In the back of the cabin, inside a little bamboo stall, Li Meirong gave herself a quick wash under cold water and belatedly discarded the torn, bloodied robe, hastily exchanging it with another identical looking, yet clean article of clothing. She made quick work of adjusting her unkempt appearance and tied her long black hair into a tousled updo.

The careless way in which she arranged her appearance might have lacked the touch of proper, feminine elegance, but instead, exuded its own individual charm, like that of an adventurous maiden, free of social confines and decorum. Unwilling to tarry any longer, she swiftly left the premises, mounting a crane and flying to the adjacent island.

As soon as she landed on the adjoining island, she led the crane to the nearby stable house and had the mount rest among the flock perched in the barn. She reclined against one of the several haystacks placed about, taking a moment to summon Chou from inside the dimension.

Although, instead of a grumpy toddler sporting a mass of hair likened to that of seaweed, Li Meirong faced a pair of shining rubies hovering in front of her face, belonging to none other than the exhausted Turtle Demoness.

"..." Li Meirong speechlessly stared at the turtle, wondering if the dimension spat out whatever it wished, regardless of her actual demands?!

"Oh Master," Feng Huang yawned loudly, "Nice to see you safe and sound. The vegetable spirits told me all about what happened." She blinked her blurry, red eyes a few times slowly, assessing Li Meirong as though she was staring at a priceless treasure.

"Yes. While you were sleeping, we were all very busy fighting for our lives." Li Meirong answered dryly, peering at the Turtle Demoness.

Feng Huang acted as though she hadn't heard her response at all. Her mouth parted in astonishment, and her ruby filled shell shook as she hovered from side to side around Li Meirong. "So, Chou wasn't joking. You actually managed to ascend and develop a cultivator's golden core!" The turtle's reptilian mouth stretched wide into what resembled a smile. "I knew I picked the right thigh to hug! Master, you're the best!"

"I don't deserve any compliments. I didn't do anything to level up, and all the time I spent cultivating proved to be useless. Then it just…" she hesitated before breathing out, "Happened." Li Meirong bashfully avoided making eye contact with the turtle and instead, focused her attention on the dried grass on the floor, picking a hay stick to trace random patterns on it.

Feng Huang snorted and laid herself on the bundle of haystack beside Li Meirong. "You say this only because you don't know the hurdles of cultivating. Do you even know how long it takes for a cultivator to form a core? Not to mention how difficult the process is? If, for a human, a hundred years to build their foundation is considered fast progress, then at least five hundred years to build a core would be the mark of a genius."

It was now Li Meirong's turn to look flabbergasted. Her mouth formed an 'O' shape as she put a hand to her chest. "I wasn't aware it was supposed to take so long."

Feng Huang glanced at Li Meirong, giving the girl a pointed look. "Why should you be aware of it? Ascending to immortality seems to be as easy for you as it is to sleep or eat. For others, it's practically an impossible feat." She stretched her stubby feet and wiggled on the haystack. "I say, stop cultivating and just let these miraculous events occur on their own! It's way better to bask under the sun and enjoy a day of comfort."