Shengui Changsheng: Start from Zhenwuwei and add some points to cultivate immortality

He examined the storage bag he had taken from the Golden Saber Sect disciple. Inside were over two hundred low-grade spirit stones, several bottles of ordinary pills, a few low-level magic artifacts and materials, and a bronze plaque representing his status as an outer disciple of the Golden Saber Sect. Nothing of particular value, but better than nothing.

"Finally, I got the Three Yang Resurrection Grass." Fu Shaoping felt a little relieved. Although the trip was dangerous, the goal was achieved, and he even gained some extra spoils.

He did not return to Liuyunjian immediately, but instead traveled through the mountains and forests for several more days to make sure no one was following him. He also collected some other common spiritual herbs (disguising himself as an ordinary herb gatherer) before taking a detour back to the market.

Back at the Medicine King Manor branch, he handed over the Three Yang Rejuvenating Grass and successfully received five hundred spirit stones and a bottle containing five Jade Marrow Pills. The manager was quite surprised by his efficiency but simply attributed it to good luck and didn't ask any further questions.

With this income, Fu Shaoping had a slightly better supply of spirit stones, reaching over five thousand. Coupled with the Jade Marrow Pill's boost to his cultivation, he felt more confident about the upcoming auction.

Back in his temporary cave, Fu Shaoping began to adjust his state, preparing for the auction. He carefully stored away the Jade Marrow Pill, intending to use it when breaking through the bottleneck of the ninth level of Qi Refining. At the same time, he also began to consider his strategy for the auction: his primary target was the Purple Heart Breakthrough Pill, but if the price exceeded his budget, should he consider other items to aid in Foundation Establishment? For example, the "Marrow Cleansing Pill" that could strengthen meridians, or the "Heart-Cleansing Enlightenment Incense" that could temporarily enhance comprehension and help him comprehend the Foundation Establishment bottleneck?
Three days later, the Autumn Auction of Baibaoge in Liuyunjian Market was held as scheduled.

The auction venue was located on the top floor of the Hundred Treasures Pavilion, spacious, bright, and elegantly decorated. There were no fewer than two hundred cultivators present, most at the late Qi Refining stage, with a few Foundation Establishment cultivators of profound aura hidden in the private rooms or among the crowd. Fu Shaoping, as a rogue cultivator, paid the ten spirit stones entrance fee and sat in a regular seat at the back of the hall.

The auction was presided over by an elderly man in red robes who was in the early stages of Foundation Establishment. The process was concise and efficient. One by one, magical artifacts, elixirs, materials, and jade slips containing cultivation techniques were presented, and the sounds of bidding rose and fell.

Fu Shaoping wasn't very interested in the items in front of him; he simply observed the crowd, especially a few cultivators who seemed to have a need for Foundation Establishment Pills or similar items.

Finally, halfway through the auction, the old man in the red robe raised his voice:

"Next up is one of the most anticipated items at this auction—a 'Purple Heart Breakthrough Pill'! This pill is made primarily with Purple Heart Orchid, supplemented with nine rare spiritual herbs. Its medicinal properties are mild and long-lasting, and it can significantly help cultivators at the Great Perfection of Qi Refining break through the Foundation Establishment bottleneck, increasing their success rate by 15% to 20%! The starting price is 800 low-grade spirit stones, and each bid must be at least 50 spirit stones higher!"

The words had barely left his mouth when the bidding began!

"Eight hundred and fifty!"

"Nine hundred!"

"one thousand!"

The price rose rapidly, soon exceeding 1,500 spirit stones. Besides a few rogue cultivators at the Great Perfection of Qi Refining, there were also cultivators representing small families or shops participating in the bidding.

Fu Shaoping did not make an offer immediately; he waited.

When the price reached 1,800 spirit stones, only three bidders remained: an old cultivator at the Great Perfection of Qi Refining with white hair and beard, a steward representing a certain cultivation family, and a mysterious person wearing a bamboo hat with a hoarse voice.

"One thousand nine hundred!" Old Xiu shouted through gritted teeth.

