Northwestern Region of the Dou Qi Continent, Jia Ma Empire, Wutan City, Xiao Clan.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
"Xiao Bai, come out!"
"I know you're in there, stop hiding and keeping quiet!"
At this moment, a black-clothed youth stood at the entrance of a small courtyard, pounding on the door and shouting loudly.
"Creak—"
Hearing the door open, the black-clothed youth instinctively took several steps back before cautiously looking at the entrance.
A young man emerged from inside. His eyebrows were delicate and sparse, his white robe as pristine as snow. He held a scroll in his hands, exuding a gentle and refined demeanor. A faint smile adorned his face.
A familiar face, a familiar smile, and those deep, unfathomable eyes that lacked even a trace of warmth—this instantly made the black-clothed youth uneasy. This guy had looked at him with the same expression the last two times, and he had ended up getting beaten badly.
"Brother Xiao Yan, long time no see!"
"Oh? A Two-Star Dou Zhe now, huh? No wonder you're feeling so confident—your voice is even louder than before!"
Xiao Bai lazily leaned against the doorframe, sizing up the black-clothed youth standing a few steps away with a wary expression.
Discreetly, he glanced at the black ring on Xiao Yan's hand, a hint of doubt flashing through his mind. Did something happen to the old man inside the ring? This guy is already a Two-Star Dou Zhe—why hasn't he been drained yet?
Seeing that nonchalant attitude and hearing that sarcastic tone, Xiao Yan's anger flared up instantly, pushing aside his initial unease.
What's there to be afraid of? Today, I'll take him down!
A Two-Star Dou Zhe can't possibly lose to someone who's only at the ninth stage of Dou Zhi Qi, right?
Today, I'll show him what true terror is!
"Enough nonsense! Take this—Rock Fist!"
The thought of finally turning this annoying guy into a punching bag excited Xiao Yan. Unable to wait any longer, he charged forward.
As the incoming fist aimed straight at him, Xiao Bai shook his head. Only when the punch was inches away did he finally lift his hand, calmly catching Xiao Yan's wrist.
Xiao Yan's fist was just a few centimeters from Xiao Bai's face—but in that tiny distance, it felt like an insurmountable chasm. No matter how much strength he used, he couldn't push forward even an inch.
With a slight turn of his body, Xiao Bai pulled Xiao Yan past him and, with a light kick, sent him flying.
Xiao Bai placed the scroll in his hand onto a stone lion nearby, then leisurely adjusted his sleeves.
Walking toward Xiao Yan, who was just getting up, he kicked him over and straddled him, sending punches down mercilessly.
"For yelling in front of my door!"
"For pounding on my door!"
"For peeping at the female clan members while they were bathing! Die, you pervert!"
Recently, Xiao Yu had been chasing Xiao Yan around with a sword, making a huge scene in the Xiao Clan. Xiao Bai had heard bits and pieces of the incident.
"Xiao Bai! Xiao Yan! What are you two doing?"
A voice with a touch of authority rang out from behind.
Hearing it, Xiao Bai stopped his punches, stood up from Xiao Yan, tidied his slightly messy robes, and turned around with a respectful bow.
"Xiao Bai greets the Clan Leader."
Xiao Zhan looked at the young man before him and nodded.
"What exactly are you two doing?"
"Nothing much, just playing around with Brother Xiao Yan!"
"Playing around?"
Xiao Zhan glanced at Xiao Yan, who was just climbing to his feet, his face bruised and swollen. His mouth twitched slightly.
But seeing that the injuries were only superficial, he decided not to say too much.
As both a father and the clan leader, he knew that while the white-robed boy before him was only an adopted member of the Xiao Clan, he was still a part of the family. Besides, with Xun'er protecting him, who in the Xiao Clan would dare bully him?
Thinking of Xiao Xun'er's background, a flicker of apprehension flashed through Xiao Zhan's eyes.
"Xiao Bai, even though you haven't broken through in three years, the elders and I still have high hopes for you. You and Xiao Yan are both the future of our Xiao Clan, so you must support each other. Understood?"
