TL Note: Chapter 111 was a short author note about them publishing officially and thanking their readers, which is why it was skipped.
*****
What exactly is [Truth]? Since awakening to [Truth], this question has been deeply buried in Li Fan's heart.
Was it an ability that awakened within himself as he traversed into this world, or was it a rare treasure hidden within his body?
At certain moments, Li Fan couldn't help but feel a sense of fear. What if, one day, he suddenly lost [Truth]? Or in a moment that required turning reality into an illusion, what if [Truth] malfunctioned?
When he first read "Treatise on Heavenly Treasures," Li Fan had also doubted whether [Truth] was a type of Heavenly Treasure from heaven and earth. Could he use it to build his foundation?
Now, after hearing Master Yin's words, Li Fan was somewhat convinced that he could indeed use [Truth] to build his foundation.
However...
Not now.
As his final trump card, Li Fan couldn't rashly attempt it without a certain degree of certainty.
If building the foundation using [Truth] was considered a problem to solve, Li Fan currently didn't even have the qualification to participate in the discussion. After all, he hadn't fully grasped what building the foundation entailed.
Thankfully, in this era, most problems could be solved with money.
Fan Lin started searching for knowledge related to building the foundation.
"The Fundamentals of Foundation Establishment," "Heaven, Earth, and Humanity," and "Records of a Hundred Individual Foundations"... one by one, relevant works were exchanged and read.
Li Fan gradually gained a general understanding of foundation establishment.
Use the "Devouring Technique" to ingest Heavenly Treasure into the dantian.
The Roots of Heaven and Earth would take root there.
Using Heavenly Treasures as the soil and nurturing them, absorbing the contained laws, and eventually cultivating the fruit called the Foundation Treasure.
Heavenly Treasures were divided into three categories: Celestial Treasures, Earthly Treasures, and Human Treasures.
Among them, building the foundation with Human Treasures was the easiest. Human Treasures were usually the remnants of fallen cultivators and contained the cultivators' understandings of the laws from their lifetime. In the process of building the foundation, it was akin to having a constant teacher guiding and instructing.
On the other hand, Earthly and Celestial Treasures were closer to the laws of the great Dao. With no reference from other cultivators, it took more time and effort to comprehend the various rules within the Heavenly Treasures and convert them into one's own Foundation Treasure.
However, the advantage of using Heavenly Treasures to build the foundation was that it could not fail. It was similar to when one condensed the Roots of Heaven and Earth during a breakthrough in the Qi-refining stage, forcefully extracting spiritual energy. This method of building the foundation emphasized "stability."
"If I were to compare pre-ancient calamity foundation establishment to a closed-book exam, then today's foundation establishment would be an open-book exam. The answers are right in front of you, and the difference lies in how quickly and accurately you can copy them," Li Fan contemplated silently.
"The rarer the Heavenly Treasure, the higher the difficulty of the 'exam.' When the difficulty is so high that you can't even understand what the question is asking, let alone answer it, you have a problem."
"In that case, even if I want to use [Truth] to build the foundation in the short term, it's practically impossible."
"But, if I gradually improve my understanding of the laws during successive foundation establishment attempts and then try it again, there might be a chance."
"As for 'Self Foundation'..."
"Ten years in the past, I can let Master Yin try it for himself first."
Li Fan made a plan for his future cultivation.
Currently, his avatar was still present, but the remains of the deceased cultivators from the Tian Yang Cave had yet to be used.
His avatar, Fan Lin, continued to explore the secrets within the Tianxuan Mirror. He also exchanged and read some foundation establishment techniques, accumulating knowledge for the future integration of several techniques.
As for his main body, Li Fan intended to wait until the Canghai Pearl appeared to use it for foundation establishment.
In his previous life, he had turned into the Canghai Sea and comprehended the laws of heaven and earth through the consciousness of the Cong Yun Sea. He had an extraordinary affinity with the Canghai Pearl.
Using it for foundation establishment would certainly yield great results.
Now, about thirteen years had already passed, and there were only about seven or eight years left until the appearance of the Canghai Pearl. He could afford to wait.
Furthermore, during this time, he could work on understanding the way of foundation establishment.
He activated the Formless Killing Intent and the Vision of Heaven and Earth.
The images in his mind gradually became clearer.
In the midst of a raging storm, Zhang Haobo floated like a kite with a broken string, soaring with the wind. He didn't care about the turbulent waves or the raindrops pelting him, letting them strike him freely.
Li Fan observed Zhang Haobo and noted, "It's been almost three months since I last saw him, and now he's in the later stages of Qi Condensation..."
"His eyes are tightly closed, no signs of breathing, and his spiritual energy has fallen silent."
