There is a progress bar in my cultivation of immortality

When Wang Ping took another step forward, the pressure did indeed decrease somewhat, but when he took another step forward and climbed the steps, a surging repulsive force immediately rushed towards him.

This power is indeed formless and intangible; the primordial spirit cannot sense its existence, yet it truly exists, just as if space itself has been stripped away.

When Wang Ping tried to climb another step, he found that he couldn't even lift his foot. At this moment, Yu Lian communicated with him in his spiritual sea: "The corrosive energy here is too strong, and the repulsive force seems to be targeting me. Try putting me outside."

Upon hearing this, Wang Ping raised an eyebrow, then took two steps back. He then pointed his hand at the chaotic space in the distance, and instantly a space was cleared by the Wood Spirit, forming a thick barrier. Then, a spacetime passage flashed past Wang Ping, sending Yu Lian into the Wood Spirit's barrier.

Then, Wang Ping separated a portion of his internal energy and injected it into the core of the magic array inside the barrier, so that the barrier could exist for a long time without his spellcasting.

Just as Wang Ping saw Yu Lian off, the repulsive force on the steps suddenly disappeared by more than half, and instead, a strong attraction appeared, as if trying to drag him up the steps.

Wang Ping didn't move. He looked up at the end of the steps and recalled what the Dragon Lord had said. The Dragon Lord had most likely been here before, but he hadn't been able to enter the Holy Palace. That meant the repulsive force should be very strong. But Wang Ping had a feeling that he could get through the steps if he wanted to.

This is very weird!
Wang Ping couldn't help but extend his left hand to deduce, but he found nothing. Then he asked, "Have all the True Lords been here? Has anyone climbed these steps?"

Bai Yan immediately replied, "They should have all come secretly, especially the Dragon Lord; he's probably come many times."

Upon hearing this, Wang Ping had many thoughts flashing through his mind regarding 'self-discipline,' and then he activated a transfer talisman in the direction of the barrier where Yu Lian was located.

Upon sensing the spatial-temporal passage of the transfer talisman, Wang Ping stepped onto the gray steps.

As he stood on the steps, the previously faint dragging force suddenly became clear and strong, as if an invisible hand at the end of the steps was gripping his spirit and body, trying to forcibly pull him up.

He steadied himself immediately, sensing the space-time channel created by the teleportation talisman. Ignoring the dragging force, he calmed his mind and took another step forward.

As Wang Ping ventured deeper, the scene on either side of the steps was no longer one of a collapsing heavenly palace, but rather a swirling, chaotic mist, accompanied by corrosive energy that intensified with the dragging force.

This energy, like a leech, seeped in from all directions, ignoring the emerald green light flowing across his body, and directly affected the depths of his spiritual meridians. Wang Ping could only use the wood elemental energy within his body to neutralize it.

After taking two more steps, the dragging force stopped increasing. Wang Ping looked up, trying to see clearly the end of the steps, while sensing the spacetime passage constructed by the transfer talisman. He had to ensure that at any time, with just a thought, he could immediately activate the talisman and escape this strange place.

Time passed silently, the steps seemed endless, disappearing into the chaos and darkness above. The corrosive energy around him was almost solidified into a dark gray mist, constantly impacting his protective aura.

Suddenly, he saw the end of the steps, where there seemed to be a wide, high platform, and further up on the platform, there seemed to be even more magnificent pavilions and towers.

Wang Ping, who was in a state of 'self-discipline', did not appear to be in a particular hurry. He continued to climb the steps slowly and steadily, sensing the space-time channel established by the transfer talisman. He could still sense it, which meant that this area was connected and not an independent space.

Before he knew it, Wang Ping arrived at the steps. He was just one step away from climbing them. He instinctively reached out his left hand to deduce the steps. As he delved deeper into the deduction, he suddenly felt an overwhelming anticipation for everything inside the Holy Palace. This was an instinctive anticipation, but he was currently in a state of 'self-discipline'. Theoretically, with his current level of divine magic cultivation, he shouldn't have such desires.

Wang Ping wanted to eliminate this instinct and used his powerful cultivation to suppress all his thoughts. After a long time, when Wang Ping confirmed that his true thoughts had returned, he took the final step.

The moment Wang Ping stepped onto the platform and his figure completely left the gray steps, everything around him suddenly changed.

