My Cultivation Has a Progress Bar

Chapter 348: Chapter 77: Planning

After the gathering ended, Wang Ping said his goodbyes to Guangxuan and left.

Flying out of the complex underground grotto, Wang Ping landed on a mountain peak. He gazed at the night sky, where the stars were dimmed by the thick winter fog.

Below, the intersecting rivers of Sanhe Prefecture glimmered faintly in the night. A few small, nocturnal winter animals scurried about, instinctively searching for food.

"In the eyes of a True Monarch, perhaps we’re just like those little animals," Wang Ping remarked with a sigh.

Yu Lian followed his gaze. "If that’s truly the case, then we at least have a chance to survive. A True Monarch wouldn’t interfere in our lives. The ones in true despair are the livestock!"

Wang Ping turned to look at Yu Lian. Her vertical pupils flickered twice before she leaned in and nuzzled his cheek.

"Heh!"

Wang Ping chuckled. The next moment, his body transformed into a streak of light and merged into the flowing Wood Spirit Qi.

「One hour later.」

Wang Ping landed silently at the Mountain Peak Dojo. He first scanned his master’s small courtyard and found that he had already entered a meditative rest. Then he checked on Liu Shuang’s dojo, followed by Shen Xiaozhu’s and Xia Wen Yi’s.

Next, he surveyed all of Qianmu Temple. Most of the several thousand disciples in the Daoist Temple had already entered meditation for the night. A small portion, however, were still training diligently. This was especially true for the outer sect disciples practicing the Chang Chun Technique; any among them with ambition trained relentlessly day and night.

"How many years have I been cultivating?" Wang Ping asked softly.

"How should I know!" Yu Lian tilted her head. "I never keep track of time."

"I don’t remember either. I always say two hundred years, but how many has it been exactly?" Wang Ping drifted into meditation as he muttered to himself.

The night passed without incident.

「The next day.」

After finishing his morning exercises, Wang Ping went into his workshop to check on the puppet he was making for Wu Quan. He worked on it for an hour, then went out into the courtyard. He wrote a secret letter and sent it to Zi Luan via a Puppet Bird.

If Wang Ping wanted to succeed in the matter concerning Yuan Hu, he had to discuss it with Zi Luan.

Once the Puppet Bird was far away, Wang Ping transformed into a streak of light and landed in his master’s courtyard. He chatted with his master for half an hour, relaying everyone’s stance from the gathering.

After listening, Yu Cheng Taoist said, "Wen Yang and Mr. Yue are both trustworthy, but nothing is ever certain in the Cultivation Realm. So, you must be aware of the situation and keep your trust in anyone within limits."

Wang Ping, of course, readily agreed.

It was already afternoon when he returned to the Mountain Peak Dojo. Wang Ping stared at the somewhat gloomy winter sky for a moment, then took out the fire spirit that Zi Luan had sealed back on Mozhou Road.

Wang Ping planned to finish Wu Quan’s puppet first. Although they had agreed on a ten-year deadline, finishing it early would put the other party in his debt, which might prove useful in the changes to come.

The instant he broke the seal, Wang Ping’s skin was immediately scorched black, but it recovered just as quickly. Just as the furniture in the courtyard was about to be destroyed, a thought from Wang Ping summoned a dense cloud of Wood Spirit Qi, which neutralized all the ignited Spiritual Qi in the air.

"This little thing is quite powerful!"

Yu Lian woke up from her soft cushion by the door and stared at the fire spirit, sizing it up. The fire spirit currently manifested as a phantom humanoid figure wreathed in flames.

"Wow, it’s stronger than me! It’s already made initial contact with True Flame. If you refine it and implant it into that Spirit Body you got in Shangjing City, you might be able to artificially create a Third Realm Cultivator."

Yu Lian urged him on.

But Wang Ping shook his head. First, the fire spirit was Wu Quan’s share of the spoils. Second, an artificially created Third Realm Puppet had many flaws. It would require an energy replenishment every time it was used, and its cultivation level would be fixed. That would be a waste of the Spirit Body. His plan was to use that Spirit Body to create a cultivation genius.

