Chapter 72: Unexpected Surprise
"Uncle, please open the door. It's Cao Ying."
Early in the morning, Cao Ying appeared in Yunzhong City. She knocked on Lin Jiang's door. Lin Jiang scanned the area with his senses and confirmed that it was indeed Cao Ying. However, she had someone with her, so he quickly put away Big Shadiao and Small Shadiao.
"Cao Ying, why have you come back?"
"Senior Qín, you're here too."
Lin Jiang opened the door and saw Qin Yan beside Cao Ying. He quickly bowed in greeting.
"The junior apprentice sister insisted on going home to visit, and our master was worried. He asked me to keep an eye on her."
"Senior Ouyang is kindly inviting you to come in."
Lin Jiang quickly invited the two inside. Cao Ying indeed needed protection, otherwise with her talent and understanding, she would've faced countless jealousies and might even be attacked.
Qin Yan entered Lin Jiang's house and frowned slightly. The house was so small and run-down, which she wasn't used to. In Zhonghang Sect, she had her own independent cave dwelling. With her golden core cultivation, her dwelling could be as big as ten acres. Lin Jiang's place, at most, was seventy square meters and couldn't be any larger.
"Please excuse the shabby place."
"You can move to the north of the city in the future."
"I will definitely go if there is an opportunity."
Lin Jiang nodded. The northern part of Yunzhong City was the rich area of the city, with significantly fewer buildings compared to the other three locations. The average residential area per person was large, naturally making the prices much higher.
However, Lin Jiang would definitely go because he needed to break through to the Building Foundation Period, which required an environment with abundant spiritual energy. The Spirit Gathering Formation could solve this problem, but it needed to continuously install spirit stones. As Lin Jiang was alone and unable to change the spirit stones during his closed-door meditation, he could only rent a cave dwelling with sufficient spiritual energy, and the ones in the north of the city were his target.
"Uncle, I miss your cooking."
"Okay, I'll make it for you right away. Please wait a moment and I will serve your sister."
Lin Jiang smiled and said, he really loved Cao Ying. After all, he was over a hundred years old and he liked children.
Lin Jiang tied on an apron, entered the kitchen, cooked a few dishes, and brought them out for Cao Ying to enjoy. Cao Ying ate happily.
"You have good skills. You can work at Shanshi Canteen in Zhonghang Sect."
"Sister, can you help my uncle get a job at Shanshi Canteen?"
"No, he is not a disciple of our sect."
"Oh, can you please ask our master for help?"
"Even our master can't do that. Shanshi Canteen is an important place for our sect, not just anyone can enter."
Qin Yan shook her head. Many disciples of Zhonghang Sect still need to eat. If bad people entered Shanshi Canteen, it would be a disaster. They could wipe out all of their lower-level disciples. That's why Shanshi Canteen in Zhonghang Sect must only have people with a clean background, meaning several generations have been part of Zhonghang Sect.
"Cao Ying, I don't want to go to the Zhonghang Sect either. I'm used to being an independent cultivator, enjoying freedom. Please don't bother the seniors."
"Alright, uncle. This time I came back to bring you a good present."
"What good present?"
"A Building Foundation Pill, look..."
Cao Ying took out a jade bottle and poured out a Building Foundation Pill from inside.
"Five?"
Lin Jiang was shocked when he saw the Building Foundation Pill. All of a sudden, five Building Foundation Pills?
"Yes, five. My master, Chen Mingyang, is the Pill Hall Master of the sect. He has five disciples, so I asked each of them for a Building Foundation Pill. Unfortunately, two of my master's disciples are not skilled enough to refine the pill, otherwise I could have asked for two more."
"Little Ying, about this..."
Lin Jiang was a bit perplexed. He wondered if Cao Ying's cards were really that powerful. Weren't the Building Foundation Pills very expensive?
Qin Yan shook her head and said, "Taoist Friend Lin should put it away. It's a show of filial piety from our junior sister."
"This is way too valuable."
"It's not expensive. Independent cultivators like you would have to spend twenty to thirty thousand spirit stones to buy a Building Foundation Pill. But for us, the total cost of making one pill is only twenty thousand spirit stones. And let me tell you, our senior brothers are skilled at alchemy. They can make a minimum of eight pills."
Qin Yan explained, "The retail price is different from the cost price. The retail price includes various expenses. Their alchemists can make a Building Foundation Pill for only two to three thousand spirit stones. And those disciples under Chen Mingyang are at least in the late stage of building foundation. Two or three thousand spirit stones mean nothing to them."
"I feel unworthy of this."
Lin Jiang waved his hand, but his eyes couldn't help but stay fixed on the Building Foundation Pill. In the past few auctions, the final cost for each pill was around forty thousand spirit stones. Five pills would amount to nearly two hundred thousand spirit stones. That was a huge sum for independent cultivators.
Lin Jiang could confirm that more than 95% of the Qi Refining Period independent cultivators in Yunzhong City couldn't earn two hundred thousand spirit stones in twenty years. Most of them were living in extreme poverty.
One could see the living conditions around by looking at the housing situation. It was common for three to five people to live in a fifty to sixty square meter house. Some extreme cases would even have seven or eight people. If one didn't know any better, they would think they had entered a sweatshop. Was this still cultivation?
