Silverpoint's graduate housing was nicer than any place Marcus had ever lived. The dorm suites were actually apartments—two bedrooms, shared living space, full kitchen. Corporate sponsorship money at work.
Marcus's assigned suite was on the third floor of Hamilton Hall. Daniel had gotten placed two floors up, so they'd agreed to meet for another cultivation session after dinner. That gave Marcus about an hour to settle in and meet his roommate.
He unlocked the door and found the living room already occupied.
A guy sat on the couch, laptop open, phone pressed to his ear. Mid-twenties, athletic build, wearing a polo shirt that probably cost more than Marcus's entire wardrobe. The aura radiating from him was steady and controlled—Stage 3, maybe Stage 4.
"—yes, Dad, I know. Stage 4 by end of first semester, Stage 7 by graduation. I've got it under control." The guy noticed Marcus and held up one finger in a 'wait' gesture. "Yeah. No, the blind candidates aren't a threat. Most of them won't make it past orientation anyway. Okay. Love you too. Bye."
He hung up and stood, extending his hand with a practiced smile. "You must be Marcus. I'm Bryan Foster. Stage 3, legacy admit. My family's been in corporate cultivation for two generations."
Marcus shook his hand, feeling the now-familiar pulse of qi transfer—stronger than Veronica's had been, but controlled. Intentional. A greeting among cultivators.
"Marcus Chen. Stage 1. Blind candidate." No point pretending otherwise.
Bryan's smile didn't waver, but something shifted in his eyes. "Stage 1. Wow. That's... that's rough, man. You know the deadline is Monday, right?"
"I'm aware."
"Not trying to be a dick, but the odds aren't great." Bryan sat back down, his tone sympathetic but detached. "Most blind candidates wash out. It's just statistics. Nothing personal."
"I'll manage," Marcus said evenly.
"Sure, sure." Bryan returned to his laptop. "Just so you know, I've got cultivation sessions scheduled most evenings. I use the living room for meditation and qi circulation exercises. Shouldn't bother you too much—you'll probably be at the library anyway, right? Cramming?"
The casual dismissal stung, but Marcus kept his expression neutral. "Probably."
"Cool. Oh, and fair warning—my study group meets here Tuesday and Thursday nights. We're all Stage 3 and above, working on mid-Intern techniques. You're welcome to observe if you want, though it might be over your head."
"Thanks for the offer," Marcus said, though it felt more like a put-down than genuine hospitality.
He retreated to his bedroom and closed the door. The room was small but private—desk, bed, closet. Enough space for one person. Marcus dropped his bag and sat on the bed, checking his status.
[Progress to Stage 2: 7%]
[Time Remaining: 67 hours, 23 minutes]
[New Environment Detected: Personal Quarters]
[Note: Private cultivation spaces offer less ambient qi but more focus. Consider alternating between high-qi environments and private practice.]
Marcus pulled out his manual and flipped to the next section: "Consolidating Your Foundation."
"After your first successful draws of corporate qi, you must consolidate. Raw qi is unstable. It must be refined, compressed, and integrated into your cultivation foundation. This process happens naturally during rest, but it can be accelerated through meditation and focused breathing exercises.
The Consolidation Meditation is simple: sit comfortably, focus on your dantian, and visualize the wild qi you've absorbed becoming structured and stable. Imagine it settling like sediment, forming layers of foundation upon which you will build your future power.
This meditation should be performed after each cultivation session and before sleep."
Marcus settled into his desk chair and closed his eyes. His dantian felt full—warm and slightly chaotic, like a jar of shaken water that needed to settle. He focused on the sensation, visualizing the qi becoming calm and ordered.
It was different from active cultivation. Quieter. Less dramatic. But he could feel it working—the wild energy smoothing out, integrating into his foundation.
[Progress to Stage 2: 8%]
[Skill Gained: Consolidation Meditation - Level 1]
One percent just from meditation. Marcus opened his eyes, feeling steadier. More grounded.