Ending his idle chat with Yu Lian, Wang Ping formed a spell with his hands and manifested his Primordial Spirit. With a ferocious expression and three Talismans circling it, the Primordial Spirit reached out, grabbed the fire spirit, and forcibly injected Wang Ping’s own consciousness into the fire spirit’s Spirit Sea.

The next moment, Wang Ping felt the frenzied thoughts within the fire’s consciousness. Its appearance nearly unbalanced his Dao Heart. A nameless rage suddenly welled up within him, giving birth to a mad killing intent.

Fortunately, Wang Ping’s body was long past mortal, and his mind could not be swayed by a mere True Spirit. He suppressed the killing intent in an instant. Then, he decisively used his own powerful will to crush the fire spirit’s frenzy, completely obliterating and purging its madness before it could even begin to resist.

"Ugh, that thing is really dangerous."

Yu Lian flicked her forked tongue and said, "It stirs up the negative emotions deep within our hearts."

Everyone has negative emotions. Normally, they are suppressed by rational thought, but sometimes a nameless anger can suddenly erupt. This is especially true for impulsive people, who can fly into a rage over a single word, yet be perfectly gentle at other times.

Wang Ping didn’t continue the idle chat with Yu Lian. He recalled his Primordial Spirit, then gently tapped the air with his right hand. The Spirit Communication Talisman and the Luck-Borrowing Talisman appeared. He then used the Enlightenment Skill to drive the fire spirit’s consciousness into the core of the puppet waiting in his workshop.

The puppet did not activate, as he had not imbued the fire spirit’s consciousness with basic memories. That was a step Wu Quan needed to do himself.

"All done?"

Yu Lian asked.

Wang Ping nodded. He took out a brush and paper, wrote a letter, and handed it to Yu Lian. "Have Zhao Wan deliver this letter to Daoist Wu Quan."

"You got it."

Yu Lian happily rolled up the letter and flew down the mountain.

「One day later.」

Zi Luan’s reply arrived first. It was a single sentence: *It can be done. Immediately submit a formal request for assistance to the Demon Realm’s Elder Council in the name of the Daoist Scripture Hall. We’ll discuss the rest when I return.*

This reply did not surprise Wang Ping. Everyone knew the value of a Third Realm Alchemist. Even just capturing his Primordial Spirit could be useful for many things, to say nothing of the wealth he had accumulated.

Moreover, Yuan Hu was already a wanted man by the Daoist Scripture Hall. Killing him would not only be without consequence but would also earn the friendship of the Upper Dan Sect. It was a chance to kill several birds with one stone.

Wang Ping immediately took out official documents from the Daoist Scripture Hall from his storage bag and wrote a letter of negotiation to the Demon Realm’s Elder Council using rather stern wording.

After confirming there were no issues, he summoned a Second Realm Cultivator from the Daoist Scripture Hall stationed in the county town at the foot of the mountain. He handed the document to him, instructing him to represent the Daoist Scripture Hall in negotiating with the Demon Race.

Afterwards, in his capacity as Pacification Envoy, he wrote a report to document the negotiation. This was a precaution. If Yuan Hu was captured by someone else, this report would prove that Wang Ping had provided the intelligence on his whereabouts. That way, he could at least secure the Samadhi True Flame that Yuan Zheng wanted.

"You still need to remind that bad guy!"

The "bad guy" Yu Lian mentioned was Yuan Zheng. When Wang Ping had gone to Hu Mountain Country to find Yuan Zheng to improve his constitution, Yuan Zheng had played a nasty prank on her. She had been holding that grudge ever since.

Wang Ping reached out to pat Yu Lian’s head, but she dodged him. She rose up on a cloud and flew toward Shen Xiaozhu’s dojo.

「Three days later.」

Zi Luan personally came to Qianmu Mountain to discuss the detailed plan with Wang Ping. He also brought some intelligence on the Broken Water Sect.