Purchasing a Foundation Establishment Pill

On the road of life, it was impossible to charge forward in triumph forever. Ups and downs were normal.

For instance, in the thousand years since the Lu Clan was founded, it had encountered all kinds of crises and powerful enemies that nearly wiped it out. At its bleakest, the clan had possessed only a single Qi Refining Layer 9 cultivator. Yet after that cultivator achieved Foundation Establishment, he rebuilt the Lu Clan, and it later flourished again.

The Lu Clan was in rather miserable straits now, but compared with certain periods in its history, it was still doing fairly well.

Not long afterward, he met his father and mother again.

Many people had died in the Battle of Ziyang Mountain.

His father, Lu Jinwen, had happened to be away at the time, while his mother, Ye Xinlan, had gone to visit relatives in the Ye Family.

They had escaped disaster.

Seeing that both his parents were still alive, Lu Xuanji was greatly relieved.

Yet it also confirmed one thing: he was not the protagonist.

Protagonists had parents sacrificed to the heavens and were born orphans. Yet he had both parents alive and well, so he was clearly not the protagonist.

But then, who was the protagonist?

Ye Feixue.

In her childhood, Ye Feixue had nearly been drowned by her mother. Later, she became a child bride and suffered hardship and torment in that household. At thirteen, she encountered an immortal and embarked on the path of cultivation. At fifty, she entered the Foundation Establishment Realm; at one hundred, the Purple Mansion; at two hundred, the Golden Core; at four hundred, the Nascent Soul Stage; and at one thousand, Spirit Transformation.

Ten thousand years later, she became an immortal in a single stroke and ascended to the Immortal Realm.

After ascending to the Immortal Realm, she attained the Dao as an Immortal Emperor in one stroke one hundred and twenty thousand years later, known as Empress Feixue.

She once said that she did not seek immortality, only to meet him again after endless years had passed.

After attaining the Dao as an Immortal Emperor, she forcefully reversed time and space, resurrecting her former Dao companion, Lu Xuanji, from the river of time.

The plot was perfect, the character setting perfect—a female version of Renegade Immortal.

The only imperfect part was a certain supporting male character named "Lu Xuanji."

Haha!

Lu Xuanji shook his head and stopped thinking such random nonsense.

"Son, there's something you need to be prepared for."

After recounting what had happened over the years, his father spoke with a grave expression.

"Father, what happened?"

Lu Xuanji asked.

"Son, Ziyang Mountain was breached, and the Lu Clan's herb garden was destroyed. Thirty Jade Marrow Mushrooms had been planted there, and two of them were originally meant to be used to refine Foundation Establishment Pills. But with Ziyang Mountain breached and Fifth Uncle fallen, the clan has no Alchemist."

"We lack both ingredients and an Alchemist, so the Foundation Establishment Pills must be bought externally. Purchasing one requires at least twenty thousand Spirit Stones. I have a little over five thousand Spirit Stones here. For the other fifteen thousand, we can only borrow from the clan."

Father Lu Jinwen spoke of a matter of utmost importance: purchasing a Foundation Establishment Pill.

In the past, the Lu Clan had medicinal ingredients and Alchemists. It could supply its own Foundation Establishment Pills and even sell the surplus for profit.

Exchanging for one within the clan required only ten thousand Spirit Stones.

If one did not have enough money, one could even buy on credit and pay it back later.

It was like taking out a mortgage to buy a house in his previous life.

But purchasing a Foundation Establishment Pill externally required at least twenty thousand Spirit Stones, and credit was not allowed. It had to be paid in full at once.

"Does the clan have the money to buy me a Foundation Establishment Pill?" Lu Xuanji asked.

"In the past, let alone twenty thousand Spirit Stones, even two hundred thousand would have been nothing. But not now. We can barely scrape it together," Father Lu Jinwen said.

"Father, I have more than eight thousand Spirit Stones."

He had intended to keep them in his private stash, but gritting his teeth, Lu Xuanji took out a storage pouch and handed it over.

"Eight thousand Spirit Stones? How do you have so many?"

His father asked suspiciously.

"The Ancestor gave them to me," Lu Xuanji said. In any case, whenever something came up, he could simply pin it on the Ancestor. The dead could not speak to defend themselves.

"I see."

His father nodded.

More than eight thousand Spirit Stones was somewhat excessive. But for someone at the Ancestor's level, it was nothing much.

According to clan rules, Purple Mansion Ancestors received fifty percent of the clan's resources, Foundation Establishment Cultivators received forty percent, and the remaining Qi Refining Cultivators received ten percent. Lu Fuming, as a Purple Mansion cultivator, had the authority to allocate fifty percent of the clan's wealth. Giving a junior over ten thousand Spirit Stones as pocket money was nothing unusual.

