Maria ended up falling asleep in Mira's arms which surprised Mira a bit since she didn't expect Maria to get so emotional. Mira could only shrug her shoulders and carry Maria to her bed so she can rest properly.
After Mira laid Maria down on her bed she walked towards the door, but right before she left she turned around and looked at the sleeping Maria with softened eyes. However, that disappeared almost instantly before they turned ice-cold again and her face hardened while leaving the room.
Only Mira knew what she was thinking…
The next morning, Maria woke up and looked around confused. She didn't remember falling asleep yesterday. She thought about the last thing she remembered and felt her face turn red in embarrassment but she had a slight smile on her face.
"Kya~ I actually fell asleep in Mira's embrace! I bet she even princess carried me to my bed! Hehehe~ So dreamy~ I wonder if she gave me a goodnight kiss? No no no! Mira would never do something so brazen! Oh well, I guess I'll have to settle with the princess carry for now."
Maria hid her face under her sheets just thinking about something so lewd…
What a hopeless girl…
That's when she remembered that they were supposed to be leaving today so she quickly put her 'lewd' thoughts to the back of her mind and started gathering her stuff. Not! All of her stuff is already in her storage ring.
The only thing she needed to grab was Vulcan, so that's what she did. She scooped up the little fox while he was sleeping, but even after being picked up, he didn't open his eyes. Maria was already used to this by now so she didn't pay any more attention to him and walked out of her room.
Out in the middle of her residence, she saw Mira holding Rhydian by the scruff on her neck with a somewhat annoyed look on her face.
It didn't take a genius to know that Mira was quite annoyed that Rhydian was still sleeping. She's been sleeping for almost 6 months after all!
"You ready to go, Mira? Because I know I am! I'm ready to break through to the Core Formation Realm!"
Mira gave a slight nod and didn't say anything else. She took out her mask and put it on her face to prevent any unwanted trouble from popping up when she leaves the Sect.
Maria knew why Mira put on the mask, but she still felt a little disappointed that she won't have any eye candy during their trip.
"I'm already missing your beautiful face, Mira. You need to hurry up and become invincible so I can have my eye candy back! Or maybe I should become invincible so I can prevent others from looking at you."
Maria had a thoughtful expression on her face when she said that. Mira didn't feel the need to comment on that.
"It's time to leave."
Mira was already halfway out of the residence when she said that causing Maria to awaken from her thoughts.
"Coming!"
Outside of their residence, the two of them saw Celaine waiting with her eyes closed. She sensed 2 people approaching and opened her eyes only to see Mira and Maria.
"It's about time you two came out. Anyways, I guess it's time to go?"
Mira and Maria nodded and the three of them started walking toward Sect Master Jane's office to say goodbye.
It didn't take long before they stood in front of her door.
Knock Knock
"Come in!"
The trio walked in and saw Sect Master Jane doing what looked like paperwork. The Sect Master looked up and was a bit surprised to see the three of them, but then she let out a wry smile as she guessed what they were here for.
"I guess this is goodbye, huh?"
Maria and Celaine were a bit surprised, but Mira was expecting this. Sect Master Jane was an intelligent person after all.
"Yes, it's time for us to leave. We have important business to take care of before leaving to go to the Main Battle Maiden Sect."
Mira explained briefly, but her words caused Sect Master Jane's eyes to shine a bit. Even though she might not know Mira that well, she knows that Mira isn't someone to exaggerate. So if she says that something is important then it must mean that whatever she has planned will greatly affect her future…
Future…
'All three of them are at the Peak of the Foundation Realm… Ah!"
"You three must have something special planned for your breakthrough into the Core Formation Realm, huh?"
Once she said that even Mira was a bit surprised that she could guess that based on a single sentence, but Mira wasn't an idiot either and was able to gather some clues based on her words.
"I guess you already know that breaking through to the Core Formation Realm isn't as simple as gathering Qi. Though it makes sense, you are a Sect Master that's tied to one of the largest Sects on the Continent even if this one is only a Branch Sect."
Sect Master Jane smiled as she really enjoyed talking with intelligent people like Mira.
"Yes, though it's not as much as you might think. This kind of knowledge is generally withheld from the public as only major Clans, Families, and Sects are privy to it. I'm sure you can understand why."
"Of course. How else can those Clans, Families, and Sects maintain their superiority if something as important as this is known to the public? Not only can they monopolize the resources needed to form specific Cores, but they can use this knowledge to gain followers if used correctly."
