John looked through the console and made sure everything was running correctly. After confirming there were no errors, he created another body and lied down on a bed. He took out tools and adjusted his skin so it was no longer diamond grade around his head, he also made his bones become less strong. He used this other body as the surgeon, as he would be messing with his brain of his main body.

He then began to drill through his brain using another body. He used an artifact that was a cord that he had created in advanced for this procedure. In the end of things, he had many things connected to his brain.

Now was time for the moment of truth.

He began to condense a dao pillar.

He could feel the difference easily! If before it took him a decade to condense a pillar, it now only took him a bit over a month! This was an insane upgrade.

He obviously couldn't leave the pocket dimension during the duration of his cultivation. Since the formation was quite big and he had a hole in his brain while it was running. All sorts of components were wrapped around his skull.

Luckily, the identity he had created normally disappeared for months at a time. If the bells rang and he needed to be summoned. He would just use another body. He always had the habit of concealing his cultivation. So nobody could tell if he was using a fake body.

If someone decided to test out his combat ability randomly... that would be an issue. But he hadn't been challenged by anyone recently.

Based off his new speed. He would reach the peak of foundation establishment in 7 months!

If his dao pillars weren't perfect, it could be a pain to conceal his fast growth to everyone. But, they were perfect. So he didn't have to worry about anyone seeing his insane progress. He always appeared as a mortal to everyone.

Normally the sect would know someone's cultivation, because in order to breakthrough to core formation. You need the next steps from the third floor of the pavilion. You will be given an hour to search for a technique just like with the other stages.

But John had read a crap ton of techniques on the third floor. He was an operator for the sects main formation! The person who guarded the book pavilion just looked the other way when he wanted to go to the third floor.

So he had the core formation technique continuation of 'Baohan Rules'.

Seven months passed by peacefully.

John now had seven dao pillars in his middle dantian as well as a forbidden dao pillar in his upper dantian.

He was ready to form a core!

Unlike with foundation establishment. The heavens don't go easy on you in this tribulation. You also don't get to pick the difficulty.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

There is no pill to take to improve your chances. You must survive through your will power and physique.

John was going to have to form a perfect core. There were a few different types of cores.

You had:

Perfect: 0 cracks.

Flawless: 1 crack.

Extraordinary: 2 cracks.

Normal: 3 cracks.

Just like with dao pillars, the cracks leak Qi back into the environment.

But you only ever form a single core.

You do not need to survive nine lightning strikes to form a perfect core. Core formation is about quality over quantity. No matter what type of core you form, you only need to survive a single strike.

But this strikes destructive power is different depending on the core you form.

John ripped out the components from his brain and healed the hole in his skull in an instant as his bones once more became fairy grade and his skin became diamond grade.

It was now time for him to breakthrough to core formation!

John teleported into the wilderness, far away from the sect.

He turned his middle dantian into a crucible. He began to melt his dao pillars. He just left his forbidden dao pillar alone though.

The winds started to pick up and thunder started to boom out.

Dark clouds began to form.

This time John didn't sit down and wait for the tribulation. He flew into the sky and charged at the clouds! The heavens seemed to take this as an insult!

BOOM!

A lightning strike a few meters thick struck him!

His clothes immediately burst into flames as he was sent flying back into the ground.

This lightning hit different. It had a delay that made it continue to send energy through his body. The lighting hit him for ten seconds before stopping.

His internal organs were burned. He was now blind. His brain had ruptured.

But he was still conscious! He had survived the tribulation.

All of his injuries healed in an instant as he looked into his middle dantian.

In it was a perfect golden core.

Now it is time to discuss the benefits of being a core formation.

Firstly, his spiritual sense had increased from ten meters to a hundred meters.

Second, his soul field had begun the process of forming a mental body.

Third, just like how a Qi condensation cultivator that has unblocked the meridian in their lung can gather small amounts of Qi through breathing.

Something even more insane happens in core formation. You directly are nourished Qi from the environment.

Even if you stop breathing. You can remain conscious through Qi! This meant those in core formation could travel through space. You no longer require mortal means... you can go your entire life without ever needing to eat or take another pill.

In the center of your core is the soul sense's forming body.

In order to become a nascent soul cultivator, you don't accumulate experience and progress like the other stages. You must fully condense the soul field into a proper body.

There was a huge issue though... the technique for doing this was on the fourth floor of the book pavilion. Even with John's connections... he was unable to access this floor. He would have to reveal his cultivation in order to gain an hour on that floor.

But, if he revealed his cultivation. People would wonder how someone with low grade spiritual roots. Someone who was still at the beginning of foundation establishment. How the hell did he become a core formation!? It should of taken him over a century! Yet it was something he accomplished in 7 months...

John was only 42 years old. Yet he was a core formation?! This was peak spiritual roots speed! Yet he only had low grade spiritual roots.

John didn't reveal his cultivation to the world. Now that he felt he was closer to his goal of using 'Soul Domain'. He put cultivation on hold until he was able to acquire a nascent soul technique.

It was time to build his fake inheritance! This would be his McGuffin that explains his rapid future growth! Once he 'inherits' the fake inheritance in a battle with all sects. He will have an explanation for his fast growth and he'll be able to openly and honestly learn the nascent soul techniques.

So began his journey on building the fake inheritance...