I’ll Take That Opportunity Chapter 43 – Secrets Of The Foundation Establishment Realm

Upon arriving at the Scripture Pavilion, Ye Lin entered without resistance. As an inner disciple and a pillar of the Azure Cloud Sect, no one dared stop him.

Inside, he bypassed the martial techniques and cultivation methods—most of them low-grade basic-tier, no longer worthy of his attention—and headed straight to the back of the pavilion.

“This is the one.”

Looking at the secret manual before him, Ye Lin picked it up and began to read.

The manual detailed common issues faced during cultivation, along with a few hidden truths.

It was freely available, which allowed Ye Lin to study it undisturbed in the pavilion.

Half an hour later, he closed the book.

“So that’s how it is.” He muttered.

He now understood that the Foundation Establishment realm was far more complex than he’d thought. Upon breaking through, the spirit qi in a cultivator's dantian transformed into spirit liquid, drastically increasing storage capacity compared to the Qi Refinement realm. This was one reason Foundation Establishment cultivators could fly using their swords.

The second reason was the dao platform. When entering the Foundation Establishment realm, the dantian evolved into a dao platform, which housed the spirit liquid and determined a cultivator’s potential and combat power.

Dao platforms were divided into five grades, from 1st through 5th, with the 5th grade dao platform regarded as perfect.

A cultivator who forged a 5th grade dao platform would wield immense power, far beyond those with 1st through 4th grade dao platforms.

“With my current foundation, I’ll likely form a 3rd grade dao platform. But that’s still not enough. If I want to go further, I must forge a 5th grade dao platform.”

According to the manual, a 5th grade dao platform was essential for ascending to true immortality. Forming anything less meant the path to immortality would be severed.

In the Azure Cloud Sect, 99% of disciples had only 1st grade dao platforms.

“I wonder what grade Lin Zisheng’s dao platform is. As a child of destiny, his shouldn’t be ordinary.”

Ye Lin rose to his feet and walked away, his thoughts racing. To forge a 5th-grade dao platform, his cultivation base during the Qi Refinement realm had to be polished to perfection.

Beyond that, two additional requirements had to be met: the aid of divine beast blood, and the use of a Nine Revolutions Dragon Chant Flower.

This flower was exceedingly rare, its value on par with earth-tier spirit medicines.

However, if the cultivation base wasn’t refined to its peak, even the blood and flower would be useless.

“Divine beast blood… isn't the little phoenix a descendant of a divine beast? Once it hatches, I can use some of its blood.”

Joy spread across Ye Lin’s face. The requirement seemed tailor-made for him.

At that moment, he no longer focused on breaking through. Not yet. He decided that the day the little phoenix hatched would be the day he stepped into the Foundation Establishment realm.

With renewed determination, Ye Lin returned to his residence.

“Time to cultivate.”

He pulled out five low-grade Spirit Stones and began absorbing their spirit qi. As spirit qi poured into his dantian, the Phoenix Fire within swirled joyfully in response.

In the blink of an eye, a day passed. Ye Lin opened his eyes.

Only after focusing more intently on his cultivation base did he realize just how many flaws remained.

Thankfully, he hadn’t rushed to break through the day before. Otherwise, he would have sorely regretted it.

“Today, I’ll claim Lin Zisheng’s opportunities. First, I’ll get the Septum-Metal Essence. Then, I’ll head to the Firecloud Mountains to absorb the Earth Vein Fire Qi. That should temper my cultivation base to its limit.”

“After that, I’ll focus entirely on hatching the little phoenix. Once it’s born, I’ll ascend to the Foundation Establishment realm.”

"Still, I need to stay focused. The Inner Sect Competition is just a month away. I can’t help but wonder how mysterious that tenth elder really is."

Ye Lin rose to his feet and walked outside, his thoughts revolving.

The Inner Sect Competition, held in a month, was a contest among the inner disciples. The top ten would earn generous rewards, and the truly exceptional might even attract the attention of the elders, perhaps even be taken in as personal disciples.

Descending the mountain, Ye Lin made his way toward Qingshan City.

"Something's off."

He stopped abruptly, recalling the ominous fate prediction from his panel.

The area was eerily quiet. Not only were there no rogue cultivators, but even demon beasts seemed to have vanished—an unnatural stillness that immediately put him on edge.

Suddenly, a sharp sword ray tore through the air behind him.

Reacting instantly, Ye Lin activated Phantom Vanishing, his figure blurring as he tried to evade. Still, the sword ray was too fast. He felt a sting as it sliced a shallow wound into his right arm.

Without hesitation, he used Phantom Vanishing again, disappearing from sight in a blur of motion.

From the underbrush, Lin Zisheng stepped out.

"A movement technique that boosts speed? But how did he sense me? I'm at the Foundation Establishment realm—he shouldn't have dodged that."

"No matter. Now I know your trump card. A low-grade movement technique, huh? Just wait..."

And with that, Lin Zisheng vanished into the shadows.

Ye Lin glanced at the cut on his arm, his expression grim.

"The gap between the Foundation Establishment and Qi Refinement realms is really wide. Even prepared, I barely escaped."

"I have to break through as soon as possible."

Turning back toward Qingshan City, he resumed his journey. The city was of key importance to the Azure Cloud Sect, though Ye Lin wasn’t exactly sure why.

He had passed through several cities recently, but Qingshan City felt different. On the surface, it looked like any other city. But beneath that, something was off.

The people moved quickly, all seemingly on urgent business. Even the roadside vendors wore strange, uneasy expressions.

Instead of the usual lively energy cities exuded, Qingshan City’s atmosphere was muted, quiet in an unsettling way. Voices were hushed, and no one lingered.

Shaking off the feeling, Ye Lin made his way toward the city center.

If it was a brothel, it would surely be located there. In this world, unlike in his previous life, such establishments were perfectly legal.

And where was the best place to make money? Naturally, the bustling heart of the city, where the foot traffic was the heaviest.

Sure enough, guided by experience, he quickly spotted the brothel. Two provocatively dressed women stood at the entrance, fanning themselves and teasing passersby.

Ye Lin headed straight toward it.

"Young master, you're so handsome." One of the women cooed, smiling flirtatiously.

Ignoring her, Ye Lin stepped inside. A pungent mix of powder and perfume hit him immediately—cloying and unpleasant.

A plump middle-aged woman sauntered over to Ye Lin, batting her eyes suggestively.

"Welcome, young master! Where are you from? Looking for a particular girl?"

Ye Lin waved her aside, getting straight to the point.

"I heard you have a room called Heavenly Room No. 1. I’ll take it."

"Ah... yes, we do. But there are two ways to enter."

"First, you can compose a poem. If it pleases Miss Ruyan, you may stay for free."

"Second, you can pay a hundred silver taels per night."

Ye Lin paused, considering. Opportunities appeared at random.

"So then, Lin Zisheng…"

A smirk appeared on Ye Lin’s face.

"Lin Zisheng, you really know how to play the game."