"Anyway, we should settle in a city adjacent to the Four Seasons Sect, for now, we should find some intelligence regarding the exam and if possible get recommendations."
Obviously, without acquaintances or connections, the only way to enter a high-class force is either to pass through legitimate ways or striking luck by being discovered through an expert.
Noire didn't rely much on luck so he chose the former.
"We can afford to rent an apartment building in the main city!" Ning'er intersected Noire's speech, "I have my mother's fortune after all... Hehe."
Yue didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Noire on the other hand just nodded his head before standing up. Through the information he obtained, Four Seasons Sect was at the center of the four regions in order to provide impartial service.
It would be unwise to favor one region over the other so the main city was built on the interlocking borders of each region, thus making it the most advanced city in terms of size and population.
"It'd take us about a week in the carriage to reach the boundaries of Four Seasons City, but the beasts escaped during the chaos earlier..." Ning'er gave a dejected sigh, "If we relied on our cultivation speed it'd take us at least a month if we ignore the complications of travel."
Yue shuddered at the mention of 'complications', she knew Noire only relied on his prowess back then as a desperate measure, and it's even less likely that he will repeat his actions again.
Noire on the other hand was calm and collected, he looked at Ning'er with a smile before saying,
"So we simply need to regain one of the beasts, right?"
"Yes...But they should be anywhere or everywhere in this large forest, how are you going to locate them?"
Her question wasn't baseless, even if he wanted to rely on spiritual awareness, he was only at Ether Realm, everyone knows Twilight Realm is the minimum requirement for spiritual awareness otherwise you're simply harming yourself.
"Don't worry," Noire didn't explain much but simply closed his eyes and entered a tranquil trance, as a Dragon, he had innate abilities to monitor movements of vitality around himself. He had already located the position of each escaping beast, but he needs to make it seem like he's actually making some effort or using a special technique.
Yue mused at this from the side, from Noire's actions, she concluded it was a right decision to not share any details about his background because he's now deliberately concealing it from Ning'er. This only made her feel more special and flourish some pride.
After a moment, Noire opened his eyes and pointed in one direction, "There's a Griffin about one hundred meters in that direction, what do you think, Ning'er?"
Her eyes kindled with a spark at Noire, she assumed he learned a special technique related to beast hunting, which was exactly what he desired, and she nodded her head enthusiastically at his inquiry.
"It should be perfect! Although the griffin won't be able to fly due to some complications during the grooming, it can use its wings to enhance speed, it should be a smooth ride if we embark without a carriage and ride the griffin directly."
"By the way! I take the seat in front of Senior Brother!" Ning'er didn't forget to add.
"Hey! Is there a limit to how shameless you could get?!" Yue decided to instantly protest.
"He's my Master! His lap should be my privilege-..." Yue's brain ran as fast as lightning as she thought about Noire's personality, before Ning'er could argue back, Yue corrected herself.
"Cough. I mean, I should be the adult here and not stain Sir Siyu's reputation. You can take his lap."
"..."
"..."
Both Ning'er and Noire were struck speechless. The former because she felt a sense of crisis as if she lost somehow, she can't believe that Yue, her rival, would give up out of charity. Noire on the other hand, Noire planned to run by the griffin's side in order to stretch his limbs in this new body, this was a body he invaded before transforming it to match his original body, thus he was itching for a ride...
- - - -
'I knew it! Ahhhhh! I'm definitely on the losing end of the bargain!' Ning'er complained repeatedly in her heart.
'Hehe, I'm smart!' On the other hand, Yue was celebrating to her heart's content.
"..."
Noire remained silent, he was definitely experiencing something 'new'...
The three were positioned on the same griffin, although Noire was sandwiched between Ning'er and Yue, the former sat on his lap as she navigated the griffin's directions, taking every chance to squash her plump peaches against Noire's crouch under the excuse of losing balance.
She hoped to entice him into making a move, alas, it was all one-sided. He held her thin waist, but that was the extent of it.
Yue was having a similar one-sided situation as she sat behind Noire, but she was at least content. Her large peaks melted into his broad frame as she hugged him tightly under the excuse of 'motion phobia', yet her expression was that of eternal bliss.
Noire didn't know how he should handle this situation, he never had a girlfriend, never even held hands in an intimate matter much less facing such a predicament.
'We didn't even start moving yet! Motion phobia my ass!' Ning'er thought with envy before she sighed out loud. Then, she reluctantly gave a telepathic order to the griffin for it to run at full speed towards the inter-joined borders.
- - - -
"Hahaha, I'm a genius!"
"Yes, Boss!" A group of about ten people praised a middle-aged man who wore a tank top shirt and black pants, his outfit outlined his ripped muscles that almost flashed through his fabric.
Currently, they were about ten kilometers away from the inter-joined border's peripheral boundaries.
"The Four Seasons disciple examination will start in a month, juniors will flock from all four regions, we simply had to distribute our gang in a way to intercept them! Hahaha!"
"Yes, boss! Now, those who reach us are exhausted from constantly fighting against our gang members, robbing them is easy as fuck!"
The gang members behind the 'boss' also laughed loudly. This was simply the easiest method towards becoming rich...