“You know, there are easier and less painful ways to die,” Elisa said, staring at him as if he were utterly mad.

  “I have a tough body. Can we please just try it? I’m taking all the responsibility for whatever happens,” Cade said pleadingly, giving her his most innocent smile.

  They occupied the same small room in the furthest corner of the infirmary and would, hopefully, remain undisturbed for the next half an hour.

  “You don’t understand how toxic these pills are. When swallowed, your body can filter nine-tenths of the impurities, but with direct infusion… it’s very dangerous. Not only can it easily overwhelm your blood qi, but once your body fails, there won’t be much we can do. It’s a bad way to go,” Elisa said, shaking her head. The man in front of her was as stubborn as a mule.

  “My blood qi will be fine. We can start with one pill, and you’ll see I’m doing well. I’m afraid nothing else will work on me. My body is a little special when it comes to pills,” Cade explained. He couldn’t go into details, but he had to give her something. Special physiques were rare, but not so rare that experienced cultivators like Elisa wouldn’t have heard of them.

  “I understand you must have a very good reason to attempt this, but I want it to be clear—I’m not going to be responsible for any harm you do to yourself. One pill may be fine, but more…” She placed the pale white globule inside the alchemical infuser. The security formations guarding the citadel would doubtlessly record her words.

  “Yes, it’s my own conscious choice. Let’s go,” Cade confirmed cheerfully, presenting his neck.

  An alchemical infuser resembled a metal tube inscribed with tiny runes, turning pills into vapor and pushing it through the skin directly into circulation. They were used when someone was in such a bad state they could no longer swallow pills, even when dissolved. If such a person was nearly guaranteed to die, an infusion of a potent healing pill could be the only thing separating them from returning to the circle of reincarnation. After the infusion, matters were left in the hands of fate—either the pill would pull them back from the edge, or its toxicity would hasten their demise.

  Elisa sighed and pressed the narrow silver tube to his skin a few inches below the ear, then triggered the infusion.

  It felt like a stream of live fire entering his veins. Cade gritted his teeth as beads of perspiration appeared on his forehead.

  Then his perception adjusted.

  Elisa’s eyeblinks slowed, and he could see the muscles of her face tensing, gradually forming a crease on her forehead.

  “How… do… you… feel?” Her speech was noticeably slower; the words sounded stretched, and her tone dropped a level.

  Cade gave her a thumbs-up, slowing his own movement, then entered his realm of consciousness to watch the vision.

  It was immediately obvious that the part of him traveling at immense speed had slowed, though not nearly enough to spot anything.

  It works! I was right—this is the way.

  “More, please,” Cade said.

  Elisa gave him another sidelong glance and pushed the second pill through the injector.

  The vision slowed even further, and veins popped on his forehead as powerful toxins spread throughout his body.

  “More!” Cade gritted out.

  “Cade…” Elisa’s words were stretched so much now they were no longer easy to understand.

  “I’m fine. Do it, please. I can’t stop now,” Cade said, making sure to speak very slowly. He was likely still talking far too fast, but luckily she knew what he meant. The vision now played at perhaps a quarter of its original speed; he could almost perceive partial scenes, still obscured by his inferior perception.

  After another infusion, he no longer appeared presentable. Sweat mixed with dark blood covered his body, beginning to seep out of his pores as his powerful blood qi forced the toxins out. His voracious heart pounded wildly, sending dense waves of blood qi through every part of him. Nausea struck—a sensation he hadn’t felt in a very long time—as his body fought the poison within the pills with all its might. The stench in the room became hard to bear, but Elisa didn’t seem bothered. She was likely used to much worse.

  “One… more,” Cade said, unsure if he was being understood. He saw fear flicker through Elisa’s eyes, though to his perception, the flash was nearly frozen in time.

  I’ll owe her for this.

  Elisa loaded the fifth pill into the infuser with a fearful grimace. He could see her hands shaking. It felt like ages passed before the cold tube touched his neck.

  Just one more pill.

