C13 Foundation Building

Zhao Lin whirled around, a sudden sweetness rising in his throat, and he nearly coughed up blood. Apart from Chen Quan, Zhang Yun was the second true challenger he had faced in his life. Despite resorting to some cunning to overcome his opponent, Zhao Lin had not yet achieved Foundation Building. Nonetheless, the minor injury he sustained seemed a fair trade for the Foundation Building Pill. Back in his humble hut, Zhao Lin eagerly uncorked the jade bottle to find it contained over ten pills.

"Is this the Foundation Building Pill?" he wondered, examining a pill the size of a fingertip that gave off a faint scent. "I'll try just one first!" Knowing that everyone was displeased with him due to Wang Feng, Zhao Lin proceeded with caution. He swallowed a pill, circulated his wakan, and began to dissolve it. A surge of medicinal power headed straight for his dantian, and the wakan there eagerly converged on it, as if greatly benefiting from its presence.

After a lengthy wait, not only did he feel no discomfort, but a sense of rejuvenation washed over him. Even the minor wounds from his skirmish with Zhang Yun healed instantly. Convinced that the pill was safe, Zhao Lin took a moment to gather his wakan until he felt fully revitalized, then he consumed another Foundation Building Pill.

Zhao Lin was well-versed in the Foundation Building process, his only hindrance being the lack of a pill. As soon as the pill reached his stomach, it was cleaved by the wakan and entered his dantian. "The heart is stirred by the spirit, and the spirit is born from the heart. It cycles endlessly, never ceasing!" With the mantra in mind, the wakan in his dantian transformed into a vortex, slowly revolving.

Elated, Zhao Lin recognized this as the precursor to successful Foundation Building. But before Chen Xu's elation could subside, the vortex in his dantian scattered, and the wakan calmed to a stillness. "What's happening?" Zhao Lin was baffled. The incantation was right, the technique was right, and the wakan had formed a vortex. Why did it fail just as success seemed within reach?

"Perhaps one pill isn't enough. Let's try two!" With that, Zhao Lin ingested two more Foundation Building Pills. This time, the wakan moved more swiftly, and the vortex in his dantian grew significantly larger. "Foundation Building!" he exclaimed. Yet, in an instant, his dantian was void, and the vortex vanished once again.

"Damn it!" Zhao Lin swore under his breath. It felt like a juicy piece of meat had been snatched right from his lips – utterly frustrating. "I refuse to believe it all comes down to this!" In a fit of rage, Zhao Lin grabbed the jade bottle and gulped down all the pills. Ten Foundation Building Pills vanished into his stomach. As the pills dissolved, his dantian swelled with a surge of spiritual energy, causing him unbearable pain.

"Foundation Building!" Zhao Lin's eyes were red with strain. A vortex of wakan appeared, and although it was smaller than the previous two, the energy it contained was several times greater. With a roar from Zhao Lin, a thunderous noise erupted from his dantian. The power of the Foundation Building Pill was like constructing a palace within him, etching step after step into his core.

Zhao Lin was ecstatic; he was on the verge of a successful Foundation Building. He quickly reined in his excitement and concentrated on channeling the wakan, nurturing the newly formed steps. The pure wakan within the vortex transformed into streams of energy, flowing toward the steps. Nourishing them was an exhausting process, requiring repeated efforts until the steps were completely concealed, signifying a successful Foundation Building.

As the wakan continued to nourish, the once faint steps began to solidify. The most noticeable change was that the swelling pain in his dantian gave way to a sensation of emptiness after some time, a clear sign of the rapid depletion of wakan. Zhao Lin multitasked, nurturing while simultaneously absorbing the Spiritual Qi of Heaven and Earth to replenish his dantian.

Anyone who witnessed Zhao Lin would have been taken aback. A mist of white fog streamed from the crown of his head, merging with the sky. This fog was the Spiritual Qi of Heaven and Earth, which only became visible when amassed in significant quantities. Zhao Lin was merely at the Foundation Building stage – how could he command such an abundance of wakan?

"Hmm, an interesting youngster has emerged in the Outer Sect!" Atop a solitary peak, an elder slowly opened his eyes that had been weathered by the years. He gazed upon the thatched hut where Chen Xu resided. "Ah, it's this young one. It looks like the Outer Sect is in for some lively times ahead!" He remarked calmly, then closed his eyes once more, his spirit drifting off to unknown realms.

Inside the thatched cottage, Zhao Lin's presence began to intensify. A continuous stream of white mist descended into his crown from above. His skin exuded a dark liquid through his pores, emitting an odd, sour stench. Meanwhile, within his dantian, what were once steps had solidified into channels, pulsating with a tremendous vitality as they merged into the base of his dantian, much like laying the foundation for a palace. "Foundation Building complete!" Zhao Lin exclaimed as the channels fully integrated and became invisible. With a resounding "Buzz!" in his dantian, the white mist above Zhao Lin's head surged wildly into the crown.

This mist, after purifying his body, blended into his dantian, expanding its territory. Zhao Lin no longer focused on absorbing the spiritual energy from the heavens and earth but instead began to channel his wakan to solidify his state of being. The Firetalons' guide to Foundation Building was explicit: it was an intricate endeavor that demanded not just patience but also the resilience to maintain composure.

Many disciples had fallen from the Nascent Soul stage due to a single lapse in the final step. Zhao Lin's task was to secure his realm, ensuring that the channels that had sunk into the base of his dantian would take root and flourish. Henceforth, the dantian would serve as their soil, never to be parted from, no matter the circumstance. This time-consuming process lasted until dawn, at which point Zhao Lin finally concluded his efforts.

"At last, I've succeeded. Starting today, I've truly embarked on the path of cultivation!" Zhao Lin rejoiced. He quickly reviewed the Foundation Building guidelines. "Hmm, in theory, the more Foundation Building Pills one requires, the greater their potential achievements. But that's just theory. There are those who consume Foundation Building Pills as if they were meals, yet despite a lifetime of effort, they fail to achieve Foundation Building. Thus, a limit exists: if someone cannot succeed with five Foundation Building Pills, it indicates a lack of innate talent for cultivation, and they should abandon the pursuit of Foundation Building."

"There's a saying for this situation. I've used thirteen pills in total. If we don't count the first one, that leaves twelve pills. So, how should I put this?" Zhao Lin mused, his expression one of confusion. Regardless, he had successfully completed his Foundation Building, a fact that certainly called for celebration. "Ugh, what's that awful smell?" He glanced at his skin, now coated with a layer of black grime, and grimaced. Without wasting a moment, he dashed into the bathroom.

The black grime was actually the impurities from within Zhao Lin's body. Cleansed by the Foundation Building pills, these unnecessary and normally non-excretable impurities were finally expelled. Having such impurities in his body would have made it impossible for his cultivation level to rise significantly. Moreover, these impurities could potentially lead to diseases in the future.

The reason Zhao Lin required so many Foundation Building pills was primarily due to his diet of wild beast meat. Even though these beasts were of a lower order, they possessed a certain amount of wakan, which meant that Zhao Lin's need for Foundation Building pills was several times greater than that of others.