A Mortal’s Journey to Immortality: Wang Yu’s Rebirth as the Reincarnation Dao Ancestor - Chapter 81

Chapter 81 Foundation Building

“Awoo awoo…”

The black dragon looked in the direction Han Li had left, a complex look flashing in its eyes.

But it quickly regained its spirits and looked back towards the central area of the forbidden zone: That person said that once I subdued all the demonic beasts within the forbidden zone, he would come back to see me. He might even take me with him.

“Awoo awoo…”

That’s right.

Han Li had no intention of taking the black dragon out; he hadn’t even considered it from the beginning.

How could he not consider the Red-Robed Fairy’s involvement?

If the Red-Robed Fairy became curious about what kind of spirit beast he had contracted, and asked him to release it to see, and then it turned out to be a level 2 black dragon…

you can imagine.

So, the black dragon, little six, should stay in the forbidden zone.

He’ll become a big six first.

…

And just over half an hour after Han Li left,

cultivators from seven sects emerged from the blood-red forbidden zone.

These cultivators looked haggard, disheveled, and exhausted, a stark contrast to the group from Yellow Maple Valley.

Look at Chen Qiaoshan, the eldest son of the Chen family, dressed in a scholar’s robe, calm and collected.

Beside him are sixteen mature spiritual herbs, each over a hundred years old.

Beside him, Chen Qiaoqian, an icy beauty, keeps strangers at bay. The harvest of nine hundred-year-old spiritual herbs is the envy of all the other disciples.

The brother and sister are the talk of the town for a time.

On the Yellow Maple Valley side, not only did they have a good harvest, but two other groups of four disciples also had considerable gains.

One pair was at the thirteenth level of Qi Refining, one ranked in the top ten of the sect competition, and the other ranked in the top thirty. Both were quite strong, harvesting about ten spiritual herbs each. One could easily exchange them for a Foundation Establishment Pill with some left over, and the other could also exchange them for a Foundation Establishment Pill.

Their harvest was only five herbs less than the Chen siblings.

The other pair were both at the twelfth level of Qi Refining.

One of them brought out nine spiritual herbs, while the other only brought out six.

“Senior Brother Zhang, it’s a deal! After you get the Foundation Establishment Pill, you must compensate me with 800 spirit stones.”

“Don’t worry, you’ll get your share.”

It turned out that

one of them actually harvested eight herbs, and the other seven.

The one who harvested eight herbs wasn’t a member of the Yellow Maple Valley family, nor was he the one who obtained the Foundation Establishment Pill.

Eight herbs, without any high-quality or rare ones, were barely enough to exchange for a Foundation Establishment Pill with merit points alone. So, this person made a deal with his temporary teammate.

He gave up two of the most common herbs to his teammate, who was from a family of cultivators, helping his teammate increase his harvest from seven to nine herbs, reaching the standard for exchanging for a Foundation Establishment Pill.

In this way, the temporary teammate, a member of a cultivation family, could obtain a Foundation Establishment Pill.

The cost was 400 spirit stones per herb.

Two herbs would be 800 spirit stones.

It seemed like the one buying the herbs was slightly at a loss, but in reality, everyone got what they wanted and both made a huge profit. One received a Foundation Establishment Pill, the other a spirit stone compensation. Foundation Establishment Pills are priceless; getting one is a huge profit. The spirit stone compensation is also worth far more than the sect’s merit reward, enough to buy a suitable high-quality or even top-tier magic weapon.

Their telepathic exchange was overheard by Li Huayuan.

He nodded slightly with interest, then looked at Chen Qiaoshan:

“Young man of the Chen family, are you interested in hearing my words?”

“Please enlighten me, Grandmaster; this disciple is all ears.” Chen Qiaoshan bowed respectfully.

“If you want another Foundation Establishment Pill, you can actually exchange one or two with your fellow disciples who are traveling with you, as long as you’re willing to pay a certain price…” Li Huayuan stopped there.

He was only offering this suggestion out of consideration for Chen Qiaoshan’s merit, and turning a blind eye as well.

“Thank you, Grandmaster.”

The eldest son of the Chen family was overjoyed and bowed again.

“Thank you, Uncle-Master Li.”

One of the Foundation Establishment managers accompanying the group stepped forward and clasped his hands in a salute. This Foundation Establishment cultivator was Chen Qiaoshan’s fourth brother, Chen Qiaotian.

“You all need to learn to be flexible and not always be so stubborn,” Li Huayuan admonished the group with high spirits.

In fact, Han Li had mentioned this matter to Chen Qiaoshan before leaving, and had also subtly hinted at it to Master Hongfu and Li Huayuan, emphasizing the difficulties the disciples faced in the forbidden area. After all, when someone asks for help, there’s always a price to pay. This reminder and indirect probing were Han Li’s way of showing goodwill to Chen Qiaoshan. In the

past, the disciples of Huangfeng Valley who participated in the trials all lived their own lives and had never cooperated like this before. How could they possibly “share” the spiritual herbs they had obtained? It was already good enough if they didn’t scheme against each other. Moreover, even the Core Formation cultivators leading the group might not allow it.

But this time was different.

Many things were different.

Chen Qiaoshan’s status could not be underestimated.

Even one of the Foundation Establishment stage managers accompanying the team was a member of the Chen family.