  Finally, Elisa triggered the infuser, and the vapor began passing through his skin. Cade wanted to rush it but was helpless to do anything. His whole body was saturated with toxic residue gnawing at his bones as it worked to dissolve his muscles, tendons, and organs. His pain threshold crumbled, each pill elevating his understanding of torture. His sixth sense rang in warning, screaming of imminent danger.

  It was too late to back out now.

  Cade clenched his teeth and ignited most of his blood qi to combat the toxicity. His eyes, ears, and gums bled, as did most of his skin, and his insides felt as if they had been thrown into a pool of lava. He coughed up several mouthfuls of caked black blood.

  Engaging all his mental strength, Cade forced himself to remain within the realm of consciousness and replayed the vision once more.

  The travel sequence slowed greatly. Now he could finally observe the entire path from start to finish. His eyes devoured every detail, desperately seeking something memorable—an object or landmark he could use to guide himself.

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  Luckily, on this day, the heavens decided to show him favor.

  “This lake… the bridge… I’ve seen them before!” It was a set of three small islands in the middle of a lake, connected to the mainland by a beautiful stone bridge. Its flowing balustrades were carved into twisting, interlocking vines—a motif common to elven design. He had definitely stumbled upon this location while examining the map.

  Cade watched in amazement as he flew over the lake. With the last vestiges of his mental strength, he memorized the exact direction of travel before his body cut off his consciousness.

  He could hear Elisa’s voice, so low and stretched the words had lost their meaning. She might have been yelling. As his eyes closed, he couldn’t help but smile.

  —

  “I’ve never met a bigger idiot in my life,” Elisa’s distant voice reached him.

  “Huh? Me?” Cade rasped, his hoarse words immediately followed by a coughing fit.

  “No, me! Do you understand that you nearly died? Actually, you should be dead! You took enough poison to kill yourself three times over! How are you still alive?!” she yelled hoarsely, her cheeks turning red with anger. He noticed dark smears on her face, and her hands and sleeves were covered in foul blood. It seemed she had thought him truly dead and had attempted to resuscitate him.

  “Sorry,” Cade released a coughing chuckle. “And thank you. How long…?”

  “Barely half an hour. I can’t even begin to describe how fortunate you are to be alive. Who knows how many people will have to suffer through the worst luck of their lives just so the universe balances out this bullshit,” she snapped. He could tell he had terrified her—and doubtlessly infuriated her as well.

  Cade attempted another chuckle, which once again turned into a nasty, wet cough. After a short while, he spat out the remaining poisoned blood from his lungs and began circulating qi, igniting only a small amount to avoid worsening his injuries. As he examined his body with internal insight, he realized it was nowhere near as damaged as it felt. More than that, it was recovering at a rapid rate. He watched as his organs rebuilt themselves and his blood qi channels regenerated.

  The Asura had a vague feeling his physique had gained a small boon from the ordeal, though the improvement was minute. No matter—any progress was good. The experience had cost him more than half of his heart’s energy reserves, a price he was more than happy to pay.

  Two hours at most, and I’ll be fine.

  He checked his timekeeper and saw one hour remained until the time he had agreed upon with King and Brickwall. He reached for his token, asking to postpone the sparring by another hour.

  “My deepest gratitude, Sister Elisa. I owe you greatly, and if you ever need anything in the future, please let me know,” Cade said after wiping himself with the linen towels he always carried, as much as possible given his state. His black robe was soaked through with filth.

  “Hmph. Don’t ask me for anything like that ever again. Lucky bastard,” she responded angrily, though the relief in her tone was unmistakable.

  “Apologies for the mess. Like I said—anything you need, just ask,” Cade said solemnly before cupping his fist.

  “Mhm. If you want to help me, don’t bring me more work!” she exclaimed, turning her back with an irritated grunt.

  Cade chuckled softly. He could tell she wasn’t really mad anymore, but he understood she couldn’t let him off easily.

  “Young Miss, I feel sufficiently scolded. Once again, I offer my utmost apologies and sincere gratitude,” Cade said seriously, following the words with a polite bow.

