Foundation Establishment Success in the Heavenly Dao

The journey back was much faster than the trip there.

Ye Xuan was anxious to return, his mind solely focused on Foundation Establishment.

Seven days later.

Qingyun Sect, Lengyue Peak.

When Ye Xuan stood before this familiar grand hall once again, his state of mind was completely different.

Last time he came, he was a lamb waiting to be slaughtered.

This time, he was a wolf in sheep's clothing.

"Come in."

The hall doors slowly opened.

Xia Lengyue still sat in the high seat, but this time, she was not brewing tea; instead, she was wiping a sword.

The sword gleamed with a chilling light and exuded a thick stench of blood, clearly having just drank blood.

Seeing Ye Xuan walk in, Xia Lengyue stopped her movements, raised her head, and swept her lightning-like gaze across Ye Xuan's entire body in an instant.

At this moment, Ye Xuan felt as if he had been stripped naked and thrown into the snow.

However, the Ten Thousand Mile Traceless Talisman in his dantian had long fused with him, not showing the slightest fluctuation.

"Senior Sister, I have returned."

Ye Xuan took a step forward, knelt on one knee, and held up the few Yin Soul Beads with both hands. With a sincere face, he said, "I did not fail my mission. Although the process was perilous and my puppet was damaged, I finally found these precious beads, and I feel my divine sense has improved!"

Xia Lengyue cast a faint glance at those beads and casually waved her hand. A gust of strong wind lifted Ye Xuan up.

"Throw away this garbage."

Her tone was calm but revealed an unquestionable domineering aura. "Since you are back, you should prepare for Foundation Establishment."

Saying this, she walked up to Ye Xuan, stretched out her cold fingers, and gently stroked his cheek. "During this trip out, you didn't encounter anyone... you didn't want to see, did you?"

This was a probe.

Ye Xuan's heart skipped a beat, but his face showed a look of bewilderment. "Someone I didn't want to see? No, I was very careful the whole time."

Xia Lengyue stared into his eyes for a long time, as if confirming whether he was lying.

Finally, she smiled.

Her smile was somewhat seductive, somewhat eerie.

"Very good."

"Ye Xuan, you really didn't disappoint me."

She turned around and walked toward a secret chamber deep within the grand hall.

"Come in."

"I have already set up the grand array of the Five Elements Spirits for you, and the Spirit Gathering Array has also been activated."

"Today, I will help you achieve... Heavenly Dao Foundation Establishment!"

Ye Xuan looked at the deep entrance of the secret chamber, as if looking at a gaping maw.

He took a deep breath and clenched his fists.

Taking this step meant either soaring to the heavens like a dragon or falling into eternal damnation.

But with the talisman in his belly, what did he have to fear?

"Yes, Senior Sister!"

Ye Xuan strode after her, his back resolute and firm.

The heavy doors of the secret chamber closed shut.

Sealing all the light outside, leaving only a room full of brilliant five-element spiritual light and two hearts, each harboring their own ulterior motives.

Xia Lengyue led Ye Xuan through layers of restrictions, arriving at the deepest part of Lengyue Peak.

This was a Five Elements Return to Origin Secret Chamber that she had long hollowed out from the mountain's belly and spent countless efforts to build.

The moment he stepped in, Ye Xuan's breath caught in his throat.

Luxurious.

Exquisitely luxurious.

The dome of the chamber was inlaid with three hundred and sixty-five luminous pearls, corresponding to the Cosmic Starry Sky Grand Array; the floor was not made of stone bricks, but carved from a whole piece of supreme-grade spiritual jade, covered with complex and obscure ancient spirit-gathering runes.

And right in the center of the secret chamber, a five-colored altar floated.

Above the altar, five clusters of light emitting terrifying pressure were slowly rotating. The aura of the laws they exuded caused the surrounding space to slightly distort.

Geng Gold Essence (Metal): Extracted from the Taibai refined gold tens of thousands of feet underground, its sharp aura could sever the divine soul.

Ten-Thousand-Year Yi Wood Heart (Wood): Its vitality was as vast as the sea; even a single drop of its sap could grow flesh on bare bones.

One Yuan Heavy Water (Water): Every drop weighed a thousand catties, containing the supremely Yin and soft power of the vast ocean.

Nanming Li Fire Seed (Fire): The origin fire left behind by the legendary Vermilion Bird, capable of incinerating all impurities in the world.

Nine Heavens Breathing Earth (Earth): The mother aura of the earth, carrying all things with great virtue, it was the strongest foundation to bear all laws.

Any one of these five items, if leaked out, would be enough to trigger a reign of terror and bloodshed in the Qingzhou cultivation world, causing old monsters at the Tribulation Transcendence stage to fight to the death over it.

But at this moment, they were displayed here like cheap cabbages, just to help a mere Qi Condensation realm kid establish his foundation.

"Are these... the materials for Heavenly Dao Foundation Establishment?"

Ye Xuan's throat went dry. Even though he had long known that Xia Lengyue was wealthy enough to rival a nation, seeing this scene with his own eyes still left him incomparably shocked.

"No, these are not just materials."

Xia Lengyue stood behind him, wrapped her arms around his waist, and gently rested her head on his shoulder. Her voice was as soft as a sleep-talk:

"This is my betrothal gift."

"As long as you can form the legendary Five Elements Heavenly Dao Foundation, as long as you can have the power to protect yourself, all of this is worth it."

Ye Xuan's body stiffened slightly.

He could feel the heartbeat of the woman behind him, so fierce, so sincere.

She was a madwoman, a pervert, a control freak... but at this very moment, she held nothing back from him.

