Her senior brother, Tarot, had mostly recovered by then. When he heard she was returning home, he brought out a pitch-black bead.

  “This contains a secret dark spiritual technique I’ve sealed myself. If you ever run into danger you can’t handle, use it. It’ll teleport you three thousand miles instantly.”

  Lauren’s eyes widened. “That’s… way better than a Thousand Mile Talisman.”

  The Thousand Mile Talisman was a fourth-grade functional talisman—expensive as hell, with a long cooldown. And against high-level cultivators, it wasn’t much use anyway.

  But this? This could actually save her life.

  She smiled. “This is really amazing. Senior Brother, you—”

  Tarot didn’t even let her finish. “Don’t ask. I don’t have another one.”

  He said it so fast she almost laughed.

  “It’s a pain in the ass to make, and only use it to save lives, alright?”

  Lauren chuckled softly. “Understood. Thank you, Senior Brother.”

  Tarot waved her off. “Yeah, yeah. Just remember to bring me back something local.”

  Lauren’s expression stiffened.

  Local specialties?

  Her hometown was full of pig farmers. The only “specialty” they had was bacon. Was she supposed to bring him back two slabs of smoked meat as a gift?

  She decided to pretend she hadn’t heard that part.

  “Oh, by the way, Senior Brother,” she asked instead, “do you have anything that can change appearances?”

  Tarot thought about it. “No, but the Fading Pill can blur people’s memories of your face. It’s not perfect, but it works on ordinary folk.”

  Lauren sighed. “That might fool mortals, but against a high-level cultivator, I’d be caught instantly.”

  Tarot nodded in agreement. “True. Are you still worried about the Moonlit Sect?”

  “Ah! Yeah.”

  “You’re overthinking it,” Tarot said with a shrug. “Master already handled it. That issue’s over. Herbert’s not stupid enough to challenge Master over a boundary marker.”

  “I’m not worried about him,” Lauren said with a faint smile. “There’s a saying: It’s easy to meet the King of Hell, but the little devils are harder to deal with.”

  Reincarnation wasn’t a walk in the park. If she wanted to survive this second life, she couldn’t afford to leave anything to chance.

  “That’s called a Magical Pearl.”

  “Magical Pearl?”

  “Mm. It forms inside the body of a high-level demon fox—one skilled in illusion.”

  Lauren frowned. “How high-level are we talking?”

  “At least level seven.”

  Her heart sank. Level seven? A demon beast of that rank was equivalent to a human cultivator in the Spirit Transformation stage—and often stronger. A demon’s raw power outstripped any human of the same realm.

  “That’s too much. Forget it. I’ll just use a Fading Pill,” she muttered.

  Tarot raised an eyebrow. “I know where one is.”

  Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

  Lauren’s eyes lit up. “Where?”

  “Back in the day,” he began with a grimace, “there was a damn fox demon who tried to seduce Master. She disguised herself as one of his acquaintances, snuck onto Starfell Summit, and when that failed, she actually kidnapped me to threaten him. That bitch…” He clenched his jaw. “Master lost his patience and killed her himself.”

  Lauren stared at him, utterly stunned. She really didn’t want to imagine that scene. “…So Master has the Magical Pearl?”

  Tarot nodded. “Of course. You can just ask him for it.”

  Lauren hesitated, a faint crease forming between her brows. “That’s such a rare treasure. I can’t just take something like that.”

  “What’s the point of it collecting dust?” Tarot said. “Master doesn’t need it. With his cultivation level, who would dare even look him in the eye, let alone need to hide his face?”

  Lauren waved dismissively. “Forget it. I’ll make do with the Fading Pill. Anyway, I’m heading out, Senior Brother. See you later.”

  Tarot watched her go, sighing quietly. He thought she was just being cautious, maybe even overly so—but when he glanced at the sky, a strange thought crossed his mind.

  Even someone like their Master had to hide from whatever was up there.

  Could it be that their junior sister already knew something—that she was someone beyond the heavens’ reach? And she knew it?

  If that was true, she should’ve taken the Magical Pearl with her.

  ......

