My Cultivation Has a Progress Bar

The Dao Field at the back of Qianmu Mountain.

In the dilapidated little courtyard beside the old locust tree, the occasional disgruntled shout from Yuan Zheng Taoist could be heard. It sounded like he was playing Go, but the person watching over his shoulder was not behaving like a proper gentleman.

This person, of course, was Ruan Chunzi. He always loved to offer a suggestion or two. If you didn’t take his advice and ended up losing, he would mock you for the entire day.

The one playing against Yuan Zheng was Wang Ping, who had just come out of seclusion. He had come to visit his master, only to find Yuan Zheng and Ruan Chunzi there as well. Amid their idle chat, they had somehow ended up starting a game.

"If it weren’t for the fact I can’t beat you, I’d fight you right now!"

Yuan Zheng violently swatted Ruan Chunzi’s hand away and slammed his own stone onto the board. "Wait until I finish this game, then you can have a match with Fellow Daoist Changqing. For now, say one more word, and I’ll lose it!"

"Fine, I’ll keep my mouth shut. Just don’t throw a fit when you lose," Ruan Chunzi said nonchalantly.

"I think you two should just fight it out!" Yu Lian chimed in, fanning the flames.

"You think I don’t want to? I can’t beat him!" Yuan Zheng snapped back.

Wang Ping glanced at the stone Yuan Zheng had just carelessly placed to shut Ruan Chunzi up, then at Ruan Chunzi’s gloating expression, and couldn’t help but find the situation amusing.

CLICK!

Wang Ping placed the stone in his hand. Seeing his master, Yu Cheng Taoist, walk over to refill his tea, he quickly picked up his teacup and said to Yuan Zheng, "You’d better think carefully before placing your next stone. No take-backs allowed here!"

Hearing Wang Ping’s reminder, Yuan Zheng’s hand froze in mid-air, a stone hovering over the board. Just as Wang Ping raised his cup to drink, Yuan Zheng slapped his thigh. "Ah, crap, I misplayed earlier..." He shot a disgruntled glance at Ruan Chunzi, who opened his mouth to speak, but then, remembering his promise, held his tongue.

"Can I take that move back?"

Yuan Zheng asked.

Wang Ping smiled. "What do you think?"

And so, unsurprisingly, Yuan Zheng Taoist lost the game.

For the second game, it was naturally Ruan Chunzi’s turn. As they were guessing for the first move, he spoke. "With the Taiyan Cultivators’ grasp on worldly affairs, Fellow Daoist must already be aware of the current situation on Nanlin Road, correct?"

Wang Ping prepared to guess for the first move, casually picking up two white stones and enclosing them in his fist. Hearing Ruan Chunzi’s words, he met his gaze and replied, "Is Fellow Daoist looking to change this situation?"

"I just don’t want to see the land plunged into misery and chaos!"

"How can we possibly manage all the affairs of this world?" Yuan Zheng Taoist cautioned from the side.

Upon hearing this, Ruan Chunzi fell silent, grabbing a handful of black stones and placing them on the board.

An even number.

So, Wang Ping would play black and go first.

CLICK.

After placing a stone, Wang Ping spoke. "Some matters only become more disastrous the more we meddle. How can you still not understand such a simple principle, Fellow Daoist? Those mortals kill one another. Even if you let them go on slaughtering each other, how many can truly die? But the moment a Great Cultivator intervenes, a single one of their thoughts could kill millions in an instant and trigger terrifying spiritual chaos."

Ruan Chunzi let out a breath and silently placed a stone. Just as he was about to speak, Yuan Zheng quickly changed the subject. He turned to Wang Ping and said, "We’ve gotten news about those Demon Race ruins we were exploring on the Eastern Continent. The internal affairs disciples brought back a rubbing of an Array Map, but we’re stumped. Your master mentioned you’re quite skilled with Arrays, why not take a look?"

"Oh?"

Wang Ping’s interest was immediately piqued. He looked at his master and asked, "Did that disciple of Su Sea’s come back as well?"

Yu Cheng shook his head. "No. Not long after you entered seclusion, Su Sea had someone bring over a handwritten letter. That disciple of his has already become a student under a Second Realm Cultivator of the Northern Taixuan Sect’s lineage."

"A Northern Taixuan Sect lineage... who was it again?" Yu Lian asked.

"Master Zhiyuan, one of the five chiefs of the Third Seat of the former Daoist Scripture Hall," Ruan Chunzi answered. "He’s very low-key. Among mortals, he is virtually unknown, aside from the incense offerings made at the Daoist Temples near his lineage."

