"I need to eat. Right, the Spirit Kitchen."

Xu Changshou threw open his door, nearly colliding with Jiang Xiaochuan in the corridor.

Jiang Xiaochuan reeled back in surprise. "You were in your room this whole time? I thought you had left the peak!"

"Junior Brother Jiang, out of the way! I am starving, I need to get to the Spirit Kitchen."

Jiang Xiaochuan hastily stepped aside. Xu Changshou dashed down the stairs, making a beeline for the dining halls.

Realization suddenly dawned on Jiang Xiaochuan, and he gasped. "Heavens, this is madness! Did Senior Brother Xu actually cultivate for half a month straight?"

"What? Xu Changshou cultivated for half a month without food or water?"

"No wonder I hadn't seen a shadow of him. He is a genuine cultivation madman."

"Xu Changshou is truly ruthless with himself!"

The news that Xu Changshou had entered Secluded Cultivation for a full half month sent the entire Gengzi Courtyard into an uproar.

These scions of aristocratic clans were pampered and soft. Not a single one of them could endure a half-month stretch of unbroken meditation, let alone survive it without food or drink.

"Junior Brother Changshou is actually willing to risk his life like this?"

Hearing the commotion, even Ye Shanhu felt a twinge of secret admiration.

At the Spirit Kitchen.

Xu Changshou ravenously swept four plates clean and wolfed down five massive bowls of Dogtooth Rice before the hollow agony in his gut finally subsided.

Sated at last, he let out a long, heavy exhale. I can never risk my life cultivating like that again.

Upon returning to the Gengzi Courtyard...

Jiang Xiaochuan, Su Mo, Han Zong, Li Linhao, Zhang Feixian, Shi Wantong, Qian Yuanbao, and Ye Shanhu-nine people in total completely surrounded Xu Changshou, observing him as if he were a rare, exotic beast.

Jiang Xiaochuan pressed close. "Senior Brother Xu, did you truly spend this entire half month sealed in your room cultivating?"

"I did."

Xu Changshou answered honestly, "The last time we visited the Duty Hall, I purchased a Spirit Gathering Pill. I consumed it and spent the entire half month refining its medicinal power."

Li Linhao's eyes widened. "Not a drop of water or a grain of rice for half a month?"

"Indeed."

"Senior Brother Xu, you are truly formidable." Lin Xian'er gave him a look of deep respect.

Su Mo's face was filled with utter admiration. "Senior Brother Xu, I must learn from your resolve."

Qian Yuanbao chuckled, shaking his plump head. "Such terrifying perseverance... I could never replicate it."

Ye Shanhu smiled gracefully. "Junior Brother Xu possesses tremendous willpower. Had you been born into an established clan, you would undoubtedly reach great heights. It is truly a pity..."

Su Mo looked from Xu Changshou to Ye Shanhu, clenching his jaw. "Senior Sister Ye, I respectfully disagree. I believe that through sheer, unyielding effort, anyone can seize the chance to reach Foundation Establishment."

Ye Shanhu's smile did not waver. "Effort is a prerequisite, naturally. But what truly determines one's path are resources."

"No matter the cost, I will successfully establish my foundation!" Su Mo declared with ironclad conviction, turning back to Xu Changshou. "What are your thoughts, Senior Brother Xu?"

"Ah... perhaps with enough effort, a chance might present itself."

Xu Changshou offered a diplomatic reply.

Inwardly, however, he sensed a fierce ambition burning within Su Mo, marking him as someone who might actually forge a grand destiny.

Ye Shanhu took no offense, maintaining her elegant poise. "Junior Brother Su, I will not argue with you today. In the future, you will come to understand the absolute tyranny of resources."

Su Mo's gaze darkened with resolve. "I believe that human will can conquer the heavens."

Ye Shanhu shook her head, evidently too weary to debate the naive ideals of a junior. She shifted her smile back to Xu Changshou. "Congratulations, Junior Brother Xu, on your breakthrough to the Fourth Layer of Qi Condensation."

Xu Changshou subtly channeled the Qi Observation Art, sweeping his gaze across the gathering. To his profound shock, he realized the entire group had advanced.

Ye Shanhu had actually reached the Fifth Layer of Qi Condensation.

Jiang Xiaochuan had leaped from the first to the Third Layer.

Lin Xian'er: Third Layer of Qi Condensation.

Su Mo: Third Layer of Qi Condensation.

Li Linhao: Third Layer of Qi Condensation.

Han Zong: Fourth Layer of Qi Condensation.

...

"Senior Sister Ye jests at my expense. Have you not broken through as well?"

Jiang Xiaochuan chimed in, "Senior Sister Ye reached the Fifth Layer days ago. At this rate, she will breach the Sixth Layer within two months."

"Such speed... as expected of Senior Sister Ye."

Xu Changshou was deeply shaken. How is her cultivation speed so terrifying? Is it truly because of... resources?

