Chapter 51
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 51
A few days later.
“Congratulations, Steward Lee!”
Lee Hyun looked at the young disciple bowing deeply before him.
“I am not a steward yet.”
“Still, word has already spread that a letter arrived from the Main Mountain directing you to receive a Foundation Establishment Pill. A senior of your caliber is certain to succeed, Senior Lee.”
The young disciple presented a wooden box he had been clutching to his chest.
“It is merely a small token of my esteem.”
A faint medicinal aroma drifted from the box. Lee Hyun did not open it.
“I appreciate the thought, but I cannot accept.”
“It is nothing of great value, truly.”
“Even so, I cannot take gifts from a junior. You will have need of it yourself in the days ahead, so keep it safe.”
With a crestfallen look, the young disciple tucked the box back into his robes.
“Then I shall pay my respects once more after you succeed in Foundation Establishment.”
“Very well.”
Not three days after the letter from the Main Mountain arrived, the news that Lee Dong-sam had been allocated a Foundation Establishment Pill had swept through the entire Immortal Service Courtyard. Even the rogue cultivators and martial artists hired by the royal house caught wind of it.
Whenever Lee Hyun walked by, people would approach to offer congratulations, some preemptively addressing him as “Steward” or “Senior.” Some offered fine spirit wine, while others tried to press talismans and spirit stones into his hands.
While a few were genuinely happy for him, most were simply trying to curry favor early, anticipating the influence Lee Dong-sam would wield once he stepped into the Foundation Establishment Stage.
Lee Hyun turned down every gift. Receiving a Foundation Establishment Pill did not guarantee a breakthrough, and there was no sense in accumulating unnecessary debts of gratitude. Once he made his position clear several times, no one attempted to force gifts upon him any longer.
Even so, the gazes directed at him bordered on a reverence that went far beyond mere envy. It was as if they were looking at a man about to cross into a new epoch all on his own.
Watching their reactions, Lee Hyun felt the reality of it sink in all over again.
The gulf separating a Qi Refining cultivator from one at Foundation Establishment was vast beyond words.
For a Qi Refining cultivator with a lifespan of one hundred to one hundred and fifty years, becoming a being who lived for two to three hundred was practically equivalent to being granted a second life. It was no exaggeration to say it was like being reborn into a far more illustrious clan.
In essence, one earned the right to live through an entirely new century. A single pill could fundamentally split the remainder of one’s existence in two.
Having possessed an Ageless Body from the very beginning, Lee Hyun had never truly contemplated the weight of extending one’s lifespan.
I see. In terms of my past life, crossing a Major Cultivation Realm really is like a divine blessing. Is it like a modern person facing the end of their life in 2030 suddenly being given the chance to live until 2160?
If you could live into the next century, you would have opportunities to extend your life even further… and you would anticipate wondrous experiences that surpass anything you could ever imagine.
Having already lived for over a millennium, Lee Hyun had grown numb to the passage of time. Only now, seeing the faces of those around him, did he recapture a faint glimmer of that long-forgotten sentiment.
* * *
Half a month later.
Lee Hyun handed over the ledgers for the Immortal Service Courtyard’s pill warehouse to his successor as State-Resident Cultivator.
Neatly arranged on the table were six thick ledgers, the keys to the pill warehouse, and a small jade token that controlled the formations of the Alchemy Rooms.
“The current stockpiles have all been recorded in the ledgers.”
The newly appointed successor, an outer-sect disciple at the ninth layer of Qi Refining, inspected the ledgers page by page.
“The quantities are all in order.”
“Inspect the medicinal herbs arriving from the Anreung royal family every ten days. Even if the royal Inner Pharmacy examined them first, do not take their word for it blindly.”
“I will keep that in mind.”
“I last serviced the pill cauldron’s fire vents four months ago, so they shouldn’t give you any trouble for the time being. Still, you would do well to check the Fire-Kindling formation inscriptions on the floor before the next rainy season sets in.”
