Quinlan and Xiyadie walked along narrow alleys instead of taking the main path. It was mainly to avoid risking the chance of meeting with anyone from the Meng Household, or any of their acquaintances.
As expected, however, it took them longer to walk there compared to the main road. Despite all the hardship, they continued heading straight toward the North gate.
Hours passed, and they finally reached the district just before the gate. It should've been a distance that they could cover in an hour or so of walking, but taking detours took more time than they expected.
"Leaving early was the right decision." Quinlan sighed as he turned to Xiyadie whose forehead was covered in large beads of sweat. "Should we take another break?"
Another factor that delayed them was that Xiyadie's stamina wasn't as vast as Quinlan's. Although she should be at the 1st stage of Qi Refinement, she still has no idea how to properly use her Qi. Thus, she was getting tired a lot faster compared to Quinlan who was unconsciously using it.
"Haaa, haaa... We should be reaching the gate soon, Young Lady. Won't you tell me already who we're about to meet there?" Xiyadie, despite gasping for breath, asked Quinlan.
Of course, Quinlan didn't bother telling her. After all, he wasn't sure either. All he knew was that they should be able to meet Yinuo's previous master at the North gate if they waited there. In fact, Yinuo didn't bother explaining what her master looked like, saying that Quinlan would know who she was at a glance even without information.
After a few minutes of rest, Xiyadie finally caught her breath.
The two resumed their journey until they finally reached the end of the alley. About a hundred meters ahead of them was a stone wall standing over 5 meters high. Quinlan turned to look at the sky, checking the sun's position, and determined that it was a little before noon.
"Looks like we still made it in time."
The two walked toward the gate, passing the guards without getting checked at all. There's no procedure for checking those leaving the city on foot, only those who were about to enter were getting a thorough background check and all that.
The two of them continued forward without stopping until they reached a single plum blossom tree that was in full bloom. "What an out-of-season flower." Quinlan thought since it was currently mid-summer, and it was still blooming.
Of course, there's a reason why Quinlan stopped under the said tree. From what Yinuo said, her master should appear under the tree around noon, so she was noticed immediately out of coincidence.
"Xiyadie, let's rest here," Quinlan said as he laid a blanket under the tree, as if about to go on a picnic.
Xiyadie was thankful, finally able to properly rest. Furthermore, since the plum tree was in full bloom, the scenery surrounding it was breathtaking.
Quinlan placed down Xiyadie's baggage, along with his own, and sat down in a lotus position. Of course, this was to take the chance and cultivate, given that the surrounding of the Plum Tree was filled with Yin Qi for whatever reason.
The surrounding Qi began to gather around Quinlan and followed a refined path toward his lower Dantian. Seeing him cultivating, Xiyadie decided to join in, copying him and sitting down in a lotus position.
As soon as she closed her eyes, however, an amazing phenomenon happened once again.
"...!"
The Qi in the surroundings began to gather like dry leaves gathering to the center of a whirlpool. Quinlan had experienced this several times and was confident enough to declare that it was Xiyadie who was causing this weird phenomenon.
'I should ask Yinuo later if she knows of this,' Quinlan thought as he took advantage of Xiyadie gathering the Qi around.
Although the place they were in was rich in Yin Qi, it quickly ran dry. The two of them opened their eyes, breathing out a cold puff of cloud as they concluded their cultivation session.
"Oh, looks like you're finally done~!"
"...!"
But as soon as Quinlan opened his eyes, he noticed someone was crouching before him. It was a young woman who wore expensive-looking loose silk robes in the color of the waning moon.
Her hair was tied into a ponytail with a hairpin that could be categorized as a work of art. Her red eyes stared at Quinlan as her faint pinkish lips curved into a playful smile. What caught Quinlan's eyes the most, however, was the color of her hair. It was absolutely the same color as Yinuo's!
"Meeting you here must be fate." The woman muttered as she stood up, extending a hand as if to help Quinlan and Xiyadie to stand up.
"I'm Feng Yue Xianzi." She introduced herself plainly, before going straight to the point. "Both of you possess outstanding talent! What do you say about joining my sect?"
Quinlan quickly cupped his hands after hearing her name. After all, it matches the name he heard from Yinuo completely. He quickly greeted her with the utmost respect he could offer. "Greetings, elder. This one's name is Qui—, Meng Yinuo. It is an honor to join your sect!"
Xiyadie, reading the current situation, copied Quinlan and bowed respectfully.
Feng Yue Xianzi nodded her head in approval, her smile turning even wider than before. "Good, good. I like kids who know their manners! Then, follow me for now, as I still need to gather more disciple candidates from the city over there."
"Of course, Honorable Elder, Feng Yue Xianzi," Quinlan answered respectfully.
However, the woman smiled wryly, waving her hand casually. "Calling my full name is too long, right? Just call me Lady Moon casually. I specially permit you two to use my nickname."
Quinlan, for the third time, bowed his head as he responded. "It's an honor, Lady Moon."
After all, Yinuo did mention that her master was weak to compliments and submissive girls. Acting as he did probably earned him a few brownie points already. Xiyadie, on the other hand, was still confused about everything that was happening.