“This is like in the good old days but I guess we are missing a few people…”

Huo Qiang commented while looking at Zhang Dong, Zhang Liena, and Zhang Zhi. He was the only person that came from a different clan. In the past, the three grand elders went through quite a great adventure in the secret ground and now this would be a continuation.

“Does he really need to go with us? Wouldn’t it have been better with just the three of us?”

Zhang Zhi didn’t say anything as he was still considering himself as not on equal footing with the other three people here. The Patriarch was like a godly figure to him and he could not be disrespectful to his wife. Huo Qiang’s strength spoke for itself and he put him as his goal. The man didn’t even think that he had the possibility of reaching the power that the sect leader possessed.

Everything that he was now had been granted to him by the Patriarch. In his mind, it would take a whole lifetime to pay back all the opportunities and help that was given. Even now, this whole place was one big fortuitous encounter. His power had already risen by a lot and he was a middle stage nascent soul master. It wouldn’t end there as he was convinced that the longer they stayed here the stronger everyone would become. Perhaps reaching the Late or the great circle stage of the nascent soul realm wouldn’t be a dream.

“Yes, we need all the help we can get, now that there are fewer people the tower floors will start changing. We won’t need to fight as many monsters but it won’t be a cakewalk either. So Liena and Qiang, I want you both to work together. Our lives will be constantly at risk so we can’t allow for any disturbance in our teamwork.”

“If it is a request from my husband then… But don’t get the wrong idea you blockhead, don’t try anything funny!”

“Haha, don’t worry Senior Brother we will be fine, I bet I can kill more monsters than you can!”

“What did you say…”

“Oh boy…”

Zhang Dong smacked his forehead while looking at the two grownups arguing again. Luckily there was also Zhang Zhi with him that would follow all of his orders. The only problem when it came to him was that he took everything too literally. If he told the man to live for ten years at the top of a secluded mountain and wait for the next order, then he would do it. Even if it meant abandoning his own wife and children he believed that his Patriarch would not lead him astray. His approval rating was so high that he was more like a cult member that saw him as some kind of god.

“Can I be of service Patriarch?”

“No, it’s fine. How about I show you some things before we leave, we have around an hour left before time is up.”

The group nodded and quickly followed behind their leader. The hotel had a few facilities that could still aid them in their recovery. Both Zhang Zhi and Liena were able to gather some hidden points that would allow them to enter some previously locked chambers. Even Zhang Dong, who had some access to the hidden control room, was not able to enter it previously.

“Here, these rooms work similar to a secluded cultivation cave. Inside you’ll find all that you need to consolidate your realm. I’ve noticed that both of you have pushed into the higher stages of the middle nascent soul realm but your foundations are becoming shaky.”

“That is true but will an hour of time be enough?”

“Don’t worry, these rooms have a similar time affecting property as the tower levels. An hour here amounts to a week inside of this room, you’ll have plenty time.”

“A whole week?”

“Is something wrong?”

“No, nothing…”

Zhang Dong smiled at his wife and pouted a bit.

“Don’t worry, we’ll be spending a lot more time together after we enter the next floor.”

“... You dummy, don’t just say that in front of everyone!”

She blushed a little before entering the room as her husband proposed. Zhang Zhi didn’t even ask any questions but instantly entered the room that was pointed to. This left Huo Qiang and Zhang Dong alone for another hour.

“Can’t I use one of these rooms, Senior Brother? Maybe later for now, how about we just go to the gym instead?”

“Gym huh…”

The two arrived at a room that could be accessed by anyone. It looked like a premium gym from the modern world. There were various squat racks and bench-pressing machines everywhere. They were all things that could be used to train the body. They were clearly made by the creator by the system as lifting the weights infused spiritual energy at a very rapid pace. Even though he had maxed out on his body refining technique the moment he grabbed some dumbbells and performed a few curls he could feel that he was getting stronger.

