Chapter 15: Cloud Qi Art
Fang Yuan watched Xu Zhongshan's retreating figure and couldn't shake the feeling that something was off. Quite a few people had come looking for him these past few days.
He turned to Xiaobao and asked, "Xiaobao, do you know what cultivation level Senior Brother Li Chenggong is at?"
"Of course!" Xiaobao nodded calmly.
"Tell me!"
Fang Yuan pressed immediately.
"Late Core Formation Stage, I think?" Xiaobao tilted her head.
Fang Yuan nearly toppled off his seat.
"What did you say? Didn't you say he was only a hundred and thirty-four years old?" Fang Yuan said, dumbfounded.
"That's right, he is a hundred and thirty-four," Xiaobao said, puzzled. "Is there a problem?"
"A huge problem!" Fang Yuan said, at a loss for words. "Late Core Formation Stage at a hundred and thirty-four? How old was he when he reached Core Formation? That's absurd!"
Ahem, ahem!
A cough rang out.
Xiaobao spotted the newcomer and immediately bolted away.
Fang Yuan turned his head and saw Li Chenggong standing there, smiling at him with an amused grin.
"Li — Senior Uncle Li!" Fang Yuan said, his mouth going dry.
Li Chenggong waved his hand. "Ah, no need to be so formal. I thought you came here specifically looking for me, but it turns out it really was just a happy accident!"
He glanced at Fang Yuan's body and said, "You've already trained the Cloud Body Art to the Fourth Layer of Body Tempering? Your comprehension exceeds my expectations — no wonder you can also do Artifact Forging and alchemy."
A bead of cold sweat appeared at the tip of Fang Yuan's brow.
"Relax, I have no intention of prying into your secrets — I just have sharp ears," Li Chenggong continued. "Actually, I'm not only affiliated with Treasure Peak; I'm also the Peak Master of Jinhua Peak."
Fang Yuan immediately bowed. "This disciple pays respects to the Peak Master!"
Li Chenggong smiled. "The disciples of your cohort are quite outstanding. As it happens, several Peak Masters have decided to set up a wager — betting on which peak's disciple will break through to Foundation Establishment first. Starting from the Fourth Layer of Qi Refining, there will be a settlement at every minor cultivation milestone. What do you say? Are you interested in representing Jinhua Peak? If you win, everything earned from the wager pool goes to you!"
Fang Yuan listened and asked, "Is it purely based on cultivation level? No fighting involved?"
"None — just cultivation level," Li Chenggong said evenly.
"Then I agree. Since Senior Brother Li has already asked, how could I refuse? Though I can't promise I'll win," Fang Yuan said.
"That's fine — I won't blame you if you lose." Li Chenggong waved his hand, seemingly genuinely unconcerned.
"That's settled then. I'm heading back to fish!" Li Chenggong turned and walked away.
"Wait, Senior Brother Li." Fang Yuan called out to stop him.
"What is it?" Li Chenggong said.
Seizing the rare opportunity, Fang Yuan immediately asked, "I'd like to know — are there quality distinctions when it comes to Foundation Establishment? Do things like lower-grade foundations, upper-grade foundations, and perfect foundations exist? Are there quality grades for Core Formation as well? And how does one build the strongest possible foundation?"
Li Chenggong gave him a strange look and said, "Your guesses are correct. Foundation Establishment does have quality distinctions — five kinds: lower-grade Dao Foundation, mid-grade Dao Foundation, upper-grade Dao Foundation, supreme-grade Dao Foundation, and perfect Dao Foundation. The determining factor is the Spirit Platform you construct during Foundation Establishment."
"Your Spiritual Root, the grade of your cultivation technique, your cultivation level, your Technique mastery, the spiritual materials used for Foundation Establishment — all of these affect the quality of your foundation. There are many intricacies involved. Typically, a cultivator who uses a Foundation Establishment Pill to break through can achieve a lower-grade Dao Foundation; breaking through on one's own yields a mid-grade Dao Foundation. An upper-grade Dao Foundation requires certain special conditions; a supreme-grade Dao Foundation is exceedingly difficult; and a perfect Dao Foundation is one in a million."
