After taking stock of the changes in himself, Li Ping began considering his plans for the future.
From what he knew, cultivators advanced through five major realms: Qi Refining, Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, Nascent Soul, and the legendary Spirit Transformation.
Every successful breakthrough into a new realm granted not only all sorts of incredible abilities, but also doubled one's lifespan.
If possible, Li Ping naturally wanted to become a Core Formation cultivator, or even a Nascent Soul cultivator, but wanting it did not mean he could achieve it.
Before transmigrating, he had wanted to become the richest man in the world, too. In the end, hadn't he still had to dutifully clock in and work for a living?
As far as Li Ping knew, the vast region surrounding Windmist Immortal City had only one Core Formation cultivator: Windmist True Person. Among the dozens of countries, large and small, across the Western Wasteland, not every country had a Core Formation cultivator watching over it.
As for Nascent Soul cultivators, they possessed mighty divine abilities that let their spirits roam ten thousand miles and move mountains to fill seas. No one even knew whether such masters existed anywhere in the Western Wastes Cultivation World.
Li Ping had always known his own damn limits. He might have transmigrated, but he had no cheat.
Even with the advantage of a powerful soul and Divine Sense, successfully reaching Foundation Establishment with his three-spirit root aptitude had been a blessing begged from heaven. How could he dare hope for a higher realm?
He was already more than satisfied with reaching Foundation Establishment.
To him, continuing to dream of higher realms after Foundation Establishment, and wasting his precious time pursuing them, would mean taking the wrong path.
He had spent half his life cultivating immortality. Now, it was time to abandon his fantasies and enjoy life.
He could, for instance, marry a few beautiful immortal maidens and have several plump little sons to carry on his lineage.
After pondering for a moment, Li Ping shook his head. "Everything else can wait. I rented this cave dwelling for two months, and reaching Foundation Establishment only took a little over one month. The remaining ten-odd days will be just right for consolidating my realm."
Li Ping immediately began circulating the Golden Sword Art.
This basic metal-element cultivation method only covered Qi Refining. It was effectively useless after Foundation Establishment. Practicing it now could not increase Li Ping's cultivation; it could only stabilize his realm.
Now that I've reached Foundation Establishment, my most pressing task is to find a new cultivation method, Li Ping thought.
Although he did not expect to become a Core Formation cultivator, the High-Tier Cultivation Method was far more powerful than basic ones.
Unless he wanted to become the weakest Foundation Establishment cultivator, he would still need to practice the High-Tier Cultivation Method.
As Li Ping circulated his cultivation method, a wisp of pale golden magical power traveled steadily through the meridians throughout his body, gradually stabilizing his aura. But just as that wisp reached the meridians in his head-
Boom!
A vast thunderclap rang out in Li Ping's sea of consciousness, instantly leaving him stunned.
In that stunned moment, as though heaven and earth were being cleaved apart, a boundless space filled with purple currents opened up within his sea of consciousness at astonishing speed.
"What's this?"
Before Li Ping could react, he watched with his consciousness as a gray island slowly emerged from nothingness amid the purple currents. Growing on that island was a straight little tree three feet tall.
The little tree had a luxurious purple bark, wreathed in layers of faint purple mist. One glance was enough to tell it was no ordinary thing.
At the base of the tree, a newly formed, short, slender branch slowly began to grow...
A long while later, Li Ping opened his eyes again, his gaze brimming with delighted surprise and excitement.
Only moments ago, he had been lamenting that he had transmigrated without a cheat. Who would have thought his cheat would arrive right now!
According to the information transmitted into his soul, the space filled with purple currents of chaos that had opened within his sea of consciousness was his cheat.
For the moment, he had no idea where it had come from.
How to use it, however, had already been laid out clearly in his mind.
The three-foot-tall purple tree on the little gray island was called the Inheritance Tree.
As its name suggested, the Inheritance Tree represented the legacies of the hundred cultivation arts.
According to the instructions the little tree displayed, he only needed to provide artifacts embodying the painstaking work of cultivation artisans, inheritances, and the corresponding quantities of spirit stones and Spirit Materials as nourishment for the tree.
Then he could directly absorb the knowledge within those artifacts or inheritances and master the corresponding level of a cultivation craft!
Even Li Ping could not help marveling at how domineering the Inheritance Tree was.
He knew how difficult it was to learn the hundred cultivation arts.
Even relatively accessible crafts such as spirit planting and herb gathering, which were commonly studied by low-level cultivators, were no exception.
Even with a master and a legacy to follow, attaining a certain proficiency in them was extremely difficult, often requiring decades of painstaking study.
That went doubly for advanced professions such as pill refining and Artifact Refining. Getting started required not only the right talent, but also unimaginable amounts of Spirit Materials for practice. Only after decades or centuries of research might one scrape together some modest achievements.
Of course, formations were the most difficult of all. Though they did not demand vast quantities of resources, their requirements for a cultivator's talent were absurdly high.
Without sufficient talent, even a Nascent Soul cultivator was unlikely to achieve much.
As for determining whether a cultivator had talent for the formation Dao, that was quite simple.
Simply hold a finger beneath the cultivator's nose. If they were breathing, they had no talent for the formation Dao. This test had an accuracy rate of ninety-nine percent.
If they were not breathing... there was no need to fret over whether they had talent for the formation Dao anymore.
In short, even with the right talent, an inheritance, and a master's guidance, learning the hundred cultivation arts required a tremendous investment of time and study before one could achieve anything.
