Mortal: Starting with the Seven Mysterious Sects, I proved my Dao through sacrifice.

During his thirty days in the Crimson Forbidden Land, Murong Fan slayed dozens of demonic beasts, killed two cultivators of the same level, rescued three fellow disciples, and even refused an ancient inheritance once. All the core resources he obtained during this period were sacrificed, and the remainder was handed over to the sect, making him the one who contributed the most during this Crimson Trial. When he returned, his blue robe was stained with blood, but his storage pouch was empty—except for the Foundation Establishment Pill awarded by the sect, all his spoils had been converted into nourishment for the altar.

As per sect custom, he was rewarded with a Foundation Establishment Pill, one hundred high-grade spirit stones, and a protective jade talisman. He was also granted special permission to enter the "Tranquility Cave" in the back mountain for secluded cultivation. This cave is the most spiritually rich place in Yellow Maple Valley, with naturally formed spirit-gathering array patterns on its stone walls, greatly beneficial for stabilizing one's cultivation level. Outside the cave, ancient pines twist and turn, clear springs gurgle over the rocks, and cranes often flit about – truly a sacred place for cultivation.

However, Murong Fan did not consume the Foundation Establishment Pill. Instead, he chose to give it to Chen Qiaoqian to help her quickly establish her foundation. When he delivered the pill, Chen Qiaoqian was tending to the spiritual herbs in her garden. Her delicate hands were wet with morning dew. When she saw him hand her the jade bottle, she exclaimed in surprise, "This is a Foundation Establishment Pill! You…" Murong Fan only smiled faintly, "We went through life and death together in the forbidden area. This pill is useless to me, but it is just in time for you."

At first, Chen Qiaoqian declined, but in the end, looking into his clear eyes, she finally accepted the jade bottle, her fingertips trembling slightly: "I cannot thank you enough for such a great kindness. If Senior Brother Murong needs anything, I will gladly die for you." Murong Fan waved his hand, turned and walked towards the Tranquil Cave, his back as straight as a pine tree.

The setting sun, like blood, dyed the sea of ​​clouds behind Yellow Maple Valley crimson. Murong Fan stood atop the Qi Refining Cliff, his spiritual energy surging like a tide, yet without the slightest disorder—he possessed a single-attribute Heavenly Spiritual Root, a rare find in the sect for a century, and was currently attempting to break through to the Foundation Establishment Realm, a goal coveted by countless cultivators. The ancient cypress trees along the cliff rustled in the ripples of spiritual energy, while the distant sea of ​​clouds churned, mirroring the turbulent emotions within him.

When Murong Fan stepped into the Tranquility Cave, the cave was already filled with a visible mist of spiritual energy. The naturally formed spirit-gathering array patterns on the cave walls shimmered with a pale golden luster, and each pattern seemed to contain the ultimate truths of heaven and earth.

The Golden Core elders watching from outside the cave whispered among themselves. Some clutched the Foundation Establishment Pills they had prepared in their sleeves, but the sect leader stopped them with a raised hand: "The path of a Heavenly Spiritual Root never needs external support." The five-clawed golden dragon embroidered on the sect leader's black robe was faintly visible in the twilight, and his eyes were as deep as a pool. "Let's see how he breaks out of his cocoon and becomes a butterfly."

The cold jade bed was chilling to the touch, and wisps of icy energy rose up his spine, gradually calming the restless spiritual energy within him caused by the battle in the Blood Forbidden Land.

Murong Fa sat cross-legged and first used the spiritual power of plants to regulate his meridians—although the Crimson Forbidden Land made his physical body strong, it also left behind some bloodthirsty energy. After three days of breathing exercises, the altar in his sea of ​​consciousness emitted a soft green light, purifying the last trace of impure energy.

Murong Fan's consciousness sank into his dantian, where the previously scattered spiritual energy was spontaneously gathering, like a swarm of bees returning to their hive. Unlike cultivators with mixed spiritual roots who needed elixirs to guide and purify their energy, his spiritual root possessed an innate affinity for the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, making every breath he inhaled as pure as crystal. At this moment, this spiritual energy swirled and compressed within his dantian, gradually forming a warm, smooth jade egg, its surface shimmering with cyan patterns originating from his own spiritual root.

With each rotation of the jade egg, its volume shrank by one unit, but the density of spiritual energy increased dramatically. The spiritual mist outside the cave converged into the cave at a visible speed, forming a spiritual energy vortex about ten feet thick above his head.

At first, everything went smoothly. His spiritual energy surged through his meridians, widening and strengthening them wherever it passed. But when the spiritual energy touched that barrier, it was like a mud ox sinking into the sea, only causing a slight ripple. Beads of sweat appeared on Murong Fan's forehead. He knew this was the most crucial moment. The slightest carelessness would cause his spiritual energy to go berserk, resulting in the complete loss of his cultivation or even his body exploding and dying.

Murong Fan gritted his teeth, and the altar in his sea of ​​consciousness operated wildly. The plant totems shone brightly, continuously drawing in the spiritual energy of heaven and earth outside the cave, transforming it into an even more powerful impact.

"boom!"

It was as if a thunderclap exploded within him, and the barrier that had plagued countless cultivators finally showed a crack. Murong Fan's spirits lifted, and he increased his spiritual energy output, attempting to widen the crack. However, at that moment, a sudden change occurred—the spiritual energy within his dantian began to surge uncontrollably, showing signs of a backlash.

Murong Fan felt a chill run down his spine, only then remembering that in the Crimson Forbidden Land, he had used his essence blood to activate the "Grass and Trees - Blood Burning" technique, which, although it increased his combat power, had also damaged part of his foundation.

