Constructing the Dao Foundation with Oneself

No wonder Master Yin's speech was always accompanied by two voices in succession. It turned out there was another "him" inside his body! This eerie sight filled Li Fan's heart with shock. Fortunately, Master Yin also seemed aware that his true appearance was somewhat terrifying; after revealing it for just a moment, his body closed back together and returned to normal. He continued, "I experimented on myself to verify my conjecture. Everything that exists between heaven and earth can be regarded as an unformed wonder. "The process by which the crucible of heaven and earth smelts them, I call 'wonder-transformation.' "However, if one wishes to construct a Dao Foundation with an unformed wonder, one must personally complete that unfinished process of wonder-transformation. "The difficulty of this is simply astronomical. If it fails, at worst, one dies on the spot. Even if one is fortunate enough to escape death, the body will undergo all sorts of bizarre changes. "Just like this grotesque state I'm in right now." Master Yin gave a dry chuckle. Li Fan couldn't help asking, "Didn't you say you succeeded in Foundation Establishment?" "I succeeded, but not completely. My understanding of myself wasn't thorough enough, so at the final juncture of Foundation Establishment, I fell short on the verge of success," Master Yin said with considerable regret. "If I were given a few more tries... no, just one more chance would do. If I could do it once more, I would surely achieve perfection in establishing the foundation with myself." "Establishing the foundation with oneself?" Li Fan felt a stir in his heart at the term. "And what happens if one succeeds in establishing the foundation with oneself?" Master Yin's eyes were filled with yearning. "That would be equivalent to reshaping one's body with the power of the crucible of heaven and earth. And that body would be the most flawless constitution I could possibly imagine. "As the old saying goes, what suits you best is what is truly best. Cultivators today, when establishing their foundation, usually need to find a wonder of heaven and earth compatible with their own nature in order to bring out the wonder's power to the greatest extent. "However, no matter what tier a wonder of heaven and earth is, even if it is a legendary wonder of Heaven, it could never compare to establishing the foundation with oneself! "Think about it: what could possibly suit you better than yourself? "The Dao Foundation perfectly coincides with you, and all divine abilities and magical techniques become one with your being. "From then on, surely whatever spell you learn, you would grasp it instantly and master it upon grasping it..." Seeing Master Yin grow more and more excited as he spoke, Li Fan couldn't help interrupting him. "These are all just your conjectures, aren't they, Fellow Daoist?" Master Yin froze, then shook his head vigorously. "Although I only completed half of establishing the foundation with myself, I can still clearly sense that every aspect of me has improved drastically compared to before. Not only my aptitude for cultivation and comprehending techniques, my affinity with spiritual energy, but even the agility of my thoughts... "None of it can be mentioned in the same breath as before!" Seeing how extravagantly he praised it, Li Fan asked again, "With establishing the foundation with oneself having such miraculous effects, how high might the success rate be?" Master Yin explained, "Look, I almost succeeded on my first try, so naturally, the probability of success can't be small. "Fellow Daoist, you must believe me! This is a conclusion I reached after dissecting hundreds of Foundation Establishment cultivators' corpses and painstakingly researching for decades. There's definitely no mistake. When you establish your foundation, Fellow Daoist, you absolutely must give it a try!" Master Yin looked at Li Fan with fervent enthusiasm. "Mm, I will definitely give it a try... Wait, you said you dissected hundreds of Foundation Establishment corpses?" Li Fan's heart skipped a beat, and he blurted out the question. "Yeah! What's with that look, Fellow Daoist? You don't believe me? They're still lying in my basement! Why don't I take you down to see them?" Master Yin asked. "Er, let's pass on that. I only wonder: where did you acquire several hundred Foundation Establishment corpses, Fellow Daoist?" "Hm?" Master Yin pondered for a moment, but a vacant, blank look came over his eyes. "That's right, where did I get so many corpses? Strange, why can't I remember..." he muttered under his breath. Li Fan already had his answer, and hastily said, "It's not important. If you can't recall, let's just leave it at that." "True enough." Master Yin nodded, looking thoroughly convinced. "Thank you, Fellow Daoist, for resolving my confusion. Now that my questions are cleared up, I won't disturb you any longer." Just a moment earlier, when Li Fan heard Master Yin say that "everything that exists between heaven and earth can be regarded as an unformed wonder," inspiration had suddenly struck him. The bottleneck that had troubled him for so long had vanished instantly. As long as he had a wonder of heaven and earth in hand, he could set about establishing his foundation immediately. Now that his goal was accomplished, Li Fan had no desire to linger here any longer. Though Master Yin might not harbor any malice, the atmosphere of this place was genuinely unsettling. Thus, Li Fan decisively chose to take his leave. Master Yin tried to persuade him to stay, but Li Fan declined. "Fellow Daoist, remember to try my method of establishing the foundation with oneself!" Before parting, Master Yin did not forget to earnestly urge him. Li Fan repeatedly voiced his agreement, then took flight and sped away. After a long time, watching Li Fan's receding figure, Master Yin mumbled, "You must give it a try. I really wasn't lying." After a while, he sank into silence once more. He turned and went back before the colossal, rectangular transparent cage. The mortals in all four corners had melted into pools of flesh and blood, with not a single survivor. "How unfortunate. Not one managed to pull through." He seemed a bit regretful. "There aren't many test subjects left. Looks like I'll have to make another trip outside." Inside the four cages, amidst creaking sounds, the mortals who had dissolved into flesh and blood were swapped out. A new batch of test subjects reappeared in the cages. Agonized wails rang out once more. Master Yin was long accustomed to this; not a trace of an unusual expression showed on his face. He stared intently at the rectangular transparent cage before him, tightly clutching the white rib against his chest in his hand. In a tone bordering on morbid obsession, he whispered, "Rest assured, I will avenge you. I will definitely find the one who created the immortal-mortal miasma and avenge you..." ... "I will find you. I will definitely find you..." Master Yin's muttering echoed once more throughout the bizarre structure. ... Wanxian Island. Returning to the Heavenly Profound Mirror, Li Fan searched for "establishing the foundation with oneself." It wasn't any sort of closely guarded secret at all. All cultivators treated it as a joke and didn't believe it in the slightest. Because anyone who had believed in this rubbish had been doomed to death during Foundation Establishment. "Establishing the foundation with oneself..." Naturally, Li Fan didn't fully believe what Master Yin had said. Yet at least one point—"Everything that exists between heaven and earth can be regarded as an unformed wonder." Li Fan believed there shouldn't be anything wrong with this statement. Then the question was: the reliance behind his hundred reincarnations and endless rebirths... Was True Reversion a wonder of heaven and earth? And could he use True Reversion to construct his Dao Foundation?