Late at night.
Luo Chen returned to his cave abode on Tianlan Peak.
Bai Meiling had already prepared dinner for him.
It was Tier 2 demon beast meat and high-grade Tier 2 spiritual rice specially procured on his behalf by Sima Huiniang's people, and even the side dishes were vegetables rich in spiritual energy.
In the past, Luo Chen had been so consumed by cultivation and pill concoction that he often neglected dinner.
He would eat at most one meal a day.
When he was truly busy, he barely ate or drank at all. After reaching Foundation Establishment, a cultivator could already feed on qi and ingest the dawn mist, practicing a simple form of inedia.
Now, however, Luo Chen needed to return to a regular diet.
At least for the immediate future, he had to.
The simulation within the Ghost-God Heart-Questioning Mirror had severely depleted his vitality, draining him excessively.
The aftereffects were substantial.
Attending the auction today had already made him aware of something amiss.
His thoughts were far too scattered, and his emotions could not be reined in at will.
When confronted with events, he was constantly startled, swinging between extremes.
Particularly at the end, when facing the Golden Core Masters, he had been unable to bear even the slightest trace of their oppressive aura.
"This is hardly a good state to be in. I must nurse myself back to health."
After finishing every scrap of dinner, Luo Chen asked Bai Meiling about her progress in studying the Soul Gathering Banner.
Learning that she had made little headway, he headed into the quiet room.
It was not to cultivate.
His current condition was not suited for cultivation anyway.
Taking out a jade pendant, Luo Chen rubbed it gently.
Fairy Jueqing's demands were exceptionally harsh for any ordinary alchemist.
To go from concocting a pill for the first time to producing over a thousand pills a year within a mere decade was an immense challenge.
This was especially true given that the Jade Dew Pill was a Tier 2 pill of high concoction difficulty.
Yet for him, it was no great trouble.
With his proficiency panel, all he needed was a bit of time to drive up the pill formation rate.
That was precisely why he had dared to open his mouth wide and demand a top-grade cauldron and Tier 2 earth fire.
He had full confidence in meeting her criteria.
He simply had not expected the other party to agree without a second thought.
"Alchemy insights, Ice God Jade, a top-grade cauldron, Tier 2 earth fire—she even had a Tier 2 cave abode readied for me.
"It seems she is under intense pressure!
"Considering the Jade Cauldron sword pill that appeared at the auction... Ice Fort will probably take a side before long and plunge into the war.
"However, none of that concerns me for the time being.
"Since she wants a steady supply of Jade Dew Pills from me, she will certainly shelter me."
The corners of Luo Chen's mouth curved slightly as he temporarily put away the Ice God Jade into his storage bag.
For what came next, wearing this jade was not suitable.
Taking out an incense burner, he produced a section of wood core.
Luo Chen sliced off a small piece and placed it into the burner.
A wisp of Foundation Establishment True Fire slowly drifted from his fingertips.
Under the burning of the True Fire, the core of the Warm Sun Wood slowly caught flame.
Wisps of smoke carrying a peculiar, refreshing fragrance drifted out.
Luo Chen cleared his mind, relaxed his brain, and breathed in every bit of that smoke without letting a single drop go to waste.
A warm, soothing sensation gradually suffused his entire body.
Within his vast sea of consciousness, it was as if a tree bathing in gentle sunlight was slowly stretching its branches and leaves.
Warm sun, soothing fragrance, nourishing the soul.
Its pace was unhurried, its fragrance lingering.
...
Early the next morning.
Luo Chen awoke from his soft bed. Stretching lazily, he rubbed his eyes and walked into the living chamber.
Bai Meiling had not yet awakened, still sleeping soundly inside that ghostly millstone.
She was never an early riser.
Without casting a Cleansing Art, Luo Chen splashed his face with clear water and gave himself a simple wash.
Deactivating the array, Luo Chen stepped outside the cave abode.
A cool morning breeze laden with moisture brushed against his face, revealing a figure standing quietly outside.
Min Longyu.
Luo Chen was not the least bit surprised by this sight.
