Cultivating Underground - Chapter 51

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Dionysus

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◈ Cultivating Underground ◈

Chapter 51

──────

A few days later.

“Congratulations, Steward Yi!”

Yi Hyeon looked at the young disciple bowing deeply to him.

“I’m not a steward yet.”

“But I heard you received a letter from the main sect grounds telling you to collect a Foundation Establishment Pill. I’m sure you’ll succeed, Senior Yi.”

The young disciple held out a wooden box.

“This is just a small token of my respect.”

A faint medicinal scent drifted from the box. Yi Hyeon did not open it.

“I appreciate the thought, but I can’t accept it.”

“It’s nothing valuable.”

“Even so, I can’t take something from a junior. You may need it yourself someday. Keep it safe.”

Looking disappointed, the young disciple tucked the box away.

“Then I’ll come pay my respects again after you succeed.”

“Very well.”

...

Less than three days after the letter arrived, word that Yi Dong-sam had been assigned a Foundation Establishment Pill spread throughout the Immortal-Serving Court.

Even the independent cultivators and martial artists employed by the royal family heard the news.

Whenever Yi Hyeon passed by, people approached to congratulate him. Some had already begun calling him Steward or Senior.

Some offered expensive spirit wine, while others tried to give him talismans and spirit stones.

A few were genuinely happy for him, but most wanted to build a connection before Yi Dong-sam reached Foundation Establishment.

Yi Hyeon refused every gift. Receiving a Foundation Establishment Pill did not guarantee success, and he had no reason to take on unnecessary debts. After he made his position clear several times, people stopped pressing gifts on him.

Still, the way they looked at him went beyond envy. It was closer to admiration, as though they were watching someone who would cross into the next age alone.

Their reactions made Yi Hyeon appreciate something anew.

The gap between a Qi Refining stage cultivator and a Foundation Establishment cultivator was almost impossible to put into words.

For a Qi Refining stage cultivator who could live for 100 to 150 years, becoming someone who could live for 200 to 300 years was like receiving a new life. It was no exaggeration to compare it to a chance to start life over in a much better family.

It truly meant being granted the right to live through a new century. A single pill could set the rest of someone’s life on an entirely different course.

Since Yi Hyeon had entered an ageless body through possession from the beginning, he had never properly considered what extending one’s lifespan meant.

‘I see. In terms of my past life, crossing a major realm really would be like a blessing from God. Would it feel like a modern person nearing the end of their life in 2030 suddenly getting a chance to live until 2160?’

‘If they could live into the next century, they might find another chance to extend their life there... They’d expect to have experiences more amazing than anything they could imagine.’

Having already lived for over a thousand years, Yi Hyeon had grown careless about the value of time. Only after seeing the expressions around him did he recover a little of the feeling he had forgotten.

...

Fifteen days later.

Yi Hyeon handed the Immortal-Serving Court’s pill storehouse ledgers to his replacement.

Six thick ledgers, the storehouse key, and a small jade token that controlled the alchemy chamber’s formation lay neatly on the table.

“I’ve recorded the current stocks in the ledgers.”

The ninth-layer Qi Refining stage outer sect disciple appointed to replace him checked the pages one by one.

“All the quantities match.”

“Inspect the medicinal ingredients from the Anneung royal family every ten days. Don’t simply trust them, even if the Inner Dispensary has already checked them.”

“I’ll remember that.”

“The pill furnace’s fire vent was repaired four months ago, so it should be fine for a while. Still, you should check the fire-drawing formation inscriptions on the floor before the next rainy season.”

Yi Hyeon went on to explain how to manage the pills entering and leaving the storehouse, which merchant companies they dealt with, how to contact the royal physicians, and which supplies had to be moved inside the grand defensive formation in an emergency.

When he finished, his replacement clasped both hands.

“Thank you for all your hard work.”

“It wasn’t that hard.”

Yi Hyeon looked at the empty table for a moment.

Now that he had handed over the ledgers, the key, and even the formation’s jade token, he truly had no duties left.

A memory from long ago came to him.

He had felt something similar on the day he was discharged from the military in his past life. Even after passing his duties to his replacement and clearing out his locker, he had struggled to believe that he never had to return.

