I proved immortality through the imperial examination.

Chapter 181 Foundation Establishment Level Two
The clouds at dusk hung low, like lead weights sinking onto the eaves.

Yin Tianci's courtyard was shrouded in a layer of dark gold that was not yet fully visible.

Yin Tianci was dressed in a dark blue casual outfit, the hem of which was not fastened properly, revealing a moon-white undergarment.

He paced back and forth around the stone table in the courtyard, his steps hurried and disordered.

Uncle Wu, holding a teacup, leaned out from the inner room and said softly, "Young master, the night air is getting chilly. Have something hot to calm your temper."

Yin Tianci took it, took a sip, and placed it on the windowsill. His voice deepened: "Old Cat hasn't written yet?"

"not yet."

Uncle Wu looked at him, then at the sky. "Nothing will go wrong. This is Old Cat's first time cooperating with us; he'll handle it, even if it comes at a high price. But the Witch God Cult isn't someone to be trifled with. Getting involved with them, I'm afraid..."

"Don't worry about it."

Yin Tianci waved his hand impatiently, "Go, go find out the news. I want to hear that Xue Xiang is in trouble."

As soon as he finished speaking, a wave of light shattered, breaking the barrier that separated the inside from the outside.

Immediately afterwards, a person walked in.

The man wore a green robe with his hair tied up, and his clothes were so clean that not a speck of dust could be found. He stood with his hands behind his back, and his eyes were like mirrors, reflecting a cold light wherever they fell. Who else could it be but Xue Xiang?
Uncle Wu was startled and quickly stepped in front of the door to block the way: "Young master, it's inconvenient for you to stay at my humble abode..."

"It's convenient now that I'm here."

Xue Xiang stepped forward, his hand flashing like lightning, and pressed down on the back of Wu Bo's neck. Wu Bo collapsed without uttering a sound.

"Be bold!"

Yin Tianci shouted sternly, "You surnamed Xue, you're asking for death!"

Just as he was about to start, Xue Xiang took out an envelope and held it in front of him.

Yin Tianci was taken aback, wondering what kind of mystery he was playing.

He had something to hide. Xue Xiang's grand entrance had already made him imagine the whole story, and he was filled with apprehension.

"They even found out my name. It seems I didn't come to the wrong person. I guess you know what's in here."

Xue Xiang waved the envelope in his hand and said coldly, "To be honest, I really don't know how I offended you."

You've made things difficult for me time and time again.

I'm not good-tempered. If it weren't for the fact that you also belong to the Tongjiang School, you would be dead already.

"What a load of nonsense!"

Yin Tianci said coldly, "I don't know what you're talking about. When have I ever made things difficult for you?"

Xue Xiang snorted, "I thought that sending people like Pan Suo and Yue Bai to make things difficult for me was the limit of your stupidity. I never expected that you would actually dare to set your sights on the Dao Yun Golden Body."

Before Yin Tianci could respond, Xue Xiang shouted sternly, "Do you know that this concerns the diplomatic relations between our two countries? You are truly audacious!"

Do you think your father can save you anytime?

It's no use. The Great Zhou delegation has decided to take this to the central government, which will inevitably alarm the Wenyuan Pavilion.

With a flourish of his pen, the Grand Secretary asked, "Do you think your father has any extraordinary means to salvage the situation?"

It's one thing for you to be foolish, but you've dragged my Tongjiang School down with you, and so many other people..."

Xue Xiang's voice grew increasingly agitated.

His acting skills have always been amazing.

This time, he went straight for Yin Tianci, intending to catch him off guard and force him to reveal a weakness.

Initially, Yin Tianci repeatedly denied it, but when Xue Xiang brought up the Great Zhou delegation and the central government, he gradually couldn't hold back anymore, but he still remained stubborn.

"I'm not going to waste my breath on you. I'm here to inform you, not to do anything to you. You'd better tell your father to run away and not implicate my Tongjiang School."

