan as well.

Zi Luan and Wang Ping snapped back to their senses. Zi Luan was the one to answer, "I’ve decided to stay and see what happens."

Wang Ping glanced around and immediately came to a decision as well. "I’ll head back first," he said. "If anything happens, remember to contact me right away. We’re still allies, after all."

"Understood!"

Zi Luan nodded, then said hesitantly, "You’ve already arranged for Dongcan to assassinate Xiu Yu?"

Wang Ping didn’t hide it, admitting openly, "That’s right. If Xiu Yu goes looking for Dongcan right now to discuss how to deal with us, he won’t be coming back!"

Upon hearing this, Zi Luan fell silent for a moment in thought. Then, he cupped his fist to Wang Ping and descended to the forward watchtower of the Chu Country army below.

Wang Ping cupped his fist toward Zi Luan’s retreating back as well.

Yu Lian said within the Spirit Sea, "I didn’t expect him to be such a sentimental person."

Wang Ping offered no comment. He could understand Zi Luan to some extent. It reminded him of his own relationship with his junior martial brothers. Although he appeared unaffectionate on the surface, and they likely resented him to varying degrees, he knew that if they ever truly became opponents and reached the final step, he would still remember the bond they shared.

He gave Zi Luan’s retreating back one last, serious look. Then, he formed a hand seal for a Spell to sense the locations of his Transfer Talismans. He was currently in the Southern Region of Pingzhou Road, and the only Transfer Talisman he could feel was the one beneath Moon Mountain.

Without a moment’s hesitation, Wang Ping first used the Pocket World Mirror to conceal their auras, then activated the Transfer Talisman within the mirror’s surface.

The next moment, Wang Ping felt his vision shift and his consciousness momentarily stall. When both returned, he found himself at the bottom of the pitch-black Dark River beneath Moon Mountain.