Above the sea of clouds at the mountain peak, Second Uncle stood with his hands behind his back, his waist slightly bent as he continued speaking.
"Obviously, Si Kong Yan of the Azure Flame Dao Palace didn't meet the requirements, so... you understand."
Zhou Qing nodded.
But the next moment, Second Uncle suddenly leaned close to him and chuckled. "I was trapped in the depths of the Grotto-Heaven for so many years this time, but my harvest wasn't bad. I even obtained a wisp of Heavenly Dao Energy. It has a forty percent chance of helping you condense a Three Flowers Nascent Soul when you break through to the Nascent Soul Realm."
Second Uncle's words were brimming with temptation.
Zhou Qing's eyes widened involuntarily. To say he was not tempted would be an outright lie.
After all, this was the foremost existence among Heaven-Grade Nascent Souls. A forty percent chance was already extremely high.
Hadn't Second Uncle just said it? Condensing a Nascent Soul was random, yet this was practically setting an exact target.
Zhou Qing's heart pounded wildly, and he could not help asking, "Senior, what do you need me to do?"
Second Uncle looked Zhou Qing up and down, then let out a heavy sigh. "Too late."
"Too late? What do you mean?" Zhou Qing's heart skipped a beat, and he hurriedly asked.
Second Uncle said, "If Qi Condensation is merely the dividing line between cultivators and mortals, then Foundation Establishment is the cornerstone of your future cultivation. It is like building a house—if the foundation is unstable, how can you speak of building anything else?"
"And Foundation Establishment is divided into three grades: Heavenly Dao Foundation Establishment, Earthly Dao Foundation Establishment, and Human Dao Foundation Establishment. You know this, don't you?"
Zhou Qing nodded. Of course he knew that much.
Human Dao Foundation Establishment was what he had undergone. Once the spiritual power within one's body was saturated, one used a high-grade cultivation technique to guide it and condensed a Spirit Core on one's own.
Though it was the lowest grade of Foundation Establishment, nearly everyone came this way.
Heavenly Dao Foundation Establishment and Earthly Dao Foundation Establishment, however, were things ordinary people could only gaze upon and never hope to attain.
Because they required the aid of the exceedingly rare Heavenly Dao Energy and Earth Vein Energy.
One was a spirit of the innate, while the other was a spirit of the earth.
But no matter which it was, neither was something people like them could lay their hands on. They were truly priceless and unavailable on the market.
Wait—
The instant Zhou Qing thought of this, realization struck him.
Second Uncle had just said that he had obtained a wisp of Heavenly Dao Energy from the Grotto-Heaven?
Just as Zhou Qing grew excited, he immediately recalled that he had already completed Foundation Establishment. The wood had become a boat; it was utterly useless to him now.
He could not help feeling regretful, and he understood even more clearly what Second Uncle had meant by "too late."
Seeing Zhou Qing's disappointed look, Second Uncle gave a strange smile. "How much pain can you endure?"
"What do you mean?" Zhou Qing asked, puzzled.
Second Uncle said, "By sheer coincidence, I happen to know an ancient secret technique that can reforge your Foundation Establishment. But it will hurt terribly, and your Spirit Core must be shattered into powder. If you can withstand it, I'll count this wisp of Heavenly Dao Energy as a gift to you."
Upon hearing this, Zhou Qing could not help feeling tempted.
He naturally understood that the path ahead for Human Dao Foundation Establishment reached no farther than the Nascent Soul Realm at best. A superior Foundation Establishment would allow him to see a more distant landscape.
But—
One should not accept gifts without merit. He knew better than anyone how precious a wisp of Heavenly Dao Energy was.
Second Uncle had given him the Silver Dragon Step and was now offering him Heavenly Dao Energy. What exactly did he want from Zhou Qing?
What was he seeking?
As if he had seen through Zhou Qing's confusion, Second Uncle said, "Heavenly Dao Energy also has strengths and weaknesses. The wisp I hold is called Yin Yang. Among the known types of Heavenly Dao Energy, if it ranked second, none would dare claim first. After all, in the Nascent Soul Realm, it can forge Three Flowers Gather on the Crown."
"Furthermore, when you condense a Golden Core, you will also condense two Golden Cores, one Yin and one Yang. Your combat power and spiritual power will far surpass those of cultivators at the same level. Well? Do you want it?"
"Yes!" Zhou Qing answered without the slightest hesitation.