After saying that, Xue Xiang turned and left.

This has left Yin Tianci completely bewildered.

Throughout his life, he roamed the world with great success, and his greatest reliance was his father.

If his father falls, his life will fall too.

This time, he was finally moved and blocked Xue Xiang's path, "Tell me what exactly happened?"

"Why would I need to tell you? Just wash your neck and wait."

Xue Xiang said coldly, "How can you be so clever as to think of destroying the Dao Essence Golden Body in order to stop me from completing my mission?"

Tsk tsk, it's not a big deal that you die, but you even dragged your father into it, dragged the Tongjiang School into it, and then dragged your father into it..."

Xue Xiang unleashed his killing move.

Yin Tianci finally couldn't take it anymore and grabbed Xue Xiang's arm, saying, "Brother Xue, I... I was confused for a moment. You can punish me as you please, I will not say a word."

But this matter must not be blown out of proportion, and my father must not be implicated.

Brother Xue, even if you don't think of yourself, you should think of the Tongjiang School. Xie Haiya and Song Tingfang are your benefactors.

We're all in the same boat. If you sink the boat, nobody will benefit, right?
No matter what, we're family.

When Yin Tianci got emotional, his eyes welled up with tears, and he was even moved by his own words.

Xue Xiang was stunned, unable to tell whether this guy was genuinely expressing his feelings or a master of acting who had surpassed his own.

Yin Tianci said sadly, "You and I became friends through a fight. It doesn't matter if I make a foolish mistake, but if I implicate the Tongjiang School and everyone else, I will never be able to atone for it even if I die a hundred times."

I know you're close to that Su guy from the Great Zhou delegation; he wields considerable influence. You absolutely must help him smooth things over.

Xue Xiang snorted, "Easy for you to say. How am I supposed to back down? You could find anyone, why are you looking for those kinds of people?"

"Just wait and see what happens."

After saying that, Xue Xiang turned to leave, but Yin Tianci blocked his way. "Brother Xue, no, Brother Xue, I was rash in this matter. Killing someone is just a matter of beheading them, you must not stand idly by."

Xue Xiang snorted, "I'm not that cheap. I'd be tricked and then help the other person settle things."

"Who am I to the Tongjiang School? If the Tongjiang School really collapses, how much will I lose?"

Finally, Yin Tianci completely panicked, "Brother Xue, whatever you say, I'll do. Let's draw a line."

Xue Xiang remained silent for a long time, then stared at Yin Tianci and said, "How you treated me back then, you'll have to do the same for yourself this time."

Yin Tianci was stunned, staring at Xue Xiang, "You want me to write a confession? Don't even think about it!"

Xue Xiang snorted coldly, "You have no right to negotiate with me. If you don't write it down, I won't have any leverage over you. How do I know you won't turn around and implicate me?"

Besides, even with a defense, this matter is still difficult to resolve, as there's still the obstacle of Suning.

Do you think they're so easy to persuade?

They suffered a loss in foreign affairs negotiations and were forced to agree not to welcome back the golden body of Dao Yun.

Now that you've given them leverage, they'll definitely make a big deal out of it.

Personal grudges have become entangled with the interests of the imperial court; you should weigh the consequences yourself.

With that, he turned and left.

"one two Three……"

Just as Xue Xiang was counting to "ten", Yin Tianci stopped him.

Xue Xiang turned around, and Yin Tianci, his face ashen, said listlessly, "I...I'll write it."

Half an incense stick later, Xue Xiang got what he wanted.

As expected, it was Yin Tianci who colluded with the Witch God Cult and destroyed the earth's veins, causing the Daoist Golden Body to completely lose its balance.

Now that this document has fallen into Xue Xiang's hands, Yin Tianci can no longer cause any trouble.

Xue Xiang naturally wanted to kill this scoundrel with one blow, but unfortunately, the man had a powerful father, so he inevitably had to punish the younger one and then the older one, causing endless trouble.