Could Li Huayuan, having received benefits, still cause trouble at every turn?

The problem lay solely with the middle-aged scholar Chen Qiaoshan. It depended on whether this eldest son of the Chen family was willing to humble himself and learn to be flexible.

If he couldn’t learn, or rather, couldn’t let go of his pride, he would inevitably repeat the same mistakes, ultimately only obtaining a Foundation Establishment Pill and thus missing out on Foundation Establishment altogether.

Fortunately,

Chen Qiaoshan was receptive to advice and willing

to humble himself

. “Junior Brother Sun, may I speak with you in private?” The middle-aged scholar, gentle and refined, perfectly embodied the phrase “a gentleman as jade.

” “Senior Brother Chen, you’re too kind, please.” The Sun-surnamed cultivator, having received eleven spiritual herbs, was overwhelmed with gratitude.

He knew the identity of the eldest son of the Chen family.

In the end, Chen Qiaoshan purchased one spiritual herb from the Sun-surnamed cultivator

. He then purchased three more from the junior brother who had only brought out six spiritual herbs,

increasing his total number of spiritual herbs from sixteen to twenty.

Twenty century-old spiritual herbs, representing sect merit points, were more than enough to exchange for two Foundation Establishment Pills!

This was a compromise.

Subsequently, three more people emerged from Yellow Maple Valley.

They were in pairs, but unfortunately, they were unlucky and only managed to bring out twelve herbs together. Furthermore, there were some internal conflicts, and they didn’t choose to help each other.

After Chen Qiaoshan discovered the discord between the two, he spent more money to buy six of the spiritual herbs, ensuring that both met the implicit requirements for cultivators at the twelfth level of Qi Refining.

The remaining man, a dark-faced fellow at the thirteenth level of Qi Refining, brought out thirteen spiritual herbs.

This man was among the top twenty in the competition.

His previous teammate was also at the thirteenth level of Qi Refining.

Unfortunately, his teammate was unlucky and didn’t survive. Thinking about it carefully, one could roughly guess the situation with this man’s thirteen spiritual herbs.

However, no one said anything.

Then, Chen Qiaoshan spent more money to buy spiritual herbs.

Initially, the dark-faced man refused, thinking of buying spiritual herbs from other fellow disciples. But he quickly discovered that the spiritual herbs possessed by those around him either met the standard for exchanging for a Foundation Establishment Pill or met a certain minimum requirement stipulated by the sect.

Helpless, he could only grit his teeth and sell two to Chen Qiaoshan.

He originally wanted to sell his four extra spiritual herbs, since the benefits he could get from exchanging them with the sect were not as great as the profits from selling them to Chen Qiaoshan.

Chen Qiaoshan initially intended to buy four plants.

However, he later only selected two to meet the requirement.

Clearly, the young master Chen also had his pride and temper.

As for why the dark-faced man was willing to sell rather than risk a mutually destructive conflict with Chen Qiaoshan,

one reason was that he couldn’t afford to offend him, and selling would avoid future trouble. Another reason was that a young old man from Huangfeng Valley, at the eleventh level of Qi Refining, happened to appear at that time. This old man managed to slip out before the forbidden passage completely closed.

Seeing this, the dark-faced man dared not delay any longer.

In the end, 11 people survived on Huangfeng Valley’s side.

Han Li: 46 spiritual herbs. There was one superior rare herb and several fine ones, as well as many of the three main ingredients for Foundation Establishment Pills, which could be exchanged for 7 Foundation Establishment Pills.

Chen Qiaoshan: 28 herbs. Most of them were ordinary hundred-year-old spiritual herbs, but there were also three fine herbs that were five hundred years old. He had all four of the three main ingredients for Foundation Establishment Pills, which could be exchanged for 3 Foundation Establishment Pills.

Furthermore, if Chen Qiaoshan hadn’t already become a disciple of a Core Formation elder in the sect, Li Huayuan would definitely have taken her as a disciple and intercepted her.

Chen Qiaoqian: 9 plants.

The other 6 people: 48 plants.

The last one, Xiang Zhili: 2 plants.

The old fox still adhered to his moderate approach.

Huangfeng Valley’s total gain this time reached the highest single-sect record in the past two hundred years of trials: 133 plants.

Looking at Qingxu Sect, the total gain was 29 plants. Only the seed expert carrying a sheathed flying sword brought out 15 plants, which was considered a good performance. The gains of the other three survivors were not satisfactory. No wonder Fuyunzi looked constipated at this moment.

On the other hand, Li Huayuan was in a good mood and full of pride.

What surprised everyone the most was the side of Yanyue Sect.

There were only 8 disciples who came out alive.

It can be said to be the fewest survivors in the past hundred years.

The total gain of spiritual herbs for the 8 people was only more than 70 plants.

This was even with Gan Rushuang contributing over 30 herbs.

It wasn’t that Gan Rushuang didn’t want to help Old Monster Qiong win the competition.

The difference in skill was simply too great.

Furthermore, if she continued to gather spirit herbs, they wouldn’t be ordinary herbs from the forbidden area, but rather high-quality or even rare herbs that she herself could use. How could she possibly part with the few she had painstakingly acquired, almost perishing in the process?

Besides, even if she did, it wouldn’t change the outcome.