"What is he comprehending?"
Li Fan also watched the storm raging around them. Perhaps it was an illusion, but in the dim and gloomy sky, a streak of blue light flashed briefly.
"What was that..."
When Li Fan looked again, he couldn't see it anymore.
The brief glimpse of that astonishing sight seemed like a mere illusion.
"Blue..."
With the power of Vision of Heaven and Earth, Li Fan didn't believe he was mistaken.
He suddenly recalled the continuous wind disasters that had raged through the Cong Yun Sea for years. He had previously searched for information about the wind disasters in the Tianxuan Mirror, but it appeared that these wind disasters had little to no impact on cultivators. There were no records of them.
Now, he understood that this was likely manipulated.
Li Fan recalled that in his previous life, shortly before he arrived at Cong Yun Sea, a massive wind disaster had occurred. Over a hundred islands were destroyed. Over the following years, the scale and frequency of the wind disasters gradually diminished until the advent of the Crimson Flame.
"There might be some hidden secrets in this. It's just not the right time to investigate..." Li Fan noted it in his mind.
He shifted his attention back to Zhang Haobo, who was still in the midst of enlightenment.
Li Fan couldn't discern anything, and the torrential storm seemed endless, with no sign of stopping.
So, he had to keep a fraction of his attention on Zhang Haobo's situation.
Most of his attention returned to the Tianxuan Mirror.
"It's obviously not effective to focus on a single person. I need to cast a wider net. I haven't tried it yet, and the Formless Killing Intent can at most lock onto a few individuals."
"Hmm, I should find some cultivators who are about to build their foundations to conduct experiments."
When it came to gathering information, Li Fan thought of Jiao Xiuyuan. Although he was greedy and fearful, his information was usually reliable. Li Fan had been a regular customer of his for some time.
Hiding his presence and taking a familiar route, Li Fan arrived outside Thousand Mile Hall.
Before he could enter, he heard Jiao Xiuyuan's voice from a distance, "I've obtained all your stuff, so when are you coming to pick them up? I've reminded you several times, haven't I?"
"Don't give me those ridiculous excuses that you can't come. I think you just don't want them!"
"Hello? Hello!"
"Damn it!"
When Li Fan entered the room, he saw Jiao Xiuyuan's frustrated expression as he slammed a small cauldron onto the table.
TL Note: Chapter 111 was a short author note about them publishing officially and thanking their readers, which is why it was skipped.
*****
What exactly is [Truth]? Since awakening to [Truth], this question has been deeply buried in Li Fan's heart.
Was it an ability that awakened within himself as he traversed into this world, or was it a rare treasure hidden within his body?
At certain moments, Li Fan couldn't help but feel a sense of fear. What if, one day, he suddenly lost [Truth]? Or in a moment that required turning reality into an illusion, what if [Truth] malfunctioned?
When he first read "Treatise on Heavenly Treasures," Li Fan had also doubted whether [Truth] was a type of Heavenly Treasure from heaven and earth. Could he use it to build his foundation?
Now, after hearing Master Yin's words, Li Fan was somewhat convinced that he could indeed use [Truth] to build his foundation.
However...
Not now.
As his final trump card, Li Fan couldn't rashly attempt it without a certain degree of certainty.
If building the foundation using [Truth] was considered a problem to solve, Li Fan currently didn't even have the qualification to participate in the discussion. After all, he hadn't fully grasped what building the foundation entailed.
Thankfully, in this era, most problems could be solved with money.
Fan Lin started searching for knowledge related to building the foundation.
"The Fundamentals of Foundation Establishment," "Heaven, Earth, and Humanity," and "Records of a Hundred Individual Foundations"... one by one, relevant works were exchanged and read.
Li Fan gradually gained a general understanding of foundation establishment.
Use the "Devouring Technique" to ingest Heavenly Treasure into the dantian.
The Roots of Heaven and Earth would take root there.
Using Heavenly Treasures as the soil and nurturing them, absorbing the contained laws, and eventually cultivating the fruit called the Foundation Treasure.
Heavenly Treasures were divided into three categories: Celestial Treasures, Earthly Treasures, and Human Treasures.
Among them, building the foundation with Human Treasures was the easiest. Human Treasures were usually the remnants of fallen cultivators and contained the cultivators' understandings of the laws from their lifetime. In the process of building the foundation, it was akin to having a constant teacher guiding and instructing.
On the other hand, Earthly and Celestial Treasures were closer to the laws of the great Dao. With no reference from other cultivators, it took more time and effort to comprehend the various rules within the Heavenly Treasures and convert them into one's own Foundation Treasure.
