C4 Good Treasure Good Treasure!!

"Master, are you feeling down?" Xun Liang, slight in frame, gripped the lunchbox tightly with both hands, peering into the grand hall.

"No need to look anymore; she's already gone," Lee Qingyun spoke softly from within the hall.

"Oh." Xun Liang placed the lunchbox before Lee Qingyun.

"Master, a bit of food might lift your spirits. A full stomach often leads to a better mood," Xun Liang gently reminded him.

"I'm not feeling down," Lee Qingyun insisted.

"You're not telling the truth, Master," Xun Liang countered, opening the lunchbox to serve Lee Qingyun.

"Hold on a moment," Lee Qingyun interjected, halting Xun Liang's action. "This time, I've brought back a junior brother. He's at the entrance, engrossed in a book. Go and fetch him, will you?"

"Is that so?" Xun Liang exclaimed.

"Thank you, Master." With those words, he dashed off like a shot.

Lee Qingyun watched the swiftly vanishing figure with a resigned smile. Despite his patience, youthfulness still had its way.

As Xun Liang had observed, Lee Qingyun was indeed troubled, not by the grim prospects of their sect—he had long braced himself for such challenges. It was Senior Sister Lau's words that weighed on him:

"Even if you are only a low grade..."

Lee Qingyun understood she had left unsaid the harsh truth: he was merely a cultivator with a low-grade, practically worthless Dao Foundation.

The initial stage of cultivation is Qi Refining. Once past that, one can form the bridge of spiritual energy and enter the Foundation Stage, marking the true start of the cultivation journey. Hence, the quality of one's Foundation Stage is crucial.

Typically, a cultivator with a single spiritual vein who reaches the twelfth level of Qi Refining will have a low-grade Dao Foundation. Those with three or six spiritual veins hold a glimmer of hope for a medium-grade Dao Foundation, while those with nine spiritual roots are almost assuredly at least medium-grade. The more potent earthly and heavenly spiritual roots might even achieve a paramount Dao Foundation, and there are legends of the elusive perfect Dao Foundation.

Lee Qingyun's unfortunate fate was such that, with six spiritual veins, he managed a passable Qi Refining period. But with the sect's bankruptcy leaving him resourceless during Foundation Establishment, he ended up with the lowest of the low-grade Dao Foundations.

The sect was in ruins, yet with this system, it could gradually be restored.

But his cultivation foundation was abysmally weak, an irreparable flaw that would always be his Achilles' heel.

Sigh...

Forget a top-grade Dao Foundation; even a medium-grade one would give me the strength to stand against other sect elders and vie for territory.

"Ding! This operation will cost 50 Heavenly Points. Do you wish to proceed?" The system's voice rang out suddenly.

"Huh? Proceed with what?" Lee Qingyun asked, confused.

"By spending 50 Heavenly Points, you can elevate your low-grade Foundation Establishment to medium-grade. Do you wish to proceed?"

Lee Qingyun: "!!!"

He leapt from his chair exclaiming, "What a treasure! Incredible!"

"Upgrade! Upgrade!"

"Initiating upgrade..."

Lee Qingyun quickly sat down cross-legged, entering a meditative state to inspect the spiritual energy bridges within him.

In his dantian, three blue arcs spanned like intangible bridges. These were the energy bridges.

Currently, the three energy bridges were swiftly absorbing and breaking down the spiritual energy around him. Having reached the Foundation Establishment stage, these bridges essentially acted as pumps for Lee Qingyun's spiritual power, with all energy sourced from these three structures.

Lee Qingyun fixated on the energy bridges. These three alone had already made him exponentially stronger than during his Qi Refinement phase. Upgrading to six bridges would significantly enhance both his total spiritual energy and the efficiency with which he could wield it.

Weng—

"Beginning upgrade..."

Lee Qingyun's pores suddenly heated up as spiritual energy flooded into him in a frenzy. He felt like a vortex of spiritual energy, absorbing it with unprecedented ease.

The spiritual energy filled the three bridges, yet the excess didn't dissipate. Instead, it transformed into a violent spiritual tide, relentlessly battering the energy bridges.

What is this madness! Lee Qingyun jolted in alarm. This reckless act could be lethal! If he shattered these three bridges, it would all be over!

But by then, it was too late for him to stop.

The bridges of spiritual energy were violently struck, causing Lee Qingyun's physical form and even his mind to suffer excruciating pain, as if being torn asunder. It was a pain that felt like needles piercing every inch of his body—a relentless barrage that penetrated his very being.

Finally, under the savage impact, the three energy bridges began to warp and split, each one dividing into two!

The three bridges of spiritual energy had transformed into six!

With the emergence of the six energy bridges, Lee Qingyun's pain receded as quickly as it had come, leaving him sitting weakly on the ground.