‘I stayed here far longer than I did there.’

Yi Hyeon had spent thirty years as a resident cultivator in the Anneung Kingdom.

Even for him, it was not a short time.

“I’ll be going now.”

“I wish you success in reaching Foundation Establishment.”

After one last look around the pill storehouse, Yi Hyeon walked out.

...

That afternoon.

Pale pink petals floated on the broad lake south of the Anneung royal palace.

The cherry trees along the shore were in full bloom, scattering petals over the water whenever the wind blew.

A small villa built by the royal family stood west of the lake.

As Yi Hyeon approached its pavilion, the three people waiting there rose from their seats.

“Immortal Yi.”

Wan Cheong-jo clasped both hands.

The hair covering his temples and his beard were completely white. He had been in his forties when they first met, but he was now an old man over seventy.

Beside him stood Yuk Gyeong-cheon, leaning on a short iron staff like a walking stick. His once imposing frame was slightly bent, and his long beard was as white as snow.

Now ninety-one, Yuk Gyeong-cheon had retired as commander of the Royal Guard more than ten years earlier. All he retained was the title of Grand Instructor of the royal Martial Arts Court. The iron staff in his hand had been made by cutting down the shaft of his old spear.

The third person was Jang Gyeong-ik.

His hair and eyebrows had also turned entirely white. Deep wrinkles lined his face, and the wrists showing beneath his robe were thinner than before.

Fifteen years earlier, Jang Gyeong-ik had received a second Foundation Establishment Pill, only to fail again. Forcing the attempt when his vitality was already weak had damaged several of his meridians. Recovering alone had taken nearly three years.

In the end, he had given up on Foundation Establishment and retired from his resident cultivator duties.

In recognition of his decades leading the Immortal-Serving Court, the Anneung royal family treated him as an honorary court retainer. They had also provided the lakeside villa and his servants.

Now Jang Gyeong-ik did little beyond occasionally mediating between the royal family and cultivators, or listening to the people who came to see him.

“Senior Brother Jang.”

Yi Hyeon clasped both hands.

“How is your health?”

“The same as before.”

Smiling, Jang Gyeong-ik patted his chest.

“They say I can live another ten years or so, as long as I don’t exert my spiritual power too much. The royal family serves me every delicacy at mealtimes, and sometimes they send musicians and dancers to entertain me. Scholars from the royal capital visit to recite poetry or play go with me. I’ve no time to be bored.”

He offered Yi Hyeon a seat.

The four sat in the pavilion.

Spirit tea, fruit, and a few simple dishes lay on the table.

Yuk Gyeong-cheon looked at Yi Hyeon.

“I heard you’re to receive a Foundation Establishment Pill.”

“That’s right.”

“Congratulations.”

Jang Gyeong-ik spoke then.

“Breaking through to Foundation Establishment isn’t easy, even with the pill. Junior Brother Yi, you mustn’t rush.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

After they had shared some tea, Yuk Gyeong-cheon spoke again.

“The youngsters at the Martial Arts Court will be very sorry to see you leave, Immortal Yi.”

“But they still have you, Commander Yuk.”

Yuk Gyeong-cheon looked at the iron staff in his hand.

“These days, I can hardly wield a spear freely.”

Wan Cheong-jo added, “I still don’t understand your technique. Even after practicing for so long, I haven’t grasped it at all.”

He looked down at his wrinkled hands, then raised his head.

“But if we meet again, I’ll make sure I understand it next time.”

Yuk Gyeong-cheon nodded.

“The next time we meet, I’ll show you my new disciples’ spear techniques.”

Yi Hyeon looked at the two men.

There was almost no chance of him being assigned to the Anneung Kingdom’s Immortal-Serving Court again. If he reached Foundation Establishment, he would become an inner sect disciple and take on other duties. Even if something did bring him back, neither man was likely to be alive by then.

...

After finishing their tea, the four walked down to the lake.

Countless petals fell from the cherry trees swaying in the wind.

Yi Hyeon took the Flowing Cloud Disk from his storage pouch.

Hummm.

The white jade disk expanded into a flying magical implement three jang long.

When he stepped aboard, Yuk Gyeong-cheon, Wan Cheong-jo, and Jang Gyeong-ik clasped both hands.

