Li Fan and Yin Shangren re-entered the building and took seats in a rest area. Here, Li Fan stated the purpose of his visit.
"Oh? You wish to inquire about breaking through to the Foundation Establishment realm?" Yin Shangren immediately grew excited, spraying spittle as he spoke. "You've come to the right person, Fellow Daoist! I dare say no one understands Foundation Establishment better than I do!"
"I'm eager to hear the details." Li Fan replied with a cheerful smile.
At that moment, the dog approached. It stood upright like a human, holding cups in its two front hands. It then placed them on the table.
Dark liquid churned within the cups. It was impossible to tell what the contents were.
The dog then lay down again, circling Yin Shangren repeatedly as though seeking praise.
"Fellow Daoist, please have some tea! This is a cultivated colony of spiritual qi bacteria, truly excellent. Once they multiply symbiotically within your body, they can accelerate spiritual qi circulation and enhance the burst power of spiritual qi, among numerous other benefits." Yin Shangren introduced it to Li Fan and took a sip.
Li Fan extended his divine sense into the cup. The liquid inside churned with countless tiny microorganisms, clawing and posturing with rather distinctive appearances.
Thus, Li Fan made no movement. Seeing that Li Fan wasn’t planning to drink, Yin Shangren seemed somewhat disappointed.
He didn't insist, instead moving to the main topic. "So-called Foundation Establishment is the establishment of the foundation for your cultivation. But do you know what this Dao Foundation truly is?"
Li Fan pondered a moment before answering. "The Dao Foundation is the root of a cultivator's practice. After reaching the final-stage Qi Refinement realm, a cultivator must construct their own Dao Foundation to continue cultivating. Otherwise, even if their cultivation level could still rise, it would be like building a towering hundred-zhang structure on sand. The slightest shake would bring it crashing down."
When discussing academic matters, Yin Shangren was quite serious. He nodded. "Correct. Before the Great Reformation, some Qi Refinement cultivators took unorthodox paths, forgoing the Dao Foundation to specialize solely in Qi Refinement.
"They claimed Qi Refinement had no limits, that one at the 3000th level of Qi Refinement could slay Dao Unity powerhouse. Unfortunately, this individual only reached the 99th level of Qi Refinement before a Golden Core cultivator took offense and casually struck him down.
"Perhaps his path was viable, but first, Qi Refinement cultivators have frail bodies that are unable to withstand such immense power. Second, no matter how many levels of Qi Refinement one accumulates, it remains pure brute force. In actual combat against Foundation Establishment or higher cultivators, the disadvantages are too great. This idea focuses on minutiae while neglecting the core."
Yin Shangren took another sip of tea and continued. "Ancient cultivators all learned from nature. They observed the workings of heaven and earth, contemplating the laws of the Great Dao's flow. Then, synthesizing their insights, they made clumsy imitations.
"Over the years, a cultivator's accumulated insights and reflections on the Great Dao became the foundation for their future cultivation.
"And because natural talent varied, with differences in Dao comprehension aptitude, the speed at which cultivators established their Dao Foundations differed tremendously.
"Some gained sudden insight in an instant, establishing their foundation immediately. But the vast majority spent decades poring over texts until their hair turned white without making an inch of progress.
"The difficulty of cultivating the Dao is evident." Yin Shangren suddenly sighed. "But that was the past.
"If we compare the laws of heaven and earth to a towering great tree, then in former times, we cultivators were all minuscule spirits among its branches. We flew between each leaf and twig, observing and comprehending.
"It was too slow. Too difficult.
"After the Immortal Venerable preached the Dao, we cultivators all transformed into greedy ants, no longer observing and emulating, but directly devouring the leaves and branches of the great tree, turning them into nourishment for our own growth.
"This method undoubtedly accelerated cultivation by countless times. And Curios of heaven and earth are precisely like those leaves and branches.
"They are the aggregation of the world's laws in a particular aspect. By using Curios as a foundation, cultivators can skip the process of comprehension and directly forge their own Dao Foundation."
