Chapter 305: Chapter 192: The Unparalleled Celestial Pride Fate Chart Has Caught Up

Especially with Old Huang around.

There were bound to be plenty of troubles in the future.

「Cloud Mist Peak.」

As soon as Jiang Man returned, he consulted Old Huang about Arrays.

He also fed Old Huang some pastries.

"Your wife still gives you snacks?" Old Huang asked.

"She probably thinks I had it too rough as a child," Jiang Man said with a soft laugh. "It was a little rough, I’ll admit, but at least I wasn’t lonely. I was actually pretty happy."

The Old Yellow Ox fell silent for a moment before asking, "How much have you learned about Arrays?"

Jiang Man told it the truth.

The Old Yellow Ox was silent for another moment. "You’ve almost finished one book?"

Jiang Man nodded. "Is that considered fast?"

"And you understood it?" the Old Yellow Ox asked.

Jiang Man casually drew a few Array Patterns, then combined them, causing the Spiritual Qi in the courtyard to converge where they were. "I’m at about this level. I have some understanding of fixed Arrays, but anything more is beyond me."

The Old Yellow Ox said while munching on grass, "You want to learn what comes next now?"

"I’ll study during meals. Right now, I need to start my Cultivation," Jiang Man said.

He had waited a year. It was time to get stronger.

Besides, he now had plenty of Elixirs and Spiritual Sources. He could advance to the Middle Stage of Golden Core at the fastest possible speed.

However, just as he was about to start his Cultivation, he suddenly felt a tremor from his Unparalleled Celestial Pride Fate Chart.

This came as a surprise.

The Unparalleled Celestial Pride Fate Chart had already trembled once before, on the nine-hundredth day.

But since it was so far behind, it had just been spinning on its own, seemingly trying to catch up.

Today, however, it seemed to be back to normal.

’Looks like it’s finally caught up.’

Jiang Man told the Old Yellow Ox about it.

The ox was also very curious about what kind of requirement the Unparalleled Celestial Pride Fate Chart would issue this time.

And what kind of help it would offer.

Even if it was just Elixirs, Jiang Man wouldn’t mind. That would save him a lot of Spiritual Source.

Just then, the Unparalleled Celestial Pride Fate Chart vibrated, and a box materialized within his Dantian.

’What is this?’

Jiang Man was puzzled.

However, he could see special patterns on the box.

’But it seems I can’t open it.’

Jiang Man immediately asked the Old Yellow Ox.

The ox pondered for a moment before saying, "Draw the patterns so I can have a look."

Without hesitation, Jiang Man drew them.

The patterns were incredibly complex.

He couldn’t make any sense of them.

After seeing the patterns, the Old Yellow Ox said, "Let’s see what the next trial from the Unparalleled Celestial Pride is first."

Just then, Jiang Man also noticed a change in his Fate Chart as special symbols flowed around him.

When Jiang Man willed himself to know their meaning, the symbols transformed into text.

[Unparalleled Celestial Pride Fate Chart]

[As an Unparalleled Celestial Pride, you have already proven your Talent. Cultivation is no longer a challenge for you; increasing your Cultivation level is a natural process. It is time to lay the groundwork for your next rise to fame. As an Unparalleled Celestial Pride, you will certainly be able to open the First Layer of the box within one hundred days, the Second Layer within three hundred days, and the Third Layer within nine hundred days.]

[Failure will result in a backlash from the Fate Chart.]

[Your Golden Core will be damaged.]

’No more Cultivation requirements?’ Jiang Man was a bit surprised.

He suddenly felt a sense of relief, no longer being hounded to cultivate every single day.

Of course, this didn’t mean he would slack off.

In fact, he had to cultivate even harder.

’The Unparalleled Celestial Pride Fate Chart is definitely a cruel taskmaster.’

’The challenges for this box are probably not going to be simple.’

’Especially since it’s meant to lay the groundwork for my next rise to fame, there’s probably a certain Cultivation requirement.’

The backlash from the Fate Chart, however, was always changing. Now, it was just damage to his Golden Core.

The margin for error had increased.

Jiang Man then relayed the details to the Old Yellow Ox.

The ox mused for a moment. "This should be an Earth Pattern Box. The patterns involve Elixirs, Arrays, Talismans, and the like. To put it simply, opening this box requires your Cultivation to be coordinated with other skills."

"The First Layer should only require the Early Stage of Golden Core. The Second Layer will need the Middle Stage of Golden Core, and the Third Layer will need the Late Stage of Golden Core."

"Then you’ll have to match them with the corresponding patterns."

"Everything that exists in this world leaves behind traces of its patterns."

"You just need to master them."

"Arrays are one aspect of this."

"Which happens to be exactly what you’re learning."

Jiang Man thought for a moment. "So, I have to increase my Cultivation while learning about Arrays at the same time? Isn’t that just wasting my time?"

"The Unparalleled Celestial Pride Fate Chart is just trying to drag me down so it can catch up."

Jiang Man then asked how much knowledge of patterns he would need to unlock the First Layer.

