"Fellow Daoist's strength is truly remarkable!"
Facing Wang Haichao's praise, Luo Chen's expression did not waver in the slightest.
"A trifling display, hardly worth mentioning."
"Please, take a seat!"
Wang Haichao made no fuss, acting as though the tense confrontation from a moment ago had never happened.
With a sweep of his broad sleeve, he sat down in the seat prepared for him.
Behind him, Min Longyu and Li Da obediently sat down cross-legged at the long table.
Before taking his seat, however, Min Longyu looked at Luo Chen with eyes full of shock.
*During the battle of Crescent Moon Valley, he was only at the eighth layer of Qi Refinement. Yet now he has truly reached Foundation Establishment.*
*Earlier, I thought he was just bluffing, but his strength is actually this impressive!*
*Such rapid advancement is truly astonishing!*
He was far from the only one with such thoughts.
Juniors like Nangong Qin and Li Ao felt violent waves stir in their hearts upon seeing Luo Chen effortlessly neutralize Wang Haichao's spell.
Hearing about it was one thing, but witnessing the might of Foundation Establishment with their own eyes was another entirely.
Had it been them, they never could have blocked that strike.
What shook them even more was that Luo Chen had not moved an inch; a casual flick of his sleeve was all it took to dissolve the attack.
Meanwhile, within the hall...
The cultivators of the Luotian Association also felt their hearts tighten.
*Our Association Leader has only just entered Foundation Establishment, yet he is already this formidable?*
Unlike their shock, Nangong Jin and Li Yixian looked on with a measure of wariness.
That seemingly casual flick of Luo Chen's sleeve had concealed a subtle, profound depth.
*What kind of spell was that?*
Wang Haichao's test had been within expectations.
Whenever a Foundation Establishment Grand Ceremony or Nascent Soul Grand Ceremony was held, someone would inevitably step forward to exchange pointers.
It was not meant to humiliate anyone, but rather to give both sides a reason to acknowledge that, from then on, they were peers.
Nangong Jin had formed an alliance with Luo Chen before, so it was naturally awkward for him to make a move.
Li Yixian had made a private transaction with Luo Chen regarding the *Yimu Medicine King Scripture*, so it was even less fitting for her to strike on such an auspicious day.
Thus, the task had fallen upon Wang Haichao.
For one, the two harbored past grudges, providing a reasonable excuse.
For another, in a brief spar, if Luo Chen managed to receive the blow, they could smile at each other and let the past remain in the past.
They had originally assumed Luo Chen would end up somewhat flustered.
That way, when dealing with the three of them in the future, he would have to observe the etiquette of a newly advanced junior.
Who would have guessed he would remain as immovable as a mountain and brush it aside with a single sweep?
As a result, everyone was now truly on equal footing.
In fact, because that sweep had been executed with effortless grace, they could not help but hold him in even higher regard.
Luo Chen saw through everyone's thoughts clearly.
Yet his face remained impassive.
He nodded toward Sima Huiniang, who stood below.
She clapped her hands, and before long, an array of fine delicacies was brought in from outside in an endless stream.
Cups clinked and chatter arose at once, completely washing away the earlier air of hostility.
Halfway through the banquet, Luo Chen began exchanging Foundation Establishment insights with the other three cultivators.
"For cultivators of our generation, refining Qi is primary, while refining the spirit is secondary. Hence, the spiritual energy barrier has the greatest impact on Foundation Establishment."
"Faced with this barrier, people universally resort to spirit pills and miraculous medicines, borrowing external power to break through."
"There is nothing much to say about this—it is merely a matter of resources."
"What I wish to discuss is the importance of the soul when breaking through to Foundation Establishment."
"Whether it is calmly mobilizing vast amounts of spiritual power to batter the dantian, remolding one's foundation, or binding surging spiritual power to liquefy it, the soul plays the most crucial role."
"If the soul is deficient, even if one miraculously breaks through..."
