"Chief Grace," Beatrice announced, displeasure in her voice, which her cultivation level turned into dangerous pressure. "The Roaring Thunder Sect has shown nothing but patience, but it has run out."

Grace couldn’t argue with that. Despite the initial promises, she and Liam had yet to deliver on anything, which was inexcusable since they had already been in the Sect for three weeks.

Grace was also quite stuck there. Liam had gone into seclusion after gaining access to the Sect’s ingredients, trusting Grace with holding the fort. She had complied, but complications had piled up, and the critical point seemed to be right around the corner.

As for why, the issue was two-faced. First, no one had seen Liam during that period. Such was the meaning of seclusion after all. He had holed himself in a cave below the quasi-town that the Sect had arranged for him.

The issue’s other side involved the ingredients. Despite the lack of updates, Liam’s requests had been absurd, depleting so much wealth that even Grace had been left speechless.

The silence and massive expense had ultimately forced the Sect to intervene, and for good reason. If Grace were on the other side, she would also think that a scam was at play.

"Senior, I’m sure Master William is working night and day on your commissions," Grace swore. "He isn’t-"

"Junior, enough," Beatrice interrupted. "We’ll allow you to summon your partner instead of doing it ourselves. See this as the last kindness the Roaring Thunder Sect is willing to extend."

Grace could only lower her head, which did nothing to hide the danger in what reached her ears.

"And do not forget," Beatrice continued. "These are the Roaring Thunder Sect’s grounds. If you ever wish to leave them, especially in one piece, I suggest coming back with results."

Grace bowed, and the pressure suddenly vanished, allowing her to lift her head. Beatrice had disappeared, leaving her alone on the wooden staircase that marked the Sect’s starting point.

’Can’t he warn me at least once?!’ Grace internally cursed while shooting away, hurrying down the mountain to reach a messy, rocky plateau.

Boxes and other containers littered the relatively flat area, cluttering it, creating a small labyrinth that the Sect’s disciples had yet to clean up.

A triangular cavity connected the plateau to the mountain’s slope, creating a short passage that ended in a smooth wall. Grace arrived before it, drawing a token from her sleeve, but hesitating to wave it.

Cultivators entered in seclusion for multiple purposes, but they all had a single, sacred reason. Certain activities demanded utmost concentration, and distractions could cause backlashes. The experts who had ruined themselves in such a manner were too numerous to count.

So, despite Beatrice’s threat, Grace didn’t want to open the cave, but the entirety of her business instincts told her that there was no prolonging the Sect’s generosity any longer.

Besides, Grace was worried, too, so she eventually waved the token, and the wall moved, only for the scene that unfolded in her vision to make her hesitate again.

The chamber was simple but vast, circular but devoid of any fancy surface. It had a smooth floor, but everything else had protruding rocks.

Nevertheless, the widespread clutter had shrunk what was supposed to be a spacious laboratory. Piles of flasks and pills’ wraps were everywhere, at least when it came to the entrance’s surroundings.

A series of complete alchemical products stood past that debris, but Grace found herself moving as soon as she glanced further beyond that. She had spotted the cauldron, as well as the belly-down figure behind it.

Grace immediately reached the lying man, only to hesitate for the third time. Liam was at her feet, shirtless and unresponsive, his long hair hiding his face.

Grace squatted down, carefully reaching for the messy hair, only for a hand to snap at her wrist, grabbing it, squeezing hard enough for it to hurt.

Something else joined that grip. The black strands tried to hide it, but Grace felt the glare pointed at her, one that failed to recognize her.

Whatever Liam had done, he had pushed himself to the point where his brain had reverted to basic animal instincts. Even his sleeping position was probably the result of a collapse.

Grace felt the genuine danger in the situation, but something triumphed over that.

Liam was nothing short of an exceptional figure in Grace’s perspective now. He could recognize an ingredient’s quality with a single look. He could concoct without making a single mistake. He had shown no fear against a branching expert, and his battle prowess was honestly shocking.

No matter the predicament, Liam had come out on top of it, all while making it look effortless. Yet, clearly, even he was human. Even he could fall.

"Hey, it’s me," Grace said softly, her other hand reaching for Liam’s head, "Your inseparable partner."

Liam was confused, his foggy mind a mixture of dizziness and exhaustion. The environment felt familiar, and the gentle fingers that parted his black strands intensified that trait.

’Melissa?’ Liam wondered, his mind summoning the only thing he could connect to the situation. 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

However, the fog gradually parted. Liam’s awareness expanded, spotting the differences in the rocks, as well as the hand on his face.

That wasn’t the Pale Moon Sect or Liam’s watchful lover. He had lost that life.

’Right,’ Liam thought as his broadening awareness delivered more memories.

Liam grunted, letting go of Grace’s wrist as he sat up. He even summoned the pipe, not hesitating to start smoking to let the poison accelerate his recovery.

