The gap between Foundation Stage and Spirit Stage was like a giant river, and the difference in power and cultivation for those who managed to cross it was vastly different from those who hadn’t. If Fang Xing managed to increase his own battle prowess in such a manner, he’d be able to beat Ye Gu’yin like a wife even if she had the zither in hand. She was a so-called "half-step" away from Foundation Stage, but she still wasn’t actually in Foundation Stage and wasn’t able to bring out the full power of that Ancient weapon.
By Fang Xing’s estimations, that woman had been able to use no more than thirty percent of the Phoenix-Fear Zither’s full power. Of course, this mere thirty percent power was enough to create a wide gap Fang Xing couldn’t cross when the two of them were both in Spirit Stage, but if he was able to break into the Foundation Stage, there would no longer be any need to fear her.
With a quick thought, the Peng King also nodded his head after hearing Fang Xing’s words. "There is a higher chance for crafting this flag if you’re in Foundation Stage…." Of course, it wouldn’t have made any difference whether he nodded in agreement or not; once the boy decided on something, the Peng King typically wouldn’t have any say in the matter. "Let me return back to your Sea of Consciousness to act as your guardian," he volunteered with excitement.
Fang Xing looked at the Peng King in disdain. "You have a single strand of spirit yet spout such bullsh*t like being my guardian?"
The Peng King immediately grew angry. "I was still a beast king in the past; how could you look down on me being your guardian? Kid, I may be just a strand of spirit, but my knowledge and experience in cultivation cannot be compared. Let me ask you this: since you’re going to form the foundation, have you prepared everything you need for it? Have you planned all kinds of paths for different scenarios? The method to counter the tribulation—you have that at least, right?"
Fang Xing was left dumbstruck. "Is having the Foundation Pellet not enough?"
The Peng King gave a disdainful snort. "You’re kidding me. Forming the foundation is such an important event on your path of cultivation; how would a single pellet be enough? Although we beasts do cultivate differently than you humans, I do have some knowledge on this. Forming the foundation requires more than just the Foundation Pellet; you will need a clear mind, a steady heart, and knowledge of what to be mindful for. Not a single one of these will be enough on their own. Most important of all, you need to prepare the method you’ll use to counter the tribulation…."
"Tribulation? What tribulation?"
"The tribulation of Dao, of course!" The Peng King replied in a heavy voice. "Legend has it that cultivation is against the worldly orders and is therefore suppressed by the heavens. At the most crucial moment of forming the foundation, golden core, and budding soul, a tribulation will fall upon you to destroy your path of Dao and plunder what you have attained. This is the result of rebelling against nature—it is unavoidable. It is also because of this that the person breaking through often has someone as their guardian, to prevent any accidents during the most critical moment…."
"So this tribulation is inevitable?"
The Peng King nodded. "That’s the theory. You cannot hide from heaven’s suppression, you can only face its fury!"
This was the first time Fang Xing had heard about this. "Since it cannot be avoided, what use would you have?"
"This tribulation is shapeless and shadowless. No one knows what form it will take to appear in front of you, and no one even knows when it will show. It cannot be avoided, yet no cultivators want to face it and they must still prepare a few plans to counter them. A guardian with a much more powerful cultivation level can ensure your complete safety, but of course I don’t have that powerful cultivation level anymo
re…. Having me as your guardian is so I can enter your Sea of Consciousness and view the process as your foundation forms. If the tribulation is about to come down on you, I will be able to warn you in advance and also give advice on what methods you can use to counter it…."
When Fang Xing heard how honest and sincere the Peng King’s words seemed, he knew this old bastard genuinely didn’t want to see him dying a painful death. He nodded his head and seriously answered, "I guess it is fortunate you reminded me of this. Old Peng, I know you’re a man of your word. If you are genuinely trying your best to help me, I won’t treat you unfairly; I will no longer burn you with my fire, and if there is a suitable body in the future, I will also do my best to help you get it!"
The Peng King smiled with pleasant surprise. "That would be great. Don’t forget what you said just now!"
"Stop being so pesky and hurry over!"
Fang Xing and the Peng King returned back to his Sea of Consciousness. After studying under Bai Qianzhang for so long, Fang Xing did have some understanding as to the principles of cultivation, so he wasn’t concerned the Peng King would try to do anything funny. If the Peng King truly wished to sabotage him during the formation of his foundation, he would have had a greater impact from the outside. Inside Fang Xing’s Sea of Consciousness, the True Samadhi Fire would be activated to full power and the Peng King would only be able to run or hide without any opportunity to cause trouble.
Besides, the Peng King had already signed the contract. Until Fang Xing released him, he wouldn’t dare try to sabotage things.
As Fang Xing stood up, he picked out a few weapons and tools before placing layers upon layers of formations around him, preventing even so much as a single drop of water from entering. They blocked any noise from reaching him as well, preventing Ye Gu’yin’s zither from disturbing his concentration. Once that was finished, he set up three outer layers that would warn him if anything unexpected occurred before he finally sat down, drew in a deep breath, and took out the Foundation Pellet.
Fang Xing showed a vicious smile. "Stupid bi*ch, the moment your grandpa succeeds in forming the foundation will become the most unfortunate moment of your life…" With a flick of his fingers, the Foundation Pellet flew inside his mouth like candy.
"A little sweet…."