As Luo Chen spoke with eloquence and poise, every ninth-layer Qi Refinement cultivator in the hall halted their movements.
They held their breath, their eyes burning with intensity.
All their attention was fixed entirely upon Luo Chen.
Whenever an enlightening phrase rang out, they would silently repeat it in their hearts, memorizing it with utmost care.
Even those whose Dao paths were severed, such as Zeng Wen and Granny Yuan, showed no sign of laxity.
Even if they could not use these insights themselves, they could pass them down to their descendants.
Among the crowd!
The four outsiders—Nangong Qin, Li Ao, Min Longyu, and Li Da—listened with extraordinary attentiveness.
They had been brought here by their elders today primarily to hear Luo Chen preach the Dao.
This was a standard proceeding whenever a cultivator broke through to a new realm and held a grand ceremony.
Today, they had come specifically to reap this benefit.
The sermon lasted a full hour.
The listeners were thoroughly engrossed, not daring to miss a single detail.
When Luo Chen concluded his sermon, light applause sounded from beside him.
Li Yixian's eyes sparkled with admiration as she spoke in a melodious voice, "I never imagined Fellow Daoist would possess such profound insight into breaking through to Foundation Establishment! Some of the subtleties you mentioned have never crossed my mind, even after decades in this realm. It is truly an eye-opening revelation!"
"Fellow Daoist Li flatters me."
Luo Chen cupped his hands toward her.
"With your breadth of experience, my words are merely humble observations."
Compliments, after all, were meant to be exchanged gracefully!
Yet Wang Haichao's words caught Luo Chen off guard.
Wang Haichao sat there, a dazed look in his eyes.
"So that was how it worked!"
"Back then, I bought a Foundation Establishment Pill at an auction and used it to break through. During the process, I suffered countless hardships and finally achieved Foundation Establishment in a state of muddled confusion."
"Even after succeeding, my vitality was heavily wounded."
"If I had heard Fellow Daoist Luo's words back then, perhaps I would not have suffered such severe injuries."
Luo Chen was slightly taken aback.
Beside him, Nangong Jin whispered to Nangong Qin, "Did you remember everything?"
Nangong Qin bit his lip and nodded heavily.
This explanation was clearer and more detailed than the one his father had given him about his own breakthrough back then.
He even had a feeling!
If someone were to give him a Foundation Establishment Pill right now, he would dare take the gamble to assault the Foundation Establishment barrier!
Seeing everyone's reactions, Luo Chen finally realized just how precious the contents of his sermon had been.
He had not realized it earlier.
Very few in the cultivation world had ever assaulted the Foundation Establishment realm all at once using five portions of Foundation Establishment spirit medicine as he had.
Moreover, with his exceptionally powerful soul, during each of the four attempts following the first, he had endured immense agony, constantly feeling every subtle reaction of the breakthrough process.
Such sensations and insights were impossible for ordinary people to accumulate!
Even seasoned Foundation Establishment cultivators like Wang, Li, and Nangong could not match it!
Their own breakthroughs had relied in part on luck.
Asking them to share insights would amount to nothing more than a few superficial sentences—how could they possibly touch upon the fundamental truths of the Great Dao?
Once he understood this, Luo Chen could not help but smile wryly to himself.
He had inadvertently performed a great deed today.
Well, so be it!
His gaze swept over the numerous ninth-layer Qi Refinement cultivators below. He wondered how many among them would benefit from his grace and successfully establish their foundations in the future.
After Luo Chen's sermon, the grand ceremony continued.
Now, however, it was time for the other three Foundation Establishment cultivators to return the favor.
"Allow this humble woman to go first!"
Li Yixian smiled gently, carrying herself with graceful poise before the numerous gazes.
She showed none of the elusive, shady demeanor described in the rumors about her.
"I had assumed Fellow Daoist Luo was casting a brick to draw jade, but I never expected you to cast an entire precious gem right away."
"Under such circumstances, it would be improper for me to hold back."
