Chapter 150: Taking a Golden Core Master as Teacher

Inside the 【Pill Refining Room】.

Ji Yuan did not stand up, but sat where he was, sensing the surroundings.

At first, he did not even use his Divine Sense, yet he could clearly feel—different from before.

If one were to describe the current state as having sharp hearing and clear vision, then during the previous Qi Refining stage, it was at most being half-blind and half-deaf.

Wherever his eyes landed, everything was crystal clear.

Since the enhancement of the five senses was already so distinct, what about the Divine Sense?

With a single thought, Ji Yuan released his Divine Sense. In an instant, everything inside the 【Pill Refining Room】 was completely taken into his mind.

And Ji Yuan did not even feel the slightest pressure—this feeling suggested that after entering Foundation Establishment, the strength of Divine Sense had indeed increased.

The increase was not just in the coverage area of the Divine Sense, but also in its duration.

Unfortunately, the Pill Refining Room was enveloped in formation restrictions, so Ji Yuan could not discern just how powerful his Divine Sense truly was.

But that did not matter. Once he left, there would be plenty of time to experience it.

With this thought, he looked inward at his Dantian.

Compared to the previously crowded Dantian filled to the brim with Pill Cloud, his current Dantian appeared especially empty.

Only at the very bottom of the Dantian was a thin layer of Liquid Spiritual Energy.

When he had just broken through, the liquid was even thinner. It was only after Ji Yuan absorbed dozens of Middle-Grade Spirit Stones that it thickened somewhat.

Compared to before during the Qi Refining period, the Spiritual Energy inside his Dantian had also changed subtly.

Previously, the technique Ji Yuan cultivated was the commonplace 《Azure Sea Tide Technique》, but now he was cultivating the Nascent Soul Technique, the 《Canglan Nine Tribulations Sword Manual》.

The Spiritual Energy refined through this 《Sword Manual》 naturally carried a trace of Sword Qi.

Thus, the Spiritual Energy in Ji Yuan’s Dantian at this moment—each wisp carried a trace of lethal power.

The Sword Manual itself was already a kind of technique extremely focused on offense.

Ji Yuan had successfully converted his cultivation method. To continue advancing his cultivation—as the Sword Manual described—during the Foundation Establishment stage, he had to draw the water of rivers and seas to condense a “Canglan Sword Embryo” within his Dantian.

There would be nine sword embryos in total, corresponding to the nine Life-Bound Flying Swords he would forge after forming his core.

In the early Foundation Establishment stage, one needed to refine two sword embryos in order to attempt breaking through to the mid stage.

The mid stage required refining three sword embryos.

The later stage required refining four sword embryos.

These Canglan Flying Sword embryos not only possessed a fraction of the offensive power of a Life-Bound Flying Sword and could be used to kill enemies—

They also naturally contained tidal gravity, capable of trapping enemies. Truly a superb weapon of offense.

However, as for refining them into a Life-Bound Magic Treasure in the future—Ji Yuan was not too keen on that. He leaned more toward combining all his various buildings and refining them into a 【Cave Dwelling】-type Life-Bound Magic Treasure.

As for the flying swords, he could try to build a 【Sword Residence】, 【Sword Forge】, or perhaps a 【Sword Artifact Room】 in which to house the flying swords, treating them as a sub-treasure of his Life-Bound Magic Treasure.

Relying on a single flying sword as a Life-Bound Magic Treasure was certainly lacking.

But to truly refine all his buildings into a Life-Bound Magic Treasure—that would demand an astronomical amount of resources.

No matter how he thought about it, it all seemed too far away.

Better to first take a few steps forward in the Foundation Establishment stage.

With his attention withdrawn from his Dantian, Ji Yuan took out the jade box containing his Foundation Establishment Pills.

He opened it.

Inside still lay ten round pills.

In preparation for this Foundation Establishment, Ji Yuan had prepared a total of 20 Foundation Establishment Pills, but who would have thought he would succeed with just ten?

Or rather, it actually consumed ten pills just to achieve Foundation Establishment!

And they were all Two-Pattern Foundation Establishment Pills.

Damn, no wonder throughout the entire Cangluo Continent, Foundation Establishment with a False Spiritual Root was as rare as phoenix feathers and qilin horns.

