I rely on learning to achieve immortality.

On the day of the final round of the Inner Sect Competition, Xu Zhou was flipping through books in his cave.

Although he said he was flipping through a book, what he was actually holding was a copy of "Introduction to Symbol Drawing" that he had already thoroughly studied.

Since gaining consciousness, Xu Zhou's reading and memory abilities have greatly improved. He can master basic texts in just a few days, and has already read through all the introductory texts on various skills in the library.

I'm just holding it and flipping through it now to pass the time, so I won't be caught off guard if something unexpected happens.

Just as he expected.

In the evening, Li Pochen also brought news.

Li Zelei won!

Upon hearing this news, Xu Zhou couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

But then came the news that Li Zelei was seriously injured and had fallen into a coma.

Xu Zhou immediately put down the books and hurried to Li Zelei's residence.

Li Zelei was lying on the bed with his eyes closed, his face pale, and he looked like he was on the verge of death.

However, after Xu Zhou took his pulse, he felt relieved.

"Senior Brother Li is fine, he's just exhausted these past few days, and what he needs most right now is rest."

Xu Zhou treated his internal injuries with acupuncture and told Yue Niang and the others not to worry. Li Zelei would regain consciousness in three days at most.

Three days later.

Xu Zhou visited again.

Li Zelei had already woken up. Although his face was still pale, he was in good spirits.

He couldn't help but sigh when he mentioned the last match three days ago.

"That day was really thrilling."

"My opponent was Elder Song's third disciple from the Transmission Hall, who had actually mastered the Palm Thunder Divine Power. His thunder magic was exceptionally fierce, and I almost couldn't withstand it."

"Fortunately, I was still one step ahead in the end, hahaha."

He spoke lightly, but Xu Zhou knew that thunder magic was always extremely powerful and strong. Li Zelei's ability to withstand the opponent's supernatural power meant that he probably had some trump card that even Xu Zhou himself didn't know about.

Xu Zhou offered a few words of praise, then asked, "Did you get the Foundation Establishment Pill, Senior Brother?"

At this point, Li Zelei's expression turned serious.

He took out a jade bottle from his pocket and shook it in his hand: "Got it."

He opened it and showed it to Xu Zhou. A refreshing fragrance wafted out, confirming that it was indeed a Foundation Establishment Pill.

Xu Zhou felt his heart beat a little faster.

Li Zelei carefully put away the jade bottle, then solemnly said, "Junior brother, now that the competition is over, I plan to spend the next six months preparing to break through to the Foundation Establishment stage as soon as possible."

Xu Zhou nodded slightly, then frowned after a moment: "Half a year...isn't that too fast?"

He remembered that Li Zelei had only recently broken through to the ninth level of Qi Refining and his cultivation had just stabilized.

"I don't have much time left."

When Li Zelei said this, his tone suddenly turned somber.

He said slowly, "After years of hardship, I don't even remember how many times I've been injured. The old wounds, big and small, have accumulated all over my body, and even with the support of body-refining techniques, my qi and blood have already deteriorated."

"I can manage to hold on for the next few years, but if I wait until I'm seventy, it will truly be too late, and there will be no chance of establishing a foundation."

Whether one's Qi and blood are abundant is a key factor in determining whether one can establish a foundation.

Normally, a cultivator's vital energy begins to decline around the age of fifty. Li Zelei cultivates both body and mind, forcibly maintaining his vital energy at its peak, but even now, he is inevitably affected by age and is gradually weakening.

Xu Zhou knew there was nothing he could do about it, so he could only nod.

"In that case, I will refine the Clearing Pill as soon as possible."

Li Zelei thanked him and handed over the essence blood and magical energy he had prepared beforehand.

Then, he took out another book and handed it over.

"This is the body-refining technique I cultivate."

A hint of helplessness flashed across Li Zelei's face: "I obtained this technique through a chance encounter, and I learned it in a muddled way, so it's really hard to summarize its characteristics."

I don't have time right now, so I'll have to trouble my junior brother to take a look. He should be able to summarize the key features.

Xu Zhou was slightly taken aback.

But he immediately nodded and accepted the book: "I understand."

Li Zelei smiled and said, "This cultivation technique can be practiced all the way to the Foundation Establishment stage, so it has some value. Consider it a small reward for my junior brother."

Xu Zhou didn't linger and quickly got up to take his leave.

After seeing him off, Li Zelei remained in the same spot.

He squinted as he looked at the saplings he had once planted in the courtyard of his cave dwelling.

This tree was planted when we first established ourselves in the sect.

At that time, he felt that he would be able to establish his foundation one day.

"The moment has finally come."

