There is a progress bar in my cultivation of immortality

Wang Ping was unaware of what had happened at the Dao Palace headquarters. The only benefit of advancing to the True Lord rank was that he no longer had to concern himself with worldly affairs. Although he seemed to have escaped the cycle of cause and effect, in reality, an even greater cycle of cause and effect had already trapped him firmly.

For example, at this moment, he needs to wake up from his meditation and meet Zang Yi, who has come from afar. Zang Yi's purpose is simple: to inquire about the procedures for investigating those destroyed ecological zones at a meeting.

Wang Ping didn't rush to answer Zang Yi, but instead asked, "What do you think should be done? Don't hold back, just tell me from your perspective."

Upon hearing this, various thoughts flashed through Zang Yi's mind. He met Wang Ping's gaze respectfully and, sensing that Wang Ping truly meant no harm, quickly composed himself and replied, "In the end, this dispute was caused by the Seventh Prince of Linshui Prefecture's selfish motives, which violated the rules of the Dao Palace. As a result, some opportunists followed suit, leading to the destruction of some ecological zones."

"However, as far as I know, Ao Hong most likely did not participate in the destruction of the ecological zone. He was at least mindful of the watchful eyes of the True Lords, and with the Dragon Lord present, we can only issue a warning and punish some of his disciples."

His behavior at this moment was not as foolish as when he faced Zhu Wushi. It was clear that his previous statements were just an act. After he finished speaking, he paused for a moment. Seeing that Wang Ping was listening patiently, he continued, "So the focus this time is to warn Ao Hong, deal with some cultivators who disregard the rules of the Dao Palace, and at the same time ensure that their fight is resolved as soon as possible."

Wang Ping nodded in satisfaction upon hearing this, then smiled and said, "You've considered it very well and comprehensively, but all of this is predicated on the premise that all the True Lords truly agree to the resolutions we reached at the meeting."

Zang Yi was taken aback upon hearing this, and cupped his hands in greeting, saying, "I hope the True Lord can enlighten me."

Wang Ping chuckled and said, "I'm even more confused than you. You can do it your way, and get out of there when things become impossible. As for the two fourth-realm cultivators sent by my Taiyan Sect, just have them do some insignificant things."

Zang Yi pressed further, "Do you mean to retreat in order to advance?"

Wang Ping shook his head. "We don't need to go in. I only want the stability of the star system. Of course, if you have the courage to use force to suppress it, I will support you. But remember, once you decide to use force to suppress it, you must have swift and decisive measures. Being timid will only embarrass you."

Although these words were spoken lightly, they conveyed Wang Ping's thoughts and confidence to Zang Yi. Zang Yi quickly stood up, bowed, and clasped his hands in a fist salute, saying, "Yes, this humble Taoist knows what to do."

"Then let's get on with the business!"

A smile appeared on Wang Ping's face.

After bowing again, Zang Yi transformed into a streak of starlight and disappeared into the sky. He was much more relaxed when he left than when he left, because he had received a promise.

After instinctively checking Yu Lian's condition, Wang Ping entered meditation again. A moment later, he saw layers upon layers of space around him, clearly indicating that he was about to grasp the spatial characteristics under the Wood Spirit's rules.

A month later.

The True Yang Sect discovered that a third-realm cultivator from Linshui Prefecture was involved in the destruction of two ecological zones, and publicly announced that he would be executed in accordance with the Dao Palace's regulations. This almost led to a fight with two fourth-realm cultivators from Linshui Prefecture.

However, just half a month later, Linshui Prefecture used conclusive evidence to identify two cultivators from the Zhenyang Sect, proving that they were involved in the destruction of an ecological zone, and publicly announced that they would be executed in accordance with the laws of the Dao Palace.

The two families had a complete falling out. Other Xuanmen and Tianmen thought they could sit back and watch the fight, but they never expected that the two families would start investigating their disciples. For a time, the entire cultivation world was in a state of panic.

Zang Yi and Zhu Wu acted decisively, meeting with cultivators from each of the four realms to suppress the matter. However, the struggle between the three factions intensified. Previously, they wouldn't have acted unless there was something in it for them, but now they would act even without any benefit, as long as they could harm each other's cultivators and ecological zones.

The situation seems more chaotic than before, but closer observation reveals that although the current struggles appear chaotic, no one dares to destroy the ecological zone anymore, and the goal of the struggles has shifted from plundering resources to arguing about who wins and who loses.

This was Wang Ping's goal, and Zang Yi accomplished it in less than three months.

“Zang Yi was chosen by Yuan Wu as the successor of the Star God Alliance, and he does have the means to handle some things. However, he is overly cautious and always likes to play dumb.”

Wang Ping had been paying close attention to the situation in the starry sky. After this incident, he gained a new understanding of Zang Yi. When he made his evaluation, he did not realize that he himself might be more cautious than Zang Yi.

