While he was at it

Xu Wuyi closed the documents, rested them on his knees, and shut his eyes.

He was thinking about that void.

The records from the True Dragon Star Realm said that when the critical point arrived, a cultivator would feel a void appear inside his body.

That void would continuously absorb the cultivator's energy until it had drained him dry. Then, at the instant his energy ran out, it would reverse, driving a leap to a higher level of life.

The process sounded simple, but he knew it had to be difficult in practice. The powerhouses in the True Dragon Star Realm who had reached this step could be counted on one hand. The vast majority had failed while the void was absorbing their energy.

Not because they lacked energy, but because they could not withstand the pain.

Pain at the level of the soul. A hundred times more intense than any physical injury.

He did not know whether his will could withstand that pain. His will was stronger than most people's, but he had never experienced pain at the level of the soul. He did not know how far he could hold out.

But he knew one thing. Whether he could endure it or not, he had to try. Because failing to advance meant falling back, and falling back meant death. On the Astral Battlefield, stagnation was retreat, and retreat was death.

He put the documents into his storage bag, rose from the training mat, and walked to the window.

Outside, evening had settled over Linjiang. The sightseeing boats on the river had lit their lamps, scattered points of light moving slowly through the dusk. The leaves of the plane trees swayed gently in the breeze with a soft rustle.

He stood by the window for a long time, then