We only booked one room since it was more cost-effective, and by now, we had gotten used to sleeping together. Neither of us had any complaints.
I went to bathe first. After more than a month of traveling through space, a proper bath felt like a necessity. The hot water relaxed my entire body.
An hour later, I came out, changed into the Taoist clothes we bought, and lay down on the bed. Gu Xue did the same — after her turn in the bath, she also rested beside me.
After about an hour, I started feeling hungry. Even though I didn't need to eat as a cultivator, sometimes the habit of thirty years couldn't just vanish. Maybe it was nostalgia, or maybe just comfort.
Thinking about years reminded me — I still looked young, even after more than thirty years of life. It was most likely the effect of cultivation. I didn't think too deeply about it and just ordered some food.
By the time we finished eating, it was already night. We slept on the same bed as usual, and I entered my sleeping cultivation state.
After breaking through to the Foundation Establishment Realm, I had focused entirely on preparation. Now that I had time, I decided not to waste it.
As I started cultivating, I noticed that the Qi here was much denser than on Planet 246. That was a good sign — after spending twenty days reaching this place, it would've been disappointing otherwise.
While cultivating, something new caught my attention — traces of dark Qi drifting around. After observing for a while, I realized they were the auras of other cultivators. Everyone cultivating on the planet emitted this kind of Qi.
On Planet 246, I hadn't sensed this before, probably because only Gu Xue and I were cultivating there. But here, surrounded by countless cultivators, the feeling was completely different.
I wandered through the flow of Qi, sensing all kinds of auras — some strong, some weak. The strength clearly depended on cultivation level.
It was said in the cultivation guide that any planet with a cultivation-based civilization should have at least one Nascent Soul Realm cultivator — the realm above Core Formation.
That thought alone made me cautious. We needed to avoid attracting attention. I had no intention of provoking someone at that level.
Night passed quickly. When I woke up, I felt refreshed.
A full night of cultivation had given me about 5,000 raw Qi, which was five times what I could gather on Planet 246. I was satisfied — until I saw the requirement for the next major realm.
Ten million refined Qi.
The good mood vanished instantly.
From last night's work, I had refined 425,000 Qi, meaning I'd need to repeat the same process for 22 more days to break through.
That was when I truly realized how hard cultivation could be.
For an Ancient Path cultivator like me, reaching Core Formation might take a month.
For Celestial Path cultivators, a year.
For Planetary Path cultivators, several years — and that's without counting breakthrough failures.
Failures began at the Core Formation Realm and continued in every realm after that. The success rate depended on two main factors:
first, the Cultivation Path, where Celestial had the highest chance, followed by Ancient, then Planetary.
Second, the use of Breakthrough Pills, made by alchemists. Even the lowest-tier pills were expensive and only offered small percentage boosts, but people still bought them — because even a tiny increase mattered.
I pushed those thoughts aside and focused on physical training.
Physical strength couldn't be improved through cultivation alone. There were special body-cultivation arts for that, but since I didn't have one, I stuck to regular training — just far more intense.
I trained for nearly five hours, pushing my limits until every muscle burned. Eventually, my body couldn't handle it anymore.
As my vision blurred, my consciousness began to fade. Before completely losing it, my body instinctively released a Qi node toward my room — a precaution I'd set beforehand — and I blacked out.
A faint light of Qi appeared in our room and began speaking:
"This is a pre-recorded message. If you hear this, it means I've lost consciousness. If you're free, follow this beam of light."
Gu Xue, still half-asleep, was startled when she heard the voice. She didn't catch it clearly at first, but the Qi light repeated itself two more times.
"Stop, I understand. I have free time now — take me there," she said tiredly.
The Qi light stopped speaking and moved toward my location. Gu Xue followed it and soon found my unconscious body.
---
When I opened my eyes, I saw her sitting beside me.
I was back in our room, lying on the bed.
"How long was I out?" I asked.
"Seven hours," she said quietly.
Seven hours… an entire day wasted.
Still, I didn't regret it — it was my first day here, and I'd pushed my limits as far as I could.
"Why did you have to train to that extreme?" she asked, her tone suddenly cold.
"We're at a disadvantage. We need to be faster," I replied. I didn't think too much about her mood and just answered directly.
"Aren't we already fast enough?" she said.
She had a point. We'd reached Foundation Establishment and were close to Core Formation — that was considered fast. But I couldn't think that way.
"What if the others already discovered the Ancient Path before us? What if some are already at the Nascent Soul Realm?" I asked.
"You're overthinking it," she replied calmly.
"Maybe. But even if I'm wrong, isn't it better to stay ahead, just in case?" I said.
"You're putting too much pressure on yourself. Even if you gain a small advantage now, it won't last. Pressure like this doesn't just tire the body — it breaks the mind. Physical pain can be healed, but mental instability stays," she said firmly.
"Even then, it would only last for a hundred years," I said.
She frowned. "A hundred years of instability… Do you really need to go that far?"
"If that's what it takes to inherit his position, then yes," I said without hesitation.
She looked at me for a long time.
"You've… changed," she said softly.
"So have you," I replied. Then I stood up. "Anyway, I'm going back to training. I'll be late."
I left the inn and started walking aimlessly through the city. I sighed.
Why was I suddenly in such a rush? It wasn't like me.
But from the moment I woke up that morning, something had felt off — an unease I couldn't shake.
It started when I was cultivating last night.
I had sensed a terrifying aura — one so strong it nearly crushed me. Just remembering it made me uneasy.
What if there were participants as strong as that?
Even with the Ancient Path, there was no guarantee we were ahead. If others had already discovered it, then I was the one falling behind.
That thought haunted me. I couldn't win by normal means.
If I wanted to reach the top — if I wanted even a chance — then I had to push myself beyond every limit.
Gu Xue didn't understand because she didn't know the truth.
Her massive Qi reserve could easily make her a Nascent Soul cultivator — or even higher. That meant every participant who made a wish had someone like her.
The more I learned, the clearer it became — I was far behind.
And the only way to catch up… was to work harder than anyone else.