Chapter 8: Successful Foundation Establishment

Shen Zhiyao hurried to the Simple Residence Courtyard upon hearing that Shen Qinghe had been injured.

Shen Qinghe, afraid that Shen Zhiyao would go mad with worry, comforted her, "Elder sister, rest assured, I'm fine. I've already taken an elixir, and the wound is healing quickly."

It must have been painful at the time, but Nan Sheng was prepared, and the best thing she could think of at the moment was to outdo the misery with an even more pitiable display.

Fortunately, she was full of Spiritual Energy, and Dongfang Wuya had given her a bottle of Top-grade Spirit Pill, which allowed her superficial injuries to heal quickly.

Shen Zhiyao was not reassured and carefully inspected the back of Shen Qinghe's head. Seeing only a small wound remaining, she breathed a sigh of relief.

Afterwards, she cursed vehemently, thoroughly scolding Nan Sheng, then hugged Shen Qinghe and patted her on the back, "Xiao Hemiao, don't be scared. From now on, your elder sister will protect you."

Shen Qinghe felt a twinge in her nose; Shen Zhiyao had not called her by her nickname for many years. She knew it was because their father doted on her, causing Shen Zhiyao to feel left out, and it was only in recent years that they had been constantly at odds.

Shen Zhiyao was just someone with a tough exterior but a soft heart.

"One day, I will unveil Nan Sheng's shameless true face..."

Shen Qinghe quickly wriggled out of Shen Zhiyao's embrace and said firmly, "Nan Sheng is not simple. She is cunning and calculating. You can't deal with her by force; you must use clever strategies. In situations like today, if she wants to gain sympathy by appearing pitiful, I have to appear even more so, otherwise the entire sect's cultivators will sympathize with her. Today, I was actually applying a strategy of inflicting an injury on oneself."

"Wouldn't it have been simpler to just end her with a sword?!" Shen Zhiyao felt there was no need for such roundabout tactics.

Shen Qinghe pulled Shen Zhiyao to sit down and advised again, "Elder sister, please heed my words and don't act rashly. Tell me before you do anything in the future, and we'll make decisions after discussing them. Nan Sheng is very tricky; it's best not to provoke her lightly. Haven't you noticed that since she came to the Sky Pole Sect, father was injured by a sword, and I almost died? This woman's luck is extraordinary..."

Shen Zhiyao felt that Shen Qinghe was boosting someone else's morale while dampening her own confidence. Later, tired of hearing Shen Qinghe's incessant nagging, she found an excuse to escape.

Shen Qinghe's eyes dimmed, knowing her stubborn sister wouldn't see reason.

But it didn't matter; there was plenty of time ahead, and the most urgent task was to choose an auspicious day for her own Foundation Establishment. Only then would she be officially entering the cultivation world and could start her true cultivation.

In the following days, Shen Qinghe spent all her time practicing Qi Refinement in the Simple Residence Courtyard. No one aside from Shen Zhiyao disturbed her, not even Nan Sheng.

A month later, she heard that Nan Sheng had formally become a disciple of Sword Master Tian Yan of the Sky Pole Sect, and the first closed-door female disciple.

After that, it took Nan Sheng just over a month to successfully achieve Foundation Establishment, becoming the fastest female disciple in Sky Pole Sect to do so.

And of course, the record for the fastest male disciple in the sect at Foundation Establishment was still held by Yan Changsheng.

Suddenly, Nan Sheng was the talk of the sect, with everyone saying that she was the most potential and talented female disciple in the Sky Pole Sect.

Before this, Shen Zhiyao was considered Sky Pole Sect's most talented female disciple, which fueled her growing hatred for Nan Sheng even further.

In just three short months, Nan Sheng had not only gained a legion of adoring fans but had also captured Xiao Chen's intense interest. There were even cultivators who said they saw Yan Changsheng and Xiao Chen getting jealous over her more than once.

Shen Qinghe was aware of the plot in the book, and she knew that Nan Sheng, as a charmer, did indeed gather a host of admirers in less than half a year after joining the sect, even attracting Xiao Chen's affection.

This development in the plot perfectly coincided with the timeline laid out in the book; she was not surprised at all.

Shen Qinghe felt the time had come for her Foundation Establishment, so she chose an auspicious day to do so.

During this period, the entire sect's attention was on Nan Sheng, making Shen Qinghe practically invisible, as though almost no one remembered that Sky Pole Sect had a mortal girl among them.

When news spread that Shen Qinghe, a mortal girl without a Spirit Root, had suddenly established her foundation, the entire sect was astounded.

Shen Zhiyao also found it incredible, and she rushed to Simple Residence Courtyard at the first opportunity. Upon seeing Shen Qinghe glowing with health, she paused, her gaze fixed.

It was still the same face, but the grey birthmark on the left side of Shen Qinghe's nose had turned light pink. Even more miraculous, the birthmark had shrunk a bit and moved to the middle of her nose bridge, looking playful and vivid.

Previously, Qinghe's facial features seemed covered with a layer of dust, but now they had suddenly become clearer, as if everything was more attractive—she possessed a beauty that made it hard for one to look away.

"Qinghe, you really established your foundation?" Shen Zhiyao took Shen Qinghe by the hand and spun her around, finding her more and more astonishing with each look.

Shen Qinghe smiled faintly, "Mmm, I don't know why either, suddenly, I just had an immortal fate."

"But weren't you without a Spirit Root? Born a mortal, how could you establish a foundation?" Shen Zhiyao still couldn't grasp it.

She excitedly scooped up Shen Qinghe, tossing her into the air, which scared Shen Qinghe into screaming until she landed safely back in Shen Zhiyao's arms.

While the two sisters were laughing and frolicking, other members of the Wuji Sect arrived at Simple Residence Courtyard one after another, quickly filling the place to the brim.

The left Sect Master of Sky Pole Sect personally tested Shen Qinghe and discovered that she indeed had succeeded in Foundation Establishment.

However, a Spirit Root was still undetectable within Shen Qinghe's body; a mortal such as her successfully establishing her foundation was a unique case, unprecedented in the entire cultivation world.

Standing between Xiao Chen and Yan Changsheng, Nan Sheng looked distantly at the scene of Shen Qinghe being surrounded by the crowd and bit her lower lip.

She had disliked Shen Qinghe from the start, and today, seeing the cultivators praise and surround Shen Qinghe, she felt this glory should have been hers alone.

Looking instinctively towards Yan Changsheng, she noticed he, too, was watching Shen Qinghe. Turning to Xiao Chen on her left, she found a continuous smile in his eyes as he watched Shen Qinghe.

"Congratulations to Miss Shen on your successful Foundation Establishment," Nan Sheng suddenly spoke, successfully attracting everyone's gaze.

The gazes of Yan Changsheng and Xiao Chen finally shifted away, both turning towards Nan Sheng.

Shen Qinghe replied politely, "I'm not as talented as Miss Nan, so my establishing a foundation was really just luck."

After all, Nan Sheng was the Fated Female Protagonist; she did not see the need to compare herself with Nan Sheng, but now that she had a chance at cultivation, she would certainly grasp this opportunity and cultivate diligently.

"Miss Shen is too modest," said Nan Sheng as she walked slowly toward Shen Qinghe, accompanied by Xiao Chen and Yan Changsheng.

With her natural beauty, accompanied by flower guardians like Xiao Chen and Yan Changsheng, both of whom were exceptionally attractive and had extraordinary demeanors, Nan Sheng really stood out as she walked by, exuding the air of a queen inspecting her realm.