Hou Niao possessed a unique potential, the ability to always pick out from numerous complicated issues the thread that was most beneficial and realistically meaningful to him, then hold on to it without letting go.
He wouldn't think about those lofty and tempting but intangible things.
This was a kind of self-awareness for self-protection, also the core of a Sword Cultivator's cultivation: to maintain focus, to keep the heart free of distractions, not to be influenced by the bizarre sights of the outside world.
Even if an enormous pie fell before you, you'd still have to consider whether your current stomach could fit it in; cultivation must have long-term goals, but forgetting the present for the future was the greatest folly.
