Chapter 648: Closed-Door Cultivation

Chapter 648: Chapter 128: Closed-Door Cultivation

For Wang Ping, improving the deduction progress was just a matter of time. Then there was his ascension compatibility. He planned to make a few more attempts; if they went well, pushing his compatibility to a perfect state was not out of the question.

If the results were poor, he would stop immediately. After all, while an Array of Spiritual Material wasn’t considered particularly valuable, each activation still cost millions of taels of silver.

Speaking of which, money was another thing Wang Ping lacked, aside from time. Each attempt cost him millions of taels of silver, sometimes even tens of millions. The silver reserves of Qianmu Temple had been completely used up a decade ago.

The only reason Wang Ping could continue his cultivation was due to the support of the Daoist Palace. As long as the materials were for Wang Ping’s cultivation, the Daoist Palace would provide them to Qianmu Temple on credit. In other words, the reason Wang Ping could cultivate so quickly was that he was using the resources of nearly half of Zhongzhou.

Of course, the most important reason for this was that Wang Ping himself had the ability to repay his debts. Otherwise, no one would be willing to be taken for a fool. For example, Zhi Gong Daoist of Hai Zhou Road was also preparing for her ascension, yet few were willing to provide her with materials in advance.

Naturally, there were also plenty of people waiting to laugh at Wang Ping’s expense, as well as those waiting for his failure so they could carve up the Chu Country and Qianmu Temple. For now, however, these people remained silent. If Wang Ping succeeded, they would certainly not be stingy with their goodwill.

「One month later.」

Just as the reconstruction of the Fire Institute was completed, the Qi Fortune Array that Wang Ping had set up at the Six Heart Sect was also finished.

Wang Ping had long since turned another refined Third Realm Primordial Spirit into a puppet. This time, the calculation and ascension attempt took quite a while—over a full year.

This was because the number of future scenarios to calculate had suddenly multiplied several-fold. The puppet’s highest success rate for the ascension attempt was (14/100), which was still pitifully low. And that was with Wang Ping pouring most of his own consciousness into the puppet.

The attempt, naturally, ended in failure again. The same stinging pain appeared between his eyebrows. This time, Wang Ping possessed a complete Spiritual Body. At the instant of pain, his Primordial Spirit clearly saw an uncontrollable Wood Spirit trying to destroy his consciousness via the Heaven-Reaching Talisman. However, this wisp of Wood Spirit Aura was very faint and was assimilated in a mere instant after entering his consciousness.

This time, the deduction progress only increased by a single point, reaching (97/100). His ascension compatibility after absorbing the Spiritual Material only increased by ten points, reaching (41/100). That feeling of being so close yet so far grew even stronger, and at the same time, his desire to draw the Heaven-Covering Talisman intensified.

Two attempts had used up two refined Third Realm Primordial Spirits. The remaining two would require at least ten more years to refine. Wang Ping could only resort to the External Incarnation Technique.

「Autumn, Year 36 of the Daoist Palace Calendar.」

The new Emperor of the Chu Country had already been on the throne for six years. During this time, the Emperor had been building up his military strength internally while actively seeking allies externally. Last year, he had signed a treaty with the Datong Marquisate.

On the third day of autumn this year, the Chu Country dispatched an army of twenty thousand to plunder several county towns in the southern Liangjiang Region.

Qianmu Temple.

In a cavern beneath the Mountain Peak Dojo, Wang Ping was once again using a puppet to attempt ascension. His ascension compatibility had reached (70/100), while his deduction progress had hit (98/100) two years prior. After that, just like before, it refused to increase any further, wasting several activations of the Qi Fortune Array, each worth tens of millions.

After this attempt, Wang Ping did not continue to set up the Qi Fortune Array for more tries. This was because he only had one set of materials left, and there were no more available on the market. To get more, he would have to dispatch sect disciples to the Mist Sea Region to search for them.

