Mortal: I have a Spirit Gathering Cauldron

"I've already reached the thirteenth level of Qi Refining, I need to find a new place to break through to the Foundation Establishment stage," Lin Feng decided.

Although the spiritual energy deep within the mine was decent, it was still inferior to the cave dwellings specially prepared by sects for Foundation Establishment cultivators. He currently had mid-grade spirit stones, so he wasn't worried about the rent.

Lin Feng left the mine and went to the area within the sect specifically used for secluded cultivation.

It was a cluster of cave dwellings located halfway up the main peak, built against the mountain, filled with spiritual energy.

The cave dwellings are divided into four levels: A, B, C, and D. Level A is the best, with the highest concentration of spiritual energy, but it is also the most expensive, costing one mid-grade spirit stone per month.

"Rent a Grade A cave dwelling." Lin Feng stood at the registration desk and slammed a mid-grade spirit stone onto the table.

The steward in charge of registration looked up at him, his gaze lingering for a moment on the outer disciple token at his waist, but he didn't ask any further questions.

It's rare for outer sect disciples to rent a Grade A cave dwelling, but it's not unheard of. Recently, the Blood Forbidden Zone just ended, and quite a few disciples rented cave dwellings to break through.

"Grade A, Cave No. 3, one month." The steward handed him a jade token. "It will automatically renew when the time is up."

Lin Feng took the jade token and found Cave No. 3.

The cave entrance was carved from a single piece of bluestone, with restrictive array patterns engraved on it. He channeled spiritual energy into the jade tablet, and the stone door slowly opened.

The cave was small, but its layout was exquisite. There was a cultivation room, a rest room, a storage room, and even a small spiritual spring pool. The concentration of spiritual energy was nearly 30% higher than in the depths of the mine, and one could feel the spiritual energy permeating their pores with every breath.

"Not bad, worth the price." Lin Feng nodded in satisfaction.

He spent half a day setting up his own basic spirit-gathering array in the cultivation room. Mid-grade spirit stones were embedded into the array's core, the array patterns lit up, and the concentration of spiritual energy increased again, but the increase was not as significant as before.

"The beginner-level spirit gathering array has reached its limit." Lin Feng sensed the concentration of spiritual energy and had a clear understanding of the situation. "After I reach the Foundation Establishment stage, I'll need to get a mid-level spirit gathering array, otherwise my cultivation speed won't be able to keep up."

But that's for later.

Now, all his attention is focused on one thing: foundation building.

Lin Feng first took a good nap in the rest room. After waking up, he sat cross-legged in the center of the cultivation room, closed his eyes to rest and adjust his state.

one day.

He did nothing but sit quietly, breathing deeply, adjusting his body and mind to their optimal state.

The spiritual energy in his dantian had accumulated to the thirteenth level of Qi Refining, like a vat of water about to overflow. His meridians were slightly swollen from the spiritual energy, and he could feel the spiritual energy flowing through his body with every breath.

"That's about it."

Lin Feng opened his eyes, took out a porcelain bottle from his storage bag, and poured out a high-quality Foundation Establishment Pill.

The pill was slightly smaller than a regular Foundation Establishment Pill, pale gold in color, with fine patterns on its surface, and a rich but not pungent medicinal fragrance. He held the pill in his hand, examined it for a moment, then took a deep breath and put it in his mouth.

The elixir entered the stomach.

There was no violent reaction as I had imagined.

A warm medicinal power slowly spread from the dantian, like a ball of warm water flowing through the body, warm and comforting, indescribably so.

He closed his eyes and activated the "Nourishing Essence" technique, guiding the medicinal power through his meridians.

One cycle, two cycles, three cycles...

The medicinal power circulated within the body along with the spiritual energy, leaving behind a trace of pure spiritual energy each time it passed through the dantian. The spiritual energy in the dantian grew increasingly concentrated and thick, like a pot of porridge being simmered.

Several hours later, the changes began.

