Longzang

Chapter 62 Cleaning up the portal
Wei Yuan stood in front of a deep blue hall, looking up at the three large characters above the gate: Wanxiang Hall.

The Hall of Ten Thousand Images stands a hundred feet tall, its entire body a deep blue. Its material is unknown, but it appears crystal clear and subtly transparent, like a perfectly formed piece of jade, with no visible seams between the bricks. Standing before the hall, Wei Yuan felt an indescribable aura of antiquity wash over him, as if ten thousand years of history were unfolding before his eyes.

"This contains all the Dao foundations that have ever appeared in the history of the Primordial Palace, as well as many Dao foundations from other sects. Let's go in and take a look."

Zhang Sheng entered the main hall first, followed by Wei Yuan. As soon as they entered the hall, they saw a galaxy rising from the ground and stretching overhead. Within the galaxy were countless dazzling stars, all of which were various kinds of Dao foundations.

Wei Yuan had long known that there were thousands of Dao foundations in the world, but when all of these Dao foundations were laid out before him, the shock, the grandeur, and the impact that came from heaven, earth, past, and future were truly indescribable.

This is the true path to immortality!
It took Wei Yuan a while to recover from the shock and he tried to release his divine sense to touch the nearest star.

[Iron-Slaying Horse Saber: Lower Earth Rank. Weapons are instruments of slaughter, suitable for Earth Rank cultivation. When wielding a magic weapon, it possesses the effects of weight, toughness, and the ability to break through solids; long sabers are even better. Comment: This saber is ugly in shape and coarse in texture, indicating that the cultivator cannot distinguish between beauty and ugliness; therefore, it is downgraded by one rank.]

The moment Wei Yuan's consciousness touched that star, he saw a rough, long sword, narrow at both ends and thick in the middle, which was rather incongruous. However, it's normal for the foundation of one's Dao to have impurities, and for the path to immortality to have occasional flaws.

Wei Yuan then saw another star shimmering with a peach-colored light, and touched it with his divine sense:
[Red Bean Sachet: Low-ranking official. This method can alleviate the pain of unrequited love, allowing one to check the location of their beloved three times a day, with a deviation of one zhang (approximately 3.3 meters). Comment: ...]

Wei Yuan was greatly surprised. Could there really be such a foundation in the Dao? He then looked to the side.

[The Mirage Horse: A horse formed from mirage vapor, capable of traveling eighty li (approximately 40 kilometers) per day.]

[Style Makeup: Upper Human Rank. This foundation allows the cultivator to change their appearance at will. Comment: It truly possesses the power to alter the heavens and earth, and transform demons into immortals; it has miraculous effects on those with weak wills. If it weren't for the difficulty in achieving the Dharma form, classifying it as Heaven Rank wouldn't be an exaggeration.]

Wei Yuan read with great interest, never expecting that there would be so much brilliance in the Human Rank Dao Foundation; it was like opening up a whole new world. In comparison, the Earth Rank Dao Foundation was rather unremarkable, mostly just conventional works, and reading too much of it would help him fall asleep.

Just as he was engrossed in reading, Zhang Sheng slapped him on the head and said, "Stop looking at those useless things, look up!"

Wei Yuan reluctantly withdrew his gaze and looked up in the direction Zhang Sheng was pointing. There, at the highest point of the dome, in the center of the Milky Way, large stars gradually emerged, each radiating brilliant light, illuminating the entire hall and making the countless stars at both ends of the dome appear dim.

In a short while, more than three hundred new bright stars appeared at the top of the Milky Way, stretching across the dome.

Wei Yuan tried to touch one of the stars and saw that it contained an ancient bell.

[Dawn and Dusk Bell: Mid-grade Celestial Rank, possessing the effects of suppressing destiny, enlightening, and exorcising demons. Commentary: As the saying goes, "Evening drum and morning bell," the ringing of this bell can dispel inner demons and has a miraculous effect on enlightenment and breaking through barriers.]

Zhang Sheng said, "These are all Heaven-rank Dao Foundations, a total of 317. Without the permission of a True Monarch, ordinary disciples can only see Earth-rank and Human-rank Dao Foundations. However, since you are my disciple, Zhang Sheng, you can naturally see them all. There are more than 18,000 types of Dao Foundations in the Hall of Myriad Forms, but only 300 are Heaven-rank."

Wei Yuan looked at them one by one, and suddenly saw a blue immortal sword:
[The Legend of Sword and Fairy: Green Silk Rain: High-grade Heavenly Rank, possesses the ability to erode one's foundation. Comment: Those who are affected will be harmed; its flaws lie in its insidious and insidious nature, and its weakness prevent it from reaching the Immortal Rank.]

Wei Yuan instinctively said, "Teacher! Someone is insulting you!"

Zhang Sheng snorted and said, "A single Azure Rain Sword is naturally not enough to qualify as an immortal. However, I have two other immortal swords, each of which can be ranked as immortal on its own. As for that person who made the comments, he has a grudge against my Azure Palace, so we don't need to pay attention to him now. Once I achieve the Imperial Realm and write the Spring and Autumn Annals, I will demote his foundation to the Earth Rank."

"Where are your other two immortal swords?" Wei Yuan asked quickly.

He was very curious about Zhang Sheng's Dao foundation, and had occasionally heard rumors about it, all of which were incredibly mysterious. Wei Yuan, being young and ambitious, had long wanted to see it for himself.

