Mortal: Traveling Between Two Realms with Mei Ning to Pick Up Trash

After the father and son left, the shop was quiet for a while.

Master He stroked his beard, his gaze returning from the doorway. He sighed, "This child does seem to have some destiny." He picked up a chess piece, then put it down again. "I just don't know if it's a blessing or a curse."

Han Li picked up his teacup but remained silent.

Master He sat back down at the chessboard. "Come, come, we haven't had enough fun yet."

……

Days passed by like this.

Zhou Yu pushed open the window. The bamboo leaves had already begun to turn yellow. He was stunned for a moment before he realized that this was the third autumn since he came to Qingzhu Xiaoxuan.

Every morning, I would get up early and watch Qu Hun wipe the counter, watch Master He come down from the mountain and set up the chessboard, and occasionally a customer would buy something.

Of course, the people keeping watch outside were still there. Zhou Yu hadn't expected them to be so persistent. It seemed like the Giant Shark Sect was going up against him. Fortunately, they didn't dare to make a move inside the Green Bamboo Pavilion. It seemed he could only wait until he broke through to the Foundation Establishment stage before discussing anything else.

It's not that I don't want to take out that calligraphy brush to take a look, but Han Li is right next to me, and I'm afraid that he'll lock onto it with his divine sense as soon as I take it out.

Xiao Long would come over every few days. After he tested his spiritual root, he seemed to be injected with some kind of energy and spirit, and he walked with a swagger.

Master He also liked Xiaolong. He thought Xiaolong had talent and wanted to teach him, but unfortunately Xiaolong only wanted to cultivate immortality.

……

"Little Zhou, your talent is truly remarkable," Master He said as he placed a piece, his tone tinged with admiration. "You've reached the peak of Qi Refining in just three years, and you'll be on your way to Foundation Establishment soon, won't you?"

Zhou Yu smiled, cupped his hands, and said, "Mr. He, you're too kind. I was just lucky."

Han Li also glanced at Zhou Yu. He hadn't expected Zhou Yu to be so talented. Three years ago, the Qi Refining cultivator who was chased to the brink of despair by the Giant Shark Sect and sought refuge in a shop had now reached the threshold of Foundation Establishment.

Just then, a figure darted in through the door.

"Hey! Today's Heavenly Star Daily contains a spirit stone!"

Xiao Long stood in front of the counter, panting, holding a stack of newspapers. His face was covered in sweat; he had clearly run there.

He has grown a lot taller than he did three years ago. He used to only reach Zhou Yu's waist, but now he's almost up to his chest.

Han Li didn't even look up as a spirit stone flew from between his fingers. Xiao Long caught it with a clean and swift motion, clearly showing he had practiced.

He put the newspaper on the counter and, without even leaving, started rambling on and on.

"Speaking of which, Tianxing City has been quite turbulent lately! The young master of the Qingyang Sect is in trouble. I heard he was ambushed and seriously injured, and he's still in bed!" Xiaolong gestured as he spoke, his tone exaggerated like a storyteller. "And several factions are fighting tooth and nail over some fragment of a map! I heard the fighting outside the city was so fierce it turned the sky dark, and even the city guards were alerted!"

Master He stroked his beard, listening intently, while Han Li remained expressionless, watching the chessboard.

Xiao Long continued rambling, "And also, it seems the Miaoyin Sect is also planning something big. I heard their sect leader has started seclusion..."

Xiao Long recounted all the interesting things happening in the city until his throat was dry. He poured himself a cup of tea and gulped it down.

"By the way, Brother Zhou," he looked at Zhou Yu, "when are you going to reach Foundation Establishment? Once you do, could you take me for a spin?"

Zhou Yu flicked his finger on his head, "Go and get there yourself when you reach Foundation Establishment."

Xiao Long covered his forehead and pouted.

Master He laughed heartily.

After a while, seeing that the three of them were focused on the chessboard, Xiaolong ran off like a whirlwind.

Master He turned his head and watched the little dragon run away.

Zhou Yu called out to him, and he finally came to his senses.

