Jing Jiu's Cultivation progression had been quite smooth in this life; one could even call it effortless and unstoppable.
When he had broken through the Spiritual Stability State that was relatively difficult to enter and relied mostly on time for its attainment, Zhao Layue might not enter the Free Travel State earlier than him, and he could proceed at the same pace.
However, as Jing Jiu was about to break through the Undefeated State after the attainment of the Inherited Will State, he had already anticipated the problem.
As such, he had hesitated for a long time as to when to enter the Undefeated State. During the three years of his traveling with Zhao Layue, something he couldn't make up his mind about.
It wasn't until the Sword Trial on Green Mountain, in which Liu Shisui was expelled from the mountain gate and his meridians were broken off, that he decided to enter the Undefeated State. And his suspicions had been confirmed later on.