Nevertheless, he did not intend to let Yin Tianci off so easily.

He only said that he would communicate with Suning, but he was not sure whether Suning would agree.

Yin Tianci, with his family's scholarly background, was almost born with the ability to engage in power politics. He immediately understood that Xue Xiang was asking for a price.

He was completely convinced now, and had even written a confession. What else could he struggle for? He could only ask Xue Xiang to beg Su Ning not to make exorbitant demands.

Xue Xiang had already decided what he wanted, so he said "demon core".

As for the price, Xue Xiang himself didn't know what a reasonable price would be, so he let Yin Tianci give whatever he felt like.

Yin Tianci was going crazy. How could he do this based on his mood?

However, Xue Xiang didn't waste any more words with him and turned to leave, saying he would try his best to help communicate, but his good wishes had to be delivered within three days.

As soon as Xue Xiang left, Yin Tianci, who could no longer hold on, collapsed to the ground, kicking his legs in frustration.

The morning breeze was cool and damp, and the stone ridge of Lonely Cloud Peak was exposed above the white mist, like a line of ink brushstrokes lying between the sky and the earth.

Suning is enjoying the view from the edge of the cliff.

The sea of ​​clouds rises and falls, like a chest breathing slowly; the pine forest below the cliff appears and disappears, and occasionally the sound of birds can be heard through the gaps in the mist, only to be drawn back by the wind.

Just as I was engrossed in watching, a black line slowly drifted over.

Before long, the black line expanded, transforming into a black magic carpet. Sitting on the carpet was a person with handsome eyebrows, a thin face, and clear eyes. It was none other than Xue Xiang.

Xue Xiang floated down to Lonely Cloud Peak and called out from afar, "I knew you'd be here."

Su Ning smiled and said, "Brother Xue, what brings you here? I heard you've been incredibly busy. Have you taken on any of the long-awaited missions yet?"

Xue Xiang nodded.

Su Ning laughed and said, "Why didn't it cause a big commotion? After all, it's a long-forgotten mission; shouldn't it have caused a stir?"

Xue Xiang chuckled and said, "I was afraid I wouldn't be able to finish it and people would laugh at me, so I told Master Wei not to make a fuss about it."

Su Ning gently curled the corners of his mouth, "Brother Xue is quite magnanimous, treating even a sealed-level mission as nothing."

Xue Xiang was somewhat bewildered. "What do you mean by that, Brother Su?"

Su Ning said, "A mission of the sealed level is either completed or it's your life."

Brother Xue is still thinking about how to avoid making things embarrassing, which shows his certainty that he can escape unscathed. Such boldness is rare among ordinary people.

Xue Xiang waved his hand and said, "Brother Su is laughing at me."

I hadn't really thought that much about it. I just heard that Brother Su was leaving, and since we've known each other for a long time and share similar interests, I couldn't help but come to see him off.

Su Ning paused for a moment, then said, "Thank you, Brother Xue. I consider you a friend too."

As he spoke, he tossed a jade pendant to the air.

The jade pendant is bluish-white, with fine lines engraved along its edges, resembling tiny ripples.

Xue Xiang took it, staring blankly at Su Ning, puzzled.

"It contains information about He Wenyuan's turmoil."

Su Ning said, "Our Great Zhou also tried to bring back the remains of Zhongwu several times. We tried several times, but all our efforts failed. However, the specific process has been documented for future generations."

I had a copy made; perhaps you'll find it useful.

Xue Xiang was deeply moved. "Thank you very much."

He informed Suning that he would take on the task of bringing back Zhongwu's remains, just one day ago.

In such a short time, Suning obtained the information. It may seem simple, but the twists and turns that occurred along the way must have been significant.

Suning waved his hand, "I also hope you succeed. That way, my bet won't be considered a loss."

Oh, there's one more thing.

The one lurking in the shadows, causing trouble for you, has a lot of power; their tentacles have already reached out to me.