  Lauren didn’t go straight to meet Nash after leaving Starfell Summit. First, she made a stop at the market to sell off a batch of her second-grade talismans. With the profit, she bought a variety of elixirs—mostly Qi Condensation Pills and Spirit Gathering Pills—along with five Dust-Reducing Pills.

  Combined with the Dan-Jie Fruit she already had, it should be enough to help her grandfather break through to the Core Formation stage as soon as possible.

  Once that was done, she headed to the Mission Hall.

  The clerk’s face lit up as soon as she walked in. “Ah, Ms. Lauren! Back again? What are you after this time?”

  Lauren smiled faintly. “Information. Do you have any?”

  “Of course! Depends on what kind of news you want.”

  “I’m looking for updates on Indiana—the disciple of Immortal Venerable Herbert from the Moonlit Sect. Has she formed her core yet?”

  Disciples of the major sects were always recorded on the sect achievement rolls, and such advancements rarely went unannounced. Besides, after what had happened in the Hidden Mist Secret Realm, the Moonlit Sect definitely knew she was Drake’s apprentice.

  Elder Zane went to check, then returned a few minutes later. “She hasn’t formed her core yet.”

  Lauren blinked. “What? She hasn’t?”

  “Word is, she was badly injured when she returned from the secret realm. She’s been recuperating ever since. Forming a core is no small matter—she’ll wait until she’s fully recovered before attempting it.”

  Lauren frowned in thought. So the timeline had shifted again.

  Fine. That just meant she’d have to delay her next move a little.

  There was still time.

  Sooner or later, she’d find the right moment to strike—and when she did, Indiana wouldn’t see it coming.

  “Check on Timothy for me again.”

  Elder Zane flipped through the glowing jade slips stacked before him, then nodded. “He’s already reached the Core Formation stage. Last reports have him training somewhere in the northern region.”

  So Timothy’s location hadn’t changed.

  “Keep watching her movements,” Lauren said, her tone cool but deliberate. “Send me word the moment you hear anything.”

  She handed him a sound transmission talisman—and a high-grade spirit stone.

  Elder Zane’s eyes went wide. He immediately waved his hands. “No, no, Ms. Lauren, that’s far too much! Information like this is worth a low-grade spirit stone at most.”

  Lauren smiled faintly. “It’s fine. Keep it.”

  You couldn’t catch a wolf without sacrificing a lamb. Giving him a low-grade spirit stone wouldn’t motivate him nearly as well as a high-grade one. If you wanted someone to do their job properly, you paid them like it mattered.

  Once her errands were settled, she went to find Nash.

  She wanted to buy a protective formation from him before heading home.

  “Ms. Lauren, you’re finally here!” Nash called, his face lighting up as she approached. “What took you so long? I’ve been waiting for two hours!”

  Lauren gave him an apologetic smile. “Sorry, I had a lot to pack. I’m heading home soon.”

  “Huh? You’re going home?”

  “Yeah. It’s been years since I left. My family was so worried when they sent me off—I should go back and let them know I’m alive and well.”

  Nash’s grin faltered. “It must be nice… having a home. Unlike me, an orphan—there’s nowhere for me to return to.”

  Lauren’s expression softened, a hint of guilt flickering in her eyes. “Nash… I didn’t mean to bring up something painful.”

  He waved a hand quickly, smiling again though it didn’t quite reach his eyes. “No, no, it’s fine. I’m happy for you, really. Going home is a good thing. I’m the one who made things awkward.”

  Lauren chuckled lightly. “Actually, I came to ask a favor.”

  Nash perked up instantly, thumping his chest. “Say the word! I’ll go through fire and water if I have to.”

  “I want to buy a defensive formation—one that can withstand a full-force strike from an early-stage Nascent Soul cultivator.”

  Nash blinked. “Whoa, that’s... intense. Defenses strong enough to handle a Core Formation cultivator are common, but Nascent Soul?” He rubbed his chin. “That’ll cost you. You’ll need Formation Masters to install it—probably seven or eight hundred thousand low-grade spirit stones, minimum.”

  Lauren didn’t even flinch. “That’s fine. If I run short, I’ll just shamelessly ask my master for more.”

  Nash burst out laughing and gave her a thumbs-up. “That’s the spirit. Only a true second-generation immortal can say that with a straight face.”