Among the remaining ten, six were One-Pattern Foundation Establishment Pills, and four were Two-Pattern Foundation Establishment Pills.

Ji Yuan planned to find a chance to auction some off later.

Each one went for hundreds of Middle-Grade Spirit Stones—he was not generous enough to just give them away.

His own cultivation, as well as upgrading buildings, required Spirit Stones everywhere.

He did not even have enough for himself, let alone giving them to others—what kind of prodigy would do that?

Cultivation was like a thousand troops crossing a single-log bridge; he had to do everything to improve his own strength.

With that thought, Ji Yuan summoned the Panel.

Now that he had reached the Foundation Establishment stage, some buildings that had cultivation level restrictions could be upgraded again.

The 【Comprehension Room】 had just been upgraded—not viable for now, as the next upgrade required a Third-Tier Demon Core.

The 【Talisman Room】 and 【Pill Refining Room】 were also not viable.

The 【Formation Room】 showed promise. It only required upgrading a complete First-Tier Formation to a Second-Tier Formation.

The 【Fish Pond】 could now be upgraded.

Previously, he could not upgrade it to Level 3 because of a hard requirement—Foundation Establishment Early Stage.

Now that this requirement was met, the remaining upgrade conditions would be easier to handle.

The 【Chicken Coop】 required Foundation Establishment Mid Stage—also not viable.

The 【Pigsty】 needed a Third-Tier Demon Core and a large amount of expensive Immortal Resources—also out of reach for now.

The 【Cave Dwelling】 could be upgraded.

As for the remaining ones—the 【Kitchen】 was not viable. The 【Wine Cellar】 should be about ready. He would check on his brewed wine when he returned to Misty Island.

Adding it all up, the ones currently upgradable were the 【Fish Pond】, 【Cave Dwelling】, and 【Wine Cellar】.

The 【Formation Room】 was worth trying to upgrade with effort.

Putting away the Panel, Ji Yuan scanned his surroundings with his Divine Sense once more. After confirming there was nothing left behind, he prepared to leave seclusion—there was no more point in staying.

In the final moment, he stepped forward, arriving at the entrance of the Pill Refining Room.

Half a quarter of an hour later.

On the main island of the Water Dragon Sect, inside the main hall, Xuan Shui Zhen Ren, who was handling an incident of Demonic Sect intrusion, suddenly took out a Messaging Talisman. With one sweep of his Divine Sense, he immediately received a message.

It was from the Sect-Guarding Formation.

The Foundation Establishment Island Lord guarding the area had discovered through the Sect-Guarding Formation that a disciple in the sect had successfully established their foundation!

The Water Dragon Sect had gained another Foundation Establishment cultivator. This was something Xuan Shui Zhen Ren, as the Sect Master, certainly had to know.

Moreover, he had to personally summon each newly promoted Foundation Establishment cultivator.

This was originally a matter so ordinary that it could not be more ordinary.

Among the several hundred Foundation Establishment cultivators in the Water Dragon Sect, a few would emerge every year.

But today, this piece of news was rather unusual.

Because Xuan Shui Zhen Ren discovered that the disciple who established their foundation within the sect was named ———— Ji Yuan!

Same name and surname?

Xuan Shui Zhen Ren did not believe in such coincidences. This Ji Yuan must be the very disciple who last year refused to enter the Nine Nether Grotto-Heaven.

If that were the case, then it made himself seem rather ridiculous in hindsight.

Back then, Xuan Shui Zhen Ren had thought: “If you won’t go to the Nine Nether Grotto-Heaven, then how could you, a False Spiritual Root, ever establish your foundation?”

He must have already planned to stay in the Qi Refining stage for life.

But looking at it now, Ji Yuan probably had confidence in reaching Foundation Establishment even back then—that’s why he didn’t want to go to the Nine Nether Grotto-Heaven.

His sudden disappearance at the time was likely because he went into seclusion somewhere to establish his foundation.

Right—wasn’t the message saying he established his foundation inside the Pill Refining Room on Four Directions Island?

If so, how did they not detect it back then? It looked like some rules needed to be reiterated.

