I walked towards the two sisters, carrying my tray with me.

"Good morning!" The pink-haired beauty greeted me with a cheerful voice.

"Hello," I replied as I placed my tray on the table and took a seat across from them.

My tray consisted mainly of pork buns. Because meat...

Liuli glanced at the pile of pork buns on my plate and commented, "Are you okay with only pork buns? Not That It Would Be Wrong Or Anything. But The Food Should Be more Balanced. I Am Not Trying To Lecture You Or Anything. I..."

"Stop. Stop," I interrupted her.

Liuli stopped talking, blinking rapidly.

"I'm not going anywhere. And to answer your question, the only meat option available was pork buns, so I didn't have a choice," I explained, disregarding the various vegetable options on the menu.

"Oh, I see. Haha," Liuli chuckled awkwardly, looking down at the table.

And now she is depressed again...this girl needs some work.

I looked at the older sister who seemed to be snickering at our interaction.

Having fun, are ya?

I felt a sudden wave of dizziness overcome me, no doubt due to my hunger. I reached for one of the pork buns on my tray and took a bite. To my delight, it was incredibly delicious.

Qin Yue seemed to take note of my enjoyment and commented, "Next time, let us treat you to a meal prepared by a spiritual chef. Their cuisine is out of this world."

Is she an angel?

I thought to myself as I continued to devour the pork buns, reminded of another aspect of the game.

As a cultivator in this world, it was common to have a secondary profession to earn resources. Killing others for resources was often considered a risky venture.

The game had several secondary professions to choose from, including Alchemist, Formation Master, Seer, Beast Tamer, Artifact Refiner, Appraiser, and Spirit Chef, to name a few. The choice of profession was often based on the cultivator's cultivation path.

With my Insight, I was suited for a variety of secondary professions...

As I finished the last pork bun and wiped the oil from the corners of my mouth, I pondered over my options. Suddenly, Qin Yue's voice interrupted my thoughts.

"By the way, Bai Yu, have you reached the first stage of Qi condensation yet?" she asked.

As I didn't have any camouflage skills at the moment, my level could easily be probed.

"Yes, Sister Qin Yue," I responded, nodding my head in affirmation.

"Wow, that's incredible," Qin Yue marveled, her eyes wide with amazement. "You reached the first stage of Qi condensation in just one day."

"Yes, I'm surprised too," Liuli added, nodding her head in agreement.

I kept my true speed to myself. Truthfully, it took me only an hour to reach the first stage, but I didn't want to draw too much attention to myself. It's better to be understated, as being too flashy is not the right way to go. However, I knew my abilities would prevent me from being too low-key in the end.

So, I have decided to pursue the path of a genius. It was the most efficient way to demonstrate my value in this world. This world can be harsh and unforgiving, but showing my genius will help me acquire resources, gain knowledge, and form valuable connections.

"The top-grade spiritual root is truly different," Qin Yue stated as she set her plate aside. "Even with the assistance of our clan elders, Liuli and I took nearly five days to sense the spiritual energy."

"Thank you," I replied, accepting the words as a compliment.

Just as we were about to resume our conversation, the melodic ringing of three bells echoed throughout the sect.

We exchanged a look of understanding and nodded in unison.

"Let's go."

...

Soon, the Qin sisters and I arrived at the large, tile-covered square. As I scanned the crowd, I noticed that there were many more disciples in attendance than those who had been recruited in Blue Flame City. It appeared that the Floating Cloud Sect had also recruited from other cities.

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I searched the crowd for familiar faces, spotting Xiao Han and his group of followers, as well as the boy who had possessed the high-grade spiritual root during the selection. Most of the other faces were new to me.

Suddenly, a figure wearing a moon-white robe descended upon the square riding a sword, causing the surrounding qi to whip up violent winds. With grace, the figure disembarked from the sword and it automatically sheathed itself.

The arriving figure exuded an aura of fairy-like elegance, fulfilling the expectations of a cultivator.

All of the disciples quickly saluted the figure, shouting in unison, "We have seen the elder."

The majestic-looking elder merely waved his hand nonchalantly and said, "Don't be so formal. You may call me Elder Liu. Today, I will provide a brief lesson on cultivation, so I hope all of you will pay close attention."

With his opening remarks complete, Elder Liu delved into the subject of cultivation.

What he said aligned with the information found in the Basic Qi Cultivation Manual. He explained that the goal of cultivation was to refine the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, to strengthen oneself and continuously improve one's realm, and ultimately to surpass the limitations of heaven and earth and become immortal.

Elder Liu went on to say, "The path of cultivation is fraught with difficulties and dangers. Thus, there are two methods of protection. The first is the use of magical techniques or spells. The second is the practice of martial arts."

He explained that the magic method involved converting the qi of the body into natural elements such as fire, water, gold, earth, thunder, and wood, in order to attack. Low-level cultivators often used common spells like fireballs, lightning, and wind blades.

Martial arts, on the other hand, emphasized the power within oneself, using various techniques to imbue weapons with qi or to engage in close combat.

As I listened intently to the elder's lecture, a new arrival caught my attention. It was Xiao Tian, panting heavily. In the game, he had been stopped by Xiao Han's followers from attending the lecture. Apparently, this had also occurred in reality.

I refocused my attention on the lecture.

...

[Outer Sect Elder Liu Zhang]

"The cultivation realms - Qi Condensation, Foundation Building, Core Formation, Nascent Soul, to name a few - are divided into nine stages each. Remember, it's important to advance in your realm, but your foundation must be strong," Outer Sect Elder Liu Zhang reminded his disciples.

After speaking for hours, Elder Liu Zhang felt his mouth dry. He looked at his disciples and saw that most of them appeared dejected. He shook his head slightly, knowing that now was the time for them to build their foundation in cultivation. If they continued to slack off, they would soon realize the harsh reality of the path they had chosen.

Elder Liu Zhang decided not to remind them again. This was merely a sect mission assigned to him by the inner sect and he wouldn't have many interactions with these disciples in the future.

Just as he was about to turn away, he noticed an exception. A boy in the audience was paying close attention and frantically taking notes. Elder Liu Zhang had seen the form filled out by the boy. He was said to have a Top-Grade Spiritual Root.

"Interesting," Elder Liu Zhang thought to himself as he saw that the boy was already at the first stage of Qi Condensation. Elder Ye had mentioned that the boy hadn't started cultivating yet, so he must have progressed just recently.

Though Liu Zhang didn't expect the promotion to be so fast.

Thinking like this, a hint of interest rose in his heart.