Chapter 20: Eyes Without Beads

“Ah ah ah——”

“What’s going on?! How could this guy have a False Spiritual Root! And that successor chosen by my former master—the one with the Primordial Spiritual Root—why would he take in such a disciple?!”

While Li Tianwei listened attentively, the spirit within his book was on the verge of collapse.

Ever since it had been freed from the Immortal Ruins, it had ended up in Bai Muxu’s hands.

In the eyes of the book spirit, Bai Muxu was the successor personally chosen by its former master.

Unfortunately, after obtaining it, Bai Muxu hadn’t chosen to retrain using its cultivation method.

Instead, he had continued along the path he originally studied, seeking to create his own Celestial Art.

Thus, he kept the book with the intention of later finding a suitable inheritor for it.

So within the Sacred Land of Lingxu, he opened up Heaven’s Gate Peak, planning to take in a disciple of extraordinary talent to pass down the Five Intentions Converge to Heaven Art.

Now, that chosen inheritor was Li Tianwei.

Of course, this was something Bai Muxu would never reveal.

If his disciple thought that Bai Muxu handed down this art merely because he disdained it, that would be disastrous.

But the book spirit understood all too well.

In order to avoid gathering dust, it had been eagerly waiting for Bai Muxu to select a new inheritor for it.

At first, upon learning that Li Tianwei could achieve the Hundred-Day Foundation, the book spirit had been genuinely excited.

Having not yet met Li Tianwei, and knowing of him only through Bai Muxu, it knew that Li Tianwei possessed the Pure Yang Root.

Though not as superior as Bai Muxu’s Primordial Spiritual Root, being able to complete the Foundation Establishment in a hundred days and climb the Heart-Questioning Steps of the Sacred Land of Lingxu already marked him as extremely gifted.

But the moment it left Bai Muxu and entered Li Tianwei’s hands, things took a dire turn.

As a Celestial Art, the book spirit contained a trace of immortal power.

Even the Heart-Questioning Steps had detected Li Tianwei’s problem when it came into contact with him—how could this book spirit, which possessed immortal power, not see through him?

Before contact, it couldn’t sense Li Tianwei’s true aptitude.

But now that they had connected—

Even with that pill capable of deceiving a Spirit Transformation expert, Li Tianwei couldn’t hide from the discerning gaze of a being infused with immortal power.

Within Li Tianwei’s Spirit Platform, that five-colored root, faintly glowing, was plainly visible.

Without a doubt—a False Spiritual Root, through and through.

At that moment, the book spirit froze in shock.

It even wanted to flee back to Bai Muxu and report this matter.

Unfortunately, its immortal master had long placed a restriction upon it—aside from the person it currently bonded with, no one else could sense its existence, not even through sound transmission.

Struggling in vain, the book spirit suddenly thought of something.

“How could someone with a False Spiritual Root possibly achieve Hundred-Day Foundation? Unless…”

At that instant, the book spirit’s mind waged a fierce battle, its vast intellect in turmoil.

As for Li Tianwei—when he heard the book spirit of the Five Intentions Converge to Heaven Art shouting just like the System, calling him a False Spiritual Root, he immediately muted it.

At this point, in his eyes, all these things—the spirits, the System, the Heart-Questioning Steps—were problematic.

Every single one he met kept claiming he was a False Spiritual Root.

Truly, these items that had developed self-awareness were nothing like normal beings—they were all short-sighted.

The Heart-Questioning Steps couldn’t speak, so its misjudgment could be excused.

The System had its own agenda, deceiving him into signing those overbearing contracts—that, too, was understandable.

But this cultivation manual—a mere book—daring to insult him?

Li Tianwei was somewhat angry, though he quickly calmed down.

“Sigh, I can only blame myself for being too talented. These things can’t even recognize it. Not like the disciples, elders, and peak masters of the Sacred Land of Lingxu—they truly have eyes to see pearls.”

Li Tianwei couldn’t help but sigh with emotion.

Soon, Bai Muxu began teaching him insights about the Foundation Establishment stage and how to later transcend the Golden Core Tribulation to achieve the Golden Core Position.

Through Bai Muxu’s explanation, Li Tianwei gained a general understanding of the Foundation Establishment Realm.

As the name implied, Foundation Establishment was the act of building one’s foundation—the true beginning of the immortal path, and one of its most crucial stages.

