The time spent within the marble flowed normally with 24 hours a day. Aside from sleeping, Jin busied himself with healing and figuring out the Manifestation of Domain. He spent some time getting familiar with the gourd and sword as well, finding them more and more impressive every time.

The days did not go by solely for him though. Everyone continued to live on.

...

In a particular mountain range, a sentient dragon was meditating under the gaze of his Master who was the Patriarch of the clan. Even though the Patriarch sacrificed and lost so much because of him, he tutored him personally with all he had. Maybe it was precisely because he lost so much that he was doing so. Maybe he was trying to cut his losses by training this new generation genius. In front of the long lifespans of experts, a little delay of a few dozens of years was nothing, especially for dragons who had even longer lifespans due to their bloodline.

They were not immortals though.

But then again, as long as it was only a few dozen years, catching up was possible. Even prodigies took dozens of years to breakthrough a single stage in the late digits. At that time, would it still matter that he began a bit later? No. The only thing important was whether one still had enough mortal lifespan to reach the 30th stage and extend it. Nurturing someone under forty was worth it, under fifty began to be slightly dangerous. As for those beyond fifty, it was hopeless. The body of mortals did degrade with age, it was a fact. That was why the 30th stage was the hope of every cultivator. If you could not reach that stage, then congratulations, you were damned to remain a loser until you died after a mortal's lifespan.

The Patriarch certainly was not going to see the pawn that cost him so much die from old age like any mortal. He was very diligent in training him and pushing him further.

He was even sometimes a bit too hard. The sentient dragon had very few moments of rest throughout his days. Most of them were spent sleeping or cultivating further. There were no breaks or any kinds of enjoyment. According to the Patriarch, until he reached the 50th stage, he would have to remain focused on cultivation. It was tough.

Still, he did not complain and never would. His life was supposed to end during the trial. He kept considering his survival as a miracle bestowed upon him by the heavens. Thanks to it, not only did he get the envious position of the Patriarch's disciple but he also helped better the situation of his family branch.

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As he laid down on his giant bed within his giant personal cave abode, his eyes were fixed on a letter. It had been sent by a human woman named Sophia. He had quite the impression of her due to her beauty. She was Isla's daughter and, as a matter of fact, certainly inherit her looks. He was very pleased when she initiated a contact with him back on the boat. They did nothing more than chatting but he had been mesmerized throughout. She was jovial and energetic but beyond all this, she was ambitious and impressive ideals.

...Ending the trial...

Certainly, he would never wish anyone else to go through what he did. Then again, to end the trial... Even if it happened, he was not quite certain it would be a good thing. At least, with this trial, only a hundred or so people died. If experts of the 69th stage fought it out amongst themselves instead... Casualties would go far beyond the hundreds.

Then again, she vehemently stated that there were ways to do this differently. She dreamt of order, justice and peace. In this world, it was dumb. Anyone would be laughing at her...if she was not Isla's daughter.

She would become a prominent figure in a few centuries. At that time, would people still laugh at her? Words had to be backed by power and it was obvious that one day, she would have that power.

And that meant that whether or not her ideas were shared, it was still worth it to keep in touch. Having strong people backing you was something very important. The sentient dragon learnt that lesson.

And so, how should he write her back so as to make her feel satisfied?...

...

There was another man holding onto that very same letter. He was old and still retained a mortal body even after exceeded the century of life. There were few treasures capable of prolonging a mortal's life but they did exist. Though they were rare and pricy, sometimes, they were worth the cost. At the very least, his Master, the Teal Sword Emperor believed that he was worth such an investment. It was the third time he took that medicine and probably the last.

Even if there were more for him to consume, it would be worthless. His body would no longer be able to intake it. According to the physicians and alchemists, he had between forty and sixty years left. His Master ordered him to remain in secluded cultivation and focus solely on reaching the 30th stage as quickly as possible. He was more than happy to do so. He did not want to die after being given such an option. His path, his sword...It would not end here. It could not.

Fortunately, he was being supplied the best of pills, nutrition and treasures to help him. He was even allowed to stay within the supreme cave abode reserved for core members of the sect. It contained a powerful array multiplying and supplying spiritual energy continuously when activated. Of course, the energy had to come from somewhere. Minerals containing spiritual energy were being spent to power up this device. The cost was not small.

Back in the days, he would have never expected to see himself in such a place.

He came from a humble mortal's home after all. And now, he was being nurtured so preciously...