Eternal Life from Talisman Painting-Chapter 74: When the Water Flows, a Channel Forms
Half a month later.
Inside the cave.
Lin Chang’an entered meditation, adjusting his essence, energy, and spirit. The surge of mana from the Chang Chun Skill was gathering in his dantian.
"Foundation Establishment at fifty-four! Chang Chun Skill! Three Foundation Establishment Pills, ninety-five percent chance of success!"
Lin Chang’an opened his eyes, revealing a calm expression, without a hint of hesitation. With a wave of his hand, the Tier Two Concentrating Spirit Incense in front of him was lit.
"Gulp!"
A top-grade Foundation Establishment Pill was swallowed into his stomach, and Lin Chang’an embraced the return to origin, closing his eyes to begin the breakthrough to Foundation Establishment.
First barrier, physical body!
When breaking through to Foundation Establishment, physical defects, lack of vitality, or due to aging can all have an impact.
Fortunately, Lin Chang’an hadn’t fought demon beasts these years. Coupled with the nourishment of the Chang Chun Skill, there weren’t many hidden injuries internally.
"At this moment, the advantage of the Chang Chun Skill becomes evident."
Lin Chang’an sat cross-legged on the jade meditation mat, the medicinal power of the Foundation Establishment Pill was unleashed, while his body also unrestrainedly absorbed the Heaven and Earth spiritual energy from outside.
Mana inside his body became a continuous flood, washing through him.
His skin flushed red, and his veins were bearing the rampant mana.
Second barrier, mana.
His cultivation over the years had been a steady, step-by-step process.
Especially with a solid foundation, using the Chang Chun Skill which is renowned for its strong fundamentals.
If Qi Refining mana is gaseous, then Foundation Establishment cultivator’s is liquid.
This is also the key to Foundation Establishment, the qualitative transformation of mana.
If too many elixirs were consumed before, it could lead to impure mana.
"My Supreme Realm Chang Chun Skill is famous for its purity, though I’ve taken elixirs to advance my cultivation, the problem is minor!"
Lin Chang’an gritted his teeth. Each wash of mana inside his body was like the waves removing sand, clearing out impurities, and at this moment, some impurities were gradually appearing on his body surface.
With the constant operation of surging mana, the prelude of solid transformation began to emerge.
Third barrier, spiritual sense.
Both rampant mana and qualitative transformation require spiritual sense to perform the final control and compression, completing the final transformation.
Though his spiritual sense might be average, aided by pure mana and the top-grade Foundation Establishment Pill, mane within his body was relatively easy to control.
Mist-like mana in his dantian spun swiftly, becoming more concentrated, combining essence, energy, and spirit — forming the final qualitative change.
Spiritual sense controlled compressed mana.
Mana was full of momentum.
The physical body functioned smoothly, perfectly enduring everything.
Finally, transformation began!
[Realm: Qi Refining Ninth Layer +1 (98/100)]
At this moment, under Lin Chang’an’s tightly knit brows, the Qi Refining Ninth Layer experience on the attributes panel, at the instant of mana’s transformation, turned into 98.
Tick!
Time had passed unknowingly, Lin Chang’an could clearly sense within his dantian, the emergence of the first drop of pure liquid mana.
With the appearance of the first drop, the second and third drops also began slowly coalescing.
Just as Lin Chang’an was breaking through, spiritual energy outside the cave was suddenly swept away, but in this place, Celestial Profound City, the abundant rich spiritual energy continuously poured in with the array.
People outside exclaimed: "Look, someone is breaking through to Foundation Establishment again."
The spiritual energy in Celestial Profound City, even if one hundred people reach Foundation Establishment wouldn’t be affected, merely a slight disturbance in nearby Heaven and Earth spiritual energy.
...
Yet inside the cave, Lin Chang’an remained with furrowed brows, gritting his teeth.
"Weakness in momentum!"
[Realm: Qi Refining Ninth Layer (99/100)]
Exactly stuck at the last step, Lin Chang’an gritted his teeth, without panic, he directly consumed the second Foundation Establishment Pill.
At this moment, he finally understood why spirit roots were divided into different grades.
"The grade of spirit roots, the speed of cultivation, severely affects the efficiency of qualitative transformation at breakthrough."