However, the advantage of using Heavenly Treasures to build the foundation was that it could not fail. It was similar to when one condensed the Roots of Heaven and Earth during a breakthrough in the Qi-refining stage, forcefully extracting spiritual energy. This method of building the foundation emphasized "stability."
"If I were to compare pre-ancient calamity foundation establishment to a closed-book exam, then today's foundation establishment would be an open-book exam. The answers are right in front of you, and the difference lies in how quickly and accurately you can copy them," Li Fan contemplated silently.
"The rarer the Heavenly Treasure, the higher the difficulty of the 'exam.' When the difficulty is so high that you can't even understand what the question is asking, let alone answer it, you have a problem."
"In that case, even if I want to use [Truth] to build the foundation in the short term, it's practically impossible."
"But, if I gradually improve my understanding of the laws during successive foundation establishment attempts and then try it again, there might be a chance."
"As for 'Self Foundation'..."
"Ten years in the past, I can let Master Yin try it for himself first."
Li Fan made a plan for his future cultivation.
Currently, his avatar was still present, but the remains of the deceased cultivators from the Tian Yang Cave had yet to be used.
His avatar, Fan Lin, continued to explore the secrets within the Tianxuan Mirror. He also exchanged and read some foundation establishment techniques, accumulating knowledge for the future integration of several techniques.
As for his main body, Li Fan intended to wait until the Canghai Pearl appeared to use it for foundation establishment.
In his previous life, he had turned into the Canghai Sea and comprehended the laws of heaven and earth through the consciousness of the Cong Yun Sea. He had an extraordinary affinity with the Canghai Pearl.
Using it for foundation establishment would certainly yield great results.
Now, about thirteen years had already passed, and there were only about seven or eight years left until the appearance of the Canghai Pearl. He could afford to wait.
Furthermore, during this time, he could work on understanding the way of foundation establishment.
He activated the Formless Killing Intent and the Vision of Heaven and Earth.
The images in his mind gradually became clearer.
In the midst of a raging storm, Zhang Haobo floated like a kite with a broken string, soaring with the wind. He didn't care about the turbulent waves or the raindrops pelting him, letting them strike him freely.
Li Fan observed Zhang Haobo and noted, "It's been almost three months since I last saw him, and now he's in the later stages of Qi Condensation..."
"His eyes are tightly closed, no signs of breathing, and his spiritual energy has fallen silent."
"What is he comprehending?"
Li Fan also watched the storm raging around them. Perhaps it was an illusion, but in the dim and gloomy sky, a streak of blue light flashed briefly.
"What was that..."
When Li Fan looked again, he couldn't see it anymore.
The brief glimpse of that astonishing sight seemed like a mere illusion.
"Blue..."
With the power of Vision of Heaven and Earth, Li Fan didn't believe he was mistaken.
He suddenly recalled the continuous wind disasters that had raged through the Cong Yun Sea for years. He had previously searched for information about the wind disasters in the Tianxuan Mirror, but it appeared that these wind disasters had little to no impact on cultivators. There were no records of them.
Now, he understood that this was likely manipulated.
Li Fan recalled that in his previous life, shortly before he arrived at Cong Yun Sea, a massive wind disaster had occurred. Over a hundred islands were destroyed. Over the following years, the scale and frequency of the wind disasters gradually diminished until the advent of the Crimson Flame.
"There might be some hidden secrets in this. It's just not the right time to investigate..." Li Fan noted it in his mind.
He shifted his attention back to Zhang Haobo, who was still in the midst of enlightenment.
Li Fan couldn't discern anything, and the torrential storm seemed endless, with no sign of stopping.
So, he had to keep a fraction of his attention on Zhang Haobo's situation.
Most of his attention returned to the Tianxuan Mirror.
"It's obviously not effective to focus on a single person. I need to cast a wider net. I haven't tried it yet, and the Formless Killing Intent can at most lock onto a few individuals."
"Hmm, I should find some cultivators who are about to build their foundations to conduct experiments."
When it came to gathering information, Li Fan thought of Jiao Xiuyuan. Although he was greedy and fearful, his information was usually reliable. Li Fan had been a regular customer of his for some time.
Hiding his presence and taking a familiar route, Li Fan arrived outside Thousand Mile Hall.
Before he could enter, he heard Jiao Xiuyuan's voice from a distance, "I've obtained all your stuff, so when are you coming to pick them up? I've reminded you several times, haven't I?"
"Don't give me those ridiculous excuses that you can't come. I think you just don't want them!"
"Hello? Hello!"
"Damn it!"
When Li Fan entered the room, he saw Jiao Xiuyuan's frustrated expression as he slammed a small cauldron onto the table.