But regardless, a new Foundation Establishment cultivator had emerged within the sect—this was good news!

He also seemed to be only in his twenties. For a False Spiritual Root to succeed in Foundation Establishment—most likely another prodigy of the Foundation Establishment stage had emerged within the sect. It was just a pity that achieving Foundation Establishment with a False Spiritual Root was already extremely rare.

Reaching Core Formation with one—that was one in ten thousand.

No matter, there was nothing urgent at the moment. Since a summons would be necessary eventually, why not go today and see what kind of person this Ji Yuan really was?

Someone else who learned about Ji Yuan’s Foundation Establishment success was Li Changhe, who had already returned to the sect from the outside several months prior.

He was cultivating today when he suddenly received a Messaging Talisman from his second uncle.

It said that the disciple who had used the Li Family’s connection to enter seclusion on Four Directions Island had succeeded in Foundation Establishment.

Before leaving, Li Changhe had specifically instructed his second uncle to look after the matter, so Second Uncle Li had indeed told the people on Four Directions Island to report immediately if anything unusual occurred.

Looking at it now, something unusual had indeed happened.

But it was a good thing—Foundation Establishment success —.— this was not just any good news.

So Li Changhe decided to personally go and congratulate this benefactor and friend. After all, once someone succeeded in Foundation Establishment, they truly became one of “their kind”—he could now address him as a fellow Daoist upon meeting.

Perfect. He would also copy down some of his cultivation insights from the 《Canglan Nine Tribulations Sword Manual》 as a gift for the occasion.

And right—a Talisman Treasure too. Knowing Ji Yuan’s personality, the “Sky-Escape Shuttle” would surely suit him well.

After some thought, Li Changhe vanished from sight.

He first went to the Li Family’s treasury, then went to speak with Li Gang. After informing him of the matter, he rode a flying boat straight toward Four Directions Island.

Before he left, Li Gang didn’t forget to tell Li Changhe to bring Ji Yuan over to the Li Family for a visit.

Previously, everyone had thought this Ji Yuan was merely a Qi Refining cultivator. Even if he had saved Li Changhe, it was probably just a stroke of luck. The many gifts given were already more than enough.

At most, a bit more could be added. It wouldn’t hurt the Li Family anyway.

But now that he had reached Foundation Establishment—it was a whole different matter.

To the Li Family, a Foundation Establishment cultivator was someone worth recruiting.

And hearing from Li Changhe that Ji Yuan seemed quite young—that only increased his value even more.

After exiting the Pill Refining Room, Ji Yuan followed the Earth Vein Corridor back to the surface. He arrived at the duty office and returned the voucher for the rented Pill Refining Room.

The disciple on duty had already sensed something, so he quickly stood up, cupped his hands with both palms, and shouted loudly:

"Congratulations, Martial Uncle, on your success in Foundation Establishment. Wishing you eternal life along the immortal path."

His voice was loud and clear. The nearby disciples on duty immediately reacted—each one stood up,

and bowed toward Ji Yuan, shouting:

"Congratulations, Martial Uncle, on your success in Foundation Establishment. Wishing you eternal life along the immortal path."

The unified voice echoed within the room.

"Good, good, good."

With so much emotional value given, Ji Yuan couldn’t help but feel he needed to respond in kind.

And indeed, this was somewhat of a long-standing tradition. Foundation Establishment success was a joyous occasion. The others offered congratulations, and the one who succeeded would give out small gifts in return, to share the good fortune.

Ji Yuan did a quick count—there were eight people present.

His first instinct was to give each one a Middle-Grade Spirit Stone, but then he suddenly came to his senses.

Damn, had he forgotten his own status the moment he reached Foundation Establishment? What was he thinking, giving out Middle-Grade Spirit Stones—

So in the end, Ji Yuan gave each of them a bottle of First-Tier Spirit-Converging Pills.

Each bottle contained three pills.

These were from his earlier practice sessions when he was learning to refine pills. Now that he had broken through to Foundation Establishment, First-Tier Spirit-Converging Pills no longer held much use for him.

After handing out the gifts, the on-duty disciples offered even more hearty congratulations.

But before Ji Yuan could leave, he noticed that these disciples were now bowing toward someone behind him. Compared to their earlier cheerfulness, their faces now showed a trace of fear.

