Progress Bar on Buildings (8000)

"Oh, tell me about it." Xu Bai perked up instantly when he heard Ye Zi say that, and stood up from his chair.

He had to admit that tonight's experience left him speechless. The other party's actions were a clear attempt to exploit his weaknesses and make him afraid to go into the water.

Especially thinking about Lin Yong's arrogant expression tonight, even though he had managed to turn the tables this time, exposing not only Lin Yong but also the prefect, he was still extremely unhappy that he hadn't completely killed those two guys tonight.

Besides working on the progress bar, all he can think about right now is how to capture that Lin Yong guy and twist his head off.

That being underwater was indeed a weakness for him, so even now, he still hasn't come up with a good solution.

If I were to find a cultivation technique suitable for underwater use now, I would need to leave the Wind Chime Prefecture, but that's unrealistic; it's obvious the other party wouldn't let me leave.

Or, to put yourself as bait and pretend to leave, you can see what the other side does.

This is a good method, but it still has some flaws. What if the other party uses a diversionary tactic to lure him away first, and then tries to carry out their own plan? Wouldn't that be falling into a trap? For example, if the other party really wants to use this method to force him to leave, and then use other methods to strengthen themselves while he is away, and then turn around to deal with him, then that would be completely in line with the other party's wishes.

So we can't leave, and we have to find a way to deal with those guys and vent our anger.

Can you tolerate it? No, you can't.

Since entering this industry, Xu Bai has never experienced what it feels like to endure.

Ye Zi bent down her slender waist and whispered in Xu Bai's ear, "Young master, what the other side is relying on is simply that they have water as cover. If they didn't have water as cover, then they wouldn't be so arrogant."

Xu Bai stroked his chin and said, "That's interesting. Continue."

If the other side didn't have water to rely on, killing them would be as simple as a single slash; it wouldn't be so troublesome at all.

Don't forget, he may seem to only have the ability of a third-rank official now, but once he has the Saber Intent, he can definitely go toe-to-toe with a first-rank official. Although it is unknown what the outcome of a fight with a first-rank official would be, a second-rank official would be powerless against him.

"Young master, what I mean is to pump water, wouldn't that reveal their tracks?" Ye Zi said with a grin.

Upon hearing this, Xu Bai frowned. "I'm afraid it's not that easy."

If it were a lake or a river, this method would indeed be feasible, since they rely on water. If the water were drained, wouldn't the other party be exposed?

The idea was good, but there were some difficulties in implementing it, because what lay before him was not a river or a lake, but a tributary.

XunLe River is a wide river. If the entire river were drained, he wouldn't need to do anything else; he could stay in this place for the rest of his life, slowly pumping water.

Although he had already reached the third rank of strength, it would still be extremely difficult for him to make the entire river disappear for no reason.

So Ye Zi's method seems good, but there are some practical issues that need to be considered, otherwise it cannot be implemented.

"Young master, what I mean is that we don't need to drain the entire river. Don't you know any mechanical arts?" Ye Zi asked.

Xu Bai nodded.

He certainly knew how to use ingenious techniques, but what did that have to do with draining the river? Ye Zi explained in detail...

"Today, I observed that their location, including the position of all the boats on the XunLe River, is only a few hundred meters long. Yet, a few hundred meters is enough to reveal where their hideout is. If you, young master, use clever tactics to block this few hundred meters and divert the flow, then all that remains is to drain the water. This would greatly reduce our difficulty, and we wouldn't have to drain a large river."

As she spoke, Ye Zi stretched out her fair finger, dipped it in water, and drew a straight line on the table. Then she drew two dots in the middle of the line, meaning to cut it off.

"A very good idea." Xu Bai grasped Ye Zi's hand and said, "It seems to be useful. Those families can also play their role now."

Following Ye Zi's method, Xu Bai felt that there was no need to do anything like pumping water; all they needed to do was cut off the upstream, and the downstream would naturally be exposed.

Ye Zi reminded him, "Young Master, you must not cut only one section. It must be both ends, and in the middle of these two ends, you must dig a sufficient channel to allow the water to flow through, otherwise the pressure will be too great."

