The Late Foundation Establishment Paradox

After a night, Lu Yang walked out of the cave abode, yawned deeply, and looked radiant, as if he had been resurrected, full of energy.

"Um--"

"I'm alive again!" Lu Yang moved his body and felt full of energy.

A good night's rest really helped.

Lu Yang recalled the destruction of the Immortal Sect as if it had happened yesterday, his memory still vivid.

Lu Yang noticed that the Immortal Fairy was fast asleep in the spiritual space. When she slept, the Immortal Fairy was serene and elegant, with an unparalleled beauty and curvaceous body, perfectly matching the world's impression of the word "fairy".

When the Immortal Fairy is silent, she can very well intimidate those who don't know her.

A rare moment of peace and quiet.

"But do souls also need to sleep?"

Lu Yang recalled the millet pillow used by the Immortal Fairy and could only attribute her sleeping habits to "hobbies".

Feeling the hazy sunlight of dawn, the spiritual energy within his body involuntarily accelerated, as if new power was surging within him.

"We're almost at the Foundation Establishment Late Stage."

Lu Yang muttered to himself, then sat cross-legged on the spot, palms facing upwards, and silently circulated the <Enlightenment and Realization Technique>.

The spiritual energy within his body flowed faster and faster according to the Cultivation Method, constantly cleansing Lu Yang's body and strengthening every part of it.

Lu Yang tried to take this opportunity to strengthen his hair, but found it was to no avail.

"I wonder how Meng Jingzhou trained his hair."

Lu Yang recalled that when Meng Jingzhou fought against the Five Elements Sect, he used his hair to strike his opponent, and the effect was outstanding.

He cast aside distractions, calmed himself, and allowed his body to merge with nature. The Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi continuously flowed into his body, and he exhaled the Spiritual Qi, giving back to heaven and earth.

In this process, his level of understanding continued to improve.

"Huh? What are you doing? Cultivating?" The Immortal Fairy woke up, rubbing her eyes, still groggy.

She sensed that Lu Yang's cultivation level was constantly improving, but she always felt that something was wrong.

"No, I'm advancing in my cultivation level," Lu Yang explained seriously.

"I am now at the Foundation Establishment Late Stage."

"Oh, so you're almost at the Foundation Establishment Late Stage?"

"It'll be soon, but I've thought of a problem."

What is it?

"I'm currently at the Foundation Establishment Late Stage. If I take another half-step, will I be even closer to the Foundation Establishment Late Stage?"

"Yes."

"If I take another half-step, wouldn't I be even closer than before?"

"Right."

"If I keep taking half a step forward from where I am, will I get closer and closer to the Foundation Establishment Late Stage?"

The immortal fairy nodded, seemingly bewildered.

"I've been breaking through realms, but I can't reach the Foundation Establishment Late Stage. Does this mean that the Foundation Establishment Late Stage is just an illusory realm, and no one actually reaches it?"

The Immortal Fairy frowned and thought for a moment, then decided that she was probably still half asleep and should go back to sleep.

The immortal fairy tilted her head and went back to sleep.

Even after the Immortal Fairy fell asleep, Lu Yang was still pondering this philosophical question.

What is the answer to this question? Is my constant pursuit of breakthroughs in cultivation level meaningless? Or does the Foundation Establishment Late Stage even exist?

The puppet hiding in the shadows couldn't stand it any longer, so it secretly ran behind Lu Yang and kicked him.

Lu Yang relaxed his efforts, but successfully took another half step forward.

Foundation Establishment Late Stage!

"Who kicked me!"

Lu Yang turned around abruptly, but the puppet had already vanished.

Even if the puppet escaped, Lu Yang could still guess that it was the puppet's doing.

Apart from Lu Yang, only the puppet on the entire Heaven Gate Peak was still able to move.

"Forget it, I won't stoop to its level. I'll go to the mission hall to redeem my prize!" Lu Yang felt that even if he found the puppet, he couldn't beat it, so there was no need for the first thing he did after breaking through to be beaten up.

It's unlucky.

Lu Yang waited for a while at the entrance of the mission hall before Meng Jingzhou and Man Gu arrived.

