Chapter 50 – Challenge to Foundation Establishment

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Translated by Frog in the Well

Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net
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Essence, Qi, and Spirit .

Jin So-myeong, who was pondering over the Three Passes of Foundation Establishment, first headed toward the Deacon’s Office.

“Welcome. Have you come to rent a cave dwelling?”

“Yes, Senior.”

Fitting for a Golden Core-grade city, even a mere deacon was a Foundation Establishment Grand Cultivator. Although he was somewhat surprised, it was no great issue.

Giving spirit stones, he rented a Rank 1 mid-grade cave dwelling.

Although he could have rented a better spiritual vein, this level was just appropriate.

This was because the spiritual Qi flowing in from the Secret Realm of the Mind that had reached Rank 2 was sufficient.

Flop!

Jin So-myeong, sitting cross-legged in the center of the cave dwelling, waved his hand.

He pulled out all kinds of spiritual herbs from the sub-space, piled them up, and took a deep breath.

‘First, let’s create a Fire Spiritual Root.’

Although there were several ways to open the heart with the Five Viscera Hundred Tempering Art, it became very convenient if he possessed a Fire Spiritual Root.

Of course, creating a spiritual root itself was not an easy task, but for the current Jin So-myeong, it was possible.

This was because he possessed the Five Elements Qi Condensation Art that had evolved through the proficiency system.

Gulp!

From the pile of spiritual herbs, he began to pick only those of the fire attribute and put them into his mouth.

It was to supplement his Fire Qi , which was the weakest among the Five Elements.

Just as the spiritual herbs that entered incessantly filled his stomach.

Fwoosh!

An intense heat surged from within his stomach. It was to the point of burning his entire body if left alone.

At that moment.

The Water Qi suppressed the rapidly growing flames.

The cooled fire enriched the soil… and the earth solidified to become metal.

Mutual generation and overcoming.

An endless cycle of the Five Elements ensued.

The five whirlwinds inside his dantian influenced one another, achieving a more perfect balance.

At some point.

Something like a small seed detached from his existing four spiritual roots of wood, metal, water, and earth.

The moment that, which flowed along the Five Elements cycle, reached the fire-attribute whirlwind.

Thump!

Simultaneously with his heart thumping, he felt a special sensation awakening.

“Fire Spiritual Root!”

Warm to behold from afar, yet dangerous to approach carelessly.

Such energy filled the atmosphere.

He clearly felt the fire-attribute spiritual Qi, which he had not normally perceived well.

Jin So-myeong, who was concentrating even with his eyes closed, snapped his fingers.

The moment he gathered the Fire Qi separately and compressed it into a single point.

Fwoosh!

A blazing fireball appeared in empty air.

He had succeeded in casting the Fire Bullet Spell, a basic fire-system spell! He smiled naturally as the atmospheric temperature rapidly rose.

Unlike before, handling the Fire Qi was comfortable. The feeling of getting stuck repeatedly as if hitting obstacles vanished.

Now Jin So-myeong could handle all Five Elements!

“Good.”

Taking advantage of the momentum, he immediately began training in the Five Viscera Hundred Tempering Art as well.

Since he had created a Fire Spiritual Root, opening his heart as a spiritual Qi organ was also simple.

He just needed to train it by repeating destruction and regeneration like the other organs.

‘Of course, I must be careful.’

The heart was the strongest yet simultaneously the most fragile organ. As it was a fatal vital point, it had to be handled with extreme care.

Ssssip…

He guided the spiritual Qi that entered with his breath to his heart.

The energy that permeated with the Fire Qi at the center began to accumulate in his heart, and his breath caught at the throbbing pain.

Gulp.

Tension welled up. If he made even a slight mistake, his heart could explode and he would die.

A drop of sweat trickled down his forehead.

Neither overflowing nor excessive, he trained his heart very carefully.

Just how much time had passed?

At that moment when micro-destruction and regeneration were repeated countless times, Jin So-myeong, who had not budged, opened his eyes slowly.

“Ah!”

The expression of him letting out an exclamation was bright. This was because he had finished one training cycle without much difficulty.

‘It is easier than I thought?’

It was to the point of being slightly puzzling.

This was because the Five Viscera Hundred Tempering Art warned that opening the heart was the most dangerous and difficult, so one must absolutely pay attention.

Yet if it was this much, it was a difficulty level similar to opening the other organs.

‘…Has my aptitude improved?’

Thinking about it, it seemed correct.

The fortuitous opportunity experienced in the Red Cloud Secret Realm was great.

The proficiency system also helped, and the pure white flame improved his physical body to be close to Shedding the Mortal Frame.