After a long while, Li Zelei stood up and walked into the inner room.

...

For a period of time afterward, Xu Zhou began to focus on developing a formula for the Clearing Pill that was suitable for Li Zelei's physique.

The formula is not difficult to deduce; with previous experience, it can be completed in just over a month.

The difficulty lies in deducing the characteristics of body-refining exercises.

This cultivation technique, which Li Zelei considered one of his trump cards, is called "Five Thunder Golden Body." It is a treasured technique that can be cultivated to the peak of the Foundation Establishment stage, and its value is no less than that of the array jade slip in his possession.

Once mastered, one's body becomes comparable to a magical artifact, easily capable of confronting monsters of the same level.

No wonder Li Zelei was able to defeat an opponent who had mastered the divine power of thunder; it was mostly due to the power of this body-refining method.

The only drawback is probably the difficulty of cultivation.

Even just getting started requires using the power of natural lightning to forge one's body.

Xu Zhou shook his head inwardly.

Qi Refining cultivators' flesh and blood bodies are no match for lightning, and they usually only begin cultivating after reaching the Foundation Establishment stage. I really don't know how Li Zelei cultivated.

No wonder he handed it over so readily; even if others watched him cultivate, it would only be courting death.

Body-refining techniques are generally not as extensive as qi-refining techniques. Xu Zhou only spent a few days reading through it.

It's not that easy to deduce its characteristics.

After all, Xu Zhou himself hadn't studied it, nor did he possess the ability to learn it. To deduce the characteristics of the technique based on this foundation was truly asking too much of him.

Fortunately, after a period of trying, he finally found a solution.

After all, the path of body refinement involves the human body and is somewhat related to the medical path he studied.

He found several common body-refining techniques in the library and, after comparing them, finally understood the meaning behind them.

Three months later, Xu Zhou had compiled all the characteristics of the technique.

Soon after, the Clearing Pill was successfully refined.

Once it was handed over to Li Zelei, Xu Zhou understood that the time for the other party to establish his foundation was approaching.

...

Two months later.

Li Pochen sent word that Li Zelei felt he was well-prepared and was about to attempt Foundation Establishment.

As previously agreed, he notified Xu Zhou in advance to come and observe.

The foundation-building site was chosen at the sect's spiritual land, Jade Forest Mountain, where the spiritual energy was mild and most suitable for breakthroughs. There was also a special quiet room prepared by the sect for breakthroughs.

The meditation room was equipped with a second-tier spirit-gathering array and a mind-calming array to ensure that cultivators practicing and breaking through within it could avoid external influencing factors as much as possible. In addition, a bottle of Jade Spirit Elixir was provided for cultivators to restore their mana at critical moments.

Li Zelei also paid a considerable price to obtain the right to use the quiet room once.

After several days of travel, Xu Zhou arrived at Yulin Mountain.

"Senior Brother Li, I'm not late, am I?"

He arrived at the agreed-upon quiet room and saw that Li Zelei had already arrived, so he went up to him and said something.

Li Zelei, dressed in white, was in peak condition, and smiled as he heard this, saying, "It's not too late, there's still some time before I go in."

Xu Zhou turned his head to look to the side.

Standing beside Li Zelei were the three sons of the Li family, led by Li Pojing.

Wang Shu was too young to come and watch, so Yue Niang took her home and waited for news.

Besides the three teenagers, there were two fellow cultivators standing to the side.

"Junior brother, let me introduce you."

Li Zelei pointed to one of the men with a simple and honest appearance: "This is Senior Brother Tong Jin, who is also a skilled weapon refiner. I have quite a few magical artifacts, which I obtained from him."

Then came another cultivator dressed as a scholar: "This is Senior Brother Ouyang Ming, with profound cultivation and extraordinary skills. He is also my family's master. You two can get to know each other better."

Xu Zhou bowed respectfully.

He thought to himself that the two people in front of him must have also reached an agreement with Senior Brother Li to come here and observe his Foundation Establishment.

The other two returned the greeting, their attitude even more cordial.

Although Xu Zhou had the lowest cultivation level here, as an alchemist, he was often more respected by cultivators of the same level. For a time, the three of them implicitly regarded him as the most respected.

After a brief conversation, Li Zelei finally smiled slightly and stood up.

"Gentlemen, it's time."

He cupped his hands in greeting to the crowd, but said nothing more.

Xu Zhou and the others wished him success and then watched him enter the quiet room.

The stone gate closed, and there was no more sound.

The formation was activated, and spiritual energy gathered like a tide, slowly flowing into the quiet room.

Xu Zhou stood still, his gaze focused.

A long silence ensued.

Foundation building has begun.