Xiao Bai wrapped an arm around Xiao Yan, who had just climbed to his feet, nodded at Xiao Zhan, and said with a smile:
"I understand. Don't worry, Clan Leader. Brother Yan is my dearest friend and brother!"
Xiao Yan rolled his eyes. Is this how you treat a brother? He tried to struggle, but the hand on his shoulder was like an iron clamp, completely unshakable.
"Not bad!"
Xiao Zhan nodded in satisfaction and looked Xiao Bai up and down.
"You haven't broken through to Dou Zhe, but you've tempered your body well. You can already rival a Dou Zhe. That is a path of its own!"
"You're too kind, Clan Leader. At best, I can only match a Dou Zhe, but I have no future in this path. On the other hand, Brother Xiao Yan, an eleven-year-old Dou Zhe with a noble bearing, carries the heavy responsibility of revitalizing our clan. His future is boundless. He is truly the blessing of our Xiao Clan!"
Hearing such praise for his son, Xiao Zhan's smile grew even wider. He patted Xiao Bai on the shoulder.
"Haha, Xiao Bai, you're only thirteen. Don't belittle yourself. I believe you'll break through!"
"Alright, you young ones should spend more time together. Yan'er, learn from your Brother Bai. Don't just fool around all day!"
After saying that, Xiao Zhan turned and left.
Once he was gone, Xiao Yan looked at Xiao Bai expressionlessly and said:
"Now that your little act is over, can you let go of me?"
Xiao Bai withdrew his hand, and Xiao Yan, finally free from his grasp, quickly jumped to the side and muttered through gritted teeth:
"You hypocrite. Just wait until I break through to Dou Shi, then I'll teach you a lesson!"
He even let out a proud huff before turning away.
Xiao Bai stared at him, speechless. Maybe I should just kill this guy now.
How can someone be this shameless? He wants to break through to Dou Master just to fight someone at Ninth Stage Dou Zhi Qi? Have some honor in combat!
But then he reconsidered. At the very least, it'll take him five years to reach Dou Shi. So he gave up on the idea.
In his past life, when he read the original novel, Xiao Bai had admired Xiao Yan—he was someone who always repaid kindness, unlike some protagonists.
But now, sharing the same time and space, Xiao Bai found this pre-tragedy Xiao Yan incredibly annoying.
As for Xiao Yan's ring, Xiao Bai didn't really care. His attribute was lightning, which meant the greatest opportunity within that ring was useless to him.
Not to mention, he wasn't sure when Yao Lao would wake up. Ever since his first encounter with Xiao Yan, he had felt an eerie sense of being watched—subtle but present.
And the last two times he had beaten up Xiao Yan, he had distinctly felt a pair of eyes observing him.
He wasn't sure if the old man was doing it on purpose or if his own soul was naturally strong enough to detect it.
Xiao Bai closed his eyes, calming the restlessness in his heart. His consciousness sank into his mind, focusing on the ancient, mysterious talisman floating within his sea of consciousness.
In his past life, he had often had strange and disturbing dreams that severely disrupted his sleep. After trying countless remedies with no success, he eventually visited a Taoist temple, thinking that if science couldn't help, maybe mysticism could.
The old Taoist priest in the temple stroked his beard calmly after hearing his troubles and told him that a single talisman would solve everything.
The Purple Heaven Divine Thunder Talisman.
Placed at the head of your bed, it repels all evil, keeping all spirits and demons at bay. Absolutely effective.
Xiao Bai looked at the ancient talisman and, after some hesitation, gritted his teeth and spent 2,000 yuan in merit points to buy it. Excited, he brought it home and stuck it to his headboard, eager to test its effects.
Who could have expected that the talisman would work so well—so well that it made Xiao Bai cry tears of blood?
The nightmares disappeared. But so did his old world.
When he woke up, he found himself in the Dou Qi Continent, in a five-year-old body. The talisman had followed him, floating in his sea of consciousness.
But after bringing him into this world, the talisman had done nothing—except, when he broke through to Ninth Stage Dou Zhi Qi at the age of ten, it had released five rays of differently colored lightning into his internal organs.
Other than that, it had remained completely inactive.
And Xiao Bai's cultivation had also remained stuck at Ninth Stage Dou Zhi Qi—for three whole years.