Lee Hyun went on to explain the procedures for receiving and dispatching pills, the merchant companies they traded with, the protocols for contacting royal physicians, and the supplies that had to be evacuated inside the defensive grand formation in an emergency.
When the explanation was finished, the junior disciple clasped his hands respectfully.
“Thank you for all your hard work over the years, Senior.”
“It was nothing.”
Lee Hyun stared quietly at the cleared table.
With the ledgers, keys, and formation jade token all passed on, not a single duty remained in his care.
A distant memory resurfaced.
He had felt something similar on the day he was discharged from military service in his past life. Even after handing over his duties to his replacement and clearing out his locker, the fact that he never had to return had felt oddly surreal.
I stayed here much longer than that, though.
Lee Hyun had spent thirty years as the Anreung Kingdom’s State-Resident Cultivator.
Even for him, that was by no means a short span of time.
“I shall take my leave now.”
“I pray for your success in reaching Foundation Establishment.”
Lee Hyun cast one final look around the pill warehouse before stepping through the door.
* * *
That afternoon.
Soft pink petals drifted across the expansive lake south of the Anreung royal palace. It was the season when the cherry blossoms along the shore were in full bloom, and with every gust of wind, petals scattered over the water’s surface.
To the west of the lake stood a small, private courtyard built by the royal house.
As Lee Hyun walked toward the pavilion, the three people already waiting there rose to their feet.
“Immortal Lee.”
Wan Cheong-jo clasped his hands. The hair at his temples and in his beard was entirely white. A man in his forties when they first met, he had imperceptibly grown into an old man now past seventy.
Beside him stood Yuk Gyeong-cheon, leaning on a short iron rod like a cane. His once-towering frame was slightly stooped, and his long beard was as white as snow. Having turned ninety-one this year, Yuk Gyeong-cheon had stepped down from his post as Commander of the Royal Guard over a decade ago. Now, he held only the honorary title of Grand Instructor of the Royal Martial Arts Academy. The iron rod in his hand had been fashioned by cutting down the shaft of his old spear.
The final person was Jang Gyeong-ik.
His hair and eyebrows were likewise completely white. Deep wrinkles creased his face, and the wrists emerging from his long robes were markedly thinner than before.
Fifteen years ago, Jang Gyeong-ik had received his second Foundation Establishment Pill, only to fail the breakthrough once more. Pushing himself while his qi and blood were already in decline had damaged several of his meridians, and the recovery alone had taken nearly three years.
In the end, he had abandoned his attempts at Foundation Establishment and stepped down from his duties as a State-Resident Cultivator. The Anreung royal house, holding his decades of leadership at the Immortal Service Courtyard in high regard, treated him as an honorary retainer. The lakeside courtyard and his attendants were all provided by the royal family.
All Jang Gyeong-ik did now was occasionally mediate between the royals and other cultivators, or lend an ear to those who came to visit him.
“Senior Martial Brother Jang.”
Lee Hyun clasped his hands in greeting.
“How is your health?”
“The same as ever,” Jang Gyeong-ik laughed, lightly patting his chest. “They tell me that as long as I don’t strain my spiritual power, I can live another decade or so. The royal house serves delicacies from land and sea for every meal and occasionally invites musicians and dancers to entertain me. Scholars from the capital come by to recite poetry or play baduk, so I hardly have time to be bored.”
He gestured for Lee Hyun to take a seat. The four men sat down in the pavilion. Spiritual tea, fruit, and a few simple dishes were laid out on the table.
Yuk Gyeong-cheon looked at Lee Hyun. “I heard you are to receive a Foundation Establishment Pill.”
“That is true.”
“Congratulations.”
Jang Gyeong-ik spoke up. “Breaking through to the Foundation Establishment Stage is no easy feat, even with a pill. Junior Martial Brother Lee, you must never allow yourself to grow impatient.”
“I will bear that in mind.”
After they had shared a few cups of tea, Yuk Gyeong-cheon spoke again.
