Chapter 115: Preparation for Foundation Establishment
Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
There was a figure in the hall. He was wearing a white robe. He was sitting quietly. Even though he wasn’t handsome, he was warm and honest. Even though his figure and bearing weren’t refined, the more one looked at him, the more one would feel a sense of trust.
Yu Qingling couldn’t help but rub her eyes. That figure was still there! “It’s not an illusion.” She bit her lower lip and walked over, suppressing the discomfort in her heart.
Yu Qingling came back to her senses when she sat on the jade chair. A look of disbelief appeared on her elegant and quiet face. The most difficult thing for a special-cla.s.s guest elder of the True Treasure Pavilion was the second a.s.sessment. Many candidates stopped here. Those who could pa.s.s had reached an extremely deep level of attainment in technique. Her talent in alchemy was outstanding. Her father and master, and many seniors were certain that she could pa.s.s.
That was the truth.
However, Yu Qingling never expected that there would actually be someone who was faster than her in the second test, and his cultivation was only at the Qi Refinement Realm.
“Ling’er, you must be the most outstanding!” Her father’s words echoed in her ears. She thought to herself, “Father, you’ve finally made a mistake.”
Just as Yu Qingling didn’t know if she should be happy or depressed, a gentle voice sounded. “Fellow Daoist. Pardon me for asking, did anything happen to you after you pa.s.sed the a.s.sessment?” Shen Ping cupped his hands and asked.
Yu Qingling gasped. “M-me?”
“It’s this pattern.” Shen Ping extended his arm. He felt that this girl with the sword mark had an extraordinary ident.i.ty and might know something.
“Oh, this. All those who pa.s.s the second a.s.sessment will have different patterns. I’m not sure what it’s used for, but it’s very important.” Yu Qingling said seriously.
Shen Ping heaved a sigh of relief in his heart, but he was still a little worried.
He probed again, “Fellow Daoist, can you let me see your pattern?”
Yu Qingling was instantly embarra.s.sed. However, when she saw the uneasiness in Shen Ping’s eyes, she understood. “Fellow Daoist, don’t worry. It’ll be fine.”
Shen Ping hesitated. “This… Alright.” He let out a long sigh.
When she saw this, Yu Qingling hesitated for a moment before biting her lip and stretching out a fair arm. “Fellow Daoist, mine is the pattern of a pill beast. You can rest a.s.sured now!” She shook it and quickly retracted it. Her earlobes turned red from embarra.s.sment.
“Thank you, Fellow Daoist!” Shen Ping said immediately.
The two of them did not speak again. The hall quickly fell silent. And this time, they waited for a long time before a third person pa.s.sed.
Late-stage Foundation Establishment.
When he walked towards the jade chair, he glanced at Shen Ping and Yu Qingling, and his eyes revealed shock.
He was not surprised at all that Yu Qingling could pa.s.s. However, that middle-aged Qi Refinement Talisman Master could actually pa.s.s? He was even earlier than Yu Qingling?
Indeed, you can’t judge a book by its cover!
Then, they waited until the fourth and fifth people appeared. The purple-robed cultivator arrived at the hall. This time, there was a smile on his indifferent face. His voice became gentle. “Congratulations to the five of you for pa.s.sing the second a.s.sessment as special-cla.s.s guest elders. To be able to pa.s.s the second time, you guys are extraordinary. The third a.s.sessment will take place after a month of rest.”
Speaking of this, Li Yin, the purple-robed cultivator, paused for a moment and continued, “There’s no need to feel pressured. Not only is the third a.s.sessment not difficult for you, but it will also be extremely beneficial, especially for the Qi Refinement Realm.”
His gaze landed on Shen Ping and Yu Qingling, and his smile grew wider. “The spiritual energy in your dantian is almost perfect. You should be able to advance to perfection in the next month of rest. After pa.s.sing the third test, I think you’ll be Foundation Establishment Cultivators!”
With that, his figure slowly disappeared.
However, the moment it disappeared, there was shock and joy in his heart. “I was in charge of this special-cla.s.s guest elder a.s.sessment on a whim, but two A-ranks were actually born at once. Such luck!
“However, the first place this year is actually not Fellow Daoist Yu’s daughter. A
Talisman Master… and from the Flame Toad Cave in the Southern Flame
Continent. What a surprise!”
The purple-robed cultivator left.
Shen Ping, Yu Qingling, and the other three partic.i.p.ants followed the young cultivator from before to walk along the pa.s.sageway to the end. This time, they were still resting in the quiet room, but the situation was different.
In the quiet room, other than the futon, there was also a jade table. There was a jade bottle on the jade table.
“One drop of Spirit Marrow. It has already been specially diluted. Cultivators in the Qi Refinement Realm could use it.”
When he saw the words, Shen Ping trembled slightly. He had seen the Spirit Marrow as the finale item at the True Treasure Pavilion’s auction. At that time, the compet.i.tion was the Golden Core Realm cultivators, and the bidding was very intense.