Therefore,

Gan Rushuang didn’t help Old Monster Qiong make a final struggle.

Faced with Old Monster Qiong’s mournful gaze, she could only return an apologetic look.

“Senior Qiong, look…”

Li Huayuan, truly audacious, proactively came forward to “beg.”

“Take it, take it.”

Old Monster Qiong, both pained and annoyed, tossed down five nearly transparent, invisible needle talismans before hurriedly leaving with the people of the Hidden Moon Sect on the Heavenly Moon Divine Boat.

He needed to understand what had happened.

He simply couldn’t comprehend it.

Seeing the people from the Hidden Moon Sect leave, Fu Yunzi of the Qingxu Sect tried to slip away unnoticed. However, Li Huayuan stopped him:

“Fellow Daoist Fu Yunzi, don’t rush off. Where’s my Bloodline Flood Dragon’s inner core?”

Fu Yunzi’s pain was even more pronounced than that of Old Monster Qiong. His features, clearly those of a middle-aged man in his forties, now made him appear sixty or seventy.

But due to the strange looks from those around him, he reluctantly pulled out the level 5 demon core from his storage bag.

The next moment, Li Huayuan snatched it away:

“Give it to me.”

“My Bloodline Flood Dragon’s inner core…”

“Hey, hey, hey, fellow Daoist, a bet’s a bet. I, Li, accepted my loss of Iron Essence last time.”

“Hmph, let’s go.”

Of the remaining three sects—Huadaowu, Lingshoushan, Tianquebao, and Jujianmen—Jujianmen was the most unwilling, for they had only sent one disciple!

Lingshoushan was the happiest, having sent eight!

Although the harvest of spiritual herbs wasn’t as plentiful as that of Yellow Maple Valley and Hidden Moon Sect, it wasn’t small either, totaling over 60 plants.

“What exactly happened? Why did my Giant Sword Sect suffer such heavy losses this time?” What happened to the barefoot cultivator he had so highly regarded?

He was even prepared to accept him as a disciple.

And yet, he was all lost inside?

Well, the loss of people was a minor matter.

Only six spiritual herbs were brought out; how could he explain this to the other elders of his sect?

Therefore, when the burly man from the Giant Sword Sect looked towards Yellow Maple Valley, he subconsciously released his Core Formation stage aura, showing no kindness towards the Qi Refining stage disciples.

“Fellow Daoist, are you planning to bully the weak, or are you planning to tear up the rules jointly established by the seven sects?”

Li Huayuan coldly snorted, straightened his back, and stood in front of all the disciples.

Several Foundation Establishment cultivators protected the Qi Refining stage disciples on the perimeter, ready for battle.

“Alright, fellow Daoist, aren’t you ashamed? Who can you blame for your lack of preparation?” The man from Spirit Beast Mountain sneered. “I heard that both the Hidden Moon Sect and Yellow Maple Valley prepared Spirit Fusion Talismans to allow their disciples to team up in pairs. It’s perfectly normal for them to have such gains. As for us, we’re still used to being leisurely and carefree. We want the horse to run fast but don’t feed it. It’s good to learn a lesson from this.”

“Indeed, I’ve heard that too. Most of the disciples from the Hidden Moon Sect and Yellow Maple Valley successfully teleported in pairs using the Spirit Fusion Talisman. With two or even several people in a group, how could their harvesting efficiency not be high? Instead of fooling around here, we should prepare more and invest more next time.” The old woman from the Blade Transformation Valley also agreed with the Core Formation stage cultivator from Spirit Beast Mountain’s viewpoint.

The Blade Transformation Valley had also suffered heavy losses, but they still had to save face.

Seeing that no one from any sect supported him, the burly man from the Giant Sword Sect could only snort coldly in frustration.

Then he led his rather deserted Giant Sword Sect team away.

“Fellow Daoist Li, congratulations…”

“Brother Li, you defeated the Hidden Moon Sect, congratulations!”

“…”

“Not at all, just lucky, all thanks to Senior Sister Hong Fu…” Li Huayuan returned the greetings one by one, understanding why these people spoke up for him.

The reason was simple:

the strong are respected.

After obtaining the Invisible Needle Talisman from Old Monster Qiong, Li Huayuan was considered a figure among the Core Formation stage cultivators in the Yue Kingdom. They could even put up a fight against someone in the late Core Formation stage. Sneaking a punch from behind against someone in the early or mid-stage Core Formation stage was entirely feasible.

Was it better to befriend such a person or offend them? It was a simple choice.

That guy from the Giant Sword Sect was just acting on impulse; he’d probably have to pay him a visit later.

“Let’s go, back to the sect!”

…

In the vast Gobi Desert, amidst the swirling yellow sand, a pristine white jade flying boat sped swiftly from north to south.

On the stern of the massive flying boat stood two stunningly beautiful young women. They were none other than

the newly promoted Core Formation cultivator from the Hidden Moon Sect thirty years ago, Fairy Ni Chang, and Gan Ru Shuang, a Core Formation cultivator who had secretly formed her Core over fifty years ago but never publicly revealed it.

The two women had been close since their Foundation Establishment stage, and after forming their Core, they were as close as sisters.

As the two women were chatting, the disheveled Old Monster Qiong suddenly appeared, asking with great confusion,

“Junior Sister Gan, what exactly happened? How could we lose with you leading the team? And how could the losses be so great?”