Ji Yuan did not dare to scan people with Divine Sense.

In general, directly scanning someone with Divine Sense was almost no different from provoking a fight.

So he quickly turned his head around.

Just one glance—and he recognized the person behind him from the portrait: the Sect Master of the Water Dragon Sect —.. Xuan Shui Zhen Ren!

Why was he here?!

Not good—could it be he really came to trouble me?

Last year, Ji Yuan had disobeyed his order to go to the Nine Nether Grotto-Heaven and instead found a place to secretly establish his foundation. That was clearly defiance. Now that he had succeeded in Foundation Establishment and had just come out, the sect master appeared—wasn’t this like a weasel paying respects to a hen?

Ji Yuan had never had any contact with the sect master of the Water Dragon Sect. He had barely even heard about him, let alone his temperament.

But that didn’t stop Ji Yuan from preparing for the worst—he assumed the sect master had come to make trouble.

So Ji Yuan immediately activated his Divine Sense and Spiritual Energy, sending them into his storage pouch, where he found the Messaging Talisman left behind by Hua Yaoyue.

Previously, his Qi Refining stage mana could not penetrate the Messaging Talisman—it was like a copper wall or iron fortress. But now that he had reached Foundation Establishment, his mana easily broke the restriction on the talisman. He then used his Divine Sense to speak into it:

"Martial Aunt Wangyou, this is Ji Yuan. I wonder if you still remember me? I’ve successfully reached Foundation Establishment, and I’m currently on Four Directions Island—oh, and I’ve improved the Spiritual Wine too, I’ve brought it all along with me."

If that was the case, as long as Hua Yaoyue wasn't pretending to be clueless, she would surely understand his meaning.

In other words, this wandering disciple was finally returning to his master’s side—to show filial respect.

As for the news that the Sect Master Xuan Shui Zhen Ren was also here, Ji Yuan didn’t mention it. He was afraid that if he did, his Master Yaoyue might decide not to come.

As for whether he’d be found out, if asked, Ji Yuan would say: "I had just sent a message to you, Master, when Sect Master Martial Uncle arrived—it was nearly at the same time."

Though many thoughts passed through his mind, in reality, only a brief moment had passed.

While sending the message, Ji Yuan paused slightly, which made it look like he had hesitated.

"Greetings to the Sect Master——·Martial Uncle."

Ji Yuan bowed in salute. At first, he had intended to say “Sect Master,” but then he remembered that he was now a Foundation Establishment cultivator. A Foundation Establishment calling a Golden Core by rank was like a Qi Refining calling Foundation Establishment. “Martial Uncle” would suffice.

"Mm, you must be Ji Yuan?"

Xuan Shui Zhen Ren smiled while stroking his beard.

"Yes, that’s me."

"Not bad. It really proves the old saying true—heroes emerge from the youth."

Xuan Shui Zhen Ren chuckled, his eyes looking no different from an elder proud of a talented junior. This made Ji Yuan feel a little uneasy—could the Sect Master really be so generous and kind?

If he was truly that magnanimous, he wouldn’t have tried to use his authority to send him to the Nine Nether Grotto-Heaven back then.

As expected, just as Ji Yuan was hesitating about how to respond, he heard Xuan Shui Zhen Ren say: "If I recall correctly, last year I asked Feng Yichen to invite you to go to the Nine Nether Grotto-Heaven, didn’t I?"

"Why didn’t you go?"

Xuan Shui Zhen Ren’s tone didn’t change—it sounded like a casual question.

But Ji Yuan knew—if he answered properly, it might be fine. But if he responded poorly, Xuan Shui Zhen Ren might accuse him of disobedience.

There would be no way out of that.

And truth be told, he really had disobeyed the order.

Just as Ji Yuan’s back grew cold and he was trying to figure out what to say—also wondering why his Master Yaoyue hadn’t come yet—he suddenly heard a familiar hearty laugh at the door.

"So it’s you who arrived faster than me—turns out it’s Sect Master Martial Uncle here."

"This junior, Li Changhe, greets Sect Master Martial Uncle."

Li Changhe still had the Third-Tier demon beast, the Sky-Flying Tiger cub, squatting on his shoulder.