“Once you leave, Immortal Lee, the young ones at the Martial Arts Academy will miss you terribly.”
“Commander Yuk is still there, is he not?”
Yuk Gyeong-cheon looked down at the iron rod in his hand. “These days, it is difficult for me to even wield a spear freely.”
Wan Cheong-jo chimed in. “I still cannot fathom your techniques, Immortal. Even after practicing them for so long, I haven’t grasped their essence at all.” He looked down at his wrinkled hands, then raised his head. “Still, if fate allows us to meet again, I will surely comprehend your methods next time.”
Yuk Gyeong-cheon nodded as well. “The next time we meet, I shall demonstrate the spear techniques of my new disciples.”
Lee Hyun looked at the two men.
There was almost no chance he would ever be reassigned to the Anreung Kingdom’s Immortal Service Courtyard. Once he succeeded in Foundation Establishment, he would become an inner-sect disciple and be assigned different tasks. Even if an occasion to visit did arise, the likelihood of either man still being alive was slim.
Having finished their tea, the four walked out to the lakeshore. Countless petals drifted down from the wind-stirred cherry trees.
Lee Hyun retrieved his Flowing Cloud Disk from his storage pouch.
Wuuuung—
The white jade disk expanded into a flying magical artifact thirty feet long.
As he stepped onto the Flowing Cloud Disk, Yuk Gyeong-cheon, Wan Cheong-jo, and Jang Gyeong-ik clasped their hands.
“May you attain the Immortal Dao.”
“Thank you. May the three of you remain in good health and peace. Should fate allow, we shall meet again.”
The Flowing Cloud Disk rose slowly into the air.
Shhh—
Petals floating on the lake soared upward on the wind. Soft pink blossoms brushed past the edges of the white jade disk, scattering in swirling arcs.
Below stood an aged cultivator and two martial arts grandmasters.
Beyond them, the royal gardens and pavilions, and the hills of the Immortal Service Courtyard where he had resided for thirty years, stretched out before his eyes.
The wind fluttered the hem of his robe as Lee Hyun ascended above the clouds.
Departing into the heavens on a day like this… I truly feel like an immortal.
The palace, the lake, and the private courtyard rapidly shrank in the distance. Turning his gaze, he saw shafts of sunlight piercing the clouds, gently illuminating the surrounding mountains and plains. It was as though the heavens themselves were blessing his future path.
Soon, the Flowing Cloud Disk banked and flew toward the Crimson Sky Mountains.
* * *
Ten days later.
The Crimson Sky Mountains.
The clouds enshrouding the colossal mountain range and the shimmering veil of its protective formation appeared in the distance.
Lee Hyun produced his identity token. A passage opened through the barrier.
As the Flowing Cloud Disk crossed the boundary, dense heaven-and-earth spiritual qi surged toward him from all sides.
“Good as always.”
Countless peaks rolled endlessly through the sea of clouds. It seemed little had changed from roughly forty-two years ago, when he first set foot here to take part in the Skilled Practitioner Selection. Yet upon closer inspection, new pavilions had sprung up, and the bridges spanning the mountain peaks had subtly shifted their positions.
Lee Dong-sam’s appearance was also no longer the same. The thirty-five-year-old man had aged into a seventy-seven-year-old cultivator.
Parts of his hair were silvered, and fine wrinkles lined his eyes and mouth. His posture remained straight, but a trace of measured caution now accompanied his movements, unlike in his younger years.
All of this was, of course, a facade crafted through the Seven-Form Disguise Art. To prepare for the bone age inspection, he had also consumed Bone-Tempering Powder before departing Anreung Kingdom, setting his bone age to seventy-seven.
Lee Hyun headed first to the Outer Alchemy Courtyard. In the valley cradled by three gentle peaks, countless alchemy rooms were still belching fire and smoke.
Kwhang!
