Many minutes before Senior Bai went to meet Yuan and shortly after he’d spoken with Zhu Yuying, Senior Bai was sitting around a large round table with eight other individuals.
"What’s the matter, Elder Bai?" One of the individuals there asked him after noticing that he’d suddenly spaced out.
"A little something," he said before turning to look at the goddess sitting at the other side of the table and continuing to speak, "I have been told that ’he’ has returned to the Myriad of Techniques."
"He?"
Everyone in the room raised their eyebrows in a puzzled manner.
Even the goddess looked confused, so Senior Bai explained, "Do you remember that talk I had with you not long ago? That I’d met ’him’ at my store?"
The goddess immediately stood up from her seat when she realized what Senior Bai was talking about, and this startled the others, as they usually don’t see her act in such a manner.
When Senior Bai saw her reaction, he said with a smile, "Should we take a break from the meeting? We’ve been at it for a while now."
Everybody there turned to look at the goddess.
"Let’s take a break," she said.
And she continued, "Elder Bai, I would like to get a breath of fresh air."
"I know just the place." Senior Bai said with a smile on his face.
He then retrieved some sort of device before tossing it on the floor, creating a portal that was shaped like a door.
And without saying anything, the goddess began walking towards the portal, entering it a moment later.
"What is going on, Elder Bai?" The other seven individuals there asked him.
However, he merely shook his head and said, "I don’t dare to say it. If you really want to know, ask her yourself."
The people there exchanged looks with each other. Ask the goddess? As curious as they were, none of them wanted to unnecessarily stick their noses in her business, as they might make her angry, and nobody there wanted to see that.
"I will be back." Senior Bai then said to them before entering the portal as well.
The portal closed after Senior Bai entered it.
On the other side of the portal that led them to another dimension, the goddess had been waiting for Senior Bai.
"What took you so long? Let’s go," she said to him in a seemingly impatient manner.
Senior Bai smiled and said, "Is this what you look like when you’re excited? I don’t think I have seen you like this before—" Senior Bai forcefully closed his mouth when he saw the dangerous look the goddess was giving him.
"Let’s go," he said with a bittersweet smile before flying to the hovering platform a few minutes away from their location.
Once they got close, they were able to see a masked figure standing on the platform and seemingly admiring the scenery, and he was emitting a profound aura that was similar to dragons.
"Spirit Grandmaster...? Why am I not surprised?" Senior Bai smiled when he saw the powerful aura around Yuan.
However, the goddess behind him remained nonchalant and with a cold expression on her face.
Meanwhile, Yuan was filled with surprise when he saw the goddess, as he didn’t expect to see her in this place.
"I didn’t expect to see you so soon after our last meeting, Yuan." Senior Bai said to him after they arrived in front of him.
"H-Hello, Senior Bai and..." Yuan didn’t know how to address the goddess and waited for her to speak.
"Xu Jiaqi— that is my name," she said.
Yuan nodded and continued, "It’s nice to see you again, Miss Xu. I didn’t think I’d see you again until I reached the upper heavens."
’Miss Xu...?’ Senior Bai raised his eyebrow after hearing this, as he has never heard someone address her so casually.
However, Xu Jiaqi didn’t seem to mind and said, "I also didn’t expect to see you so soon. So you’ve only reached Spirit Grandmaster, huh?"
Xu Jiaqi wasn’t surprised by his insane progress speed. In fact, she even sounded a little disappointed.
"Are you still in the Lower Heavens?" She suddenly asked him.
"Yes."
"What have you been doing this entire time? If it was anyone else with that physique, they would’ve been a Spirit King by now. Stop fooling around and come to the upper heavens already— you’re wasting your talents," she continued.
"Eh? But there’s no reason for me to rush things. I want to enjoy the cultivation world, and there are still things I must do in the Lower Heavens." Yuan said.
Xu Jiaqi’s eyebrows twitched after hearing Yuan’s response. It’s been a very long time since someone has dared to talk back to her. People would usually just follow her words and won’t say anything back.
However, she wasn’t angry even in the slightest like she normally would.
"Miss Xu, you seem to know a lot about my physique. Can you tell me more about it?" Yuan suddenly asked her.
After a moment of silence, she spoke, "What do you want to know about it?"
"Anything at all... But I am interested in its origins and what else I can do with this physique. I know that I can consume monster cores and demon cores, but that’s about it. And does my physique have a limit?"
Xu Jiaqi narrowed her eyes at Yuan, and she spoke after a moment of silence, "I don’t mind telling you, but only if you promise to join my faction once you reach the upper heavens."
"Your faction? What’s that? Is it anything like a sect?" Yuan asked.
"Allow me to explain." Senior Bai said, and he continued, "Factions are similar to families, but you follow rules as though it’s a sect, so it’s something like a mixture of both. Also, there’s no real obligation, so you can leave whenever you want."
"A mixture of families and sects? What is the purpose of a faction?" Yuan then asked.