Chapter 2

Lin Fan pushed the sect leader aside, and the sect leader had no objections. He picked up the water Lin Fan had fetched, took a sip, and asked, "Lin Fan, how is your fasting practice going?"

"No progress," Lin Fan replied.

"It's been three months, why is there no progress?" the sect leader asked, dissatisfied.

Lin Fan took out a food box from the bag at his feet and opened it. Inside was a lotus leaf-wrapped rice chicken. The aroma filled the air as Lin Fan opened the lotus leaf. He asked, "Seeing this, I decided to postpone my fasting for now."

The sect leader swallowed hard and patiently said, "Lin Fan, you are now in the Foundation Establishment stage. You must absorb the essence of heaven and earth and practice more. Grains are coarse and can obstruct the purity of true qi. Fasting can..."

Lin Fan turned and asked, "Do you want to eat? I got three portions."

"..." The sect leader extended his hand, "Give it here."

The old Taoist shook his head, "I say, can your Orthodox Sect be a bit more serious? I, an old Taoist, have average talent and cannot advance further. Both of you have superior aptitude. Fasting is an important step in cultivation and transcending the mundane. Especially you, Lin Fan, you are still in the Foundation Establishment stage. A good foundation will affect your entire life. Look at you, you have high insight, but you understand the wrong path. When I tell you to fast, you sneak food. When I tell you to get up early to absorb the essence of heaven and earth, you sleep in. When I tell you to clear your mind and reduce desires, you... Where did you get this rice chicken?"

"Old Zhang has good taste," Lin Fan took out another lotus leaf-wrapped rice chicken.

Old Zhang took the rice chicken and opened it, feeling a deep sense of nostalgia. "A hundred years ago, when I was as old as Lin Fan, I went out to exorcise ghosts and passed through Wangjia Village. I fell in love with a young girl in Wangjia Village, which delayed my journey and led to a bad outcome. I was punished with ten years of hard labor, but I was willing. During those three days in Wangjia Village, the rice chicken was my favorite."

Lin Fan asked curiously, "Did you look for that girl after ten years?"

"She was already someone else's wife," Old Zhang sighed. "The rice chicken I ate that day tasted bitter. Lin Fan, a man can be single all his life, but he must fall in love passionately at least once."

"Wow! Old Zhang, you're still a pervert at your age?" Lin Fan gave a thumbs up.

The sect leader calculated with his fingers, "The Purple Bamboo Grove will open in two years, Lin Fan, you will just make it."

"Sect leader, don't you have any thoughts?"

The Purple Bamboo Grove is a sect of the Yunqing Sect, entirely composed of women. The sect leader, Extermination True Person, has profound cultivation. To avoid romantic feelings between men and women that could disrupt cultivation, the Purple Bamboo Grove is a forbidden area of the Yunqing Sect. They can leave, but outsiders cannot enter. It opens every five years, allowing single men and women to meet. If they find someone they like, they can report to the sect leader and practice together. The Yunqing Sect does not prohibit marriage and having children.

Besides the Purple Bamboo Grove, the Yunqing Sect also has the Tianxing Sect, the largest sect. The Yuxian Sect, where the elders are enshrined, is another forbidden area. In addition, there are six sects and one valley, each with its own unique cultivation methods, and they do not interact unless necessary.

The Orthodox Sect is the smallest sect, with only three people: Lin Fan, the sect leader, and the old Taoist. This sect was founded by a former elder who specialized in talismans and Taoist techniques. Unfortunately, the elder only took the sect leader as a disciple before ascending. The sect leader is naturally lazy, though he has great talent, he is greedy and lazy. The fact that he has not fully fasted in sixty years shows his character. In these sixty years, the Orthodox Sect has only taken in Lin Fan. After bringing him in, the sect leader did not teach him much, only giving him access to the library. Lin Fan had to learn on his own and ask questions when he did not understand. The sect leader rarely asked what Lin Fan was learning until Lin Fan began his Foundation Establishment, at which point he occasionally showed some concern.

Some people say he is an anomaly in the Yunqing Sect, and he just smiles without answering. When Lin Fan asked, "Why do I have such a lazy sect leader?" the sect leader replied, "Cultivation is about defying fate, it cannot be forced, only go with the flow."

Only the elder of the Orthodox Sect, Old Zhang, saw through it. He told Lin Fan that among the twelve continents, there are countless large and small cultivation sects. The founders of these sects may not have had superior aptitude, but they must have had superior insight. Insight can be innate, but the sect leader does not believe this. He thinks insight can also be cultivated. Memorizing sword techniques and Taoist techniques can only pass on what the ancestors learned. Letting Lin Fan read and understand on his own is a way to train his insight.

Old Zhang added, "Or he might just be lazy."

Regardless of whether he is truly lazy, during the Foundation Establishment period, the sect leader is very concerned about Lin Fan's progress. He even spent two days in the sect leader's hall to get a pill to help Lin Fan with his Foundation Establishment. Apart from this pill, Lin Fan's Foundation Establishment was not interfered with, and everything was left to nature. So, while the sect leader talks about fasting, if Lin Fan does not listen, he remains calm. Everyone has their own destiny.

"Check," Lin Fan made a move.

The sect leader asked, "How is your Foundation Establishment going?" It has been a hundred days, and only ten days remain.

Lin Fan looked at the chessboard and replied, "It's going well."

"What do you mean by 'going well'?" the sect leader was dissatisfied again.

"The lotus seeds are there, and I can gather true qi, but the Foundation Establishment consumes a lot of true qi. I rushed yesterday, and before I fought an old ghost last night, I felt exhausted and weak."

The sect leader was delighted, "This is a good sign. The more solid the foundation, the more true qi it requires, which means your foundation is strong. You should practice diligently, meditate in the mountains morning and night, and absorb the essence of the sun, moon, and the earth..."

"Sect leader, if I hadn't cheated yesterday, I would already be in the Underworld. This is not a good sign, it's a bad one," Lin Fan corrected.

The sect leader waved his hand, "That's not possible. You lack virtue and cultivation, so you can't go to the Underworld so quickly."

Lin Fan was frustrated, "So you weren't worried about me dying?"

"Dao follows the heart, everything is destiny," the sect leader closed his eyes and said profoundly, "Dying is also a form of destiny."

Lin Fan did not ponder the meaning of these words and asked, "If that's the case, why do I have to get up early, stay up late, and fast? Why did you even get a pill to help me with my Foundation Establishment? Everything is destiny anyway."

"This... this question..." The sect leader thought for a while, "Old Zhang, what do you think?"

"Think what? You have outstanding talent but are incredibly lazy. I say, if you had even a third of the effort of the sect leader, you might be the sect leader now," Old Zhang was frustrated and then looked at Lin Fan, "The blue surpasses the indigo, his nature is even more carefree than yours. Fortunately, Lin Fan is diligent, and that's why he has made some progress."

The sect leader smiled indifferently and said, "After the hundred days of Foundation Establishment comes the Base Refinement stage. This process can be long or short, depending on individual aptitude. When the lotus seeds bloom, the Base Refinement stage will be over."

Lin Fan asked curiously, "Sect leader, what level of cultivation is required for flying with a sword?"

"Yuan Ying," the sect leader explained, "What you see now is flying with a sword, but don't think too much about it. To fly with a sword, you first need a sword. Not any old piece of metal can be called a sword; it must be made from materials with spiritual energy. There is cold iron in the Cold Water Pond in the mountains. Go get a piece, refine it into a sword, and then you can fly with it."