Chapter 197: Foundation Establishment Late Stage Paradox

After a night's rest, Lu Yang emerged from his cave dwelling. He let out a long yawn, looking refreshed and revitalized, as if reborn and full of energy.

"Hmm."

"I'm alive!" Lu Yang stretched, feeling power surge through his entire body.

A good night's rest certainly worked wonders.

Lu Yang recalled the destruction of the Immortal Sect as if it had happened just yesterday; the memory was still vivid.

Lu Yang noticed the Immortal Fairy sleeping soundly in his spiritual space. In her sleep, she was serene and elegant, with unparalleled beauty and graceful curves, perfectly embodying the world's impression of a "fairy."

When she remained silent, the Immortal Fairy could easily fool those who didn't know her.

It was a rare moment of quiet.

"But do soul bodies also need to sleep?"

Lu Yang remembered the Yellow Millet Pillow the Immortal Fairy used and could only attribute her need for sleep to "personal preference."

Feeling the hazy morning sunlight, his spiritual energy circulated involuntarily faster, as if new power was surging within him.

"I'm about to reach the late Foundation Establishment stage," he murmured.

Lu Yang muttered to himself, then sat cross-legged on the spot, palms and soles facing upwards, silently circulating the *Mind-Enlightening and Nature-Perceiving Art*.

His internal spiritual energy followed the cultivation technique's pathways, flowing faster and faster, continuously washing over Lu Yang's body and strengthening every part of it.

Lu Yang tried to use this opportunity to strengthen his hair but found it was useless.

"I wonder how Meng Jingzhou trains his hair."

Lu Yang recalled Meng Jingzhou using his hair to strike opponents with excellent effect during battles with cultivators from the Five Elements Sect.

He cast aside distracting thoughts, settled down, and allowed his body to merge with nature. Spiritual energy from heaven and earth continuously poured into his body, and he exhaled spiritual energy, returning it to the world.

During this process, his cultivation realm continuously advanced.

"Huh? What are you doing? Are you cultivating?" The Immortal Fairy awoke, rubbing her eyes, still groggy.

She felt Lu Yang's realm continuously advancing, but something still felt off.

"No, I'm advancing," Lu Yang explained seriously.

"I'm currently half a step into the late Foundation Establishment stage."

"Oh, so you're almost at the late Foundation Establishment stage?"

"Almost. But I've thought of a question."

"What is it?"

"I'm currently half a step into the late Foundation Establishment stage. If I take half of that half-step, will I be even closer to the late Foundation Establishment stage?"

"Yes."

"Then if I take half of that half of that half-step, won't I be even closer than before?"

"Right."

"If I always take half a step forward from my current position, will I keep getting closer and closer to the late Foundation Establishment stage?"

The Immortal Fairy nodded blankly.

"I keep breaking through realms, but I can never reach the late Foundation Establishment stage. Does this mean the late Foundation Establishment stage is just an illusory realm that no one has actually reached?"

The Immortal Fairy furrowed her brows and thought for a moment, deciding she was probably still half-asleep. She'd go back to sleep.

The Immortal Fairy tilted her head and went back to sleep.

After the Immortal Fairy fell asleep, Lu Yang continued pondering this philosophical question.

What exactly was the answer to this problem? Was his continuous realm breakthrough meaningless? Could it be that the late Foundation Establishment stage didn't even exist?

The puppet, hidden in the shadows, couldn't stand it anymore. It stealthily ran behind Lu Yang and gave him a kick.

Lu Yang relaxed his concentration and successfully took another half-step. Late Foundation Establishment stage!

"Who kicked me!"

Lu Yang whirled around, but the puppet had long since vanished.

Even though the puppet was gone, Lu Yang could guess it was the puppet's doing.

On the entire Tianmen Peak, besides Lu Yang, only the puppet could move.

"Forget it. I won't stoop to its level. Time to go to the Mission Hall to redeem my rewards!" Lu Yang figured even if he found the puppet, he couldn't beat it, and there was no need for the first thing after a breakthrough to be getting beaten up.

It would be bad luck.

Lu Yang waited for a while at the entrance of the Mission Hall before Meng Jingzhou and Mang Gu finally arrived.

