Hearing the commotion outside gradually fade away, Ling Xiaoyou breathed a sigh of relief.
Fortunately, those guys didn’t block her door. Otherwise, she really would have considered beating her colleagues into the ground before leaving.
But fortunately, not everyone was like a certain beast who loved blocking bridges—and besides, this wasn’t a bridge, it was a door.
As her little head was fantasizing about such random things, Ling Xiaoyou finally had the presence of mind to inspect the room’s environment.
It was a very nice room.
For a hotel, Ling Xiaoyou felt it was more like a luxury apartment.
She had to admit, it was indeed a place meant to host participants of the Xuantian Martial Tournament; the comfort level was absolutely maximized.
Ling Xiaoyou thought this as she hopped onto the soft, large bed and was bounced right back up.
Then, relying on her maxed-out Speed in the Soul Gathering Realm, she made a graceful leap from the bed to the floor-to-ceiling window.
She looked out at the city where it was gradually growing dark, yet remained bustling with traffic and lights that sparkled like stars.
‘Perhaps Bai Shuang has already arrived in this city as well, enjoying the same scenery as I am.’
With her fair little hand lightly touching the glass of the window, Ling Xiaoyou thought to herself.
***
On a certain floor of the hotel, Bai Shuanglian withdrew her gaze from the outside and turned her eyes toward the door.
She had just heard someone knock; someone was likely looking for her.
Thinking this, Bai Shuanglian walked to the door and pulled it open.
She immediately saw a girl with a pretty face, a well-proportioned figure, and a slightly childish air about her, who was just about to knock again.
This was her younger cousin, Bai Mei.
She was also here to participate in the Xuantian Martial Tournament, but because her cultivation realm wasn’t high enough, she could only participate in the Foundation Building Stage grouping.
“Sister Lian, dinner is already being served in the restaurant. Grandma Qiuyin sent me to call you down to eat.”
Bai Shuanglian nodded and responded calmly, “I understand.”
She closed the door and followed Bai Mei to the elevator, went downstairs, and arrived at the floor where the restaurant was located.
Upon entering the restaurant, Bai Shuanglian’s gaze immediately fell upon the most conspicuous person among the diners.
It was a young woman wearing a bright yellow dress with a beautiful face who looked only a few years older than Bai Shuanglian.
Bai Qiuyin was eating the delicacies before her like a whirlwind, as if she had been starving for a long time.
Although the speed at which she cleared the food was incredibly fast—so much so that the waiters carrying the trays were almost too busy to keep up—her dining manners were very elegant and dignified.
If one only looked at her behavior while eating, it would be impossible to imagine that she had already consumed food equivalent to three times her own volume.
Bai Mei glanced at Grandma Qiuyin and then looked at Bai Shuanglian.
“Sister Lian, I’ll leave Grandma Qiuyin to you. I’m going to slip away first!”
After saying that, she didn’t even wait for Bai Shuanglian to reply before disappearing in a flash.
Looking at her direction, it seemed she intended to snatch food with her brothers and sisters.
This was normal.
After all, while the Bai Family’s three daily meals weren’t bad, they were more suited to the tastes of the elderly—meaning they were bland.
For young juniors like them, it was impossible to like such food.
Now that they finally had an opportunity to taste other delicacies, they naturally wouldn’t let it pass!
Bai Shuanglian didn’t react much to this.
She walked over and sat down beside Bai Qiuyin.
She glanced at the waiters, who had increased from two to four, and felt that those who disliked bland flavors were perhaps not just the young juniors, but also some ancestors with young mindsets.
“Lian, you’re here.” Bai Qiuyin found the time to look up at Bai Shuanglian amidst her busy eating and said with a sigh of emotion, “Oh my, I didn’t think that after not leaving the Clan for over 100 years, the delicacies of the outside world would have developed to such an extent.”
“Yes, this is excellent. When it comes to delicious food, it must be developed aggressively!”
As she spoke, Bai Qiuyin looked at the busy waiters bringing dishes and nodded with satisfaction.
“And this service is very good too!”
Hearing this, Bai Shuanglian felt quite helpless.
“Grandma Qiuyin, I can understand your excitement, but please be careful. There’s food stuck to the corner of your mouth.”
“Is that so? It seems I’m still not quite used to these knives and forks used by Westerners.”
As Bai Qiuyin spoke, she picked up a napkin from the side and wiped the corner of her mouth, but she didn’t hit the right spot.
Seeing this, Bai Shuanglian also picked up a napkin, stood up, and said, “Let me help you.”
As she spoke, she moved the napkin toward the spot on Bai Qiuyin’s face where the food was stuck.
While Bai Shuanglian was wiping, she didn’t notice that a pair of beautiful crimson eyes had been watching this scene, fixed on her actions.
***
Ten minutes ago, Ling Xiaoyou had pulled the curtains shut and was about to lie on the bed to scroll through her Mobile Phone to pass the boring time.
However, before she could lie down, she heard the sound of knocking coming from the door.
She was stunned.
Thinking those colleagues had returned, she felt a bit angry. Was there no end to it?
Just as she was about to roll up her sleeves and go out to give them a beating, a voice with a slight accent reached her ears.
“Um, excuse me, is Senior Ling here?”
‘Senior Ling? Is she talking about me?’
Ling Xiaoyou was stunned, and then she nodded her little head with satisfaction.
‘Oh my, I didn’t think there would be a day when I’d be called a Senior.’
‘But this voice sounds a bit familiar. It seems to be that Haji—no, that cat girl. What is she doing looking for me?’
Ling Xiaoyou went to the door and first looked through the peephole.
After confirming it was only Miao Miaomiao, she opened the door and asked the cat girl curiously, “Meow meow meow? Why are you looking for me?”
“It’s Miao Miaomiao!” Miao Miaomiao emphasized.
Then, after hesitating for a moment, she spoke.
“Senior Ling, are you from the Division Headquarters?”
“Yes, is there a reason you’re asking?” Ling Xiaoyou nodded her head and asked curiously.
“Well, actually…”
Miao Miaomiao looked left and right, appearing to check if anyone was eavesdropping.
Then, under Ling Xiaoyou’s gesture, she entered the room and asked tentatively, “Um, if—and I’m just saying if—if I had a friend who wanted to be promoted from a Branch to the Headquarters, what would they need to do?”
‘This friend of yours…’
‘Is probably just yourself, isn’t it?’
‘The classic case of “asking for a friend.”‘
Ling Xiaoyou mocked in her heart as she pinched her smooth little chin, thinking about Miao Miaomiao’s question.
She wasn’t very clear about such things.
When she joined the Ghostly Resentment Office back then, she had basically relied entirely on Hong Lingyan’s help to enter through the back door.
How could she know how someone from a Branch joins the Headquarters?
But since someone had summoned the courage to come and ask her, she couldn’t just say she didn’t know.
That would lose her too much face as a Senior!
Thinking this, Ling Xiaoyou answered tentatively:
“They would need powerful strength and a heart full of enthusiasm?”
Miao Miaomiao: “Meow?”