Foundation Establishment Method

At the very center stood a pitch-black coffin.

Before the coffin sat an altar table, upon which an eternal lamp burned alongside offerings of fruit and pastries.

Yang Zhenshan sat in the chair to the coffin's left, his face pale, his chest wrapped in thick bandages faintly stained with blood.

Yang Yuanshan sat beside him, head lowered, his expression unreadable.

In the chair on the right sat another man.

Yao Qing.

The lord of Lin'an City, at Early Foundation Establishment.

Hearing the footsteps, all three looked up at once.

The moment they saw Zhou Qi, each wore a different expression.

Yang Yuanshan abruptly rose to his feet, his face full of shock.

Yao Qing's brows drew together slightly as his scrutinizing gaze fell upon Zhou Qi.

Yang Zhenshan, meanwhile, remained seated.

Zhou Qi strode swiftly into the Main Hall and clasped his fists. "Master, what happened here...?"

Yang Zhenshan merely looked at Zhou Qi in silence for several seconds.

Then he spoke, his voice hoarse and weary.

"This afternoon, an emissary from Blackstone City came."

Zhou Qi's pupils contracted slightly.

Jin Tie.

So it really was him.

Yang Zhenshan continued, "He brought the Champion Marquis's secret order, accusing me of embezzling mineral reserves and refining Blood-and-Flesh Pills. That old fox Wang Tiannan personally testified against me."

Zhou Qi fell silent.

Yang Zhenshan's tone was frighteningly calm.

"Mingyuan rushed forward to argue with him, and he... killed him with a single palm strike."

He paused.

"I made my move and was severely wounded by one of his attacks."

Zhou Qi looked toward the pitch-black coffin.

The one lying inside was actually Yang Mingyuan.

That arrogant, overbearing eldest young master of the Yang Family, who looked down upon everyone.

He had simply died like that.

Yang Zhenshan looked at him, drew a deep breath, and calmly said, "Now tell me. What happened at the mine?"

Zhou Qi was silent for a moment. For a time, he did not know how to begin.

Yang Zhenshan had just lost his son. Could he still bear the blow of learning that his fifth brother had died too?

Zhou Qi hesitated and glanced at Yang Zhenshan's expression. It was still terrifyingly composed.

Seeing this, Zhou Qi slowly said, "Fifth Elder is dead."

Yang Yuanshan swayed, only managing to steady himself by grabbing the table.

"What?" His voice trembled. "Fifth... how did he die?"

Zhou Qi looked at him and spoke each word distinctly.

"People from Blackstone City went to the mine. A steward named Jinshi, at early ninth-layer Qi Refining, led over a hundred Black Armor soldiers. He said he had come under the Marquis's orders to inspect the accounts."

"Fifth Elder rushed forward to question him and was slain on the spot."

Yang Yuanshan collapsed back into his chair, his face deathly pale and his lips trembling. For a long while, he could not say a word.

Yao Qing's brows furrowed tightly as he said in a deep voice, "Jinshi? Jin Tie's younger brother?"

Zhou Qi nodded.

Yao Qing's expression changed.

He rose and paced several steps around the hall, his tone grave.

"Jin Tie killed Yang Mingyuan and severely wounded Zhenshan today, then his brother turned around and went to the mine to kill Yang Jinshan? Are they trying to drive the Yang Family into the grave?"

Yang Zhenshan said nothing. He merely looked at Zhou Qi.

His gaze was sharp as a blade.

"And then?" he asked.

Zhou Qi met his gaze.

"Then I killed him."

The entire hall fell deathly silent.

Yang Yuanshan suddenly raised his head, his face full of disbelief.

Yao Qing halted mid-step, turned around, and stared fixedly at Zhou Qi.

"What did you say?" Even his voice had changed pitch. "You killed Jinshi?"

Zhou Qi nodded.

Yao Qing drew a deep breath and suppressed the shock in his heart.

He was indeed in the Foundation Establishment Realm, but he had once passed through the Ninth Layer of Qi Refinement as well.

And Zhou Qi... was far too young.

"What realm are you in?" he asked.

Zhou Qi did not answer.

He merely released his aura.

Peak of the Ninth Layer of Qi Refinement.

That imposing aura swept through the Main Hall, then swiftly withdrew.

Yang Yuanshan's eyes widened and his mouth fell open, yet he could not speak for a long while.