"You have taken care of your younger apprentice sister. This is her way of showing her gratitude. Don't feel guilty. Taoist Friend Lin, please accept it and don't waste your apprentice sister's filial piety."
Qin Yan couldn't possibly not understand the meaning behind Lin Jiang's words. It was just a polite gesture, and she immediately gave Lin Jiang an easy way out.
"Yes, uncle, please accept it quickly. You're about to successfully establish the building foundation. I hope to still be able to taste the meals you cook a hundred years from now."
"Alright, I happen to need the Building Foundation Pill. I'll accept it then."
Lin Jiang said with reserve, feeling even embarrassed by his own hypocrisy. It was clear that he wanted it so much.
"It's been many years since I've been to Yunzhong City. I'll go for a walk. You all stay at home and don't let Cao Ying go out, okay?"
"I understand, don't worry."
Lin Jiang nodded solemnly. Ouyang Qing asked Qin Yan to protect Cao Ying for a reason. Lin Jiang wasn't that foolish.
After Qin Yan left, Cao Ying could speak more freely with Lin Jiang. Lin Jiang also advised Cao Ying that in Zhonghang Sect, one should be cautious with their words and actions. It's okay to be sweet-tongued, but don't say too much. It's fine to do more tasks and bear small losses, but when it comes to bottom lines and core interests, one must not give an inch.
······
Cao Ying didn't spend the night at home and left the next day. Usually, disciples who are new and have only been practicing for a few years are not allowed to leave the sect for their own safety. But this time, Ouyang Qing made an exception for her.
After Cao Ying left, Lin Jiang looked at the five Building Foundation Pills and got very excited. He had lived for over a hundred years, and raising Cao Ying was his most rewarding investment. Just from these Building Foundation Pills, he made a big profit.
In the evening, Lin Jiang treated himself at the Spring Coming Tower. After about ten days, he still attended the auction at the Star Gathering Tower. He had to maintain his appearance and couldn't be too careless just because he had the Building Foundation Pills.
At the auction, Lin Jiang didn't bid on the Building Foundation Pills once the price went over thirty thousand spirit stones. He was just there to be a spectator.
After the auction, Lin Jiang went to the north of the city. As soon as he entered, everything felt different. The buildings here were no longer crowded, small, and rundown. Instead, they were luxurious mansions, with three courtyards, five courtyards, even eight courtyards.
The people on the street had a higher cultivation level. Very few were in the early stage of Qi Refining, and most were in the Building Foundation Period. Sometimes, he even saw people in the Golden Core Period.
Not only were the buildings in the north of the city luxurious, but there were also mountains. Other places used to have mountains too, but they were flattened long ago, turned into densely-packed buildings maximizing resources. Moving mountains and seas was not difficult for cultivators.
The mountains in the north of the city were the source of spiritual energy for Yunzhong City, and they couldn't be destroyed. However, Yunzhong City had opened up caves in the mountains and rented them out.
Lin Jiang asked around and learned that the caves in the north of the city were divided into four levels: sky, earth, mysterious, and yellow. The sky-level caves were even suitable for Nascent Soul stage elders to practice in. The Nascent Soul ancestors who guarded Yunzhong City for Zhonghang Sect and Cloud Sword Sect lived in the sky-level caves.
The earth-level caves were suitable for those in the Golden Core Period to live in. Most of the high-ranking people in Yunzhong City lived in this area. The mysterious and yellow-grade caves were sufficient for daily cultivation in the Foundation Building Period. The concentration of spiritual energy in the mysterious and yellow-grade caves was similar, but the size, decoration, and price were different.
The rent for the caves in the north of the city was quite high. For a yellow-grade cave with a size of less than twenty square meters, the annual rent was five thousand spirit stones. With this price, one could rent a nearly one hundred square meter house in the most crowded South City or a one hundred and fifty square meter house in West City.
However, even so, there was still a high demand for the caves in the north of the city. There were no empty yellow-grade or mysterious-level caves. Lin Jiang couldn't help but sigh at the huge wealth disparity in this world. While ordinary independent cultivators were still struggling in poverty, the independent cultivators here were already so wealthy.
Lin Jiang left a deposit and reserved a cave to rent for eight months. Once he moved in after eight months, Lin Jiang was ready to officially start his breakthrough.
After returning home, Lin Jiang started collecting information on breaking through the Foundation Building Period. He was far from reaching this stage in his cultivation before, so he didn't pay much attention to it. But now, he was ready to prepare.
The most important aspect of breaking through from the Qi Refining Period to the Foundation Building Period was compressing the spiritual energy in the dantian from its gaseous state to a liquid state. This process required the use of Foundation Building Pills to provide powerful pressure of spiritual energy. However, it may damage the meridians, so the auxiliary pills for foundation building included some pills that protected the meridians.
If conditions allowed, one could seek the guidance of their elders to protect them. If the meridians became chaotic, there was a risk of demonic possession. However, Lin Jiang couldn't find a reliable elder in the Foundation Building Period to guide him, so he could only prepare more pills.
The Foundation Building Pills that Cao Ying brought were a great help to Lin Jiang. They saved him a great deal of spirit stones, allowing him to have enough funds for adequate preparation. Otherwise, he would have to find a way to raise more money.
Eight months later, Lin Jiang celebrated his 163rd birthday all by himself and successfully moved into the yellow grade cave in the north of the city, getting ready to build a foundation.