  Elisa scoffed, but they both knew her heart wasn’t in it. Cade departed the infirmary with a broad smile. He needed to recover to peak form inside the coffin before their rescheduled sparring session. Then he would start looking for the lake with three islands and a beautiful bridge.

  —

  Two hours later, he stood inside the white-walled training chamber, hands clasped behind his back, looking at both of his friends with a devilish grin.

  “Alright, who wants to go first?”

  —

  Brickwall spat out bloody phlegm, breathing raggedly.

  “Fuck this shit. King, it’s your turn now. I’ve had enough. This bastard fights like a damned automaton,” he said, supporting himself on his massive dueling broadsword. “I thought we were meant to spar, not fight for our fucking lives.”

  “You have six days until your fight. It’s the last chance to push hard before resting and recuperating. I can take it even easier on you if you like, but…” Cade shrugged, smiling meaningfully.

  Reeve let out a heavy sigh. “Fine. I’m just going to take a little break.” Then his brow creased. “Wait—what do you mean, ‘even easier’? How easy exactly have you been taking it?!”

  Cade shrugged, offering an apologetic smile.

  “Never mind,” Brickwall sighed again. “I regret asking. What do you think about my chances?”

  “Your swordsmanship is probably a couple of levels below Tiarsus’s, so you still have a lot of work to do. That said, for such a short training period, you’ve done amazingly well. My advice: do as little actual swordfighting as possible. You have keen combat instincts and strong physical power, so your skills will grow quickly once you have more time. For now, focus on winning. If I were you, I’d prioritize getting up close, then stick to your Hak Fu arts with occasional law severing attacks—only when you’re confident they’ll land.”

  “Boss, isn’t winning like this frowned upon?” King asked.

  “By whom? Disciples who aren’t in the inner court?” Cade snorted. “Who cares. A win is a win. What matters is that you both enter the Divine Realm. Alright, come on—it’s getting late.”

  King sighed and stood, drawing his weapon.

  What followed were two brutal hours during which Cade worked both of his friends to the bone, pushing them to the edge of death several times. King wanted to give up after each close call, but Cade wouldn’t allow it. From experience, these extreme conditions were where battle instincts were forged.

  Later, during another short break, King scrolled through his private comms gem and suddenly grimaced.

  “What is it?” Brickwall asked.

  King sighed, rubbing his temples. “It’s my father. He came to Oasis a week ago and now flies into comms range every day to bother me. I was stupid enough to tell him I have a decent chance of making the inner court. Now he thinks I can pull strings to help my idiot cousin pass the next trial.”

  “But… that’s not possible. Right?” Cade asked.

  “Of course it isn’t. At least not without getting kicked out immediately. My father is an idiot,” King snapped. Then his shoulders slumped. “It’s a headache I don’t need. I just want to focus on getting stronger, not deal with my family’s bullshit.”

  This was common in the cultivation world. Once someone advanced, relatives came knocking with urgent needs and expectations. A cultivator needed clarity of mind, so Cade understood why King was worn down. Aside from cutting his father off, there was little to be done.

  “He’ll give up eventually. Just ignore him until then,” Brickwall said, patting King’s shoulder. “Alright. One last round.”

  They disbanded late into the night, both of his friends exhausted but satisfied. Cade felt the same. It was good to see them after so long spent in the coffin, followed almost immediately by six days of suffering in the Well of Ancients. They agreed to another grueling session the next day.

  After returning home, Cade put the kettle on and took out the Divine Realm map crystal. Beyond locating the scene from his vision, he planned to examine several landmarks marked by previous visitors. One, in particular, caught his attention: a sprawling battlefield partially frozen in time, where countless beasts had once clashed, destabilizing space and tearing rifts into the void. On the map, it was labeled Beast Battlefield and marked as extremely dangerous.

  Blood for cultivation aside, it could be his best chance of finding a fast, deadly beast from ancient times—perfect for the second stage of War Form.

  He already understood the tremendous impact such blood would have on his body. Regardless of the danger, he couldn’t pass up the opportunity.

  Now it was time to put the knowledge he had paid for with his own blood to the test.

  He had to find the lake and those three islands.