"Here to pick up a certain little girl!" Xiao Bai raised an eyebrow, not about to admit he was just here to check in.
Hearing Xiao Bai's words, the girl smiled even more brightly, playfully asking, "Xiao Bai Gege, who are you here to pick up?"
"You're asking on purpose!" Xiao Bai teasingly flicked her nose.
"Hehe... then let's go!" Xiao Xun'er beamed, wrapping her arm around his.
Xiao Bai felt the smoothness of her arm against his, and his whole body stiffened for a moment before relaxing. Since the girl didn't mind, he didn't want to overreact and hurt her feelings.
Xiao Bai couldn't help but feel a bit emotional. The little girl from back then had grown up now.
Xiao Xun'er noticed Xiao Bai's reaction, and a faint blush appeared on her cheeks. However, she didn't withdraw her arm; instead, she leaned her head toward his arm.
Looking up, Xiao Xun'er seemed to only just realize that there were two people standing nearby. She didn't feel shy at all and greeted them generously.
"Xiao Yan cousin, Xiao Mei cousin!"
Xiao Yan and Xiao Mei looked at the couple beside them, feeling speechless. Suddenly, they had been fed a mouthful of dog food.
Pfft... so sweet it makes you sick!
Xiao Mei hid the jealousy in her heart and smiled as she greeted, "Xun'er cousin!"
Xiao Yan nodded. He didn't want to think about any romantic relationships right now; he just wanted to get stronger.
Xiao Bai glanced at Xun'er, realizing she was putting on an act. She had definitely done that on purpose just now.
He didn't feel like pointing it out. This was indirectly making his stance clear—he had no interest in any of the other girls of the same age in the Xiao family. Since that was the case, Xun'er stepping in was just fine.
Turning his head to look at Xiao Yan, he asked, "Are you staying here or leaving with us?"
Xiao Yan waved his hand, "Brother Bai, you go ahead. I'll go to the back mountain to clear my mind."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Bai nodded, gave a slight nod to Xiao Mei, and left with Xiao Xun'er.
Xiao Yan and Xiao Mei watched their retreating figures, their expressions different.
After a moment, they exchanged glances, both seeing unfamiliarity in each other's eyes. The atmosphere became somewhat awkward.
Xiao Mei felt that she and Xiao Yan were no longer from the same world. His coming-of-age ceremony next year would surely see him being assigned to manage the family's businesses.
Even though Xiao Yan's father was the clan leader, this was unavoidable.
Thinking of this, Xiao Mei directly said, "Xiao Yan cousin, my friends are waiting for me over there. I'll head over now!""
As soon as she finished speaking, she was already a meter away.
Xiao Yan's eye twitched. Was he really that unlikable?
Heh~ women… tch...
...
"Xiao Bai Gege, are you feeling better?"
On the way back, Xiao Xun'er was in a great mood. Today, Xiao Bai saying he was here to pick her up had surprised her.
"I should also thank Xun'er for the pills you gave me. You see, apart from my hair, everything else is pretty much the same as before."
Xiao Xun'er tilted her head and scrutinized him for a moment, then nodded, "That's good. By the way, do you still have enough pills? If not, I'll prepare more for you!"
Xiao Bai waved his hand, "No need, the ones you gave me last time are still good, and I'll soon not need them anymore!"
After Xiao Xun'er saw his terrifying appearance last time, she quickly took out some healing pills for him, including third- and fourth-grade ones, and then hurriedly left.
The next morning, she came again and gave him several bottles of pills: Golden Blood Pills, fifth-grade pills that boost vitality and are used for body tempering, especially effective for severe blood loss.
Wood Spirit Pills, a rare fifth-grade pill that restores vitality and has a lifespan-extending effect, though only effective for those below Dou Wang. This made the pill somewhat useless, as stronger cultivators didn't need them, and weaker ones... well, weaker ones probably didn't even know about them.
Azure Life Pills, a sixth-grade pill that extends life by ten years, but can only be consumed once in a lifetime.