He didn’t bow, just cupped his hands from a distance as his greeting.

"Oh? So it’s Nephew Changhe."

Upon Li Changhe’s arrival, Xuan Shui Zhen Ren’s smile became noticeably more genuine. He smiled and turned around, stroking his beard.

"How come you know this Ji Brother of mine too?"

Li Changhe stepped forward and naturally placed a hand on Ji Yuan’s shoulder.

"Brother Li."

Ji Yuan quickly greeted him, secretly breathing a sigh of relief.

With Li Changhe here, even if Hua Yaoyue didn’t arrive immediately, this Xuan Shui Zhen Ren probably wouldn’t be too hard on him, right?

"Of course I know him. When a disciple in the sect successfully forms their foundation, as the Sect Master, I naturally have to come take a look—especially when it’s a prodigy like Ji Yuan."

Xuan Shui Zhen Ren said with a laugh.

"Oh?"

Li Changhe heard this and felt something was off. So he chuckled and said, "My Ji Brother here, a prodigy? Even made the Sect Master Martial Uncle come in person. Ji Brother, you’re being unfair now."

Ji Yuan immediately understood and once again cupped his hands toward Xuan Shui Zhen Ren, smiling as he said: "Last year I was actually planning to go to the Nine Nether Grotto-Heaven with Senior—Martial Nephew Feng, but unexpectedly, I sensed a breakthrough opportunity. At the time, I was already on Four Directions Island, preparing to refine some pills for use in the Nine Nether Grotto-Heaven."

"With all that, I didn’t even have time to send a message before I had to enter seclusion and break through. I hope Sect Master Martial Uncle will understand."

"Oh, so that’s how it was. Then of course, the breakthrough takes priority."

Xuan Shui Zhen Ren looked as if he just realized it and nodded with a smile.

Li Changhe, unaware of all this, looked around and asked, "What’s going on here?"

"It’s nothing—just a misunderstanding—."

Since the other party had already given him an out, Ji Yuan certainly wouldn’t say anything to further annoy Xuan Shui Zhen Ren. But unexpectedly, the Sect Master Martial Uncle spoke up himself.

"It’s just a small matter. Last year, I wanted to ask Martial Nephew Ji why he hadn’t gone to the Nine Nether Grotto-Heaven. It just happened that he was breaking through at the time, so I didn’t get a reply—hence I came to ask."

Xuan Shui Zhen Ren acted upright and open.

If Ji Yuan had glossed over it just now, it would have seemed as though he owed Ji Yuan a favor. If it had been something serious, he might have let it slide, but for such a trivial matter—it wasn’t worth hiding.

"So that’s what happened."

Li Changhe understood in an instant.

Most likely, Xuan Shui Zhen Ren had wanted Ji Yuan to go to the Nine Nether Grotto-Heaven—to seize treasure at Ghost Flood Dragon Lake. But knowing Ji Yuan’s temperament, he certainly wouldn’t have gone. So he had hurried to find an opportunity to hide and break through instead.

From Li Changhe’s perspective, this really wasn’t anything major.

Of course, that was on the condition that Ji Yuan had indeed not gone to the Nine Nether Grotto-Heaven—and had coincidentally broken through while remaining outside.

If either of those conditions hadn’t been met, it wouldn’t have been a small matter anymore.

"By the way, Nephew Changhe, how did you become acquainted with Martial Nephew Ji?"

Xuan Shui Zhen Ren seemed a bit curious.

Now that he saw it, their relationship seemed quite close. Otherwise, Ji Yuan wouldn’t have sent him a message immediately upon his breakthrough.

Yes—Ji Yuan’s previous Divine Sense transmission had not escaped the notice of Golden Core cultivator Xuan Shui Zhen Ren.

He noticed it but didn’t stop it—he was curious to see whom Ji Yuan would contact.

He hadn’t expected it to be Li Changhe.

"How I know Ji Brother, now that’s fate—"

Before Li Changhe could finish his sentence with a smile, everyone suddenly heard a lazy voice ring in their ears.

"I heard Junior Brother Xuan Shui wanted my disciple to go to the Nine Nether Grotto-Heaven?"

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