Breaking Through to Foundation Establishment

The intense pain lasted for a full half hour before slowly subsiding.

Zhao Huai, supporting himself against the side of the vat, could barely sit up. He then continued to absorb the medicinal power.

At that moment, he was drenched in sweat, as if he had just fought a great battle. His entire body was sticky, covered in a layer of gray grime, and emitted a strange odor.

However, Zhao Huai was unusually excited because he discovered that the efficiency of the True Qi circulating within his meridians had greatly increased and had been nourished by the medicinal bath.

The True Qi within his body was becoming mist-like, showing signs of transforming into True Essence.

The Foundation Establishment Pill had only initially transformed his meridians, but even this initial transformation was many times stronger than Qi Refining.

The heat flow from his Dantian began to spread, flowing throughout his body, and he slowly began to feel comfortable, as if he were in a hot spring.

Originally, Zhao Huai's bones had been strengthened by the Bone Refinement Like Jade Destiny, making them extremely hard. Now, after Marrow Cleansing and Tendon Transforming, his bones seemed to be coated with a layer of fluorescent powder, emitting a faint glow.

He was indeed following the normal Foundation Establishment process, but when the first Marrow Cleansing and Tendon Transforming ended, there was still a large amount of residual medicinal power in his body that had not been absorbed. This was because similar steps had to be performed several times.

Foundation Establishment is a process of re-purifying one's cultivation.

The advantage of choosing a safe place for seclusion was obvious. He could stay in the basement for three days and three nights without going out.

All this time was used to convert the True Qi in his body into True Essence, absorb the medicinal power, and nurture Mana.

True Essence is the academic name, while Mana is the common name.

After all, this was just the beginning.

A day and a night passed.

Zhao Huai suffered the pain of Marrow Cleansing. The same experience had to be repeated several times. Later, he gradually became numb to it. At the same time, fewer and fewer impurities emerged from his body, indicating that the Marrow Cleansing was approaching a limit.

Also, his aptitude was indeed very ordinary. If he were an excellent Sect disciple, he would probably be able to successfully enter Foundation Establishment after experiencing Marrow Cleansing once.

But he had to endure multiple times of pain.

In the following period, Zhao Huai had been adjusting his physical condition.

On the evening of the second day, he finally refined all of his True Qi into True Essence.

His meridians were filled with Mana. Compared to True Qi, they were more condensed, of higher quality, and appeared as a misty substance, like clouds.

He discovered that even though the Foundation Establishment process was already more than halfway complete, there was still a lot of medicinal power left in his body.

Zhao Huai was not polite and simply turned it all into the source of his Mana.

This was a good opportunity to increase his Mana.

His entire body became hot again. All the remaining medicinal power was mobilized by Zhao Huai, converted into more True Essence, and consolidated his cultivation.

The third day.

His entire body finally became saturated. With a "crack," it was as if a lock had been broken, and his cultivation fully entered a new stage.

Foundation Establishment Realm, complete! A flash of spiritual light passed through Zhao Huai's eyes. He felt better than ever before.

In his Lower Dantian, True Essence was abundant and his power was strong. In his Upper Dantian, which was also his Sea of Consciousness, his energy was vigorous and his mental strength was solid.

"Finally succeeded!"

Zhao Huai shouted excitedly.

His body had been tempered to be impervious to all kinds of attacks, much harder than Spirit Jade. He was invulnerable to blades and spears, possessed immense strength, and his body was like steel. All of these were now outdated descriptions, as he had entered a completely new level.

The whole process was full of hardships. Perhaps there were no earth-shattering scenes, but the changes in his body were real!

Zhao Huai stood up. Because his movements were too large, the vat under his feet shattered directly, crushed by his foot.

"Splash!"

The medicinal bath water, filled with black impurities, spilled all over the ground.

Zhao Huai scratched his head awkwardly, looking at the increasingly handsome face reflected in the water.

He clenched his fist, feeling the power in his body. The muscles in his arms were incredibly full, and his abdominal muscles were clearly defined.

This warm, explosive power made him extremely excited.

He slapped the ground with his hand, making a "splat" sound, and water splashed up.

The splashed water hovered in mid-air, slowly stopping, shimmering and glowing.

Zhao Huai gently waved his hand, and the water droplets transformed into the shape of a sharp sword, shooting out.

A faint blue sword Qi instantly formed, piercing through the underground rock layer.

"Boom!"

A considerable noise was produced, and the entire basement shook.

Just by infusing Mana into ordinary water, such powerful force could be unleashed.

If he were to learn Sword Arts and spells, what kind of effect would that have?

Thinking this, Zhao Huai became excited again.

The most urgent task was indeed to find some cultivation methods to practice.

At the same time, the Soul-Subduing Mind Technique in his Sea of Consciousness naturally reached the second stage.

Now his mental power could be released to deter foreign enemies.

In other words, it was pressure.

"It's time to leave seclusion."

Zhao Huai brushed the dust off his clothes, changed into a white robe, and left the basement.

The Huai Pawnshop was very well furnished.

The basement was located underground to the left of the study, with the kitchen on the right, and the garden in the back. Overall, it could lead to every corner.

Zhao Huai came to the study when he emerged from the basement.

The study was antique, with a rosewood Eight Immortals table inside, with talisman paper, inkstones, and several stacks of tall business records. Next to the table was a large-bellied, open-mouthed blue and white jar, with more than a dozen scrolls of rice paper paintings.

Further back was a wooden vermilion lacquer gold flower screen, vaguely revealing a corner of the bed.

Yu Qinghan was arranging a vase, carefully arranging flowers.

"My dear."

Zhao Huai's lips curled up, and his large hand was placed dishonestly on her slender waist.

Yu Qinghan heard the sound, turned her head to look, and joy appeared between her eyebrows when she saw who it was.

"Husband, have you successfully come out of seclusion?"

Zhao Huai chuckled and said, "Yes, I successfully came out of seclusion, but it took a little longer. However, I've made steady progress and had many breakthroughs."

"Cultivation is not as difficult as I imagined."

"It's good that you've broken through."

The smile on Yu Qinghan's face grew stronger, and then she deliberately pouted and taught:

"In the first three stages of Qi Refining, you only need to be diligent and hardworking, with the assistance of pills, and it's normal to cultivate faster. It won't be so simple later."

"I know, I'll continue to work hard."

Yu Qinghan saw Zhao Huai's serious appearance and showed a gratified smile, then remembered something and said:

"Husband, I'm planning to renovate the shop recently, add some furnishings, and raise some little guys, like cats and dogs, what do you think?"

"Of course, you can."

Zhao Huai agreed readily without thinking.

When he lived alone, he was used to being simple and low-key. He didn't hire servants or shop assistants, and he didn't have the patience to raise plants, let alone take care of pets.

Now that his wife had married him, the quality of life should have been improved long ago. Adding some objects, animals, and plants would always be warmer and more like a home.

"Just tell me what you need, madam, and I'll go out and buy it. I've been suffocating in the basement for three days, so I'll just go out for some fresh air."

Zhao Huai patted his chest and took the initiative to take on the errand.

Yu Qinghan took out a piece of rice paper from the table and smiled, "Then it will be hard for you, husband. I have a separate record of the items here, just buy them according to it."