An explosion erupted from an alchemy room halfway up the cliffside. As black smoke poured from the windows, disciples standing nearby skillfully manipulated the formation, clearly accustomed to such occurrences.
Whooosh—
The smoke and heat were drawn cleanly into a spherical barrier.
Still the same old place.
Descending into the valley, Lee Hyun looked toward the hillside where he had lived long ago. In front of the stone cottage he had first occupied, an unfamiliar young disciple was drying medicinal herbs.
Lee Hyun turned away and made his way toward the woods near the Outer Alchemy Courtyard. Where the stream infused with various medicinal scents merged with the valley waters, the small pavilion still stood. The roof and pillars appeared to have been repaired several times, but the location remained unchanged.
Inside the pavilion sat a white-haired old cultivator.
As Lee Hyun drew near, surprise washed over the man’s face.
“Fellow Daoist Lee?”
“Fellow Daoist Yeo.”
Yeo Mun-deok sprang to his feet. “It really is you, Fellow Daoist Lee!”
He had hardly been young when they last met, but now Yeo Mun-deok was completely an old man. Much of the flesh had vanished from his once-round face, and his hair and beard were almost entirely white. His cultivation realm was still the ninth layer of Qi Refining.
“Have you returned from Anreung Kingdom?”
“I have.”
“You look healthier than I expected.”
“You appear in good health as well, Fellow Daoist Yeo.”
Yeo Mun-deok smiled and offered him a seat. Three teacups were already set on the table.
“Is someone else coming?”
“Senior Martial Sister Mun said she would be joining us.”
Just then, a faint azure spiritual light descended from above the canopy. A leaf-shaped flying magical artifact came to a halt before the pavilion.
A female cultivator stepped down from it.
It was Mun So-ha.
She, too, had yet to break through to the Foundation Establishment Stage, and her appearance had matured into that of a fully middle-aged woman.
“Junior Martial Brother Lee,” Mun So-ha smiled warmly. “It has been so long.”
“Indeed it has, Senior Martial Sister Mun.”
“I heard you came to receive a Foundation Establishment Pill. I suppose I should start calling you Senior Lee now.”
“Haha, nothing is certain yet.”
The three poured tea. For a time, talk drifted back to the days they had spent together in the Outer Alchemy Courtyard.
Dang Yeon-bi had left the sect eight years ago. When her father, the head of her family’s merchant company, passed away and strife broke out among her siblings, she had wrapped up her life in the sect and returned to the south.
Steward Yang and Steward Kwon were still in the Outer Alchemy Courtyard, but both had stepped back from directly managing disciples.
On the other hand, Jin So-yeong of the Danha Jin Clan, who had passed the Skilled Practitioner Selection alongside him, had succeeded in Foundation Establishment long ago. She was now a Tier 2 Alchemist in the Inner Alchemy Courtyard and a disciple of a Golden Core Elder.
* * *
The following day.
The Foundation Establishment Courtyard in the central Crimson Sky Mountains.
Within high walls, dozens of identically sized stone chambers were arranged at regular intervals. Each stone chamber was dug deep into the heart of the mountain peak. Formations were laid out in the surroundings to block external divine sense and sound while barring entry to unauthorized personnel.
Lee Hyun presented the letter received from the Main Mountain and his outer-sect identity token. The overseeing disciple inspected the two items and guided him into an inner pavilion.
“Outer-sect disciple Lee Dong-sam has arrived.”
Three Foundation Establishment cultivators were waiting inside the hall.
Seeing one of them, Lee Hyun’s gaze flickered slightly. It was a female cultivator clad in light vermilion robes.
It was Jin So-yeong, who had taken the examination alongside him in the Skilled Practitioner Selection forty-two years ago. Her appearance had matured slightly from back then but was otherwise little changed.
Jin So-yeong recognized Lee Hyun immediately as well.
“It has been a long time.”
“Greetings, Senior Jin.”
First came the verification of bone age and cultivation realm. When Lee Hyun placed his hand on a large silver mirror, the Foundation Establishment cultivator conducting the evaluation observed its reaction.
