There is a progress bar in my cultivation of immortality

Wang Ping didn't care about the thoughts of Linshui Mansion or the Dragon King. He just wanted to understand some things. Ao Hong replied quickly, but unfortunately, the Dragon King had fallen into a deep sleep again and would not see anyone.

Wang Ping naturally didn't believe such words, but it was precisely because of this that he received an answer, an answer that was somewhat troublesome for him: Lieyang was indeed doing things that were detrimental to him.

"The Dragon King has fallen into slumber once more."

Wang Ping looked at Bai Yan and said.

Bai Yan replied, "The Dragon Lord may be reminding you, but don't take it as a sign of goodwill. Ever since the rise of the Xuanmen, he has been secretly controlling everything. Your excessive assertiveness recently made him feel threatened."

Xuanqing cautioned, "Don't rush to conclusions without evidence."

Bai Yan glanced at Xuan Qing and replied coldly, "If you were the Dragon Lord, at a crucial moment in your cultivation, all the resources in this starry sky could be supplied to you at any time if you wished. But at this critical moment, a junior suddenly jumps out, threatening your position and thus your future cultivation plans. What would you do?"

Xuanqing did not respond to Bai Yan. He looked at Wang Ping and cupped his hands, saying, "Fellow Daoist, please consider this carefully and see the path ahead before making a decision. With your current cultivation level, you still have endless years ahead of you. Do not act rashly!"

After saying that, he transformed into a beam of colorful light and returned to the core of the magic array he had constructed.

Bai Yan then said to Wang Ping, "The Dragon Lord is not scary. What is scary is the cause and effect of the world. It clings to you like maggots, making it impossible for you to get rid of it. Just like the Dragon Lord, he seems to have abandoned everything and only cares about cultivating the mystical arts. But in the end, what in the world is unrelated to him?"

After saying this, he cupped his hands in greeting to Wang Ping, and then transformed into a streak of purple lightning, returning to his array base.

Wang Ping sat cross-legged in the center of the Wood Spirit World, his aura gradually becoming ethereal until he completely disappeared from the Wood Spirit World. Then, the Wood Spirit World merged with the Wood Spirit Qi of the starry sky. In the blink of an eye, only the flowing, dense Wood Spirit Qi remained in the void, but Wang Ping was nowhere to be seen. The Wood Spirit Array still existed, still preventing the pollution and expansion of the chaotic storm.

Concealing his presence, Wang Ping first deployed a mirror array around himself, observing the movements of the starry sky through puppets scattered throughout every corner of the starry sky. His consciousness recalled everything that had happened since he advanced to the fifth realm, while simultaneously infusing these puppets with the subconscious power to gather intelligence on the True Yang Sect.

Memories are fleeting, and some things are not apparent unless you think about them carefully or with a specific purpose. For example, Wang Ping subconsciously considered Lieyang to be a decent ally, but upon careful examination of everything he had encountered since advancing to the fifth realm, he discovered that Lieyang and Tiangong were intentionally or unintentionally manipulating everything.

For example, the construction of the ecological zone seems to be Wang Ping's idea, but if you look at it from a different perspective, you will find that it is just a backup plan prepared by the two of them, and they may use it as a consumable one day.

"I originally thought that once we reached the fifth realm, everyone would cultivate their own path, but I didn't expect there to be so many intricacies." Wang Ping reached out and gently stirred the dense wood spirit particles within the wood spirit world, speaking these words as if to himself.

Xinghai's illusory figure appeared, looking at the wood spirit particles that Wang Ping was playing with, and said: "Yu Xiao once said that if you have to face something, you should make a decision early and take the initiative, which may have unexpected results."

Wang Ping waved his arm, stirring the spiritual energy of the Wood Spirit World, and exhaled, saying, "Sometimes I admire him, but I don't know when I started to lose my vitality. Back then, I was only at the initial stage of cultivation, yet I dared to plot against the White Water Sect. At that time, there was still a crippled third-stage cultivator in their sect."

Xinghai responded, "As the saying goes, ignorance is bliss, and a newborn calf is not afraid of a tiger. As you see more and more of the truth and learn about the power of this world, you will naturally become fearful, just like the other True Monarchs. Can you still see any ambition in them? Their only motivation to increase their cultivation is to maintain their power in this starry sky."

He disappeared after saying those words, presumably to ponder the new problem that had come to him.

Wang Ping knew that Xinghai was urging him to make a decision soon, and he also planned to formally compete with the True Lords. However, he needed to see clearly who his allies were, who remained neutral, and who would be his enemies.

As he pondered this, Miao Qing and Li Miaolin sent messages one after another using the Taiyan Sect's independent communication token. Subsequently, his puppets throughout the Dao Palace Alliance also sent feedback, saying that the eight Fifth Realm experts gathered in the Demon Clan and the Star God Alliance had all arrived at the scene and issued an edict for the army to set off.

