Rumors about Yasenia quickly spread throughout the entire sect. Those who had gone to her classes were full of praise not only for Yasenia’s appearance but also for the content of her classes. 

When they went inside the tower, they were quite arrogant. Most of them thought that they’d easily manage to climb up to their corresponding level. Only when they tried for the first time did they realize just how big a challenge climbing the tower was. Those in the Unification realm barely managed to reach the third floor, while the ones in the Mental Nourishing realm were having trouble on the second floor. 

After they left, Star Forge looked at Yasenia with a complicated look. Then, she asked. “Do you think you can create one of those for Sixth Realm cultivators? Your energy control is honestly sublime, to the point that even I admire it.”

“I can’t.” Yasenia smiled. “As I explained to you before, I need time to get used to my realm. I’ve been quite busy since I reached the Sixth Realm, so I never really had a chance to go into a long, closed-door cultivation session.”  

“Right.” Those words made Star Forge feel a bit guilty. “Now with this new responsibility, you won’t be able to go into a retreat for a while.” 

“Not necessarily.” The dragoness smirked. “Once the children understand how to get better, I can probably stop giving classes as often and just let them train alone.” 

“Hm…” A frown etched on her face. “Do you think that’s a good idea? There are some disciples that have a hard time if you are not behind them.”

“So?” The dragoness shrugged. “That’s their problem. Will they have someone to grab their hand for the rest of their lives? When they fall into a tricky situation because they lack strength, will you be there to save those children?” 

She turned around and walked into the building, her tail and waist gently swaying from side to side. “I believe in the rule of the fittest. Some will fail along the way, and others will use their bodies as stepping stones to reach higher. We, as teachers, just need to make sure that those ahead keep their focus and that those who fall behind have their determination to improve fueled by those who passed them.” 

Star Forge glanced at her back and crossed her arms, thoughtful. “I wonder what has pushed her to be so firm in her views. Also, she really doesn’t take it easy on herself. I haven’t seen her rest and just lie back since she arrived.” 

Meanwhile, Yasenia entered the tower and quickly reached the fifth floor. Once there, she walked to the back of the stone room filled with formations and placed her hand against the wall. The wall trembled for a second before it started moving, revealing a hidden room.

The room had a red floor, white walls, and furniture. The bed was wide enough for four people to sleep together and was placed against the wall in front of the door. Two doors were visible to her left and right. Yasenia walked toward the left room and entered it. “Let’s practice some cooking~.”

This room was the kitchen Andrea prepared for her before she left. She had set it up to her liking, and now she could easily practice and cook in here. Naturally, she understood that she had other priorities, so her coming to the kitchen was to cook something for herself. 

It took around forty minutes before a delicious-looking stew was plated and ready to eat. After calmly sitting down, she ate the very large bowl and leaned against the chair with her eyes closed. 

“This [Mind Sharpening Deep Whale Stew] has quite strong effects. It was not a mistake to take time to prepare it.”  

If Alchemy was the king of long-term effects, Spirit Cooking was the best profession to give people temporary boosts. These boosts were powerful, with a time limit, and since they came from foods, they didn’t harm the body. It was like taking a berserk pill, but much gentler to the body. 

Yasenia stood up from her dining table and walked to the room on the right. When she opened the door, a small cloud of steam came out and enveloped her figure. Together with that mist, Yasenia’s clothes disappeared. 

After a few steps, Yasenia stood in front of a large, white, milky bath bubbling with heat. Looking at it, her face couldn’t help but twitch. “This will be my first proper refinement since I’ve reached the Sixth Realm.”

Before reaching Transcendence, Yasenia had pushed her body and soul to the limits mortal physiques could reach. Now that she had crossed over, her limits had expanded far beyond her comprehension. So, she decided to do a body-soul-refining bath. Looking at the bubbling white liquid, Yasenia groaned. “This is going to hurt to the high heavens…”

Taking a deep breath, the dragoness’s golden eyes became resolute, and she took a step forward. The tip of her rounded toes touched the milky water and then sank. Instantly, Yasenia felt as if a hundred needles had pierced her skin and lodged into her foot. Her face paled slightly, but her expression remained unchanged. 

Steeling her resolve, Yasenia took another step forward and quickly submerged her body in the water, her head included. When the top of her head was submerged, Yasenia’s eyes flashed white as her entire body wailed in agonizing pain. “Rgghhh!”

Her teeth clenched as she tried to sit cross-legged. However, even with her improved will, the pain was just too much to stay still and meditate. The feeling was like constantly being flayed, rubbing salt on the wound, and then being stabbed by burning hot nails. 

