Immortality begins with equipping a worn-out talisman pen.

Chapter 96 Breakthrough to Foundation Establishment

Two years later, Li Mufeng sat inside his cave and slowly exhaled a breath of stale air.

Since his water spirit root was upgraded to the superior grade, his cultivation speed has been incredibly fast. In just one year, he successfully entered the Great Perfection of Qi Refining.

In the year that followed, he did not rush to make a breakthrough.

On the one hand, he constantly honed his magical power, making his dantian more and more harmonious and stable; on the other hand, he devoted all his mind to the inheritance space of the Xuanhuo Danfu, repeatedly deducing the refining of the Foundation Building Pill, while constantly comprehending the Foundation Building Experience Jade Slip.

Even today, as the divine sense withdrew from the inheritance space, a streak of light flashed across the panel.

Foundation Building Pill (Perfect): 5000/5000

Looking at the words, a smile finally appeared in Li Mufeng's eyes.

With his current level of alchemy, he is probably unmatched in the entire Yue Kingdom. He is almost certain to succeed in refining a genuine Foundation Establishment Pill. In addition, his chances of refining a fine pill have also increased to 20%.

These two percent may seem low, but they are enough to make countless second-tier alchemists look on with envy.

It can be said that no one understands the art of refining Foundation Establishment Pills better than him.

Even so, Li Mufeng was unwilling to take any risks. In between refining Foundation Establishment Pills in the inheritance space, he did not forget to use Spirit Gathering Pills to refresh the probability of obtaining high-quality [Effect 2]. As a result, he was now 100% confident that the next Foundation Establishment Pill he refined would be a high-quality pill.

After finishing his meditation and breath adjustment, Li Mufeng took advantage of the still-warm feeling to equip the Xuanhuo Pill Furnace.

Then, he carefully took out all the spiritual materials needed to refine the Foundation Establishment Pill.

He took a deep breath, affixed a high-quality concentration talisman to himself, and began refining pills!

My mind was instantly clear and empty.

Start the furnace, ignite the fire, and add the medicine.

As the inner core of the demon beast was slowly refined, clusters of medicinal liquid continuously fused and tempered within the alchemical fire.

If it were an ordinary second-level alchemist, they would be extremely cautious at this moment, not daring to be distracted in the slightest.

But Li Mufeng remained calm.

Every incantation, every instance of fire control, and every fusion and compression of medicinal power had already been practiced countless times in the inheritance space.

Everything seemed to happen like muscle memory; without even consciously trying, the hands would naturally complete the next movement.

With the added blessing of the Mysterious Fire Alchemy Furnace, he completely entered a profound and mysterious state of flow.

The world seemed to fall silent, with only the ever-evolving medicinal power within the alchemy furnace in sight.

Seven days later.

The Xuanhuo Pill Furnace trembled slightly, and a rich aroma of pills instantly filled the entire cave.

Li Mufeng slowly lifted the furnace lid.

In the center of the alchemy furnace, a perfectly round and crystal-clear Foundation Establishment Pill floated quietly.

On the body of the pill, several natural Dao patterns intertwined, their spiritual light flowing, radiating an astonishing medicinal power far surpassing that of ordinary Foundation Establishment Pills.

It was indeed a high-quality Foundation Building Pill.

Besides.

There were also two genuine Foundation Building Pills with a smooth and round appearance at the bottom of the furnace.

Such terrifyingly stable quality of pill formation is unparalleled in the entire cultivation world of Yue Kingdom.

Li Mufeng took a deep breath and slowly suppressed the excitement in his heart.

He first put the two genuine Foundation Establishment Pills into the jade bottle, and then used the Spirit Sealing Technique to seal all the medicinal power inside, so as to prevent the loss of spiritual essence.

Only then did they leave the cave.

For the past two years, although he has spent most of his time immersed in cultivation and alchemy, he has always kept a wisp of his divine sense attentive to the outside world.

The barriers at the entrance are intact.

There were no traces left by any unfamiliar cultivators around, not even any spying attempts.

Li Mufeng finally breathed a sigh of relief.

In the Heavenly Immortal City, there are at least ninety to one hundred cultivators attempting to establish their foundation each year.

To outsiders, an old talisman master like him, with mediocre talent and nearing sixty, was nothing more than making his last desperate struggle.

Almost no one believed he could succeed.

This is precisely the illusion he has been painstakingly creating all along.

However, his caution was ingrained in his very being.

Even after confirming that no one was watching, he still did not let his guard down.

With a wave of his hand, a second-tier formation flew out, completely enveloping the entire cave dwelling. This was something he had rented in advance from a shop in the inner city.

Then, I released the Niffler.

Over the years, the little guy's cultivation has progressed slowly, and he is still only at the early stage of Qi Refining.

However, under Li Mufeng's training, it has learned to activate the talismans.

Although only one card can be activated, it is enough to give oneself a chance to survive at a critical moment.

Everything is ready.

Li Mufeng then burned incense, took a bath, and changed his clothes to bring himself to peak condition.

He then sat down cross-legged and began to silently consider how to succeed in this foundation-building exercise.

A superior spiritual root would give him a 0% success rate, the experience jade slip would add another 35%, and with a fine Foundation Establishment Pill...

A whopping 105%!

It means that even if you successfully establish your foundation, the system will still owe you a 5% probability.