Looking at Luo Chen, she parted her cherry lips.
"I committed to the Dao at eight, began refining Qi at twelve, and spent thirty years reaching Qi Refinement Great Perfection. It has now been over eighty years since I reached Foundation Establishment."
"In terms of combat prowess, I may be lacking."
"However, I have made some gains in the paths of Huaiyin and Yimu. In my view, the spiritual power gained from Yimu cultivation arts is characterized by its dense, sustained nature. Therefore, during cultivation..."
As Li Yixian spoke, everyone listened with focused attention.
Most, however, heard only misty obscurities and failed to grasp the true meaning.
Only Luo Chen's eyes shone with brighter and brighter light, his mind churning with thoughts.
His entire being surged with excitement!
Li Yixian was truly a wonderful woman!
Knowing his primary cultivation lay in the Yimu path, she was laying bare her decades of accumulated insights.
Even if she held back in certain areas, the portions he heard were already immensely beneficial to him.
Luo Chen, who had felt the path ahead to be somewhat murky, now vaguely saw the direction of his future cultivation!
*So this is the landscape after Foundation Establishment—completely different from the Qi Refinement stage!*
Once Li Yixian finished speaking, Luo Chen cast a grateful look toward her.
"Thank you, Fellow Daoist Li!"
Li Yixian smiled and nodded, accepting this heartfelt thanks without false modesty.
Next, Nangong Jin and Wang Haichao shared their cultivation insights following Foundation Establishment.
One practiced ice and snow arts, while the other practiced water-attribute arts.
Though different from Luo Chen's primary path, by drawing analogies, Luo Chen still gained much.
In this manner, the Foundation Establishment Grand Ceremony continued until dusk.
By this time, the celebrations among the numerous Luotian Association cultivators outside had come to an end.
The heavy doors of Huanyu Hall slowly closed.
All the ninth-layer Qi Refinement cultivators voluntarily left the hall, leaving the space inside for the four Foundation Establishment True Cultivators to discuss important matters.
Once outside, Sima Huiniang naturally led people to entertain the visiting guests.
Unexpectedly, Nangong Qin thanked her for her hospitality and walked straight over to Qin Liangchen and his wife.
"Hmm?"
Qin Liangchen furrowed his brows deeply, looking at the approaching young man.
Facing his guarded stance, Nangong Qin offered a bitter smile. "Regarding what happened back then, each of us was serving his own master. I apologize to Fellow Daoist."
Back when Crescent Moon Valley was besieged, it was Nangong Qin who had led his clan's cultivators to ambush and intercept Qin Liangchen's reinforcements.
In the end, Qin Liangchen unleashed a lethal technique from the Jade Cauldron Sword Pavilion, inflicting heavy losses upon them.
That incident had caused an immense uproar at the time.
The Nangong family, anxious to establish a foothold in Dahe Market, had even issued a kill order against him.
Later, however, once the Luotian Association was founded and Miao Wen's backing was taken into account, the Nangong family took the initiative to revoke the order.
Now, faced with Nangong Qin's belated apology, Qin Liangchen felt rather awkward for a moment.
He had thought the young man had come to utter harsh threats, not to apologize.
As a rough man, he did not know how to handle the situation, but Murong Qinglian, whose social tact had long reached perfection, was exceptionally skilled at it.
With a faint smile, Murong Qinglian said, "As Fellow Daoist said, each was serving their master; no one is to blame. Besides, you did not ambush him recklessly back then, but initially chose a fair duel with my husband."
Outsiders were unaware of the details of that battle.
They, however, knew them all too well.
Nangong Qin had indeed possessed the demeanor of a gentleman back then. Despite having laid an ambush in advance, he had still chosen to face Qin Liangchen one-on-one.
It was hard to say whether he had been youthful and impetuous, burdened by reputation, or genuinely different from common rogue cultivators in his upright conduct.
Hearing Murong Qinglian speak thus, Nangong Qin could not help but breathe a sigh of relief.