"You flatter me too much," she replied modestly.

Changing the subject, Ye Shanhu announced, "By the way, everyone should avoid leaving the courtyard tomorrow. The elders are sending someone to re-evaluate our spiritual roots."

Xu Changshou frowned. "Senior Sister Ye, what is the purpose of re-evaluating our roots?"

Jiang Xiaochuan laughed out loud. "Senior Brother Xu, you truly are deaf to the world outside your window!"

Ye Shanhu explained patiently, "We had our roots tested upon entering the Sect. This second evaluation is strictly to determine our future labor assignments."

"Labor assignments?"

Xu Changshou blinked in confusion. He had never heard a word of this.

Ye Shanhu continued, "Within the Green Immortal Sect, there are seven great primary peaks: Taiyi Peak, Danxia Peak, Red Fire Peak, Green Ink Peak, Heavenly Mechanism Peak, Eight Trigrams Peak, and Fengdu Peak.

Each of the seven great peaks governs a specific domain.

Taiyi Peak is the Sect Leader's domain, serving as the sanctum for the Sect's core echelon.

Danxia Peak commands the art of alchemy.

Red Fire Peak oversees the forging of magical artifacts.

Green Ink Peak governs talisman crafting.

Heavenly Mechanism Peak specializes in constructing intricate puppets.

Eight Trigrams Peak dictates the layout of grand formations.

And Fengdu Peak is dedicated to the dark arts of corpse refinement.

Yet, standing apart from these seven is another profoundly important summit: Spirit Elegance Peak.

Spirit Elegance Peak is the exclusive sanctuary for the Inner Sect Disciples."

Spirit Elegance Peak...

Xu Changshou committed the name to memory.

The residents of that peak were the true, formal heirs to the sect's legacy.

As for the rest of them, they were little more than grist for the sect's mill-glorified servants destined for menial labor.

"Precisely," Ye Shanhu murmured.

A fleeting trace of profound yearning flickered in her eyes. "They are the true disciples. We are but Miscellaneous Disciples... indentured servants."

"Indentured servants..."

The surrounding youths exchanged dismayed glances. If someone as talented and wealthy as Senior Sister Ye couldn't qualify for the Inner Sect, just how monstrous were those who did?

Lin Xian'er voiced the group's anxiety. "Senior Sister Ye, exactly what are the requirements to ascend to the Inner Sect?"

Ye Shanhu offered a wry smile. "The Sect keeps the exact criteria shrouded in secrecy. I only know that the gates to Spirit Elegance Peak are terrifyingly narrow. They accept a mere thirty disciples every three years."

Jiang Xiaochuan frowned in disbelief. "Only thirty? There is a strict quota?"

Ye Shanhu nodded solemnly. "Of course there is. The Sect's annual yield of Foundation Establishment Pills barely exceeds forty. Each new Inner Sect Disciple is guaranteed a single pill. The leftovers are hoarded for the bloodlines of the Sect Elders, or traded away by the upper echelon for vital supplies and political favors."

"Foundation Establishment Pills are that scarce?" Xu Changshou furrowed his brow. "Is the Green Immortal Sect not renowned for its alchemy?"

Ye Shanhu laughed softly. "It is not a matter of skill, Junior Brother. The pills are scarce because the heavenly herbs required to concoct them are exceedingly rare."

Xu Changshou immediately grasped the brutal truth. The supply of resources was choked. Therefore, the life-altering pills could only be funneled to supreme geniuses or the pampered heirs of the immortal elite.

Jiang Xiaochuan's face twisted in anguish. "Does that mean the rest of us have absolutely no hope of ever acquiring a Foundation Establishment Pill?"

Ye Shanhu shook her head mercilessly. "The odds are essentially zero."

Su Mo ground his teeth together. "Then I will break through to Foundation Establishment without a pill!"

"Heh."

Ye Shanhu let out a hollow chuckle. "Do not speak so lightly of such things. Even among the monstrous talents of the Inner Sect, armed with a Foundation Establishment Pill, barely three in ten survive the heavenly tribulation to successfully establish their foundation."

Gasps of pure horror rippled through the courtyard.

Xu Changshou felt a chill run down his spine. He had drastically underestimated the sheer, insurmountable cliff that was Foundation Establishment.

He recalled the secretive conversation between Liu Chuansheng and Zhang Zhengyuan, how they had lamented the impossibility of the realm. Back then, as a fresh recruit, the words had held no weight.

Now, under the crushing weight of Ye Shanhu's revelation, he finally understood the terrifying reality. To reach Foundation Establishment was a trial more harrowing than scaling the very heavens.

"Alright, we have strayed too far from the point," Ye Shanhu interjected, steering the conversation back. "Let us focus on the upcoming labor assignments. For us Miscellaneous Disciples, that is the only reality that matters."