They're asking if we're still fixated on the Daoist Golden Body.

"What was the delegation's response?"

Xue Xiang became anxious.

He really underestimated Yin Zhuangchou's power; his long arm actually managed to poke the Great Zhou delegation.

Su Ning glanced at him and said, "Don't worry, I know you're using the mission's name, so I'll naturally cover for you."

Last night, officials were still subtly probing the delegation, asking if we intended to continue focusing on the Dao Yun golden statue.

"I guessed it must have been you using the mission's name to intimidate those who were making things difficult for you. I've already covered for you." Xue Xiang cupped his hands and said, "So Brother Su is the real hero behind the scenes. To be honest, Brother Su, I've found the culprit."

Unfortunately, he has powerful backers, and I can't take him down for the time being. I can only use the banner of the mission to intimidate him.

I said, "Why was this guy so unwilling to budge yesterday, but this morning he cornered us and gave in?"

So it turns out Brother Su did the work for me. No doubt about it.

Xue Xiang smiled and took out a small cloth bag from his sleeve and handed it over, saying, "Everyone who sees this gets a share."

Su Ning took it, loosened the drawstring, glanced at it, and her eyes lit up. Inside the cloth bag were five cyan demon cores.

The bluish light was swallowed and exhaled by the mist, like an underwater lamp.

"What are you doing?"

she says.

"Interest collected from that bastard."

Xue Xiang said, "Brother Su contributed, so naturally he should get a share."

Su Ning, holding the cloth bag, was at a loss for what to do.

He had never received such a benefit in his entire life.

As he was struggling with his decision, Xue Xiang said, "Brother Su, from now on we'll be the Four Great Iron Brothers."

"The Four Great Irons?"

Suning is baffled.

Xue Xiang was taken aback. "Brother Su, haven't you read 'The Mortal World'?"

"What's that?"

Su Ning has been confined to the inner palace for a long time. Although "Mortal World" became a huge hit, it hasn't yet achieved international popularity.

Xue Xiang waved his hand, "It's alright. The so-called 'iron' means that the relationship is so good that it's as solid as iron and unbreakable."

The four ironclad relationships are four common relationships:

We studied together, fought together, frequented brothels together, and shared the spoils together.

Su Ning was taken aback at first, then his handsome face flushed red. He carefully savored the words and realized that they contained profound insights into human relationships and worldly wisdom.

A smile finally appeared on his icy face. "So, in that case, we split the spoils together?"

As he spoke, he put away the cloth bag in his hand.

The clouds drifted up from below the cliff, just covering the instep.

A ray of sunlight pierced the fog in the distance, falling like a golden thread onto the opposite mountain peak, only to be cut off by the wind.

Upon witnessing such a magnificent scene, Xue Xiang and Su Ning were momentarily speechless.

After a long silence, Su Ning spoke first, "Brother Xue, your journey is extremely dangerous."

It is understandable that things cannot be accomplished. If things are beyond our control, we should try our best to extricate ourselves.

As long as people are alive, there is hope.

"I got it."

Xue Xiang cupped his hands and said, "Then I wish Brother Su a safe journey and all the best."

"May everything... go smoothly?"

Su Ning chuckled, "You sure know how to come up with new words. I accept them, I agree, and I'll pass on the exact words to you."

The two clasped hands in greeting, then dispersed like drifting tumbleweeds, each going their own way.

………………

After seeing Su Ning off, Xue Xiang returned to his own cave dwelling. With a thought, he entered the Wenxu Blessed Land.

The faint morning light slanted in through the cave entrance, illuminating the room brightly.

As soon as he entered, there was movement in the spirit pool.

When we were testing whether we could bring live creatures in from outside, we released a small carp into the spiritual pool inside the cave, and it thrived there.

Whenever Xue Xiang arrives, it always wags its little tail to greet him.

Xue Xiang approached the spirit pool and stared intently. The red carp in the pool seemed to have been touched by the morning light, its body turning from pale red to deep red, and its scales resembling sealing wax.

