Opening the door to the shop, Long Di and Yaomu Shou were greeted by the entirety of their group, an over-excited and trembling shopkeeper, and a mountain of smoking darkness.

****

“So not only have I somehow not found Long Di and that stupid cat, but now Yaomu Shou has left me! Goodness, I hate my punishment!”

The person complaining at the moment was a loli with too much energy. Her curly grey hair was reminiscent of the storm clouds that plagued a forever restless sea.

As of now, annoyance reigned supreme in her features and she paced back and forth; not for the first time today.

It was a miracle the ground hadn’t eroded under the relentless abuse of her pattering march.

Staying here obediently wasn’t her style, and it didn’t help that no one in this godforsaken place spoke to her. Whether it was out of fear, respect or otherwise, she had no idea.

She was sure of one thing though, whatever position Yaomu Shou had in this place, it certainly wasn’t low.

The room she was staying in was indicative of that. It was larger, much larger than a guest room had a right to be.

It came furnished with the furniture and the necessities of a comfortable stay. The bed alone was lavishly large and the entire room was basking in a dark blue hue. A pleasant scent pervaded the room.

The room was located in a two-story guest house that Yaomu Shou had arranged for Mina to stay at while she was away.

{Mina? Mina… can you hear me?}

“Mingyun? Mingyun!? Is that you!?” Mina looked around in excitement, searching around for the one person she truly admired, Mingyun.

{You remember my name, I am truly thankful.}

“How could I forget your name!?” Mina beamed in joy. “You’re not like the rest of those stinky old men!”

{Mina, I don’t have much time. Find the site of fire, young one.}

“Where are you!? Can I come home!? Please!?”

{Listen to me. Help the boy. Retract what you gave to better arm yourself. Find him before the-}

“Mingyun? Lady Mingyun!?” the voice cut off and Mina didn’t know why, but she could sense an urgency within the voice of someone she never heard uncomposed.

Mingyun and Mina had an unusual relationship within the realm they resided. Mina was well aware of many of the elder gods presiding over her and many others.

However, that was as far as their relationship went. Though she had a feeling the elder gods paid more attention to than others, their relationship never went beyond that.

In fact, Mina wasn’t the only deity that governed the laws or directions of reincarnation. She was actually one of many goddesses or gods of reincarnation.

Her only job was to usher certain individuals to certain places. There were times, rare times, when a soul would appear before her, only to be whisked away by the elder gods for whatever reason.

She was never allowed to question the reason for these seizures and, as such, her days were bland and tasteless as they continued into perpetuity.

The only time this constant was broken was when she was visited by a particular elder goddess. She visited her much like the other gods, through divine intent. A form of communication used only by those worthy enough to do so.

Mina could tell she was at least an elder god, maybe one of the oldest there was. There was a feeling that accompanied the elder gods and none encompassed that feeling more than the one who made herself known to her.

She would talk to Mina every now and again to break the young goddess’s mundane pattern. Of course, this had to be initiated by Mingyun since Mina didn’t have the ability to start a communication of divine intent like the elder gods did.

This was why Mina was surprised when on the day she reincarnated Long Di, Mingyun started a conversation with the young goddess almost immediately after and offered her version of revenge for the young goddess in the form of childbirth for Long Di to experience.

Needless to say, Mina agreed almost instantly and allowed Mingyun to carry out the act. Of course, this ended up in Mina being caught not long after and set in motion a series of events that led her to be exiled to a lesser realm.

For all of these years that she resided in this cultivation world, she went through the motions in a sense, and she was never contacted by Mingyun throughout. This was the first time she was contacted by Mingyun since that day but Mina could tell that something was wrong, very wrong.

Going through the motions wasn’t the answer here and Mina now realised that something much bigger was taking place. So urgency wasn’t the case here and Mina needed to find Long Di, now more than ever.

Mina headed to the door of the room she was in with steps lined with something she didn’t have before, purpose.

She opened the door and was hit by a gentle breeze. The guest house was located in the middle of what could only be described as a garden.

There were neatly trimmed hedges that lined the boundary of the guest house and ornate and elegant topiaries that spoke volumes of the sculptor’s skills scattered all over.

