My Cultivation Has a Progress Bar

Chapter 374: Chapter 9: The State of the Six Heart Sect

The Six Heart Sect.

Ever since the Xiao Shan Lord publicly announced he was entering seclusion, the sect had cut off all contact with the outside world, save for essential receptions. Nearly ten thousand disciples from all levels of the sect surrounded the mountain gate, sealing it off completely.

These disciples formed a series of precise arrays, with three hundred Entering Cultivators presiding over them. Behind these three hundred Entering Cultivators were dozens of Second Realm Cultivators, who guarded the strategic points of the Inner Sect. They, too, were linked by arrays.

Furthermore, behind these dozens of Second Realm Cultivators, eight Third Realm Cultivators guarded the famous mountains of the Six Heart Sect, protecting the courtyard Dao Field at the very center. Meanwhile, atop a mountain peak south of the Dao Field, stood a Fourth Realm Earth Vein Cultivator in a pale blue Daoist Robe. She was none other than Wan Zhi Daoist, a friend of the Xiao Shan Lord.

Her attire was simple. Her hair was coiled into a single bun and fastened with a wooden hairpin. Her features were delicate, but faint yellow cracks ran down both her cheeks, making her look as though she were made of clay.

While she meditated, four small, gray pagodas constantly orbited her. These pagodas were intricately connected to the array beneath her, which in turn was linked to the arrays throughout the mountains. Even without actively probing, no disturbance within the Six Heart Sect, no matter how small, could escape her Primordial Spirit Consciousness.

In this state, the Six Heart Sect was like a slumbering beast—silent on the surface, but ferocious underneath. Even the outer sect disciples found themselves practicing with unconscious seriousness.

It was the dead of winter, and the Spring Festival was approaching.

On the main road twenty li outside the Six Heart Sect’s mountain gate, express riders galloped back and forth ceaselessly, most of them carrying military dispatches.

The chaos in Mozhou Road had finally spread to Hai Zhou Road and Ningzhou Road. Both regions were struggling to cope with famine and the Rebel Army simultaneously, leaving them feeling overwhelmed. This led to widespread public unrest, and in some places, the people were even driven to revolt by the officials’ actions.

Half a month before the Spring Festival, Zuo Xuan finally made a decision. After requesting permission from the Court, he ordered all aspiring individuals in the prefectures and counties to raise their own troops to quell the chaos. The Court and the Daoist Scripture Hall would reward them based on their military achievements.

After the decree was issued, the major clans with any ambition quickly provided food and money to aid the common people, using the opportunity to recruit soldiers for the front lines to suppress the rebellion. They actually managed to curb the spreading rebellion before the Spring Festival.

On the very day of the Spring Festival, news arrived by express horse at Jinhuai Prefecture City: while the Bin Pass garrison was mustering troops on the training grounds, their commanding general and twelve primary Captains were obliterated by a self-detonating living sacrifice from the Demon Race!

As the news spread, a Spirit Bird with cyan and green markings all over its body streaked across the cold winter sky and landed before the mountain gate of the Six Heart Sect, immediately drawing the attention of the two Entering Cultivators on guard duty.

"It must be a senior’s Puppet Bird!"

The speaker was a Wood Spirit Cultivator. He had no sooner spoken than he tried to grab it for a closer look, but his Object Manipulation Technique was repelled by a green halo emanating from the Puppet Bird’s body.

"Huh?"

Amid everyone’s astonished gazes, the Puppet Bird tilted its head, glanced at the crowd before the mountain gate, then spread its wings and took to the air again, flying directly into the Six Heart Sect’s grounds.

A few Qi Cultivators instinctively moved to activate an array to stop it.

"Don’t waste your energy. It may look small and weak, but it has an array inside it personally set up by a Third Realm Cultivator. You lot won’t be able to harm it in the slightest. Don’t worry, someone deeper inside will handle it."

The Puppet Bird flew swiftly over the mountain-climbing steps and, in the blink of an eye, reached the skies above the sprawling palaces of the outer sect. This place was filled with the smoke of burning incense, where the ancestors of the Six Heart Sect were worshipped.

Here, too, no one stopped it.