It circled the center of the pool once, and when it saw Xue Xiang, it flicked its tail fin and swam straight to Xue Xiang's feet, tilting its head back and blowing two small bubbles, as if to greet him.

Xue Xiang bent down and flicked his index finger across the water. The red carp followed the finger's shadow for half an arc before retreating and lying quietly under the shadow of a rock.

After looking at the little carp, Xue Xiang went to the inner room, where the little darling was lying sprawled out in a nest made of cotton blankets, sleeping soundly with bubbles coming out of her nose.

Ever since we returned from the land of demons, this guy has been fast asleep.

It seems that it is using sleep to digest the large number of monster corpses it has swallowed and the large number of crystal cores it has ingested.

Xue Xiang bent down and tapped its belly with his knuckles.

The little cutie twitched its ears and eyelashes, but didn't wake up.

When he tapped it a second time, it let out a "whoosh," kicked its limbs wildly, rolled over, and with a yelp, changed to a prone sleeping position, turning its chubby little bottom towards Xue Xiang.

Its soft, cuddly body looks just like a Want Want Candy.

Xue Xiang wasn't sure how long it would sleep, but he knew that waking it up now might not be a good thing.

He then headed towards Wenxu Terrace.

This time, we entered the Blessed Land of Literature because we had obtained the demon core and could now advance through the Foundation Establishment stage.

With three months left before the final credit settlement, he wasn't in a hurry to complete the task of bringing back Zhongwu's remains. He wanted to improve his cultivation level first.

After all, sharpening your axe won't delay your woodcutting.

Just as Xue Xiang was about to sit down cross-legged, a faint light suddenly appeared on the outer edge of the Wenxu Terrace. This was an unusual phenomenon caused by the arrival of new information.

The only one who can send messages to this Wenxu Platform is the Lord of the Blessed Land.

The only master of the blessed land he knew was Murong Yu, the master of the Blessed Land of Heaven and Earth.

With a thought, Xue Xiang felt a very slight tremor in the Wenxu Platform, and a message entered his mind. It was indeed Murong Yu requesting to establish contact.

Xue Xiang sent a message to Wenxutai, and a message was sent back shortly afterward.

Immediately, Murong Yu invited him to the battle platform for a face-to-face talk.

Xue Xiang didn't know what Murong Yu wanted, but he had a good impression of Murong Yu, so he agreed.

He sent his thoughts into the Wenxu Platform, and immediately, a ray of clear light emanated from it.

The clear light transformed into a radiant glow that enveloped him. In the next instant, everything changed, and he appeared on a black platform. All around him was empty, devoid of any objects, except for the platform's surface, which was as black as ink, with fine lines hidden within its luster, intersecting like a star map.

This is the Wenxu Battle Platform.

At that time, this was the place where he, as the Lord of Mingde Dongxuan, fought against the Lord of Fusheng Xuanhuang according to the annual rules.

He had only been there for a few breaths when Murong Yu appeared as well.

Xue Xiang remained scholarly and refined, while Murong Yu bowed respectfully before stating his question.

It turns out that after Xue Xiang's discussion with everyone at Wenxu Fudi ended, he left a message requesting that everyone contribute their ideas.

In other words, we can create a forum-like format where people can share their cultivation experiences in batches.

To make a good start, he first named Murong Yu.

Murong Yu attached great importance to this opportunity to speak on stage. He searched through all the books in his house and tried to find a suitable topic, but none of them were quite right for him. With his performance on stage imminent, he became increasingly anxious, but he could not find a breakthrough. In desperation, he had no choice but to seek help from the Lord of Mingde Dongxuan.

Xue Xiang secretly groaned, realizing that in terms of knowledge and experience, he could not compare with the accumulated knowledge of Murong Yu's family.

From Murong Yu's perspective, however, he is a knowledgeable senior, and if he cannot offer advice, wouldn't his image collapse?