As she spoke, Ye Zi stood up from Xu Bai's arms, turned around and went to the cabinet. She took out a piece of paper from the cabinet before returning to Xu Bai's arms. She shifted her hips to make herself more comfortable.

While maintaining this posture, Ye Zi began to draw a sketch.

Xu Bai put one arm around her waist, rested his head on her shoulder, and looked at Ye Zi from this angle.

The painting was finished in no time, and Ye Zi presented it to Xu Bai as if to show off her achievement.

"Young master, look at this painting I made. We can use this method to intercept the flow, which will make things much safer."

After all, it is the XunLe River. If we want to successfully dam this great river, we must be very careful, otherwise we will fail.

The painting clearly marks a range, cut off at both ends, with a deep ditch running between them to divert the flow.

"The only downside is that if we really do this, it will cause a huge commotion. But if we make such a big commotion and the other party runs away, then there will be no way to deal with it," Ye Zi said.

After all, it's such a big project, so we can't be too careful or do things quietly.

The other party is right below XunLe River. Once they do this, the other party will definitely notice and run away. If they don't run away by then, they would be too stupid.

Xu Bai said slowly, "Don't worry, the preparation will be very complicated, but if we are really ready, starting from this river, it will be very fast."

His Ingenious Craft Puppet Technique are at the maximum level, combining the Ingenious Craft Pavilion and the Human Weapon Art, so he is extremely skilled in this area. With the right technique, he can cut off the blockage instantly. After all, it's not like drawing water from an entire river, so he is confident in this method.

The only difficulty lies in the materials; we don't need particularly good materials, just something that's reasonably sturdy.

But is that a problem? It's not a problem at all.

"Tomorrow, have Ye Family Head send a letter to the other families, asking them to come to a meeting with me. I will tell them what to do," Xu Bai said with a smile.

Isn't this just a family trying to curry favor with him? Then he'll give these families the opportunity to do so.

If you want to curry favor with me, I'm sorry, but you have to prepare materials for me. The materials I'm telling you aren't particularly expensive, it's just that the quantity needed is quite large. The entire Wind Chime Prefecture can definitely gather enough.

These family heads are all shrewd people, and having mingled in this place for so long, they must be able to distinguish right from wrong.

"Young master, wonderful," Ye Zi said with a grin.

"Is it just talk?" Xu Bai asked.

Ye Zi's eyes darted around. "I was praising you, young master..."

Xu Bai patted Ye Zi on the back and laughed, "It's fine to just say it, but you have to say it from a different position."

Ye Zi was taken aback, then realized what she meant and bent down with a charming smile...

The next day.

Early this morning, all the families in Wind Chime Prefecture received a message from the Ye Family Head.

The message that was delivered was very simple, consisting of only one sentence: Lord Xu had invited them to discuss important matters with the heads of the various families.

As for what major event it was, the message didn't say, and they couldn't guess, but at least they had some clues. They all guessed it was related to what happened last night.

In the martial arts world, it is said that Xu Bai is decisive, ruthless, and unpredictable.

But these are only some of the reasons. Even more so, it is rumored that Xu Bai is vengeful and will retaliate on the same day if he is dissatisfied with the treatment he receives, without ever delaying it.

So when they thought about all this, they all realized that Xu Bai was definitely very dissatisfied with the situation last night. After all, Lin Yong was practically jumping out of his face. If he were to silently endure it, it wouldn't fit Xu Bai's character.

These families all have their own ideas, but a large part of their ideas are about helping.

As for the remaining part, they were thinking about how to do this favor well and highlight their own value so as not to fall behind other families.

After all, given their current intelligence capabilities, they already knew that Xu Bai had invited all the families. To stand out among these families and gain Xu Bai's attention, they had to put in some effort.

And so, the shrewd and calculating heads of the families began their infighting on the way there.

On the surface, things seemed calm and peaceful between them, but in reality, a silent struggle had already begun. They would stop at nothing to gain even a little more benefit.