‘This is a good thing.’

It felt like running with heavy shackles and then being liberated.

As his once-worst aptitude improved, training became easier and easier!

Smiling broadly, he closed his eyes again.

Thanks to his strong physical strength, he still had leeway. He intended to train once more.

***

Three months later.

A wild aura raged from Jin So-myeong, who sat cross-legged.

If an ordinary person had seen it, they would have been seized with terror as if facing a massive beast.

Humming!

The moment the violently raging energy gradually died down and the surging blood energy was placed under Jin So-myeong’s control.

His heart was opened.

At the same time as the Five Viscera Hundred Tempering Art transitioned from initiation to mastery, all five viscera evolved into spiritual Qi organs!

“It worked!”

The moment all five viscera were opened.

A line that would never be severed formed between them. The five viscera, which had played separately a bit, were connected through spiritual Qi to achieve harmony.

Stimulating one another, they incessantly generated blood energy.

Physical strength, bodily sturdiness, poison resistance, spiritual Qi breathing capacity. Everything became vastly superior compared to before.

Even.

Currently, Jin So-myeong could amplify his blood energy to explosively increase his physical strength.

It was literally running rampant.

Although the aftermath was massive, it was a highly useful technique to use during life-and-death combat.

Boom!

As he lightly extended his fist, the sound of a bomb exploding was heard. He could only admire the atmosphere that vibrated from the aftermath of the force.

If he ran wild while infusing spiritual Qi into this physical body, no Qi Condensation cultivator could handle it.

“Aha!”

What this meant was clear. That his muscular strength had reached the Rank 2 level.

Right now, he felt he could beat a Foundation Establishment cultivator like the one he met in the Red Cloud Secret Realm to death with his bare fists.

Of course, he said this based on the standard restricted by the restriction.

Once the Foundation Establishment Grand Cultivator began utilizing dharma treasures in earnest, it was difficult to handle.

…At least it was so for now.

‘Above Qi Condensation yet below Foundation Establishment?’

His confidence grew stronger and stronger.

With a physical body like this, it would be stranger if he could not pass the Three Passes of Essence, Qi, and Spirit.

‘Since his divine soul also had Divine Sense, it was not a problem. What remained was Qi?’

In fact, this was also not a big problem. Just having time to train was sufficient.

This was because he had prepared many things step by step for this day.

‘After training to the very end of the 9th layer of Qi Condensation, I just need to consume the Foundation Establishment Pill and it’s over.’

He felt proud.

As the various rewards obtained by risking his life in the Red Cloud Secret Realm combined, Foundation Establishment drew close as if within grasp.

It felt as if everything he had built up became the foundation, supporting him firmly.

His struggles in the meantime were not in vain at all!

Jin So-myeong, who was enjoying the blood energy pulsating like condensed volcano, closely examined his meridians.

“Oh.”

The meridians, the passages through which spiritual Qi flowed, became much tougher and sturdier compared to before.

As his body evolved, his meridians had also become stronger!

‘At this level, I can move cave dwellings.’

If he utilized the Rank 2 cave dwelling and the Secret Realm of the Mind simultaneously, reaching the 9th layer of Qi Condensation was also not difficult.

Jin So-myeong, who came straight outside, paused while heading toward the Azure Elixir City’s Deacon’s Office.

‘The street atmosphere is a bit strange…’

Even he, who had not paid attention to his surroundings because he was focusing on Foundation Establishment, felt the strangeness.

Azure Elixir City was unusually noisy compared to normal.

Rather than being lively, what should he say…

‘It is like the Red Yang Market just before the secret realm opened.’

It felt as if something was bound to happen soon. The faces of the cultivators wandering around were filled with clear tension.

“Sigh. Have you heard that?”

“That the Giant Sword Sect and the White Horse Sect fought a match? Of course I heard.”

Jin So-myeong, who was passing over the naturally heard conversation, stopped abruptly.

The content was unusual. Narrowing his eyes, he injected spiritual Qi into his ears.

“Sigh. What are rogue cultivators like us supposed to do now that a war has broken out.”

“Indeed. Surely we won’t be dragged to the battlefield?”

“No way. Azure Elixir City is a neutral force. It will be fine.”

He could not help but flinch at the stimulating words that stuck in his mind.

‘A war broke out?’

There were many things he naturally came to know upon coming to the Golden Core-grade city.

The name of the country where Jin So-myeong lived was Damun Country.

Damun Country was ruled by Seven Great Sects, and one of them was the Giant Sword Sect he had met in the secret realm recently.

Among the Seven Great Sects, three were righteous sects that claimed to be righteous, and the remaining four were demonic sects.