"Promotion successful... Additional cultivation points: 50

Host's Attributes:

Cultivation Points: 250 (Peak of the Foundation Establishment Early Period)

Spiritual Roots: Six spiritual roots

Dao Foundation: Medium grade

Genius Points: 35"

At that moment, Xun Liang, gripping Lee Qingyun's hand, entered the great hall. Seeing Lee Qingyun seated weakly on the floor, he hurried to his side.

"Master, what's happened to you? Are you injured?" Xun Liang lifted Lee Qingyun, his voice filled with concern.

"I'm alright, there's no need to worry," Lee Qingyun said, his face wearing a smile of both fatigue and contentment.

Xun Liang noticed the change, "Huh? Master, you seem to be in high spirits again?"

"Ha ha ha, indeed, I'm feeling quite elated. Go fetch Uncle Liu and the old donkey; I wish to convene a sect assembly!"

"Oh! Right away!" Xun Liang, drenched in sweat, dashed off.

And that little rascal, Lee Qingyun...

He watched him, a helpless expression on his face, as the boy was still engrossed in the Qi Cultivation Technique?

...

"Cheers!"

Four bowls clinked against the massive wine basin belonging to an old donkey.

A sect master and teacher, a devoted senior brother ever so diligent in serving wine, a junior brother impatiently juggling his reading with sips of wine, an old gatekeeper hard of hearing, and an old donkey.

This motley crew and a donkey, over a simple meal of tea and plain rice, commenced the inaugural sect meeting of the Twin Rage Sect.

Years later, when the Twin Rage Sect's name echoed far and wide, no one would believe that these renowned individuals had once convened such a momentous meeting in such an unassuming fashion.

Certainly, none of the individuals involved could have imagined the heights their future achievements would reach...

"Ding! You've completed the first sect assembly. You've been awarded 10 Heavenly Genius Points."

Lee Qingyun's hand trembled as he reached for his food, giving himself a pep talk, "I must dedicate myself to building our sect!"

Xun Liang gave Lee Qingyun an emphatic nod, affirming, "Yes, Master."

Peering down at the Qi Training Scripture, Ping An echoed in a childlike tone, "Yes, Master."

Uncle Liu continued to slowly spoon rice into his mouth, oblivious to the conversation.

Meanwhile, the old donkey was still contentedly guzzling wine from a large basin.

Lee Qingyun felt a sense of resignation; it seemed Xun Liang was the only one who truly understood the gravity of their situation in the entire sect.

"Ding! Your second mission is to swiftly reclaim the properties near Green Mountain that rightfully belong to the Twin Rage Sect, thereby bolstering the sect's economic power!"

Mission Reward: A complete overhaul of the sect's main hall and gates, with Genius Points awarded based on the level of mission completion.

Note: If a capable steward is recruited to manage the sect's properties during the mission, the reward will be doubled.

Failure Punishment: The previously awarded Yellow Rank low-grade spirit gathering formation will be retracted."

Reclaim the spirit gathering formation?

That simply wasn't an option.

Lee Qingyun quickly rose to his feet and dashed to the sect's rear mountain, selecting the largest area, designated for the disciples' cave dwellings.

"Set up the spirit gathering formation at once."

The System responded, "..."

"Even after installation, it's still subject to retraction."

Lee Qingyun urged, "Then don't delay—set it up now."

The System replied, "Initiating setup..."

The vast cave dwelling area was shrouded in a veil of blue light, concealing the activity within. Lee Qingyun sensed an eerie distortion of the Heaven Earth Yuan Qi at this spot. Eventually, it poured into the area, enriching the spiritual energy's concentration and vitality to levels several times greater than anywhere else.

"Transformation complete. The cave dwelling area is now segmented into the core area, upper area, middle area, and lower area, each enhancing the quality of spiritual energy by 30-fold, 10-fold, 5-fold, and 3-fold, respectively."

"The area slated for renovation spans 500 acres..."

"Hold on a moment, System. May I inquire about the typical star level for a sect that possesses a Yellow Rank low-grade spirit gathering formation?"

The System responded, "Given the considerable size of a spirit gathering formation, it's generally sects with a five-star rating or higher that embark on constructing a low-grade Yellow Rank spirit gathering formation... However..."

"However, what?"

"In the case of an expanse as vast as five hundred acres, it's likely that only a sect with a six-star rating could manage to build it."

Lee Qingyun retorted, "Hmph, just a six-star sect? Our Twin Rage is destined to be the most formidable sect in history. Have you forgotten what you told me?"

The System remained silent.

Lee Qingyun couldn't suppress a triumphant grin, relishing the rare moment of seeing the System at a loss.

'That pesky System, always complicating my life as the sect leader, and you even threatened to obliterate me?'

"Huh? Keeping such a meticulous tally with me? Now you recognize my strength, don't you? Hmph!"

[Notice: The Yellow Rank low-grade spirit gathering formation, covering five hundred acres, will require a daily expenditure of at least 5,000 low-grade spirit stones.]