“Bone age seventy-seven. Great Perfection of Qi Refining. Triple spiritual roots: Wood, Fire, and Earth.”
Next, Lee Hyun stepped between twelve stone pillars. Different rays of light swept over his body in succession. Moments later, the lights of the formation faded completely.
“No traces of demonic arts or blood sacrifices. No parasitic spirit insects or life-bonded insects. No damage to meridians.”
Lastly, they checked his accumulated contribution points and prior Foundation Establishment attempts.
“No prior attempts at Foundation Establishment.”
“That is correct.”
“Twelve years of service in the Outer Alchemy Courtyard. Thirty years on the state-resident mission in Anreung Kingdom. No disciplinary issues regarding alchemy duties or external deployments…”
The cultivator reviewing the records looked up.
“You have passed the qualification screening for Foundation Establishment.”
Jin So-yeong handed Lee Hyun a jade token lying nearby.
[Qi Condensation Quiet Room No. 7]
“The chamber allocated to you this time is a superior Qi Condensation Quiet Room.”
“What is a Qi Condensation Quiet Room?”
“It is a cave dwelling prepared for disciples’ secluded cultivation. Among them, superior Qi Condensation Quiet Rooms are usually reserved exclusively for disciples about to attempt a breakthrough to Foundation Establishment.” Jin So-yeong pointed toward the deeper part of the Foundation Establishment Courtyard. “It connects directly to a residual vein of a Tier 3 spirit vein, so it will assist your breakthrough. The period granted for use is twenty days.”
“Thank you.”
“The Foundation Establishment Pill will be provided once you enter the quiet room.”
“Understood.”
Thud.
As the heavy stone door sealed shut, all outside noise vanished.
The quiet room seemed to have been carved from a single, massive piece of bedrock. The surrounding rock was something even Lee Hyun’s spells could not penetrate. There were no seams on the walls or ceiling, and numerous formation inscriptions were etched across the surfaces.
A blue cushion rested in the center of the floor. From the Spirit-Gathering Formation beneath it, dense heaven-and-earth spiritual qi welled up unceasingly.
Lee Hyun fitted the jade token into a groove in the wall.
Click.
Part of the wall opened, revealing a small stone pedestal.
Upon the pedestal sat a jade bottle.
A Spirit-Sealing Talisman was affixed to the mouth of the bottle, and the Crimson Sky Sect’s pill inspection seal was stamped crisply into the red sealing wax.
This was the Foundation Establishment Pill.
Lee Hyun picked up the bottle.
“At last…”
Forty-two years had passed since he joined the Crimson Sky Sect to obtain this pill.
And nearly thirty years had passed since his lower dantian reached the Great Perfection of Qi Refining.
He peeled away the Spirit-Sealing Talisman and cleared the sealing wax.
Pop.
The stopper of the jade bottle came off.
A subtle yet heavy medicinal aroma wafted out.
When Lee Hyun tilted the bottle, a pill the size of a thumbnail rolled into his palm.
The Foundation Establishment Pill was ivory-hued. Its surface was etched with three azure pill markings that resembled swirling clouds drawing inward.
Inspecting it with his Qi-Observation Technique and divine sense, he saw an immense volume of medicinal efficacy tightly concentrated at its core. It was unlike any pill he had ever encountered.
A Foundation Establishment Pill was elusive even for those with spirit stones. Based on Lee Hyun’s investigations, a single pill had recently been valued within the sect at more than fifty mid-grade spirit stones.
Fifty mid-grade spirit stones amounted to five thousand low-grade spirit stones—a fortune a cultivator at the Great Perfection of Qi Refining could never hope to amass.
Of course, that was merely an estimation of worth. The Crimson Sky Sect’s Foundation Establishment Pills could not be bought simply because one had the spirit stones.
It was the one medicine a cultivator at the Great Perfection of Qi Refining needed most, yet it was fundamentally impossible to obtain on one’s own.
