Pijimi agreed and went to the desert of Scetes, where he dwelt with a number of monks for 24 years until they all departed.
Having overcome the devils' conspiracies against him, he lived in a valley inside the desert for three years, fasting a week at a time.
According to Coptic sources, he once fasted for 80 days, to the point that his skin cleaved to his bones.
After years of living in the inner desert, Pijimi returned to his city of Feesha and built a small cell on its outskirts.
Coptic sources say that Saint Shenouda the Archimandrite once saw an exceedingly shining pillar and heard a voice telling him "This is Abba Pijimi."