Fortunately, they knew they couldn't be too obvious, since Xu Bai was still there. They were just playfully bickering and testing each other's limits.

Before long, the heads of the various families arrived at the Ye Family. Fortunately, this time only the heads of those families were invited, and no one else was invited.

The Ye Family was quite spacious and could accommodate everyone, especially the reception room. Although it was not full, there was still a very wide distance between each person.

The Ye Family Head personally entertained them here, since these people were of similar status to her. Some were slightly lower in status, but there were still some who were of higher status than her. Because there were so many people, she entertained them all together and was too lazy to take charge of each one individually.

"Ye Family Head, you and Lord Xu are so close, do you know why you summoned us here?"

"I think some people are just trying to pry. Are there things you can't possibly ask about? Just keep quiet and wait for Lord Xu to come."

"You can't say that. They were just asking around for us. Let's all be more careful with our words. There's no need to get so angry. After all, we're all working together to help Lord Xu."

The crowd was somewhat noisy, and some people took the opportunity to discover that their competitors were also there, exchanging sarcastic remarks.

Of course, they didn't make a loud noise and maintained a degree of restraint. If they made a scene here and displeased Lord Xu, they might lose this opportunity.

Seeing this situation, the Ye Family Head quickly stopped their infighting and said helplessly, "Everyone, don't think that Lord Xu is staying at my residence. It's all because of Ye Zi's influence. I don't know what's going on today, so please don't ask me. It's pointless."

It has to be said that these people are as shrewd as monkeys; even their tone of voice is so subtle that it's easy to guess what they're talking about.

Just like what the Ye Family Head said earlier, what seemed like an explanation to everyone, while bringing up Ye Zi, was actually a warning to those present.

She just wanted other families to know that she was now very close to Xu Bai, so that in the future, everyone would have to give her some face.

As soon as she said that, everyone around her understood what she meant. They quickly started to clasp their hands in a gesture of flattery, and some even expressed a desire to cooperate.

Those families that usually looked down on the Ye Family, even though the Ye Family was a prominent family here, had some questionable methods. With Xu Bai's return this time, the number of people cooperating with them has increased.

Xu Bai hadn't arrived yet, so they started chatting amongst themselves.

Aside from a bit of tension at the beginning, things got much better later on. Nobody wanted to make a bad impression at this point, especially since they were about to meet Xu Bai.

After about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, Xu Bai slowly walked out and entered the reception room.

Upon seeing Xu Bai Xu Bai enter, the heads of the various families slowly turned their heads, their gazes falling upon Xu Bai as he entered.

They saw clearly that Xu Bai was holding a stack of papers. Although it didn't look very thick, it still had several pages. This situation puzzled them, and they didn't know what would happen next.

"Sorry to keep you all waiting. I was preparing these things when I arrived, so I'm a little late. I hope I didn't keep you waiting too long," Xu Bai said with a smile, waving the paper in his hand.

He appeared very amiable, a stark contrast to the menacing figure on the river last night. Xu Bai now seemed like a civilized person, showing no trace of his demeanor from the previous night, leaving everyone speechless.

This wasn't a hallucination, so they quickly replied that it was no time at all.

Xu Bai found a seat and sat down. Then he smiled and looked at the Ye Family Head, saying, "Please divide these materials into portions. The quantity of each material is marked on them."

The paper contained the materials he needed to make, including not only the names of the materials but also the quantities required. This was all discussed and agreed upon by him and Ye Zi over the course of the night.

They asked about which family members were suitable for which materials, and marked them accordingly.

Although the Ye Family Head was completely confused, he still followed Xu Bai's method and distributed one to everyone.

After everything was completed, Xu Bai slowly said...

"Please take a close look, everyone. I hope you can gather all these items within three days and deliver them to the Ye Family."

Upon hearing this, all the family heads lowered their heads in unison, looking at the contents written on their fingers. After about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, they all looked up, revealing expressions of surprise.

"Lord Xu, do we need to find all of these things you mentioned?" a family head asked in surprise.

