Chapter 182: The White-haired Mage’s Witty Banter and the Peak Chief’s Ire. Behind the Temple Doors.

After Huo Zirou left, Yang Wei wasted no time and quickly prepared himself. He headed to the meeting place he and Guo Xiaomei had agreed upon the night before.

As soon as he arrived at the grove, he noticed something peculiar about the disciples from Green Sanctuary Peak that he hadn't picked up on before. They were all much more feminine and slender compared to others he had encountered. It might seem normal at first glance, but upon closer inspection, it was quite striking. Regardless of gender, they all had a delicate appearance.

Some of the males even seemed more feminine than the females, with a few of them sporting colored nail polish.

While he found it unsettling to see men behaving that way, Yang Wei refused to let it distract him.

"You'd think the men in this world would be preparing themselves to fight back, or at least aiming for some equality with the women. But no, they're just busy painting their nails and braiding their hair."

Shaking his head in disbelief, he hurried through one of the open paths in the peaceful grove.

As he passed by, all the cultivators wore happy expressions, some even had affectionate gleams in their eyes. Yang Wei didn't mind when beautiful women looked at him like that, but it was a bit much when even some male cultivators waved at him flirtatiously, mostly junior disciples.

"Eh?"

With his well-established reputation, every man wanted to be him, and every woman wanted to be with him, except for well... the few men who also wanted to be with him.

Before long, Yang Wei reached the deeper parts of the grove where Peak Chief Guo Xiaomei awaited him at the Sacred Grove Temple. This temple housed the Green Sanctuary Peak's most important artifacts, special-grade pills, herbs, and high-level medicinal manuals.

Guo Xiaomei was seated cross-legged on a bamboo mat just outside the temple entrance, wearing an indifferent expression.

"Sister Guo," Yang Wei greeted her with a wave as he approached.

As soon as Yang Wei stepped onto the temple grounds, Guo Xiaomei rose to her feet, though her expression remained indifferent.

It was clear she wasn't too thrilled to see him.

Yang Wei approached Guo Xiaomei with a smile. "You're here quite early," he remarked.

Guo Xiaomei didn't even bother to muster a friendly expression. Her face remained bland as she replied, "Seems like you enjoyed your sleep if you're coming this late." Without waiting for a response, she started walking into the temple, not bothering to see if he was following.

Grunting heavily with a clearly frustrated expression, Guo Xiaomei exclaimed, "Ugh! You're so unbelievable!" she increased their flight upwards until they arrived in a large space that felt like it had far greater gravity than the temple's lower reaches.

Upon arrival, Yang Wei immediately noticed a huge door at the other end of the space, emanating an aura protected by a powerful spell formation that could be the only cause of the multiplied gravity.

"Whatever's behind that door must be really important," Yang Wei commented plainly.

Guo Xiaomei cleared her throat. "Ahem, it only holds one object, one of the most important on this peak, and something very special to me," she explained with a more thoughtful voice that truly showed how important this mystery item was.

"I see," Yang Wei replied, smiling warmly. "If you're showing me, then I must be important to you too."

With with could only be called a pokerface, Guo Xiaomei shook her head. "Don't deceive yourself. If you plan to keep this up, we can turn back now and forget about this whole thing," she retorted.

Yang Wei gestured with his hands to calm her down. "Okay, okay, calm down. I was just joking," he reassured her.

"Hmph! As if I have the time for your bland jokes!" Guo Xiaomei stepped forward with a scoff.

Without warning, Yang Wei's golden slime emerged from the darker corners of the room, exclaiming, "Piidi! Piidi!" before jumping onto Yang Wei's face in its usual playful embrace.

Yang Wei chuckled and gently patted the slime until it let go. He had learned that the best way to remove the slime was through gentle pats. Previously, he had tried to scrape it off, but that only made it cling tighter. "What are you doing here?" he asked, amused.

The golden slime repeated, "Piidi! Piidi!"

Guo Xiaomei looked at them both and explained, "One of my disciples watched over it. I brought it with me to the temple and it decided to surprise you by waiting here till you arrived."

"Good? I guess..." Yang Wei raised an eyebrow.

"Whatever."

Guo Xiaomei turned to face the huge door that waited to be opened.