Her face was as pale as a sheet of paper as she trembled in agony, curling down to try her best to bear the torment she was inflicting on herself. As she purified her body, impurities left behind from the transformation slowly started peeling off Yasenia. The process would not occur in just a few hours, as Yasenia would need almost daily baths for at least a few months. 

Despite that, Yasenia didn’t complain and just bit down, gritting her teeth to endure. The food’s effects were helping her enough not to make it unbearable. 

Slowly, the milky white pool water began to change colors. A deep black grime was purified from Yasenia’s body, and soon, the white water had become a dark grey color. Yasenia stopped trembling as the effects of the refinement process wore off, and with it, the pain. She swam up from the deep pool and jumped out of the dirty pool water. 

Once outside, Yasenia stumbled and fell to one of her knees. Soluna appeared by her side with a worried expression and quickly summoned a basin of clean water. “Why…” Soluna opened her mouth, but then she closed it. She wanted to ask why go to such lengths, but she felt that it was a silly question. Wasn’t she working like this for them? Since the very beginning, Yasenia had not enjoyed her advantages; instead, she tried to squeeze every single drop out of them to add it as her own strength. 

Yasenia panted for a little while, and hearing Soluna’s mutter, she smiled and chuckled. “Because I need to. Nothing more, nothing less. I just became an immortal, so now it is not time to relax. I need to build upon my already solid foundation. Each step I take must be solid, firm, and steady. Only that way will I ever be able to be ahead of whatever Heaven throws at me.” 

Soluna didn’t say anything and worked silently to clean Yasenia’s body. The dragoness didn’t complain and leaned on her with a smile. The spirit teased. “Hey, aren’t you afraid of dirtying my clothes?”

“Oh~?” Yasenia laughed, kissing Soluna’s temple. “Now I am too dirty even for my cute spirit? I never thought that my cute girl would think of me as such! I am very disappointed.”

Soluna laughed and hugged Yasenia. They were clean already, and the only thing left to get rid of was the dirty water. Yasenia thought for a bit and puffed out a breath, creating a golden sea of flames. The flames consumed the dirty water, evaporating all the impurities that Yasenia’s body expelled. 

Seeing the cloud getting sucked away by the formations in the ceiling, the dragoness hummed. “I didn’t expect my body to have so many impurities… Where did they come from? I just broke through, so there shouldn’t be any, right?”

“You are wrong there,” Soluna said while sitting on Yasenia’s lap. “Not having impurities in your realm means much more than you think. It is like trying to become as pure as a Spirit. The bath you are using now would’ve killed your mortal self because the entirety of your mortal body would’ve been considered something to purify by its standards.”

“Oh.” The dragoness muttered. “That’s great to hear, I guess.” The materials she needed for the baths were growing in her spatial ring so that she wouldn’t lack them. 

After that, Yasenia carried Soluna to the bed and hugged her while starting to meditate. “I’ll try to start comprehending my Intent Domain. I think that’s a bigger priority than I expected. I’ll enter the [Primordial Palace], so if I lose my sense of time, please tell me.”

“Oh?” Soluna asked, curious. “You will use it as help? I didn’t think you would.”

The dragoness chuckled. “Previously, I had the time and energy to learn things by myself. Now, the only thing I need to do is get stronger. At least the point is that I can flee comfortably if things get nasty. With an Intent Domain, I’ll be able to defend myself much easier.”

The dragoness muttered. “I still remember that sensation when becoming one with the Celestial Pearl. The sense of omniscience around me, the ability to use all the energy around me as if it were an extension of my own body.”

The dragoness first tackled the Monarch Intent. Among all her Intents, this one was the one that she understood the most in terms of concepts. Monarch Intent was something that extended to her entire being and surroundings. Everyone around her knew that she was someone above others if she showed it outwardly. 

So, to make such a concept manipulate, grasp, and mold the energy around her, Yasenia would need to understand how to manifest her own Queenly aura from nothingness, so to speak.  

After calming her body and heart, Yasenia released her Monarch Intent. In that instant, the room’s space congealed as Yasenia’s Monarch Intent flooded the place. 

For the next few months, Yasenia juggled self-cultivation with giving classes and making more acquaintances. During all this time, Tai Qingzhe didn’t appear once, and this confused Yasenia. She would prefer if her enemies were the type to arrogantly show their face rather than a scheming and cunning one who can suddenly stab her in the back. 

“It’s time for the hunt that Star Forge spoke about.” Yasenia opened her eyes and looked into the distance. “I hope Feixue is ready.”