He could accept losing the bet,

but with such heavy losses, how could he explain it to certain people when he returned to the sect?

He had solemnly promised his fellow disciples before the trial; otherwise, why would they send their beloved offspring to the Blood Forbidden Land for the trial?

“Senior Brother, I didn’t lose to outsiders, but to my own people…”

Gan Rushuang smiled bitterly.

She had already removed the veil that had concealed her face to avoid being recognized later.

“Defeated by your own people? What do you mean?”

Old Monster Qiong was completely bewildered.

“It’s like this, Senior Brother Qiong. Senior Sister Gan and the others initially had everything go smoothly. On the first day, they gathered more than ten people as planned. On the second day, they successively looted seven or eight monster lairs and several spiritual herb producing areas. At first, everything went well, and they reaped quite a harvest, until they encountered an underground stone palace…”

“They encountered a black dragon…”

“Originally, the black dragon was not a threat, but that girl from the Zhao family took it upon herself to use a minor Five Elements talisman to try to deal with the pursuing level 2 black dragon. Unexpectedly, she accidentally activated the minor Five Elements Sumeru Restriction Technique in the stone palace passage…” “

That’s why the disciples suffered heavy losses, and Senior Sister Gan herself was almost killed in that passage…”

“Later, they finally managed to open a crack and escape from there, but it was almost noon on the fifth day. Senior Sister had no choice but to retrieve the magic weapon as quickly as possible, but she didn’t have time to return to the central area to continue harvesting spiritual herbs.”

Upon hearing this, Old Monster Qiong fell into deep thought.

After asking a few of the survivors, he found that it was indeed the case, so he couldn’t blame Gan Rushuang even more.

To be honest, she was the victim.

This junior sister spent decades combining ancient texts to create a strange cultivation method to enter the forbidden area, intending to make a fortune, but she was ruthlessly tricked by the little firecracker from the Zhao family in the sect. The fact that Junior Sister Gan could remain calm and not lose her temper shows remarkable composure.

If the Zhao family girl had ruined his plans and cut off his path…

if it were him, he probably would have wanted to grind that unruly girl from the Zhao family to dust.

“Sigh…did I do something wrong?”

Old Monster Qiong fell into deep self-doubt:

“If I hadn’t encouraged the sect to send in these somewhat disobedient and arrogant individuals, perhaps the outcome would have been completely different?!”

At this moment, Old Monster Qiong’s figure appeared even more desolate and forlorn.

…

In the Red Tassel Mountain cave, Han Li immediately entered seclusion mode.

He first refined the remaining medicinal power of the Foundation Establishment Pill in his body, then received the seven Foundation Establishment Pills, some auxiliary spiritual medicines to aid in Foundation Establishment, and an invisible needle talisman brought by Dong Xuan’er.

When Han Li saw the nearly transparent talisman, he couldn’t suppress the smile on his face.

At this moment, his foundation was so solid that it even surpassed most Foundation Establishment cultivators.

He had spirit stones and confidence.

Crucially, he possessed a total of ten Foundation Establishment Pills! His cultivation had also reached the thirteenth level of Qi Refining! Foundation Establishment seemed to be just one step away for him?

And barring any unforeseen circumstances, it would save him more than three years of time compared to the original owner’s cultivation of spiritual herbs and personally refining Foundation Establishment Pills!

In other words, if he achieved Foundation Establishment early, he would have more than three years of extra cultivation time compared to the original owner.

“Foundation Establishment, Foundation Establishment…!”

If he could achieve Foundation Establishment more than three years earlier, the benefits would be numerous.

As for the storage bag where the fragment of the silk handkerchief magic treasure was hidden?

Now was not the time to take it out.

No rush. He

swallowed a Foundation Establishment Pill.

At first, it was warm, then cool, followed by excruciating pain:

“Ah, ah…”

The process of cleansing the marrow and tempering the bones was not pleasant.

Thanks to the elixirs given to him by his master, Hong Fu, he suffered much less.

…

Spring passed and autumn came, and seven months flew by.

On this day, strange “poof poof poof” sounds came from a cave at the end of Red Tassel Mountain.

Inside the cave, a young man was constantly waving his sword fingers, “instantly” unleashing a series of sword beams, each

about ten feet long. It was the Azure Origin Sword Beam. “The Foundation Establishment stage is indeed much stronger than the Qi Refining stage. A single Azure Origin Sword Beam that I casually unleashed possesses power comparable to the full burst of a high-grade magic weapon.”

At this moment, the once hard and smooth cave wall opposite the young man was now riddled with countless holes, each several meters deep.

This man was none other than Han Li.

And Han Li, who had successfully established his foundation in one go using six Foundation Establishment Pills.

Recalling the process, he sighed somewhat.

The first three pills, to varying degrees, helped him expel impurities from his body; the effects of the Meridian Cleansing were quite noticeable.

By the fourth pill, the expulsion of impurities was negligible.

Until the fifth pill, after a full half-month of Meridian Cleansing, no impurities appeared; he was only a hair’s breadth away from Foundation Establishment.

“My Meridian Cleansing should be more thorough than those of cultivators who only use one Foundation Establishment Pill, right?”

Now that the effects of the Meridian Cleansing were gone, it was time to focus all his efforts on breaking through to the Foundation Establishment stage.