Li Fan nodded. "I recall the Treatise on Curios mentioning something similar."
" Treatise on Curios ..." Yin Shangren snorted, a clear disdain in his tone.
He continued, "If borrowing the Curios of heaven and earth was meant to bypass the process of understanding heaven and the earth, then let me ask you this: suppose there is a cultivator today, a true genius who doesn't need Curios to comprehend these laws. His connection to heaven and earth is profoundly deep. In ancient times, he could have proceeded directly to Foundation Establishment. Can he do so now?" Yin Shangren's gaze burned intently at Li Fan.
"Naturally not. Foundation Establishment requires one to borrow the Curios of heaven and earth..." Li Fan began, then suddenly fell silent as a thought struck him.
"Precisely. The methodology of cultivation has been utterly transformed," Yin Shangren said coldly.
"In the past, cultivators comprehended the laws of heaven and earth, cultivating in harmony with the heavens. This was the natural order.
"But after the Immortal Venerable disseminated the new methodology, this natural order was reversed. Cultivators must now act against the heavens, plundering and seizing from heaven and earth..."
Li Fan murmured, "Defy the principles of heaven and earth..."
"To attain eternal life!" Yin Shangren finished.
"I do not know what cultivators needed to do to achieve eternal life before the Great Reformation. But ever since the cultivation methodology changed, the only path to attain eternal life was to defy the principles of heaven and earth.
"The Immortal Venerable who first transmitted this method was both the theorist and its first practitioner. He defied all established cultivation principles of every cultivator under heaven and attained the fruit of eternal life.
“Since then, he has enjoyed longevity equal to heaven and earth, living free and unfettered.
"And from that point onward, any cultivator under heaven who wishes to cultivate can only do so according to His methodology. How tyrannical!"
Yin Shangren's tone was vehement, clearly holding significant dissatisfaction toward this Eternal Heavenly Venerable.
Walk your own path, and then force all living beings to walk only that path from then on. This Heavenly Venerable is truly... Li Fan was deeply shaken.
This was the second Eternal Heavenly Venerable he knew of.
Then, he suddenly thought of the giant statue of the elder on Myriad Immortals Island who wore a headpiece. It towered above all, looking down upon the masses coming and going.
Could the Myriad Immortals Alliance have been founded by this very Heavenly Venerable? But if this Heavenly Venerable is still alive, how could He stand by and watch as Myriad Immortals Island gets destroyed by Crimson Flame? A wave of doubt rose in Li Fan's heart.
Unconcerned with Li Fan's thoughts, Yin Shangren pressed on, "Here lies the crucial question. Establishing a foundation now absolutely requires a Curio of heaven and earth. But what exactly are Curios of heaven and earth?
"You've read the Treatise on Curios . You should know that after cultivators die, they are transformed by heaven and earth into Curios of heaven and earth.
"Does that not imply that living cultivators could also be seen as Curios of heaven and earth that have not yet been fully transformed?"
Yin Shangren spoke faster and faster, as if desperate to pour out all his unappreciated research over the years in one breath.
"Heaven and earth is like a great crucible. The finished products of this refinement are formed Curios of heaven and earth. And everything in heaven and earth can be considered an unfinished Curio!
"Curios are aggregates of laws. Aren’t humans also the same? The human body is so exquisitely designed, containing endless mysteries. Why can’t it be considered a Curio?
"Fellow Daoist, did you also know that some cultivators refine mortals with unusual abilities into Curios of heaven and earth, using them as their Dao Foundation, and thereby claiming those mortals' unique powers for themselves?
"I am human too. So... am I a Curio?"
Li Fan saw that Yin Shangren was getting more and more carried away and couldn't help interjecting, "Is this your speculation, or..."
Yin Shangren grinned. "It used to be speculation. But now, I have proven it."
As he spoke, his entire body split down the center, parting left and right. From his organs and flesh, another face of Yin Shangren emerged.
"Ten years ago, I used myself as a Curio to forge my Dao Foundation!"
Both faces, inner and outer, spoke in unison.