He had already instructed Sima Huiniang yesterday to inform Min Longyu to come over; he simply had not expected the man to arrive this early.
It was easy to imagine just how anxious Min Longyu had felt upon learning that the Foundation Establishment Pill from the auction had been bestowed upon Sima Huiniang.
Yet that "anxiety" was merely skin-deep!
"President!"
"No rush. Wait until I finish running through a set of fist techniques."
Min Longyu opened his mouth to speak, but hearing those words, he had no choice but to hold his tongue.
Following that, under his watchful gaze, Luo Chen faced the slowly rising morning sun and performed a set of fist techniques, move by deliberate move.
This was a health-nourishing routine recorded in the *Wang Clan Secret Manual*, named the Five Viscera Health-Nourishing Fist.
It placed little emphasis on destructive power, focusing instead on regulating the meridians and the five viscera, cultivating and nourishing the five qis.
Wang Yuan had learned it in his youth, and after becoming a martial arts grandmaster, he had revised it multiple times.
After stepping onto the immortal path, he had drawn inspiration from Qi Refinement cultivation methods, incorporating the concept of nourishing life through spiritual energy.
It was precisely through persistent practice that Wang Yuan had developed techniques such as "Five Qis Returning to Origin" and "Five Qis Returning."
Luo Chen had dabbled in those techniques, but because his foundation was not solid enough, he had yet to master them.
Still, practicing them regularly always brought benefits.
Once the fist routine concluded, Luo Chen glanced at his attribute panel.
[Wang Clan Secret Manual: Proficient (147/200)]
*Heh!*
He had not paid attention before.
Without him noticing, it had actually advanced by a minor tier, granting him another achievement point.
A thin sheen of sweat covered his body.
With a casual flick of his sleeve, he cast a Cleansing Art, leaving himself entirely refreshed once more.
He ambled forward until he stood a zhang away from Min Longyu.
Under the man's pleading gaze, Luo Chen said calmly, "You came for the Foundation Establishment Pill?"
Min Longyu nodded repeatedly.
Ever since Sima Huiniang won the Foundation Establishment Pill at the auction, he had asked for it to be given to him first.
Yet Sima Huiniang had said they must wait until the president emerged from seclusion before deciding on its allocation.
He had waited with great difficulty for Luo Chen to come out.
Only to learn yesterday that the Foundation Establishment Pill had already been granted to Sima Huiniang.
She had also told him to seek out Luo Chen personally.
For the Great Dao, for Foundation Establishment, he had come.
"You need not worry. I swore an oath back then that I would certainly secure a Foundation Establishment spiritual medicine for you within three years.
"I am not a man who breaks his word."
Luo Chen looked at him with an impassive gaze.
"However, I deeply doubt your determination to achieve Foundation Establishment."
Min Longyu was stunned.
Then, he declared with firm conviction, "My resolve for Foundation Establishment is rock-solid. Heaven and earth may bear witness!"
"Is that so?" Luo Chen looked at him with a half-smile. "Faced with your life versus the Great Dao, are you certain you would charge forward without the slightest hesitation?"
Before Min Longyu could reply, a longan-sized pill suddenly appeared between Luo Chen's index and middle fingers.
Luo Chen spoke softly, his words carrying an endless, alluring pull.
Without Min Longyu realizing it, delicate threads of spiritual awareness crept quietly into his mind.
"This is the Foundation Establishment Pill you desire.
"I found it for you, yet I feel you are hardly worthy of it.
"How could such an exquisite spiritual pill be wasted on you?
"Rather than watching you fail Foundation Establishment and suffer grievous wounds, I might as well destroy it now, sparing you the pain of falling short at the final step and harming yourself in vain."
As he spoke, his two fingers slowly applied pressure.
Fissures began to spider across the longan-sized pill, fracturing its surface.
Witnessing this, Min Longyu's eyes instantly turned bloodshot.
"No!"
"Don't!"
"You can't do this..."
Subconsciously, he took a step forward, struggling toward Luo Chen as his hand rose uncontrollably.
"Are you going to strike against me?
"Have you truly thought this through?
"I am a Foundation Establishment True Cultivator, possessing formidable strength. Do you understand the consequences?"
