The next day came—same old daily missions, same old exercises. Still, I pushed myself a little harder than yesterday, always trying to outdo my past self.
As my cultivation progressed, I began to sense something unusual—an opening, a chance to shatter the limits of my body. I seized it without hesitation. For me, "preparing to break through" didn't mean sitting cross-legged under a tree in serene meditation. No, it meant pushing my body past exhaustion, until my muscles screamed, my breath burned, and my bones felt ready to snap.
And then… it happened.
The change wasn't visible on the outside, but inside, everything was different. My senses felt sharper, my movements more precise. My body responded like a perfectly tuned instrument, every motion flowing exactly as I intended. I couldn't help but grin. This was my first true transformation—a step into the Body Refining Realm. And while no one else could see it, I preferred it that way. There was no need to announce my progress to the world.
The system had noticed, though. My daily missions instantly shifted—harder, but not longer. Horse stance, for example, now required a 50-kg weight strapped to me. Still doable, but far more brutal.
Then a glowing notification appeared before me:
Detected: Host has reached the Body Refining Realm. Training Room has been unlocked.
I immediately opened it. A shimmering portal appeared, leading me into an entirely different space—a vast, well-lit room filled with training equipment. Weights, dummies, strange devices I couldn't name… it was like a gym, but far more advanced. Here, I could endlessly increase the difficulty of my training. I was more than satisfied.
I completed my new basic missions—of course, adding a little extra effort for good measure—then turned my attention back to business.
The first step was manpower. I posted a hiring notice, offering one copper coin per day—the average wage most people earned. The response was overwhelming. By the end of the day, I had thirty workers.
Now came the division of labor. The main work was shaping the clay, but there were many steps before and after. I assigned four people to fetch fresh clay daily. Sixteen would handle the shaping itself. Of the remaining ten, six would oversee drying, heating, and cooling the pots, while four would sell the finished goods.
The businessman who had helped secure our funding also arranged a workspace for us. Once the clay team left for their first haul, I began training the others in their respective roles. Shaping was the most critical stage, but poor drying or overheating could ruin everything, so each worker needed proper instruction. Mistakes were made—plenty of them—but they learned quickly.
Step by step, we were ready to turn our small operation into something greater.