There was no dizziness now. Liam had built complete tolerance to the improved recipe, both due to its abuse and something else.

As memories kept returning, Liam looked inward, to the pulsating reddish canvas. He might not have smoked as often as during the trip, but three more minor roots had developed fully, bringing the total number to four.

A cultivator with a talent of three spiritual roots would already be halfway through completing the rooting stage with that number. However, it wasn’t even one-twentieth of what Liam needed to achieve that goal.

Still, complete tolerance didn’t imply lack of meaningful growth. Liam saw it happen while his mind finally cleared, leaving a profound exhaustion that no amount of nutrients could fix.

’I might have gone overboard,’ Liam groaned internally, a hint of a headache ringing in his brain.

Liam’s strategy had been simple, mandatory even. That was his first time since leaving the Pale Moon Sect having limitless access to ingredients, so he had to make the best of it.

Practice embodied that best. Liam’s experience with rank 2 concoctions was limited. He had only been able to work on a handful of them, perfecting fewer than that.

Now that Liam had the ingredients, he could perfect more recipes, using his Master’s extreme and wasteful approach to improve as quickly as possible. His immediate achievements might look minor, but he had gained skills that would accelerate anything he tried to learn next.

Time had been the issue there.

In the Pale Moon Sect, Liam had needed two months of that extreme approach to perfect rank 1 concoctions, and that after already spending time practicing alchemy.

Instead, Liam had a deadline to respect now, and rank 2 concoctions were harder and more time-consuming. He couldn’t perfect everything, but there were ways to maximize that opportunity.

Liam’s divine talent had yet to provide the stamina and Qi reserves only he could have access to. His cultivation wasn’t advanced enough to show those advantages, but one was already at his disposal.

More than anything, Liam’s cultivation was sturdy, meaning he could abuse it through pills and elixirs, keeping himself awake and functional to eliminate the necessary breaks, making the most of his limited time.

"How long has it been?" Liam asked.

"Three weeks," Grace’s voice reached Liam’s ears.

’Three weeks is my limit then,’ Liam acknowledged, ’At least for now.’

It was at that point that Liam realized that Grace’s hand was still on his face, parting his messy hair with what he believed was a familiar kind of care.

"What happened?" Liam questioned, looking at Grace. She tried to hide it, but he smelled her worry, both in her calm face and touch.

"The Roaring Thunder Sect has run out of patience," Grace revealed, retracting her hand. "They want what we promised."

"How long do we still have?" Liam asked.

"Little over a month," Grace responded, "Unless you want to be late to your agreement with Lancelot."

"It’s plenty," Liam nodded, storing the pipe while checking his ring’s insides. "I mastered the Sect’s commissions and what our shop needs."

With the required products’ recipes perfected, Liam wouldn’t make mistakes anymore, saving enough time to leave something for his own needs. He had to prepare for the inheritance after all.

Liam glanced at the complete products beyond the cauldron afterward, only for Grace to reclaim his attention. She was merely sitting, but something about her stance suggested the questions she was suppressing.

And Liam had already faced that crossroads, so he wouldn’t fall prey to hesitation.

"You can ask," Liam said. "I just won’t answer certain things."

Grace had more than earned the right to question Liam. A barrier had to exist, but he wouldn’t let it turn into a half-life. He didn’t want that, and Melissa and his Master had made him believe he could have more.

Grace checked Liam for a while before turning her attention to the cave. She might not know alchemy, but that mess reeked of something she felt far too well.

"I understand desperation," Grace announced, drawing a comb from her sleeve while scooting behind Liam. "When you have nothing but yourself to sell in front of a monster you still can’t fathom defeating."

The metaphor hit home. That had been Liam’s exact reasoning. Just like Lancelot had mentioned, Liam could only burn himself to accelerate his growth.

Grace had planned to continue right away, only to tilt her head when her gaze landed on Liam’s bare, broad back. She never had the time to inspect it properly, let alone up close, and a mental sigh resounded once she realized what the sight triggered inside her.

"You know my monster," Grace eventually said, almost placing her hand on that back, before forcing herself to grab Liam’s shoulder. "I know what I must become to defeat it, as well as what it might cost."

Grace started working on Liam’s hair, combing it straight. She didn’t need to. He would wear a hood anyway, but she had limited ways of taking care of him, at least for now.

"My instincts tell me that your monster is bigger than mine," Grace added. "So, what do you have to become to defeat it?"

Liam didn’t think much about the grooming session. Lucy had done that for him, too, but it felt more relaxing now, comforting even, so he closed his eyes and let Grace smooth his headache alongside his hair.

Of course, Liam didn’t forget to answer Grace. "The most dreadful fiend in the world."

The comb stopped, but only for a fraction of a second before resuming brushing Liam’s hair.

"I see," Grace commented. "Then, I’ll try to pull one last trick. William, do you still want to part with that rank 2 martial art?"