His phone buzzed. A text from Daniel: *Made 2% more progress. Up to 8% total. Meet at Ren Roasters in 30?*
Marcus: I'm at 8% too. See you there.
He grabbed his manual and headed back through the living room. Bryan was on another call, this time speaking Mandarin. Marcus caught fragments—something about technique manuals and family connections. Resources that blind candidates didn't have access to.
The gap between Stage 1 and Stage 3 wasn't just power. It was infrastructure.
---
Renaissance Roasters was quieter in the evening. The dinner rush had passed, leaving maybe thirty students scattered around the space. Less ambient qi, but also less overwhelming.
Daniel was already there, two coffees on the table. "Figured you'd need caffeine. We're going to be up late."
"Probably all night," Marcus agreed, sitting down. "Met my roommate. Stage 3 legacy kid. Very confident I'm going to wash out."
"Mine's Stage 2," Daniel said. "Transfer from some corporate cultivation family in Chicago. Keeps giving me 'helpful' advice that basically amounts to 'you should have started cultivating years ago.'"
"Helpful."
"Super helpful." Daniel pulled out his manual. "So, consolidation meditation got me to eight percent. I'm thinking we do another active cultivation session, then meditate, then one more session before midnight. If we can gain five percent per session—"
"That's optimistic," Marcus said.
"I know, but we need to be optimistic. We're behind and we don't have resources." Daniel leaned forward. "But we've got something they don't."
"What's that?"
"Motivation. We're not here because our families expect it. We're here because we chose it. We're hungry." Daniel's expression was fierce. "Let them think we'll wash out. We'll prove them wrong."
Marcus felt something stir in his chest—not qi, but determination. The same feeling that had gotten him through organic chemistry, through the GMAT, through every obstacle he'd ever faced.
"Let's get to work," Marcus said.
They closed their eyes and began.
The second cultivation session went smoother than the first. Marcus's Network Sensing had sharpened—he could distinguish different types of corporate qi now. A business negotiation at the corner table generated aggressive, competitive energy. Two students exchanging research contacts created cooperative, network-based qi. Even the transactional qi from the register had a distinct flavor.
Marcus drew in the cooperative qi—it felt cleaner, easier to integrate. His dantian absorbed it readily.
[Progress: 9%]
[Progress: 10%]
[Progress: 11%]
The gains were smaller now. Each percentage point required more qi, more focus. But he pushed through, drawing strand after strand until his dantian hit that saturation point again.
[Progress: 12%]
[Warning: Dantian saturation reached. Rest required.]
Marcus opened his eyes, breathing hard. Forty-five minutes had passed. Daniel was still cultivating, face scrunched in concentration.
Marcus waited, observing the coffee shop with his enhanced senses. That's when he noticed Amy sitting at a table across the room. She was cultivating too—he could see the faint draw of qi flowing toward her. She'd figured it out.
But she wasn't alone.
Three Stage 2 students had noticed her as well. They were watching with expressions Marcus couldn't quite read. Interest? Amusement? Something else?
One of them—a tall guy with sharp features—stood and walked over to Amy's table. Marcus couldn't hear the conversation, but he could see Amy's posture shift to defensive. The guy was talking, gesturing. Amy shook her head. The guy's expression hardened.
Marcus felt his Network Sensing flare. The guy was doing something—pushing qi toward Amy. Not hostile, but intrusive. Testing her defenses.
Amy's cultivation broke. Her eyes snapped open, and she looked shaken.
The tall guy laughed and walked back to his friends.
Marcus's jaw tightened. That was harassment. Pure and simple.
Daniel opened his eyes. "Twelve percent. You?"
"Same." Marcus nodded toward Amy. "But we've got a problem."
He explained what he'd seen. Daniel followed his gaze to Amy, who was gathering her things with trembling hands.
"Should we do something?" Daniel asked quietly.
"Like what? We're Stage 1. Those guys are Stage 2."
"So we just watch?"
