140: trouble

Yang Kai sat cross-legged on the meditation cushion in the quiet room, his eyes slightly closed, his mind completely immersed in the changes within his body.

Inside his Dantian, that pure white Dao Foundation was like the core of Chaos when the world first opened, rotating slowly. Each rotation carried an incredibly profound rhythm, as if resonating at the same frequency with some kind of Dao laws between heaven and earth.

Yang Kai actively guided the Spiritual Qi to flow along the "shortest closed loop," deeply experiencing the profound mystery of this special meridian. The entire process was smooth and fluid, and in just three breaths, a full cycle of circulation was completed.

One must know that in the past, when he operated the Flowing Cloud Heart Sutra, a full cycle took at least thirty breaths. Now, the speed had increased by more than ten times, which meant his efficiency in Cultivating had also skyrocketed.

Yang Kai could clearly feel that with every completed cycle, the Spiritual Qi within his body became a fraction thicker, and under the nourishment and filtration of the Dao Foundation, the level of purity far exceeded the past.

The Spiritual Qi gathered by ordinary Spirit Gathering Arrays would more or less contain some impure Qi, which required mental effort to filter out during Cultivation. However, the Spiritual Qi introduced into his body via the Dao Foundation was as pure as the morning light at dawn, capable of being converted directly into his own spiritual power, saving him a lot of trouble.

"Heavenly Foundation Establishment truly lives up to its reputation." Yang Kai felt deeply moved in his heart.

He tried to release his mind and, following the method he had perceived earlier, connected with the Spiritual Qi between heaven and earth. With a single thought, the flow of Spiritual Qi within a ten-mile radius instantly appeared clearly in his mind, like streams of water flowing endlessly, some gentle, some rapid. This sense of control made a surge of indescribable exhilaration rise in his heart.

Immediately after, Yang Kai attempted to borrow the power of the earth's veins. He concentrated his spirit, sinking his consciousness underground to sense the earth's veins hidden deep beneath Qingyun Peak. Soon, a heavy and majestic energy fluctuation arrived; that was the power of the earth's veins.

He tried to guide a wisp of the earth's veins' power to flow along his Meridians into his body. When this force met the Spiritual Qi within his body, it instantly erupted with astonishing might. He subconsciously threw a punch; golden light and black radiance intertwined on his fist, and the gold-and-silver energy, as if it possessed life, roared out, tearing through the air. Where the force of the punch passed, the air in the quiet room seemed to be compressed into a solid substance, and even fine cracks appeared on the walls.

"This power is much stronger than before." Yang Kai was pleasantly surprised.

He could feel that the Immortal and Demonic energies had fused more thoroughly under the influence of the Dao Foundation. The previous sluggishness of the Immortal spiritual power and the violence of the Demonic Path's Devilish Qi had vanished without a trace, replaced by a brand-new type of energy that was both firm and yielding, and incomparably domineering.

Moreover, he also discovered that after the power of the Heavenly Dao fused into this energy, not only did its might increase greatly, but it also carried a special pressure, as if it were the manifestation of the will of the Heavenly Dao, making everything around it submit.

Subsequently, Yang Kai remembered what Mo Xuan had said about Heavenly Foundation Establishment being protected by the Heavenly Dao, which could weaken the power of the Heavenly Tribulation by thirty percent during Undergoing Tribulation. Although he was still very far from Undergoing Tribulation, the thought of having such a guarantee in the future filled his heart with anticipation.

One must know that countless Genius Cultivators in the world of cultivation had fallen under the Heavenly Tribulation. A thirty percent reduction in the tribulation's power was undoubtedly an extra guarantee for his life; this Opportunity was enough to drive countless Cultivators crazy.

Yang Kai was immersed in the joy of Cultivation, and before he knew it, several hours had passed. Just as he was preparing to continue his deep Cultivation and try to further explore the potential of the Heavenly Foundation Establishment, a rush of hurried footsteps suddenly arrived. Immediately after, the courtyard gate was pushed open violently, and Zi Ning's anxious voice rang out: "Yang Kai! It's bad! Something happened to Meng Yun!"

Yang Kai's heart tightened; he instantly exited his state of Cultivation, his figure flashed, and he appeared in the courtyard.

"Zi Ning, what happened? What's wrong with Meng Yun?" They had only just become Inner Sect Disciples not long ago. Although Meng Yun's personality was a bit flighty, he was not the type to actively look for trouble; how could something suddenly happen to him?

Zi Ning steadied herself, trying hard to calm her rapid breathing, and then said with great speed: "It's the other Inner Sect Disciples! They can't stand that Meng Yun was promoted to Inner Sect Disciple by exception, feeling that Meng Yun is unworthy, so they are deliberately giving him trouble. They even proposed a duel with Meng Yun. Right now, they are competing on the Martial Arts Stage of Qingyun Peak. Meng Yun is already injured, but he still refuses to admit defeat!"

"What?" Yang Kai's face instantly darkened. He knew that the competition among Inner Sect Disciples was fierce, but he hadn't expected that someone would be so blatantly looking for trouble just because Meng Yun was promoted by exception, even resorting to a duel. Moreover, looking at Zi Ning's expression, Meng Yun's situation was likely not very good.

"Quick, take me to the Martial Arts Stage!" Yang Kai said to Zi Ning without the slightest hesitation.

Zi Ning nodded, turned around, and ran toward the Martial Arts Stage, with Yang Kai following closely behind. On the way, Zi Ning explained the situation to Yang Kai in fits and starts. It turned out that after Meng Yun had finished choosing his courtyard, he had thought of going to the Qingyun Hall to collect some Cultivation resources, but on the way, he encountered several Inner Sect Disciples.

Those Disciples, upon learning that Meng Yun was an Inner Sect Disciple promoted by exception and that his performance in the previous Outer Sect assessment had only been mediocre, began to mock him, saying that Meng Yun had just gotten lucky and had only entered the Inner Sect by relying on connections, and that he had no qualifications to be an Inner Sect Disciple at all.

Meng Yun was young and hot-blooded; how could he endure such humiliation? He immediately argued with those Disciples. But those Disciples were completely unreasonable and instead provoked him even more aggressively. Finally, they even proposed to duel with Meng Yun, with the stake being Meng Yun's status as an Inner Sect Disciple. If Meng Yun lost, he would have to voluntarily give up his Inner Sect Disciple status and return to the Outer Sect.

Meng Yun was also provoked, and coupled with a certain level of confidence in his own strength, he agreed to the opponent's duel request, and both sides agreed to compete on the Martial Arts Stage of Qingyun Peak.

Zi Ning only learned of the news later, and by the time she rushed to the Martial Arts Stage, Meng Yun and his opponent had already exchanged several rounds, and he was already injured.

While they were talking, the two had already arrived near the Martial Arts Stage. From afar, Yang Kai saw that the Martial Arts Stage was surrounded by people, and from time to time, bursts of clamor and cheers came from the crowd. He quickened his pace, squeezed through the crowd, and finally saw the scene on the Martial Arts Stage.

The Martial Arts Stage was built from a type of incomparably hard bluestone, standing several zhang high and covering a vast area. At this moment, Meng Yun was standing on one side of the Martial Arts Stage, his clothes soaked with sweat and blood, a trace of blood remaining at the corner of his mouth, and his face pale as paper; he was clearly already seriously injured. Opposite him stood a tall youth wearing the attire of an Inner Sect Disciple, a smug smile on his face, his eyes filled with disdain and contempt.