Once the pellet was inside, Fang Xing smacked his lips and began to think. Within the realm of cultivation, there had always been a saying for the Foundation Stage: this single step forever separated the mortals from the immortals. Spirit Stage was simply the barrier that a mortal had to overcome to become an immortal, and it was only upon forming their foundation that a person had truly stepped onto the path of cultivation.
After the foundation was created, not only would the seals formed from Qi become many times more powerful compared to someone in Spirit Stage, but the person’s vitality, strength, and speed would all increase manyfold. Most important of all, once the foundation was formed, it was possible to study Spirit Sense, a power that surpassed all five senses of sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch. It was considered to be in the realm of "intent" and was extremely mysterious with a wide variety of uses.
As the Foundation Pellet entered Fang Xing’s stomach, the medicinal power slowly began to dissolve into his meridians, his limbs, and every inch of his body. Everything was extremely quiet even as he absorbed such a powerful medicinal power—so quiet, in fact, that Fang Xing felt something had to be wrong. Could the Foundation Pellet have failed? Yet he recalled that he’d appraised the pellet with the Book of Revelation earlier; there shouldn’t be any problems in that sense.
After an incredibly long time had passed, a loud noise burst out and a single bolt of lightning struck out, splitting the heavy smog. The bolt had come from within Fang Xing, and the powerful force shook his entire body while a thin layer of bloody pinpricks began to form along all of his pores.
"The pellet has this much power?" Fang Xing was surprised and tried to guard his mind while preserving his spirit. Less than half a breath later, a second bolt of lightning began to well up within him.
Tzinnn….
Dirty blood began to spurt from Fang Xing’s pores like thin hairs, letting out a weak fishy smell. As for Fang Xing himself, he was tugged into his Sea of Consciousness by a strange power and found himself sitting in a lotus position on top of the altar.
BOOM BOOM BOOM
Bolts of lightning struck down one after another.
This was different from a lightning storm on the outside. The lightning within his Sea of Consciousness struck down from the endless sky like a heavenly sword, cutting the sky into two halves while falling straight from the nine heavens right into the Sea of Consciousness.
BOOM
Inside the endless Sea of Consciousness, the sea began to swirl and the once-clear water began to thicken.
Wind began to blow.
Before Fang Xing had realized it, a hurricane had formed and picked up the water from the sea, as though trying to dry out the entire Sea of Consciousness and bring it all beneath the altar. The sea began to thicken, and the water began to crystallize wherever the lightning struck. An unknown power began to apply its pressure, pushing, building, gathering it all into a sparkling and pure…
… jade tower!
It seemed as though the Sea of Consciousness—which contained all of Fang Xing’s knowledge—had been gathered to form a jade tower that seemed to stretch into the void above. Fang Xing’s True Spirit sat in a lotus position at the topmost point of the tower and gazed at the sky.
‘The water of the Sea of Consciousness is the representation of Qi. Now that the water has crystallized to form the tower, does that mean the Qi inside me has also begun some sort of change? I wonder what it has turned into now….’
BOOM BOOM
"Damn it, that hurt..." Fang Xing cursed out in pain. As soon as a thought flickered through his mind, a lightning bolt had struck down once more.
As the lightning bolts fell one after another, the jade tower that stretched on to infinity began to shrink, drawing lower. The feeling of his True Spirit being struck by lightning was also extremely realistic, and Fang Xing had to endure endless torment. A heart-wrenching pain could be felt forming inside him, as though there was something trying to sprout out from his True Spirit.
"Ay, kid, to form the foundation, you can only endure it! This is a tribulation you must face!" The Peng King sighed, hiding far away to avoid being affected by the incident.
"Those who formed the foundation, golden core, and budding soul in the ancient past all needed to go through the greatest pain to seek the chance of survival amidst despair….
"The choice that was chosen most often was Heaven’s Thunder!
"Heaven’s Thunder comes from the heaven itself to strike the earth—violent, frantic, and containing the power of destruction!
"But within this destruction lies vitality! Between life and death lies the creation of a new path!
"The ancient cultivators sought the opportunity to break through in the midst of Heaven’s Thunder. If they could not reach greatness, they would seek death!
"The cultivators of today have become lazy! They have begun to cherish life and seek all methods of avoiding calamity. They wish to break through without willingness to bear the pain and dangers that come with it. They do not know that this is already the same as walking the wrong path. By chance, I came in contact with a script from the ancient coffin and realized this principle. Opportunity coexists with danger, new life dances together with death….
"To form the foundation is to find freedom in pain, to seek new life within death….
"The Foundation Pellet mimics the heavens and earth and contains the power of the thunder. You must appreciate this pain and carefully search for—"
"Search for your uncle! If you don’t shut up, the first thing your grandpa will do after forming the foundation is cut you up!"
The Peng King’s stern voice wouldn’t stop ringing in Fang Xing’s ears. He was extremely serious and detailed in his explanations, but this had suddenly left Fang Xing furious. Being struck by lightning was painful enough, but to also have to listen to this nonstop monologue from this old livestock, wasn’t this the same as trying to drive Fang Xing to suicide?
This left the Peng King dumbstruck. Growing furious and resentful towards Fang Xing for not meeting his expectations, he waved his sleeves and scolded, "I am telling you all of my understandings from back then without hiding anything from you, and you actually think I’m being annoying? You think you can cultivate, you can cultivate my *ss!"
With that, the indignant Peng King sat down and began to sulk.