Marcus didn't have a good answer. The corporate cultivation hierarchy was already asserting itself. Stage 2 students could push around Stage 1s. Stage 3s could dominate Stage 2s. All the way up the chain.
"We should at least check on her," Marcus said finally.
They crossed the coffee shop. The three Stage 2 students watched them approach with undisguised amusement.
"Amy," Marcus said. "You okay?"
She looked up, eyes red. "I'm fine. Just... it's nothing."
"Didn't look like nothing," Daniel said.
The tall guy called over, "She's fine, Stage 1s. Just learning how things work. Cultivation isn't a safe space."
Marcus turned to face him. "And what exactly are things? Harassing people who are trying to study?"
The guy stood, and Marcus felt the weight of his Stage 2 aura press down. It was stronger than anything Marcus could produce—heavier, more refined. Intimidating.
"It's called testing," the guy said. "We wanted to see if the blind candidates could hold their cultivation focus under pressure. Turns out, they can't." He smiled coldly. "But hey, thanks for the intel, Chen. You're the one who taught her the sensing exercise, right? Word gets around. Very altruistic of you."
Marcus felt a chill. His decision to help Amy had been noticed. And not just by Amy.
"Just leave her alone," Marcus said.
"Or what?" The guy stepped closer. "You're going to defend her? You're Stage 1, buddy. I could disrupt your cultivation with a thought. Send you back to zero percent and make sure you wash out Monday."
[Warning: Cultivation disruption threat detected]
[This threat is real. Stage 2 cultivators can destabilize Stage 1 foundations through qi interference.]
Marcus's fists clenched, but Daniel put a hand on his shoulder. "Not worth it," Daniel murmured. "We can't win this."
The tall guy laughed. "Smart friend you've got, Chen. Listen to him." He returned to his table, and his friends followed, still laughing.
Amy stood quickly. "I need to go."
"Amy, wait—"
"This is your fault," she hissed. "You told me to cultivate here. Now they know I'm making progress and they're targeting me. Thanks for nothing."
She left before Marcus could respond.
Marcus stood there, frustration and guilt warring in his chest. He'd tried to help and made things worse.
"Don't," Daniel said quietly. "You couldn't have known."
"I should have thought it through," Marcus said. "In a competitive system, showing progress makes you a target."
"So what do we do? Stop helping people? Let them fail?"
Marcus didn't answer. He didn't have a good answer.
They returned to their table in silence. The evening's second cultivation session felt hollow now, tainted by what had happened. But Marcus forced himself to focus. He couldn't help Amy if he washed out himself.
Another forty-five minutes of cultivation, another three percent progress.
[Progress to Stage 2: 15%]
[Time Remaining: 64 hours, 15 minutes]
By the time they left the coffee shop, it was nearly midnight. Campus was quiet, the paths lit by soft lamps. Marcus's body ached with exhaustion—not physical, but spiritual. His dantian felt wrung out.
"Fifteen percent," Daniel said as they walked. "That's good progress. If we keep this pace—"
"We need to be careful," Marcus interrupted. "Those Stage 2 students know who we are now. They know we're making progress. We might be targets too."
"Why would they care? We're just Stage 1s trying to survive."
"Because we're succeeding when we're supposed to fail," Marcus said. "We're anomalies. That makes us interesting. And in corporate cultivation, interesting can be dangerous."
Daniel was quiet for a moment. "So we keep our heads down? Stop helping people?"
Marcus thought about Amy's words. *This is your fault.*
"I don't know," he admitted. "I really don't know."
They parted ways at the residence halls. Marcus trudged back to his suite, exhausted. Bryan was still in the living room, cultivating in a meditation pose. His aura pulsed steadily—strong, controlled, effortless.
Stage 3 looked comfortable from where he sat.
Stage 1 felt like drowning.
Marcus collapsed into bed without changing clothes. His last thought before sleep was a simple calculation: fifteen percent down. Eighty-five percent to go. Sixty-four hours remaining.
The math was getting tighter.
But he was still in the game.