Raise a sword!

After a night of passion, Lan Yingying talked about her recent situation.

"After reaching the sixth level of Qi Refining, I found it increasingly difficult to cultivate. Elder Zhou said I lacked experience... The reason why talismans, arrays, pills, and artifacts are called miscellaneous arts is because these miscellaneous arts should be pursued after climbing the realm, rather than being the foundation of a cultivator."

"Elder Zhou saw that I aspired to reach the Foundation Establishment stage, so he sent me out to gain experience, and I accepted."

Lan Yingying lay on her side on Jiang Peng's chest, her fingertips gently tracing his arm.

"I've never heard of any Foundation Establishment cultivator who has cultivated in seclusion all the way up. Even Jiang Lang, who seems to never leave his home, has some ruthless methods behind the scenes, and is even more powerful than the sword cultivators of the Jade Pavilion Sword Pavilion... It's like he's a Sword Pavilion assassin who infiltrated the Cangshan Sect."

Jiang Peng's expression turned cold.

"Hmph, you were just begging for mercy, are you itching for a beating again?"

Lan Yingying gave him a provocative look, her eyes full of seductive charm.

Jiang Peng avoided that gaze.

His composure and composure haven't ended yet, so it's best not to provoke this scoundrel.

"Where are you going to train?"

"I've taken on a few missions for sects stationed outside, and after some time, I plan to exorcise evil in the Southern Mountain Region with my fellow disciples."

"We're hunting down evil cultivators," Jiang Peng cautioned. "You'd better be careful. Evil cultivators are the most unpredictable. No one knows what strange and unorthodox methods they might use to increase their strength."

"I know what I'm doing," Lan Yingying replied. Suddenly realizing something, her face lit up with joy, and she flipped over to gain the upper hand.

Jiang Peng's expression changed drastically.

"You little devil! I've only just recovered!"

Lan Yingying raised her eyebrows and her eyes flashed with a fierce light.

"You dare call me a fairy!"

"She's a vixen!" Jiang Peng retorted stubbornly.

After a long while, Jiang Peng was barely breathing.

"Bodhisattva, spare my life!"

...

After Lan Yingying left, Jiang Peng's life became completely mundane.

Perhaps the sect knew that he was about to reach the point of Foundation Establishment, so Zhao Shan'ao took over the affairs of the Pill Hall, and even Qin Yuan told him not to go to Pillfire Peak unless necessary.

Jiang Peng had nothing to do all day. In his spare time, he would give Mei Jinhe and Su Zhi pointers, or occasionally go to the back mountain to catch Ah Huang and give him a good beating.

Speaking of Ah Huang.

This little thing's talent is truly extraordinary.

Ever since Jiang Peng developed the Beast Spirit Pill and started supplying it to Ah Huang steadily, the little guy's cultivation level has been increasing rapidly.

Ah Huang has now entered the late stage of the first tier.

However, it is even more difficult for demon beasts to advance to the Foundation Establishment stage than for cultivators.

For a demon beast to advance to the second tier, it needs to awaken its spirit and refine its horizontal bones.

On the back mountain, Jiang Peng held Ah Huang in her arms and checked on the little creature's condition.

The little creature's cultivation level is roughly proportional to its size; it used to be a long, thin mink, but now it's a ball.

"I've heard there are pills that can help demonic beasts advance in rank. You just wait, kid."

As soon as he let go, Ah Huang rolled away like a ball, disappearing into the forest and kicking up a cloud of dust along the way.

Watching Ah Huang leave, Jiang Peng smiled helplessly.

"Unbeknownst to me, half a year has already passed since I returned to my sect."

Jiang Peng sighed, casually found a rock to sit on, and assessed her condition.

In the past few days, Jiang Peng discovered during her cultivation that her cultivation level could no longer increase. The spiritual power in her body had reached its limit and was beginning to surge back into her meridians.

