With the successful mastery of the Secret Transmission manual, the Golden Flame Manual, Qi Ping's aura finally stabilized completely at the Foundation Establishment stage. At this moment, Qi Ping opened the eyes he had kept closed for nearly a day. A light of excitement and joy shot from his pupils.
During this breakthrough, not only had his spiritual energy's power and volume increased dramatically, but his physical body and soul had also received significant boosts from the feedback of his advancement.
"Foundation Establishment! It's done!"
Although Qi Ping had been extremely confident, the actual success still filled him with immense joy. This was the Foundation Establishment stage! A stage that had blocked countless Qi Refinement cultivators and was the dream of so many. He had reached it without any risk!
One must know that Foundation Establishment cultivators were the top-tier combatants in Qingshi County! Back then, when the Murong family lost a Foundation Establishment cultivator, it shook the entire county. This breakthrough meant Qi Ping had truly entered the first tier of power in the region. His combat strength was certainly superior to those who used pills to break through, and when combined with his animal companions, his total power was at the very forefront!
Furthermore, his lifespan had exceeded five hundred years! This was a cause for great celebration. In this life, he did not want to die young. Foundation Establishment was his first step toward immortality!
Additionally, now that he had advanced, the efficiency of his Plant Growth would increase significantly. This was the key to nurturing the Rank 2 bee swarm. Only with the massive increase in soul strength and spiritual energy that came with Foundation Establishment did he have the qualifications to nurture a Rank 2 swarm.
The upgrade required not only five-hundred-year Blood Ginseng and two-hundred-year Flowing Light Grass for the Enhanced Bloodline Alienation Liquid but also a constant supply of honey brewed from those herbs to raise the larvae. If he were still at Qi Refinement, just growing the Blood Ginseng would have consumed all his energy. It would have been an inefficient use of his time. This was why he had waited until after his breakthrough to begin the transformation of the swarm.
"Now that I've reached Foundation Establishment, with my combat strength and the traits of my Farming Domain, ordinary cultivators at this stage won't be able to harm me easily."
The improvement in his survival capabilities was what brought him the most joy.
"Once I've nurtured the Rank 2 swarm, I'll go and bring Old Man Zhou back. I wonder if my current realm will give that lazy old man a massive fright?"
Bringing back Old Man Zhou was the first thing on his list after the swarm upgrade. Following that would be searching for new animal companions, Rank 2 resources, and advanced spells. Old Man Zhou could stay in the mortal world for two or three years without much trouble, but if too much time passed and his resources ran out, his life would end quickly.
At the latest, Qi Ping had to find him within a year. He had already prepared honey with body-nourishing effects; once Old Man Zhou refined it, he should be able to extend his life by seven or eight years.
Next, after familiarizing himself with his new power, Qi Ping sparred with Ya Ya several times. Through these hearty battles, his control over his power improved significantly, and he gained a deeper understanding of Foundation Establishment combat.
The combat strength of this stage was far beyond anything at Qi Refinement. Attack, defense, speed—every attribute had seen a massive leap. Another vital point was that he could now fly through the air! Now, even without the Art of Wind-Riding Flight, he could fly at will, though his speed was still inferior to a flight-type spirit beast like Ya Ya.
After thoroughly familiarizing himself with his new strength, Qi Ping gave himself a few days of rest. He used his new flight capabilities to travel across various parts of the Cloud-Mist Mountain Range, witnessing many strange creatures and plants of the cultivation world. The sheer variety of flora and fauna in just the Cloud-Mist Mountain Range exceeded his previous understanding.
He realized more than ever the vastness of the cultivation world. Traveling ten thousand miles is indeed better than reading ten thousand books. The things he saw in person were far more shocking than anything he had read. And this was just the Cloud-Mist Mountain Range—a place where spiritual energy was relatively thin.
He could hardly imagine the sheer scale of life in those vast, energy-rich beast domains and forests. His current strength was still far from enough to set foot in such places. There, even Golden Core or Nascent Soul cultivators had to be extremely careful, or they would surely perish.
He also realized that not all animals would have a strong favorable impression of a Druid. Over time, he found that the more violent the temperament and the higher the intelligence of an animal, the less likely they were to feel an immediate fondness for him. Conversely, gentle animals or young beasts felt an incredibly strong connection to him.
Returning from his travels, his mental state had improved. The fatigue of long-term cultivation was washed away, and his Farming Domain became even more solid.
"Indeed, as long as safety is guaranteed, traveling around the cultivation world occasionally is quite good. Cultivation also requires the cultivation of the heart!" The Dao-heart was the core of a cultivator's control over transcendent power; it was a subject that could never be neglected.
Back in his territory, Qi Ping threw himself into cultivation once more, using the Beast King's Flame to temper and strengthen his spiritual energy. However, he spent even more energy on nurturing the Blood Ginseng, Flowing Light Grass, and accompanying herbs. He estimated that to pick the best variants, he needed to grow at least three portions of five-hundred-year Blood Ginseng.
Three months later...
Through his relentless day-and-night effort, he finally completed the nurturing of the three portions of Blood Ginseng and other herbs!
"It wasn't easy! Even after reaching Foundation Establishment, it took me this long!"
Once the herbs were ready, he did not delay. He immediately began refining the Enhanced Bloodline Alienation Liquid. Having refined it successfully before and having practiced recently, it took him only half a day to successfully produce the concoction!