"Two thousand!" the family steward followed closely behind.

The man in the straw hat paused for a moment, then announced, "Two thousand one hundred."

Old Xiu's expression shifted, and he finally slumped down, as if his financial resources had reached their limit.

The family steward seemed to hesitate as well. Although the Purple Heart Breakthrough Pill was good, the price was already a bit too high.

Just as the host was about to bring down the gavel, Fu Shaoping finally spoke, his voice calm: "Two thousand two hundred."

All eyes immediately turned to him. Seeing a young, unfamiliar cultivator at the eighth level of Qi Refining, they were all somewhat surprised. An eighth-level Qi Refining cultivator in such a hurry to buy the Purple Heart Breakthrough Pill?

The family steward glanced at Fu Shaoping, shook his head, and gave up.

The man in the straw hat seemed somewhat surprised and quoted again: "Two thousand three hundred."

Fu Shaoping remained expressionless: "Two thousand four hundred."

The man in the straw hat was silent for a moment, then said in a hoarse voice, "Two thousand five hundred."

Fu Shaoping's heart sank slightly; this price was already close to his psychological limit. But he didn't hesitate and raised the price again: "Two thousand six hundred."

This time, the man in the straw hat remained silent. Clearly, the price had exceeded his expectations.

"Two thousand six hundred spirit stones, first time! Two thousand six hundred spirit stones, second time! Two thousand six hundred spirit stones, third time! Sold! Congratulations, fellow Daoist!" The red-robed elder finalized the deal with a single strike of the gavel.

Fu Shaoping secretly breathed a sigh of relief, but felt little joy. Two thousand six hundred spirit stones had almost wiped out most of his savings. But it was worth it for the sake of Foundation Establishment.

After exchanging the spirit stones and receiving the purple pill in the jade bottle, Fu Shaoping didn't linger and immediately got up and left the auction house.

He knew that as a rogue cultivator at the eighth level of Qi Refining, spending a fortune to acquire the Purple Heart Breakthrough Pill would inevitably attract the attention and covetousness of some. He needed to leave the market as soon as possible, find a safe place to digest the pill, prepare for his attempt to break through to the ninth level of Qi Refining, and make preparations for the final Foundation Establishment.

He returned to his temporary cave dwelling, quickly packed all his belongings, and without canceling the lease (to avoid leaving any trace), quietly left through the back window, blending into the crowds of the market streets, and then headed deeper into the Qingyue Mountains in a direction rarely visited by people.

Clutching the Purple Heart Breakthrough Pill and the remaining spirit stones, Fu Shaoping knew he was about to embark on another crucial period of seclusion and breakthrough on his cultivation path. Meanwhile, the turmoil in the Qingyue Mountains seemed to have become even more unpredictable due to his unintentional intervention (killing a disciple of the Golden Saber Sect), the presence of the evil cultivators of the Fallen Soul Valley, and the escalating conflict between the two factions. His future was destined to be anything but peaceful.

Fu Shaoping did not linger on the outskirts of the Qingyue Mountains, where the population was relatively dense and there were many informants. Relying on his "Identification Technique" to keenly perceive the spiritual energy of the earth's veins and the aura of danger, he ventured deeper into the sparsely populated heart of the mountains.

After traveling for seven or eight days, avoiding several dangerous areas marked on the map (such as the nests of gregarious monsters and natural poisonous miasma forests), he finally stopped in front of a secluded valley hidden by dense ancient trees and vines.

The valley entrance is narrow, allowing only one person to pass at a time. Inside, the air is thick with moisture, and the concentration of spiritual energy is significantly higher than outside. While it may not be as blessed as the spiritual veins of prestigious sects, it is still a rare secluded place for independent cultivators. Even better, there are several naturally formed energy vortices and magnetic fields near the valley entrance, which can effectively interfere with divine sense detection. Combined with its concealed location, it is an ideal hiding place.