Although the other family heads did not speak, their expressions were the same as this family head's—they were all extremely surprised.

No wonder they were surprised; the materials on it didn't look expensive, but the quantity required was enormous, so much that it was mind-boggling.

They didn't know what it was for, nor did they ask. They shouldn't have asked; if they had, they would have gotten themselves into trouble.

"Find them all, leave none behind. I trust you with this task; it will be a contribution from you." Xu Bai took a sip of tea and said slowly.

Although he spoke very slowly, his words conveyed absolute certainty, meaning that you must do this for me. If you do it well, you will be rewarded; if you don't, then we'll see what happens next.

Since he had made a deal with the emperor, the emperor would definitely reward him for the help he provided along the way. That was beyond doubt, so Xu Bai could make the promise with confidence.

After Xu Bai finished speaking, all the family heads present fell silent. After about a dozen breaths, one of the family heads stood up and clasped his hands in greeting to Xu Bai.

"Don't worry, Lord Xu, I will definitely do everything you asked for. If even one material is missing, you can hold me responsible."

He set the precedent, and the other family heads present all clasped their hands in agreement.

Xu Bai nodded and put down his teacup. "Everyone, do as I say. I said within three days, the sooner the better."

The heads of the families hurriedly nodded in agreement, and without lingering there, they quickly left.

These items aren't expensive, but there are a lot of them, so it will take time to collect them all.

"Lord Xu, what is this...?" Ye Family Head asked hesitantly.

Xu Bai glanced at it indifferently and said, "Ask what you should ask, and don't know what you shouldn't know. The less you know, the better for you."

Upon hearing this, Ye Family Head hurriedly responded a few times before leaving.

"Let's go back and continue reading." Xu Bai stood up and, accompanied by Ye Zi, returned to his room.

That was the end of it.

Xu Bai stayed in the room, working on the progress bar, waiting for the materials sent by the families.

Over the past few days, the heads of the families have been sending materials one after another. Each time something is sent, Xu Bai checks it off on the overall list and notes who sent it.

The materials haven't been fully gathered yet, but over the past few days, Xu Bai has already maxed out the Nameless Saber Scripture Manual.

As the last bit of progress bar filled up, pale blue smoke appeared before our eyes, gradually gathering in mid-air and transforming into a line of text.

[You have comprehended the Nameless Saber Scripture and mastered the Armor Piercing Twenty-Four Steps (incomplete).]

"It's movement technique again," Xu Bai thought to himself.

After the pale blue text appeared, before it could transform into information and enter Xu Bai's mind, it immediately turned into smoke.

The smoke did not completely disappear, but flowed in mid-air, transforming into the latest text.

[Mergeable options found, currently in process.]

[Armor Piercing Twenty-Four Steps (incomplete) + Movement Breaking Three Turns = Movement Break Fourth Cycle.]

[Merger successful!]

At this moment, the pale blue smoke completely disappeared, transforming into a stream of information that quickly entered Xu Bai's mind.

Xu Bai closed his eyes, absorbed the information in his mind, and then reopened them to look at the latest panel.

[Name: Xu Bai]

[Realm Level: Third Rank Loose Cultivator.]

[Chess Saber Five Styles (Tier 7): Max Level.]

[The Inverted Purple Firmament Gang Wind Yin Yang Melody (Tier 7.5): Max Level.]

[Returning Wind Flowing Snow (Tier 5): Max Level.]

[Movement Break Fourth Cycle (Tier 6): Max Level.]

[Cosmic Shift (Tier 4): Max Level]

[Vajra Heart Demon Body (Tier 4); Max Level.]

[Strengthening Kidney Gathering Art (Tier 5): Max Level.]

[Hundred Poisons True Explanation (Tier 3): Max Level.]

[Ingenious Craft Puppet Technique (Tier 6): Max Level]

[Undying Body (Fragment) (Tier 5): Max Level.]

[Comprehension: Max level.]

Movement Break Fourth Cycle and reached the sixth level, which is equivalent to the fourth rank, he suddenly felt that after absorbing all the information in his mind, something else seemed to have appeared.