Lee Hyun assumed the lotus position and settled his mind.
Over 1,421 years had passed since he possessed this body at the age of nineteen. Though he had spent most of that time in a half-conscious trance while cultivating the Primordial Unity One-Qi Art, his vivid memories still amounted to more than several lifetimes combined.
Lee Hyun slowly recited the cultivation formula of the Primordial Unity One-Qi Art he had used for so long.
After a moment, steeling his resolve, he placed the Foundation Establishment Pill into his mouth.
Gulp.
As the medicinal efficacy spread throughout his body, Lee Hyun began circulating the Primordial Unity One-Qi Art.
About a shichen later, a small spark of heat blossomed in his lower abdomen.
The heat surged violently, igniting a burning pain as if his internal organs were catching fire. Though the agony threatened to blur his consciousness, Lee Hyun held fast to his resolve and continued circulating his qi.
The concentrated medicinal force rushed toward his Qi Sea Acupoint.
Thump!
His lower dantian shook violently.
His Primordial Unity True Qi, honed to the Great Perfection of Qi Refining, was swept up by the medicinal force and began to spin with incredible speed.
Kwaaa—
With each rotation, the density of spiritual power compressed within that single space rose exponentially.
Meanwhile, the medicinal power of the Foundation Establishment Pill seeped into the flesh and meridians surrounding his lower dantian. The area around his Qi Sea Acupoint hardened like a sealed vessel.
Do not rush.
Wuuuung—
The spiritual pressure inside his lower dantian continued to climb.
As the pressure peaked, the medicinal force pushed against the edges of the lower dantian, threatening to leak out.
Lee Hyun’s consciousness tracked the current closely.
For an ordinary cultivator, this was precisely where the mortal danger began.
To them, the flesh and meridians outside the lower dantian were not vessels capable of storing spiritual power. As the breakthrough progressed, the disparity between internal and external spiritual pressure widened. The high-pressure spiritual power and medicinal force would fight to burst out toward the lower pressure outside.
This backflow would scatter the pill’s efficacy and rupture the flesh and meridians, which were not yet ready to withstand liquefied true essence. It was one of the prime reasons other cultivators failed Foundation Establishment.
But Lee Hyun was different. His entire body was a dantian. Even the space outside his lower dantian was filled with Primordial Unity True Qi comparable to the early ninth layer of Qi Refining.
Because the difference in spiritual pressure between the inside and outside was relatively small, the medicinal power didn’t rupture outward explosively.
I see. Because the Whole-Body Dantian supports the spiritual pressure from the outside, holding on to the pill’s medicinal power is far easier!
He reined the medicinal force back in.
Keeping the Primordial Unity True Qi throughout his entire body tranquil and steady, he guided only the flow within his lower dantian.
His whole body was as calm as a boundless ocean.
Only the tiny vortex at its very center spun faster and faster.
Two shichen, three shichen…
Hazy wisps of qi coalesced and clung to one another.
Drip.
Though no physical sound was made, in Lee Hyun’s perception, it was as clear and vivid as a single drop of water falling.
At the very core of his lower dantian, a single droplet of clear liquid had condensed.
The gaseous Primordial Unity True Qi had transformed into liquid true essence.
It worked.
Yet Lee Hyun neither rejoiced nor halted the circulation of his qi.
Foundation Establishment was not yet complete.
With that droplet of liquid true essence at the center, the surrounding Primordial Unity True Qi gathered even more swiftly.
Drip. Drip. Plop, plop—
What had begun as a mere bead of dew gradually expanded.
As more spiritual power within the lower dantian liquefied, the spiritual pressure soared even higher. Several times, the Primordial Unity True Qi was pushed outward, only to be blocked by the pressure from his Whole-Body Dantian and immediately forced back into place.
A day passed.
The spiritual qi drawn in by the quiet room’s Spirit-Gathering Formation continued to seep relentlessly into Lee Hyun’s body.