Suddenly, the jade egg trembled, and an indescribable suction force erupted from it. Murong Fan felt his pores open wide, and the essence of plants and trees within a ten-mile radius, the mist in the clouds, and even the earth's spiritual energy from the deep ravine at the bottom of the cliff all converged on him along invisible veins.

Murong Fan's robes fluttered wildly, his hair stood on end, and he seemed to become a vortex that swallowed the heavens and earth. The spirit-gathering array patterns on the cave wall were activated, emitting a buzzing sound, and the golden patterns flowed and danced as if they had come alive.

"Beware of inner demons!" The sect leader's voice pierced through the waves of spiritual energy. Murong Fan's heart tightened, and sure enough, he saw an illusion appear on the surface of the jade egg—his memories of his childhood in the Seven Mysteries Sect in the mortal realm, the scene of being mocked by disciples with mixed spiritual roots when he first entered the sect, and the terrifying scene of his meridians being severed after failing to establish his foundation.

But as soon as these illusions took shape, they were dissolved by the pure light that spontaneously emanated from his spiritual root. The Dao heart of a cultivator with a Heavenly Spiritual Root is inherently pure, and distracting thoughts are no match for pure talent.

As the last wisp of spiritual energy flowed into his dantian, the jade egg shattered with a roar, transforming into a warm and gentle sea of ​​qi. Murong Fan suddenly opened his eyes, two beams of azure light piercing through the clouds, and the Qi Refining Cliff beneath his feet was shaken by the spiritual energy he unconsciously released, causing spiderweb-like cracks to appear.

Murong Fan raised his hand and made a grasping motion, conjuring a spinning wind blade at his fingertips. It was no longer the immature blade of a Qi Refining cultivator, but rather carried the refined and imposing aura unique to Foundation Establishment cultivators. The wind blade sliced ​​through the air with a sharp whistling sound, easily cleaving a solid rock in the cave wall.

"Almost there!" Cheers erupted from below the cliff. Murong Fan looked down and saw his lifespan quietly increasing in his sea of ​​consciousness. His spiritual sense, which could originally only perceive a few dozen miles, could now detect the movements of demonic beasts a hundred miles away. He lightly leaped, his figure soaring several feet like a wild goose, truly achieving flight through qi. Below him, the sea of ​​clouds churned, and the mountains and rivers resembled a chessboard, filling his heart with an unprecedented sense of freedom.

When Murong Fan stepped into the Tranquility Cave again, the spiritual mist inside was three times denser than before. He sat cross-legged on the cold jade bed, first using the spiritual power of plants to regulate his meridians—although the Crimson Forbidden Land made his physical body strong, it also left behind some bloodthirsty energy. After five more days of breathing exercises, the altar in his sea of ​​consciousness emitted a soft green light, purifying the last trace of impure energy.

He guided this power to break through the invisible barrier between the Qi Refining and Foundation Establishment stages. As the technique circulated, a massive vortex of spiritual energy formed around him, startling away all the birds and beasts outside the cave.

"We can't let all our efforts go to waste!" A resolute glint flashed in Murong Fan's eyes. He abruptly activated the power of the altar in his sea of ​​consciousness, forcibly suppressing the backlash of spiritual energy, while simultaneously using the spiritual energy of plants to nourish his damaged meridians.

This was a perilous gamble. Spiritual energy surged wildly within his body, causing his skin to bulge with veins and bleed, making him appear as if he had been pulled from a pool of blood. At this moment, the altar in his sea of ​​consciousness shone brightly, and the leaves on the plant totems seemed to tremble slightly, constantly converting external spiritual energy into pure plant spiritual energy to repair his damaged meridians.

After an unknown amount of time, as the first rays of dawn shone through the cracks in the Tranquil Mind Cave onto his face, Murong Fan's spiritual energy finally stabilized. The invisible barrier had completely shattered, and the raging spiritual energy, as if finding an outlet, surged wildly into his dantian, condensing into a walnut-sized core that emitted a bluish-green light. On the surface of the core, plant and tree totems appeared and disappeared, radiating an aura of endless vitality.

Foundation building is about to be successful!

Murong Fan slowly opened his eyes, a glint of light flashing in them. He could clearly feel the spiritual energy in the world becoming more approachable, and every movement he made carried a sense of effortless power.

The altar in his sea of ​​consciousness had also changed. The originally dim plant totems had become lifelike, as if life flowed within them, and the degree of recovery had increased by nearly 20%. He tried to mobilize his spiritual power and found that the sea of ​​qi in his dantian had expanded more than ten times compared to when he was in the Qi Refining stage, and the spiritual power was also more condensed and pure.

"Foundation Establishment stage, finally reached." He let out a long sigh, his voice slightly hoarse, yet unable to hide his excitement. From entering the world of cultivation to Foundation Establishment, it only took him a little over a year, a speed that is rare even in the entire history of Yellow Maple Valley.

Upon hearing that Murong Fan had successfully established his foundation, Hong Fu immediately came to congratulate him with gifts. She abandoned her usual serious and dignified demeanor, excitedly cheering and saying, "Only disciples taught by me, Hong Fu, will not be overlooked." With that, she looked at the several Golden Core elders. The elders, gazing at their usually domineering and powerful senior sister, remained silent, simply lowering their heads.

Murong Fan stood up and stretched his limbs, his bones cracking and popping, his body seemingly surging with explosive power. He walked to the edge of the cave, gazing at the rising sun in the distance, knowing in his heart that his path of cultivation had only just begun.

To Murong Fan's surprise, the Foundation Establishment Pill he gave to Chen Qiaoqian was secretly plotted against by Lu Yunfeng. This plot not only nearly cost Chen Qiaoqian her life, but also ended with Lu Yunfeng paying the ultimate price.