Things seem to be developing in the direction Wang Ping had predicted. If there are no unexpected events, the conflicts in the stars will cease within a few years, and the extraterrestrial spies will be exposed one by one.

Suddenly, on the central avenue in the heart of the city where the Dao Palace headquarters was located, two cultivators of the third realm from Linshui Prefecture and one cultivator of the third realm from Taiyan Sect engaged in a fierce battle. The resulting energy shock instantly destroyed most of the city and also awakened Zang Yi and Zhu Wu, who were meditating in the Green Mountain Pavilion.

When Zang Yiyuan's divine sense probed the past, he saw that the jade slabs of the central avenue were shattering inch by inch under the powerful energy impact, and the miniature arrays engraved on them were exploding one after another, turning into countless points of light and dissipating.

In mid-air, two cultivators from Linshui Mansion were surrounded by deep blue water spirit energy. One of them made a hand seal, and the water vapor within a radius of several miles instantly condensed into countless ice crystals. The edges of each ice crystal gleamed with a cold light, and they poured down on the Taiyan Sect cultivators like a torrential rain.

"boom"

The protective talisman summoned by the Taiyan cultivator shattered after only half a breath. Ice crystals pierced through his Daoist robe. He instinctively adjusted his consciousness and summoned a 'transfer talisman,' only to find that the space had been frozen.

Just then, another cultivator from Linshui Mansion made a complex hand seal, and the magic array he had secretly set up was instantly activated, causing this space to be enveloped by a powerful water pressure, and the Taiyan cultivator's consciousness was immediately imprisoned.

"Is this all the Taiyan Sect is capable of?"

Another cultivator from Linshui Prefecture sneered, flicking out a dark blue chain from his sleeve. The chain exuded a chilling aura, and its surface was wrapped with twisted water-elemental runes. It instantly wrapped around the neck of the Taiyan cultivator.

The moment the chains tightened, bubbles of spiritual energy visibly appeared on the face of the Taiyan cultivator, and his primordial spirit was eroded by the cold air.

Another water cultivator clasped his hands together, and an intricate array appeared beneath his feet. From within the array surged towering waves, attempting to completely engulf the Taiyan cultivator…

"stop!"

A furious shout echoed across the city center.

Then a sword talisman flashed through the void, and in an instant, thousands of sword lights poured down like a galaxy. The expressions of the two water cultivators from Linshui Mansion changed drastically, and the water spirit energy around them surged wildly, condensing into a thick barrier of mysterious ice in front of them.

"Click~"

Before the sword light arrived, spiderweb-like cracks appeared on the barrier, and the spiritual veins within the two water cultivators trembled violently. The water-elemental spiritual power, which had been flowing smoothly like a river, suddenly stagnated.

"Pfft~"

A sword light pierced through the barrier, directly striking the brow of one of the water cultivators. No blood splattered; only pale blue spiritual vein foam gushed from the wound. Then, his spiritual veins were severed, his body rapidly becoming transparent, revealing countless azure spiritual vein networks crumbling beneath his skin. Another water cultivator roared, forming hand seals, attempting to transform into water and escape. However, even more sword lights had intertwined, completely sealing off the space around him, and a sword shadow pierced through his chest.

"Master..."

His voice was distorted, and his body was like a broken glass vessel, with blinding green light shining through countless cracks.

Beside the Taiyan cultivators who had been besieged earlier, a female cultivator wearing a blue, narrow-sleeved combat robe appeared. She was none other than Miaoqing Daoist, who had been ordered to come to the Dao Palace headquarters to investigate the case files of the destroyed ecological zone.

"Miao Qing, how dare you kill a disciple of my Linshui Manor!"

A cold, emotionless voice echoed over the city. It belonged to Daoist Ru Hui of Linshui Prefecture. Beside her, a deep, cold longsword emanated a chilling aura, as if it were about to attack Daoist Miao Qing at any moment. Behind her was a female cultivator of the fourth realm, Daoist Yi Qiu, who was by the side of the Dragon Lord.

“They deserved to die. They disregarded the two-thousand-year friendship between the two sects and besieged and killed my Taiyan Sect disciples in the central city. How dare you speak up for them?”

Li Miaolin's cold voice rang out.

"You can't make a judgment on this matter just by saying a few words!"

Ru Hui Daoist made a hand seal with her left hand, and a dense water spirit array was formed around her long sword, but she did not attack. She was not stupid. No matter how you looked at it, this matter revealed something strange, but in the current situation, she had to make her position clear.

Miao Qing Dao was examining the Taiyan cultivator who had just been besieged. The cultivator's spiritual veins had been mostly corroded by the water spirit, and his primordial spirit had also been shattered in the final attack. Clearly, he had been ambushed and seriously injured before the incident occurred.

"Master...they..."