Yao Qing was silent for several seconds before slowly sitting back down.

He looked at Zhou Qi, his gaze incomparably complicated.

Yang Zhenshan, meanwhile, remained seated where he was.

He looked at Zhou Qi, his gaze as deep as though it could see straight through him.

In that instant, he recalled something his son Yang Mingyuan had said a month ago.

"Father, when he came to the Yang Residence a month ago, he was only at Qi Refining First Layer. Your son remembers it clearly. I even had someone investigate his background at the time."

"Your son thought he had some talent, so I rewarded him with the Qi-Nourishing Formula · Intermediate Chapter."

One month.

From Qi Refining First Layer to Qi Refining Third Layer, then to Sixth Layer of Qi Refinement!

Then another month, from Sixth Layer of Qi Refinement to Peak of the Ninth Layer of Qi Refinement!

Everyone had thought he was a Rogue Cultivator deliberately concealing his true abilities.

But now it seemed that while he had indeed concealed his abilities, his talent was real as well.

And that talent far exceeded everyone's imagination.

Was this even human talent?

Two months, from the first layer to the ninth.

He, Yang Zhenshan, had cultivated for a full fifty-four years!

Yang Zhenshan withdrew his gaze and remained silent for a long time.

Yao Qing spoke from the side, his tone grave.

"Jinshi is dead. This has become a major affair. I have heard of Jin Tie's temperament—he repays every slight, down to the smallest grievance. With his younger brother killed, he will never let this rest."

Yao Qing paused and looked at Zhou Qi. "What do you plan to do?"

Zhou Qi narrowed his eyes. This Yao Qing was preparing to abandon him.

Yang Zhenshan suddenly stood.

He walked to the altar table, took three incense sticks, lit them, and placed them into the censer.

Wisps of green smoke curled upward, obscuring his face.

"Qing." He spoke in a hoarse voice. "Go back first. I'll come find you tonight."

Yao Qing frowned. "Zhenshan..."

Yang Zhenshan cut him off. "There are some matters I need to discuss with him alone."

Yao Qing looked at him, then at Zhou Qi, and nodded.

He rose and strode away.

Yang Yuanshan also stood. "City Lord Yao, I'll see you out."

The two walked out of the Main Hall, their footsteps gradually fading into the distance.

Only Zhou Qi, Yang Zhenshan, and that pitch-black coffin remained in the Main Hall.

The eternal lamp's flame flickered gently, casting shifting shadows across their faces.

The silence continued for a long time.

So long that Zhou Qi thought Yang Zhenshan would not speak.

Yang Zhenshan suddenly turned around and looked at him.

"That blockhead Fifth was with me for decades. Ever since he was little, he followed behind me like a tail. When I told him to go east, he never went west."

"His brain never worked right. He spoke without thinking and acted recklessly. I scolded him countless times, told him to listen to you more and stop running wild on his own."

"But he still didn't listen."

Yang Zhenshan closed his eyes and drew a deep breath.

Then he opened them and looked at Zhou Qi.

"But thank you for avenging him."

Zhou Qi was silent for a moment before speaking.

"Before he died, he was still shielding me from the emissary's pressure."

Yang Zhenshan looked at him for a long time.

Then he turned and headed for the study.

"Come with me."

Zhou Qi followed behind him into the study.

The study was in disarray. Half the bookshelves had collapsed, books and scrolls lay scattered across the floor, and the enormous landscape painting on the wall hung crookedly to one side.

Yang Zhenshan walked behind the desk, opened a drawer, and took out a small porcelain bottle.

After hesitating for a moment, he pulled out another key from his person, opened a hidden compartment beneath the desk, and took out two thin booklets.

He turned around and handed the small porcelain bottle to Zhou Qi.

"The antidote to the Soul-Splitting Pill."

Zhou Qi accepted it, and a system panel appeared:

[Item: Soul-Breaking Pill]

[Grade: Low Mysterious Rank]

[Effect: Completely kills the Soul-Splitting Worm and removes the parasitic state]

Zhou Qi put it away and clasped his fists. "Thank you, Master."

Yang Zhenshan waved a hand.

"No need to thank me. You deserve this."

He placed the two booklets on the desk.

Zhou Qi lowered his head and looked.

The first was Mountains and Rivers Sword Seal.

The second was Foundation Establishment Method: Part One.

Zhou Qi's pupils contracted slightly.

A Foundation Establishment Method!