Immediately, taking advantage of the remaining potency of the first few pills, and while the potency was at its peak, he decisively took the sixth. Then, the immense medicinal power exploded within his body, almost knocking him unconscious.

Fortunately, the auxiliary elixirs given by Fairy Hong Fu and the calming elixirs he harvested from the forbidden area stabilized his mind.

Because of this, he witnessed firsthand the unprecedented expansion of his dantian, the condensation of his gaseous mana into liquid true essence, and the subsequent rush of it into his dantian as if finding a harbor.

This was a crucial step in the transition from the Qi Refining stage to the Foundation Establishment stage.

The liquefaction of mana was a standard for the quality of mana reaching the Foundation Establishment stage.

This time, he witnessed the entire process of initial Foundation Establishment, not the confused, dream-like Foundation Establishment of another timeline.

“I’ve begun cultivating the fourth level of the Azure Origin Sword Technique, but the related spells are still lacking. I need to make up for this deficiency later.”

The first three levels of the Azure Origin Sword Technique were complete, containing only the Azure Origin Sword Light move.

After Foundation Establishment, one can cultivate the Protective Sword Shield.

It’s an instantaneous spell: instantly releasing the protective sword shield. Its defensive power is similar to ordinary beginner-to-mid-level defensive spells, but this shield has a certain sword aura counterattack effect; if an outsider attacks the shield, they will be attacked by the sword aura automatically released by the shield.

“Speaking of which, now that I’ve reached Foundation Establishment, can I activate the inheritance of that golden page?”

Taking out the silver page he obtained from the barefoot giant, Han Li first melted it to obtain a golden page. Then, while consuming pills to recover his mana, he also cast a levitation spell on the golden page, continuously injecting Azure Origin Sword Aura into it.

The mana of the Azure Origin Sword Technique is the key to unlocking the inheritance.

The golden page seemed like a bottomless pit, absorbing all the sword aura completely.

He didn’t know how much time had passed, having consumed quite a few pills, until most of his mana was depleted:

“Buzz…”

The surface of the golden page shone brightly, no longer absorbing sword aura, but instead beginning to reflect it back.

The light on the pages spontaneously receded, rapidly coalescing into tiny, ant-sized characters that hovered around the golden pages. These characters resembled a cluster of stars, densely packed.

Han Li raised his hand, and the golden pages appeared in his grasp.

The next moment, the starlight seemed to find an outlet, surging into his right hand, the golden pages seemingly glued to it.

Han Li seemed to have anticipated this, calmly waiting for all the golden characters to enter his body and then penetrate his mind.

“It’s here.”

This was the complete Qingyuan Sword Technique inheritance left by Qingyuanzi, a Nascent Soul cultivator from Tiannan tens of thousands of years ago.

As the golden characters flooded into his mind, a sharp pain rose from his forehead, threatening to explode. Fortunately, Han Li was prepared, having prepared relevant auxiliary spiritual medicines beforehand, allowing him to absorb this inherited knowledge relatively easily.

Three days and three nights passed, and the discomfort in his mind completely disappeared. The golden characters that had flooded in transformed into a large stream of inherited information.

The Qingyuan Sword Technique comes in its first to thirteenth levels, not the incomplete nine-level version from Huangfeng Valley.

It also includes an auxiliary method called the “Three Revolutions Rejuvenation Technique.”

The Three Revolutions Rejuvenation Technique aims to dissipate cultivation and rebuild, continuously compressing mana and true essence in the process. Through multiple compressions, mana can be purified several times over. Combined with the Qingyuan Sword Technique, completing the three revolutions increases a cultivator’s chances of forming a Golden Core by at least 50%.

The Golden Core is originally formed from solidified true essence; if a cultivator completes the Three Revolutions Rejuvenation Technique and obtains near-solidified true essence, forming a Golden Core will be a natural progression.

Another benefit of combining the Qingyuan Sword Technique with the Three Revolutions Rejuvenation Technique is obtaining several times more true essence and mana than ordinary cultivators of the same level. This results in

purer and

more abundant true essence and mana.

Undoubtedly, this is effective not only for forming a Golden Core but also for forming a Nascent Soul.

A more robust foundation makes the process of breaking through the Golden Core and forming a Nascent Soul much easier.

Furthermore,

it is also effective for Nascent Soul cultivators.

Otherwise, why would top-grade spirit stones be helpful for someone at the Nascent Soul stage?

However ,

cultivating the Azure Origin Sword Technique also has a drawback: it burns resources.

Not only does it burn resources during the Foundation Establishment stage, but it also burns

resources during the Core Formation and Nascent Soul stages. Because it requires several times the mana and true essence of cultivators of the same level, even if the original owner obtained dozens or hundreds of extremely precious ten-thousand-year-old spiritual herbs from half of the Spirit Misty Garden, he would only reach the mid-Nascent Soul stage from the early Nascent Soul stage. With a different Nascent Soul stage cultivator,

there might be a slight chance of progressing from the early to the late Nascent Soul stage. Giving a peak Nascent Soul cultivator the same power could potentially create a Nascent Soul cultivator.

In short, there are gains and losses .

“As a pseudo-spiritual root cultivator, if I want to go further, the Azure Origin Sword Technique is the inevitable choice. With other cultivation methods, several bottlenecks would completely block me.”

