Don't try to cultivate immortality; mortals live longer than immortals.

"No...no, Teacher Tang, this was just an accident. Let me explain...no, let me explain."

Zhou Ran was almost stunned when his usually gentle and elegant female teacher suddenly became so angry. She was a Golden Core Ancestor, and even if she was just an avatar, she could easily defeat him with just a finger.

He hurriedly and stammered an apology.

However, Tang Ya wouldn't listen at all. Last night, she kept making mistakes during her liver experiment, which put her in a bad mood. And this brat dared to cause trouble in her class. He simply didn't know what "death" meant.

Do you really think you can act recklessly just because you have a silly spiritual root?

What does it matter if he has an 80-point spiritual root aptitude? He's still destined to be punished, and that won't save him from disaster.

As the thought crossed her mind, Tang Ya's voice turned icy: "Zhou Ran, you ignored classroom discipline and damaged public property. You're punished by having to clean the toilets for a week."

"Huh?" Zhou Ran was dumbfounded. "No, Teacher Tang, doesn't this restroom have an automatic cleaning robot?"

"Yes, there is an automatic cleaning robot. I'll report to the academic affairs office in a bit and say that it will be temporarily suspended. You'll be in charge of all the toilets this week."

"Teacher, I was wrong, please don't do this."

"Hmph, no discussion." Tang Ya said with a businesslike expression, "If you don't want to clean toilets for a month, then don't waste your breath here."

The whole class burst into laughter, and Duan Xuan couldn't help but facepalm. Zhou Ran, that clown, just wouldn't stop for a moment.

……

Aside from the unlucky Zhou Ran, no one paid any attention to the little incident.

The following lessons went much more smoothly. The students were even a little uneasy when they were daydreaming. Anyone who wasn't stupid could tell that Teacher Tang was in a bad mood today, and no one wanted to get caught and end up like Zhou Ran.

So, there was nothing particularly noteworthy. The morning classes ended quickly, and as the bell rang, Duan Xuan followed the crowd out of the classroom and went to the nearby cafeteria, where he had a simple lunch.

Instead of returning to his dormitory to rest, he wandered around the campus, ostensibly to digest his food, but in reality, he couldn't help but mutter to himself as he walked.

How so?

Yesterday I only intended to test the waters, but unexpectedly I ended up consuming nine Foundation Establishment Pills in one go.

The spiritual energy in my dantian has now condensed into a liquid state, but there is no sign of a breakthrough. No... to be precise, I can completely suppress it. There is no swelling or pain in my meridians, nor any discomfort.

To be fair, this is certainly a good thing. After all, according to conventional wisdom, the more Foundation Establishment Pills one consumes, the better one's future prospects. In my situation, most people would have already been celebrating their success.

Duan Xuan was secretly pleased.

But here's the problem: everything has its advantages and disadvantages. While being able to take more Foundation Building Pills is certainly good, his performance was too outrageous, far exceeding the comprehension of ordinary people.

The other party spent a whole month researching the records of those eighteen Foundation Establishment Pills. I ate nine of them yesterday afternoon and nothing happened to me. Is it reasonable for me to ask this question?

Once this gets out, it will definitely attract a lot of attention.

This goes against his principle of keeping a low profile.

What should we do?

If you don't want to cause trouble, the best way is to wait a few days before collecting the Foundation Establishment Pill, such as about half a month, which would be safer.

But in Duan Xuan's opinion, this was a complete waste of time!

In short, you can't have your cake and eat it too. Wanting to avoid attention but also wanting the Foundation Establishment Pill is just being stubborn and trying to kill both ends.

"Damn it, the school is so stingy. With controlled nuclear fusion, AI control, the growth environment and temperature of raw materials, plus large-scale industrial production, Water Cloud Star has no shortage of Foundation Establishment Pills. Why not just send out hundreds at once? That way I wouldn't have any worries."

Duan Xuan muttered to himself, of course he knew that such complaints were pure nonsense.

After all, the school only has eighteen records. Giving out hundreds of them every now and then would be a complete waste.

"Host, what are you worried about?" Just then, Lingyun's voice entered his ears, as usual, like an oriole leaving a valley.

However, Duan Xuan was in no mood to appreciate it at the moment. He sighed and said, "Yun'er, I'm worried that we've run out of Foundation Establishment Pills."

"If you're worried about running out, just go get more!" Lingyun said matter-of-factly. "What's there to worry about? According to the rules, this is a student benefit. As long as you can eat it, it's fine as much as you want."

"That's true, but Yun'er, don't you think my behavior yesterday was a bit outrageous? I ate nine pills in one afternoon and nothing happened. Wouldn't going to collect them now attract the attention of the logistics department?"

"Don't worry." Lingyun chuckled. "Your concerns seem reasonable on the surface, but compared to a top-tier university like Shuiyun Daoyun Academy, this is nothing at all."

"Oh, how so?" Duan Xuan was somewhat taken aback. Could it be that he was really worrying unnecessarily?

Lingyun didn't keep them in suspense. Her voice was like a babbling brook, with a touch of nonchalant ease: "Host, think about it. Shuiyun Daoyun Academy is huge. It has tens of thousands of students and countless teachers and professors. It's not an exaggeration to say that Golden Core cultivators are as common as dogs and Nascent Soul cultivators are everywhere."

"How many important matters must such a prestigious university handle every day? The professors' immortal technique experiments, the doctoral and master's students' Daoist theses, the senior students' secret realm assessments, and various resource allocations and inter-school exchanges—aren't all of these more important than a mere Qi Refining Peak student receiving a few Foundation Establishment Pills?"

"Host, in the end, you still think too highly of yourself. Although you are a genius with maxed-out spiritual root aptitude, your cultivation level is still low. No matter how outstanding your achievements are, at this stage, you won't catch the eye of the higher-ups."

"Besides, you've been to the logistics department. Everyone there is incredibly busy. Foundation Establishment Pills aren't exactly a vital resource, so who would be specifically watching how many you've taken?"

"Besides, the person in charge of registration is just a student working part-time. This is perfectly in line with the school's principle of distributing benefits; it's just a formality. Do you think she knows you well? Do you think she'd go around telling everyone how ridiculously good you are?"

"As the saying goes, it's better to avoid trouble. No one will bother to investigate such a small problem."

Lingyun's witty remarks left Duan Xuan completely dumbfounded.

But upon closer reflection, it does seem to make sense.

Everyone has a different perspective. What one person considers a huge deal may be completely insignificant to others.

Lingyun is right. There are so many things going on at school, why would they care about a mere Qi Refining stage cultivator like myself?

You're overthinking it.

As the thought crossed his mind, he felt his heart expand and instantly stopped worrying about it.