Chương 143: The Price of Foundation

This year, Huaijin turned fifty-four. He had pushed all his personal cultivation techniques and arts to the Tier 2 upper grade. During this time, he had been relentlessly honing his alchemy skills, burning through his entire stockpile of spirit herbs. He'd even drained the clan's entire supply of Tier 2 upper grade ingredients for his practice. He was obsessed, continuously pushing his success rate higher and mentally simulating the arduous process of concocting a Foundation Establishment Pill.

He was determined to minimize any potential losses when he finally attempted the real thing. Time flowed on, and the land of Qingtai Prefecture gradually recovered a semblance of life after being ravaged by the beast tide. Meanwhile, the various sects and clans capable of producing Foundation Establishment Pills began to release their finished products to the wider world. A frantic scramble ensued. Those Tier 2 and Tier 1 clans that had suffered heavy losses now fought tooth and nail for every single pill.

After all, the two great Tier 3 families had decreed a price of ten thousand Spirit Stones per pill. That was the theory, anyway. The reality was very different. In the beginning, the pills did go for ten thousand. But as supplies dwindled and more powerful forces hoarded what they could, the price skyrocketed. No one, after all, would complain about having too many Foundation Establishment Pills in their vaults. It was an unavoidable situation.

The two major clans were already trying their best to balance the competing interests. It was their tradition: after every beast tide, they would assess all the spoils of war and exchange them for merit points, ensuring a fair distribution. In previous beast tides, the human forces had secured minor victories, reaping substantial profits. The two great families had grown wealthy from managing the spoils. This time, however, the humans had been defeated.

The two great families had to take a loss to shore up the region. Beyond the standard compensation and benefits, they had released over thirty Foundation Establishment Pills into the open market. It remained to be seen how many cultivators would actually succeed in achieving Foundation Establishment… As for the Zhang family, in addition to the three pills Huaijin had secured himself, they drained the majority of their clan treasury and managed to purchase four more on the open market, mostly at inflated prices.

The total cost was around eighty thousand Spirit Stones, with each pill averaging nearly twenty thousand. That was simply the going rate. For a clan desperate for new Tier 2 cultivators, the price could even hit thirty thousand. In times like these, Spirit Stones were meant to be spent, and Patriarch Zhang Lixian didn't begrudge the cost. The more Tier 2 cultivators a clan had, the more resources and territory it could control. They were two sides of the same coin.

The Zhang family now held seven Foundation Establishment Pills in total. Valued at ten thousand merit points each, they were placed in the clan treasury. Then came the arduous task of evaluating the clan's Qi Refining cultivators, assessing their contributions and merits to determine who among the nearly twenty peak-level Qi Refining disciples would be chosen. The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

Among them was Huaijin's sister, Yunli, who was five years younger than him at forty-nine. She was fortunate; a few more years and her window of opportunity might have closed. After careful deliberation, consultation with the supreme elders, and final vetting, seven individuals were selected. They each received a Foundation Establishment Pill and immediately announced their seclusion for the breakthrough attempt. ——"I wonder how many will succeed?" Zhang Lixian murmured, a hint of melancholy in his eyes.

In all the years since the Zhang family's founding, they had never fought such a wealthy war. Seven Foundation Establishment Pills! The very thought would have been unthinkable to him in the past.

"Don't worry. Our family's fortune is on the rise, and they've all been polishing their cultivation for a long time. The chance of success is high," Zhang Chongwen said, his voice frail and his body stooped with age. He was already past his natural lifespan, kept alive only by consuming two Green Spirit Peaches, a rare life-extending fruit. He had at most a decade or two left.

"I'm not worried," Zhang Lixian replied, his brow furrowed.

"But at least three of them must succeed! Otherwise, the loss will be too great for the clan." As patriarch, Zhang Lixian had to consider the bigger picture. Excluding the pills Huaijin had personally obtained, the four they'd bought at a premium were entered into the treasury at their internal value of ten thousand merit points, the clan absorbing the massive difference in cost. If fewer than three of the seven succeeded, it would be a devastating financial blow.

"Have faith. They will succeed," Zhang Chongwen said, his eyes gleaming with certainty.

"Even if they fail, the Foundation Establishment Pill will protect their lives, though their meridians will be damaged. That generation has known hardship. Their will is strong." Time, as always, slipped by like water. Three months passed in the blink of an eye. The Zhang family's mood was a mixture of joy and sorrow. Of the seven, four succeeded in achieving Foundation Establishment Realm. Three failed. As Zhang Chongwen had predicted, the pills had spared their lives, but their meridians were damaged.

Their cultivation was set back, and their future would be spent repaying their debts and dedicating themselves to the family's service. The four new Tier 2 cultivators were Yunli, Hunin, Haimo, and Hairun. Yunli, Hunin, and Haimo were all four-element spiritual root cultivators. With the family's newfound wealth, they had lacked for neither resources nor techniques, and had been at the peak of Qi Refining for a long time. Hairun, however, was a five-element root cultivator, just like Huaijin.

Known for his diligence and steady character, his successful breakthrough was a pleasant surprise for everyone. The addition of four new Tier 2 cultivators was a massive boon for the entire clan. And the good news wasn't limited to them. The Gao and Yan families in Langya County also celebrated, each gaining two new Tier 2 cultivators. The Tian family, which had been struggling, managed to add one, finally stabilizing their situation as their patriarch, Tian Jianmo, was already in decline.

Most notably, Langya County gained two entirely new Foundation Establishment forces: the Miao and the Yang families. Both were old Qi Refining clans with centuries of history and deep reserves. They had simply lacked the luck to produce a Tier 2 cultivator before, despite several close calls over the years. Now, both had succeeded. This brought the total number of Tier 2 powers in Langya County to six, placing it among the top three counties in Qingtai Prefecture.

The question now was whether the Miao and Yang families could hold steady, nurture more Tier 2 cultivators, and secure their status as true, lasting Tier 2 clans. Miao Tianhong, the patriarch of the Miao family, had passed away five years prior, never living to see his family's rise. It was the great regret of his life. Yang Jing of the Yang family, once a towering man, was now bedridden, shriveled and barely clinging to life. He'd been holding on by a thread, waiting for news.

The moment he heard that his family had succeeded in producing a Tier 2 cultivator, that thread snapped. A look of profound peace settled on his face.

"…Follow the Zhang family. This path… must not change," his voice, barely a whisper, echoed in the quiet room. He had seen the depth of Huaijin's potential. The Zhang family's rise was inevitable. As long as the Yang family stayed close to them, they could secure their own place among the Foundation Establishment clans.