Damian noticed that as he spent an increasing time cultivating inside the cave, he grew somewhat more resistant to the heat of the cave as well as the heat of Qi.

He noted that soon he could advance further into the cave. So Damian continues to cultivate. As for breaking through to the sixth layer, it would still take a few days of cultivation.

However, Damian was still impressed. Before he had had the vision, he thought. It would at least take him six or more months to finally break through to the seventh layer. Now he could do it in a few weeks. That, of course, if he continued to cultivate in the same spot. However, Damian wanted to go further inside the cave. Where the density of Qi was several times higher than where he was.

Once Damian felt he was ready, he moved forward. He stood and gave one step.. two steps... Three steps... At the seven steps, Damian stopped. Once again, the heat had increased enough to make Damian like ice cream in a desert.

"It's amazing how just a few steps and the density of Qi had more than doubled along with this horrendous heat. I truly wish I had a fan with me. Although on second thoughts it would not be the best idea, I would only be fanning hot air," Damian muttered to himself.

Once he confirmed he could not advance further right now unless he wanted to risk the Qi passing his defensive barrier and burning him. So he sat on the ground and continued to cultivate.

Soon enough, the other team members also began moving toward the deeper part of the cave. Still, it was clear they had not all developed the same level of resistance to the heat.

Damian was at the front, followed by Cedric and Christine. Then Nathan and last were Adrian and Agnes.

The party knew they had spent around three weeks cultivating inside the cave. Although deprived of a precise time notion, they could at least somewhat accurately guess the time they had spent inside the cave. This ability of cultivators is what allowed them to spend years on end cultivating in secluded meditation. Aside from Cedric, the other team members also had broken through. Except for Damian, but he knew he was close to finally breaking through. He only needed a little push.

Damian was near the end of the entrance chamber of the cave. In front of him there was a corridor. It was not that long, perhaps fifteen or twenty yards. From the other side of the corridor, Damian saw an extremely intense white light.

Damian steadied himself. He knew he could break through if he continued to cultivate where he was, but it would take him two or three more days, and the other team members were closing in on him. Perhaps it was his own pride. Perhaps it was Damian's own ego. But Damian was the one with the highest cultivation of the team. He did not want to be outperformed. He could not be outperformed.

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Damian did not even know he had that competitive side to him. So far, he had always cultivated at his own pace. Without regard for other achievements, he knew it was natural there were people more dedicated or talented than him. But here, but now, he, for the first time, truly wanted to be the strongest. Not because Damian needed the strength to protect himself or his family, but because Damian wanted strength for strength in itself.

Damian stood and moved forward. The heat in the corridor was several times higher, only a single step, and the density of Qi had more than doubled. But Damian didn't stop, then he took one more step, then another... Damian could hear in the background some worrying words from Nathan and Christine, as well as Cedric. But Damian did not stop until he was halfway through the corridor. It took all his effort and Qi to keep the ambient Qi at bay from forcefully entering his body. The robes he wore were now scorched in some places.

Damian sat on the ground. He then circulated his cultivation technique and began to cultivate slowly. The Qi in his pathway passed his defense and made some burns on his pathways. Damian swiftly took out a healing pill from his bag of holding.

The healing effects of the pill and the burning of the pill collided. However, Damian swiftly overwhelmed the Qi. The healing effect came out on top every time. Damian's Dantian sustained some damage. Damian felt an excruciating pain throughout his body. He had to force himself to stay awake, otherwise, he would most surely die.

Ten minutes passed. Damian's robe was burnt, and some areas of his body were left exposed and even scorched. His Dantian was overflowing with Qi. He had to break through to the seventh layer of the Golden Core realm soon or he would harm his cultivation.

Damian concentrated on circulating his cultivation technique as he bombarded the barrier to the seventh layer attack after attack. The barrier was now full of cracks. However, Damian hadn't been able to shatter it. After a few moments of deep thought, he resolved to go all out. He gathered all his Qi and sent one single powerful strike toward a part of the barrier filled with cracks. As the attack struck the barrier, Damian felt his Dantian explode from the inside. It rapidly began to expand. The process was incredibly painful as to fill his new expanded Dantian, the ambient Qi greedily rushed towards him. Burning him in the process.

Damian saw how a sea of white fire entered his Dantian. Damian used his full concentration to try to mitigate the damage the Qi would do to his Dantian, while his golden core refined the Qi and made it it's own.

Before Damian had been able to control the ambient Qi easily, that was because he overwhelmed the Qi. Now, however, he could not overwhelm such a massive amount of Qi. He could clearly see how his golden core was overwhelmed by the fire Qi. Damian could only try his best to try to protect his Golden Core from burning away. So he sent most of his Qi to protect his golden core.

This created a balanced unbalance where the fire Qi burned Damian's own Qi, and Damian and Damian's Qi protected his golden core from the fire Qi.

Like that, Damian pulled through the excruciating process of refining the ambient Qi. after several hours that felt like days on end. Damian finally fully managed to stabilize the Qi that had rushed to his body and made it his own. There had been some minor damage sustained inside his Dantian, but it was slowly being healed by his now-aflame golden core. Which now had a small white flame engulfing it, but it caused no harm to his core. It was like the flame was protecting the core.

"I must truly have gone insane. Just what was I thinking? If something had gone wrong, I would be a goner. I promised not to be unprepared again, yet here I am rushing toward death's grasp." Damian was apprehensive about himself.