Chapter 78: Chapter 76: Foundation Establishment Celebration Five days later, at 7:05 AM, Ji An’s Talisman Bird landed near the Artifact Refining Hall at Red Copper Mountain. He then bypassed the buildings and ascended the mountain path. The Artifact Refining Hall is a public area, and the grotto mansions of Foundation Establishment cultivators are situated at the Spirit Vein nodes on the mountain. The area above the mountainside has been sealed by Dharma Prohibition and can’t be entered without a token. Halfway up, he saw Chu River, Zhao Mengyao, and a vaguely familiar female disciple waiting by the road. Ji An paused for a few seconds, remembering that this female disciple also hailed from Cyan Pine Daoist School, entering the sect three years before him, and was a member of a family from the Immortal City near Cyan Pine Daoist School. He quickened his pace to greet everyone: "Senior Brother and Senior Sister, sorry to keep you waiting." Yue Rong looked at Ji An discreetly, vaguely recalling that he was a rather dull disciple from the Daoist School, her impression was hazy, indicating he was a loose cultivator with no background. She speculated internally on his capabilities, enough for Zhang Yuanshan to invite him to the celebration, knowing that those invited were either approved by Zhang Yuanshan or connected in some way. Chu River laughed, "Haha, now that everyone is here, let’s go in." He took out a token and activated it with a spell, sending a golden light message up the mountain. Two moments later, a Fire Cloud Escape Light flew out from within, accompanied by the spiritual pressure of the Foundation Establishment stage, the figure of Zhang Yuanshan descended from the air. "Fellow Daoists, sorry to keep you waiting." Zhang Yuanshan, wearing a dark Daoist robe, had two golden threads on the cuffs, glistening in the sunlight. "Fellow Daoist Zhang." The four people cupped their hands in greeting; addressing him as Junior Martial Uncle now seemed distant and lowered their stature. "Fellow Daoist Zhang, congratulations on achieving Foundation Establishment, this is my gift." Zhao Mengyao took out a gift box, and Ji An and the others also brought out gifts, with Ji An giving a piece of Red Blood Copper Ore. Being an Artifact Refiner, the ore would certainly be useful. "Haha, thank you, fellow Daoists. Zhang Yuanshan is just a step ahead; the path to immortality is long, may we all shoulder it together in the future, the way won’t be lonely." Zhang Yuanshan took out a White Jade Flying Ship about an inch long, which expanded in the wind to reach two zhang long upon activation of the spell. "Everyone, please board the flying ship!" The flying ship carried everyone through the Dharma Prohibition. Ji An immediately felt the pure and rich spiritual energy, far better than his dwelling place, and his mind sank into the Stone Turtle, noting the current amount of spiritual mechanism possessed. [Spiritual Mechanism: Kan Spirit 120.6, Kun Spirit 664.8, Xun Spirit 389.7, Zhen Spirit 6.6] Quickly, the flying ship landed halfway up a mountain peak, this was Zhang Yuanshan’s chosen grotto mansion. The mansion’s domain was quite large, with a small lake, gardens, and medicinal fields outside, and inside, there were guest halls, purification chambers, beast taming chambers, and artifact refining chambers, among others. At this moment, the spacious guest hall gathered over ten cultivators. Seeing Zhang Yuanshan personally welcome four Qi Refining disciples inside, the crowd cast curious and probing glances. As they entered, Ji An felt his Divine Sense tremble suddenly, the mansion alone housed seven or eight Foundation Establishment cultivators. Even though these Foundation Establishment cultivators did not deliberately emit pressure, the gathering of so many gazes created invisible pressure that was suffocating. Zhang Yuanshan led them to a table in the corner to take a seat, laughing: "Fellow Daoists, no need for formalities, enjoy the food and drinks, I won’t accompany you for now, those over there are my senior brothers and sisters." Chu River suppressed the slight tremor in his mind, revealing some smile: "Daoist go busy." He understood that the other party had stepped into another level; if their gap gradually widened, they would disappear from each other’s memories. As the cultivation of immortal cultivators gradually improves, their lifespan also becomes exceedingly long, and if they cannot progress together, everyone will inevitably grow distant. This is very cruel, but also a fact, because cultivators do not wish to experience the sadness of losing close friends, better to sever these ties early. He gently clenched his fist, his longing for Foundation Establishment growing even stronger. At this moment, Chu River suddenly realized that among the four who came, the possibility of him achieving Foundation Establishment was the lowest. Senior Sister Yue has perfected Qi Refining and is polishing her Divine Sense, already holding the Foundation Establishment Pill. Senior Sister Zhao possesses top-grade talent and will obtain the Foundation Establishment Pill in a few years, making Foundation Establishment certainly not a problem. Junior Brother Ji is seemingly alone, but his speed in earning crystal stones is fierce, definitely ranking first among the four. Zhao Mengyao observed quietly, noticing that the other invited Qi Refining disciples were all Ninth-Layer Qi Refining. Judging by their temperament, it was easy to find most were descendants of influential families. Needless to say, in Zhang Yuanshan’s eyes, they all belonged to the Foundation Establishment reserve. She softly asked: "Junior Brother Chu, do you know those Qi Refining disciples?" Chu River nodded slightly: "They are disciples of the Artifact Refining Hall, with several being the same year classmates, all possessing artifact refining talent." He felt a bit embarrassed, as leaving the Artifact Refining Hall years ago was out of necessity, now seeing old acquaintances each thriving better than himself, his heart felt quite bitter. Foundation Establishment cultivators at one table, Qi Refining disciples divided into two tables — just like social circles with clear distinctions. Ji An did not think of extending his network; the current situation was one of unequal status, sticking one’s head forward would only lead to being looked down upon. Like selling insurance to a customer who views you from a superior angle, it would certainly not result in a deal. He sat quietly, following Zhang Yuanshan’s previous words, savoring the food and drink. "I am Yue Rong, I haven’t inquired about your name, or which mountain peak you are assigned to." Watching someone calmly start eating and drinking, Yue Rong curiously asked. "I am Ji An, greetings, Senior Sister, I’m assigned to a valley near Jade Water Lake, just a Spirit Farmer." Chu River laughed: "Senior Sister, don’t believe his nonsense, although Junior Brother Ji has planted several acres of Spirit Field at Jade Water Lake, his understanding of magic techniques is profound; he practiced Small Cloud Rain Technique to great success within three years of joining the sect. Moreover, Junior Brother has combat abilities; a few days ago when we were demon hunting together at Mo Ya Mountain, there were several times Junior Brother turned the tide." He began vivid storytelling of the demon hunting scenes... Although Chu River’s voice was low, all Foundation Establishment cultivators could hear clearly. A Foundation Establishment cultivator laughed: "For a newcomer disciple to practice a magic technique to great success within three years, everyone knows the difficulty of it. Junior Brother Zhang, your guest might have special constitution, if he acquires a cultivation technique matching him after Foundation Establishment, his future prospect could be substantial." Someone laughed lightly: "Senior Brother, that cannot be assured. Being assigned to plant Spirit Field indicates average talent, lacking support, Foundation Establishment will be difficult. Moreover, the competition for Foundation Establishment Pill is extremely fierce now, who knows how long it will take him to exchange for one." Talent isn’t everything, but in the Qi Refining and Foundation Establishment stages, it is extremely important. The sect isn’t short of disciples with special constitution who wasted years due to poor talent, which is the most soul-churning. Cultivation is about being bold and advancing earnestly, if one is continually discouraged while seeking external cultivation items, they gradually lose the spirit of advancing bravely. Zhang Yuanshan nodded slightly, Foundation Establishment is indeed just the threshold.