A Qi Refining cultivator could exhaust their entire lifespan, studying until their hair turned white, and still struggle to reach the second tier in a single craft!
But Li Ping was different. As long as he supplied the Inheritance Tree with the proper nourishment, its assistance would allow him to master an inheritance instantly and attain profound expertise in a craft.
This shouldn't be called inheritance. It should be called "copying"-directly copying the experience of the cultivators who left these inheritances behind!
Li Ping pondered silently as his consciousness turned once more toward the Inheritance Tree on the gray floating island.
At present, the Inheritance Tree was only three feet tall. Apart from a short, slender branch at its very base, it was completely bare.
His consciousness settled on that short, slender branch.
[Talisman maker: first tier, middle grade]
After setting out on the immortal path, Li Ping had needed to earn resources for cultivation. Considering that his spiritual sense was fifty percent stronger than that of cultivators at the same level, he had chosen talisman making as his profession among the hundred cultivation arts.
Unfortunately, although he had the advantage of a powerful Divine Sense, he had little talent for making talismans. After more than twenty years of study, he had only barely become a first-tier, middle-grade talisman maker, capable of drawing first-tier, middle-grade talismans!
Now, however, the Inheritance Tree had recorded that craft of his.
Even with his powerful Divine Sense, it had taken over twenty years of study to become a first-tier, middle-grade talisman maker.
But with the Inheritance Tree, he might need only an instant to become a second-tier, or even third-tier, talisman maker!
And not just talisman making. Given sufficient nourishment, he could attain a high level in pill refining, Artifact Refining, beast taming, formations...
Li Ping's eyes brimmed with excitement. "If I can master several crafts at the second tier or higher, I might be able to travel farther along the path of cultivation."
At that thought, he could hardly wait to leave seclusion and search for second-tier inheritances or artifacts left behind by artisans of the second tier and above.
After a moment, however, he forced his emotions to settle and continued investigating the purple qi space within his sea of consciousness.
As he sorted through the remaining information transmitted into his sea of consciousness, Li Ping's eyes grew brighter and brighter.
According to that information, the purple qi space possessed more than just the Inheritance Tree's ability.
From now on, each time he broke through a major realm, a new island would emerge within the purple qi space, possessing all sorts of heaven-defying abilities that were every bit the equal of the Inheritance Tree!
"Core Formation-no... even immortality is within reach!"
Ten-odd days passed in the blink of an eye.
The faint azure light shrouding the little courtyard dissipated. Then, with a creak, Li Ping pushed the door open and stepped out, dressed in blue Daoist robes and wearing a smile.
After leaving the courtyard, Li Ping headed straight for the cave dwelling management office to return its token.
The elderly steward who managed the cultivators' many cave dwellings spotted Li Ping approaching from afar. Sensing the spiritual pressure emanating from him, he hurried out at a trot, calling respectfully, "He Erbo congratulates you on successfully reaching Foundation Establishment, Senior! The Great Dao lies within your reach!"
Li Ping regarded him with a warm smile, his spirits soaring.
When he had come to rent the cave dwelling before reaching Foundation Establishment, this old steward had acted haughty and barely bothered to acknowledge him.
Back then, he had merely been a rogue cultivator, while the other man was a steward assigned by the Azure Dragon Mountain faction. Their cultivation levels had been about the same, and if they had actually fought, Steward He might not even have been Li Ping's match.
But with the Azure Dragon Mountain faction behind him and that Core Formation True Person as his backer, he had never given Li Ping a second thought.
Now, however, Li Ping had successfully reached Foundation Establishment, placing him among those with the highest status in the immortal city beneath Windmist True Person.
Even though he remained a rogue cultivator, Steward He no longer dared slight him. Instead, he had to address him respectfully as "Senior" at every turn.
Ultimately, when making one's way in the cultivation world, backing came second. What mattered most was one's own strength.
The stronger one was, the greater the weight one's words carried, and the more one stood above others as a "Senior."
Although Li Ping secretly enjoyed Steward He's change from arrogance to deference, as the senior, he had no intention of holding it against him. Nor did he tease the man with anything like, "I preferred that proud, untamable look you had before. Why don't you bring it back?"
He glanced at the man and tossed over the cave dwelling token in his hand. "The rental period is over. I've come to return the token. Take it."
Steward He hurriedly caught the token, but continued flattering him with a fawning smile. "You jest, Senior. Why speak of rental periods? With your status, you may cultivate here for as long as you please."
Li Ping smiled. "I rented the cave dwelling to reach Foundation Establishment. Now that I've succeeded, I no longer need it. All right, since you've accepted the token, that settles the rental."
With that, he turned to leave.
Just then, however, Steward He called him back. "Please wait, Senior. When you successfully reached Foundation Establishment ten-odd days ago, Martial Uncle Meng Qingyi of Azure Dragon Mountain learned of it. He instructed this old man to notify him immediately when you emerged from seclusion."
Steward He gave a fawning smile. "This old man has already notified Martial Uncle Meng. He ordered me to make certain you stayed a little while, Senior. He will be here shortly."
"Meng Qingyi? He wants to see me?" Li Ping's expression shifted, then he smiled. "Then I'll wait a while."
Hearing Li Ping agree to wait, Steward He's face lit up with delight. "Please come with me, Senior. Have a cup of tea while you wait for Martial Uncle Meng!"