269 Rapid Progress

A few days passed and Mei had advanced to stage four qi gathering and was almost at stage five. Nomi had reached stage two body refinement, while loeri reached stage four, and Frey reached stage five of body refinement. With these new cultivation methods, everyone's strength was growing rapidly in a short time. Even their foundations were all solid which made Mei very happy. After a few days' rest, Mei had decided it was time to head back to the sect. She never planned to rest for so long but she wanted to take time to give everyone cultivation tips and make sure they were doing okay. She also led Nomi by the hand on his training schedule until he got used to it. 

"Okay, you three for the time being you will be on your own. I need to head back to the sect so Master Bai and Yu'er do not get worried. After I return, I will bring you three into the palace to look around. And grab a few techniques to learn." Mei had found that the library within the palace was filled with techniques from all the different worlds. She had even been using one called Dancing Lotus that used soft motions to overcome attacks. In other words, it used the opponent's force as a means of dodging. It fit perfectly with her ability to use the law of wind and the Thousand Piercing Lotus Blossom technique. She felt now that even if she encountered someone of a higher realm she could at least escape without needing to use magic.

Mei finally arrived back at the sect. When she returned she got an ear full from both Tang Yu and Bai Hong for taking too long to return. Bai Hong already knew about the others in Mei's space so when two more people besides Frey appeared out of nowhere, Bai Hong did not ask anything about it and only helped answer some questions about cultivation. He was stunned to see how fast the group cultivated. This made him feel that every one of Mei's companions were talents that most would never be able to see! He couldn't help but sigh at his lack of ability. He was still stuck at a wall in his own cultivation.

As time went on, days turned into weeks, and weeks turned into months. Finally, two years had passed, Mei was now in the Core Formation realm. In these two years, she had constantly been refining herself and cultivating nonstop with her main goal of returning home in mind. She worked hard and almost died many times. But she pulled through and survived. She was now fifteen years of age. But her body had not grown in the slightest. It was not just her. Frey, Loeri, and Nomi also have not grown. It was as if time had frozen for the four of them. But on this day she was going to be setting out on a journey. She was finally powerful enough to begin her journey to search the region she was in for the metal box to send her back to her home. Tang Yu would also be joining her on this endeavor. 

Currently, she was standing on a mountain cliff with Frey sitting on her shoulder, Loeri standing at her right, and Tang Yu at her left. Standing off to the side was Nomi as he gazed over the horizon with everyone else. Each one of them was now in the foundation establishment realm. They had worked hard and had stayed a realm behind Mei. Besides their cultivation, the only difference between them all was that Tang Yu now looked like the older sister. She was now fourteen and was starting to turn into a beautiful young woman. 

"Remember the forest we are about to enter is one of the worst for this region. But we still have to check the area out after hearing reports of a strange object in the middle of the forest. So keep on your toes." Mei said as she looked at everyone.

"Are you sure that information is reliable? I mean it came from that drunk old man at the bar." Tang Yu asked.

"I already sent Tang Chin to scout out the area a few days ago. We will know by nightfall if our trip was in vain or not. Let's camp here for tonite." Mei said as she waved her hand and a bunch of camping supplies appeared in front of them.

Normally Mei would just have them all go into her space but she decided this trip they would all get used to sleeping outdoors as well. After setting up camp and eating some food Tang Chin finally returned from his investigation. "Young Miss Mei, there is indeed something in the middle of this forest and it seems to be untouched. It seems to be an ancient city of some kind."

"Okay, I will check it out then. Thank you." Mei said with a smile. Tang Chin nodded his head and disappeared.

The next morning Mei and her group set out. The area was filled with demonic beasts so as soon as they entered the forest they were already met with a few rank five demonic beasts. But she did not kill it herself she let the others take charge of the fight. This was so that they could gain experience. 

"Older Sister to your right!" Nomi shouted.

"On it Brother!" Frey shouted back. The two had been working quite well together and their bond as brother and sister grew rapidly. Even when they fought it was just like real brother and sister. Unfortunately for Nomi these fights usually ended in his loss because Frey liked to throw a few punches. But normally they did not fight. 

Frey with her small sword in hand swung it a few times creating a small net of sword rays that shot towards the demonic beasts. She may be small but the sword rays she produced were no different in size than that Tang Yu or the others could produce. When she first started wielding a sword, she could only produce small sword rays but after a while and lots of practice, she was finally able to produce sword rays that she could use in battle without holding anyone back. The sword she was using was something that Master Bai forged for her since there were no fairy sized weapons in the lower plane. 

The demonic beasts hit by Frey's sword rays instantly died. The demonic beast that Nomi was fighting also died at his hands as well. The two stopped and looked over to see that Tang Yu and Loeri had also finished their fights. Mei looked at the group and was very happy with how strong they had all become. She knew now that Frey and Loeri could walk around the Alastine kingdom without any worries by themselves. Especially since not only were they cultivators but their magic was also very powerful. 

Fight after fight, they made their way through the forest. Hundreds of Demonic beasts had already died at their hands. But they still kept coming in packs. When Mei saw that they needed help she would join in the fight to help out. Otherwise, the fighting was done by those four. 

After two days and two nights Mei and her group finally reached the center of the forest. But what they saw stunned them...

***

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