Yu Lian asked in confusion, "The Third Seat? He’s not even in the Fourth Realm yet?"

Ruan Chunzi nodded. Watching Wang Ping place a stone, he said, "He’s said to be one of the Taiyan Cultivators closest to the Fourth Realm, and also the longest-lived. In terms of seniority within the Taiyan Sect, he should be from the same generation as our Qianmu Temple’s Ancestral Master Yuxiao."

Wang Ping listened intently. ’After all, when it comes down to it, this man is likely my greatest rival for advancement to the Fourth Realm.’

Ruan Chunzi seemed to sense what Wang Ping was thinking and said with a faint smile, "Don’t you worry. Rumor has it something went wrong during his cultivation. He gained a lifespan longer than that of an ordinary Third Realm Cultivator, but in exchange, he lost any chance of ever reaching the Fourth Realm."

Just then, Yu Cheng Taoist took a bamboo scroll from his storage bag. As he handed it to Wang Ping, he said to Ruan Chunzi, "Advancing to the Fourth Realm is no trivial matter; it’s never wrong to be cautious. I’ve heard my own master speak of this Zhiyuan. He said the man hides his true self very deeply. Either he is genuinely low-key, or he has ulterior motives."

As Wang Ping accepted the scroll, he recalled the image of Master Zhiyuan from the Third Seat meeting. It had been a projected consciousness and not very clear, but his impression was that the man was indeed incredibly low-key. So much so that if you weren’t paying attention, you might forget he was even there.

"Never mind him for now. First, look at the Array on the scroll!"

Yu Lian urged from the side.

Wang Ping pushed thoughts of Master Zhiyuan from his mind. He placed the bamboo scroll in front of the Go board, unrolling it with one hand while watching Ruan Chunzi place his next stone.

"It’s such a mess."

Wang Ping asked, looking at the jumbled mess of an Array diagram that greeted him at the start of the scroll.

Yu Cheng explained, "That’s the original rubbing from the Demon Race ruins. Further on, there’s the version they tried to restore."

Yuan Zheng Taoist added, "This Array is similar to the Yin Yang Body Refining Array you set up. They both use spirituality to forcibly improve one’s root bones. But this one also contains two auxiliary Arrays. They can convert the power of certain Spirit Veins and directly infuse it into the Qi Cultivator whose root bones are being enhanced at the Magic Array Core."

As he spoke, he walked over to stand behind Wang Ping. He was just about to elaborate on his understanding when Yu Cheng Taoist interrupted him. "Let Changqing finish reading first."

Wang Ping nodded, continuing his game with Ruan Chunzi while he read the unrolled scroll.

The Array on the scroll was indeed similar to the Yin Yang Body Refining Array. It used the conflict of Yin Yang Spirituality to forcibly enhance a Cultivator’s root bones. This Array, however, was far more sophisticated. Its core region also contained two auxiliary Arrays which, in Wang Ping’s estimation, were likely used for refining certain items.

When Wang Ping finished reading the entire scroll and had memorized the restored Array recorded within, the light screen panel actually appeared again:

[Unknown Body Refining Array (Incomplete): Absorbs the spiritual energy of heaven and earth to forcibly impact the body’s hundred meridians, strengthening a Cultivator’s root bones. Has miraculous effects when paired with artificially cultivated Spirit Veins.]

[Note 1: To achieve a fate-defying effect, one must use the Array to continuously scour the body for at least three years, or a Great Cultivator must be willing to sacrifice their Spiritual Body, supplemented by powerful spirituality, to complete the transformation.]

[Note 2: The upper limit for root bone enhancement with this Array is ’Superior,’ but this requires Flesh and Blood Spirituality. The upper limit using ordinary Spiritual Objects or Celestial and Earthly Treasures is ’High-Grade.’]

[Note 3: After the Array is activated, the spiritual activity level must reach (85/100) or higher, or it will have no effect. Current Progress: No reference object.]

[Note 4: The attributes of the converted Spirit Vein must match the attributes of the Array Materials; otherwise, the spirituality within the Cultivator’s body will run rampant.]

[Note 5: The Array that converts the Spirit Vein requires a compatibility of (90/100) or higher; otherwise, the Spirit Vein will collapse during the conversion process. Current Progress: No reference object.]

[Note 6: The Array Map is partially incomplete. Please refer to the diagram below...]