The faint rays of morning light filtered through the cracks in the stone chamber's heavy door.
Li Qingyun stirred. His eyes fluttered open slowly, and for the first time in three months, he exhaled fully, feeling peace flood through his limbs. Though only a few hours had passed since he collapsed from exhaustion, it was enough. His mind was refreshed, his body unburdened.
He sat upright, folding his legs into a meditative posture. With a deep breath, he activated his inner spiritual vision—an ability that usually those at Foundation Establishment Realm can use but Li Qingyun can already use it when he was at Qi Gathering Realm.
What he saw stunned even him.
Hovering at his dantian's center was a complex matrix of shimmering light, a living web of energy. The nine elemental circuits—fire, water, wind, earth, lightning, wood, metal, light, and darkness—weaved together, orbiting a central object like black-gold core. There was no conflict between them. They flowed around each other like dancers in harmony.
The black-gold core at the center of Li Qingyun's Ninefold Chaotic Circuit Matrix is the heart of his Core Vein Matrix. It represents the fusion nexus that unifies the nine elemental circuits and allows them to operate in perfect harmony without clashing.
He simply opened the system interface to see the details about how his Foundation Establishment is different from those written in records.
After reviewing the details he was flabbergasted with the effects of black gold-core because they were simply heaven defying.
[Elemental Harmony : No element interferes with another. Even normally opposing forces like fire and water, light and darkness, move in balance.]
[Core Expansion Potential: Most Foundation Cores are static, but the black-gold core can grow new branches or condense sub-cores in higher realms, giving unprecedented flexibility.]
[Natural Law Affinity: The black-gold color is subtly attuned to primordial laws. In later stages, it will help resonate with deeper principles of the world—like time, space, creation, and destruction.]
His meridians had widened with energy. They could circulate twice as much spiritual power as before without strain.
He exhaled.
'This is only the first layer... What will I become at the peak?'
Smiling faintly, he stood up, stretched his back, and walked out of the stone chamber, the ancient door creaking open with a soft rumble.
_____
The moment he stepped into the courtyard, a familiar voice cried out.
"Qingyun!"
His mother, Lin Meiyu, rushed forward, wrapping him in a tight hug. Her eyes shimmered with joy, and despite being a graceful lady of noble temperament, she couldn't hide her maternal relief.
"You're finally out! You've lost weight—have you eaten?"
"Mother, I'm fine." Li Qingyun smiled, touched. "Really. I broke through. And no I have not eaten I am craving your cooking."
His father, Li Tianyang, strode over with calm dignity, but the pride in his eyes was impossible to miss.
"You made it to Foundation Establishment."
"Yes, father."
"Good. Your path is your own, but this is a true beginning."
They walked together. Li Qingyun bathed, changed into a fresh blue robe embroidered with silver thread, and joined them at the family table for a meal.
The food was simple—spiritual rice, flame-roasted beast meat, fresh fruit—but after months of dry pills, it tasted divine. As he ate, they chatted about trivial matters, laughing lightly.
______
After the meal, a servant approached respectfully.
"Young Master, the envoy from the Sky-Reaching Sword Sect wishes an audience."
Li Qingyun's expression turned serious. He rose, adjusted his robe, and stepped into the hall.
A tall man stood there, dressed in white and blue robes with the sword insignia of the Sky-Reaching Sword Sect on his shoulder. His long black hair was tied back in a simple knot, and a sheathed spirit sword rested at his side. His name was Elder Wu Zheng.
The envoy looked up the moment Li Qingyun entered.
"You're finally here," he said, voice calm but edged with subtle pressure.
Li Qingyun bowed deeply.
"Elder Wu, I apologize for making you wait. I did not intend to delay the sect's plans."
He knew the name of Elder as his father had told him.
The envoy raised a brow.
As the elegant tea steamed between them, the envoy of the Sky-Reaching Sword Sect observed Li Qingyun carefully.
The envoy waved a hand. "No need. I had assumed you were attempting to consolidate the peak of Qi Gathering—perhaps breaking through the ninth stage and stabilizing your spiritual roots. It is a critical time, after all."
He sipped his tea, calm and cordial. But the moment his spiritual sense brushed against Li Qingyun's cultivation… his eyes froze.
His brows twitched. Just slightly. But in the world of cultivators, that subtle flicker might as well have been thunder cracking.
"…Foundation Establishment," the envoy murmured. "You're… already at the first layer?"
Li Qingyun nodded lightly.
A long silence stretched between them.
"…I see," the envoy finally said, regaining his calm. "No wonder."
Li Qingyun tilted his head slightly. "Elder?"
The envoy looked at him for a long moment, then chuckled faintly. "When I first learned that you possessed the Primal Chaos Vessel Physique, I knew your journey would be extraordinary. But to leap from peak Qi Gathering directly into Foundation Establishment in a single retreat… that is something even geniuses from the sect rarely achieve. Usually, such a breakthrough results in failure—or worse, deviation. But you…"
His eyes narrowed in quiet awe.
"You are not forcing your way upward. You are ascending as if the heavens themselves have laid the path for you."
Li Qingyun didn't speak, but he bowed slightly, showing respect.
The elder chuckled faintly.
Then he continued, tone shifting to business.
"Because of the delay, the spiritual boat that was meant to transport you has already departed. Azure Sky City is one of several collection points. The boat is traveling in a route to gather disciples from the southern cities. When it returns, we'll board it together."
Li Qingyun nodded. "Understood. I will wait."
Li Qingyun had seen in the records that Spiritual Boat is a flying tool mainly used for transportation by cultivators. It is inlaid with many formations that helps it to work properly. They also come in very variety and grades. But he had not seen one before. Also even though it resembles a boat, it flies in air.
"There's more," Wu Zheng added. "Xia Shuying… she didn't board the boat either. She insisted on waiting for you. Said she didn't want to enter the sect alone."
Li Qingyun blinked, surprised.
"She waited… all this time?"
"You'll find she's rather stubborn," the envoy smirked faintly. "You two will make quite the storm in the sect."
He rose to his feet. "Rest well for now. When the spiritual boat returns, we depart."
And with a flick of his sleeve, the envoy stepped away—his heart still quietly shaken, but his face calm, like a man who had just witnessed the blooming of a legend in its earliest petal.