"Generally speaking, a mid-grade Dao Foundation gives you a higher chance of breaking through to Core Formation. As for the question of Core Formation quality grades, we can discuss that another time."
He glanced at Fang Yuan and said, "That Xu kid had a point — going out to temper yourself wouldn't be a bad idea."
Fang Yuan cupped his hands. "Thank you, Senior Brother, for clearing up my confusion."
Senior Brother Li strolled away unhurriedly, murmuring under his breath, "This artistic conception really is hard to grasp..."
Fang Yuan began to ponder the matter of Foundation Establishment.
After his shift ended, he made his way to the Scripture Repository to search for knowledge about Foundation Establishment.
Before long, he found a book explaining the key points of Foundation Establishment.
The exchange price was a staggering three thousand points.
Fang Yuan had already exchanged the mid-grade Magic Artifacts, and the resulting Contribution Points left him with several thousand to spare, so he purchased the book without difficulty.
He pressed a Jade Slip to his forehead.
A flood of information poured into his mind.
After sorting through it briefly, he found the essential details.
[Conditions for a Perfect Dao Foundation:]
[1. Spiritual Root quality must be a Heavenly Spirit Root. If this condition cannot be met, a top-tier heaven-and-earth treasure matching the cultivation technique's elemental attribute must be used as the Foundation Establishment spiritual material.]
[2. All three aspects of Essence, Qi, and Spirit must reach the ninth layer Completion Stage — not a single one may be lacking.]
[3. The cultivation technique must be at Completion Stage, with the technique's grade being at least upper grade and comprehension at Completion Stage; alternatively, a supreme-grade technique at Major Mastery — only then will the quality of one's Spiritual Power meet the requirement.]
[4. Comprehend Momentum: Technique mastery must reach the Completion Stage, and one must comprehend the Momentum of Heaven and Earth — meaning the Technique can draw upon the Spiritual Energy of Heaven and Earth to unleash greater power, guiding force through natural advantage.]
"This difficult?" Fang Yuan's expression turned to one of shock.
Now that he knew Foundation Establishment had quality distinctions, he naturally aimed for a perfect Dao Foundation — but the requirements were truly steep. He couldn't satisfy a single one of them right now.
He had browsed the Treasure Pavilion before, and there were no heaven-and-earth treasures suitable for Foundation Establishment there.
Even Foundation Establishment Pills operated on a pre-order system — one pill cost fifty thousand Spirit Stones, and there was no telling when stock would be available; you had to queue up for it.
In all likelihood, disciples would have to go out and search for these things themselves.
Cultivating Essence, Qi, and Spirit simultaneously was no simple matter either — it demanded not only cultivation technique practice but also resources and energy that were perpetually in short supply.
Technique level and Technique comprehension tested a cultivator's insight and talent even further.
The difficulty of achieving a perfect Dao Foundation was immense.
"One step at a time."
Fang Yuan calmed himself. "I have plenty of time — there's no need to rush."
"My cultivation technique really does need to change. The Yellow Grade, Lower Tier Mingqi Art simply isn't enough anymore."
He immediately searched through the Scripture Repository's collection, looking for the best possible match.
To his surprise, he found a supreme-grade technique.
[Cloud Qi Art: Yellow Grade, Supreme Tier cultivation technique. It is the superior successor to the Mingqi Art, with no Spiritual Root attribute requirement — its elemental attribute shifts to match the user's Spiritual Root. Full exchange cost: 90,000 Contribution Points. First three layers exchange cost: 1,000 Contribution Points.]
"The Cloud Qi Art — could it be designed to pair with the Cloud Body Art? What a steep price!"
Fang Yuan clicked his tongue. Even just the first three layers cost a thousand points!
He searched further and found several cultivation journals for the Cloud Qi Art.
He purchased a Jade Slip containing the first three layers of the technique, along with seven cultivation journals, and only then left the Scripture Repository with satisfaction.