“May you attain immortality.”

“Thank you. I wish all three of you good health and peace. If fate allows, we’ll meet again.”

The Flowing Cloud Disk slowly rose.

Rustle.

The petals floating on the lake swept into the air with the wind.

Pale pink petals brushed the edge of the white jade disk, then scattered in a circle.

Below him stood an elderly cultivator and two martial arts grandmasters.

Beyond them, he could see the royal gardens and halls, along with the hill of the Immortal-Serving Court where he had spent thirty years.

His robe fluttering gently, Yi Hyeon rose above the clouds.

‘Leaving for the sky on a day like this... I really do feel like an immortal.’

The palace, lake, and villa quickly shrank below him.

He turned his gaze. Light streamed between the clouds, softly illuminating the mountains and grasslands all around. It was as though even the heavens were blessing his future.

Soon, the Flowing Cloud Disk turned toward the Danso Mountains.

...

Ten days later.

The Danso Mountains.

The clouds and formation curtain surrounding the vast mountain range came into view from afar.

Yi Hyeon took out his identity token.

Hummm.

A passage opened in the curtain.

As the Flowing Cloud Disk entered, dense spiritual qi of heaven and earth washed over him from every direction.

“This really is much better.”

Countless peaks stretched through the clouds.

At first glance, little seemed to have changed since he first came here for the Special Skills Selection about forty-two years earlier.

But a closer look revealed new halls and slight changes in the positions of the bridges connecting the peaks.

Yi Dong-sam’s appearance was no longer the same, either. The thirty-five-year-old man had become a seventy-seven-year-old cultivator.

Some of his hair had turned white, and wrinkles had formed around his eyes and mouth. His back remained straight, but his movements showed a little more caution than in his younger days.

Of course, it was all an appearance created with the Seven-Aspects Disguise Art. Before leaving the Anneung Kingdom, he had also taken Bone-Tempering Powder with a target bone age of seventy-seven, in preparation for the bone age examination.

...

Yi Hyeon first headed to the Outer Alchemy Court.

In the valley surrounded by three gently sloping peaks, countless alchemy chambers still poured out flames and smoke.

Boom!

An explosion erupted in an alchemy chamber halfway up a cliff.

As black smoke poured from its windows, disciples waiting nearby activated a formation with practiced ease.

Whoosh.

Smoke and fire qi were drawn into a round curtain.

‘This place hasn’t changed, either.’

Descending into the valley, Yi Hyeon looked toward the hillside where he had once lived.

An unfamiliar young disciple was drying medicinal ingredients in front of the stone dwelling he had first used.

Yi Hyeon turned toward the woods near the Outer Alchemy Court.

The small pavilion still stood where a waterway carrying a mixture of medicinal scents joined the valley stream.

Its roof and pillars seemed to have been repaired several times, but its location had not changed.

A white-haired old cultivator sat inside.

A moment after Yi Hyeon approached, surprise appeared on the cultivator’s face.

“Fellow Cultivator Yi?”

“Fellow Cultivator Yeo.”

Yeo Mun-deok sprang to their feet.

“It really is you!”

Yeo Mun-deok had not been particularly young at their last meeting, but now they had become unmistakably old.

Their once round face had grown much thinner, and almost all their hair and beard had turned white.

Their cultivation was still at the ninth layer of the Qi Refining stage.

“Have you returned from the Anneung Kingdom?”

“Yes.”

“You look healthier than I expected.”

“You look well too, Fellow Cultivator Yeo.”

Yeo Mun-deok smiled and offered him a seat.

Three teacups already stood on the table.

“Is someone else coming?”

“Senior Sister Mun said she’d come.”

Just then, a pale blue spiritual light descended over the woods.

A leaf-shaped flying magical implement stopped in front of the pavilion.

A female cultivator stepped down from it.

It was Mun So-ha.

She too had yet to reach Foundation Establishment and now looked fully middle-aged.

“Junior Brother Yi.”

Mun So-ha smiled warmly.

“It really has been a long time.”

“It has, Senior Sister Mun.”

“I heard you came to collect a Foundation Establishment Pill. I suppose I’ll have to call you Senior Yi now.”

