Chapter 131: Heh-Hah

Wen Xu had expected Chen Zui’s Foundation Establishment to be easier than most, but he hadn’t expected it to be this simple. It was basically… rushing through the motions. Comparing it to his own experience, the only reason he didn’t feel unbalanced was that he knew Chen Zui too well.

Envious? Not really. After all, it had been traded for a brain.

How should one put it? After witnessing Chen Zui’s lightning-fast Foundation Establishment, everyone present weirdly found themselves on the exact same page. They were envious, yet not that envious. After all, if they were asked to trade places? What a joke. Absolutely not!

This was exactly what Chen Zui deserved.

“Why are you all looking at me like that?” Having established his foundation, Chen Zui was in an excellent mood. Miraculously, he actually noticed the looks he was getting. It seemed Foundation Establishment truly cleansed one’s bones and cleared the mind.

“…Uh, nothing. Just catching a glimpse of the world’s vast differences, I guess.” Bian Chunzhou smiled, then happily lunged forward. “Congratulations, Chen Zuizui! You’ve finally succeeded in Foundation Establishment!”

“Congratulations.”

“Congratulations on your Foundation Establishment.”

“Congratulations, Junior Brother. Now that we’re going back, Master can finally get a good night’s sleep.”

Hearing this, Chen Zui was incredibly blunt. “At Master’s age, he can actually still sleep?”

“…Junior Brother, there’s no need to say things like that out loud in the future.” Master was a Soul Transformation Sovereign, after all, and his hearing was incredibly sharp. If he overheard, he would make life difficult for you again. Then again, with Junior Brother’s brain, he probably wouldn’t even notice the petty retaliation.

However, Chen Zui had only been genuinely surprised that a Soul Transformation Sovereign still needed sleep. He had assumed that once a cultivator achieved Foundation Establishment, they would have evolved past the need for food and sleep.

Since he had successfully established his foundation, there was no need to linger. The group rode their swords back to the sect, quickly returning to Yonglu Mountain. Chen Zui went to see Venerable Yanshan first, and only then did he meet up with the others to head down the mountain for hotpot.

Although he felt he could fast now that he had established his foundation, he inexplicably did not want to turn down this hotpot meal celebrating his success. Thus, he went down the mountain with his two friends.

“Speaking of which, I’m a bit curious.”

Chen Zui glanced at him. “What are you curious about?”

“Didn’t you already give up on Foundation Establishment? How did you suddenly pull it off? Did you find whatever it was you were missing?” Although watching that breakthrough had been a total anti-climax, asking might still yield some insights.

Wen Xu was also quite curious about this, but he was reserved by nature, which meant he wouldn’t ask such questions lightly.

“Oh, that. Actually, I don’t know if this counts.” Chen Zui briefly described his state of mind while practicing his saber back then. “But my master said it’s because I was finally willing to face my spiritual root.”

Oh, right. Bian Chunzhou’s eyes widened. “But you don’t practice any spiritual root cultivation methods, do you?”

“What do I need that stuff for? It’s too much trouble!” Chen Zui waved his hand dismissively. “Besides, I can’t learn them anyway. The methods those people write are so hard. I don’t have Wen Xu’s brain, so why bother?”

Why bother? Bian Chunzhou suddenly froze in his tracks!

“Why did you stop? If you don’t want to walk, I can carry you on my saber. I haven’t tried it yet, but I don’t think it should be hard. You’ve ridden Wen Xu’s before, so this time…”

Wen Xu, however, was sharper than Chen Zui. “Be quiet for a moment.”

Bian Chunzhou, however, could no longer hear his two friends’ conversation. Because of his trust in them, he could immerse himself in his inner mind without restraint, desperately trying to grasp the hard-won flash of inspiration that had just surfaced.

Exactly. From the very beginning, he had been obsessively searching for a correct path. But what was “correct”? Was it being able to cultivate all the way to ascension, or advancing one’s cultivation level with absolutely no side effects?

There was no universal standard for this at all. The three paths he had tested seemed almost identical, but that was only because he was measuring them by worldly standards. What if he started solely from his Dao Heart?

So I already had the answer in my heart all along, Bian Chunzhou thought. I was just too cowardly to face it.

“I get it now. I actually…” Bian Chunzhou looked up at Chen Zuizui, whose eyes were clear. “Let’s go, let’s go, let’s eat hotpot! My treat, we’ll get the biggest portions!”

Chen Zui: “…What were you trying to say just now?”

“Nothing.” He lowered his head guiltily.

“Were you calling me names in your head just now?”

“Why are you so sharp at a time like this!”

So heaven really does look after fools, Wen Xu thought. Not only can they protect themselves, but they can also bring blessings to others.

Once autumn arrived, business at Gongshang Bistro became exceptionally good. To prevent waiting customers from blocking the entrance, Bian Chunzhou had installed a simple magic tool for taking queue numbers at the door. He had asked a young disciple from the Refining Peak to make it. Though crude, it didn’t consume many spirit stones. Ever since they started using it, the shop’s business had improved quite a bit.

As the owner, he naturally had some privileges. When the three of them arrived, the manager had already set up the meal, just waiting for them to sit down and eat.

“Come, come, come. Today we’ll toast with tea instead of wine. Congratulations to Chen Zuizui on successfully achieving Foundation Establishment! Cheers!”

Chen Zui was also very happy. “Actually, mine should be a Perfect Foundation Establishment.”