A thought flashed through Xue Xiang's mind, and he came up with an idea.

He took out paper and pen and wrote five mysterious ancient patterns with a wave of his hand.

These ancient patterns were obtained from the undeciphered part of the jade scroll.

Xue Xiang couldn't figure it out himself, and neither could Han Feng, so they simply passed the buck to Murong Yu.

Murong Yu stared at the ancient patterns on the paper, completely bewildered.

Xue Xiangdao said, "This is an ancient pattern with profound meaning. If you can decipher it, this ancient pattern will be the topic of your lecture."

If you truly cannot solve it, I will take care of it for you. Now, go.

Murong Yu was overjoyed, bowed respectfully, and disappeared.

Xue Xiang also withdrew from the Wenxu Battle Platform.

After returning to the Blessed Land of Wenxu, Xue Xiang sat cross-legged on the Wenxu Platform, placed his hands on his knees, and gradually calmed his breathing.

The Nebula Box sat quietly before him. He raised his hand and waved, and a cyan demon core fell into it.

The demon core was perfectly round and translucent, its azure light resembling ripples on water.

Just one glance was enough to sense the surging spiritual energy within, as if a turbulent river tide were imprisoned within it.

Xue Xiang exhaled a breath of turbid air, turned his fingers, and began to use the Spirit Guiding Technique.

In an instant, a fine mist of blue light rose from the outer layer of the demon core, and strands of silk escaped from the core, were drawn in by him, and entered his body along the meridians.

When the spiritual energy first entered, it was icy cold, but then it turned scalding hot, like a cold spring suddenly poured into a furnace. The hot and cold clashed, and the flesh and tendons seemed about to burst.

He groaned, veins bulging on his forehead, and beads of sweat rolling down his temples.

But his eyes remained closed, his jaw clenched, and he did not relax.

The spiritual energy coursed through his limbs and bones, like a thousand horses galloping and crashing against his muscles and bones.

Every time it passed through a joint, it crackled and popped, like being struck by a hammer.

After circulating through the body for one full cycle, the violent spiritual energy finally returned to the Dan Palace.

Inside the Pill Palace, the Dao Foundation Lotus, which had been quietly floating, began to slowly rotate. Spiritual energy entered the Dao Foundation Lotus, and in an instant, the Dao Foundation Lotus was lit up.

Nine dim spots are now scattered throughout the lotus.

A few breaths later, the spiritual energy that had been swirling within the Dao Foundation Lotus finally entered the Dan Palace and was absorbed into that wisp of spiritual liquid.

Cultivation knows no day or night.

Two days and two nights passed in the blink of an eye, and the demon core that was the size of a date pit in the Star River Cloud was reduced to the size of a sesame seed.

Suddenly, a violent tremor shook Xue Xiangdan's palace.

One of the nine dark spots on the lotus flower of the Dao Foundation was suddenly lit up.

Xue Xiang was secretly delighted; the first level of foundation building was complete.

From the first level of Foundation Building to the third level, all are considered the early stages of Foundation Building.

During this period, there are no barriers to spiritual power; one only needs to focus on accumulating spiritual energy.

Therefore, Xue Xiang did not stop and continued to refine the demon core.

Time passed day by day, and seven days have gone by in the blink of an eye.

On this day, when only half of the last demon core remained.

Inside the lotus of the Dao Foundation, the second spot of light was lit.

The second level of foundation building has been achieved.

The spiritual liquid within his Dan Palace had noticeably increased in size, but the most significant change was in his physical body.

Despite having survived the tribulation, his physical strength was comparable to that of the Nascent Soul Ancestor.

However, the improvement in his cultivation level greatly enhanced his physical strength.

He clasped his hands together, his muscles tightened, and his whole body seemed to have the strength of a million pounds.

Five of the lowest-grade demon cores helped him overcome two obstacles.

Xue Xiang became increasingly eager for his trip to the north.

(End of this chapter)