Besides the cultivation of Qi absorption, the practice of the Dragon Tiger Skill has also reached a bottleneck.

His spiritual consciousness was full and agile, and his physical body was fully developed.

It seems that both body refinement and spirit refinement have reached the end of the Qi Refining stage.

Logically speaking, a cultivator who has reached this level should immediately begin the Foundation Establishment process.

Jiang Peng has a Foundation Establishment Pill in his hand!

Of the two portions of Mysterious Heart Leaves I brought back last time, one portion was refined into a Foundation Establishment Pill by Qin Yuan two months ago.

Although Qin Yuan was too old and his cultivation had begun to decline, he only managed to refine two pills this time, and both of them were Foundation Establishment Pills with one pattern.

However, the sect leader still made the decision to give one of the tokens to Jiang Peng, and unlike the other disciples, he did not set a condition for Jiang Peng to stay in the sect for a certain number of years.

In Chu Chun'an's words, this Foundation Establishment Pill was a reward for Jiang Peng to refine the next batch of Foundation Establishment Pills.

With a flick of her wrist, Jiang Peng produced an exquisite jade bottle.

The bottle contains the Foundation Establishment Pill, which even the most accomplished disciples of the sect desperately seek but cannot obtain.

Jiang Peng had a premonition that, given his current state, as long as he took the Foundation Establishment Pill, he would be able to advance smoothly without any obstacles.

But he always felt that something was missing.

"Not perfect enough."

"I have a feeling that if I take the pill, I can immediately establish my foundation, but I also have a feeling that if I rush into establishing my foundation like this, I will definitely regret it in the future."

Jiang Peng muttered to herself.

"Perhaps it's because I haven't figured out my own path yet."

He looked up at the sky and saw countless stars swirling around.

I recalled the poem by the poet Li Bai from my past life, about plucking stars from the sky.

"I dare not speak loudly, lest I disturb the celestial beings... In this world of cultivation, there might really be people in the heavens."

Jiang Peng subconsciously raised her hand, as if to pluck stars from the sky.

"How do the celestial beings view us cultivators?"

"Or perhaps, will the celestial beings descend and look upon us, the common people of the mortal realm?"

Jiang Peng suddenly became a little curious.

Is that universe the one he imagines?

The land beneath my feet, this southern mountain region, those outer sea islands, the northern border, the central region, and so on.

If the universe is like that, then is this world also a star in that universe?

"Then where I came from, is it still wandering in the universe, is it something I see right now, but I'm completely unaware of it?"

Jiang Peng didn't have any strong desire to go back.

Since we're already here, we can even cultivate immortality and live as long as a turtle.

Or rather, it can remain alive, endure the years, and watch the clouds rise and fall.

Of course he didn't want to go back.

However, there is still a difference between not wanting to and not being able to.

Jiang Peng himself didn't realize that as he entered this wonderful state of mind, the mountains and forests around him had unknowingly become quiet.

The chirping of insects and birds in the forest fell silent, as if afraid of disturbing the heavenly beings.

Why do I cultivate?

"At first it was to save my life, but later, like my senior sister, I realized that the path was right under my feet, and I just kept walking."

"But there should always be a goal."

"For example, cultivating a sense of freedom means being unrestrained, being able to roam the world freely, and living a carefree life."

Shine——

The Xuanyuan Sword suddenly emitted a sword cry, trembling violently within Jiang Peng's sleeve.

As he gestured to pluck stars from his hand, purple flames suddenly erupted.

Upon seeing the purple flames, Jiang Peng smiled.

"Oh right, and the cauldron in my head... In my past life, I only touched you, how did you end up bringing me to this world?"

"We'll find out your background sooner or later."

Jiang Peng muttered to herself, rambling on and on without any coherence, and she became increasingly drowsy.

But he himself was completely unaware of it.

Gradually, a face appeared in the starry sky before him; it was his own face.

That face filled the entire sky, its eyes reflecting starlight.

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