My Cultivation Has a Progress Bar

"How dare you!"

A furious roar echoed. A Second Realm Earth Vein Cultivator summoned a golden pagoda, sending it soaring into the air. Behind him, five Entering Cultivators glared with equal fury. The six of them formed an Array that balanced offense and defense.

The next moment, the pagoda in the Second Realm Earth Vein Cultivator’s hands formed one Earth Vein Array after another. A torrent of Earth Spirit Qi interacted with the Earth Veins in the ground, creating an invisible gravitational field in the air that rushed toward Qin Zifeng’s position.

But just as this gravitational field was about to envelop Qin Zifeng, several Talismans flashed past. A dense wave of Wood Spirit Qi gushed out, neutralizing all the Earth Spirit Qi that had formed within the space. Then, dozens of Sword Talismans materialized within the Wood Spirit Qi, forming a unique killing array.

TING

TING

TING

The sound of metal striking metal was as crisp and clear as the music of chime bells.

The pagoda summoned by the Second Realm Earth Vein Cultivator was shattered to pieces by the Sword Array formed from the Sword Talismans. The volatile Spiritual Power from the Earth Vein Array within erupted for only an instant before being swallowed by the surging Wood Spirit Qi.

"Fellow Daoist Shuangyang, if you continue this fight, I could kill every last one of you right here and now, and no one would dare say a word against me."

Hongyuan’s gentle demeanor vanished, his gaze toward the Earth Cave Sect Cultivators now filled with killing intent. It seemed that if any of them dared to cause another stir, he would strike them down without a moment’s hesitation.

Among the group clashing with Shuangyang and the other Earth Cave Sect Cultivators below, someone witnessed this and cupped his fists in a salute to Hongyuan. "Thank you for your assistance, Fellow Daoist Hongyuan. If you hadn’t intervened, I would have almost forgotten this was the Six Heart Sect."

His words sounded like thanks, but they were a blatant, undisguised attempt to sow discord.

Just then, a disciple beside Hongyuan leaned in and whispered, "They are Cultivators from the Hai Zhou Road Daoist Palace. The one who just spoke is their leader for this trip, Hongjing, a Taiyan Second Realm Cultivator. He belongs to the orthodox lineage of the Taiyan Sect in Hai Zhou Road."

Hongyuan immediately understood they were being used as pawns.

Qin Zifeng, who was standing to the side, realized the same thing. He pointed at the Cultivator named Hongjing and snapped, "You’re so damn noisy! You think you’re worthy of passing judgment on the Six Heart Sect?"

"Fine. Truly worthy of the Six Heart Sect. You..."

"You are guests of the Six Heart Sect and should abide by its rules. Yet not only do you refuse to follow arrangements, you also dare to draw your weapons. Are you planning to attack the Six Heart Sect?"

A voice descended from the sky. A golden Identity Token shot forth, its projection illuminating the space above the Six Heart Sect’s front hall. Ganxing, dressed in narrow-sleeved, dark grey brocade, appeared above the square. As he materialized, he adjusted the striped embroidery on his collar, his cold gaze sweeping over everyone below as he spoke:

"Try saying one more word."

The moment his voice fell, another golden identity projection shot across the sky. A wave of earthy scent washed over the area for an instant before vanishing. Then, Wu Quan, clad in a wide-sleeved blue Daoist Robe, appeared, floating steadily beside Ganxing.

After appearing, he fixed his gaze on the Earth Cave Sect disciples below and let out a cold snort, scaring them into deathly silence.

"What is it you all truly want? You might as well say it directly. How can you cultivate while cowering and hiding?"

Wu Quan laid the matter bare.

These Cultivators in the square were all cunning individuals who had been cultivating for over a century. It was impossible that they would start a fight in the Six Heart Sect’s square for no reason; that would be far too foolish.

That being said, no one actually dared to speak the truth in front of Wu Quan and Ganxing. If they displeased the two and were killed for it, they would have nowhere to even plead their case.