"That makes sixteen thousand. We're still short four thousand, which we can borrow from the clan."

Father Lu Jinwen pondered and planned how to purchase a Foundation Establishment Pill for his son.

His son was already at Qi Refining Layer 8. At most, he would reach Qi Refining Layer 9 within Five Years, then spend no more than another Five Years steadily polishing his foundation and refining his true qi.

They had to buy him a Foundation Establishment Pill within ten years.

Only then could they be prepared for anything.

They had to start acting now, seek out channels, and purchase a Foundation Establishment Pill for his son.

Foundation Establishment Pills were extremely important.

Only those with a Heavenly Spirit Root could achieve Foundation Establishment with one hundred percent certainty without a Foundation Establishment Pill. Those with a Variant Spirit Root had a seventy percent chance of success, while those with a Dual Spirit Root had a fifty percent chance.

Throughout history, there had been cultivators with Variant Spirit Roots and Dual Spirit Roots who believed themselves extraordinary geniuses. They attempted to break through to the Foundation Establishment Realm without a Foundation Establishment Pill, only to perish on the spot.

Life was not a gamble, because one could not afford to lose. One only had one life.

Even a ninety percent chance of success could still end in failure.

Without a Foundation Establishment Pill, attempting to break through to the Foundation Establishment Realm meant either success or death.

With a Foundation Establishment Pill, even if one failed, one could still preserve one's life.

"Don't go stirring up trouble lately. Stay in secluded cultivation at Changyuan Mountain!" Father Lu Jinwen said. "Study Spirit Planting more, especially how to cultivate Jade Marrow Mushrooms. Relying solely on buying Foundation Establishment Pills from outside means not only unstable medicinal efficacy, but also limited quantities. We must strive for self-sufficiency instead of letting others hold us by the throat."

His father repeatedly warned him. This son was good in every way, except that he possessed a mysterious confidence, loved to gamble, dared to fight and strive, and dared to kill.

Such a character was valiant and aggressive, and his progress was Fast Speed.

Its flaw was that he could easily slam into a wall and die on impact.

After saying a few things, Lu Xuanji departed.

On Changyuan Mountain, he opened up Spirit Fields, planted spirit herbs and medicinal grasses, and made plans for the future.

Most of the Lu Clan's industries had been lost. Only a few shops remained in the market district, along with a Spirit Stone mine. The clan's enterprises had shrunk, and it could only live by carefully calculating every expense.

Fortunately, the clan's economy was self-sufficient. It produced its own spirit herbs and Spirit Rice, so there was no need to buy them externally.

Many low-grade talismans and low-grade magical artifacts could be refined by certain clan elders and supplied to the clan's cultivators.

Moreover, with no middlemen taking a cut, profits remained at twenty percent, and prices were not too high.

Within the Cave Dwelling of the Grand Elder, everything was exceedingly simple, without any unnecessary adornments.

The Grand Elder had once loved extravagance, but after the clan's destruction, when rebuilding the Lu Clan, he had become exceptionally frugal.

Seeing the state of the Cave Dwelling, Lu Jinwen frowned slightly.

"Jinwen, you're here."

"Greetings, Seventh Uncle."

After host and guest took their seats, Lu Jinwen said, "It is time to prepare a Foundation Establishment Pill for Xuanji."

"That is necessary." Lu Tianyi said, "Pills waiting for people are always better than people waiting for pills. A Foundation Establishment Pill cannot be delayed. Buying one requires at least twenty thousand Spirit Stones. How much do you have?"

"Sixteen thousand Spirit Stones. We still need the clan to provide four thousand."

Lu Jinwen spoke calmly.

"Four thousand Spirit Stones won't be enough. The clan must provide at least another ten thousand. Only twenty-six thousand in total will make it possible." Lu Tianyi stated the price.

"So expensive."

Lu Jinwen said, unconsciously clenching his fists. He, too, felt the money burning away.

"Is that a lot of money? Very much so." Lu Tianyi sneered. "Some people want to use Foundation Establishment Pills to ruthlessly fleece Rogue Cultivators and low-level cultivators. Now our Lu Clan has become one of those being fleeced. We must cultivate Alchemists for the clan, and our cultivation of spirit herbs must keep up as well."

"By the way, I must remain stationed at Changyuan Mountain and cannot leave. This time, you and Jinxiu will go. Two Foundation Establishment Cultivators will be enough to keep the Foundation Establishment Pill safe."

PS: Seeking readership, seeking reward