1. The Foundation of Power and the Craving for Flight ??


  

  Bach Ho ??, specializing in body cultivation, possesses the Elementary Pure Yang White Tiger Divine Body and abundant vitality. He practices using Yin Qi for his transformation, which harmonizes the Yin and Yang within his body. Thus, his internal power does not increase in the typical manner of other cultivators. Vong Tran ?, on the other hand, practices dual internal and external cultivation, combining his Pure Yin Body with the Celestial Master's pure Yang Internal Arts and the Three-Tailed Fire Fox Inner Core ??. Both have attained strength equivalent to the Foundation Establishment (Super Immortal) realm, but they are heavier than true Pure Yang Foundation Establishment cultivators, and thus can only fly at low altitudes ??.

  Noe ??, prioritizing literature over martial arts, remains stagnant at the Mortal Immortal (Qi Refining) realm.

  Meanwhile, Han Thuong ?????, Hoa Minh ??, and Tho Trung Sa have returned to their sects, immersing themselves in the routines of outer disciples. They are busy with various tasks: resource management, protecting immortal cities, planting and harvesting medicinal herbs, mining spirit stones and metals, or delivering messages between sects. Despite this, a burning desire always fuels them deep down: to enter the inner sect, to set foot on the floating islands ??? suspended in the sky where the elite disciples gather to cultivate.

  The dream of freely stepping on clouds and flying ??, riding flying ships, wielding flying swords, or even riding birds or dragons straight into the sky—this is the shared craving of all immortal cultivators, a symbol of ultimate freedom and supreme power.

  To turn that dream into reality, they must elevate their strength from the Mortal Immortal (Qi Refining) realm to the Super Immortal (Foundation Establishment) realm. This process requires a long period of absorbing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, which can be shortened through deep meditation or by the lucky chance of encountering a place rich in Spiritual Qi or Yang Qi.

  Next is the step of root and bone breakthrough, making the body light, moving like flowing clouds and water, reaching the realm of flight. However, this breakthrough requires special fortuitous encounters, depending on the sect: such as the Mortal Grade Eternal Iron Ice (a type of eternal iron-ice) for Han Thuong, the Mortal Grade True Fire (an eternal, unextinguishable flame) for Hoa Minh, or the Heavenly Meteorite Yellow Sand (sand refined from fallen meteorites) for Tho Trung Sa. These items are all extremely rare ??.

  The simpler, though still not easy, method is to use a Foundation Establishment Pill.

  

  
2. The Foundation Establishment Pill and the Possibility of Breakthrough


  

  The Foundation Establishment Pill is the refinement of many precious herbs. Each major sect in the Ten Great Immortal Family Alliance holds a monopoly on a key herb, forcing them to cooperate and exchange resources to produce the elixirs. Essentially, the major sects do not specialize in growing the herbs of other factions. Although the demand for the Foundation Establishment Pill is high, they try to cultivate these plants. Still, due to a lack of favorable conditions (for example, Fire Spirit Grass needs to be grown in areas with year-round volcanic activity, on thermal rock, and with abundant Yang Qi), the quality of the herbs often only reaches mid or low-grade levels. Because of the inconsistent quality, the chances of successfully achieving Foundation Establishment vary: a Lowest Low-Grade Foundation Establishment Pill has only a 1% chance of success, while a Highest High-Grade Foundation Establishment Pill can reach 30%.

  The success rate is also increased based on Spiritual Roots and Bloodline:

  Essentially, the three friends already have enough internal power to break through to the Super Immortal realm, but they still lack the Foundation Establishment Pill. Han Thuong, thanks to his diligence in completing sect missions, has 3 Middle Mid-Grade Foundation Establishment Pills. Tho Trung Sa has 2 Middle Mid-Grade Pills, and Hoa Minh once had 1 High Mid-Grade Pill. Unfortunately, all three failed to achieve the breakthrough needed to transform their roots and bones, remaining long-term Qi Refining cultivators in their respective sects ??.

  However, a new opportunity has opened up for outer disciples like them. It is a once-in-a-millennium chance, as inner disciples abandon their positions, creating significant vacancies in the sects. Therefore, the selection process for outer disciples to enter the inner sect has become easier, and the resources provided to outer disciples are also significantly more abundant.

  

  
3. The Prophecy of Decline ??


  

  One day, a heavy, gloomy atmosphere enveloped the entire cultivation world. All Ten Great Immortal Sects and minor factions simultaneously summoned their disciples, with worry and panic clearly visible on everyone's faces. The Great Prophet of the Profound Ice Sect, the Heavenly Maiden ??, and the Great Prophet of the Wood Spirit Sect, Moc Y ??, simultaneously issued a shocking prophecy regarding the decline of the Chau Ngoc Great Kingdom.

  This news caused a deep wave of anxiety that spread throughout the sects. The Chau Ngoc Great Kingdom was not just a prosperous mortal nation; it was also the homeland of many successful cultivators who had reached the Core Formation stage and become Elders in numerous sects. These cultivators had mortal relatives and descendants, with powerful clans numbering several thousand, including in-laws.

  The fear for their descendants and kin spurred the Immortals to action. They dispatched inner and outer disciples to leave the sects and descend to the mortal world, doing whatever it took to guide their relatives on how to protect their families and descendants. During this period, Immortals riding clouds and treading wind ?? became commonplace across the land of Chau Ngoc, to the point where the sight was considered normal. Yet, their descendants, who had enjoyed blessings and lived in prosperity and wealth, never considered leaving or building a safe haven. They ridiculed the warnings, deeming them merely the baseless worries of 'old men and women' from the heavens. They were engrossed in their luxurious mortal lives, focused only on accumulating more wealth, completely lost in the false glory and the illusion of permanence.

  

  
4. The Era of the Hundred Schools Contending ??


  

  This was also a period when many forbidden relationships between Immortals and mortals emerged—a situation strictly prohibited by the sects. The reason was that they practiced Pure Yang cultivation and believed that male and female Immortals becoming entangled in love affairs would destabilize their Dao Hearts. For the inner Immortals, who received intensive training and vast resources from the sects, the prohibition was even more severe, leading to many being disciplined, expelled from the immortal sects, and becoming Rogue Cultivators without any sectarian support. Some of them joined the clans of the Elders' descendants, becoming family protectors, gradually forming powerful cultivating clans. This was also considered a silver lining, as the sects' resources were transferred through them to the outer disciples, helping ordinary disciples like Han Khong Bao, Han Trung Bao, and Han Trung to be selected and successfully groomed into Inner Disciples.

  The former inner disciples were all elite Foundation Establishment (Super Immortal) cultivators who had spent many years on the flying islands, accessing and learning the world's most advanced knowledge. Once free on the ground, besides offering formidable fighting power, they used their profound knowledge to teach, accept disciples, and develop their clans into powerful families. Later generations called this period the Era of the Hundred Families ??, with over 100 large clans and over 100 different professions, such as the Agriculturalists (specializing in planting), the Physicians (specializing in medicine), the Five Elements School, the Yin-Yang School, the Confucianists, the Legalists, the Daoists, the Mohists, the School of Names, the Military Strategists, the Buddhists, the Wood School, etc. All of this laid the foundation for the later Contention of the Hundred Schools.