"This kid," he smiled, "is like me when I was young."

After speaking, Master He lowered his head and picked up the chess pieces he had captured one by one, putting them into the chess box.

There was a moment of silence.

Then Master He raised his head and said, "Come on, let's continue."

The shop quieted down, with only the sound of chess pieces hitting the board.

Master He placed his last piece, clapped his hands, and announced, "I've won."

Zhou Yu looked at the appalling black pieces on the board and gave a wry smile. Over the past few years, he could count the number of games he had won against Master He on one hand. But despite his losses, his chess skills had indeed improved.

"Another plate?" Master He stroked his beard and asked with a smile.

Just as Zhou Yu was about to reply, he suddenly felt something move in his dantian.

It felt as if something had awakened deep within my dantian, vibrating gently and slowly. The feeling was hard to describe; it was like a seed sprouting in the soil, pushing aside the stones pressing down on it.

Zhou Yu's hand froze in mid-air; he didn't reach for the chess piece.

Master He noticed something amiss, put down the white chess piece in his hand, and looked at Zhou Yu's face. "What's wrong?"

Han Li also raised his head.

Zhou Yu did not answer. He closed his eyes and focused his consciousness into his dantian.

My heart started racing.

An opportunity to lay the foundation.

He had read countless books on Foundation Establishment, asked Master He, and also subtly inquired about it with Han Li.

Foundation building cannot be achieved by brute force; it requires a special opportunity. Some people may spend months in seclusion cultivating diligently, accumulating countless pills, yet still fail to break through. Others, on an ordinary afternoon, while walking along the road, may suddenly have a sudden inspiration, and the breakthrough will come naturally.

Of course, whether this is true or not is debatable. It's possible that the dosage wasn't high enough, like Han Li, who was boosted by taking drugs.

But I don't have that many Foundation Establishment Pills.

"Old He," Zhou Yu opened his eyes, his voice a few decibels lower than usual, "Manager, I..."

Master He paused for a moment, then his eyes lit up. "Is he about to break through?"

Han Li also put down his teacup, his gaze lingering on Zhou Yu for a moment.

"Go to the backyard," Han Li said briefly.

Zhou Yu stood up, cupped his hands in greeting to Master He and Han Li, and then turned and walked towards the backyard.

After Zhou Yu disappeared.

"Do you think this kid can make it?" Master He asked.

Han Li picked up his teacup, took a sip, and said, "Yes."

Master He glanced at him, put the white piece back in the chess box, and asked, "Are you so sure?"

Han Li remained silent.

Master He sighed, stood up, walked to the backyard gate, glanced inside, and then came back.

"I'm not playing anymore," Master He said. "We'll wait until he comes out before playing again."

……

The backyard wasn't large, with a few green bamboo stalks, a stone table, and two stone benches. Zhou Yu sat down on the stone benches, but then felt it wasn't secure enough, so he simply sat cross-legged on the ground, leaning against an old bamboo stalk.

He took out the Foundation Establishment Pill from his storage bag.

He held the pill in his palm, looked at it for a while, and then put it in his mouth.

The pill melted instantly upon entering the mouth, and a warm medicinal power slid down the throat, like a warm current, slowly sinking into the dantian.

The changes in his dantian suddenly intensified.

The cyclone began to spin faster and faster, and the dense, fog-like spiritual energy was flung outwards by centrifugal force, creating a smaller and smaller hole in the center.

It felt like someone was pumping air into his dantian, one breath after another, stretching it until it felt like it was about to burst.

Zhou Yu gritted his teeth, veins bulging on his forehead, and beads of sweat rolling down his face.

But he didn't panic.

He had read the classics and knew this was normal.

The foundation-building process involves compressing gaseous spiritual energy into a liquid state, dispersing the vortex, condensing the spiritual energy, and expanding the dantian. Each step is accompanied by pain, but each step is a necessary step. Following the methods of the *Canglang Manual*, he guided the compressed spiritual energy to circulate through his meridians, one circle, two circles, three circles…

I don't know how much time has passed.