Fu Shaoping carefully explored the valley, confirming that there were no powerful demonic beasts lurking there, nor any traces of recent human cultivator activity. He found a dry cave in the valley, backed by a stone wall and facing a clear pool, to serve as his temporary dwelling.

After setting up several layers of warning and concealment formations (combining the concept of contract runes inherited from the Xuanqi Sect, making them more concealed and difficult to detect than ordinary formations), and checking the cave environment again to ensure safety, Fu Shaoping was finally able to truly relax.

He sat cross-legged on the cleaned stone platform and took out the Purple Heart Barrier-Breaking Pill that he had acquired at a huge expense.

As the jade bottle was opened, a refreshing medicinal fragrance with a strange purple aura wafted out, instantly invigorating Fu Shaoping. The pill, about the size of a longan, was a warm, lustrous purple, with fine cloud-like patterns on its surface, containing pure and gentle medicinal power.

He didn't rush to take the pills. To break through to the ninth level of Qi Refining, he needed to adjust his condition to its peak. He first took two Jade Marrow Pills from Medicine King Manor to nourish his meridians and solidify his foundation. The medicinal power of the Jade Marrow Pills dissolved, like a warm current flowing through his limbs and bones, making his cultivation at the peak of the eighth level of Qi Refining even more solid, with a faint tendency to move towards the ninth level.

At the same time, he continued to digest and absorb the newly acquired "Military Soul Lock" and the fragments of the "Military Oath" obtained from the Black Wind Gobi Desert. His soul power flowed slowly in his sea of ​​consciousness, refining the cold soul fire that had been tempered by "Netherfire," making it more condensed and pure.

Five more days passed, and Fu Shaoping felt that his energy and spirit had reached their peak. His body was full of true energy, and his meridians felt slightly swollen. It was the best time for him to break through.

Without further hesitation, he put the Purple Heart Barrier-Breaking Pill into his mouth.

The pill melted instantly upon entering his mouth, transforming into a gentle yet powerful torrent of medicinal energy that flowed down his throat into his dantian and then spread throughout his entire body's meridians! This medicinal energy was not violent; instead, it was like a spring breeze and gentle rain, nourishing every inch of his meridians and cleansing the impurities in his true qi. At the same time, a cool sensation rushed straight to his sea of ​​consciousness, making his mind clear and focused like never before.

Fu Shaoping immediately activated the "Azure Profound Breathing Technique," guiding the medicinal power to merge with his own true energy, circulating it throughout his body along the technique's pathway. With each cycle, his true energy became purer and more condensed, and the vortex in his dantian slowly expanded and compressed, transforming towards a higher level.

Time slipped away silently in meditation. Outside the cave, day and night alternated, and the occasional calls of birds and beasts echoed in the valley, but they could not disturb the focused breakthrough process within the cave.

three days later.

A distinct surge of spiritual energy suddenly emanated from Fu Shaoping's seated body! The surrounding spiritual energy was drawn towards him, converging into a small vortex. Within his body, the vortex in his dantian spun violently, expanding outwards and becoming more solid and stable!
An aura nearly twice as powerful as before rose from his body!

Reaching the ninth level of Qi Refining is a natural progression!
Fu Shaoping slowly opened his eyes, a flash of brilliance in them before they returned to their deep gaze. He looked inward at himself; the true energy within his dantian surged like a tide, ceaselessly flowing. His meridians had widened and become more resilient, and the range of his divine sense had also expanded considerably, making his perception of the surrounding environment clearer and more refined.

"Finally, I've broken through." Fu Shaoping exhaled a breath of turbid air, a satisfied expression on his face. He had reached the ninth level of Qi Refining, just one final step away from Foundation Establishment. This final step, however, was an insurmountable chasm, far more difficult than any previous breakthrough in a minor realm.

The medicinal power of the Purple Heart Breakthrough Pill has not been completely exhausted; some of it remains hidden deep within the meridians and dantian, and will continue to play a role when attempting to break through to the Foundation Establishment stage in the future, increasing that slim chance of success.

