The door to Li Yun's room sealed shut with a dull thud.
Formation light flared briefly along the stone walls, isolating sound, Qi, and intent. Outside, the Black Crane Sect buzzed with rumors and fear—but inside, there was only silence.
And chaos.
Li Yun collapsed to one knee, hands pressed against the stone floor as violent surges of Qi tore through his body. His meridians burned as if molten metal had been poured through them, the unstable energy of Pseudo–Foundation Establishment raging without restraint.
Too much.
Too fast.
He forced himself upright and sat cross-legged, teeth clenched.
Stabilize. Don't fight it.
Yan Zhen's words echoed in his mind.
Foundation Establishment is structure, not force.
Li Yun slowed his breathing.
He guided the raging Qi inward, compressing it gently instead of forcing it into submission. The jade-tempered foundation resisted collapse, but cracks spread through his internal balance like fractures in glass.
Blood trickled from his nose.
Again.
And again.
A Body That Rejects Advancement
His dantian trembled violently.
Qi spiraled in uneven cycles, sometimes condensing dangerously, sometimes threatening to scatter entirely. Each fluctuation sent agony tearing through his meridians.
Li Yun groaned.
This is why people don't force realms.
He reached into his storage ring and pulled out the mid-grade spirit stone Mu Qian had left him. Without hesitation, he crushed it in his palm.
Pure Qi flooded into his body.
For a moment, the pain lessened.
Then it doubled.
The foreign Qi clashed with his unstable core, threatening to rip his cultivation apart from the inside.
Li Yun's vision darkened.
No shortcuts now.
He pushed the external Qi away, letting it dissipate uselessly into the air.
Instead, he focused inward.
On rhythm.
On flow.
On alignment.
Jade and Flesh
The Jade Blade Manual stirred again, lines he had barely noticed before burning into clarity.
When the bridge cracks, do not cross.
Reinforce the ground beneath it.
Li Yun inhaled sharply.
He redirected his focus.
Not on advancing.
On strengthening what already existed.
He guided Qi into his bones, muscles, and meridians—slowly, deliberately—using the jade-tempering inheritance beneath the Forbidden Cliff as an anchor.
Pain returned immediately.
His bones glowed faintly with jade light before dimming again, cracks knitting together not with force, but with density.
Minutes passed.
Then hours.
His breathing steadied.
The chaotic surges lessened.
Pseudo–Foundation Establishment did not disappear.
But it stabilized—barely.
Li Yun opened his eyes, drenched in sweat.
Still standing, he thought.
That's enough for now.
Pressure Outside the Door
While Li Yun fought his own body, the sect moved.
Elder Fang sat silently as reports arrived one after another.
"Kang Rui is confirmed dead."
"Li Yun's cultivation is unstable."
"He has sealed himself inside his quarters."
Elder Fang tapped the armrest once.
"Do nothing," he said.
The attendant hesitated.
"And Elder Wei?"
Elder Fang's eyes hardened slightly.
"He will move," he said calmly. "Let him."
A Knife That Waits
Elsewhere, Elder Wei listened to the same report with cold satisfaction.
"So he cracked the bridge," Elder Wei murmured. "Good."
An inner disciple knelt before him.
"Orders?" the disciple asked.
Elder Wei smiled faintly.
"Prepare a stabilizing opportunity," he said. "One that requires… cooperation."
The disciple stiffened.
"You mean—"
"I mean," Elder Wei interrupted softly, "that we offer him help he cannot refuse."
The Offer
Two days passed.
Li Yun did not leave his room.
On the third day, a jade slip slipped through his formation array effortlessly and landed in his palm.
He opened his eyes instantly.
The message was brief.
Spirit-Sealing Pool opens at midnight.
Entry requires Elder approval.
You have been granted temporary access.
No signature was needed.
Li Yun's jaw tightened.
The Spirit-Sealing Pool was infamous.
A natural formation where Qi could be stabilized—or shattered completely. Many cultivators used it to consolidate realms.
Many failed.
Elder Wei, Li Yun thought.
So this is your move.
Decision Under Constraint
Li Yun stood slowly.
His body still ached. His Qi still trembled.
But he understood the situation clearly.
If he refused, his unstable pseudo-realm would eventually collapse.
If he accepted, he would be stepping into a trap.
He exhaled.
"I was never given safe choices," he muttered.
He opened the door.
Midnight at the Spirit-Sealing Pool
The pool lay deep beneath the sect, encircled by ancient stone pillars etched with sealing formations. Pale blue Qi drifted over the water's surface like mist.
Li Yun stepped into the chamber alone.
The moment he crossed the threshold, the formations activated.
Qi pressure descended—gentle, pervasive, binding.
"Sit," a voice echoed.
Li Yun turned.
Elder Wei emerged from the shadows, hands clasped behind his back.
"You're unstable," Elder Wei said calmly. "Your body won't endure long."
Li Yun met his gaze.
"And you're offering help."
Elder Wei smiled.
"Temporary stability," he said. "In exchange for obedience."
Silence stretched.
Li Yun stepped into the pool.
The cold Qi seeped into his body immediately, suppressing the violent surges, smoothing the jagged edges of his cultivation.
Relief washed over him.
Then tension.
This is control, he realized.
Elder Wei watched closely.
"Accept my guidance," Elder Wei said softly, "and I'll ensure your survival."
Li Yun closed his eyes.
Circulated Qi once.
Then—
He resisted.
Stone Does Not Submit
The jade-tempered foundation flared.
Li Yun forced his Qi to stabilize without yielding control, grinding against the sealing pressure instead of flowing with it.
Pain exploded.
The pool churned violently.
Cracks spread across the stone floor.
Elder Wei's expression finally changed.
"What are you doing?" he snapped.
Li Yun stood.
"Soaking," he replied hoarsely.
"And refusing."
He stepped out of the pool, Qi trembling but intact.
Elder Wei's eyes were cold.
"You won't last," he said.
Li Yun met his gaze steadily.
"Maybe."
"But I'll fall on my feet."
He turned and left the chamber.
Aftermath
By dawn, word spread quietly.
Li Yun had entered the Spirit-Sealing Pool.
Li Yun had left alive.
And he had not bowed.
Elder Fang heard the report and smiled faintly.
"So," he murmured, "he chose friction."
A Dangerous Balance
Li Yun returned to his room and sealed it once more.
His Qi remained unstable—but stronger, more resistant.
The broken bridge still existed.
But now—
It had guardrails.
He sat down and began cultivating again, slower than before, more deliberate.
Foundation Establishment will come, he thought.
But it will come on my terms.