Before long, it flew into the Inner Sect, which was encircled by mountains. There, it was snared by an invisible force. No matter how it flapped its wings, it could no longer fly and was forced to descend slowly. It landed in the hand of an old Daoist wearing a blue Daoist Robe. The Daoist gently stroked his beard and spoke to a young disciple on his left:

"A very familiar aura. It’s not the aura of Martial Ancestor Zi Luan or Martial Ancestor Xiu Yu... so it’s most likely Daoist Changqing’s Puppet Bird. Go and ask Martial Uncle Zhao to come take a look."

"Yes!"

The young disciple was gone for half an hour. When he returned, Zhao Yu’Er was with him. During his seclusion, Wang Ping had worried that the Demon Soldier inside Zhao Yu’Er’s body might suddenly go out of control, so he had brought her to the Six Heart Sect to cultivate.

"Martial Uncle!"

The old Daoist bowed respectfully. Meeting Zhao Yu’Er’s confused gaze, he took out the Puppet Bird he had just acquired and asked, "Does this have Daoist Changqing’s aura on it?"

"Yes, it’s very distinct. Where did you get this?"

Zhao Yu’Er stared at the old Daoist, her tone questioning.

The old Daoist had excellent composure and replied with continued respect, "It flew up from outside the mountain gate. It likely carries an important message for Daoist Changqing."

"Things outside are a complete mess. It’s about time the Martial Ancestors were informed," the young disciple added worriedly.

"You and your big mouth!"

Although the old Daoist was chiding him, his tone was gentle. Judging from the young disciple’s demeanor, the old man wasn’t usually strict—but in the Cultivation Realm, a lack of severity was not always a good thing.

Zhao Yu’Er thought so, too, but she didn’t let it show. Instead, she asked, "Should this be given to Martial Grand-uncle?"

"That depends on your decision, Martial Uncle."

"Mm."

When Wang Ping and the others were refining the array, it wasn’t a true Death Seclusion. They simply couldn’t leave the Array Core, but they had one hour each day when they were not in deep meditation.

If there was something important, it could be reported during that one hour.

But under normal circumstances, no one would disturb them. Furthermore, when they entered seclusion, they had each designated a person to relay messages. The person Wang Ping designated was, naturally, Zhao Yu’Er.

Zhao Yu’Er took the Puppet Bird, said "thank you," and made her decision after only a moment’s thought. ’The people outside must know Martial Grand-uncle’s current state,’ she reasoned, ’yet they still sent a message in. The contents must be extremely important.’

She carefully examined the Puppet Bird’s design. After determining with her limited knowledge that it posed no danger, she took the bird and walked toward the courtyard Dao Field.

Half an hour later, she reached a steep mountain peak and performed a proper bow, for Wan Zhi Daoist was meditating at its summit.

Zhao Yu’Er waited for a full fifteen minutes. When no one appeared to stop her, she continued on her way.

After nearly another half an hour, just as the courtyard Dao Field came into distant view, a young man in black training clothes stopped her.

"What is it?"

The young man’s tone was cold.

Zhao Yu’Er immediately explained the situation.

After listening, the young man pointed to the path beside them and said, "At 7:45 PM, release the Puppet Bird in your hand. It will fly to Daoist Changqing on its own. If there are any instructions in return, I will naturally relay them."

"Very well."

Hiding her displeasure, Zhao Yu’Er glanced at the sky and sullenly conceded, "Fine."

The moment she finished speaking, the person before her vanished.

But she didn’t dare take another step forward.

Passing the time was not difficult for Zhao Yu’Er. She retreated to a nearby bluestone rock and sat down cross-legged. With a flick of her left hand, she used the mutated Spirit Vein in her body to manifest a speck of wood dust. Then, her right hand conjured a ball of fire, which she used to burn the speck.

As the wood dust burned, it made a faint CRACKLE. She liked this sound; she could listen to it all day.

As time passed, the sky gradually darkened, making the flame in Zhao Yu’Er’s hand grow more distinct. The firelight illuminated the childlike smile on her face.

When it was 7:45 PM, she decisively stopped what she was doing. She got up, walked to the spot on the path the young man had pointed to, and released the Puppet Bird she had been holding captive with her magic.