Even without relying on the power of the Foundation Establishment Pill, his lower dantian now began to refine the incoming spiritual qi into liquid Primordial Unity True Qi on its own.
Hummmm—
Beneath his Qi Sea Acupoint, it felt as though a small, crystal-clear lake had formed.
Though the lake’s surface was tranquil, within it lay a dense, concentrated power incomparable to anything he had commanded before.
Lee Hyun channeled the cultivation formula for the Primordial Unity One-Qi Art - Foundation Establishment Chapter.
Whoooosh—
The liquid true essence made a complete circuit around his lower dantian before thinning into a slender stream and flowing out into his meridians.
The rest of his body, outside the lower dantian, was still at the 9th layer of the Qi Refining Stage. However, his physical vessel was far sturdier than that of an ordinary cultivator, long since accustomed to high spiritual pressure.
As the slender thread of true essence traced a path through the meridians of his entire body, not a single tear or injury occurred.
The true essence then returned smoothly to his lower dantian.
Huuung—
The upheaval within and around his lower dantian settled into complete stability.
The 1st layer of the Foundation Establishment Stage!
Judging by his lower dantian, Lee Hyun had at last become a genuine Foundation Establishment cultivator.
Observing his internal state, Lee Hyun retrieved the wooden plaque from his storage pouch and updated his handmade status window.
【Age: 1,440】
【Cultivation Realm: Foundation Establishment, 1st layer (lower dantian)】
【Spiritual Power: 1,341 → 1,377】
An ordinary cultivator at the 1st layer of Foundation Establishment has around 70 spiritual power… Since the capacity of my Whole-Body Dantian is fifty times greater, once everything reaches the 1st layer, it should amount to around 3,500.
After quietly appraising his internal changes for a while, Lee Hyun let himself fall back, landing flat on the floor.
“That went smoother than expected. Hm?”
Noticing a glistening, yellowish grime coating his entire body, he took off his long robe and cast a Cleansing Spell.
The impurities clinging to his skin were cleanly swept away, vanishing without a trace.
Even then, Lee Hyun did not immediately leave the Qi Condensation Quiet Room.
He spent four more days fully absorbing the remaining medicinal efficacy of the Foundation Establishment Pill and stabilizing his lower dantian.
Over the next ten days, he practiced circulating the liquid Primordial Unity True Qi through his body again and again, recalibrating the Spirit-Concealment Technique and Qi-Concealment Technique to fit his new cultivation realm.
He also masked the spiritual power radiating from his body, making it seem like he had only just achieved Foundation Establishment and had yet to fully consolidate his realm.
Next, he adjusted the appearance he had crafted through the Seven-Form Disguise Art.
He needed to look as though the baptism of Foundation Establishment had rejuvenated his vitality, yet not so youthful that it conflicted with his bone age.
In the mirror, a portion of Lee Dong-sam’s gray hair regained a glossy black sheen, and his gaze carried more life force than before. The wrinkles carved into his face softened slightly as well.
“This should do.”
It was the fifteenth day since he had entered the Qi Condensation Quiet Room.
* * *
In the Foundation Establishment Courtyard, a late-stage Qi Refining disciple managing the quiet rooms cast a glance toward Qi Condensation Quiet Room Seven.
He’s taking quite a while. Did he fail?
The man, Lee Dong-sam, was a seventy-seven-year-old outer sect disciple. At such an advanced age, breaking through to the Foundation Establishment Stage was bound to be an uphill battle.
Just then—
Hummmm—
The formation inscriptions carved across the entrance of Room Seven flared to life.
Rumble.
The thick stone door slowly parted.
The managing disciple stood up from his seat.
From the gloom beyond the doorway, a cultivator stepped into the light.
“You… succeeded in Foundation Establishment.”
Lee Hyun brought his hands together in a formal salute.
“I was fortunate.”
The managing disciple’s expression brightened.
He clasped his hands and returned the courtesy.
“Congratulations, Senior.”