"That may be true, but causing Fellow Daoist Qin to lose an arm was indeed the fault of our side."
"Now our two families are closely allied, yet this past grievance remains like a fishbone in the throat between us, which is truly ill-fitting."
"A few days ago, I had the good fortune of obtaining a section of Seven-Aperture Lotus Root."
The moment the name 'Seven-Aperture Lotus Root' left his lips, Qin Liangchen's expression shook violently.
Even Murong Qinglian's delicate features trembled slightly.
"Though it is only a single section and cannot achieve the effect of reforming an entire body, Fellow Daoist Qin has only lost one arm."
"If nourished with this, it might reshape your apertures, ensuring your Great Dao remains unhindered from now on."
With those words, he turned his wrist, revealing a palm-sized piece of lotus root in his hand.
The root bore seven apertures and was pure white as jade.
Wisps of spiritual energy looped through the seven apertures like fine silk threads, circulating in an endless cycle.
"I am willing to gift this to Fellow Daoist Qin, so that past enmities may be entirely abandoned and we may forge a lasting friendship!"
Facing Nangong Qin's sincere gaze, Qin Liangchen hesitated.
"Then we thank Fellow Daoist for your generosity!"
With lightning speed, Murong Qinglian took the section of lotus root from his hand.
She then turned back to look at Qin Liangchen, her eyes filled with excitement, anticipation, and pleading.
"Husband, let the past be scattered with the wind!"
Seeing this, Qin Liangchen could only sigh softly.
He stepped past Murong Qinglian and cupped his hands toward Nangong Qin.
"Back then, my strikes were also overly ruthless."
"Now that Fellow Daoist has shown me such respect, how could I remain stubborn?"
"When time permits, I shall visit the Nangong family to burn a stick of incense for the fellow cultivators who died by my hands, offering my humble apologies."
This was an offer to formally apologize and seek forgiveness.
Nangong Qin also breathed a sigh of relief. This was a matter his father had specifically instructed him to handle before coming here.
They all knew Qin Liangchen and his wife were extraordinarily close to Luo Chen, having emerged from the same courtyard as dear friends.
Now the Nangong family was allied with the Luotian Association.
Yet the unresolved matter between them and Qin Liangchen had remained stuck like a wedge.
In the short term, it caused no harm, but over time, it could easily become a hidden seed of disaster.
Resolving it now with a third-tier spiritual material was a good outcome by any measure.
Strictly speaking, if Qin Liangchen visited their doorstep to burn incense for the fallen cultivators, it would count as bowing his head to the Nangong family.
They would regain their face, allowing the past to be forgiven.
Meanwhile, Qin Liangchen received the Seven-Aperture Lotus Root to reshape his apertures, gaining real, practical benefit.
Both sides obtained what they desired most.
After exchanging a few more polite remarks, Nangong Qin slowly made his way back to the small pavilion where the guests were staying.
Upon entering, he nodded to Li Ao.
The two were longtime rivals, having clashed on the Dao Discussion Platform no fewer than five times.
He had won three matches, while Li Ao had won two.
Stepping inside, Nangong Qin paused slightly in surprise.
Of the two ninth-layer Qi Refinement cultivators from the Great River Gang, one was muttering under his breath, while the other paced back and forth ceaselessly.
"To think the soul has such wondrous uses... If I use this to bind ghosts..."
Nangong Qin frowned slightly. This man was named Li Da.
His whole body reeked of ghostly chill, looking nothing like an orthodox cultivator.
What came from his mouth was equally disjointed.
As for Min Longyu, he was fidgeting restlessly, his complexion shifting between dark and pale, leaving one to wonder what he was thinking.
*What a strange pair.*
After grumbling inwardly, Nangong Qin did not bother paying them any more attention and sat down on his own to one side.
Sipping his tea, his mind remained filled with the scene of Luo Chen preaching the Dao earlier.
*Foundation Establishment... Foundation Establishment...*
Chapter 191