The ghost only set two conditions in exchange for helping me.

The first was for me to become her disciple.

"I have never taken a single apprentice in my entire life," she said softly. "My life was cut short before I ever had the chance. And besides, I like you. You remind me of myself when I was young."

I immediately accepted.

Honestly, the condition worked entirely in my favor. Not only would I gain a powerful master, but I would finally have a chance to leave this cursed place alive.

I respectfully knelt before her.

"I, Su Ming Shu, greet Master."

I lowered my head and expressed my gratitude.

The ghost looked slightly surprised.

"Your surname is Su?" she asked. "Then you must be a member of the royal family of one of the strongest nations on this continent. What an honor. To think I would one day teach a royal of the Cang Imperial Dynasty."

Her eyes softened with satisfaction.

"I, Bao Lanxin, accept you as my disciple."

"Thank you, Master."

After a moment of hesitation, I asked, "Master, may I know the second condition?"

A mysterious smile appeared on her face.

"I won't tell you for now. I will tell you after you leave this place alive."

Her expression suddenly turned serious.

"But no matter what happens, when the time comes, you must fulfill my request."

I nodded without hesitation.

"Yes, Master."

And so began my training under Bao Lanxin.

At first, I thought I had found a gentle and kind master.

I was terribly wrong.

She was a monster!

An absolute monster!

Her training methods were no different from torture.

For three whole years, I barely slept.

Every day was spent reading countless books she threw at me, memorizing ancient texts, studying medicinal herbs, refining pills, and practicing alchemy until my hands trembled from exhaustion.

When I wasn't learning alchemy, I was forced to meditate.When I wasn't meditating, I was reading. When I wasn't reading, I was gathering herbs. And when I wasn't gathering herbs, I was being tested on everything I had learned.

The cycle repeated endlessly.

Sleep became a luxury I could only dream about.

Food wasn't any better.

For three years, I survived almost entirely on spiritual herbs growing inside the hidden realm. Some tasted bitter, some tasted sour, and some were so disgusting that I nearly threw up every time I swallowed them.

Whenever I complained, Master would simply smack me on the head.

"A true cultivator can endure hardship!"

Those words became my nightmare. Despite my suffering, I couldn't deny the results.

The weak and helpless girl who had arrived in this place years ago was gone. My spiritual energy became denser with every passing month. My control over alchemy improved at a terrifying pace.

I learned countless medicinal formulas, ancient cultivation techniques, and secrets that would make even powerful sects fight over them.

Master seemed determined to pour everything she knew into me before our time together ended.

In just three months under Master's guidance, I finally broke through to the Early Foundation Establishment Stage.

Another three months later, I had already reached the Late Foundation Establishment Stage.

The speed of my cultivation was simply unbelievable.

And finally, after two years of training, I successfully stepped into the Early Xiantian Stage.

However, I didn't stop learning from Master. She might be strict. She might be terrifying. She might even be a complete monster when it came to training her disciple. But I could never betray her trust. I was her first disciple and also her last.

Master had spent her entire life without accepting an apprentice, only choosing me at the very end of her existence. Because of that, I wanted to learn everything she was willing to teach me. I wanted to inherit all of it.

Then one day, when I finally returned to the outside world, I would bring honor to her name. Everyone under heaven would know my name. And when they asked who taught me, I would proudly tell them.

"My one and only master is Bao Lanxin."

The thought alone filled me with determination. As time passed, I gradually stopped counting the days. Then the months. Eventually, even the years.

All I did was cultivate, train, study, and learn. But occasionally, we would sit together and talk. She would tell me stories about her adventures when she was young.

Stories about powerful cultivators, ancient sects, deadly forbidden lands and treasures hidden throughout the world.

Those conversations became some of my favorite memories. Without realizing it, Master had become more than a teacher to me. She had become family.

And just like that, countless years passed.

By the time I noticed, I had already reached the Early Nascent Soul Stage. A realm that countless cultivators could only dream of reaching.

One day, after I completed my cultivation session, Master's voice suddenly echoed through the cave.

"I have nothing left to teach you anymore."

I froze.

My heart skipped a beat.

Master looked at me with a gentle smile.

"It's time for you to leave."

The words I had once longed to hear now felt incredibly heavy. For a moment, I couldn't even respond. Leaving this place had always been my goal. Yet now that the moment had finally arrived, I found myself reluctant.

Not because of the cave or the cultivation resources, but because of her.

My Master.

We had spent so many years together that her presence had become a natural part of my life.

Every day, I would hear her voice, every day she would scold me, and every day, she would throw another impossible task at me. The thought of never experiencing that again made my chest feel strangely empty.

Master noticed my expression and sighed.

"Oh, come on. Don't look at me like that. You know you have to go."

"But Master!"

I immediately protested.

"What if I stay for a few more years? Maybe by then I'll become an immortal before I leave!"

Master shook her head firmly.

"You can't."

"Why not?"

"Because you've already been here for sixty years."

Silence.

I stared at her.

Master stared back.

"..."

"..."

"...Huh?"

My brain completely stopped working.

"Sixty years?"

Master nodded casually.

"Yes. Sixty years."

"Sixty?!"

I nearly jumped to my feet. My eyes widened so much they almost popped out of my head. I knew I had been here for a long time.

But sixty years?

SIXTY?!

I had completely lost track of time. Cultivation, studying, alchemy, meditation, training, and Master's endless lessons had consumed my entire life.

Seeing my shocked expression, Master burst into laughter. The sound echoed throughout the cave as she held her stomach. Meanwhile, I stood there completely speechless.