Bath time!

"Ah…. Who knows that talking to people is hard!"

Ning Yue speaks as he walks into Xiaoli's pavilion.

"Why are you here? Have you injured yourself again?"

Xiaoli spins her chair back and looks at him with interest.

How much does her junior get hurt today? she wonders.

"For the second question, yes, but just a little bruise. And for the first, I don't know where to sleep…."

Ning Yue shamed and laughed.

He doesn't want to disturb Qiao, so he decides to come and ask his big senior where the sect's disciples sleep.

"Oh, in that case, you can sleep here if the bed is free."

She turns back to her workbench and continues preparing herbs like usual.

Xiaoli doesn't care much about the bed being occupied; her pavilion is the least crowded place in the medical pavilion because of her reputation as a sadistic angel, so Ning Yue doesn't need to worry if he will steal anyone's bed.

Her reputation came to be because she can cure almost everything, but it will be extremely painful, so most people avoid coming to her if they know they need to recover for a long time.

99% of the time, her patient only comes here to get pills, standard treatment, or make a special order and then leaves as quickly as possible.

"Thank, Senior Xiaoli."

"Call me Xiaoli, please. Knowing I have you as a junior is enough; no need to be formal. And towels are on shelf number 3. If you use it, separate it from the batch."

"I can take a bath too?"

"Of course, you dummy. This is one of the medical pavilions; cleanliness is priority number 1."

"I will remember that!"

Ning Yue gradually listens to his senior and grabs one towel before entering the bathroom.

"Do all the doctors have their pavilion as you do?"

Ning Yue curiously asks because the bathroom is amazing here!

The floor is made of sturdy wood, and so is the tub, but under the tub, there is a fireplace to heat the tub to become warm.

Compared to the trench his father dug to store the rainwater, this is like heaven and hell!

"No. I got this one because mast—grandpa gave me this as a reward for passing the doctor's test."

Xiaoli's pavilion is a special case because she is a former pupil of one of the founders. Other doctors usually work in the medical pavilion's main building.

"Do you want to use the fire?"

Xiaoli asks from behind the door while holding the fire rock in her hand.

"It's ok, Senior. I love cool water; It makes me feel so refreshed after a long day!"

Ning Yue excitedly answers while undressing his sweaty shirt, revealing the growing muscle.

After breaking into the body purification realm, Ning Yue noticed his muscles become softer but in a good way.

He could feel that his muscles were easier to control. Plus, it's more comfortable to move around.

Compared to himself in the past, those days, it was like he had to walk through the heavy rain all the time.

"Ah~"

Ning Yue slides into the tub and feels the water heal his wound.

'The view here is also amazing. No wonder senior Xiaoli never leaves this place!'

He glances through the rooftop window and sees the night sky full of stars.

"Xiaoli. How high do you think I need to go to have such a lovely place like this as a house?"

"Hm… just the core-forming stage would be enough, I guessed. But property prices are rising, so you should aim for the earth realm to be sure.

Xiaoli thoughtfully answers. If you cut out the medical equipment, a house like this should cost around 100,000 coins; working for 10 years as a cultivator can easily pay for it.

"The earth realm, huh? Do you know what it is like?"

"People are flying, throwing invisible knives, the stuff you think of as a myth starts happening, and they can harm you now…."

Ning Yue can feel the slight pain hidden under Xiaoli's explanation.

"Have you fought against them?"

"Yes. It was my last fight, too; I almost didn't make it out if the master didn't come in time."

"Oh…. Sorry to ask."

Ning Yue regrettably is sorry.

"No worry, it's all in the past now. Also, think of it as a warning. Don't try to anger the earth realm cultivators if you are not one. They may look like us but are a whole other race if I say so myself."

Xiaoli still remembers the horror she saw.

"…."

Ning Yue is silent and makes a fist.

This fist can send someone like Liao Liwei flying around but only push his master a millimeter back.

'If the gap is that wide, How much do I need to train to break through?'

It took him 7 years and sheer luck to meet the requirement and become a cultivator.

He is just at the starting line. The whole world is still in front of him.

But how big is this world? How much does he have to prepare for?

His father, someone he looks up to, still fails to break into the earth realm.

His master, Hou Yi, is only half the step of the earth realm even though he knows all the basics.

Ning Yue closed his eye, but after a long and deep analysis, he got the answer.

'Fuck it. There is no point in thinking about the future; now I have to focus on winning the tournament! Besides, no matter how hard or big the wall is, I just have to punch it hard enough when the time comes!'