I Can Reincarnate Infinitely

Chapter 85: Chapter 81: Lin Sha’s Foundation Establishment

Lin Sha made her entrance riding a colorful cloud, descending slowly.

Of course, it wasn’t a real cloud, but a Flying Spiritual Artifact.

Du Youqian silently grumbled.

The cloud-shaped Flying Spiritual Artifact was certainly beautiful.

But in terms of both speed and maneuverability, it was far inferior to a Flying Boat.

’This woman...’ he thought. ’All about appearances, with no regard for the Inner Core.’

She chose glamour over practicality.

But since they hadn’t seen each other in a long time, Du Youqian wasn’t so tactless as to greet her with something unpleasant.

Du Youqian smiled and walked up to her. "Sasha, you’re here."

Lin Sha shot him a look. "Can’t you say something a little nicer?"

Du Youqian just gave a slight smile and said nothing.

Lin Sha sighed softly. "Never mind. I heard you rejected Junior Sister Chen’s advances, Qing Lang. That makes me very happy. I suppose I’ll let it slide today!"

Seeing the conversation was straying into romance novel territory, Du Youqian quickly brought it back on track. "I’ve already made all the preparations and even found a helper. Monkey? Monkey! Er... he seems to have run off to play somewhere. No matter, I’ll introduce you two later. You should take this time to get adjusted and start your Foundation Establishment as soon as possible. That Helan Ruojin... are you certain he’ll show up?"

A faint melancholy clouded Lin Sha’s eyes. "My master has been acting just like any other master would—caring about my Foundation Establishment, pointing out subtle details, sharing his own experiences, and wishing me success. But I know that the very moment I succeed, he will appear before me and attempt to seize my Dao Foundation." ƒreewebηoveℓ.com

"Qing Lang," Lin Sha looked up, her expression like that of a shy girl mustering all her courage to confess to her beloved, "you should leave. Go back to your Zhongxuan Sect! My master is powerful, but I’m not helpless. With the Array you’ve set up, I still have a fighting chance. Let me face him alone! If I lose... then in the future, after you’ve reached Foundation Establishment, or even Core Formation, you can avenge me."

Du Youqian waited for her to finish, then smiled and said in a tone that permitted no argument, "You’ve spoken your mind, and I understand your feelings. But in this matter, I’m calling the shots. We are going to follow my plan. You will advance to Foundation Establishment smoothly, and then we will work together to remove this obstacle for you."

He raised a finger, silencing Lin Sha before she could argue further. "The fact that you came here means you already know this is the best choice. Let’s not waste any more time. From this moment on, I don’t want to hear another word of nonsense."

Lin Sha swallowed the words that were on the tip of her tongue.

Several hours later, Monkey returned.

Nearly as tall as a normal adult, wearing a Phoenix Wing Purple Gold Crown, with Lotus Silk Cloud-Stepping Shoes on its feet and a Thick Iron Rod in its hand, Monkey looked truly majestic—as majestic as a monkey in a crown could be.

But when Du Youqian had Monkey show off a bit, Lin Sha’s face lit up with delight.

Monkey’s power was certainly a notch below that of a proper Foundation Establishment Cultivator.

After all, Monkey’s repertoire of techniques was limited. Elder Tao had taught it a Cultivation method, but no skills for Magical Combat.

To this day, it still fought purely on animal instinct.

Without the Lotus Silk Cloud-Stepping Shoes, it couldn’t even manage Flying with Magical Artifacts.

But it had its strengths, too: it was extremely agile and its physical body was tough.

Under the right circumstances, it could pose a significant threat to a Foundation Establishment Cultivator.

Seeing a stranger like Lin Sha, Monkey was a little wary.

What Du Youqian couldn’t understand was how, despite the vast difference in aesthetic sensibilities between humans and animals, Lin Sha managed to get Monkey to adore her in just fifteen minutes. It was as if she’d been feeding it for over a year.

In the end, he could only attribute it to Lin Sha’s incredibly potent Charm Skill. It didn’t just work on men and women; even animals were subtly influenced by it.

The two of them, plus the monkey, spent several days practicing combined attack techniques, at least enough to familiarize themselves with each other’s moves and abilities.

Then, Lin Sha spent another half a month tuning her body and mind to their Peak state before entering seclusion to attempt her breakthrough to Foundation Establishment.

Du Youqian tried to perform a divination for Lin Sha to see if her Foundation Establishment would go smoothly.

But perhaps because his Divination Art wasn’t skilled enough, the resulting hexagram was a chaotic mess, and he couldn’t make any sense of it.

He then tried to use Divination to see what hidden moves Helan Ruojin might have in store, or whether the battle would go well, but that too was fruitless.

Tier One Lower Grade Divination Art was just that plain and simple—and utterly useless.

So, Du Youqian had no choice but to put away his copper coins and watch from a safe distance.

Observing Lin Sha’s attempt to reach Foundation Establishment would naturally be a valuable experience for him as well.

However, he couldn’t focus all of his attention on her.

Instead, he dedicated at least seventy percent of his concentration to controlling the Grand Array, using its power to closely monitor the surroundings for any sign of trouble.

If Helan Ruojin was lurking nearby, he had to be the first to know.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Most Cultivation Sects, whether righteous or demonic, have a saying about "a hundred days for Foundation Establishment."

This "hundred days" is just an approximation, not a precise duration.

Some Cultivators might only need a few dozen days, while others might require more than a hundred; it varies.

Monkey was not the patient type—after all, there’s a reason for the saying "a restless heart is like a capering monkey."

As soon as Lin Sha began her Foundation Establishment, it ran off to go wild somewhere else.

Du Youqian didn’t expect Monkey to stand guard dutifully anyway. As long as it came running when called once the fighting started, that would be enough.

The main combatants would still be Lin Sha and himself.

And so, the days passed, one by one.

The aura emanating from Lin Sha grew stronger and purer.

Based on what Du Youqian had read in the Sect’s archives, he estimated she had already completed the first two steps of Foundation Establishment: Spiritual Power Body Purification and the Unity of Spirit and Qi.

She was now undergoing the third trial: True Fire Refining God.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Just as Lin Sha’s Foundation Establishment reached its most critical juncture, Du Youqian sharply noticed a fawn wander into the Grand Array.

The fawn, perhaps having just been chased by a wolf, looked panicked and was running haphazardly through the array.

But a closer look revealed it was actually moving in a zigzag pattern, steadily approaching the place where Lin Sha was in seclusion for her breakthrough.

’Puppetry Art? Or Beast Taming Art?’

Du Youqian leaned toward the latter.

This deer was brimming with vitality; it didn’t look like a Puppet.

Although Du Youqian hadn’t yet begun studying Beast Taming Art, he had skimmed through some related Inheritances.

He knew that once a Cultivator’s Beast Taming Art reached a certain level, they could use a Secret Technique to see through the eyes of the bird or beast they controlled.

But this shared vision had a limited range.

Therefore, Helan Ruojin had to be nearby.

So, instead of acting rashly, he focused his attention outside the array and quickly locked onto several suspicious locations.

The sky above was completely clear. If Helan Ruojin dared to attack from the air, it would be playing right into his hands.

A Foundation Establishment Cultivator might have great mobility with Sword Control in the Sky, but the Array Du Youqian had laid out was specifically adjusted for that possibility.

The fawn approached to within about thirty zhang of Lin Sha and then stopped, only occasionally glancing over with its large, curious, and slightly hazy eyes.

’Those from the Demon Sect are certainly cautious.’

’Wait a minute... cautious?’