Chapter 65: The Limits of the Foundation
Han Feng sat motionless in the center of the underground chamber.
For several hours, he had not moved.
The chamber was small, but the spiritual energy inside it was unusually dense.
Thin strands of energy drifted through the air like mist, gathering around his body before slowly being absorbed into his meridians.
This place had once belonged to an ancient cultivator.
Han Feng had discovered it by following the route revealed by the ancient map.
At first, he had expected another abandoned ruin.
Instead, he had found something far more valuable.
A cultivation refuge.
Several spiritual formations carved into the walls had continued functioning despite the passage of countless years. They gathered and purified the surrounding spiritual energy, turning the underground chamber into a natural cultivation ground.
For an ordinary cultivator, this place would have been an opportunity worth fighting over.
For Han Feng...
It was a warning.
Someone had deliberately built this place.
And the formations were far older than the ancient sites he had encountered recently.
Han Feng slowly opened his eyes.
A faint purple light flashed across them.
"My foundation is almost ready."
He could feel it clearly.
His cultivation had reached the Early Stage of Qi Cultivation Rank 3.
The foundation beneath it was stable.
His meridians had been strengthened.
His spiritual sense had improved.
Even his physical body had become considerably stronger than when he first entered the Western Region.
But something was missing.
A final layer.
A barrier that separated him from the next stage.
Han Feng didn't force it.
That was one of the most important lessons he had learned since obtaining the Celestial Diagram.
A breakthrough wasn't simply about having enough energy.
It was about whether the foundation could withstand the transformation.
If he forced his cultivation upward now, he might succeed.
But success obtained through instability would only create problems later.
Han Feng closed his eyes again.
The Celestial Diagram appeared within his consciousness.
The six ancient symbols slowly rotated.
The faint seventh point remained dim.
It hadn't disappeared.
It was simply waiting.
Han Feng studied it for several breaths.
"The seventh point..."
He couldn't understand it yet.
And that was fine.
He had stopped trying to force answers from things that weren't ready to reveal themselves.
Instead, he focused on what he could control.
His cultivation.
His Gu.
His foundation.
And his survival.
He began circulating his Qi.
Slowly.
Precisely.
One cycle.
Then another.
The spiritual energy surrounding him entered his body and moved through his meridians.
Instead of allowing it to accumulate directly in his dantian, Han Feng carefully refined every strand.
Impurities were separated.
Excess energy was discarded.
Only the most stable portion remained.
The process was painfully slow.
But Han Feng didn't care.
He would rather spend ten days building a foundation that could support his future than save ten hours and create hidden weaknesses.
A faint golden-black glow appeared beside him.
The Celestial Transmutation Gu emerged from his spiritual sea.
The small insect hovered quietly.
Han Feng sent a controlled stream of Qi toward it.
The Gu absorbed the energy.
For a moment, the chamber trembled.
Then the transformed energy flowed back.
Han Feng guided it into his dantian.
The process was much smoother than it had been before.
The Celestial Transmutation Gu had improved considerably since its birth.
But it still had limits.
It could transform energy.
It could stabilize the interaction between Qi and Gu energy.
It could strengthen compatible Gu.
It could not create power from nothing.
Han Feng understood that now.
And that understanding made him stronger than blind confidence ever could.
The Dual Chaos Larva stirred within his body.
Its chaotic and orderly energies slowly rotated around one another.
Previously, controlling the two forces had required almost all of Han Feng's concentration.
Now...
They moved with far greater stability.
Han Feng smiled faintly.
"Much better."
He continued cultivating.
Hours passed.
The underground chamber became completely silent.
Outside, the Western Region remained dangerous.
The Celestial Corpse Sect was still searching.
Elder Li still existed.
The ancient map remained unexplained.
The Black Urn remained inside his storage space.
And somewhere beyond the mountains, the mysterious seventh point continued waiting.
Han Feng ignored all of it.
For now.
There was only one thing that mattered.
His foundation.
Several hours later.
Boom!
A deep sound echoed inside Han Feng's body.
His eyes snapped open.
The spiritual energy around him violently surged.
The formations carved into the stone walls flickered.
For a brief moment, the entire chamber shook.
Han Feng immediately stabilized his breathing.
The energy within his dantian had begun to condense.
His meridians expanded.
Pain spread through his body.
His muscles tightened.
His bones seemed to vibrate.
It felt as though his entire body was being torn apart and rebuilt.
Han Feng gritted his teeth.
"Not yet."
He forced the energy back into its circulation.
The breakthrough impulse slowly weakened.
The pain disappeared.
Silence returned.
Han Feng remained seated.
His clothes were soaked with sweat.
He stared at his hands.
Then he laughed softly.
"I almost broke through."
Almost.
That distinction mattered.
His cultivation had reached the threshold.
The foundation required for the next stage was already forming.
But the final barrier remained.
Han Feng didn't feel disappointed.
Instead, his eyes became sharper.
This was exactly what he needed.
A clear understanding of where he stood.
He wasn't weak anymore.
But he wasn't strong enough either.
The Western Region contained cultivators far beyond his current level.
The Celestial Corpse Sect alone had already shown him that.
If he wanted to survive encounters with people like Elder Li one day...
He couldn't rely on lucky escapes forever.
He needed a stronger foundation.
Stronger Gu.
Better techniques.
And most importantly—
Time.
Han Feng stood slowly.
He felt the difference immediately.
His body was more stable.
His Qi flowed more smoothly.
Even his spiritual sense had become slightly sharper.
The breakthrough hadn't happened.
But the preparation for it had.
That was enough.
For now.
He looked toward the entrance of the underground chamber.
A faint killing intent appeared in his eyes.
"Rank 4 can wait."
He reached into his storage space.
The ancient map appeared in his hand.
The six points on its surface remained faint.
But the seventh point...
Was brighter than before.
Han Feng's expression became serious.
He hadn't cultivated here by accident.
The map had led him here.
And now the ancient formation beneath the chamber was reacting to his presence.
A low vibration passed through the floor.
Han Feng slowly crouched.
He placed his palm against the stone.
Boom.
Another pulse.
His Celestial Diagram responded.
Six symbols rotated within his consciousness.
Then—
The seventh point flashed.
Han Feng's expression changed.
"So that's what this place is."
The chamber wasn't merely an ancient cultivation refuge.
It was another point along the ancient route.
A place built to prepare whoever followed the path.
But prepare them for what?
Han Feng didn't know.
And that question made him even more cautious.
He stood and put the map away.
He had come here expecting to advance.
Instead, he had gained something more valuable.
A clearer understanding of his limits.
Han Feng walked toward the exit.
His purple eyes were calm.
Rank 4 would come.
But when it did...
He would make sure his foundation was strong enough to carry everything that came afterward.
The Western Region was waiting.
And somewhere in its depths, the ancient path continued.
Behind him, the underground chamber slowly fell silent.
The formations dimmed.
But one tiny symbol remained illuminated on the stone wall.
A seventh point.
Watching.
Waiting.
And far away, beneath an ancient mountain, something answered with a single pulse.