Wang Ping did not reply to these messages. He quietly observed everything, watching the large net of rules interwoven around the demonic world grow dimmer and dimmer. He then simply collected the pure wood spirit energy from the net of rules.

The moment the vast network of star rules concealed itself, Wang Ping saw through the puppet's vision that Tiangong suddenly descended upon the outer planet. Soon after, his decree was issued. It turned out that he felt the speed of the demon race and the Star God Alliance was too slow, and he planned to personally oversee the outer planet and arrange the specific matters of besieging the rebel army.

In less than half an hour, the army, which had been advancing slowly, began to change.

At first, the massive fleet of flying ships in the starry sky moved slowly like a dragon just awakening. But when the decree of the Heavenly Craftsmen came from the depths of the sky, all the ships shook. The flying ships in the sky tore through the void like arrows and advanced into the war zone they had designated. Countless cultivators stood up and flashed with boundless colorful light in the starry sky.

The first war broke out in the ten Central Plains.

The location was at the edge of a star field where demonic energy was surging. In front of the Dao Palace Allied Army, which was marching normally, countless scarlet cracks suddenly appeared. In an instant, thousands of demonic shadows roared and rushed out from the cracks, carrying with them filthy baleful energy, turning the starry sky into a pitch-black expanse.

The Dao Palace flying boat array was the first to be hit. The twelve jade ships in the front row were instantly corroded by demonic energy. The runes on the ship hulls crumbled inch by inch. Many Qi cultivators did not even have time to form an array to resist before their flesh and blood withered and decayed, turning into bare white bones. However, they still maintained the posture of forming hand seals and drifted in the void with the broken ship hulls.

The demonic energy carried by the rebels surged like a tide, swallowing up even the starlight in their wake. The great array formed by the Dao Palace's flying boats shone with dazzling golden light, and countless rune chains shot out from the array, colliding fiercely with the demonic energy and unleashing a deafening roar that shattered the void. With each clash, flying boats disintegrated in the turbulent energy flow, and burning hull fragments scattered like meteors.

The battle lasted for three full days. Only after the arrival of the Dao Palace allied forces did the demonic energy gradually dissipate, leaving behind a devastated battlefield. For the next two years, the Dao Palace allied forces gradually tightened the encirclement of the rebels under such conditions. Tens of millions of Qi cultivators rushed to the front lines during these two years. Some of them died and perished, while others received rewards from the Dao Palace and advanced to the Foundation Establishment stage.

Wang Ping and the other True Monarchs watched coldly from the sidelines. Even Di Wen patiently waited for the encirclement to be established. This process was undoubtedly cruel, taking more than ten years and a million Qi Refiners. Yet, Qi Refiners continued to flock to the border because the rewards offered by the Dao Palace were too tempting.

So many lives are but insignificant specks of dust in the face of this war and the vast starry sky. Under the personal supervision of the Heavenly Craftsman, a massive battle line, seemingly severing the starry sky, rose from the ground in the dark and cold environment beyond the realm, firmly locking the source of pollution in the border demonic world.

From a distance, this vast battle line stretching across the starry sky resembles a ribbon of light strung together by countless glittering stars, winding its way through the dark and cold void.

The main body of the magic array consists of countless bronze towers, each tower over ten thousand feet tall, covered with intricate runes that emit a faint blue light in the darkness. The towers are connected by crystalline spiritual energy chains, on which flow fine runes like a cascading galaxy, weaving a sky-covering net in the void.

At the most critical juncture of the battle line, eight uniquely shaped altars floated in the void, their surfaces covered with flowing, mercury-like liquid spiritual energy. Whenever a cultivator approached an altar, a complex star map projection would automatically appear, displaying the real-time status of the entire defensive line. Eight fifth-realm experts from the demon race and the Star God Alliance were stationed on these eight altars to prevent any unexpected events from occurring.

At the bottom of the entire battle line, a thick spiritual energy barrier was as solid as the earth. Ripples occasionally appeared on the surface of the barrier, which were spatial ripples generated when the teleportation array was in operation. Countless tiny points of light shuttled through the barrier like fireflies on a summer night. In fact, they were communication talismans that traveled to and from various places. Once a defensive line was attacked beyond its capacity, the others would immediately come to its aid. When the monitoring array detected that a cultivator of the fifth realm had entered the area, the True Monarchs could also provide immediate assistance.

After Tiangong completed the construction of the defense line and inspected its outer perimeter, he and Diwen used the teleportation array to reach the chaotic storm of Taiyin Star in front of them. Fifteen years had passed since the last meeting.

Over the years, Wang Ping has been cultivating using the energy refined from the chaotic storms, while secretly using his puppets to make various arrangements, slowly infiltrating the Zhenyang Sect and the Vajra Temple.