These two were also very tired, having slept from last night until just recently.

Meng Jingzhou, as usual, went to the Mission Hall, bought high-quality hay, mixed it according to proportion, and returned to feed his old horse.

"Ice-making talismans are so cheap! Give me twenty!"

Lu Yang looked at Meng Jingzhou in surprise. "Why are you buying so many low-grade ice-making talismans?"

These talismans were only effective against cultivators in the mid-to-late Qi Refining stage and were simply filler items on the list.

"Hehe, you wouldn't understand. It's summer now. Do you know what's most important in summer? Staying cool!"

Mang Gu was puzzled. "But isn't there a heat-dissipating array in the cave dwelling? That should be enough."

Meng Jingzhou wagged his index finger. "Come, I'll show you."

Meng Jingzhou pulled out a wooden tub from his identification jade token, filled it with cool water, and then plopped in, only his head visible.

He took out an ice-making talisman, and the water in the tub instantly froze into a block of ice, trapping him inside.

"So refreshing!" Meng Jingzhou shouted, completely frozen solid with only his head sticking out. The feeling was incredibly exhilarating.

Only cultivators could do this; an ordinary person would have fallen ill from the cold long ago.

Lu Yang's eyes lit up. He pulled Meng Jingzhou, still encased in ice, out of the tub. With a push, the block of ice rolled noisily around the Mission Hall.

This form of "art" was rare even in the advanced Dao-Seeking Sect, drawing the attention of many senior brothers and sisters.

"Lu Yang, you son of a b****!" Meng Jingzhou cursed loudly. He felt as if the world was spinning, unable to tell up from down or his directions.

As he rolled the ice block, Lu Yang explained, "This is where you don't understand. When the three of us combine, what's the biggest problem? It's that our bodies can't handle too much spinning! We can use this method to train and get used to spinning in advance."

Mang Gu nodded from the side, thinking, "As expected of Brother Lu, his mind is so nimble." He had thought Brother Lu was just simply tormenting Brother Meng.

Meng Jingzhou had a different opinion. "Anyone can talk theories. Lu Yang, if you're so capable, let's switch! I'll push you!"

"You were the first one to get frozen, so you get to train first!" Lu Yang wasn't falling for that.

What a childish taunt.

In the end, it was the senior brother on duty at the Mission Hall who, with a grim face, stopped Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou.

Only then did the two behave themselves and go to the exchange list to redeem rewards.

"One Ten Oxen Strength Pill, please." Lu Yang saw the Golden Core stage version of the Ten Oxen Strength Pill on the list for 1500 contribution points. Without a second thought, he bought it immediately.

Such a price was absolutely great value for money.

"Huh? A Golden Core Realm Experience Coupon? What's this?" Meng Jingzhou found a very strange item. Its description was also quite vague.

Meng Jingzhou pondered, "Could it be for Foundation Establishment cultivators to temporarily enter the Golden Core stage and experience what it's like to be a Golden Core?"

He had heard that some powerful cultivators were accustomed to letting their disciples experience higher realms in advance, which was beneficial for their future cultivation.

"Buy one and try it; there's no loss," Lu Yang urged Meng Jingzhou to buy one.

Meng Jingzhou thought about it and agreed. It wasn't expensive anyway, so he bought one.

He went to the front desk and found the senior brother on duty. "Senior brother, I'd like to use this experience coupon."

After the senior brother confirmed it was genuine, he nodded. "You can use it now."

Meng Jingzhou asked curiously, "Senior brother, what does this experience coupon do?"

As the senior brother contacted someone, he casually replied:

"It lets you experience the combat power of a Golden Core stage cultivator."

Meng Jingzhou immediately felt a bad premonition. Just as he was about to say something, someone tapped him on the shoulder.

Meng Jingzhou turned around to see a bald senior brother in the Golden Core stage, with kind eyes and a benevolent expression. He revealed a row of neat teeth and smiled.

"Junior brother, I hear you want to experience the combat power of a Golden Core stage cultivator? Come on, let's go to the arena outside and fight."

Meng Jingzhou: "..." Lu Yang, you set me up!