“Haha, we don’t know that yet.”

The three poured tea.

For a while, they talked about their days together in the Outer Alchemy Court.

Dang Yeon-bi had left the sect eight years earlier.

After her father, who headed the family’s merchant company, died and disputes broke out among her siblings, she had left sect life behind and returned south.

Steward Yang and Steward Gwon were still at the Outer Alchemy Court, but they had stepped back from directly managing disciples.

Meanwhile, Jin So-yeong of the Danha Jin Family, who had passed the Special Skills Selection with them, had reached Foundation Establishment long ago. She was now a Tier 2 alchemist in the Inner Alchemy Court and the disciple of a Golden Core elder.

...

The next day.

The Foundation Establishment Court, in the central Danso Mountains.

Within its high walls, dozens of similarly sized stone chambers stood at regular intervals.

Each chamber extended deep into a mountain peak.

Formations around them blocked outside spiritual sense and sound, and prevented unauthorized people from approaching.

Yi Hyeon presented the letter from the main sect grounds and his outer sect identity token.

After checking both items, the disciple in charge guided him to a hall inside.

“Outer sect disciple Yi Dong-sam has arrived.”

Three Foundation Establishment cultivators were waiting in the hall.

Yi Hyeon’s gaze changed slightly when he saw one of them.

A female cultivator in a pale vermilion robe.

It was Jin So-yeong, who had taken the Special Skills Selection with him forty-two years earlier.

She looked only a little more mature than she had then. Otherwise, she had barely changed.

Jin So-yeong recognized Yi Hyeon at once, too.

“It’s been a long time.”

“Greetings, Senior Jin.”

...

First, they checked his bone age and cultivation.

Yi Hyeon placed his hand on a large silver mirror, and the Foundation Establishment cultivator conducting the examination studied its response.

“Bone age, seventy-seven. Great Perfection of the Qi Refining stage. Triple spiritual roots of wood, fire, and earth.”

Next, Yi Hyeon stepped between twelve stone pillars.

Different-colored lights swept over his body one after another.

A short while later, all the formation’s lights faded.

“No traces of demonic cultivation arts or blood sacrifice. No parasitic spirit insects or Life-Sharing Gu. No damage to the meridians.”

Finally, they checked his accumulated contribution points and whether he had attempted Foundation Establishment before.

“No previous attempts, then.”

“That’s correct.”

“Twelve years of service at the Outer Alchemy Court. Thirty years of resident cultivator duties in the Anneung Kingdom. No particular problems with your alchemy duties or outside assignments...”

The cultivator reading the ledger looked up.

“You’ve passed the eligibility examination for Foundation Establishment.”

Jin So-yeong handed Yi Hyeon a jade token from beside her.

「Qi-Condensing Seclusion Chamber No. 7」

“You’ve been assigned an upper-grade Qi-Condensing Seclusion Chamber.”

“What is a Qi-Condensing Seclusion Chamber?”

“A cave abode prepared for disciples to cultivate in seclusion. The upper-grade chambers are normally reserved for disciples about to attempt Foundation Establishment.”

Jin So-yeong pointed deeper into the Foundation Establishment Court.

“It’s connected directly to a branch of a third-tier spirit vein, so it should help your breakthrough. You may use it for twenty days.”

“Thank you.”

“You’ll receive the Foundation Establishment Pill after entering the chamber.”

“Understood.”

...

Qi-Condensing Seclusion Chamber No. 7.

Thud.

As the thick stone door closed, every sound from outside vanished.

The chamber seemed to have been hollowed out of a single enormous mass of rock.

Even with his spells, Yi Hyeon could not pass through the rock surrounding it. The walls and ceiling had no seams, and countless formation inscriptions covered their surfaces.

A blue cushion lay in the center of the floor.

Beneath it, a Spirit-Gathering Formation released a constant flow of dense spiritual qi of heaven and earth.

Yi Hyeon inserted the jade token into a slot in the wall.

Click.

Part of the wall opened, revealing a small stone stand.

A jade bottle rested on it.

A Spirit-Sealing Talisman covered the bottle’s mouth, and the Danso Sect’s pill-inspection seal was clearly stamped into the red sealing wax.