"Foundation Establishment..." Fu Shaoping murmured to himself. He was currently at the ninth level of Qi Refining, and with the aid of the Purple Heart Barrier-Breaking Pill, his subsequent cultivation technique, the Azure Profound Breathing Technique, could barely sustain him until the early stages of Foundation Establishment. However, he lacked crucial Foundation Establishment insights, high-quality Foundation Establishment Pills (the Purple Heart Barrier-Breaking Pill was merely an aid, not a legitimate Foundation Establishment Pill), and a more abundant spiritual ground for support. Furthermore, his comprehension of the Profound Contract True Explanation and the Netherworld Contract Book had reached a bottleneck. If he could break through this bottleneck, it might also benefit his Foundation Establishment.

He decided to continue his seclusion in the valley for a while longer, to thoroughly solidify his Qi Refining Level 9 cultivation, and at the same time, to try to deeply comprehend the contract inheritance and see if he could draw inferences from it and find inspiration for Foundation Establishment.

In the days that followed, Fu Shaoping's life became extremely regular. He meditated and practiced his Qi every day to solidify his cultivation; he studied the contract runes in his sea of ​​consciousness, trying to integrate some of the concepts of the "Military Oath Contract" more deeply into his own techniques, and even began to study how to use the power of the contract to simulate the characteristics of Foundation Establishment cultivators such as "external projection of divine sense" and "transformation of true essence" (of course, only superficially); in his spare time, he would pick some wild fruits in the valley and practice micro-manipulation of water element power by the pool (the "Azure Profound Breathing Technique" includes the three elements of wood, fire and water, although it is mainly based on wood and fire, it also touches on water element).

The tranquil seclusion lasted for about a month. Fu Shaoping's cultivation level was completely stabilized at the early stage of the ninth level of Qi Refining, and his understanding of the Dao of Contracts deepened, especially his more intuitive understanding of concepts such as "cause and effect," "binding," and "oath." He even vaguely felt that if he could successfully establish his foundation, he might be able to develop some unique supernatural abilities on the path of "contracts."

However, this tranquility did not last.

That evening, Fu Shaoping was practicing manipulating water with his soul power by the pool, simulating simple contract runes, when suddenly, the warning array he had left outside the valley entrance was triggered!

They weren't demonic beasts, but human cultivators! And there were three of them, all with considerable cultivation, one of whom had even reached the Great Perfection of Qi Refining!
Fu Shaoping felt a chill run down his spine and immediately concealed his aura, silently climbing up into the shadowy crevice above the cave like a gecko. At the same time, he fully activated his Breath Concealment Technique and "Consciousness Technique" to sense the movements outside the valley entrance.

Three cultivators stealthily parted the vines and entered the valley. The leader was the Qi Refining Great Perfection cultivator, tall and thin, with a sinister face and sharp, eagle-like eyes. The other two were both at the ninth level of Qi Refining; one was short and stout, and the other had a scar on his face.

The three of them cautiously scanned the valley, their gazes quickly landing on the cave entrance that Fu Shaoping had repaired and the few traces left by the pool.

"Boss, someone's been here! Judging from the marks, it hasn't been long," the short, stout cultivator whispered.

The sinister cultivator crouched down, carefully examining the footprints on the ground and the creases in the grass and trees. He then sniffed the air, a glint of shrewdness flashing in his eyes: "He's a lone traveler, and his cultivation is not low, at least at the eighth level of Qi Refining. Moreover... the spiritual energy here is quite good; it might be a good place for seclusion."

"Could it be an 'idea'?" Scarface asked.

“It doesn’t seem like it. ‘Dianzi’ should have gone deeper into Fallen Soul Valley and wouldn’t have stayed here.” The sinister cultivator shook his head. “However, who cares who he is? This valley is secluded and has decent spiritual energy, making it a suitable place for us to temporarily settle down and avoid trouble. The people from the Green Wood Sect and the Golden Saber Sect are chasing us closely, so let’s rest here for a couple of days.”

"What if the master in the cave comes back..." The short, stout cultivator hesitated. (End of Chapter)