Just as the Heavenly Craftsmanship and Earthly Script descended upon the chaotic storm, Quan Xing suddenly sent him a message, saying that Zhi Xin had quietly escaped the demonic world at the border, and that seven Fifth Realm Star Gods had also escaped with him.

Quan Xing asked Wang Ping whether the Star God Alliance should accept these people, and asked him to set a time to hold a temporary meeting. Zhi Xin brought the latest news from within the rebel army.

Just as Wang Ping was about to reply to Quan Xing, a force that made him very uncomfortable appeared inside the Wood Spirit World. Just as he was about to check it out, his Wood Spirit World was torn apart by a golden light.

It's a masterpiece of nature!
When he appeared on the outskirts of the chaotic storm, he unleashed a burst of golden spiritual energy without saying a word, severing the wood spirit world that Wang Ping had constructed. It was a true severance; in Wang Ping's vision through the 'Heavenly Talisman,' he saw that the golden spiritual energy carried the power to tear and sever everything, directly cutting off the roots woven by the wood spirit energy in the void.

Above the vast network of rules, the energy of metal spirit surged immensely. Its appearance immediately stripped wood spirits of their living space, a concrete manifestation of metal overcoming wood.

Wang Ping immediately located Tiangong's position. Without asking any questions, various thoughts flashed through his mind. The next moment, a golden-armored puppet appeared beside him, holding a 'demon sword'. The next moment, the golden-armored puppet, carrying Xinghai's consciousness and holding the demon sword, appeared beside Tiangong.

The moment the demonic sword was swung, the entire void darkened, and before the golden-armored puppet arrived, the sword's edge had already reached it.

When Tiangong manifested his Dharma body, the surrounding starry sky was suddenly filled with golden light, but it dimmed abruptly under the erosion of the black energy of the demonic sword. Upon seeing this, Tiangong's expression changed slightly, and he retreated hastily. However, the demonic sword followed him closely, and the black light bursting from its tip was like a venomous snake spitting its tongue, instantly piercing through his protective golden light.

The foul and malevolent energy even began to devour the golden spiritual meridians flowing within Tiangong's body, causing countless fine cracks to appear on the surface of Tiangong's spiritual body, like rusted metal.

"Om-"

A piercing metallic tremor echoed through the void. The golden spiritual veins within the Heavenly Craft Spirit Body churned wildly, attempting to repair the damage, but were relentlessly entangled by the black energy of the Demon Sword. This black energy, like a living thing, coiled around the golden spiritual energy of the starry sky, distorting the golden spiritual energy wherever it passed, manifesting as twisted dark golden thorns.

Tiangong was not in a hurry. His eyes blazed with golden light, and his body suddenly emitted a dazzling magnetic light. The golden spiritual energy in the void vibrated violently under the pull of the 'magnetic pole' property, forming countless tiny golden vortexes. The corrosive black energy was instantly torn to pieces.

Then, fine tribulation patterns appeared on the surface of the Heavenly Craft Spirit Body. Each pattern shimmered with the secret meaning of the Six Tribulations of the Golden Body. As the tribulation patterns flowed, the distorted golden spiritual veins in his body grew in reverse. The polluted spiritual veins were forcibly pushed out of his body by the newly formed veins and turned into ashes in the void.

The demonic sword was also blocked outside a solid golden spirit barrier. Although this barrier was being rapidly corrupted, it ultimately bought time for the Heavenly Craftsman.

A moment later, as the golden-armored puppet broke through the barrier, it swung its sword again, only to see Tiangong's figure suddenly become ethereal. The demonic sword struck a phantom, while the real Tiangong appeared a thousand miles away. He formed hand seals, and six golden halos appeared behind him. These were the final tribulations of the "Six Tribulations of the Golden Body" cultivation. Each halo contained distinct golden spirit characteristics, which intertwined to form a perfect Dharma body.

Just as Wang Ping was about to make a move, a heavy earth elemental aura rushed towards him.

It is the appearance of the Earthly True Lord.

Wang Ping didn't consider their purpose this time. Countless transfer arrays in the void unfolded instantly according to his will. The number of golden-armored soldiers in front of Tiangong instantly increased to tens of thousands, filling the entire starry sky and weaving into a giant strangulation array.

Next, a dense mass of pure wood elemental energy, like jade lakes illuminating the entire starry sky, appeared. The instant the earth-like markings appeared, Wang Ping used the 'Heaven-Reaching Talisman,' 'Heaven-Covering Talisman,' and 'Heaven-Stealing Talisman' to lock onto his energy. Then, Wang Ping forcibly concentrated the starry sky's fortune around him using the 'Luck-Borrowing Talisman.' (End of Chapter)