Enough.

I won’t think too far ahead.

Right now, I need to figure out how to form my Core.

After refining the remaining medicinal power and taking another pill to confirm it had little effect, he consolidated his realm, bringing his mana and true essence to full strength. He also studied the complete version of the Azure Origin Sword Manual several times. More than a month had passed.

“It’s time to pay my respects to Master Hong Fu.”

…

Red Tassel Mountain, main branch cave.

Dong Xuan’er and two unfamiliar female cultivators scrutinized Han Li from head to toe.

“What’s wrong, Senior Sister?”

“Nothing, just curious. How did you achieve Foundation Establishment so quickly? You know, refining one Foundation Establishment Pill usually takes three months. You only took eight months. Did you only use three or four Foundation Establishment Pills?”

Wouldn’t that mean Han Li, with his four-element pseudo-spiritual root, had better aptitude than her three-elemental root?

But how could that be?

“Senior Sister, I just took the next Foundation Establishment Pill as soon as its effects showed signs of waning. Finally, when the medicinal power reached a certain peak, I took the last, sixth pill, and that’s how I succeeded. Junior Brother, I was truly lucky to achieve Foundation Establishment,” Han Li said sincerely.

The seventh pill seemed a bit wasteful.

“Besides, Senior Sister, have you forgotten? I attempted Foundation Establishment at the thirteenth level of Qi Refining. Before this, I had already taken two Foundation Establishment Pills?”

In other words, he had taken a total of nine Foundation Establishment Pills.

And this time, he also relied on quite a few auxiliary medicines; otherwise, it wouldn’t have been so easy.

“Oh, right.”

Dong Xuan’er nodded with a smile.

Pseudo-spiritual roots are indeed the most useless.

She’s far more useless than her.

In the future, Master can’t say she’s wasting resources, right?

If Master does criticize her, she’ll just drag Han Li out to share the damage.

Perfect.

“Senior Sister, who are these two fairies?”

Two unfamiliar female cultivators; Han Li had no recollection of them.

Judging from their appearances, they seemed like twins, both possessing superior beauty. They both had Foundation Establishment cultivation, and both were in the mid-Foundation Establishment stage.

“Oh dear, I forgot to introduce you. These two are our senior sisters, disciples Master took in over twenty years ago when he was traveling. Back then, they were just cultivators from a small family, with ordinary cultivation levels, around the sixth or seventh level of Qi Refining. However, they provided crucial information, helping Master find the necessary spiritual herbs. Furthermore, both senior sisters possessed excellent spiritual roots, being dual-spiritual-root geniuses. Master accepted them as disciples that year.” “

Originally, Master intended to take them back to Huangfeng Valley in Yue Kingdom for cultivation, but due to family reasons, they didn’t return together. It wasn’t until their grandmother, their only family, passed away over a year ago that they came to Huangfeng Valley and officially joined our sect.”

“The two senior sisters have been here for almost half a year, but since you’ve been in seclusion for Foundation Establishment, we haven’t disturbed you.”

Master Hongfu had also taken in disciples?

Han Li was somewhat surprised.

The sect’s intelligence reports hadn’t mentioned it.

Dong Xuan’er had never told him either.

However, this didn’t stop him from immediately greeting them politely: “Han Li greets the two senior sisters.”

“Greetings, Junior Brother Han.”

The two women’s gazes became even more curious.

They had followed Master Hong Fu for a period of time and knew all too well how unapproachable their mentor was towards male cultivators. They simply couldn’t imagine that their mentor, who had an inexplicable aversion to men, would actually accept a male disciple as a student! It was

simply unbelievable.

After another round of pleasantries, Han Li subtly inquired and finally understood the general cause and effect.

It turned out that the important spiritual herbs that Master Hong Fu had found more than twenty years ago, which was also the opportunity for her to break through the bottleneck of the mid-stage Core Formation realm a few years ago, were all thanks to these two women. It was these two women who provided important clues, which allowed Master Hong Fu to find several rare spiritual herbs that were over a thousand years old in an underground ancient tomb complex.

Out of gratitude, and because the two women’s aptitude was indeed quite good, Master Hong Fu accepted them as her nominal disciples.

However, the two women insisted on staying in their family to care for their important relatives, so Master Hongfu bestowed upon them a considerable amount of cultivation supplies, including two Foundation Establishment Pills. She told them that after achieving Foundation Establishment, they could formally become disciples at Huangfeng Valley in Taiyue Mountain, Yue Kingdom.

Twenty-seven years passed in the blink of an eye. The two women not only achieved Foundation Establishment but also, thanks to the spiritual herbs left by Master Hongfu, barely managed to reach the mid-Foundation Establishment stage through arduous cultivation.

When the spiritual herbs ran out, their cultivation began to slow down.

Seeing their path becoming increasingly difficult, coupled with the passing of their important loved ones, and more importantly, discovering that they were being used as bargaining chips by the elders of their family to make sordid deals with certain Core Formation families, they immediately and decisively abandoned their family and came to Huangfeng Valley in Taiyue Mountain.

They felt they had already repaid any ties they owed their family over the years.

Since the main family had started this whole affair, they shouldn’t blame them, as peripheral members of a collateral branch, for no longer caring about the meager blood ties that had been separated by countless generations.

