It had been an eclectic and heart racing day for the eight newly minted Inner Disciples. They’d faced trials and tribulations, were put under stress, and rose to the occasion, but now they were finally done, they had succeeded.

Elder Chao and his assistants patiently guided the group of winded cultivators towards a platform situated behind the entrance to the garden, where one of the flying wooden barges waited for them.

The young cultivators followed their elders like lost sheep with a shepherd, walking forward and sitting down on the flying contraption with vacant stares.

The wooden barge came to life in a flare of golden energy, and as Elder Chao’s spiritual energy started flowing into the array inscribed in the vehicle, with barely a shudder the boat took off.

Yu Xiang watched in bland detachment as the beautiful garden taken straight from the dreams of a cultivator got farther and farther away, until it was nothing more than a green dot atop the black needle that was the dark spire that had housed their second test.

A memory came unbidden from the depths of the young reincarnator’s psyche, of watching the scenery fly by from the comfort of a speeding car, the same sense of pervading calmness enveloping his tired mind.

Yu Xiang shook his head to clear away the unwanted memories, chasing the recollection away before it could raise things up to the surface that he’d rather not remember alongside it.

The time kept going forward, with the young cultivators lost in their own minds as they drifted through the skies.

Yu Xiang watched his feline friend as he carefully looked over the new robes they’d been given shortly after entering the barge.

Fine blue silk, trimmed with violet threads and held together at the waist by a purple sash. The uniform of the inner disciples. Lin Fen was kneading the garment absentmindedly, feeling the garment out with his fingers.

Speaking of clothing, the young reincarnator was still bare chested, something that didn’t go unnoticed by some of the other passengers.

The girls who had reached the spire’s summit together were leering at him, sending appreciative glances at his lean muscled chest. Yu Xiang would’ve responded with at least a wink normally, but he was just too tired to play around, so he just left them to enjoy the view.

Lin Fen seemed to disagree with him as his brow twitched, he took off his outer robe and handed it to the half naked cultivator.

Yu Xiang rolled his eyes, but still took the proffered attire and put it on, while still leaving it open thus still with most of his chest still visible, which resulted in Yu’s feline friend giving him a deadpan stare.

The green eyed cultivator just smiled cheekily at the grey haired beastman.

Some time later they finally returned to the outer compound. Elder Chao informed them that he would bring them up to the upper plateaus that housed the inner compounds in three days, which would give them ample time to say whatever goodbyes they needed to and to prepare all of their belongings.

After that, all of the exhausted disciples limped to their respective residences.

Yu Xiang and Lin Fen finally began to crash as the day’s events belatedly started to set in. They staggered inside their house, left their new robes and the rest of their belongings on their living room’s low table then slowly made their way up the stairs to their bedroom.

They fell asleep the second their heads met the soft pillows, just as the sun began to dip into the horizon.

The two young cultivators snored away the rest of the day and then some, only getting up almost a full twenty four hours later. Once they managed to pry themselves from their beds and washed away the grime from the previous day they finally decided to feed the gaping holes in their stomachs.

The two made their way down the aptly called Golden Peak mountain, leisurely descending using the long flight of stairs that connected the outer compound to the golden city.

Huangjin.

It had formed naturally around the Golden Peak sect, as humans were always attracted to places where power gathered and money could be made. For that reason, most of the older and entranced institutions and establishments catered heavily towards a cultivating clientele.

Or so Lin Fen told him.

Apparently the local nobles, for all that they were more like middling cultivators that worked under the sect, also took in those outer disciples who didn’t manage to advance fast enough to keep up with their peers, employing them as guards or for other dangerous jobs.

Not a bad life, all things considered, they made more than enough money to live in luxury and they didn’t have to deal with most of the dangers being a cultivator brought with it.

This was the first time the two of them had descended the mountain together, usually, they had no reason to even leave the mountain at all as they could find anything they might need in the sect’s general store or in the treasure mountains, plus they always tried to conserve their money for more trips to collect spiritual herbs.

But today was different. They were Inner Disciples now! Sporting the blue robes to match their titles, and they had more than enough money saved up to splurge on some celebrations!

So together they made their way towards the most expensive looking restaurant they could find, which turned out to be an edifice the size of a small palace with pillars that looked to be made out of solid gold standing at the entrance, which was appropriately named ‘The Golden Palace’.

Talk about showing off…

They made their way inside the opulent building and were promptly welcomed by a finely clothed server with long dark hair held in a braid, who bowed deeply as he recognized their outfit.

“Esteemed cultivators, let this one bring you to a table so that you may decide what you would like to eat.” He said before raising from his bow.

Yu Xiang simply nodded and followed the impeccably dressed man, with his feline companion following his lead.

They were guided past a busy hall filled with rich mortal customers, then they went up a flight of stairs that led them into another hall of similar size but with far fewer tables and with a lot fewer people present.

The equivalent of a VIP space, accessible only to cultivators like them and to the city’s nobles no doubt.

The two young cultivators took their seats and were handed a couple of menus. Yu Xiang gave it a look while their server waited for them, noticing the prices first then roving over the selection of available dishes.

“Do all of these dishes contain spiritual energy?” Lin Fen broke the silence, his gaze settling on the waiting man.

Their server seemed to be happy about the question as it gave him the opportunity to boast. “Of course ma’am! Our fine restaurant makes sure that all of our ingredients retain their spirituality even after being cooked! With a drop in energy of less than a third!”

The feline cultivator’s brow twitched at the man’s words, but he seemed almost impressed by the cooks’ abilities.

He closed his menu, handing it to the server. “It’s sir, actually. But no matter, bring us one of everything.”

“Y-yes, sir! Sorry, sir!” The flustered server bowed in apology before running off.

The green eyed cultivator shot his feline companion an amused smirk, which was met with a roll of the eyes. “This must be the third time you’ve been mistaken for a woman lately, Lin. Maybe you should cut your hair if you want it to stop.” He said in a teasing tone.

Lin Fen scoffed, his feline ears perking up as the hall’s background noise raised slightly. “It’s not my problem that people can’t tell I’m a man at first glance, and I’m certainly not going to cut my hair just to make it easier for them.” The young alchemist passed a hand through his grey locks, looking almost protective of his hair.

Yu Xiang just shook his head in quiet amusement.

Shortly after, their food started to arrive, and instead of keeping up a conversation, they decided to just dig in while it was still hot.

Plate after plate of delicacies streamed towards them, each let off a tantalizing aroma that made their mouths water.

Steamed fish garnished with a lemony sauce, skewers of mushrooms and different cuts of meat, plump dumplings filled with a mixture of savory and spicy meats, and a whole fat duck stuffed with a filling that left a pleasantly fresh sensation on the two cultivators’ mouths.

These and more dishes were consumed by the duo, who by now was fully lost in their own little culinary heaven.

Unfortunately for them, it would not last.

Their early dinner was disturbed as a trickle of killing intent started to flow through the restaurant’s VIP hall.

Yu Xiang heard his long time friend sigh in exasperation, and he couldn’t help but agree with him. Couldn’t they at least relax for one evening?