Min Longyu's footsteps instantly turned heavy as lead.
He did not dare!
Watching the pill on the verge of being destroyed in Luo Chen's hand, his right arm abruptly fell slack, and he closed his eyes in agony.
Within his mind, scene after scene began to replay in reverse.
On the Gaoling Plain, beneath the stone forest.
Min Longyu sat cross-legged, a self-satisfied look on his face.
*"That Luo Chen is no ordinary figure. Wang Haichao and the others might not be his match. Even if I help them slaughter everyone in the Luotian Association, what good would it do me?*
*"Rather than making a deadly enemy, it is better to remain neutral, leaving them a way out until the Foundation Establishment battle is decided.*
*"Even if Wang Haichao holds me accountable, I can deal with him one way or another.*
*"If Luo Chen wins, I can use this merit to join his banner. With his breadth of mind, he will surely accommodate me!*
*"Besides, Wang Haichao might not even keep his promise to buy me a Foundation Establishment Pill."*
At Dahe Market, along the banks of the Lancang River.
Zhou Qing stood atop the clouds, looking down at Min Longyu.
*"The Lianyun Merchant Alliance has issued an urgent summons; I must return to provide support. Min Longyu, will you come with me?"*
Min Longyu hesitated, then shook his head.
*"I think not!"*
*"Think it through carefully. The Lianyun Merchant Alliance does not lack one or two Foundation Establishment Pills. In this battle, if you make great contributions with your mastery of arrays, I will certainly be able to request a Foundation Establishment Pill for you,"* Zhou Qing had said, reluctant to waste his talent.
Yet regrettably, Min Longyu still refused.
Helpless, Zhou Qing could only depart with his people.
After he left, Min Longyu gave a contemptuous smile.
*"The Lianyun Merchant Alliance can barely protect itself. Why should I wade into those muddy waters?*
*"A Foundation Establishment Pill? Of course I want one, but I need to be alive to enjoy it!"*
Scene after scene flickered through his mind.
Relying on his mastery of arrays, Min Longyu had navigated the cultivation world with ease.
Over the years, he had encountered opportunities to obtain a Foundation Establishment Pill three or four times.
Yet every single time, due to one excuse or another, he had chosen not to stake his life on it, ultimately letting them slip through his fingers.
Luo Chen had no idea what thoughts were running through the man's mind at this moment.
All he knew was that during his simulation within the Heart-Questioning Mirror, Min Longyu's first attempt at Foundation Establishment had ended in failure!
The simulation of the Heart-Questioning Mirror was not some heavenly treasure capable of foretelling the future.
Nor would Luo Chen place blind reliance on the events simulated within it.
However, he understood clearly that the treasure produced its logical projections of the future based on his own experience, knowledge, and judgment of familiar people and matters.
In other words, deep down, his own assessment was that Min Longyu had a very high chance of failing his first Foundation Establishment attempt in reality.
This was peculiar.
One had to realize that Min Longyu had prepared for Foundation Establishment for many years.
His preparations were so thorough that they rivaled even Luo Chen's own.
Yet Luo Chen still felt he was likely to fail.
Perhaps it stemmed from the lack of self-confidence Min Longyu had shown from the bottom of his heart when Duan Feng achieved Foundation Establishment.
Or perhaps, because he had prepared too much, he had grown overly timid and hesitant.
As the saying went: the older one grew in the pugilistic world, the smaller one's courage became.
So many years of scheming and calculating had eroded Min Longyu's drive to forge ahead with fierce courage.
He could not do what Luo Chen had done back then—surging forward against the current even when pinned in the narrowest cracks, surrounded by malicious gazes, carving out a space for survival with his own hands.
Even when a Foundation Establishment True Cultivator blocked Luo Chen's path, Luo Chen had dared to strike upward and slay him!
Luo Chen did not want to hand over a precious Foundation Establishment Pill only to hear that same line in reality:
*"I hesitated."*
Therefore, drawing inspiration from Miao Wen and the Ghost-God Heart-Questioning Mirror, he employed a subtle trick using the Soul Absorption Art.