After escaping, they severed all ties, and would probably never return in this lifetime.

Of course, the truth or falsehood of what happened was up to the sisters themselves, and Han Li simply listened for amusement. He merely listened without commenting.

“By the way, junior brother, which cultivation technique are you planning to practice next?” Dong Xuan’er brought up the main topic.

“Does senior sister have any recommendations?”

Just then, Fairy Hong Fu appeared in the hall and quickly took her seat at the head of the table.

“Greetings, Master.” The four of them stood up and bowed in unison.

“Hmm. Not bad, you’ve truly reached the Foundation Establishment stage.” Seeing that her little disciple had already reached the Foundation Establishment stage, Hong Fu smiled.

“It’s all thanks to Master and senior sisters’ help.” Han Li said modestly.

“It’s all your own ability; Xuan’er and I just assisted you a little.” Hong Fu waved her hand: “Han Li, have you met your two senior sisters?”

“Senior Sister Xiu Ting, Senior Sister Xiu Lan, I’ve met them.”

“Good, you should look after each other and progress together.”

“Yes.”

The four of them replied in unison again.

After Hong Fu nodded, she looked over again:

“Han Li, besides seeing me, is there anything else you’ve come for?”

“This disciple has come for three reasons: first, to ask about some cultivation-related questions; second, to seek some cultivation methods from Master to enhance my combat skills; and third, to prepare to go out and find a spiritual land to establish my own cave dwelling. Hongying Mountain is ultimately Master’s cave dwelling area, and now that I have reached the Foundation Establishment stage, it would be inappropriate for me to stay here any longer,” Han Li bowed.

“Junior brother, are you not used to living on Hongying Mountain?” Dong Xuan’er frowned.

“Senior sister, the spiritual environment here is excellent, one of the best in Taiyue Mountain, and staying here means I can always receive Master’s teachings, so naturally I am willing to stay. But the sect’s rules are there…” Unless Master Hong Fu insists that he stay, it’s better for him to be sensible.

Although he is Hong Fu’s disciple, he is not the same as Dong Xuan’er. This situation

is not good in the long run.

It was alright when he was in the Qi Refining stage, as his presence was low, but after reaching the Foundation Establishment stage, things are different.

There’s a word for it…

a sense of boundaries…

Yes, that’s it.

Staying in the Dong family’s Red Tassel Mountain isn’t impossible, but it’s too much of a dependence. If rumors start to circulate, it will damage Dong Xuan’er’s reputation and affect his relationship with these two.

Even if some people don’t say it, they might think it in their hearts.

Furthermore, according to the rules of Yellow Maple Valley, he first needs to report to the sect’s main hall, and then find a place in Taiyue Mountain where no one occupies it to open a cave dwelling that truly belongs to him. And this matter also needs to be reported to the sect later. This is the traditional rule, and it also aligns with Han Li’s intentions.

It’s time to go find that Spirit Eye Spring.

First come, first served, to avoid any accidents.

Of course, most importantly, he doesn’t want to live under the nose of a Core Formation stage cultivator for a long time. He desperately wants to unlock his own little treasure trove. The feeling of guarding a treasure mountain but not being able to use it is very torturous.

“Hmm, it’s good that you open your own cave dwelling,”

Hong Fu nodded in agreement.

While large trees can indeed provide shelter from wind and rain, they can also limit the growth of saplings.

She liked Han Li very much for his down-to-earth, sensible, and honest nature, but she wouldn’t arrange other people’s lives unless there were real signs of him going astray.

Since her disciple had his own considerations, she would respect that.

“As the fourth disciple of my Red Tassel Mountain lineage, you must not tarnish my name when you’re out and about. I’ve already reforged this ‘Silver Radiance Sword’ for you, and added a small amount of four other magical treasures to compensate for its shortcomings in other aspects. You can then refine it with your blood. At that time, this sword will be wielded solely by you; no one else can use it. Furthermore, after blood refining, it will be even more at your command, as if it were an extension of your own arm.”

The Silver Radiance Sword was the top-grade sword she had obtained from the barefoot giant.

When Han Li returned, he showed it to his master, Hong Fu. Later, his master took it and reforged it with alchemical fire, changing its form and

even adding new magical treasures to strengthen it .

“Thank you, Master,”

Han Li said without refusing.

Using the ingredients and information from the Youth-Preserving Pill as a form of reciprocation has indeed yielded results.

“Having offensive treasures but lacking protective artifacts is insufficient. Since you’ve returned Xuan’er’s Rainbow Cloud Shield, I’ll bestow this yellow jade robe upon you.”

Fairy Hongfu took out a robe from her storage bag that was almost identical to the standard robes of Foundation Establishment cultivators in Yellow Maple Valley:

“This is a robe my elder brother wore years ago, sewn from superior golden silkworm silk spun by a level 3 demon beast. Although not a top-grade robe, it’s still a fine example of a top-tier artifact. Its defensive capabilities are quite impressive.”

“Furthermore, I had Junior Brother Li re-temper your Azure Dragon Chain and that top-tier artifact’s fine steel bracelet using the Three Yang Pill Fire and certain materials. Now they can both be considered rare top-tier artifacts. You’ll have to discover their wonders for yourself later.”