This heavy love pressed down on Ye Xuan so much that he could barely breathe.

If he didn't run away, he would never be able to repay this affection in his lifetime.

If he didn't run away, he could only be her vassal, her plaything, her canary for the rest of his life.

"Senior Sister..." Ye Xuan took a deep breath, forcefully suppressing the complex emotions in his heart. He turned around, his gaze firm: "No words can express my gratitude for this great favor. If I can successfully establish my foundation today, I, Ye Xuan... will definitely not fail you!"

"What a good 'will definitely not fail me'."

Xia Lengyue smiled, a breathtakingly beautiful smile, yet there were faint tears glistening in the corners of her eyes.

"Go, husband."

"I will guard you from the side. Even if the sky falls, I will hold it up."

Ye Xuan hesitated no longer and leaped onto the altar.

He sat cross-legged with his palms facing the sky. The Ten Thousand Mile Traceless Talisman in his dantian had already fused with him, lying dormant in the deepest part, waiting for the moment to erupt.

"Phew..."

He adjusted his breathing and discarded all distracting thoughts.

"Rise!"

With Ye Xuan's low shout, the Five Elements Chaos Sutra operated at full speed!

Rumble!

In an instant, the five kinds of heaven and earth spiritual objects on the altar were completely activated! Five incomparably thick pillars of light shot up into the sky, and then, under the guidance of the array, transformed into five roaring elemental dragons that viciously crashed into Ye Xuan's body!

The first trial: Body Shattering!

"Ah!"

A miserable and shrill scream instantly echoed through the secret chamber.

Pain!

Indescribable agony!

The Geng Gold aura entered his body like billions of tiny blades, frantically slicing at his meridians and bones, carving away his mortal flesh and bone bit by bit;

The Nanming Li Fire followed closely behind. The overbearing flames burned along his blood vessels, boiling his blood and incinerating the impurities in every single cell;

The One Yuan Heavy Water acted like a massive mountain, ruthlessly crushing his fragile internal organs...

This was not cultivation; this was torture!

Ye Xuan's skin cracked open instantly, and the fresh blood evaporated the moment it flowed out, turning his entire person into a bloody figure. His consciousness swayed wildly on the verge of collapse.

"Hold on! This is the necessary path to shed your mortal body and exchange your bones!"

Xia Lengyue's anxious voice rang out.

She looked at the bloodied and mangled figure on the altar, her heart aching as if pierced by a knife. Biting her lip tightly, her hands formed hand seals, and streams of warm spiritual energy were driven into Ye Xuan's body as if they cost nothing, protecting his heart meridians and sea of consciousness.

"It doesn't hurt... it doesn't hurt..." Xia Lengyue muttered to herself. "As long as you pull through, you will be a dragon among men..."

After enduring hellish destruction, vitality descended.

The Ten-Thousand-Year Yimu Heart erupted with boundless life force, rapidly repairing Ye Xuan's shattered body.

His newly formed bones were as translucent as jade, his new meridians were broad and resilient, and his new blood shimmered with a faint golden light.

The Nine Heavens Breathing Earth transformed into the most solid foundation, forcefully suppressing the chaotic power of the Five Elements and constructing the embryonic form of a magnificent Dao Foundation within his dantian.

However, right at that moment, an unexpected mutation occurred!

The Five Elements Spirit Root within Ye Xuan's body actually began to lose control after absorbing such a colossal amount of energy!

Metal and wood countered each other; water and fire were incompatible.

The five terrifying energies clashed madly within his dantian, forming an energy vortex on the verge of exploding!

"Pfft!"

Ye Xuan violently coughed up a mouthful of blood mixed with visceral fragments. His aura instantly withered to the extreme, and his body began to swell drastically. He was about to explode and die!

"Oh no! The energy is too strong; his physical body can't hold up!"

Xia Lengyue's face turned deathly pale.

She had never expected the rejection reaction of the Five Elements Heavenly Dao Foundation Establishment to be so terrifying!

"No... I can't let him die... Absolutely not!"

A flash of absolute resolve crossed Xia Lengyue's eyes.

She abruptly bit the tip of her tongue and spat out a mouthful of essence blood containing her origin cultivation!

"With my blood, bind the soul and lock the spirit!"

"Mystic Yin Origin, suppress it for me!"

Boom!

Ignoring the backlash upon herself, Xia Lengyue rushed directly onto the altar and tightly embraced the exploding Ye Xuan from behind.

Through the contact with his back, she continuously channeled the Mystic Yin Origin she had painstakingly cultivated for years into Ye Xuan's body.

The Mystic Yin energy, being supremely yin and gentle, perfectly neutralized the violent Five Elements fire within Ye Xuan's body.

"Cough, cough..."

A trace of blood trickled from the corner of Xia Lengyue's mouth, and her complexion turned ashen at a visible rate.

To save Ye Xuan, she forcefully sacrificed ten years of her own cultivation!

Under the alternation of cold and heat, the violent uprising within Ye Xuan's body finally subsided.

A five-colored Dao Foundation, under Xia Lengyue's reckless nourishment, finally... took shape.

All pain vanished in an instant.

It was replaced by an unprecedented sense of etherealness and power.

Within Ye Xuan's dantian, the original gaseous spiritual energy completely disappeared, transforming into a vast and boundless golden ocean.

And above that ocean, a Grade Nine Lotus Platform flowing with five-colored divine light and engraved with the Dao runes of heaven and earth slowly rose.

Atop the lotus platform, chaotic qi swirled, as if incubating a miniature world.

The Five Elements Heavenly Dao Foundation was complete!