Now that he possessed externalized spiritual awareness, the Soul Absorption Art no longer required eye contact to activate.
When unleashed, it was completely silent and imperceptible.
Against those of lower realms, it amounted to a strike from a higher plane of existence; caught completely unprepared, they would plunge straight into it.
"Now, another Foundation Establishment Pill lies before you.
"Are you going to shrink back again?
"What on earth is your heart thinking?"
Under the gaze of those deep, fathomless eyes, the man opposite trembled violently, his expression contorting.
In his memories, beneath Danxia Peak.
An elder held young Min Longyu's hand, gazing up at the mountain that pierced the clouds.
*"This is Danxia Peak, the ancestral land of our Min family during its most glorious era. Longyu, you are the most talented person in our Min family. One day, you must achieve Foundation Establishment and lead the Min family back up Danxia Peak."*
Min Longyu looked up, his large eyes wide.
*"Grandfather, I will definitely achieve Foundation Establishment!*
*"I will definitely lead the Min family back to Danxia Peak!"*
Time flowed on, and decades passed.
The struggling Min family withered, its numbers dwindling, never to regain its past glory.
Having reached the ninth layer of Qi Refinement, Min Longyu looked at the mortal kin huddled in the valley, his eyes filled with anguish.
In the end, he turned and walked away.
*"For the family, I must reach Foundation Establishment.*
*"Yet to reach Foundation Establishment, I must abandon the family.*
*"Wait for me!"*
That wait lasted ten years.
When he finally returned to Tianlan Immortal City, the mortals of the Min family had long since vanished without a trace.
Without the protection of cultivators, it was impossible for them to survive in the vicinity of the immortal city.
Melancholy filled Min Longyu's heart, yet under Luo Chen's lead, he had returned to Danxia Peak.
*"Though I have not reached Foundation Establishment, I have indeed returned.*
*"In that case, have I fulfilled the oath of my youth?"*
The whims of fate were nothing more than this.
And yet!
*"In the end, I still haven't achieved Foundation Establishment!"*
A cool breeze laden with damp moisture swept through the mountain ravine.
Min Longyu snapped his eyes open and thrust his hand forward decisively.
*Crack!*
The longan-sized pill shattered.
A fine powder drifted down, scattering on the wind.
Luo Chen flicked his hand, looking at him with a faint smile.
"What bold audacity, daring to strike against me.
"Could it be you've forgotten the Great Dao oath you swore back then—that you would never betray me?"
The outstretched hand froze in midair.
Min Longyu's eyes were full of anguish, yet his entire being seemed thoroughly reborn, his face set with unyielding resolve.
"Luo Chen, you broke your promise first! How can you speak of me violating my oath!"
Luo Chen burst into laughter.
His laughter was bright and clear, devoid of any malevolence.
It left Min Longyu somewhat dazed.
"All right. I believe your determination to achieve Foundation Establishment is firm enough now. You even dare to attack a Foundation Establishment True Cultivator. Tsk, tsk."
While Min Longyu was still stunned, Luo Chen turned his wrist.
A jade box landed in his hand.
"This is the Foundation Establishment Pill that belongs to you. After you break through, remember to pay Sima Huiniang five thousand spirit stones to make up the difference."
Min Longyu stared blankly at the jade box, his breath turning heavy.
His emotions swung so violently between extremes that he could scarcely maintain his composure.
What had Luo Chen been doing just now?
Playing with him out of boredom?
Impossible!
Luo Chen was never that sort of idle person; every move he made, if not deeply profound, was always aimed at a clear purpose.
Resolve for Foundation Establishment... heart for the Great Dao...
Gradually, Min Longyu began to understand.
When he spoke again, his voice was inexplicably choked with emotion.
"President..."
Luo Chen cracked his neck without looking at him.
Glancing around, his gaze settled on a mist-shrouded location above.
"You probably haven't rented a Tier 2 cave abode for your breakthrough yet, have you?
"I'll be moving soon, and my current cave abode still has two months left on its lease.
"Pack your things over the next two days and come over early to familiarize yourself with the environment for your seclusion!"
Chapter 261