The Foundation Establishment Pill.

Yi Hyeon picked up the bottle.

“At last...”

Forty-two years had passed since he entered the Danso Sect to obtain a Foundation Establishment Pill.

Nearly thirty years had passed even since his lower dantian reached Great Perfection of the Qi Refining stage.

He peeled off the Spirit-Sealing Talisman and removed the wax.

Pop.

The stopper came out of the jade bottle.

A subtle yet heavy medicinal scent drifted out.

Yi Hyeon tilted the bottle, and a pill the size of his thumbnail rolled into his palm.

The Foundation Establishment Pill was ivory-colored.

Three blue pill markings ran across its surface, resembling clouds spiraling toward a single point.

Examining it with the Qi-Observing Spell and his spiritual sense, he found an enormous amount of medicinal strength tightly packed into its center. It was almost beyond comparison with any pill he had seen before.

A Foundation Establishment Pill was difficult to obtain even with spirit stones. According to Yi Hyeon’s research, a single pill had recently been valued within the sect at least fifty mid-grade spirit stones.

Fifty mid-grade spirit stones were equivalent to five thousand low-grade spirit stones, far too much for a cultivator at Great Perfection of the Qi Refining stage to earn easily.

Of course, that was only an estimate of its value. A Foundation Establishment Pill from the Danso Sect was not something one could easily buy just by having enough spirit stones.

It was the pill that cultivators at Great Perfection of the Qi Refining stage needed most desperately, yet one they could hardly obtain through their own abilities.

Yi Hyeon sat cross-legged and calmed his mind.

More than 1,421 years had passed since he possessed a nineteen-year-old body and began living in this world. He had spent most of that time cultivating the Primordial Unity Single-Qi Art in a half-asleep state, but even his clear memories amounted to more than several people’s lifetimes combined.

Yi Hyeon slowly recalled the incantation of the Primordial Unity Single-Qi Art, which he had used for so long.

A little later, with his mind settled, he placed the Foundation Establishment Pill in his mouth.

Gulp.

As its effects spread through his body, Yi Hyeon began circulating his power according to the Primordial Unity Single-Qi Art.

After about one shichen, a small warmth arose in his lower abdomen.

It quickly grew fierce, bringing pain as though his internal organs were burning. The pain nearly clouded his mind, but Yi Hyeon held firmly to his focus and continued circulating his power.

Dense medicinal strength surged toward the Sea of Qi acupoint.

Boom!

His lower dantian shook violently.

The primordial unity true qi that had reached Great Perfection of the Qi Refining stage became wrapped in medicinal strength and began spinning rapidly.

Whoooosh.

With every rotation, the spiritual power within that same space grew denser.

The pill’s medicinal strength also seeped into the flesh and meridians surrounding his lower dantian. The area around the Sea of Qi acupoint grew firm, like a sealed vessel.

‘Don’t rush.’

Hummmm.

The spiritual pressure inside his lower dantian continued rising.

As it grew too high, medicinal strength pushed toward the edges of his lower dantian began trying to leak out.

Yi Hyeon’s awareness followed its flow.

For an ordinary cultivator, this was where the danger began.

Their flesh and meridians outside the lower dantian were not spaces for storing spiritual power. As the breakthrough progressed, the difference in spiritual pressure inside and outside the lower dantian widened. The highly pressurized spiritual power and medicinal strength tried to burst toward the area of lower pressure.

This backflow scattered the pill’s medicinal strength and injured flesh and meridians that were not yet ready to withstand liquid true essence. It was one of the main reasons other cultivators failed to reach Foundation Establishment.

But Yi Hyeon was different. His entire body was a single dantian, and even outside his lower dantian, it was filled with primordial unity true qi at the level of someone who had just entered the ninth layer of the Qi Refining stage.

Since the pressure difference was relatively small, the medicinal strength did not burst out.

‘I see. My full-body dantian maintains the spiritual pressure outside, making it much easier to hold on to the pill’s medicinal strength!’

He drew the medicinal strength back in.

Holding the primordial unity true qi throughout his body still, he moved only the flow inside his lower dantian.

His whole body was calm, like a vast sea.

Only the small whirlpool at its center spun faster and faster.

