After letting Yuan know that she will gather the disciples tomorrow for his performance, Song Ling'er left the place.
"We have some time until tomorrow, so why don't you tell me a little about your adventure?" Yuan then asked the three ladies in the room.
"It honestly wasn't that exciting, as we'd spent most of our time wandering and killing magical beasts so that Lan Yingying could consume them." Feng Yuxiang said.
"That's fine. Even if it's boring, I want to hear all of it." Yuan said with a calm smile on his face.
Lan Yingying nodded, and she proceeded to recall their adventure with Yuan, which took up the rest of the day.
"I'm glad that nobody was hurt," Yuan said to them after hearing their story, as they'd encountered a few dangerous-sounding situations.
Of course, even though it sounded like they were in danger, the truth was anything but that, as they were all peak experts of this world, and with a Spirit King like Xiao Hua with them, it was impossible to get hurt even if they want to get hurt.
"What about you, Young Master? That is if you don't mind sharing." Feng Yuxiang asked him out of curiosity.
"Well, I had to fight a demon and was nearly killed," Yuan said with a bittersweet smile on his face.
"WHAT?!" Feng Yuxiang exclaimed in a shocked voice.
"D-Demon?! A real demon?!" Even Lan Yingying was startled by the news.
"Yes, a real demon."
"But how is that possible? I thought they only existed in the Mystic Realm…" Feng Yuxiang mumbled in a low voice.
"It was a sealed demon that had broken out of its seal after being sealed for many years," he sighed.
"Is this demon the reason why you're sad, Brother Yuan?" Xiao Hua suddenly asked him.
Even though he appears to be fine, Xiao Hua could tell that he was experiencing sorrow from his aura after staying with him for so long.
"Yes, this demon killed a precious friend of mine because I was too weak to defeat it."
"Too weak…?" Lan Yingying was in disbelief.
She had personally witnessed him fighting and defeating the Demon Lord that is at the Spirit Lord realm. If even he cannot defeat this demon, it must have been at least Spirit King!
Unbeknownst to Lan Yingying, the demon was only a peak Spirit Master. However, due to Yuan's situation and lower cultivation base, it was not something he could defeat at that moment. If it weren't for the Divine Paragon, Yuan would've definitely died on that day.
"I'm sorry you had to go through that, Young Master…" Feng Yuxiang said to him.
"Why are you apologizing?" Yuan smiled, and he continued, "I can only blame myself for being too weak, and I made a promise to myself that I will never make the same mistake again."
"If you need any help, just let us know, Young Master! I have plenty of treasures that can assist your cultivation!"
"Then I would like to temper my body whenever I am free. Just make sure you don't put that weird stuff inside this time…" Yuan said, as he could still recall what happened last time very clearly.
"I-I understand." Feng Yuxiang nodded with a bashful smile.
Sometime later, Yuan logged off the game to eat dinner with the others.
"I have managed to reunite with Feng Feng and the others," Yuan told Meixiu during dinner.
"How are they doing?"
"They're doing great."
"Who's Feng Feng?" Chu Liuxiang asked them afterward.
"They are our companions in Cultivation Online. We travel together as a group." Yuan explained.
"I see…"
"Speaking of Cultivation Online, do you want to play with us?" Yuan asked Chu Liuxiang.
"Honestly, I am not a big fan of that game. Although I admire their amazing world, it's too much work. I don't want to cultivate again from scratch, especially since I am already a Spirit Master in real life." Chu Liuxiang shrugged.
"However, if you want me to play with you, I won't refuse."
"Well, I am planning on challenging the Stairway to Heaven very soon so that I can ascend to the next world. I can take a few people with me, but once I leave the Lower Heavens, it will be very hard for me to return."
Chu Liuxiang pondered for a moment before nodding her head, "Okay, I will come with you."
"What about you, Meixiu? You're also coming, right?"
"Yes." She quickly nodded.
There was no way that she'd accept getting left behind while Chu Lixuiang follows him to the upper heavens.
After dinner, instead of going to sleep or cultivating like usual, Yuan returned to Cultivation Online.
"Feng Feng, I'd like to start tempering my body now if you don't mind," Yuan said.
"Of course! I have already prepared all the necessary treasures for you."
"Great."
Yuan then entered the bathroom with Feng Yuxiang.
After filling the large bathtub with hot water, Feng Yuxiang tossed a few treasures into the water, and it appeared to be less than what she used last time.
"Although there is less medicine this time, the effects are actually a little stronger than previously, so you'll experience a little more pain."
"That's perfectly fine." Yuan nodded.
"I will be waiting for you outside, Young Master." Feng Yuxiang then took a moment to make sure everything was done properly before leaving the bathroom to Yuan.
Once he was alone, Yuan removed his clothes and entered the bathtub.
He began absorbing the medicine shortly after.
"Ah! This is pain is a hundred times worse than the medicine bath I got at the Jaded Garden!" Yuan exclaimed, feeling intense pain all over his body.
While the pain wasn't that much higher than his last tempering in Cultivation Online, because it has been a while since he did it, he was no longer adapted to the pain.
After spending a few gruesome hours absorbing the medicine and enduring the pain that came from it, Yuan managed to breakthrough to the fourth level Spirit Grandmaster.
<+28,000 Stats>