A white marble fountain could be seen. The trickling of the water sounded serene and complemented the chirping of birds that fluttered about.

All in all, this place was a picturesque wonderland one would yearn to live out the rest of their lives.

“Lady Tempesta Mina? Do you need something?”

Mina turned her attention straight ahead where she saw a pair of armoured guards making their way up the cobblestone paved walkway that led to the guest house.

They were the guards stationed here. They were to make sure her needs were met as well as answer any questions she may have.

Mina shook her head. “No, I need to leave here. Can you help me?”

It was the guard’s turn to shake his head, “I’m sorry Lady Tempesta Mina, but we have been ordered to keep you safe and that includes not allowing you to leave the premises.”

By premise, he didn’t mean the boundary of the guest house. He meant the grounds of the entire structure that made up Yaomu Shou’s home, which was miles across in either direction.

However, this didn’t stop a frown from emerging on Mina’s face. “What, you’re not gonna let me go? So what, I’m trapped here now!?”

“Please don’t think of it that way, Lady Tempesta Mina!” The guard said with a lowered head. “We have express orders to make sure no harm befalls you. If you wish for anything at all, you can let us know and we’ll make sure your requirements are met. In addition, you have the freedom to peruse the estate.”

“So it’s being trapped with a pretty little bow on top,” Mina didn’t take well to hearing that her freedom was restricted in any way.

“Where’s Yaomu Shou!?” Mina shouted.

Hearing this, the guards’ expressions changed instantly, “Lady Tempesta Mina, I don’t know what relationship you have with the young miss, but I would warn you to watch your tongue!”

Though they were repeatedly told not to anger this particular guest, they couldn’t sit back and watch the apparent disregard afforded to their young miss.

Their respect for Yaomu Shou exceeded the norm, since she was among the scarce few who treated them well.

Unaware of this, Mina’s eyes narrowed at the guard’s tone, and she was about to reply when out of the blue, a powerful tremor shook the land.

“W-What’s going on!?”

“Lady Tempesta Mina, get inside!” Though the guards didn’t appreciate her earlier tone and casual way of addressing their young miss, they still wished to fulfil their duty to keep her safe.

The violent quake nearly ripped the ground from beneath them. Mina had to hold on to the door frame just to keep her balance.

It took a while for the shaking to weaken, but not before an indistinct location far off into the distance shone with a faint light.

“The benefactors of the ancestors!”

One guard said with an absent-minded, borderline worshipful expression.

“What happened?” Mina finally asked when she saw the shift in their behaviour.

“… Nothing,” one guard said after a while.

Though they were advised to answer her questions, some things were above their pay grade to even think about mentioning.

“You can’t expect me to believe that. The ground shook and I’m pretty su-”

“Nothing!” the other guard barked at her.

Mina’s temper flared up at being yelled at. She thought she had a pretty good handle on her anger but nearly everyone and everything in this cultivation world tested her.

Sure, Long Di passed the test with flying colours and should probably be the teacher but it didn’t mean that everyone else wasn’t doing their part.

She looked to the skies and thought to herself, ‘This is for you Lady Mingyun. Stay safe.’

Taking a deep breath, she faced the two guards once more. All anger was wiped from her face and she assumed a sacred mien.

Hong!

Mina’s entire aura changed as a soft glow enveloped her. A pressure, unlike anything the two guards ever felt before, radiated from her.

Both their expressions went blank as they stared at her.

They had never felt anything remotely similar to this before. Only their oldest ancestors came close and yet, it lacked the divine nature of the one before them.

All along, they thought Mina was someone who sought to climb up the legs of the Yaomu family. Getting close to the young miss was an impressive achievement, sure, but they couldn’t sense her cultivation and so attached little importance to her apart from being a distinguished guest of their young miss.

But then, what was this? This wasn’t the atmosphere or demeanour of some minor character. Who the hell was this woman?

Mina crossed her arms in annoyance as she stared at them. Seeing how they were still standing, she thought to herself, ‘my grace is weak because Long Di possesses so many blessings. Damn him!’

Putting this to the back of her mind, she stood before them draped in garbs of indifference, “tell me everything that just happened.”