Four top-tier artifacts, possessing offensive, defensive, and supportive capabilities, plus the Cloud-Stepping Boots Han Li acquired, which enhanced his movement advantage. With the addition of some talismans, he would already be considered quite respectable among Foundation Establishment cultivators.

“And these twelve Youth-Preserving Pills, a bottle of Qi-Harmony Pills, and three Mind-Clearing Pills…”

Thinking of the benefits she had gained from the Hidden Moon Sect through the Youth-Preserving Pills, she grew increasingly fond of Han Li.

This exchange of benefits left the two newly arrived senior sisters dumbfounded, their hearts filled with turmoil.

They felt as if they were hallucinating.

They felt as if they were imagining things.

It was too unreal.

Was this still their master who was indifferent to male cultivators? Even ordinary cultivators wouldn’t be this affectionate towards their own sons!

“Master, please take out one of these Youth-Preserving Pills first,” Han Li said, overjoyed, yet not forgetting his filial piety.

Hong Fu smiled, her smile growing even wider: “Good child, I’ve already taken the medicine. These are the rest; take them and exchange them for some cultivation supplies.”

“Thank you, Master.”

Han Li no longer refused, happily accepting the sword, robe, chain, bracelet, and several pill bottles.

His excitement at this moment was beyond words.

“If you encounter any difficulties in your cultivation, you can return to your cave on Hongying Mountain for a while. Come see me again after I emerge from seclusion each time.” Hong Fu added, “By the way, child, if you encounter any difficulties, sometimes you don’t need to force yourself. You can seek my help. As long as we are in the right and not abusing our power, I will definitely uphold justice for you.”

It’s unclear what Hong Fu Fairy was thinking, but she said these words.

Han Li, upon hearing this, sincerely bowed again.

“Go, take this token and go with Xuan’er to my library to see if there’s anything you like…”

“Thank you, Master, for your kindness.”

In the end, Han Li chose two secret techniques.

One, “Blood Escape Technique.”   The first secret technique is called “Fire Qi,”   a fire-attribute technique

that greatly increases flight speed by burning one’s essence blood.

When used, it can even make a Core Formation cultivator unable to catch up for a short time.

However, the side effects are significant. Use

with caution. The second secret technique is called “Fire Qi,” a fire-attribute technique.   During combat, it allows one to imbue their magical weapon with a layer of fire qi, granting it additional enchanted damage.   It can also transform the user into a ball of fire to counter certain ghostly techniques.   This technique was chosen because it can be combined with the Azure Origin Sword Aura and Azure Origin Sword Shield, giving both the sword aura and shield the burning effect of fire qi. While the damage isn’t high, it easily distracts the opponent. Furthermore, fire qi can effectively counter the “Red Rust Pearl” from Duobao Nu and the “Black Light Blade” from the middle-aged man of the Wang family in Huadaowu, preventing attacks that specifically corrode the spiritual essence of others’ magical weapons.   This is quite useful.   It also shows that Fairy Hongfu is wary of a certain Core Formation cultivator from the Hidden Moon Sect.   Otherwise, she wouldn’t have specifically researched this secret technique.   Having chosen a method and resolved his doubts about cultivation, Han Li took his leave.   Two figures walked along the stone pavilion path of Red Tassel Mountain.   ”Senior Sister, that’s enough. I still need to report to the sect’s main hall,” Han Li said with a smile.   ”Why did you have to move out? Isn’t it troublesome?”   Dong Xuan’er was still somewhat sullen.   She actually understood what he meant.   ”Senior Sister, don’t forget, I received Master’s spirit stones, and I’ll have to manage her herb garden for several years. Even though I’ve moved out, I’ll still have to come over often,” Han Li said, his smile unchanged.   Hearing this, Dong Xuan’er suddenly understood, and her displeasure lessened considerably.   ”Also, Senior Sister, you must accept this Youth-Preserving Pill.”   ”You do have some conscience.”   Dong Xuan’er happily accepted the bottle, her face beaming.   Although Master had already given her one, the one her junior brother gave her was completely different from the one bestowed by Master. And with the extra, she could trade with other female cultivators for what she needed.   ”Oh, right, junior brother, this… I almost forgot…”   Dong Xuan’er handed over a storage bag.   ”What?”   Han Li took it, finding it to be a bag of spirit stones, somewhat puzzled.   ”These are the spirit stones you asked me to sell before you went into seclusion, you idiot, over three thousand three hundred.”   …   After Han Li walked away, the two twin senior sisters nearby immediately clung to Dong Xuan’er.   ”Junior sister, what exactly did this junior brother do? Why is he so highly regarded by our master?”

“Yes, Master wasn’t like this before…”

They were so curious about this junior brother.

What was it about him that earned Master’s favor?

They didn’t understand. They

didn’t understand at all.

Moreover, this junior sister gave him over three thousand three hundred spirit stones so readily.

Were they, the sisters, simply unsophisticated, or was the Red Tassel Mountain lineage incredibly wealthy?

“I’m just as curious, but I don’t know why either.” Dong Xuan’er shook her head.

How she wanted to know the reason!

But she just couldn’t figure it out.

Anyway, the more handsome and dashing a male cultivator was, the more Master disliked him.

On the contrary, Master didn’t seem to dislike someone as ordinary as Junior Brother Han.

It was like a bean and a turtle hitting the spot?

(End of Chapter)