With a flick of his sleeve, Zhang Sheng caused dozens of enormous stars to appear at the very core of the galaxy. They slowly rotated around a central mass of darkness, forming a dazzling sphere of light that even overshadowed the Heavenly Dao Foundation.

【The Great Sun of the Immortal Sword】, 【The Seven Mysterious Exquisite Tree】, 【The Nine-Layered Demon-Suppressing Pagoda】, 【The Immortal Sword Slaying the Void】, 【The Immortal Sword Parting Sorrow】... 【Night-Blooming Orchid】...

There are over forty newly emerged Immortal Foundations, the most numerous being Immortal Swords, totaling eight. This is not surprising, as the founder of the Taichu Palace alone possessed four Immortal Swords, each an Immortal Foundation. The Taichu Palace has always valued warfare, thus many of its disciples throughout history have cultivated Immortal Swords. For example, the Great Sun Sword Manual specializes in Immortal Swords, possessing not only the Immortal Foundation Immortal Sword Great Sun, but also one Heaven-rank and three Earth-rank swords. Those who cannot cultivate Immortal Foundations may still cultivate Earth-rank and Heaven-rank flying swords. In Wei Yuan's eyes, each Immortal Foundation is a path to immortality!

After reviewing all the immortal foundations, Wei Yuan suddenly felt that the very center of the starry river's core was not simply darkness, but rather something seemed to be being nurtured.

He pointed towards the core of the galaxy and asked, "Are there immortal foundations there too?"

Zhang Sheng said calmly, "Those that can be nurtured in the core are all top-tier Dao foundations that are on the verge of completion. Even among immortal foundations, they can dominate for a time. There is naturally a place for me there."

He glanced at Wei Yuan again and said, "Maybe you'll get a place too."

Wei Yuan sighed inwardly, but dared not think that way. It had taken him ten years to complete the Body Forging process, which had almost completely worn away his confidence and spirit. He didn't know what kind of Dao Foundation he could forge, but with such a massive amount of pills being thrown in, even a Heaven-rank Dao Foundation would be difficult to achieve.

The master and disciple have been together for a total of thirteen years. Wei Yuan is well aware of his teacher's inexplicable confidence. Wherever there is a ranking, such as the center of the Dao Foundation Star River, there should be a place for him. And if there is extra space, Wei Yuan can also occupy a small piece.

However, Wei Yuan immediately remembered that Zhang Sheng had already established his Dao foundation, so how could Xinghehe still have a place for him in her heart?
With doubts in his heart, Wei Yuan naturally asked. Zhang Sheng had been waiting for this question for a long time, and immediately said loudly, "Who said that the foundation cannot change after it is forged?"

Wei Yuan was shocked; this defied common sense!
Zhang Sheng took in Wei Yuan's expression and felt pleased. His face softened, and he coughed and said, "Actually, your class is quite good. You have produced two unprecedented Dao Foundations. One is Bao Yun's Seven Wonders Tree, which ranks at the top among Immortal Foundations. The other is Yan Ming's Infallible Golden Toad, which is at the top of the Heavenly Rank and is only one step away from becoming an Immortal Foundation."

"The golden toad that doesn't leak?" Wei Yuan was particularly sensitive to the word "toad".

Zhang Sheng pointed his finger, and a star in the Milky Way shone brightly, inside which sat a small golden toad, with a jade plate on its back.

[The Infallible Golden Toad: A top-grade Heavenly Rank item, capable of gathering precious energy within a hundred miles and nurturing immortal materials on its own. Comment: Truly a foundation for a noble family for a thousand years!]

Yan Ming… Wei Yuan thought of that dark-skinned boy from the East Sea. This Dao Foundation can generate wealth on its own, sitting at home without moving an inch; it's simply invincible.

Wei Yuan recalled that he had once thought of getting to know Yan Ming better, but he had forgotten about it because he was busy with cultivation. He could only sigh inwardly, "Knowing is easy, doing is hard; the sages are indeed right."

After examining the Dao Foundation, Zhang Sheng led Wei Yuan to the incense altar in the hall and said, "Drip three drops of your blood into the cauldron, and the Hall of Myriad Forms will record your primordial spirit aura. When you achieve the Dao Foundation in the future, you will also have a place in this hall."

Wei Yuan reached his hand into the bronze cauldron on the incense table and dripped three drops of blood from his fingertips. The blood droplets fell, resembling pink pearls, rolled a few times at the bottom of the cauldron, and then disappeared.

Leaving blood behind, Wei Yuan wanted to examine his Human-Rank Dao Foundation one more time, but Zhang Sheng took him away. Once outside the hall, Wei Yuan gritted his teeth and finally voiced the worry that had been lurking in his heart: "Teacher, what if my Dao Foundation is only Heaven-Rank?"

Zhang Sheng's gaze was sharp as a sword as he glared fiercely at Wei Yuan and said, "You dare?"

Wei Yuan inwardly groaned. Was this a question of whether he dared or not?

The sword light in Zhang Sheng's eyes faded, and he said, "The foundation of the Dao cannot be forced; it should be left to fate. If you are not even at the Heavenly Rank, but only at the Earthly Rank, it doesn't really matter. At worst, I will cleanse the sect and kill you, my traitorous disciple, first."

These words were spoken so casually, as if they were about everyday trivialities like eating and drinking.

After saying that, Zhang Sheng released his flying sword and said, "Come with me, there is one more thing I need to tell you."

Wei Yuan obediently stepped onto his flying sword, not daring to utter a single word. Zhang Sheng's words just now were no joke; the more serious he was, the more nonchalant he appeared.

(End of this chapter)