Chapter 718 - 361: Foundation Establishment

Chapter 718: Chapter 361: Foundation Establishment

A year passed in a flash.

In the Hall of Ten Thousand Races, Cheng Zongyang had converted an empty room into a temporary chamber for his breakthrough.

He had temporarily modified the room, equipping it with soundproofing, a Spirit Gathering function, and eight individual Constraint Arrays positioned to channel energy from eight different directions.

These eight Small Arrays were specifically designed to store various types of qi. Through them, the qi could be channeled to the center of the Array at any moment.

After a year of diligent, secluded Cultivation, Cheng Zongyang sat cross-legged at the center of the Array, his aura surging around him.

His eyes were tightly shut, his expression serene. He was in the process of breaking through from Qi Cultivation to Foundation Establishment.

After a year of practice, the foundation of his Cultivation was thoroughly solidified, and the time for a breakthrough had arrived.

The North Nether Swallowing Qi Method Cheng Zongyang practiced was indeed fast, but it also required time to consolidate his foundation and address the issues caused by such rapid advancement. At this moment, the Upper Qi Vortex in his Dantian spun like a high-speed whirlpool.

From the eight Constraint Arrays, various types of qi were drawn out by the Spirit Transmission Array. They were guided to the central area and absorbed by his Qi Swallowing Technique at a steady, balanced pace.

Inside seven of the eight Arrays were five types of Five Elements Spiritual Qi, Evil Qi, and Yin Qi, all obtained through sacrifice. The last one held the Foundation Establishment Medicine Power from five Upper Grade Foundation Establishment Pills he had prepared himself, purely as a backup.

These streams of qi were continuously absorbed by the North Nether Swallowing Qi Method. They surged into his body and were rapidly refined by the Upper Qi Vortex.

The Upper Qi Vortex drew in these heterogeneous energies, then released pure Spiritual Power through a lower qi vortex. With every wisp of Spiritual Power that appeared, the aura around Cheng Zongyang grew more potent.

As time passed, the Energy conversion within the Upper Qi Vortex gradually slowed. The lower qi vortex was nearing its capacity but continued to accumulate Power.

Cheng Zongyang’s face flushed red, and beads of sweat began to form on his forehead. He knew the Spiritual Power capacity within his body was reaching its limit.

This was the most critical moment.

’I can begin!’ A thought flashed through Cheng Zongyang’s mind.

Suddenly, the lower qi vortex trembled violently. A torrent of Spiritual Power, as mighty as water bursting through a dam, gushed forth, surging toward Cheng Zongyang’s limbs and throughout his entire meridian network. He was about to transform his meridians into Spirit Veins!

According to the records of the Qi Swallowing Technique, Spirit Veins were better suited for circulating Spiritual Power than meridians. They possessed greater resilience and could withstand the influence of more diverse energies in the future, as well as the scouring of immense Spiritual Power.

This was a necessary part of the Foundation Establishment conversion process for the North Nether Swallowing Qi Method.

Cheng Zongyang’s body trembled slightly as the transmission of all the qi accelerated. It converged at the center, only to be greedily devoured and refined by him.

He needed even more Spiritual Power to fill, shape, and complete the transformation of his Spirit Veins. Only after his Spirit Veins were fully formed could he withstand the scouring of Spiritual Power and proceed to the final step: Gathering Qi into Liquid!

Two hours later, once all his meridians had been successfully reshaped with Spiritual Power, Cheng Zongyang let out a soft sigh. He then began to draw the Spiritual Power from his new Spirit Veins back in to be "re-forged."

He needed to compress this Spiritual Power once more, transforming it into Spiritual Liquid to be stored within his Dantian, where it would form a Spirit Liquid Pool.

He still had no intention of using the Foundation Establishment Medicine Power. If he could break through on his own, he would do it his own way.

It was like the difference between a natural birth and a C-section; a child born naturally would certainly have a stronger Physique than one delivered by surgery.

If he could break through using his own Power, his foundation and potential would be far stronger and superior to what they would be if he relied on a Foundation Establishment Pill.

The qi from the seven Small Arrays surged out once more, converging at the center to be absorbed by Cheng Zongyang.

This process continued for nearly another hour, and the Spiritual Power in his body once again reached its limit. By now, Cheng Zongyang’s face was beet red, and the sweat on his brow had condensed into large drops that dripped incessantly to the floor.

This was the result of him forcefully compressing the Spiritual Power within his Dantian.

Yet, he still hadn’t reached the absolute limit of Spiritual Power compression his body could handle. His adaptive Talent was constantly at work, adjusting his body’s internal balance and providing him with a degree of support.

Another half an hour passed. The flow of qi from the seven Small Arrays abruptly ceased, and Cheng Zongyang’s eyes snapped open.

With his Divine Sense, he peered into his Dantian. There, at the location of the lower qi vortex, a single, droplet-like bead of Spiritual Liquid slowly dripped from the vortex’s opening.

A look of joy spread across Cheng Zongyang’s face at the sight.

’Success!’

’I’ve taken the first step. The rest will be easy.’

Following that, drop after drop of Spiritual Liquid began to gather in his Dantian. The painful, swelling sensation in his body and Spirit Veins started to subside.

At the same time, an aura completely different from the Qi Cultivation Stage began to radiate from within him.

Seeing this, Cheng Zongyang couldn’t help but smile.

’I’m halfway there.’

Next, he restarted the qi absorption that he had paused. He wanted to see just how strong his Dantian’s foundation would be at the exact moment his Spiritual Power finished liquefying and he officially stepped into the Foundation Establishment Realm!

In the blink of an eye, another two hours passed. He had completely absorbed every last bit of qi from the seven Small Arrays, leaving only the untouched Foundation Establishment Medicine Power.

But the process within his Dantian was still ongoing.

As the next day arrived, so too did the final drop of Spiritual Liquid. When the last vestiges of Spiritual Power could no longer be converted, an immense, irrepressible aura erupted from within Cheng Zongyang’s body. It reverberated throughout the room, sending waves of ripples across the Array’s barrier of light.

At that very moment, Cheng Zongyang’s eyes opened. His Cultivation had successfully broken through from the Qi Cultivation Realm to the Foundation Establishment Realm!

At the same time, he used his Divine Sense to observe the changes within his Dantian. The space that had once gathered Spiritual Power was now occupied by a fist-sized orb of Spiritual Liquid.