Wen Xu almost choked on his tea. Fortunately, Bian Chunzhou didn’t notice, as he was busy being surprised by Chen Zuizui’s words. “Really? I knew my friend was super amazing! But how do you know you achieved a Perfect Foundation Establishment?” Wasn’t Perfect Foundation Establishment supposed to be extremely rare? Could it be because Chen Zuizui’s breakthrough took so little time that the Heavenly Dao rewarded him?

“I don’t know, it just feels like it.” This answer was classic Chen Zui: completely clueless throughout, yet it didn’t stop him from getting it done.

Bian Chunzhou: “…” Whatever, it wasn’t like they had just met today.

He silently set down his teacup, preparing to eat a couple of pieces of meat to calm his nerves. Just as he swished the meat in the pot, he suddenly thought of something. “Hey, did you two achieve Foundation Establishment at the same age?”

Wen Xu silently scooped out some meat. “You only just realized?”

Bian Chunzhou began to count on his fingers. Wen Xuxu was twenty-six this year and had established his foundation two years ago. If he remembered correctly, it should have been in the summer. Meanwhile, Chen Zuizui was twenty-four this year, and it was currently autumn. So did they break any records?

“Speaking of which, do neither of you celebrate your birthdays?” Bian Chunzhou realized belatedly. It turned out he had already been in the cultivation world for five years. Five years had passed in the blink of an eye. His friends had established their foundations one after another, while he was still at Qi Refining.

But it wasn’t a big deal. He had a plan now. Once he went back, he would go into a brief seclusion.

Chen Zui nodded. “Yeah.” How could celebrating a birthday be more interesting than practicing his saber?

Wen Xu, however, fell into a strange silence, then gave a quiet hum of agreement.

“I remember when you came to join Yonglu Mountain, it was not long after your eighteenth birthday, right?” Seeing Chen Zuizui nod, Bian Chunzhou leaned toward the other side. “What about you, Wen Xuxu? What month is your birthday?”

As a scholar sitting for the imperial examinations, Wen Xu naturally had to verify his name, place of origin, and birthdate before entering the examination hall. However, before being adopted by the Old Scholar, he had not been registered. After all, beggars were transients without origins or land, so the government naturally wouldn’t issue them household registration.

“I don’t know. I was an abandoned child. The birthday I use now is the day my adoptive father brought me home.” Wen Xu didn’t even know his exact age. The old beggar who initially took care of him said that when he was found, he was already crying from hunger, probably a baby of just a few months old. But as for how old exactly, the old beggar had barely seen any children in his life, so how could he tell?

Perhaps he had just been born then, or perhaps he had already been around for a while. Wen Xu wasn’t particularly bothered by it.

Bian Chunzhou mentally slapped himself. Of all the things to bring up, he had to say that. “I’m sorry, I…” It was all his fault for getting carried away. Wen Xuxu had told him before about how he had “schemed” to get adopted. Honestly, if he could go back to the Mortal Realm with Wen Xuxu, he would definitely track down Wen Xuxu’s biological parents and give them a good thrashing. To abandon someone as wonderful as Wen Xuxu; they weren’t even human!

“Actually, that was also the day of my rebirth. To me, that is my birthday.”

Chen Zui had already scooped all the meat out of the pot. “Aren’t you two eating? Then I’ll eat it all. What’s there to talk about birthdays? Any day works for me anyway. I reached Foundation Establishment two years later than him. He reached Foundation Establishment after only three years of cultivation, whereas I started practicing the saber before I was eighteen. Of course he was faster. But next time, I’ll definitely beat you!”

Wen Xu said, “That’s not a given.” He was determined to reach the Golden Core Stage.

“Hey, hey, hey, watch it, you two! There’s still someone here who hasn’t reached Foundation Establishment!” Could someone please rein in these two overachievers? They had only just reached Foundation Establishment and were already aiming for the Golden Core. Wasn’t that a bit too seamless?

“Then you’d better reach Foundation Establishment quickly. I’m waiting to eat your Foundation Establishment hotpot.”

Wen Xu nodded from the side. “But there’s no need to rush. Just follow your own plan. Ignore those bored people gossiping behind your back.”

“Right,” Chen Zui agreed, nodding. “They’re very boring.” And they interrupted his saber practice.

Bian Chunzhou thought to himself, How lucky am I to have made such great friends? Although one is a bit too smart and the other is a bit too pure, it doesn’t matter. I can be the happy medium between them.

“But still, don’t be too slow. If you take any longer, new disciples will be entering the sect next year.”

…Great. As expected of Wen Xuxu, straight to the point. Bian Chunzhou instantly felt like he was a college senior being chased down and beaten by incoming freshmen. He had to defend his dignity as a senior.

Bian Chunzhou was a man of his word. After finishing the hotpot and returning to the sect, he began a period of secluded meditation to sort through his thoughts. Since he had already decided which path to take, there was no need to hesitate. It was just like the famous quote from a writer in his past life: there are no roads on the earth to begin with; but when many people pass one way, a road is made^[1].

He wasn’t the first person in the cultivation world to possess a Water-Fire Spiritual Root. Someone had already walked this path, so a path did exist. It was just a narrow trail, overgrown with wild weeds and hard to see. What he needed to do was forge his way through this path. Even if it was covered in thorns, and even if there were undercurrents surging beneath, it didn’t matter. Even if he fell, he would just get back up. It wasn’t embarrassing.

In cultivation, how could there be a path guaranteed to succeed? He had simply been blinded by his own doubts, trying to find the path that came closest to success. But who was to say that a path less traveled couldn’t lead to success as well?

At most, he would take a few more detours. If he had to choose, he would naturally choose the path he wanted most.