2 Successfully Breaking Through the Foundation Establishment Realm!

A Hundredfold Critical Compensation!

A hundred Foundation Establishment Pills!

Could there really be so many?

Shock poured through Su'en, followed by elation. A hundred Foundation Establishment Pills! Just one could easily allow him to break through his current realm. With 100 pills, he would be able to go beyond the Crystallization Realm to the Golden Core Realm.

In the world of cultivation, skill and talent were important, but so were resources. If he had enough of the latter, even with average potential, he could still unlock a high-level realm.

"System, I owe you big time!"

Su'en was thrilled. From now on, he would have no lack of cultivation resources, and be able to ascend to a higher realm! The future was suddenly looking very bright.

The old man observed the camaraderie between his disciples in the Dao Sect, pleased. He, too, felt that the future of the sect was promising.

"From today onwards, I will go into seclusion. If I don't come out in two years, my lifespan might be exhausted. Su'en, you will be the next master of the Dao Sect."

After hearing his master's words, Su'en's buoyant mood began to sink. His master treated him very well. During his ten years in the Dao Sect, he had given Su'en plenty of cultivation resources and guidance on cultivation techniques. However, there was nothing he could do about his master's current situation. After all, issues of lifespan depended on the advancement of their civilization, not ordinary medicinal pills. His master's cultivation level had already reached the upper limit of his potential; it wouldn't increase no matter how many pills he took.

"Don't worry. Such is the way of life. Off I go." The old man smiled and closed his eyes.

"Of course," Su'en and Ye Lingyun answered in unison.

Su'en turned to leave. He hoped that he would encounter the Immortal Essence Fruit this year, so that he could extend his master's lifespan. However, the Immortal Essence Fruit was a legendary, precious fruit that could only be chanced upon by luck. Over thousands of years, only a privileged few had encountered it.

And once it was found, the location of the fruit would turn into a war zone.

...

The sect that Su'en belonged to was called the Dao Sect, one of the hundred sects in the Heavenly Domain.

The Heavenly Domain was the largest paradise in the continent of Jingzhou. It was rich in Qi. A long time ago, when the Heavenly Domain was flourishing, there had indeed been a hundred sects, but as time passed, some sects had either faded into obscurity or were destroyed, while others had chosen to merge.

Now, there were only about twenty sects in the Heavenly Domain.

The Dao Sect was one of them, albeit the weakest. If not for its glorious history and its nostalgic value to the higher-level sects, it would have long disappeared.

After returning to his courtyard, Su'en sat on the bed and took out the Foundation Establishment Pill that the system had compensated him with. A hundred of them were placed in a slightly larger treasure box. Su'en opened the lid and poured one out.

The pill was crystal-clear, emitting a medicinal fragrance that made one relax. Just one sniff energized Su'en.

"As expected of a Foundation Establishment Pill. Let's see how far a hundred Foundation Establishment Pills can be cultivated!"

Su'en's eyes gleamed. Martial arts cultivation was divided into ten realms: Qi Refinement, Foundation Establishment, Crystallization, Golden Core, Spirit Convocation, Nascent Soul, Soul Transformation, Martial Dao, Immortalization, and Immortal Ascension. Of course, above the Immortal Ascension Realm was an even more advanced level of immortality, but it wasn't one anyone could reach. For most cultivators, the Foundation Establishment Realm was basically the limit, and Su'en was currently in the late stages of his own realm.

Foundation Establishment was the True Qi cultivated from the Qi Refinement realm to perfect one's physique. Only by honing one's physique could one advance to the next cultivation realm. Some people lacked the groundwork to break beyond the Foundation Establishment Realm, after which came Crystallization. This so-called Crystallization was to open up one's Energy Core and condense their True Qi into a crystal in their Energy Core, thereby producing more True Qi. Afterwards, their True Qi could be released with destructive power.

Qi Refinement and Foundation Establishment could only cultivate True Qi in the body, not release it. However, Crystallization was different. Crystallized True Qi could be unleashed. Those of high cultivation levels could transform True Qi into battle strength and shatter mountains.

Therefore, advancing from the Foundation Establishment Realm to the Crystallization Realm could make or break one's power. Entering the Crystallization stage was one's first step into the cultivation world.

After deep consideration, Su'en swallowed the Foundation Establishment Pill in his hand, which contained a considerable amount of medicinal power. The lower one's realm, the longer they would take to digest the pill. If he took a large number of Foundation Establishment Pills at once, he might explode and die. However, Su'en was currently at the late-stages of his Foundation Establishment Realm and could take three Foundation Establishment Pills at once.

"BOOM!"

Immediately after the Foundation Establishment Pill entered Su'en's body, it turned into a powerful wave of spiritual energy that surged through him.

Su'en felt at home in this spirit field. He savored the sensation for a moment, then began to absorb the medicinal power of the pill. Although his potential was nothing to boast about, and he could only absorb half the medicinal power of a Foundation Establishment Pill, even that half was significant. It wasn't a Foundation Establishment Pill for nothing.

Su'en absorbed the pill's effects in no time. He felt that he had already entered the perfected stage of his Foundation Establishment Realm.

Next, he chose to swallow three Foundation Establishment Pills at once.

Shock waves made his limbs vibrate. Gritting his teeth, Su'en mustered his willpower. True Qi kept pouring into his body. Color was beginning to bloom against the gray of his Energy Core, with the influx of True Qi.

After an hour…

"BOOM!"

An explosion went off inside Su'en.

After peering inside his body, he realized that his Energy Core had been opened, where True Qi he hadn't known existed was quietly circulating.

Looking at the True Qi, Su'en was struck by inspiration.

With a thought, the True Qi manifested into a sword in his hand, and he casually executed a Daoist sword technique.

A faint, sharp blade fired from Su'en's fingertips.

The Sword Qi shot out and pierced a small hole in the wall not far away.

"Is this the power of releasing True Qi? Even Foundation Establishment Realm cultivators are no match for this!"

Su'en's eyes were grave. The materials used to construct each courtyard of the sect were anything but ordinary. Previously, he, who was in the Foundation Establishment Realm, had brandished his fist at the wall, and managed nothing more than a shallow crack.

But now, he had used his True Qi to pierce through it.

One could easily imagine how powerful True Qi was.

No wonder it was said that hundreds of Foundation Establishment Realm cultivators would be no match for a single crystallized warrior–unless their crystallized True Qi was used up, of course.

The power gap between them was akin to a yawning chasm!

Su'en had no doubt as to that; he had personally experienced the power of True Qi.

The difference was that while the Foundation Establishment Realm involved martial arts battles, things mainly got serious in the Crystallization Realm, which superior refinement allowed one to kill from thousands of miles away!

Su'en looked at the Foundation Establishment Pill in the box in his hand.

"Please, keep on cultivating!"

There were still more than ninety Foundation Establishment Pills left, which was definitely enough for him to raise his cultivation to a higher realm!