The disciple had barely uttered two words when his consciousness became blurred, and his spirit and physical body began to go berserk due to the awakening of the wood spirit's consciousness. Daoist Miaoqing had no choice but to obliterate him.

At this moment, Daoist Miaoqing realized that he had been tricked. He had not intended to kill the other disciple of Linshui Mansion, but only to destroy his spiritual body. However, when his long sword sliced ​​through the man's body, it directly took the man's life.

There was no way to explain this, so she could only stick to her stance and confront Li Miaolin, Ru Hui, and Yi Qiu. Ru Hui and Yi Qiu, on the other hand, were also in a difficult position.

Fortunately, Zhu Wu and Zang Yi appeared "just in time" at this moment. Zang Yi asked, as if he already knew the answer, "You two factions have been on good terms for nearly two thousand years. Is it really necessary to come to this?"

He sounded a little angry. Everything had been settled, but an unexpected incident occurred at a crucial moment.

Daoist Miaoqing quickly said, "Judging from my disciple's injuries just now, he was ambushed beforehand. No matter how you look at it, Linshui Prefecture is at fault first!"

Ru Hui Daoist immediately retorted, "Only you have examined your disciple's injuries. We just witnessed you killing him with our own eyes. I have reason to suspect that you were trying to silence him."

Miao Qing Daoist's gaze turned cold as she asked, "With your cultivation level, didn't you notice anything unusual about my disciple's injuries when you examined them just now?"

Just as Ru Hui Daoist was about to continue her rebuttal, Zhu Wu interrupted, saying, "Everyone, just as Fellow Daoist Zang Yi said, is the nearly two thousand years of friendship between your two sects really worthless? Can't you calmly and rationally investigate the truth of this matter?"

Upon hearing this, Zang Yi gave Zhu Wu a serious look. Although what Zhu Wu said was true, this matter really couldn't be investigated. It needed to be calmed down as soon as possible. Otherwise, a deeper investigation might involve other Xuanmen and Tianmen sects. He could easily guess that the Vajra Temple and Zhenyang Sect wouldn't let such a good opportunity pass by.

At least it cannot be investigated openly.

But given the current situation, this is the only best option. So before either side could speak again, Zang Yi preemptively said, "I will personally investigate this matter. During my investigation, you must not make any moves, otherwise I will not hesitate to personally show you what a fifth-realm cultivator is."

As soon as Zang Yi finished speaking, a surge of spiritual energy suddenly rippled out from his body, causing the spiritual energy of the entire central city to stagnate for a moment, as if the entire world had been brought under his control.

Miao Qing Daoist felt a weight on her shoulder, and her spiritual meridians involuntarily contracted and stagnated. She looked up in shock and saw that Zang Yi's eyes seemed to hold a galaxy of stars. Daoist Ru Hui opposite her was in even worse shape, as the watery spiritual energy surrounding her shattered one after another like bubbles.

Zang Yi stood with his hands behind his back, glanced at the four people, and said, "Now, I want you all to go back. Any objections?"

"I will respectfully obey the instructions of my predecessors."

The four responded in turn.

Zang Yi then slowly withdrew his oppressive aura, and the spiritual energy emanating from his body suddenly receded. Immediately, the entire central city seemed to come alive, and the solidified spiritual energy began to flow again. He did not linger and immediately transformed into a stream of light to return to the Green Mountain Pavilion, with Zhu Wu following closely behind.

"This matter is probably not simple."

Zhu Wu reminded him.

Zang Yi gazed at the distant green mountains, sighed, and said, "Even so, I must investigate the truth. As for what to do next, that is the choice of you True Lords, and it is none of our concern."

He paused here, looked at Zhu Wu, and said, "I have received information that you seem to be planning to experiment with the Star God Alliance's sixth-realm secret technique, and even use this secret technique to accelerate the cultivation speed of your Dancheng realm clansmen."

Zhu Wu raised an eyebrow and denied it, saying, "Absolutely not!"

Zang Yi seemed not to hear Zhu Wu's denial and said again, "If our Star God Alliance can find out something like this, do you True Monarchs, with your cultivation levels, not know it?"

After saying that, he changed the subject, "That's all I have to say. I need to gather people to investigate what just happened."

Half an hour later.

The events that occurred in the central city spread throughout the starry sky through various channels, and naturally reached the ears of Ao Hong and Zi Luan. However, the two did not contact each other immediately, but instead waited for the other to explain first, thus missing the best opportunity to clear up the misunderstanding.

When Wang Ping received this news, the first thing that arose in his heart was a little expectation. Then he got into a long period of deduction. Before he could deduce the result, Zang Yi asked to see him again.

After exchanging greetings, Zang Yi immediately gave a summary report: "Preliminary investigations indicate that these three cultivators are involved in the case of the destruction of twelve ecological zones." (End of Chapter)