Two shichen, three shichen...

Boom!

Wisps of pale energy began clinging together.

Drip.

There was no actual sound, but Yi Hyeon felt it as clearly as a falling drop of water.

A single drop of clear liquid formed at the center of his lower dantian.

The primordial unity true qi, which had spread like a gas, had turned into liquid true essence.

‘It worked.’

But Yi Hyeon neither celebrated nor stopped circulating his power.

Foundation Establishment was not yet complete.

The surrounding primordial unity true qi gathered even faster around the liquid true essence.

Drip. Drip. Drip-drip-drip.

The liquid true essence, which had been no more than a tiny dewdrop, gradually expanded.

As more spiritual power inside his lower dantian became liquid, the spiritual pressure rose further. Several times, primordial unity true qi was pushed outward, only to be blocked by the spiritual pressure of his full-body dantian and immediately return.

...

A day passed.

The spiritual qi drawn in by the chamber’s Spirit-Gathering Formation continued seeping into Yi Hyeon’s body.

His lower dantian now began refining the incoming spiritual qi into liquid primordial unity true qi without relying on the Foundation Establishment Pill.

Hummmmm.

It was as though a small, clear lake had formed beneath his Sea of Qi acupoint.

Its surface was calm, but it held power incomparably denser than before.

Yi Hyeon put the incantation from the Primordial Unity Single-Qi Art’s Foundation Establishment Section into practice.

Whooosh.

The liquid true essence made one circuit of his lower dantian, then entered his meridians in a thin stream.

The rest of his body outside the lower dantian was still at the ninth layer of the Qi Refining stage.

But it was far stronger than an ordinary cultivator’s body and accustomed to high spiritual pressure.

As the slender stream of true essence completed a circuit through his meridians and around his whole body, it caused no damage anywhere.

The true essence returned to his lower dantian.

Hummm.

The changes in and around his lower dantian stabilized completely.

The first layer of Foundation Establishment!

At last, Yi Hyeon had become a true Foundation Establishment cultivator, at least in terms of his lower dantian.

After examining his body, he took a wooden board from his storage pouch and updated his handmade status window.

【Age: 1,440】

【Realm: Foundation Establishment, Layer 1 (Lower Dantian)】

【Spiritual Power: 1,340 → 1,376】

‘So an ordinary first-layer Foundation Establishment cultivator has about seventy spiritual power... My full-body dantian holds fifty times as much. Once all of it reaches the first layer of Foundation Establishment, that should be around 3,500.’

...

After studying his changes for a while, Yi Hyeon lay back.

“That went more smoothly than I expected. Hm?”

Seeing the glossy yellow substance covering his body, he removed his robe and cast the Cleansing Spell.

The impurities were swept cleanly from his body and vanished.

...

Even after that, Yi Hyeon did not leave the Qi-Condensing Seclusion Chamber right away.

He spent another four days fully absorbing the remaining medicinal strength of the Foundation Establishment Pill and stabilizing his lower dantian.

For the next ten days, he repeatedly practiced circulating liquid primordial unity true qi throughout his body while adjusting the Spirit-Hiding Spell and Qi-Concealing Spell to his new realm.

He also disguised his outward spiritual power fluctuations to resemble those of a cultivator who had only just reached Foundation Establishment and had yet to fully consolidate the realm.

He adjusted the appearance he had created with the Seven-Aspects Disguise Art as well.

He needed to look as though Foundation Establishment had renewed his vitality, but not so young that his appearance no longer suited his bone age.

Some of Yi Dong-sam’s hair in the mirror turned black again, and his eyes looked livelier than before. His facial wrinkles also grew a little fainter.

“This should do.”

It was his fifteenth day in the Qi-Condensing Seclusion Chamber.

...

The Foundation Establishment Court.

A late Qi Refining stage disciple managing the Qi-Condensing Seclusion Chambers looked toward Chamber No. 7.

‘This is taking a little long. Did the attempt fail?’

The person named Yi Dong-sam was a seventy-seven-year-old outer sect disciple.

He was no longer young, so breaking through to Foundation Establishment could hardly be easy.

Just then, something happened.

Hummmm.

The formation inscriptions on Chamber No. 7 lit up.

Rumble.