A sudden heat surged from his dantian, as if a fire was burning within it, growing ever stronger and more intense. At the same time, his limbs and the rest of his body felt icy cold, as if he were immersed in ice water.

A mixture of hot and cold, a world of extremes.

Fine beads of sweat appeared on Lin Feng's forehead, and his face was slightly pale, but he could still endure it. He gritted his teeth and continued to circulate his internal energy without stopping.

"It's easier than I expected," he thought to himself. "That kid Han Li was in excruciating pain, but my pain is much less. Could it be because of the high-quality Foundation Establishment Pill?"

The moment the thought crossed his mind, the sharp pain in his dantian suddenly intensified.

It felt as if countless needles were simultaneously piercing the inner wall of his dantian, one after another, rapidly and densely. Lin Feng let out a muffled groan, his body trembling slightly, but he quickly regained his composure.

He can withstand that level of pain.

The stinging pain lasted for about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, then suddenly transformed into countless warm currents that erupted from the dantian, spreading throughout the body along the meridians and even penetrating deep into the bone marrow.

Wherever the warm current reached, a tingling, numb sensation spread through my bones, as if something was being washed away and peeled away little by little.

Yi Jin Xi Sui.

Lin Feng knew that this was the most crucial step.

A grayish substance began to seep from his skin, sticky and viscous, emitting an indescribable strange smell. It was impurities that had accumulated in his body for over a decade, now being forced out by the medicine.

The gray substance seeped in more and more, sticking to his skin like a layer of mud. Lin Feng ignored the nausea and continued to circulate his internal energy, guiding the warm current through his body.

A warm current surged through his meridians, cleansing every inch of them. His bones became denser, his muscles stronger, and even his consciousness became clearer than before.

This feeling is wonderful.

It's like being reborn, having completely transformed myself from the inside out.

The warm current lasted for about two hours before it began to gradually weaken.

Without hesitation, Lin Feng immediately took out the second premium Foundation Establishment Pill and put it in his mouth.

The same stinging, the same warm current, the same tingling and itching all over my body. More gray substance seeped out from my skin, sticking to the already dried first layer, like applying another layer of putty to the mud shell.

Lin Feng disregarded all of this and focused all his energy on circulating his cultivation technique, guiding the medicinal power to impact his dantian.

The spiritual energy in his dantian grew increasingly dense and thick, like a pot of boiling magma. The gaseous true essence began to change under high pressure. The originally light and ethereal spiritual energy gradually became dense and viscous, like water vapor turning into water droplets.

Liquid.

The spiritual energy transformed into a liquid state.

Lin Feng's heart skipped a beat, and he began to practice his cultivation technique even more diligently.

When the second pill's medicinal power was exhausted, a small portion of the spiritual energy in the dantian had already transformed into liquid. That liquid true essence floated at the bottom of the dantian, like tiny water droplets, crystal clear, radiating a soft light.

The third pill was swallowed.

This time, the stinging sensation was slightly less than the previous two times. The warm current was also more turbulent, like a flood bursting its banks, rampaging through his meridians. Lin Feng gritted his teeth, guiding every drop of the medicinal power into his dantian.

The amount of liquid true essence in the dantian is increasing.

When the medicinal power of the third pill was exhausted, almost 80% of the gaseous true essence in the dantian was transformed into liquid.

Lin Feng didn't stop; he took out the fourth Foundation Establishment Pill and swallowed it.

The fourth one.

The medicinal power transformed into a warm current that surged into the dantian, like a heavy hammer slamming into that ball of half-air and half-liquid true essence.

"boom--"

A booming sound filled Lin Feng's mind, and his entire dantian trembled.

The gaseous true essence seemed to have been shattered by something, the fragments merging into the liquid and disappearing without a trace. In that instant, all the gaseous true essence in the dantian transformed into liquid.

A drop of thick, liquid mana essence floated in the center of his dantian, crystal clear and radiating a pale golden light. It was only the size of a fingernail, but the spiritual power it contained was more abundant than all the spiritual power in his entire body when he was at the thirteenth level of Qi Refining.