His brow furrowed at the news that a clash had occurred between righteous and demonic sects.

‘A war of all times.’

If the war reached its peak, rogue cultivators like Jin So-myeong would be swept away while dazed.

A weak existence like the Qi Condensation stage was highly likely to die from the aftermath alone.

“…”

Standing blankly, he shook his head.

In any case, what he had to do was the same.

Concentrating on training to achieve Foundation Establishment. For now, that was enough.

‘Let’s worry about the next matter later.’

Arriving at his original destination, the Azure Elixir City’s Deacon’s Office, Jin So-myeong approached the deacon and said.

“Senior. I have come to rent a Rank 2 low-grade cave dwelling.”

“Rank 2?”

The old man scanning Jin So-myeong admired slightly.

“You still look young, yet you are at the 8th layer of Qi Condensation. You are a youth whose future is anticipated.”

“No. I was merely lucky.”

A smile settled at the corners of Jin So-myeong’s mouth.

Unlike before, he was not completely helpless even under the gaze of a Foundation Establishment Grand Cultivator.

He tried condensing his Divine Sense inside his body to hide his body tempering realm, and succeeded!

The deacon surnamed Go did not notice at all that he was also training in a body tempering cultivation method.

“The monthly rent for a Rank 2 cave dwelling is 10 mid-grade spirit stones, or 1,000 low-grade spirit stones. The deposit is one year’s rent. Is that acceptable?”

“Yes.”

Although it was a jaw-droppingly expensive amount for other Qi Condensation cultivators, it was fine for Jin So-myeong.

This was because his Secret Realm of the Mind had already reached Rank 2 and produced one mid-grade spirit stone every day.

“Hooh… You are a much more remarkable youth than I expected.”

The deacon, who was surprised as if it were unexpected, continued.

“Honestly, I have many questions, but I will not ask. The Azure Elixir City Lord told us not to pry into the backgrounds of rogue cultivators.”

“Haha.”

As he smiled awkwardly, the Foundation Establishment deacon gave him an array nameplate and said.

“Seeing that you want to rent a Rank 2 cave dwelling, you seem to be challenging Foundation Establishment… I do not know how long it will take, but next time I hope you call me Daoist Friend, not Senior.”

“Thank you for the kind words.”

After parting with the deacon.

Arriving at the Rank 2 low-grade cave dwelling, Jin So-myeong operated the arrays to the maximum.

He cut off all contact as if in closed-door cultivation. He did not want to receive any disturbance before achieving Foundation Establishment.

Flop.

The place with the densest spiritual Qi. Sitting cross-legged inside the room labeled ‘Training Room’, he closed his eyes.

He buried time in the pit of cultivation…

***

Three years later.

【Jin So-myeong】

【Lifespan】: 21 / 73

【Realm】: Qi Condensation 9th Layer Great Perfection

【Supreme Great Ability】: 250 / 250

【Divine Ability】:

【Cultivation Method】

Five Elements Qi Condensation Art (Mastery 1521/10000)

Five Viscera Hundred Tempering Art (Mastery 109/40000)

【Spell】

Wind Control Art (Mastery 510/3000)

River and Cloud Sword Art (Mastery 1724/30000)

Immortal-Severing Earth Art (Initiation 102/500)

As he reached the 9th layer of Qi Condensation, his Supreme Great Ability spheres, which were 190, increased to 220.

Jin So-myeong thought 220 was the limit for the Qi Condensation stage, but it was not.

The golden spheres, which increased little by little each time he trained afterward, ultimately became 250.

“This is the true limit a Qi Condensation cultivator can reach.”

The very edge of the 9th layer.

In other words, he had reached the Great Perfection of the Qi Condensation stage.

At the age of only twenty-one, he possessed the qualification to challenge Foundation Establishment. That too, with a rogue cultivator status.

If this news became known, the entire country would be shaken.

This was a speed faster than the geniuses cherished in Golden Core-grade righteous sects.

However, Jin So-myeong did not care about such things. He poured his heart and soul into challenging the Three Passes of Foundation Establishment.

‘Let’s begin.’

Placing his hand near his dantian, he focused on breathing.

He kept accumulating the incessantly absorbed spiritual Qi in his dantian without voicing it.

Although his dantian, which reached its limit, complained of pain, he did not stop.

Ssssip…

Not to mention his dantian, his entire body was packed with spiritual Qi.

He took one step further from the point considered his limit. The moment he tossed even the Foundation Establishment Pill that emitted a pure fragrance into his mouth.

Boom!

The spiritual Qi broke through the threshold!