Uninvited Guest

"Hahaha, I've finally successfully broken through to the Foundation Establishment Stage! From now on, I've truly stepped onto the path of immortal cultivation!" Inside the thatched cottage, Xiao Yu suddenly opened his eyes and burst out laughing.

Swallowing four Foundation Establishment Pills in succession and enduring four rounds of agonizing pain, he finally made a single-stroke breakthrough to the Foundation Establishment Stage, gaining a lifespan of two hundred years.

Going from the Qi Refining Stage to the Foundation Establishment Stage was an alteration to the very essence of life; from now on, he was no longer of mortal birth.

Thinking back on the process, he couldn't help but sigh that cultivating immortality was truly fucking difficult! No matter what it was, there could be no harvest without putting in the work.

Even with ample resources and preparation, he never imagined the advancement process would be so painful. In his past life, Xiao Yu was just an ordinary person, and the feeling of such agony was beyond imagination. Since cultivating immortality in this life, although there had been some pain when clearing his meridians at the very beginning, it couldn't even be mentioned in the same breath as the suffering of Foundation Establishment.

Fortunately, Xiao Yu stubbornly gritted his teeth and pulled through with sheer willpower. There would surely be similar agony in the future, but having been through this experience, Xiao Yu believed he would definitely be able to persevere.

Xiao Yu tested the spiritual power within his body at that moment, finding it had increased more than tenfold compared to the Qi Refining Stage, and the quality of his spiritual power also far surpassed the Qi Refining Stage.

No wonder Foundation Establishment cultivators could form a crushing momentum against Qi Refining cultivators. Without needing to rely on magic tools, based purely on this level of spiritual power and casting some simple spells, he believed no Qi Refining cultivator could possibly block them.

Feeling that the meridians inside his body at that moment were still filled with a massive amount of residual medicinal power from the Foundation Establishment Pill, Xiao Yu could only let out a soft sigh.

At this point, he did not yet possess a cultivation technique for the Foundation Establishment Stage. If he were to still use foundational techniques from the Qi Refining Stage to refine them, the efficiency would be pitifully low.

Therefore, he planned to head to the third floor of the Scripture Pavilion first to see if he could find a suitable cultivation technique before discussing anything else.

Thinking of this, Xiao Yu stood up abruptly, fetched bathing supplies from the Storage Bag, and bathed in a leisurely manner. After all the tossing and turning of his earlier Foundation Establishment, he was feeling extremely uncomfortable all over.

Little did Xiao Yu know, his completely self-absorbed actions ignoring the outside world had long since made the two people waiting outside the restriction so angry that their lungs were about to burst.

"Dammit, what on earth is that brat doing? So much time has passed and there's not the slightest reaction at all. How dare he make Uncle wait so long-once he comes out, I'll definitely give him a piece of my mind!" He Liang paced back and forth at the valley entrance, having long since grown impatient and cursed aloud.

The thin, elderly Foundation Establishment cultivator also wore an extremely gloomy expression, never expecting to be treated with such disdain by a junior.

Just as the old man was contemplating whether to forcefully trigger the restriction, the white light screen before them suddenly melted like ice and snow, parting on both sides to open a doorway just wide enough for two people to pass through.

The two spirits jolted. Looking up, they saw a black-robed young man in his early twenties with ordinary facial features walking out from the light screen, smiling at them.

Seeing that Xiao Yu could still smile, the burly man called He Liang instantly flew into a rage and shouted angrily, "Fine brat, daring to be so disrespectful to a senior in the sect, you're in for a-"

"Shut up! Why aren't you paying respects to your Martial Uncle!" Only, before he could finish, a stern roar from beside him cut him off.

It turned out that the spiritual power fluctuation on Xiao Yu's body, having just broken through to the Foundation Establishment Stage not long ago, could not yet be properly controlled and restrained; therefore, the moment he appeared, he was sensed by the old man.

When the old man suddenly saw that the person walking out from inside was a Foundation Establishment cultivator, he was also inwardly startled. Didn't his nephew say there was only a brat at the twelfth layer of Qi Refining inside? How did another Foundation Establishment cultivator come out now?

However, it was only a fleeting thought before he regained his composure, immediately shouting to cut off He Liang's verbal abuse.

Offending a Foundation Establishment cultivator for no reason was not a wise choice, even though this person had just established his foundation; still, it was not something a mere Qi Refining disciple could offend at will.

One had to cultivation-wise know that lower-tier disciples showing disrespect to higher-tier seniors could be executed on the spot, and no one would say a single word of dissent for them.