The illusory, magnificent palaces, pavilions, and towers suddenly vanished, and even the solid tactile sensation underfoot disappeared, turning into absolute nothingness.

There is no concept of direction, no light, no sound, no matter, and not even a sense of space. If one had to describe it, it would be like being at the singularity before the birth of the universe, where all things are still and all laws cease to exist.

However, he could still sense the space-time channel constructed by the transfer talisman. This extremely strange sensation made him stop and carefully build a wood spirit barrier around himself.

Immediately afterwards, Wang Ping sensed the purest five elements of basic energy within this void, which were harmoniously intertwined here. Then, at the core of this void, he saw physical five elements of energy particles, which seemed to have constructed a living organism.

This alerted Wang Ping deep in his mind, but he couldn't take his eyes off the life form. It seemed to have no consciousness and was just an inanimate object, but the moment Wang Ping noticed it, his subconscious mind immediately regarded it as a life form.

When Wang Ping realized that he had no thoughts, his instinctive thought was that his consciousness had been stripped away, or that he had sealed himself away to escape the destruction of the universe.

But when Wang Ping tried to observe it closely, something even stranger happened. The life form that was originally located at the core of the endless void seemed to instantly transcend all conceptual distances and become right in front of him. At this moment, Wang Ping could even feel the most minute energy particles being born and dying in front of him, and he could reach out and touch them.

This disorientation of distance is not a spatial magic, but a direct manifestation of the cognitive level, as if it is already in the center of your perception when you become aware of it.

The next moment, Wang Ping saw that there were incredibly complex rune lines around this life form, which was a magic circle, and just as Wang Ping had imagined, it was a sealing magic circle.

This sealing array looks complex, yet it is the most basic, because it is outlined by the most basic Five Elements sealing array. However, it constructs a dense structure that Wang Ping has never seen before, because it is not laid out in a flat plane, but layered and nested inside and out, as if compressing countless worlds into a small space.

When Wang Ping's primordial spirit tried to trace the origin of these runes, it immediately fell into an endless labyrinth. With each layer of seals unlocked, ten more complex structures emerged; with each node understood, a hundred interconnected changes immediately arose.

It is fundamental, yet incredibly complex. Even with Wang Ping's current level of primordial spirit cultivation, he cannot analyze it instantly!

At this moment, Wang Ping observed that a broken phantom image was gathering at the core of the sealing array, above the life form.

That was the outline of a peacock.

Its once magnificent tail screen is now reduced to a few broken strips of light, like torn brocade. The eye-shaped patterns on the tail screen that should have been shining brightly have mostly gone out, leaving only a few faint points of colored light.

Its body was tattered and broken, with tiny specks of light constantly escaping from its edges and merging into the surrounding void. Yet, this extremely broken phantom of the primordial spirit exuded an indescribable aura of antiquity and nobility.

"Changqing~" Kongque suddenly opened her eyes, and Wang Ping's figure was reflected in her eyes.

Wang Ping looked at the peacock and blurted out, "Yao Xi!"

The moment he uttered the name "Yaoxi," a powerful impulse stemming from his very life force suddenly exploded deep within his consciousness…

Wang Ping suddenly wanted to devour it and merge with it!

This desire came so intensely and directly, as naturally as wanting to eat when hungry or drink when thirsty.

Wang Ping could clearly sense that, if he wished, he could immediately establish a deep connection with this broken peacock phantom and absorb everything that remained of it.

The allure of this completion is immense, as if it were a crucial missing link in his cultivation path.

However, Wang Ping's Dao heart was as firm as a rock, and his rationality in the state of 'self-discipline' was like a cold tide, instantly suppressing this sudden desire. His mind raced, and he wanted to leave this place.

Then, without hesitation, he activated the teleportation talisman that had been maintained. The fluctuations of the spacetime channel clearly appeared behind him. He only needed to take one step back to escape this strange void.

“You should have come here sooner.”

The peacock spoke again.

Wang Ping stopped his plan to leave this space. He met Peacock's eyes and asked with a tone of doubt and disbelief, "Senior Yaoxi?"

"You can call me that. I am just a fragmented consciousness here, barely maintaining some basic memories thanks to this sealing array."

The peacock responded in this way.