Foundation building.

It became.

Lin Feng was overjoyed, but he didn't stop.

The medicinal power of the fourth Foundation Building Pill had not yet been exhausted, and there was still a considerable amount of residual medicinal power circulating in his meridians. He closed his eyes and circulated the "Nourish the Origin Chapter" again and again, refining and absorbing every trace of medicinal power and bringing it into his dantian.

The liquid true essence slowly grew, transforming into a round and full water droplet, which floated in the center of the dantian and slowly rotated.

When the last trace of the medicine was absorbed, Lin Feng finally awoke from that wonderful experience.

He opened his eyes.

The world has changed.

It wasn't that he had truly changed, but rather that his divine sense had become more acute and clearer. The trajectory of every speck of dust in the cultivation room, the flow of every drop of water in the spiritual spring pool—all were clearly reflected in his divine sense, like a high-resolution image.

The spiritual sense of someone in the Foundation Establishment stage is several times stronger than that of someone in the Qi Refining stage.

Lin Feng looked down at himself.

His body was covered in a thick layer of gray substance, dried and cracked, like wearing armor made of mud. A pungent, strange smell entered his nostrils, causing him to gag.

"Damn, it stinks."

He stood up and stretched. His bones cracked and popped, and his muscles were brimming with power. He clenched his fist, feeling like he could kill a bull with a single punch.

Lin Feng strode into the spirit spring pool, took off his filthy robes, and jumped into the water.

The cool, clear spring water washed away the grime from my body. Layers of gray mud peeled away, revealing the fair, delicate skin beneath. My skin after Foundation Establishment was far superior to before, smooth as a peeled egg.

Lin Feng scrubbed himself for a long time before finally getting himself clean.

He took out a clean set of clothes from his storage bag, changed into them, stood by the spirit spring pool, and looked at his reflection in the water.

A delicate face was reflected in the water.

Her facial features are more defined than before, her skin is whiter, and her eyes are deep and calm. She looks like she has been edited with a beauty filter.

"I'm even more handsome now." Lin Feng touched his face narcissistically. "Cultivating immortality really does make one more beautiful."

He walked back to the cultivation room, sat down cross-legged, and focused his inner vision on his dantian.

His dantian had expanded several times compared to when he was in the Qi Refining stage. In the center, a liquid true essence the size of a longan was suspended, pale golden in color, crystal clear, and slowly rotating. The true essence contained a vast amount of spiritual power, and with each rotation, pure spiritual power overflowed from the true essence, flowing through his meridians and throughout his body.

Early stage of foundation building.

The medicinal power of the four high-quality Foundation Establishment Pills had completely stabilized his cultivation level in the early stages of Foundation Establishment.

"Four will be enough," Lin Feng murmured, glancing at the remaining high-quality Foundation Establishment Pill in his storage bag. "This one was upgraded by the Spirit Gathering Cauldron; let's keep it for now."

He stood up, took a few steps in the cultivation room, and felt the body of a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

The speed is faster, the strength is greater, and the spiritual sense can reach further.

"Finally, I'm no longer a lowly ant," Lin Feng sighed. "Now I can be considered a senior uncle."

Finally, I can spend mid-grade spirit stones a little more openly. Just thinking about it makes me happy.

But there are still the late stages of Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, Nascent Soul, and Deity Transformation... the road ahead is still very long.

Lin Feng took a deep breath, suppressed his excitement, and sat down cross-legged again.

Foundation Establishment is just the first step; the road ahead is long. I haven't even started practicing the cultivation techniques required for Foundation Establishment, I haven't obtained the Great Evolution Technique, and I haven't even ventured into the Chaotic Star Sea…

"Take it one step at a time." Lin Feng closed his eyes and continued to circulate his cultivation technique to stabilize his strength.

Inside the cave, spiritual energy surged.

With the foundation laid, the path ahead is promising.