Hearing his uncle say the person before him was a Foundation Establishment cultivator, He Liang swept his divine sense across him. Instantly, a terrifying spiritual pressure struck him, turning his complexion pale.

It pressed down on him so heavily he couldn't catch his breath, and he kept muttering incessantly, "How can this be... How did he reach Foundation Establishment..." The thin old man cupped his fists toward Xiao Yu and said, "Congratulations, Junior Brother, on your successful Foundation Establishment. My name is He Jin. I wonder how Junior Brother is addressed?" As he spoke, his figure moved, blocking in front of the burly man to defuse the pressure Xiao Yu was exerting on him. Then he added:

"The junior doesn't know any better, so please don't hold it against him, Junior Brother!"

"Heh, well said, well said. My name is Xiao Yu! I wonder what brings Senior Brother here?" For this Middle Stage Foundation Establishment old man, Xiao Yu still needed to treat him with caution.

Even though they came here, eight chances out of ten it was with ill intent, but he had to deal with the immediate situation first and settle scores with them later when the opportunity arose.

"Heh, I previously heard that the disciple guarding this Medicinal Garden was quite extraordinary, so I came to take a look. I never expected such a pleasant surprise-Junior Brother managed to successfully establish his foundation at such a young age, so your future prospects are truly boundless!"

He Jin casually flattered him. At a time like this, of course it was impossible for him to say any more trouble-seeking words; there was simply no point to it.

"Not at all, not at all. This humble one was merely lucky. Senior Brother is the one with profound cultivation and serves as a role model for me to learn from." Xiao Yu naturally wouldn't believe such nonsense.

"Right, if Senior Brother has nothing else, then please forgive me for not playing the host, as I still have some matters to attend to regarding the Sect Master." After the perfunctory exchange, Xiao Yu spoke to the old man.

"Heh, I've nothing much. I hope Junior Brother can come over to my dwelling to walk around more often in the future, so we shall take our leave now!" With that, he pulled the still-shocked He Liang and hurried away.

Xiao Yu gazed at their receding backs, his gaze turning icy. "Hmph, don't let me catch an opportunity. Daring to harbor designs against me, I'll definitely make you suffer!"

After standing in place for a moment, Xiao Yu also steered his magic tool to leave the Medicinal Garden, heading toward the Council Hall of the Sect.

He Jin led He Liang flying above the mountain range, and He Liang couldn't help blurting out, "Uncle, are we just going to let it go like this? That brat only just established his foundation, so he certainly isn't a match for you!"

"Idiot! Shut your mouth! I truly don't know how you managed to cultivate to your current realm to be able to utter such foolish words. That Medicinal Garden was originally meant to be guarded by Qi Refining disciples. Now that the person has successfully established his foundation, could it be that you expect him to sponge off the place and refuse to leave?

Once he leaves, that Medicinal Garden won't still be yours for the taking? There's no need to make an enemy of him over this. Although he's no match for me, I have no desire to invite trouble for no reason either! From now on, you'd better detour around him whenever you see him-no! You'd better not run into him again at all. I can see that fellow is not someone easy to get along with!" The old man lectured He Liang sternly.

Giant Sword Peak, Council Hall.

Whoosh! A figure plummeted swiftly from the sky, landing lightly before a majestic and imposing grand hall!

This person wore a well-fitting black outfit with ordinary facial features, and it was precisely Xiao Yu who had hurried over.

Steering a flying magic tool after Foundation Establishment was more than a hundred percent faster than during the Qi Refining Stage. This was still only a low-tier flying magic tool; if he managed to acquire a high-tier or even peak-tier flying magic tool in the future, he didn't know what kind of level his speed could reach.

Two Qi Refining disciples standing before the grand hall saw an unfamiliar-looking Foundation Establishment cultivator arrive before them. Amidst their inward surprise, they hurriedly spoke respectfully to Xiao Yu: "Does this Martial Uncle have business coming to the Council Hall?"

Xiao Yu glanced at the two of them, then gave a slight nod as he said, "Two Martial Nephews, Xiao is here to request an audience with Martial Elder Master!"

"Please wait a moment, Martial Uncle; this disciple will go report immediately!" One disciple spoke respectfully before walking into the hall.

After Qi Refining disciples within the sect broke through to the Foundation Establishment Stage, they all needed to report to the Sect Master before they could have the information on their identity tokens altered. Only after being registered in the roster could they enjoy the treatment accorded to Foundation Establishment cultivators.

Otherwise, the sect wouldn't even know a disciple had entered the Foundation Establishment Stage and would still distribute benefits to the disciple according to Qi Refining standards! Therefore, his coming to this Council Hall was precisely to find the Sect Master for registration and cataloging.