In truth, he was just comforting Xun'er. Those healing pills were not needed, as this wasn't really an injury. After taking one, Xiao Bai didn't feel anything.
As for the Golden Blood Pills, they had a small effect, but nothing major. There was now a trace of silver in his blood, almost imperceptible, that sign of the thunder energy within. Moreover, it seemed only the Daoist Righteous Thunder of Yi Wood could stimulate and strengthen this new blood.
As for the Wood Spirit Pills and Azure Life Pills, Xiao Bai had no idea what happened to them. The moment he swallowed them, the life energy within the pills was devoured by devoured by the Yi Wood Righteous Thunder. It was only then that Xiao Bai remembered that the surging power inside his body was all just thunder seeds.
What is a thunder seed? A thunder seed is the essence of thunder.
This realization left Xiao Bai feeling a bit bitter. These weren't his helpers—they were more like a bunch of demanding ancestors. For now, things were manageable, but once Xiao Bai reached the Dou Wang or Dou Huang, he would have to find a way to help them grow. And it wasn't just one—it was five.
"Can your hair still recover?" Xiao Xun'er looked at Xiao Bai's grayish-white hair. She wasn't disgusted, but cultivators having their hair suddenly turn white was a sign of changes in lifespan.
How much lifespan did Xiao Bai have left? That was what worried her the most.
"It should be fine!" Xiao Bai smiled nonchalantly. He didn't care about his hair color, as long as it wasn't the color of the Yi Wood Righteous Thunder.
"Then, what's your cultivation level now, Xiao Bai Gege?" Xiao Xun'er asked with a strangely inquisitive tone.
Xiao Bai was a bit surprised. This girl had never asked about this before. Why did she suddenly bring it up?
But he didn't overthink it. He used to hide it just so no one would know he had skipped several levels. Now, after so much time had passed, there was no harm in revealing his cultivation.
"Five-Star Dou Master!" Xiao Bai answered truthfully. He had already refined most of the Bing Fire Yang Thunder inside him, and the rest would only allow him to break through one or two stars.
The past few months had been pure torment for him, which was why Xiao Bai now wore such a cold and stern expression. Anyone who had to endure constant pain for months without being able to sleep would likely look even worse than he did. No one could smile under such conditions.
Xiao Xun'er's eyes lit up. She hadn't expected Xiao Bai to reach Five-Star Dou Shi just one year after breaking through to Dou Zhe. Instantly, an idea popped into her head.
She thought that if Xiao Bai really didn't have much time left, she could first get him to become a Dou Grandmaster, then feed him a Life-Devouring Pill, and provide resources to help him break through to Dou Huang quickly, thus increasing his lifespan. This would solve everything perfectly!
'Xun'er, you truly are a little genius!'Xiao Xun'er secretly felt proud of herself.
Xiao Bai had no idea that the girl, holding his arm and looking so coquettish, was planning to feed him a Life-Devouring Pill. If he knew, he might have packed his things and left overnight.
"What are you thinking, Xun'er?"
Xiao Bai looked at the suddenly proud-looking girl and asked in confusion.
Even if someone had broken through from the ninth stage of Dou Disciple to Dou Master in a year, it shouldn't be that impressive in the ancient clans, right? Why was this girl so proud?
"Nothing, nothing!" Xiao Xun'er's gaze shifted, avoiding his eyes.
She couldn't let Xiao Bai Gege know about her plan. Given how rare the Life-Devouring Pill was, he probably wouldn't recognize it. She would just tell him it was a vitality-restoring pill and trick him into taking it first.
What would she do after he took it? Well, he would have no choice but to follow her instructions.
Xiao Xun'er squinted her eyes like a little fox that had stolen a chicken, imagining Xiao Bai's helpless expression when the time came. A slight smile curled at the corner of her lips.
"This girl seems a bit off today!" Xiao Bai silently thought as he watched Xun'er's expression.