Instead of immediately leaving seclusion, Li Fan returned to the stone chamber at the bottom of the lake and immediately began his first cultivation session as a Foundation Establishment cultivator.
He chose to practice the Foundation Establishment chapter of the Thousand Mechanisms Jade Cosmos Scripture.
Before long, however, he frowned and stopped.
During his cultivation, he faintly sensed a slight stagnation in the flow of his spiritual qi. Though it was an extremely subtle sensation, one that would go unnoticed if he weren't paying close attention, it was undeniably present.
After some thought, Li Fan stopped and switched to practicing the Sea-Calming Sword Art.
Ever since Zhang Haobo's death, no one else had cultivated this technique. The moment he began, Li Fan clearly noticed the difference compared to the Thousand Mechanisms Jade Cosmos Scripture.
Even with Li Fan's lackluster aptitude, the cultivation proceeded with incredible smoothness. It was as if he had automatically entered an epiphanic state. Within moments, the spiritual qi had circulated through his body along the technique's pathways several times, easily breaking through to the mid-stage Qi Refinement realm.
.....
“Right, you’re already at the late-stage Qi Refinement realm. When the time comes to select a Foundation Establishment technique, if you have the means, be sure to choose one that is highly compatible with your own Foundation Establishment Curio.
“Doing so will not only make your future cultivation twice as effective with half the effort, but it also offers other significant benefits...”
.....
He Zhenghao's words suddenly surfaced in Li Fan's mind, and he pondered them deeply.
Compatible with my Curio... so that's how it is.
With a thought, a blue water sword instantly formed within his dantian. With a casual flick of his hand, the water sword shot out, effortlessly piercing a small hole through a massive rock.
The power of my arcane arts has also increased by a certain degree.
Li Fan retracted the Sea-Calming Sword, contemplating silently.
If an ordinary cultivator had a choice between a Nascent Soul technique and a Golden Core technique, they would undoubtedly choose to cultivate the Nascent Soul technique, even if the Golden Core technique allowed for faster progress.
But I am different. Return to Truth allows me to carry my cultivation realm forward into the next lifetime. Therefore, the technique that suits me best is actually the one that allows me to advance my cultivation the fastest.
Before, I had no choice, with only the Thousand Mechanisms Jade Cosmos Scripture to cultivate. Now that I have more options, I don't need to cling to it stubbornly.
Li Fan examined the techniques listed on Return to Truth’s panel.
When he had fewer cultivation techniques before, he hadn't paid much attention to their order. But now, with as many as six techniques being cultivated simultaneously, he noticed something peculiar about the way they were arranged.
Xuanhuang Heart Refinement Sutra, Cloudwater Dream Illusion Art, Heaven-Swapping Art, Thousand Mechanisms Jade Cosmos Scripture, Intent Spirit Illusion Art, Shadow Stalk Art
They seemed to be ranked from first to last based on the technique's value.
From this, it appears the Xuanhuang Heart Refinement Sutra actually ranks above the Cloudwater Dream Illusion Art?
The Cloudwater Dream Illusion Art was personally transmitted by Qin Tang and belonged to a completely different system from current techniques.
Regardless of cultivation realm, as long as one completed the previous level and met the advancement conditions, they could proceed to cultivate the next level.
The seven levels of Cloudwater Dream Illusion corresponded to mortal, Qi Refinement, Foundation Establishment, Golden Core, Nascent Soul, Spirit Transformation, and Dao Unity.
Its rarity was evident. Even so, according to Return to Truth, the value of the Xuanhuang Heart Refinement Sutra surpassed that of the Cloudwater Dream Illusion Art.
The implications of this realization plunged Li Fan into deep contemplation.
Yet, Li Fan himself was still completely baffled by how he had comprehended the Xuanhuang Heart Refinement Sutra in the first place.
Thus, inevitably, Li Fan could not arrive at any clear conclusion.
Currently, the Xuanhuang Heart Refinement Sutra operated ceaselessly, as instinctive as breathing.
However, progress had grown exceedingly slow. Twenty-eight years had passed in this life, yet there had been no significant improvement in this technique.
Still, Li Fan was in no hurry. After all, he had plenty of time.
His thoughts returned to the matter of selecting the next technique to cultivate.
Li Fan couldn’t help but recall the Mountain-Sitting Art that He Zhenghao had practiced.
From He Zhenghao’s description, this technique could amplify the advantage of foresight brought by Return to Truth without limit.
But as for how effective “sitting on a mountain and reaping its rewards” truly was, he would have to test it out personally.
Li Fan pondered for a moment, then retrieved a pile of unrecognizable residue from his storage ring—the remains of the cultivators from Tian Yang’s cave dwelling.
His avatar had died; it was time to create a new one.
A sharp glint flashed in Li Fan’s eyes.
The first step is to identify the parts belonging to Fellow Daoist He.
After a moment’s thought, Li Fan devised a plan. He set up a rudimentary version of the Mountain River Constellation Array and poured the pile of residue into it.
Immediately, the residue began to float and rotate around the center like stars in the night sky.
Li Fan then increased the output frequency of the array.
The residue spun faster and faster. Soon, the fragments formed distinct trajectories, separating clearly from one another.
Li Fan carefully distinguished He Zhenghao’s aura. However, it was still mixed with some other residue. So Li Fan patiently repeated the process.
After most of the day had passed, he finally isolated He Zhenghao’s remains.
Peak-grade Bone, Celestial Spirit Nectar, Bone-Shattering Treasure Sinew, Skycrystal Spirit Sand... one by one, Li Fan took out the materials he had prepared earlier.
He then began the crafting process.
According to the instructions in the Heaven-Swapping Art, when plundering a deceased cultivator, one may randomly gain certain memories from their lifetime.
Generally speaking, the more valuable something was to the cultivator in life, the lower the probability of it appearing. So, the memory gained depends largely on luck.
He Zhenghao had intended to switch techniques during his lifetime, which suggests he didn’t place too much importance on the Mountain-Sitting Art.
The probability that I can successfully reproduce it is quite high.
As Li Fan contemplated this, he began to craft his avatar. Bones, organs, skin and hair slowly took shape. Finally, he molded the face to resemble his previous avatar.
Li Fan nodded in satisfaction and pointed toward the avatar’s head.
“Sever!”
Unlike before, the moment his consciousness connected to the avatar, many yellowed images suddenly flooded into Li Fan’s mind.
Like paintings preserved for too long, some were faded, while others were riddled with holes and tattered edges. All of them flashed by in an instant.
Li Fan focused all his attention, carefully searching for the parts containing the Mountain-Sitting Art.
The number of images dwindled, and they also began to tremble violently.
Li Fan remained unmoved. He would accept nothing less than the Mountain-Sitting Art.
Finally, he had a lucky break.
Just as all the images were about to vanish, Li Fan saw it: a young He Zhenghao held a jade slip with a look of sheer delight after exploring a cave dwelling.
Li Fan’s eyes flashed.
That’s the one!
Like a predator that had waited too long for its prey, his thoughts pounced fiercely on that yellowed, fragmented image.
A torrent of information flowed into Li Fan's mind like a rushing stream. Slowly and deliberately, Li Fan absorbed it all.
A long time later, Li Fan opened his eyes. There was a look of profound astonishment within them.
This Mountain-Sitting Art... It's not a technique meant for humans to cultivate!