As for what was extra, he couldn't say.

It's like an eagle about to hatch, but being hindered and unable to fully emerge.

Xu Bai stood up and tried to use the Movement Break Fourth Cycle. With a movement of his feet, he disappeared from the original spot and reappeared in another place.

Both his speed and agility have improved significantly, but he always feels like something is missing.

He couldn't sense it when his level was low, but now that his level is getting higher, he can feel it very clearly.

That feeling of impending qualitative change lingered in my mind, yet I was also bound by something.

"Perhaps when we reach the seventh rank, that will be the time for a qualitative change, just like the Chess Saber Five Styles," Xu Bai thought to himself.

When the Chess Saber Five Styles reached the seventh level, it generated Saber Intent. He wondered if his current movement technique would produce the same effect as the Chess Saber Five Styles when it reached the seventh level.

Thinking about it carefully, it's quite possible, but since there's no new progress bar, he can only guess.

With that in mind, Xu Bai took out another Nameless Saber Scripture and began to study it carefully.

There are fifteen books left; this is a massive undertaking.

However, sometimes, the more you want to quietly do your own thing for a while, the harder it is.

Just as he was about to continue working on his liver, Ye Zi walked in from outside the door.

"Young master, the last document has arrived. Would you like to come and take a look?"

Ever since he started working on the progress bar, he has entrusted Ye Zi with the task. At this moment Ye Zi has presented Xu Bai with the overall list, which is covered with her annotations.

Xu Bai took the book, glanced at it briefly, put the Nameless Saber Scripture back, then stood up and walked outside.

"Let's go take a look."

Ye Family Warehouse.

This warehouse used to be very large, but now it's completely full.

Not only that, but these materials were also piled up in the front and back yards.

Over this period of time, Xu Bai did not hide these things, because if you're going to do these things, you absolutely can't hide them.

However, he kept the Fourth-Rank Puppet waiting by the river to observe.

At least on the surface, XunLe River appeared normal, looking no different from usual.

Xu Bai didn't care whether the other party had run away or not. Even if they did run, they could only run in the river, because if he caught them on land, it would be a dead end.

Run? It doesn't matter.

The materials he's using are designed to be reused. If the other party manages to escape, he can collect them and then use them again the next time they encounter the enemy to intercept them instantly.

So whether he runs away or not is just a matter of time for him.

"Lord Xu, everything is here." The Ye Family Head stood guard outside, being extremely careful, fearing that something might happen to the materials.

"Thank you for your trouble, Ye Family Head." Xu Bai said politely and began to tidy up the materials on the ground.

The ground was piled up like mountains; as long as the Ye Family had any spare space, they piled it all up.

Ye Family Head and Kong Xu, among others, were quite curious and watched from the sidelines.

Although Ye Zi knew about Xu Bai's ingenious skills, she was still extremely curious in this situation.

Xu Bai started working, like a focused master craftsman, his hands never stopping as he continuously pieced together and polished the materials.

This time it needs some polishing, but Xu Bai is very skilled at it, after all, it's a max-level mechanical skill.

During this time, he also talked to Ye Zi and learned about the approximate depth of the XunLe River.

It's just a matter of piecing together two simple interceptors; it doesn't serve any other purpose, so no advanced techniques are needed.

Time passed slowly. Although it didn't require sophisticated techniques, it was still a massive project, so it was quite time-consuming.

It wasn't until the afternoon that a huge pile of parts appeared on the ground.

Xu Bai didn't assemble them immediately. Instead, he made them into individual components. He could just bring the components over and assemble them on-site. Otherwise, assembling them would be too bulky and difficult to carry, especially since he was still in Wind Chime Prefecture.

"Ye Family Head, I'll have to trouble you to take these things over there," Xu Bai said.

Even though he divided it into many smaller components, the quantity was still large enough that someone had to carry it.

The Ye Family Head readily agreed and immediately ordered his servants to carry the items and follow behind Xu Bai.