The two of them were also very tired; they had been sleeping since last night until they just woke up.

As usual, Meng Jingzhou went to the mission hall to buy high-quality fodder, mixed it according to the ratio, and fed it to the old horse when he got back.

"Ice-making talismans are so cheap, I'll take twenty!"

Lu Yang looked at Meng Jingzhou in surprise. "Why did you buy so many low-grade ice-making talismans?"

These ice-making talismans are only effective against those in the mid-to-late stages of Qi Refining; they're just there to fill a spot on the list.

"Hehe, you just don't understand, do you? It's summer now, do you know what's most important in summer? It's staying cool!"

Man Gu asked, puzzled, "But isn't there a cooling formation in the cave abode? That should be enough."

Meng Jingzhou held up his index finger and shook it. "Come on, let me demonstrate it for you."

Meng Jingzhou took out a wooden bucket from his identity jade token, filled it with cold water, and jumped in with a splash, leaving only his head sticking out.

He took out an ice-making talisman, and the water in the entire wooden bucket instantly froze into ice, trapping him inside.

"Awesome!" Meng Jingzhou shouted. His whole body was frozen solid, only his head could move. This feeling was incredibly exhilarating.

This is only possible because they are cultivators; if it were an ordinary person, they would have gotten sick from the cold long ago.

Lu Yang's eyes lit up. He pulled the ice block connected to Meng Jingzhou out of the wooden bucket, pushed it over, and it started rolling around the mission hall.

This art form is rare even in the advanced Ask Dao Sect, attracting the attention of many senior disciples.

"Lu Yang, you son of a bitch!" Meng Jingzhou cursed, feeling dizzy and disoriented.

As Lu Yang rolled the ice block, he explained, "You don't understand, do you? The biggest problem with the three of us Body Integration is that our bodies can't handle spinning too much! We can use this method to train and get used to spinning in advance."

Man Gu nodded in agreement, thinking that Brother Lu was indeed as quick-witted as he had thought. He had assumed that Brother Lu was simply messing with Brother Meng.

Meng Jingzhou had a different opinion. "Anyone can talk theory, Lu Yang, if you're so capable, let's switch places, I'll push you!"

"You'll be the first to get frozen, so we'll train you first!" Lu Yang wasn't fooled.

A naive attempt to provoke.

In the end, it was the senior brother who was on duty in the mission hall who stopped Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou with a sour face.

The two then behaved themselves and went to redeem rewards from the leaderboard.

"Give me a Ten Oxen Strength Pill." Lu Yang saw the Golden Core stage version of the Ten Oxen Strength Pill on the list, priced at 1,500 contribution points, and bought it without hesitation.

At this price, it's absolutely great value for money.

"Huh? Golden Core Realm Experience Ticket? What is this?" Meng Jingzhou noticed something very strange; the description was also vague.

Meng Jingzhou pondered, "Could it be that Foundation Establishment Realm cultivators are temporarily placed into the Golden Core stage to experience what Golden Core is?"

He had heard that some powerful cultivators had a habit of letting their disciples experience their cultivation level in advance, which would be beneficial for their later cultivation.

"Buy one and try it, it won't hurt," Lu Yang encouraged Meng Jingzhou to buy one.

Meng Jingzhou thought it made sense, and since it wasn't expensive, he bought one.

He ran to the front desk and found the senior student on duty.

"Senior brother, I'd like to use this trial voucher."

After confirming that it was true, the senior apprentice nodded. "It can be used now."

Meng Jingzhou asked curiously, "Senior brother, what's this trial voucher for?"

While making the contact, the senior brother casually remarked, "It'll let you experience the combat power of Golden Core cultivator."

Meng Jingzhou sensed something was wrong and was about to say something when someone patted him on the shoulder.

Meng Jingzhou turned around and saw a bald senior brother in the Golden Core stage. He had a kind face and smiled, revealing a row of neat teeth.

"Junior brother, I heard you want to experience the combat power of Golden Core cultivator? Let's go, let's fight on the arena outside."

Meng Jingzhou: "..."

Lu Yang, you tricked me!