Otherwise, there would be no concept such as the Hundred-Day Foundation—the goal was to establish an unparalleled Dao foundation within one’s body, forming a firm base to go farther in the future.

Compared to the Qi Refinement stage, Foundation Establishment was a complete transformation.

Though one could cast spells and wield artifacts during Qi Refinement, that was merely an entry point.

Once one established their foundation, they could fly freely without relying on spells or artifacts.

In Qi Refinement, using spiritual power to cast even a few spells would consume significant effort, but in Foundation Establishment, one could not only command their own spiritual power but also form seals, chant incantations, and draw upon heaven and earth’s spiritual energy to perform arts.

With such a transformation, even a hundred Qi Refinement cultivators might not defeat a single Foundation Establishment cultivator.

At this stage, one began to refine their spiritual power and decide on the path they would walk, preparing for their future Golden Core Position.

Choosing that path was simple—one selected according to their spiritual root.

For example, someone with a water root could condense the intent of Gui Water, drawing upon Weak Water to attain one of the five elemental Gui Water Positions.

Doing so would grant them greater power in the Golden Core stage and a unique understanding of the spells and arts of their attribute.

However, the specifics of that path could only be explored by oneself.

Under Bai Muxu’s teachings, Li Tianwei now had a clear direction.

At present, his tasks were to stabilize his cultivation, practice basic spells, and cultivate the Five Intentions Converge to Heaven Art in his hands.

The path ahead was clear.

“As for cultivation during the Foundation Establishment period, and the understanding of the Golden Core Realm that follows—I will stop here.”

“If there’s anything you don’t understand, you may ask me at any time.”

“You’ve just broken through—take a good rest.”

After finishing his lecture, Bai Muxu studied Li Tianwei carefully.

Seeing that he was earnestly digesting his words, Bai Muxu nodded lightly.

“I’ve already prepared a cave dwelling for you below. Follow me down the mountain.”

With a casual wave of his hand, Bai Muxu summoned a gentle breeze.

Under his control, Li Tianwei was lifted and carried slowly down Heaven’s Gate Mountain.

Before long, they arrived at a cave mansion paved with various Spirit Stones, located at the very heart of Heaven’s Gate Peak’s spiritual vein.

Around it were layered arrays, and most notably, luxurious decorations throughout—clearly prepared with great care.

Seeing such magnificence and dense spiritual energy, Li Tianwei couldn’t help but feel genuine excitement.

“Many thanks, Master.”

Li Tianwei bowed once again in gratitude.

“Good. Rest well, then. I won’t disturb you further.”

Seeing Li Tianwei’s delighted expression, Bai Muxu was pleased—his disciple was evidently satisfied with the residence.

After all, this was his first time truly taking on a disciple.

He had simply followed the treatment he himself once received and replicated it for Li Tianwei.

Judging by the results, it seemed effective.

Bai Muxu patted Li Tianwei’s shoulder, then turned into a streak of rainbow light and vanished into the sky.

Watching him depart, Li Tianwei turned and stepped into the cave.

He had thought the exterior was already extravagant enough, but upon entering, he realized how narrow his imagination had been.

Jade flooring, fragrant wooden cabinets, cloth woven with golden threads—the entire cave gleamed with immortal radiance, saturated with rich spiritual energy.

Through the cave, Li Tianwei could even sense that Bai Muxu had opened up an internal space for him.

Looking into the distance, the inner realm was filled with spirit herbs, where various spirit beasts roamed freely.

Li Tianwei was thoroughly satisfied with this residence.

“Next, I should stabilize my cultivation—and deal with this thing.”

He took out the Five Intentions Converge to Heaven Art and removed the suppression on it.

The voice of the book spirit immediately rang out once more.

“You damn fellow! Are you some demonic fiend sent here to corrupt this realm?!”

“A False Spiritual Root that could achieve Hundred-Day Foundation—you must be a demon! A super great demon!”

The book spirit’s furious tirade poured into Li Tianwei’s ears, making him frown unhappily.

“Shut up!”

Hearing such filthy accusations, Li Tianwei finally lost his temper.

The System had already been troublesome enough, and now there was a book spirit to add to it.

Li Tianwei stirred the Dao Foundation within his consciousness.

As the round, three-leaved symbol appeared, an intense aura of doom and destruction surged toward the book spirit.

Under that frenzied, fission-like power, Li Tianwei looked terrifyingly inhuman—his body condensed with explosive energy, radiating heat like countless suns.

For a moment, the book spirit fell utterly silent.

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