When she ran out of manpower, she borrowed people from neighboring families. Since they were all involved in the matter, the other party was quite willing to help.

Next, an event that shocked the entire Wind Chime Prefecture occurred.

A large procession, carrying all sorts of strange and unusual items, was passing through Wind Chime Prefecture and heading towards the XunLe River.

The people all know Xu Bai now, after all, Xu Bai shone brightly at the recent LeShui Festival, so even ordinary people know who Xu Bai is.

They traveled quickly and soon arrived at the XunLe River.

Standing by the river, Xu Bai began the final assembly, moving at an incredibly fast pace.

A moment later, two enormous, door-like panels were formed.

Not only that, but there was also an extra long strip.

Don't get me wrong, this object is for digging out tributaries. After all, relying on just two door panels to block the flow would likely fail, and having an extra tributary would make things much easier.

"Lord Xu, I'll have someone put this down," said the Ye Family Head.

At this point, she understood what Xu Bai was going to do; if she still didn't understand, she would be truly stupid.

However, it was extremely difficult to put two such large objects down, so she ordered her servants to prepare to begin.

Xu Bai shook his head and said, "If I need you to do it, why would I make these things?"

The Ye Family Head was taken aback, then realized what was happening and stood quietly to the side.

Next, Xu Bai activated his True Yuan Power.

The first thing to move was the long, enormous mechanism.

This enormous machine rose into the air, started from one end of the XunLe River, circled in an arc, landed at the other end, and then sank into the ground.

This happened very quickly. In the blink of an eye, a branch appeared in the XunLe River, and the water flow was diverted along this branch.

With the strength of a third-rank cultivator, using sixth-order Ingenious Craft Puppet Technique is incredibly simple, and the techniques themselves aren't complicated at all, making it very convenient.

If we're talking about difficulty, the Black Saber Hundred Rends is definitely more challenging.

After doing all that, he turned his attention to the other two huge door panels.

Under his control, the door panels slowly rolled to the riverbank, with one of them landing at one end of the branching stream, instantly cutting off the flow of the XunLe River.

Taking advantage of this time, he manipulated another piece, landing it at another endpoint.

When both ends are sealed off at the same time, the entire XunLe River is empty, and this section of the river has completely disappeared.

It was completely empty, with nothing left.

Aside from the fish in the riverbed, only some aquatic plants were visible.

Xu Bai walked closer and looked at the empty riverbed, only to find that the people inside had long since fled.

In the very center is a very simple building.

Although simple, it is very large and can accommodate hundreds of people.

This is Lin Yong's habitat in the water, but it's deserted now.

Upon seeing this, Xu Bai fell silent.

Seeing Xu Bai's current state, the Ye Family Head couldn't help but comfort him, "Lord Xu, we still have other opportunities."

She thought Xu Bai was somewhat discouraged by this setback, so she wanted to offer some words of comfort.

Kong Xu also said, "Lord Xu, don't worry, I can take this opportunity to do some divination, and perhaps we will make other discoveries."

Everyone present thought Xu Bai was devastated, except for Ye Zi.

Ye Zi shook his head and said, "Young Master, is there some new discovery?"

Among them, she was the only one who truly understood Xu Bai, so she didn't believe that Xu Bai would be discouraged by such a trivial matter.

Xu Bai laughed and said, "Do you think you can stump me? I already considered that he would run away, so I'll just let Kong Xu do the divination. But before that, they gave me a big gift."

The other party wasn't stupid; seeing him do all this, it would be strange if they didn't run away. He had already prepared for this.

Kong Xu was skilled in divination. Even if the other party ran away, he could still take the opportunity to see if he could divinate anything useful.

This was part of his plan.

But unexpectedly, he gained something beyond his plans.

Looking down at the enormous building, Xu Bai's lips curled into a slight smile.

"Lin Yong Lin Yong, if what I'm thinking is really what I'm thinking, then you might really die a terrible death."

On the building, a golden progress bar is slowly increasing.

I'll post a bonus chapter with pictures explaining how the interception was done.