And now, such a rare supplementary cultivation resource was placed in front of him. No wonder the purple-robed cultivator was so sure that he could reach the perfected Qi Refinement realm in a month.
With the help of the Spirit Marrow, even if he was a cultivator who had just broken through to the ninth level of Qi Refinement, he could reach perfection in a short period of time.
“True Treasure Pavilion. A special-cla.s.s guest elder.” Shen Ping stood there for a long time. He could not help but think of Deacon Xia’s desire.
At this moment, he already understood how important the special-cla.s.s guest elder was.
Wei Kingdom.
Qingyang City.
At the main station of the True Treasure Pavilion.
In the room in the backyard, Deacon Xia drank the spirit wine alone. He looked into the void, his eyes hazy with drunkenness. “I wonder if that guest elder Shen stopped at the first or the second a.s.sessment. It’s difficult to be a special-cla.s.s guest elder.
“The 12 countries are just a small place after all. Even if there are opportunities, I’m afraid it will be difficult for Qi Refinement cultivators to achieve anything. What a pity! There’s still time. I can still wait!”
In the private room on the second floor, Shopkeeper Qu leisurely drank his spiritual tea. To him, it was already a surprise that Shen Ping could pa.s.s the qualification a.s.sessment. It was only a matter of time before he advanced to second grade, even the first grade, after he established his foundation.
“Without Old Ding’s help, I can’t get to know Guest Elder Shen either. I have to take the time to go to the Cloud Mountain Swamp later.” After drinking the spirit tea, he slowly went downstairs, but a thought suddenly appeared in his heart. “What if he pa.s.ses the a.s.sessment and becomes a special-cla.s.s guest elder?”
Shopkeeper Qu shook his head and laughed. He was possessed. However, when he reached the counter, he made a decision. He had to get his dao companion to go to the small courtyard in Huiquan Alley later and send something to Guest Elder Shen’s wife and concubines.
In the quiet room, the aura of Shen Ping, who was sitting cross-legged on the mat, kept rising and finally stabilized. As the cultivation technique stopped, he opened his eyes and used his divine sense to sense the spiritual energy in his dantian.
A smile appeared on his face. As expected of a rare spirit marrow. Just a drop of it, and one that was specially diluted, allowed the spiritual energy in his meridians and dantian to reach the limit.
And it only took half a month.
The effect was far beyond his expectations.
“This is cultivation!” Shen Ping stood up and sighed. Recalling his bitter cultivation in Cloud Mountain Parlour, he immediately felt that the hardships had come to an end. “Don’t be smug. Don’t be unrestrained. You have to cherish the opportunity.”
He comprehended everyday. His footsteps became heavy and steady. No matter how good the situation was now, he remembered that he was only a Qi Refinement cultivator. Even if he broke through to the Foundation Establishment Realm, he was still at the bottom of the cultivation world.
He paced back and forth in the quiet room for several hours. Shen Ping finally calmed down. Then, he sat down again and waited patiently for the third a.s.sessment. In the blink of an eye, another half a month pa.s.sed quietly.
On this day, the indifferent voice sounded again. “The third a.s.sessment begins.” The quiet room changed like before. The bronze house appeared again. What followed was a flash of light. “Third-grade guest elder, Shen Ping. Please…”
Shen Ping did not expect that the third time, he would still use talismans to shatter the bronze disc. The difference was that this time, the bronze disc seemed to give him a more realistic feeling. Moreover, the strange beast pattern was not carved at all. Instead, it looked like a living creature.
This time, he did not hesitate. The 50 Golden Light Talismans condensed into a Sea of Talismans that slammed into the disc.
Bang!
The bronze disc did not shatter as expected. However, the surface was soaked in blood, accompanied by an ear-piercing sound. Just as it came out of the disc, it was suppressed by the strange light in the bronze house.
Drops of blood floated in the air.
Soon, Shen Ping’s arm was burning. The floating blood was instantly sucked over by the strange beast pattern on his arm. This blood covered the pattern with a layer of blood. The blood-colored light flickered flirtatiously before disappearing.
Boom!
Shen Ping’s eyes widened. He felt a very strange energy surge in the depths of his soul. This energy instantly spread throughout his entire body and seeped into his dantian, meridians, bones, and blood. The spiritual energy in his meridians that had reached the limit instantly burned.
Chi! Chi! Chi!
The spiritual energy in his dantian boiled. Shen Ping’s skin turned red and his entire body became hot. The top-grade metal and wood spiritual roots were crazily absorbing the strange energy emitted by the strange beast’s blood and transforming it into the meridians in his dantian.
He recalled what the purple-robed cultivator had said.
He hurriedly sat down cross-legged and did not even have the time to consume the Foundation Establishment Pill. He circulated his cultivation technique and the powerful divine sense of the Niwan Palace seeped down, preparing to compress his spiritual energy and break through to the Foundation Establishment Realm in one go..