“Say ‘AHH,’ Young Master,” Mei Lingxi said sweetly.

This would be the dream of countless young men. There was no doubt they would kill to be in William’s position. He was reclining on his lounging chair, which was specially moved into his flat for this exact purpose. To let Mei Lingxi feed him.

If only it wasn't the necessary sustenance to recover from having so much impurity extracted.

He couldn’t move to do much of anything himself. Well, that wasn’t entirely the truth, but it wasn’t far off. He was purposely given a cursed artifact that caused his Qi to slow to a crawl, and in turn, it caused his stamina to be reduced to nearly nothing.

It was called the Baleful Star Medallion, and William hated it was a passion. It was something that prisoners were given, but the Elders found it would work perfectly for his needs.

Spirit: 110 (10)

Stamina: 110 (5)

Turns out that just living, as in his essential functions, used up all the stamina he had in his possession. There was nothing left to move his limbs, not if he wanted to have the energy to speak.

Thankfully, Elder Yu had foreseen this and had already provided an attendant who could help him.

William grimaced as he swallowed the rancid paste the healers had specially made. No matter how bad it tasted, it wasn't worth complaining about something miraculous.

“Just two more, Young Master.”

“I know, Sister Lingxi,” William glared, “I have eyes.”

The smile on her face didn’t dim one bit as she moved the spoon closer to his mouth.

Impurity: Stage 1 (Conditional)

That was the reason he kept eating this horrid paste. While it seemed like all the impurities in his body were gone, it was apparently just waiting for a mistake to return with a vengeance. The Elders warned him far too many times that there would be no coming back if that ever happened.

Again, there was a reason they made him hold the damned medallion. The less he moved, the less he had the chance of messing up.

William scowled when the paste slid down his throat before dissipating into his spiritual pathways. It wasn’t enough.

“Just one more for today.”

He sighed and opened his mouth, hoping this would be the one. The one to dissipate whatever was lying dormant in his spiritual pathways. This had become his routine for three days now, and the faster it ended, the better.

“Any change?” Mei Lingxi asked as they swallowed the last spoonful.

William waited for it to dissipate and was disappointed when nothing seemed to have changed. Still, he checked the system to double-check.

Impurity: N/A

He stared, making sure it wouldn’t change before a blinding smile spread on his face. “Sister Lingxi, call Elder Yu. It’s done!”

“Really?” Mei Lingxi froze. She was in the process of sealing the remaining paste to return to the Elder Zhou.

“I don’t have the energy to joke around,” William chuckled, knowing the amusement made it sound like he did. There was no point in saving anything since he expected to be able to take off the medallion soon enough.

Mei Lingxi gave him a firm nod before swiftly leaving the flat.

She returned with Elder Yu and Elder Zhou within a minute. And all had looks of anticipation on their faces.

“Is he right?” Elder Yu asked.

“Give me a chance to check,” Elder Zhou scowled as she hobbled to the chair, “How could you even know, boy? I knew you were sensitive to Qi, but this is ridiculous. Maybe we should make you a formation master.”

William winced when she jabbed her bony finger under his jaw.

“Seems fine,” Elder Zhou mumbled before speaking louder, “You, attendant, remove the medallion.”

Mei Lingxi had been standing at the back, out of the way, till then. She moved quickly after Elder Zhou’s order and ripped apart his sleeve before loosening the strap that held the medallion to his skin. William could see how she paled when she came in contact with it, but she didn’t let that stop her from quickly returning to her previous spot.

Only then did she place the medallion on a side table.

“Good girl you have there,” Elder Zhou commented as she once again jabbed her fingers under his jaw, “No hesitation in her.”

William made a sound in agreement. He was more focused on his energy coming back. For the first time in three days, it didn’t feel like he needed to choose between swallowing and speaking.

“It’s gone!” Elder Zhou announced.

He could vaguely hear her. And even less when Elder Yu and Mei Lingxi said their congratulations. It seemed that the rush of his Qi returning to normal caught him off guard. He glanced at his stats before his eyes grew too heavy and smiled when everything was back to normal. The only thing left was restoring his soul.

But that could wait for just a bit longer.

William snapped his eyes open, looking around to see he was alone. He had fallen asleep, and with how good he was feeling, that was probably a good thing. He sat up slowly before swinging his legs off the chair before they touched the ground. He stood up with a smile, welcoming the return of the ability to stand.

William briefly wondered if he should call for Mei Lingxi before shoving that thought out of his mind. There was only one thing he should be doing.

He stepped into the Qi Refining room with a surge of anticipation. He had waited for this moment for too long, with too many close calls on the way. He ignored the meager amount of Qi in the room. He didn’t need it anyway.

William moved to the center of the room and slowly lowered himself to the hard floor, crossing his legs and closing his eyes.

For days, he had been confined to a chair, unable to move a single muscle. Cultivation was even more of an impossibility.

With that choice now given back to him, he retreated into himself, turned his senses inward, and felt relief rush through his body. He simply watched pure Qi flow through his nearly flawless pathways. It released all the pent-up frustration he had accumulated from being immobilized, frustration that he wasn't even aware of.

He savored the feeling for a few minutes before he attempted to reach out to his Qi, which had been circulating at a leisurely pace. To his pleasure, the energy eagerly obeyed his commands. Knowing there was no need to hurry, he didn't rush and softly guided his Qi through his body.

The spiritual pathways the Qi traveled through had a crystalline quality, as the Elders Chen had praised, but that was not enough for him. He knew that he could perfect them by reaching the Foundation Establishment Realm. And by the time he stopped cultivation, he would achieve that.

William lost track of time as he circulated his Qi over and over again, without any mistakes, ready to do so for as long as it took. He was determined to advance into the next major realm.

He had fallen into a trance when it happened on what felt like the thousandth cycle. He felt his meridians throb once, then twice, then faster and faster until they seemed to glow brightly. His meridians drained their Qi into the spiritual pathways, where the Qi merged with the crystalline walls.

William remained calm and didn't react to the strange behavior of his Qi. It was the correct move. He felt his spiritual pathways transform into something that transcended the crystal-like structure they previously had. The only thing he could compare them to now was a diamond. He knew this was the final stage, what his spiritual pathways would look like for the foreseeable future, and he was beyond satisfied.

William opened his eyes with a smile on his lips and was met with blue text.

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