"Hahaha! That's right! However, that's not to say that this knowledge isn't known to the public because people aren't that stupid. In fact, you can buy this kind of knowledge for the right price, but you definitely won't get anything spectacular. What these big Clans and Families have done is release the theoretical knowledge for breaking through to the Core Formation Realm rather than directly giving away the formula to form a certain Core."
"So that's the case. With only that kind of knowledge, people are more likely to form trash cores rather than something extraordinary. Though I'm sure they've tampered with the theoretical knowledge ever so slightly as a preventative measure."
"Yes! It's so nice to talk to smart people! I'll tell you what I know about the Core Formation Realm, but take my words with a grain of salt. Who knows if what I'm saying is actually the truth. All I know is that the Formation of someone's Core can greatly affect a cultivator's future. You don't necessarily need external resources to form a fantastic Core and neither do external resources guarantee that you'll get a fantastic Core. There is essentially an infinite number of options when it comes to what Core you'll form and if you have the right resources then the chances of you creating a Core that's better than what you would've originally created is higher."
'But! If you are already talented and you want to improve on that talent then it might not necessarily be worth it to use external resources to help create your Core. You might be doing more harm than good if you don't find good enough stuff to use. That's really all I can tell you. If you want to know more, then you'll have to gather this information by yourselves."
Sect Master Jane explained and the trio all had thoughtful expressions on their faces. All three of them could be considered talents. Maybe not geniuses or supreme geniuses but they are definitely top-tier talents when it comes to cultivating.
All three of them had unique bloodlines, strong bodies, and have made great strides in their Dao comprehension. Their cultivation is neither quick nor slow, but they all have perfect Foundations or maybe even beyond that.
Mira also has a unique Physique and a bond with two mythical beasts. So although they may not be supreme geniuses when it comes to strictly their cultivation, their potential is extraordinarily high.
And if what Sect Master Jane is saying is true, then they might need some very unique resources to improve their Core, but who knows. Maybe if they were to form a Core right now then it would be incredibly ordinary despite their potential.
All three of them groaned when they came to this conclusion since they are basically forced to do their own research, find unique materials, and have a bit of luck to create something that may or may not be better than a Core they would have formed without any help.
"Haha! Don't think too much about it. As I said, my knowledge of this subject is very limited and I only happened upon this knowledge by chance. Although the source I heard it from might not be entirely credible, the uniqueness of the Core Formation Realm is entirely real. I'm sure you three will figure it out."
The three of them nodded and decided to put this information in the back of their heads. First, they have to do some research on their own.
"Well, I won't keep you guys here any longer since you'll need all the time you can get if this is what you're planning on doing. Be safe out there and if you are ever in the area then come visit me. I'd love to see how you guys are doing and how far you've progressed."
Mira nodded and nobody could tell what she was thinking underneath her mask. Celaine also just nodded but she had a somewhat sad expression on her face. Meanwhile, Maria…
"I'll miss you, Sect Master! We'll definitely come to see you if we are ever in the area! Hopefully, you aren't dead by then! Try not to stress yourself out too much or you'll die early!"
"What?! You haven't even left yet and you're already killing me off?! I'll have you know I'm still in the prime of my life! I'll definitely outlive you three brats! Get out!"
"Hehehe~ Look! Your face is already turning red even though I just told you to take it easy! At this rate, you'll definitely die in just a few years. Please take better care of your health, Sect Master!"
"You!! Get out! How could I have accepted such a shameless disciple into my Sect?! Hopefully, the Main Sect will be able to teach you some manners! Ugh!"
"Oh no! Sect Master, your face is turning purple now! You need to breathe! Breathe! Help! Somebody help! The Sect Master is trying to suffocate herself to death! Don't worry Sect Master, I'll definitely go find you some help! Come on Mira, Celaine, let's go!"
"Fuck!! GET OUT!! *Splurt*"
The Sect Master spat out a mouthful of blood due to rage as the trio left her office. The only thing she heard after was Maria's laughter as the three of them ran away.
The trio plus Rhydian and Vulcan soon made their way out of the Sect with Mira and Celaine shaking their heads at Maria's behavior. The two of them have really tried to get Maria to stop doing things like that, but instead of becoming less shameless, she's only gotten worse.
When they reached the entrance of the Sect, Maria turned around and bowed slightly before pumping her fist in the air and announcing:
"Time to start our next adventure!"