In the blink of an eye, another Spring Festival arrived. Wang Ping was in a meditative trance, one induced by a Divine Technique of self-restraint. With his ascension compatibility at (70/100), his inner craving for the Heaven-Covering Talisman had grown even more severe.

He only awoke from this trance in the summer. Yu Lian, who had been guarding him the entire time, saw him wake up and immediately shrank down, landing on his shoulder. She nuzzled his cheek with her head and asked, “How do you feel?”

“I’m all right. I have to say, I’m starting to admire Xiu Yu. He was actually able to overcome his inner desires and give up the answer he had likely already grasped.”

The moment Wang Ping woke up, he thought of Xiu Yu. His impression of Xiu Yu had always been terrible, a trick of his subconscious.

“His pursuits were different from yours from the very beginning, which is why he could let it go. You, on the other hand, have always been pursuing a higher level of cultivation, so you’re constantly being tempted and naturally can’t escape your inner desires.”

As Yu Lian spoke, she spread her Primordial Spirit to check on Shen Xiaozhu’s condition before crawling into the sleeve of Wang Ping’s left arm. She fell asleep shortly after. Her current cultivation level meant she didn’t need to sleep, but as a spiritual animal, not sleeping would make her feel uncomfortable all over. It was simply her nature.

The instant Wang Ping stood up, he appeared in the small courtyard of the Mountain Peak Dojo. He then began to slowly brew some tea.

Half a day passed without him noticing. As the sky began to dim, Yu Lian woke from her deep sleep and poked her head out of his sleeve. Wang Ping poured her a cup of tea.

Yu Lian drank the tea and asked, “How do you plan to continue your cultivation?”

As he picked up the teapot to pour Yu Lian more tea, Wang Ping said, “I’m entering seclusion to ascend!”

After waking from his trance, Wang Ping had a premonition. The final points of the deduction progress had to be calculated by him personally; otherwise, it would not increase by another point.

So, he decided to just enter seclusion and attempt his ascension directly!

Yu Lian was clearly taken aback by Wang Ping’s answer and didn’t know how to respond for a moment. After a long pause, she finally said, “We still have plenty of time, don’t we? You haven’t even been cultivating the Dao for five hundred years…”

A rare look of fear appeared on her. After all, ascending to the Fourth Realm was no joke. The slightest misstep would mean the death of his body and the dissipation of his Dao.

“Don’t worry. I know what I’m doing.”

Wang Ping reached out and gently stroked Yu Lian’s head. The light screen panel showed the success rate for drawing the Heaven-Covering Talisman, and he could also use the Qi Fortune Array to find the future best suited for him.

Yu Lian didn’t speak. She took the opportunity to climb up his arm and onto his shoulder, where she lay down.

Wang Ping looked up at the sparse, starry sky and said softly, “It’s been a long time since I’ve just admired the night view. I won’t do my daily practice tonight.”

“Okay!”

The night passed in silence.

Wang Ping sat quietly on a stone stool in the small courtyard, reminiscing about everything he had experienced since he began cultivating. From time to time, he would exchange a word or two with Yu Lian.

Before he knew it, day had broken.

Wang Ping cleared the tea set from the Stone Table and sent a voice transmission to Yuan Zheng, Ruan Chunzi, Dongcan, Xia Wen Yi, and Wu Fu from Zhonghui County Town, summoning them to his Dao Field.

In less than fifteen minutes, everyone appeared in the small courtyard.

Without any small talk, Wang Ping spoke directly as soon as everyone had arrived. “I have a premonition that my opportunity for ascension has come. After this meeting, I will enter seclusion to seek it out. I will not emerge until I ascend. This could take another hundred years or more. I’ll have to entrust Qianmu Temple to your care.”

Everyone’s faces showed shock upon hearing his first words. After Wang Ping finished speaking, the group fell silent. Finally, it was Dongcan, who rarely spoke, who cupped his fists and said, “Then I shall congratulate you in advance on your success, True Man!”

Wang Ping smiled and looked at Ruan Chunzi. “During my seclusion, the Southern Cultivation Realm must remain completely peaceful…”