Wang calmed himself down. The spacetime passage behind him did not disappear, but at that moment, a surge of energy imprisoned his primordial spirit and physical body in a small space. Then, time in the space he was in suddenly accelerated, which he sensed through his sensitivity to spacetime.

Just as Wang Ping realized that he was imprisoned in space and time and that the flow of time was abnormal, a great force far beyond his comprehension quietly descended. Before he could even react, his consciousness was extinguished like a candle in the wind, and he fell into the deepest sleep.

As he fell into a deep sleep, the 'Heaven-Stealing Talisman,' 'Heaven-Covering Talisman,' 'Heaven-Connecting Talisman,' 'Luck-Borrowing Talisman,' and 'Spirit-Communicating Talisman' that his primordial spirit had merged with were quietly activated by an external force.

They were like five pieces of jade melted by high temperature, their edges softening and merging. The originally clear and independent rune lines on the talisman seemed to come alive at this moment, turning into streams of emerald light, peeling off their respective carriers, and then intertwining and weaving with each other like serpents.

A new rune structure was born at the point of convergence. It was more complex and more mysterious. It retained the characteristics and traces of the original five runes, yet it was also a complete whole, without any distinction between them. The process of their interweaving and fusion was slow and steady. As time went by, the physical boundaries of the five runes gradually blurred and eventually disappeared completely, merging into a new rune. It was closely intertwined with Wang Ping's primordial spirit, radiating a deep emerald green halo.

The entire process lasted for about two years, which was two years in the time-accelerated space. If it were the normal passage of time, it would probably take more than 20,000 years!
As the fusion was completed and the spacetime confinement was lifted, Wang Ping's consciousness began to awaken. The first thing he sensed was the brand-new talisman deep within his primordial spirit.

After completing all this, the peacock's phantom became even dimmer. It gazed silently at Wang Ping, the last few points of colored light on its tail feathers flickering faintly, and said:
"This is the next step in your cultivation of the fifth realm of the Taiyan Talisman. I have used the energy of this void starry sky to speed up your cultivation, since you seem to need a lot of time. If you were to follow the normal fusion speed, it would take you at least 20,000 years."

Wang Ping felt as if only a moment had passed. Upon hearing Yao Xi's words, he instinctively sensed the talisman that had been fully integrated within his primordial spirit. His cultivation level had not increased much, but it had become more concealed within the aura of the wood spirit, and his ability to perceive the network of rules governing the universe and starry sky had become clearer.

Why did you help me, senior?

He asked cautiously.

Yao Xi and Wang Ping exchanged glances, and Yao Xi replied, "You should know this. According to my plan, you should have come here as soon as you advanced to the fifth realm, but I didn't expect it to take until now."

Wang Ping quickly entered a state of 'self-discipline' again, suppressing other thoughts in his mind. He did want to come here when he advanced to the fifth realm, but due to his caution, under the watchful eyes of the True Lords, he gave up the idea.

"What should I know?"

Wang Ping asked, then added, "What do I need to give in return for your help, senior?"

Yao Xi looked Wang Ping up and down and said, "Helping you is helping myself. My broken primordial spirit will disappear in less than ten years, so why are you worried? If you want to know the answer, I have a memory that can resolve most of your doubts. Whether you read this memory or not is up to you."

As he spoke, a golden stream of light condensed in front of him.

Wang Ping's gaze fell upon the golden stream of light. After a few moments of silence, he asked, "Do you have any memories of the future you predicted?"

Yao Xi immediately denied it, saying, "No, the moment the future appeared, I erased it because you don't need to observe it, and others don't need to know it either, because only the unknown future can be determined."

Wang Ping sensed the spacetime passage created by the 'transfer talisman' he had set up, confirming that he could leave at any time. Then he sensed that the repulsive force of the Heavenly Staircase had disappeared, and he could hear the faint aura of Bai Yan trying to climb the stairs from below.

"You just keep waiting!"

Wang Ping transmitted his voice to Bai Yan and set up a spacetime barrier at the steps to block others from disturbing him. Then he used a spacetime channel to teleport Yu Lian to his side.

Yu Lian instinctively landed on Wang Ping's shoulder, leaning against his cheek. She first looked around blankly, then her gaze settled on the tattered phantom of the peacock, her vertical pupils filled with wariness. (End of Chapter)