Wu Quan and Ganxing had no intention of listening to their chatter. They both looked at Hongyuan, and Wu Quan spoke. "I heard Fellow Daoist Changqing has already arrived at the Six Heart Sect. You can arrange my disciples as you see fit. For now, take me to see your master and Fellow Daoist Changqing."

"Yes!"

The task of guiding Wu Quan and Ganxing fell to Qin Zifeng. Hongyuan was afraid that if he remained on the scene, he might do something else out of line.

「Back in Xiu Yu’s Dao Field.」

Zi Luan had set up a tea table and a game board in the center of the Eight Trigrams Array, where he was exchanging intelligence gathered over the past few years with Wang Ping, Ganxing, and Wu Quan.

"I’m afraid the world is about to fall into chaos again."

After they finished exchanging information, Wu Quan looked at Wang Ping and said, "You certainly know how to scheme. In the future, regardless of whether the Chu Country or the Datong Marquisate obtains the Divine Artifact, you’ll be able to enjoy the worship of the masses for centuries, and you might even influence the future of the Zhongzhou Continent."

Wang Ping shook his head. "Chaos is chaos precisely because events are uncontrollable. When the time comes, countless people will surely join the fray. I fear the situation will be far more complex than either of us imagines. It might not just be the Datong Marquisate and the Chu Country. We could see all the Dukes rising up at once."

Ganxing took out a game board he carried with him and said, "Haven’t the players in this great game of Zhongzhou been the same few people for the last several thousand years? I expect a plan will be handed down soon enough. All we have to do is act according to the plan. Why worry ourselves over it?"

Zi Luan took the opportunity to sit down opposite Ganxing, preparing for a game as he smiled. "You certainly have a carefree attitude."

Ganxing took out the game pieces to guess for the first move and chuckled. "I’m just a Loose Cultivator. Thanks to the good fortune of you three, I’ve managed to establish a sect in Fuming Prefecture and build a small foundation for myself. All I care about is my own little plot of land, haha. I have no interest in the grand state of the world or the fate of the Divine Artifact."

"Please, Fellow Daoist..."

He humbly gestured for Zi Luan to grab a handful of stones so he could guess odd or even.

Zi Luan didn’t stand on ceremony, grabbing a handful of stones and placing them on the center of the board.

Ganxing casually took out a single black stone.

Just then, Zi Luan said, "I have a sudden premonition. After I succeed as the Sect Leader of the Six Heart Sect, a plan will be handed down..." As he spoke, he looked at Wang Ping. "And I also foresee that they will be forced to choose between the Chu Country and the Datong Marquisate. What we must do next is make this decision appear to be the will of the people!"

After saying this, he opened his hand.

"Haha, odd! You let me win, you let me win."

Ganxing could tell at a glance that the number of stones in Zi Luan’s palm was odd. He eagerly prepared the board and, holding the black stones, made the first move.

Wu Quan, who was in charge of brewing tea, looked at Wang Ping. He picked up the teapot and filled Wang Ping’s empty cup. Yu Lian seized the opportunity to push her own empty cup forward, and Wu Quan filled it for her as well before turning to Wang Ping. "Is that woman Zhi Gong really planning to break into the Fourth Realm?"

Wang Ping lifted his cup, took a sip, and asked in return, "Do you think there’s a problem with it, Fellow Daoist?"

Wu Quan shook his head. "There is one official spot for the Fourth Realm of the *Great Earth Realm*, but unfortunately, no one has succeeded in the past thousand years. As a result, no one has dared to try for the last two hundred."

Ganxing, while playing his turn, added, "Can her plan even succeed? The Cultivators over in Hai Zhou Road are not to be trifled with. They have close ties to the Hu Mountain Country, and though it’s a messy mix of various powers, they manage everything in an orderly fashion. Now, with Xiu Yu missing, not only have they not disbanded, but they’ve become even more united than before."

Zi Luan said dismissively, "No matter how united they are, they can still feel fear. They were the ones who caused that incident in the front hall just now. They were probably trying to test our reaction."

With that, he looked up at the sky. Qin Zifeng, who had left earlier, was now returning.

"It seems they’ve reached a decision."