The light in the backyard flickered between dim and bright. Bamboo leaves fell on his shoulder, only to be repelled by the spiritual pressure emanating from him.

Zhou Yu's breathing changed from rapid to even, and then from even to long.

The thick fog in his dantian finally dissipated.

Instead, it was liquid.

Zhou Yu opened his eyes.

It was already dawn. He didn't know how long he had been sitting in the backyard, but judging from the sky, it must have been the early morning of the next day.

The dew on the bamboo leaves hadn't dried yet; a gust of wind blew, and it pattered down onto my shoulder.

He looked down at his hands; they were still the same hands, but they felt different.

Foundation building.

Zhou Yu stood up, his knees were a little stiff, and it took him a while to recover.

He walked to the stone table in the courtyard, took out the horizontal sword from his storage bag, and the moment the blade was drawn, the silver-white light was dazzling. It was not the faint light of before, but a solid, almost tangible aura.

Then a message popped into my mind.

Taiyi Splitting Light Blade.

It can split the emitted sword light into two, then into four, until it covers the sky and the earth.

When multiple sword lights attack the same target simultaneously, they will re-merge upon contact. Foundation Establishment stage can use eight sword lights, which is equivalent to four times the power of a single strike from the main body. This can be increased to 256 sword lights by the Nascent Soul stage, which is equivalent to 40 times the power of a single strike from the main body.

Zhou Yu opened his eyes. He was surprised to find that this sword required Foundation Establishment to refine, which was a pleasant surprise and could be considered as making up for the lack of his offensive methods.

Sheathed the sword.

He then took out the Immortal Binding Net, infused it with spiritual power, and the net unfolded. The silver net threads were several times brighter than before, and the speed at which it contracted was as fast as lightning. With his current spiritual power, he should no longer have to worry about exhausting himself in activating this net.

Zhou Yu packed his things away, took a deep breath, and pushed open the door leading to the front shop.

Qu Hun was reading a book behind the counter, Han Li was sitting by the chessboard with a cup of tea in his hand. The tea had gone cold and he didn't know how long it had been sitting there. Master He was sitting opposite him, holding a white chess piece in his hand.

The three people looked up at him at the same time.

Master He looked Zhou Yu up and down, stroked his beard, and smiled. "Foundation Establishment?"

Zhou Yu cupped his hands in greeting, unable to suppress a smile, and said, "I've reached Foundation Establishment."

Han Li picked up the glass of iced tea, took a sip, and put it down. "Not bad."

Master He slammed the white chess piece on the board and said with a smile, "Come on, you've reached the Foundation Establishment stage! Let's play a game to celebrate!"

Zhou Yu sat down opposite him and picked up a black chess piece.

The chessboard is still the same chessboard, and the chess pieces are still the same chess pieces.

The black pieces are solid, the white pieces are smooth, and they land on the board with a crisp sound, just like every day for the past three years.

However, Zhou Yu's hand was much steadyer than before when he placed the pieces. It wasn't that he wasn't nervous; rather, his mindset was naturally different after reaching the Foundation Establishment stage.

Master He's first move was the same as always, landing on the star point with an aggressive air. He glanced at Zhou Yu's response, shook his head, stroked his beard, and sighed, "Why is your chess still like this? You're making rapid progress in your cultivation, but you're not improving at all in the way of chess."

Zhou Yu smiled, unhurried and unperturbed, picked up a black piece and placed it steadily on the low position. "I just don't want to lose too quickly. Only by staying alive can I turn the tide. I don't seek to win, I only seek not to lose."

"Not seeking victory, but only seeking not to lose?" Master He chewed on those words for a moment, then suddenly laughed, "Interesting, very interesting."

He laughed and laughed, but then his voice trailed off.

"I don't seek to win, I only seek not to lose..." he repeated it again, as if he were talking to himself.

Then he placed a piece, saying, "That's also a way of life."

Han Li sat upright to the side, holding a teacup in his hand, his gaze sweeping across the chessboard.

Outside the window, the bamboo shadows sway gently, rustling softly in the wind.