But he quickly voiced the doubt in his heart. "Senior, then what must I give in return?"
"You still have some sense. Like gambling on boxes, you are not greedy, nor do you let the temptation before your eyes muddle your mind. This old man likes that about you. To tell you the truth, you need do nothing. Just teach someone a lesson for me someday."
Second Uncle's face was filled with indignation.
Zhou Qing could not help frowning. "Teach whom a lesson?"
"An extremely irritating old acquaintance. He has taken in a whole heap of disciples, like raising venomous insects in a jar. I have a wager with him... forget it, these matters are too distant for you. If you can achieve Three Flowers Gather on the Crown in the future, you will be qualified to win back some face for me. Otherwise, there is nothing to discuss."
Second Uncle seemed to have recalled something unpleasant and waved his hand irritably.
Then, with a stretch of his hand, a white jade box appeared.
Before Zhou Qing could react, an indescribable heaviness came crashing down.
This sensation differed from the Gravity Zone. Instead, it seemed to stem from an oppressive force against his Spiritual Sense.
As Zhou Qing looked over curiously, he noticed that inside the box, two little fish, one black and one white, appeared to be swimming about, lifelike and vivid.
"This is Yin Yang Qi?" Zhou Qing asked in surprise.
Second Uncle chuckled. "With just this wisp, even if you packaged up and sold your entire Taiqing Sect, you might not get the chance to lay eyes on it. Little fellow, you've struck it rich this time."
Zhou Qing naturally understood. At this moment, he gratefully bowed.
"Thank you, Senior. This junior will forever engrave this kindness in his heart!" Zhou Qing said earnestly.
Second Uncle nodded slightly. "Without destruction, there can be no establishment. Since you have decided, I will say no more. Endure it."
The moment his words fell, Second Uncle suddenly thrust one hand into Zhou Qing's dantian like a Ghost and seized the slowly rotating Spirit Core.
Zhou Qing stared at the scene in disbelief, followed immediately by pain that drilled into his heart.
"Aah—"
Second Uncle said, "Fortunately, you only broke through to the Foundation Establishment Middle Stage not long ago. If your Spirit Core were any larger, even I couldn't do anything. Bear with it."
The next moment, eerie red light flared from Second Uncle's right hand, and under that overwhelming force, the Spirit Core underwent Liberation by Violence.
Zhou Qing's face instantly turned white as paper, while the veins on his forehead bulged like twisted earthworms.
Beads of sweat the size of beans rolled down incessantly. Amid the agonizing pain, his consciousness began to blur, and the world before his eyes seemed to whirl upside down.
"It hurts too much, Senior! Can you knock me unconscious?" Zhou Qing roared, trembling all over.
Yet Second Uncle said nothing. His expression solemn, he opened the box and began feeding the Heavenly Dao Energy into him bit by bit...
Who knew how much time had passed? Zhou Qing's eyelids trembled. His entire body felt as though it were bound by heavy shackles, every joint stiff as though rusted.
He struggled to open his eyes, his gaze somewhat unfocused as he surveyed his surroundings, only to discover that he was inside a cave.
When he bared his teeth and forced himself up, his face was pale as frost, utterly bloodless.
Then, a hearty laugh echoed through the cave.
"Little fellow, you actually endured all that. Not bad, not bad. Your future is promising. This old man has urgent business to attend to, so I'll be leaving first. When we meet again, if you can still recognize me at once, I will spare no expense to grant you another stroke of fortune!"
As the message ended, the cave fell silent once more.
Zhou Qing gave a wry smile and hurriedly turned his awareness inward.
Very quickly, he discovered in astonishment that his Spirit Core, which had originally been crushed, had now recondensed—except it was black and white.
Beyond that, a layer of spiritual-energy-rich mist filled the surroundings, scattering specks of starlight. The Spirit Core was like a dazzling star among them, slowly rotating.
"It really is Heavenly Dao Foundation Establishment!" Zhou Qing was ecstatic.
He had heard that Earth Vein Foundation Establishment took the shape of a mountain range, while Heavenly Dao Foundation Establishment took the nebula-like form before him.
As for Human Dao Foundation Establishment, it was utterly ordinary, with only a single Spirit Core located within the dantian.
"Does this count as my rebirth from the ashes?"
Zhou Qing was beside himself with excitement. Looking around the cave, he immediately endured the weakness throughout his body and clasped his hands in a bow.
"Thank you, Senior, for the grace of remaking me!"
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