‘I wonder if my body could pass through the limits if I stayed here for a few weeks…’

While Zhang Dong had recreated something like this gym back home, it was only used by Qi condensation practitioners. Regular muscle training didn’t really give good results as thanks to body refining techniques they just grew in a passive manner. There was no need to spend hours lifting just to increase their strength.

“This is heavy… How much does it weigh?”

“If you lift it up like that you’ll snap something in your back…”

Huo Qiang decided to perform some heavy deadlifts by pushing as many plates together. They were a bit deceptive and weighed a lot more than a few dozen kilograms. The two were handling multiple tons of weight and whenever the weight dropped on the ground it would send ripples down the entire space.

“You’re overdoing it…”

“Nonsense Senior Brother, this is noth…”

He had to somewhat babysit Qiang through the entire experience. The man just wanted to go heavy and max out all of his lifts. Luckily he was there to spot him whenever the bar was close to taking out his head during a bench or during a heavy squat. There was not much time for him to get in a good sweat as he was worried about his junior brother hurting himself.

After close to an hour of lifting in this gym, both of them took a break to head to the cultivation chambers. Luckily at their level, there wasn’t much sweat and odor produced by their bodies so they didn’t need to take showers. When they arrived the room that contained Liena slowly opened and she emerged with a satisfied look on her face. Her disposition had improved and some progress in her cultivation could be seen already.

“Welcome back, I see that you have improved.”

“I’m back and of course, who do you think I am?”

Liena smirked proudly as if her progress was something obvious. Huo Qiang stopped for a moment as he also scanned her with his spiritual sense. She did not appreciate the gesture but after promising that she would behave, it was hard to act out on her emotions like before. Soon after the other door opened and Zhang Zhi walked out with about the same level of progress.

“Good, let’s go then I bet the path forward will open soon.”

The group of four left for the hotel lounge where before this moment it lacked a door. When they arrived one suddenly appeared in a place that would normally lead them outside. It was the same one that appeared when Liena defeated the boss on the twenty-fifth floor.

‘Going by the control room, we have around ten minutes to go through the door.’

Bob was connected to the control console in the hidden room. Through it, Zhang Dong could see the ticking timer that had appeared. It was possible to not go through this pathway but then their journey would be at an end. They would all be kicked out to the front of the tower where they entered and would be unable to get inside again.

Everything here was a one-time thing and entering could only be done through the secret route which he did not want to continue using. The overseer could be looking and would probably attack him if he was ever found in a place there was no access. To have a fighting chance he needed to break through his limits and perhaps this place would allow him to.

“Let’s go, I’ll take the front…”

“Patriarch, it might be dangerous, I should be the first one to go!”

“Oh? So you can actually refuse an order?”

“M-my apologies, Patriarch I spoke out of term, please punish me!”

“I was just joking Zhi, relax. I’m still the strongest here, if someone survives a surprise attack it will be me.”

The other three people in the group thought differently but didn’t want to start arguing with their leader. A normal sect leader would use their sect members as protection by sending them out to perform difficult tasks. Usually, a person in Zhang Dong’s position wouldn’t act until the very last moment. Even if elders died, as long as the strongest person in the sect remained, the situation was always salvageable.

Finally, he took a step forward and grabbed the door handle. While he and Huo Qiang were not part of the initial expedition, the moment they went through this door they would be included in it. After flinging the door open he took a step forward and finally vanished through the obvious teleportation gate.

‘What will it be this time around, a water level? A lava one?’

A lot of light was produced by the teleportation phenomenon, before his eyes could register anything hot air collided with his face. Before him, a vast empty area of nothing but sand appeared. It was a desert area with absolutely nothing around him and his companions quickly noticed as well.

“It’s hot…”

“My cultivation is being suppressed by the spiritual energy here…”

“Haha, I feel fine.”

Zhang Liena started fanning her face while Zhang Zhi complained about the lack of water energy in the air. He followed the path of water Dao so desert areas didn’t mesh well with his combat ability. The only happy person was Huo Qiang who thought that the hot blistering sun actually felt nice for a change.