"Jingyi, how's your cultivation going? Have you become a Cultivator yet?"
"By the sound of your voice, I can tell that you've already become a Cultivator. Congratulations, Sister Rou. Unfortunately, I am still trying to breakthrough." Xia Jingyi's voice resounded from the phone.
"Don't worry, I'm sure you'll breakthrough soon."
"What about you? Has anything changed now that you're a Cultivator? Have you gotten stronger like they say you would?" Xia Jingyi asked.
"Yes! You won't believe this, but I could lift my desk with a single arm! It was really surprising!" Yu Rou said.
"That crazy?! I'm going to continue my cultivation now! Even if I have to skip tonight's sleep, I am going to do it!" Xia Jingyi said.
"Me, too! I may already be a Cultivator but I still want to continue improving! I'll see you tomorrow at school!" Yu Rou said her goodbyes before closing the phone.
And for the rest of the night, Yu Rou would sit on her bed in the lotus position, slowly improving her cultivation.
The following morning, despite missing a night of sleep, Yu Rou felt incredibly refreshed and full of energy.
"Unlike Cultivation Online, cultivation is much slower in the real world, which isn't really that surprising. And with a lack of treasures to assist us, we'll be even slower." Yu Rou mumbled.
Cultivation Online was filled with rich resources that could help boost one's cultivation within seconds, but in the real world, no such resources exist and Cultivators must rely on their own talents and patience to improve their cultivation.
"I guess this is also good. It would be bad if people can simply buy their cultivation levels like they do in Cultivation Online, becoming Spirit Warriors in just a few weeks." Yu Rou mumbled.
In Cultivation Online, there are plenty of rich people who would buy treasures using real money to boost their cultivation base, bypassing the earlier levels. Of course, the higher their cultivation, the more expensive each level got.
Once one reaches Spirit Warrior, the amount one would need to spend to increase a level was so high that only the richest people in the world would dare to spend that much.
Now that one cannot simply buy their way to the top, everyone— regardless of their status or wealth— will have a chance to become a top Cultivator in the real world!
"Meanwhile, Brother is already nearing Spirit Master… If he could move his body, how powerful would he be in this world?" Yu Rou wondered to herself as she prepared for school.
Sometime later, Yu Rou arrived at school, and to her surprise, the place looked even more empty than usual.
"Where is everybody?" Xia Jingyi asked the teacher.
The teacher showed a bittersweet smile and said, "Because of the cultivation craze, everybody is staying home to cultivate."
Yu Rou and the other few students in the classroom were left dumbfounded by the teacher's words.
Everybody was skipping school to cultivate? As crazy as that sounded, it wasn't that surprising!
"It's not just the students." The teacher continued.
"A couple of the teachers here have also resigned this morning, so we're also understaffed at this moment."
"What's going to happen to our classes now?" Yu Rou then asked.
"The principal has issued a gathering later today, so we'll probably know about it at that time. In the meantime, you can do whatever."
The students looked at each other silently.
Sometime later, the students there gathered in a circle and began talking to each other about cultivation.
"Have any of you tried cultivating now?"
"I have, but I couldn't make any breakthroughs."
"Me too. It feels like there's something blocking me and I cannot move forward."
"I have that feeling as well!"
"I actually managed to have a breakthrough this morning right before school." Xia Jingyi said with a smile on her face.
"Whoa! So you're a Cultivator now, right?! Show us what you can do!" The other students immediately looked at her with admiration.
"Haha… compared to Sister Rou, I am nothing. She became a Cultivator last night." Xia Jingyi said.
"As expected of Miss Yu! You're not only talented in music but even in cultivation!"
Yu Rou showed a stiff smile.
If only they knew what her brother was capable of.
A few moments later, Yu Rou and Xia Jingyi showed off to the other students their new profound strength by lifting desks and chairs and treating them as though they're weightless.
"My god! I have been skeptical this entire time, but after seeing it with my own eyes, I cannot do anything but believe it!"
About an hour later, Yu Rou and the others in her class went to the auditorium where the principal, teachers, and other students in the school were gathered.
"Ahem. Thank you for coming here. As most of you, if not all of you already know by now, we're missing more than just a few students, and this is all because of the cultivation craze since yesterday. After speaking with your parents, we have agreed to close the school even earlier than anticipated."
Although the place was dead silent, all of the students were filled with excitement and had an urge to start screaming.
The principal continued, "While I don't know when we'll reopen, it probably won't be anytime soon, and depending on how this cultivation thing changes our world, we might never open again."
"I apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused you, and if you plan on becoming a Cultivator, I wish you the best of luck. Do any of you have questions? This is your last chance to ask them."
After spending a couple of minutes answering the students' and teachers' questions, the principal dismissed everyone.
"What are you going to do now, Sister Rou?" Xia Jingyi asked her once they left the school.
"I am going to focus on improving my cultivation," she said.
"What about Cultivation Online? Are you going to continue playing?"
"Of course!" Yu Rou quickly responded.
And she continued, "I will play Cultivation Online in the morning and cultivate at night. A perfect balance if I say so myself."