Thinking of this, Li Mufeng couldn't help but chuckle, slowly closed his eyes, formed a hand seal, and focused his mind into his dantian.

At this moment, countless memories flashed through my mind like fleeting shadows.

When he first entered the world of cultivation, he was a talisman master apprentice who couldn't even afford the rent for his cave dwelling. At the Talisman Inquiry Conference, his opportunity was snatched away by a single sentence from the peak master of Danxia Peak. He spent his cautious years huddled in the Wanfu Zhai, not daring to step out of the market. He was watched by the Bai and Wang families as they were building their foundations. Then, he refined the Mountain and River Body and walked out of the Black Stone Market, slaying two tribulation cultivators. In the Heavenly Palace Immortal City, he was secretly plotted against by Yang Tianzhen and Alchemist Sun.

Every step we took was like walking on thin ice.

All that had happened vanished like smoke in the wind. With a determined look in his eyes, Li Mufeng swallowed the high-quality Foundation Establishment Pill in one gulp, and pushed the massive amount of magical power within his dantian to condense.

The first hurdle is the Qi and Blood hurdle.

During the foundation-building process, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth will surge into the body like a river overflowing its banks. If the physical body is weak and the blood and qi are depleted, it will be unable to withstand such a massive surge of spiritual energy.

This is why a saying has always circulated in the cultivation world—

Before the age of sixty, there is still a glimmer of hope for establishing a foundation; after sixty, the hope is slim.

Once the body's vital energy begins to decline, the physical body becomes like a rotten piece of wood riddled with holes. When faced with the infusion of spiritual energy, the body becomes like a leaky rag, unable to withstand the immense spiritual pressure generated by the compression of vast magical power.

However, this hurdle posed almost no obstacle for Li Mufeng.

The "Boundless Ocean Secret" granted him a long lifespan, which means that even though he is now nearly sixty, his blood and energy are still as vigorous as those of a young man.

In addition, he had already cultivated the Mountain and River Body to the level of the Mountain and River Prison Scripture, and his physical strength was comparable to that of an ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivator.

The surging spiritual energy of heaven and earth swept over him, yet it could not shake his physical body in the slightest.

This first hurdle was passed effortlessly.

The second challenge is the magic challenge.

This stage requires condensing and compressing the body's magical power from a gaseous state into a liquid state, so that it can form the foundation to support the massive magical spells.

This process is the ultimate test of a cultivator's talent, because the amount of a person's magical power is related to their spiritual roots, their comprehension, and the cultivation techniques that support their practice.

The greater the reserve of magical power, the more solid the foundation can be when the liquid magical power is compressed and condensed.

Li Mufeng now possesses a superior spiritual root, and in addition, he has long since switched to the ancient technique, the Boundless Ocean Technique. The magical power contained within his body far surpasses that of other cultivators of the same level, even exceeding it by several times.

With the substantial support provided by the premium Foundation Building Pills, this hurdle was overcome with remarkable ease.

The third challenge is the challenge of spiritual awareness.

The closer you get to the liquefaction of mana, the more precise your divine sense needs to control it.

Even the slightest deviation could lead to a disruption of one's true essence, rendering all previous efforts futile.

However, as early as when he reached the eighth level of Qi Refining, Li Mufeng broke through with the help of talismanic arts, and his divine sense was already comparable to that of a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

Afterwards, he went through countless alchemy and talisman-drawing processes, and his divine consciousness was tempered and strengthened time and time again.

His current spiritual sense is already comparable to that of a mid-Foundation Establishment cultivator.

His vast divine sense slowly unfolded, like peeling silk from a cocoon, firmly grasping every strand of magical power within his dantian.

True essence condenses, and the foundation of the Dao gradually takes shape.

The entire process was almost unbelievably smooth.

With these three trials as a foundation, Li Mufeng possesses a branch of a third-tier spiritual vein, so he doesn't need to worry about the surrounding spiritual energy being instantly drained during the breakthrough process, causing the foundation building to be interrupted.

He even took a high-quality Foundation Establishment Pill to protect his dantian and prevent the enormous spiritual pressure caused by Foundation Establishment from breaking through it.

In addition, he had read nearly a hundred jade slips containing the experience of his predecessors in foundation building, so he already had a contingency plan in mind for any possible emergencies.

All these factors combined are what give Li Mufeng the confidence to break through to the Foundation Establishment stage with 100% certainty.

Thus, all that's left is time to wear it down.

Meanwhile, outside Tianque Mountain.

Above the thirty-fourth floating spiritual island, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth continuously gathered, gradually transforming into a huge vortex of spiritual energy.

The vortex, like a funnel, descended from the heavens, completely enveloping the floating island.

Such extraordinary celestial phenomena are not uncommon in the Heavenly City, yet they still attracted many cultivators to stop and watch.

All eyes turned to the spirit island.

Some people are envious.

Some people sighed.

Regardless of the final outcome, reaching this point already signifies standing at the pinnacle of Qi Refining cultivators.

Outside the cave.

The second-order formation quietly activated, its spiritual light flowing, protecting the entire floating island completely.

The edge of the formation.

A golden-haired mouse was crouching on the ground, holding a talisman plate, its two bright black eyes scanning its surroundings warily.

His expression was as solemn as that of a devoted guardian deity.

It seems that any slight disturbance will be met with a fierce attack from the mice.