If he had a top-grade spirit root, he might have already broken through, but with a low-grade spirit root, Lin Chang’an’s mana transformation obviously slowed, unable to complete entirely.
"The Cloud Jade Scroll mentioned, the mana quality and speed of conversion differ among different grades of spirit roots, and there’s also differences regarding cultivation techniques."
The subtle differences perhaps unnoticed in normal times become shackles in crucial breakthroughs.
This is still Lin Chang’an using the Chang Chun Skill, perhaps not outstanding early on, but with deeper cultivation, the purity isn’t lacking.
Even in his Supreme Realm Chang Chun Skill, it was enhancing his success rate.
...
Days later!
The spiritual energy vortex gradually dissipated inside Lin Chang’an’s cave, followed by an imposing spiritual pressure of Foundation Establishment Realm sweeping in.
[Realm: Early Foundation Establishment (2/100)]
"After thirty years of bitter cultivation, finally reached Foundation Establishment!"
Inside the cave, Lin Chang’an’s joyful laughter echoed, even culminating in a long shout venting the oppression in his chest.
His path to Foundation Establishment lacked the tumultuous and legendary experiences of other geniuses in the Immortal Cultivation Realm.
It was simply accumulation until everything came naturally.
Even due to the two top-grade Foundation Establishment Pills, his excess mana post-Foundation Establishment slightly advanced his cultivation.
"Now I am terrifyingly strong!"
With a smile full of excitement, Lin Chang’an felt the changes in his body, and finally, he wielded a power for self-preservation in this turbulent Immortal Cultivation Realm.
"Now, as a Foundation Establishment cultivator, surely I won’t be cannon fodder."
He’s now no longer the ant at Qi Refining Stage, but a strong cultivator at Foundation Establishment Realm.
In a small place like Cyan Bamboo Mountain Market, he’s sufficient as a presence of Foundation Establishment Ancestor.
When Lin Chang’an stepped out from the secret chamber, a gust of cold wind swept in, and the scenery of Celestial Profound City left Lin Chang’an in a daze.
He saw outside covered in flying snow, and Celestial Profound City cloaked in a layer of silver frost.
"Congratulations, senior, on confirming the Foundation Establishment Dao, immortal paths are evergreen."
As he came out, the steward in charge of this place, in late-stage Qi Refining, approached with a smile full of envy, skillfully expressing the congratulatory wishes.
"How long have I been in seclusion?"
Lin Chang’an was dumbfounded, looking at the changing world. He remembered it was autumn’s chill before seclusion, and now it had become a snowy world.
While dazed, a sense of the cave being one day, but thousands of years on Earth, came over him.
"In reply to senior, it has been two months and twenty-seven days since you entered seclusion."
Nearly three months!
Lin Chang’an sighed deeply in his heart, this is the life of a cultivator.
The Qi Refining Stage still falls within a normal scope, just superior to ordinary people, but post-Foundation Establishment, the world seems different.
Even the simplest seclusion, he experienced the disparity of immortal and mortal.
Foundation Establishment cultivators’ seclusion could be months, or years.
"So much time has passed."
Lin Chang’an threw two spirit stones to the person, instantly eliciting a smiling bow of gratitude from the steward:
"Thank you for your kindness, senior."
Despite being the first to congratulate him, Lin Chang’an chuckled gently, nodded, and with a breeze underfoot, directly headed towards Yun Yao’s cave.
After all, this success in Foundation Establishment, Yun Yao had greatly assisted, not only with concocting Foundation Establishment Pill and previously guaranteeing the purchase of the array.
Especially the insights during Foundation Establishment, they were invaluable.
... 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦
"Successful Foundation Establishment!"
Nearby people, after Lin Chang’an left, came forward to inquire, followed by expressions of envy and longing.
Naturally, jealousy was inevitable.
"At fifty-four, a Tier One Upper Grade Talisman Master, it’s fitting for him to succeed in Foundation Establishment."
"Indeed, unlike us ordinary loose cultivators who lack such fortune."
A group of loose cultivators spoke among themselves, being fifty-four at Foundation Establishment isn’t surprising. There’s a rumor that Master Lu the Black Tortoise reached Foundation Establishment at an old age.
