The afternoon sky stretched wide, the sun shining brightly over the seemingly endless desert.
The desert wind blew softly, carrying grains of sand through the air.
High above, El stood atop White Fire, gazing down with a calm gaze. From here, he could see the fierce battle unfolding below him.
Two groups faced off in a life and death battle, one group was human, wearing the typical robes of bounty hunters.
While the other group were snake people with long tails swinging ferociously, bulldozing their enemies.
War cries mixed with the clanking sounds of weapons clashing, creating a symphony of battle that echoed in the middle of the vast desert.
However, El did not rush down. He was just observing, assessing the situation with a sharp gaze.
On the other hand, Qing Lin was silent in his arms, her tiny body drooping limply. "Is she airsick?" thought El at a glance, before shaking his head lightly.
That may not have been the cause. Most likely, Qing Lin lost consciousness due to exhaustion after running for hundreds of kilometers under the scorching sun.
Either way, as long as Qing Lin was unconscious, El could observe the battle below him more calmly, assessing whether there was anything he needed to do... or just let things go as they should.
El remained hovering in the air, his eyes scanning the battlefield with a calmness that contrasted with the chaos below him.
The blood-soaked sand bore mute witness to how one-sided this battle was with more humans falling than snake-men.
A rancid scent wafted through the air, mixing with the stifling desert heat.
From the fresh traces of blood, it was clear that the victims had died just a few hours ago.
Amongst the chaos, El caught something. A familiar scent. "Xiao Yan?"
His eyes narrowed slightly as he found the young man's figure. Xiao Yan fought fiercely, his body bathed in sweat and small wounds, but his fighting spirit remained burning.
El frowned and activated Rinnegan. The world scene instantly changed, the flow of Dou Qi within everyone's bodies looked like a luminous river flowing within them.
However, the flow of Dou Qi in Xiao Yan's body was much more abundant than before.
El raised one eyebrow, slightly surprised. "Oh?" he murmured, his gaze remaining fixed on Xiao Yan. "So he has already reached 3-star Dou Shi?"
As someone who knew Xiao Yan's story from various sources, El realized there was a slight difference from what he knew.
"It is somewhat different from the web sources on the internet that are circulating," he said softly, grinning faintly.
Although this world was a mixture of novels, manhua, and donghua, there were still interesting little changes.
To El, this kind of change was just one of the many unexpected things he had to deal with in this alternate world.
Although only a 3-star Dou Shi, Xiao Yan fought superbly.
Xiao Yan's movements were agile, each of his attacks struck the enemy with deadly precision, as if his fighting instincts had been perfectly honed.
The line between experience and talent was blurred, Xiao Yan defeated many opponents without much difficulty, making him appear much stronger than his level.
With Xiao Yan's presence, the previously one-sided balance of the battle now began to change. Seeing that, El merely observed from a distance, feeling no need to intervene.
El watched that with a calm expression, then gave a faint smile. "No wonder... Since there's a probability like me here," he murmured softly.
His lightly glowing eyes gazed at the battle below him with deep understanding. "To this world, my existence is like a stepping stone for Xiao Yan to develop faster."
El did not feel envious or bothered by that fact. Rather, El felt a little amused, how much effect did his existence have on the course of this world?
Was Xiao Yan, who was growing so rapidly, aware of that?
Before long, the battle ended with victory on the side of the Xiao Yan group. Cheers echoed through the air, reflecting their burning fervor.
In the center of the crowd, a man with a scent similar to Xiao Yan stepped forward, patting his back proudly.
El, who was observing from a distance, suddenly had an idea. Without hesitation, El controlled White Fire, making it swoop down sharply towards Xiao Yan.
Before the sword reached its target, El jumped down with a graceful movement, while White Fire continued to shoot straight towards Xiao Yan, intending to attack him.
Xiao Yan immediately noticed the attack coming from the sky. His reflexes sharp, he swung the Heavy Xuan Ruler, blocking the slash of the white sword that was shooting towards him.
Boom!
A loud boom resounded out, shocking everyone around him. Meanwhile, El landed with graceful movements, his eyes calmly observing the situation.
White Fire, which had been knocked away by the impact, spun in the air before returning to control with perfect precision.
In an instant, the sword shot out and stopped hovering just above Xiao Yan's head, ready to stab at any moment.
The atmosphere was suddenly tense. No one dared to speak. The Steel Man soldiers, including Xiao Li, gripped their weapons tighter and prepared for the worst.
El smiled faintly, his eyes narrowing slightly as he looked at Xiao Yan. "As expected. Yan the troublemaker has grown stronger."
Sighing softly, El then shook his head with a half-amused expression. "I don't know, Ji wonders how much trouble this Yan will bring in the future?"
Xiao Yan, who was originally still on guard, snorted before replying with a sarcastic tone, "Apparently, this marble statue learned how to joke."
His gaze then fell on the small figure in El's arms. His lips curled up slightly. "Moreover, this statue is also carrying someone. Did he kidnap her?"
The two were silent for a moment before a small laugh broke out between them.
Xiao Yan lowered the Heavy Xuan Ruler, while El raised one hand, controlling the White Fire to return to revolve nearby.
In one smooth movement, the white blade was absorbed into the Sky Poison Pearl, disappearing completely.
The originally tense atmosphere began to melt away, while the soldiers around could only look at each other, puzzled by the strange interaction of the two people.
Xiao Yan walked over to stand before El, then patted his shoulder lightly. "I already know. You will not die," he said with a faint smile.
El gave a small grin. "Just a Rank 6 big cat? That's not enough to kill Ji," he said casually. "Those cats only rely on their effeminate size."
Xiao Yan looked at El with a flat expression, full of disbelief, before letting out a long sigh. "Yes, yes. Only you would dare to say that."
However, Xiao Yan's gaze then shifted to the little girl still in El's arms. "Who is that girl? Why is she with you? You did not kidnap her, right?"
Before El could answer, a voice had already interrupted his. "Qing Lin? Thankfully this girl is okay," said Xiao Li, who was suddenly beside El.
The man's face looked extremely relieved when he saw that the little girl was still safe in El's arms.
Xiao Li's gaze then turned to El. "Were you the one who saved Qing Lin? I'm very grateful."
El just looked without any exaggerated expression, while Xiao Li turned to his younger brother, Xiao Yan. "Sorry to interrupt you," he said as he glanced alternately between Xiao Yan and El. "Yan'er, do you know each other?"
Xiao Yan nodded casually. "Yes, Second Brother. His name is Ji Lan-"
However, before Xiao Yan could finish his sentence, Xiao Li had already patted him hard on the back, making Xiao Yan stagger forward slightly.
"In that case, he is our friend!" said Xiao Li with a wide smile. Without hesitation, he immediately embraced El and Xiao Yan's shoulders intimately, as if they had been friends for a long time.
"Yan'er, Ji Lan, it's best not to chat here," he said excitedly. "I want to hear stories about your trip!"
Xiao Li gaze then shifted to Xiao Yan, eyes sparkling with excitement. "Especially you, Yan'er! Hurry up and come with me! Let's make a surprise for our Big Brother!"
Xiao Li chuckled, pulling the two of them closer, as if signaling that this meeting was the beginning of something greater.