The Old Yellow Ox gave it a preliminary look. "You’ll have to finish the sixteen foundational books, and you’ll need to master their contents completely."

Jiang Man pressed on, "And the Second Layer?"

"I can’t see the content for that, so I can’t be certain." The Old Yellow Ox mulled it over. "But judging from the complexity of the Arrays, you’ll need to have finished at least the Twenty-One Introductory Books to unlock the Second Layer. Not only is that more to study, but the difficulty will have doubled."

Jiang Man sighed with feeling. ’Do I really have to make a name for myself, no matter what?’

’It’s so difficult being an Unparalleled Celestial Pride.’

After that, Jiang Man put the matter aside. He would focus on increasing his Cultivation first.

He had waited a whole year; there was no way he would put that on hold to read sixteen books on basic Array Patterns over such a small thing.

Jiang Man took stock of his Spiritual Sources and Elixirs.

With the 65,000 he had recently earned and the 30,000 he had collected, he now had a total of 225,000.

He also had thirty-three Chao Yuan Shaoyang Pills.

With such wealth, Jiang Man felt that the Middle Stage of Golden Core was within reach.

He then took an Elixir and began his Cultivation.

The Chao Yuan Shaoyang Pill was extremely potent.

Combined with his Great Success: All Rivers Flow into the Sea technique, Jiang Man felt a massive amount of Spiritual Qi surge into his Golden Core and get absorbed rapidly.

Jiang Man moved quickly, pushing the operational speed of All Rivers Flow into the Sea to its absolute limit.

It took an entire day for the Elixir to be completely absorbed.

However, the Spiritual Qi inside his Gourd hadn’t increased by much.

After five days, the Spiritual Qi had accumulated to ten percent of the Gourd’s capacity.

If he continued at this rate,

It would take fifty Elixirs to fill the first Gourd.

The subsequent breakthrough would require at least another twenty Elixirs.

In total, he would need roughly seventy Elixirs.

’So expensive.’

And that was without even factoring in the cost to improve his Spirit and Physical Body.

But the entire process was compressed into just seventy days.

To achieve a breakthrough in seventy days by spending all these Spiritual Sources...

...should be considered a real bargain.

’Then that raises a new question: will the remaining thirty days be enough to finish reading those sixteen books?’

After a moment’s hesitation, Jiang Man decided to go find Meng Qiewei.

He wanted to see how much he could read and comprehend in five days.

This would help him plan accordingly.

"Old Huang, I’m going to see my wife," Jiang Man announced.

The Old Yellow Ox, still munching on grass, replied nonchalantly, "Why are you telling me you’re going to see your wife?"

"Though I don’t have to care about her original identity, I can’t help but feel it’s a bit dangerous. I’m telling you to steel my nerves," Jiang Man said.

"No need for that. I don’t have a wife," the Old Yellow Ox said.

After that, Jiang Man took a deep breath and flew on his sword toward the Inner Sect.

He had just set off when he received a message.

The Immortal Mansion would be opening in March.

That was in about twenty days.

Jiang Man sighed. ’It seems like everything is happening at once.’

Now, his only option was to see how long it would take to get through those sixteen books.

If time allowed, he would focus everything on increasing his Cultivation.

「A short while later.」

Jiang Man arrived at Meng Qiewei’s residence.

He knocked on the door.

Jiang Man then heard the clear chime of a Silver Bell.

Sure enough, when the door opened, Jiang Man saw a face with exquisite features, so stunning it took his breath away.

"Young Master Jiang, what brings you here?" Meng Qiewei asked, a little surprised.

She then let him inside.

Jiang Man said earnestly, "I’ve come to study Arrays."

Meng Qiewei smiled. "And here I thought you came to see me."

Jiang Man paused for a second. "If that’s what Miss Ji wants to think, that’s fine too."

The two then moved to a table and chairs.

The books were already there. Jiang Man immediately picked up the first volume and continued reading where he had left off.

Before he started flipping through it, he asked curiously, "Is it just you today, Miss Ji?"

"Xiaoqing went out shopping," Meng Qiewei said, pouring herself a cup of water. "Were you hoping for some of the pastries Xiaoqing makes?"

Jiang Man shook his head. "No. But I have this... would Miss Ji like some?"

As he spoke, Jiang Man took out a piece of fruit.

Jiang Man had originally had two; he had given one to Old Huang.

After confirming that it wouldn’t be recognized, he had brought the remaining one with him.

Meng Qiewei looked at the fruit with some surprise. She took it, wiped it gently, and then took a bite.

"How is it?" Jiang Man asked, watching her intently.

"You don’t know what it tastes like?" Meng Qiewei asked.

Jiang Man shook his head. "I’ve never had one, but it should be delicious."

"There’s only one?" Meng Qiewei asked.

Jiang Man shook his head again. "There were two. I gave one to Old Huang to test if it was poisonous. I only brought it to Miss Ji after confirming it was safe."

He paused for a beat before explaining, "Old Huang is an ox I raised. We’ve depended on each other since I was ten. We grew up together."