Warm sunlight streamed into the room through the window. Xiao Yan's slender eyelashes fluttered, and he gently moved away the lotus-root-like arms and pink legs that were draped over him. This sleep was truly comfortable.
Chun Ying and the other women, disturbed by his movement, also woke up one after another and quickly searched for their own肚兜 (dudou - traditional Chinese undergarment) and dresses.
A moment later, the five women were dressed neatly and began to attend to Xiao Yan.
"Young master, why didn't you let Nalan Yanran come to serve you too? Speaking of which, she's one of your maidservants now," Xia Ying asked with a smile.
Xiao Yan stretched lazily and casually said, "You wouldn't actually think I intend for her to be a maidservant, would you?"
"Then what do you intend for her to do?" Xia Ying's beautiful eyes widened slightly in confusion. "Could it be..."
Xiao Yan looked at his neatly dressed reflection in the mirror and said matter-of-factly, "I'm keeping her to talk to her teacher."
"Ah?!" Xia Ying was completely taken aback by this answer. "Talk?"
The other four women also looked at Xiao Yan in surprise. What kind of arrangement was this?
Xiao Yan said indifferently, "Next, I still need to continue cultivating diligently; I don't have much time to enjoy myself."
Xia Ying and the others instantly showed expressions of admiration in their eyes.
To reach the realm of a Dou Huang powerhouse before the age of sixteen, in addition to extraordinary talent, naturally required unremitting perseverance.
"Young master, how did you get to know the Sect Master of the Misty Cloud Sect while cultivating outside?" Xia Ying asked curiously.
"Youthful opportunities, these are common occurrences." Xiao Yan hadn't expected to encounter Yun Yun ahead of time.
Perhaps some butterfly effect had occurred, just like how three Soul Hall protectors, in addition to Protector Wu, had appeared in the Misty Cloud Sect.
"You all should cultivate well at home; don't let down the cultivation methods I gave you," Xiao Yan rubbed Qing Lin's small head.
After cultivating the "Chaos Nurturing Technique", Qing Lin's physique had been refined, and her Jade-Green Snake Three-Flowered Pupils began to mature more quickly. He believed it wouldn't be long before she could actively unleash some of its power herself.
Under the gaze of her older sisters, being treated so intimately by the young master, Qing Lin's clear eyes became watery for a moment, and she shyly lowered her head: "Young Master Xiao Yan..."
After teasing the doll-like girl, Xiao Yan smiled and walked out of the courtyard.
Passing through a quiet path, Xiao Yan met Xun Er, who had grown even more graceful and spirited.
"Brother Xiao Yan." Looking at the black-robed young man who was a bit taller than herself, Xun Er's pretty face showed adorable dimples, and she smiled softly, "Brother Xiao Yan looks very energetic; you must have rested very well last night."
"Xun Er also looks very beautiful today," Xiao Yan smiled and pinched the girl's still slightly baby-fat cheeks.
Xiao Yan's praise was very pleasing to Xun Er, and she giggled playfully, "This is the first time in nearly three years that Brother Xiao Yan is going out with Xun Er, so of course, I have to dress up beautifully."
The two chatted and laughed as they walked out of the family compound. Halfway, they also met some family members.
Seeing Xiao Yan and Xun Er talking and laughing intimately, they couldn't help but show envious expressions.
Although Xun Er usually appeared gentle and amiable within the family, beneath that faint smile, there was a hidden coldness.
It was easy to greet her, but extremely difficult to have a deep conversation.
Xiao Yan naturally knew the reason for this. With the awakening of Xun Er's bloodline, ordinary things could hardly cause her emotional state to fluctuate.
Even matters of love between men and women could hardly penetrate her heart.
It was precisely because he knew this that Xiao Yan was especially uninhibited every time he warmed and nourished her meridians, which planted an indelible mark on her.
If it weren't for those various events, as Xun Er gradually grew up, perhaps no one would have been able to enter the heart of this growing girl again.
But there are no "ifs" in life. Now, Xiao Yan's imprint had been planted in Xun Er's heart.
When interacting with anyone or anything related to Xiao Yan, that layer of indifferent veil would automatically fall off...
Ignoring the envious looks of the family members, Xiao Yan led Xun Er directly out of the family and then slowed down, leisurely wandering the bustling streets.
Wutan City now indeed had undergone an almost earth-shattering change compared to a few years ago.
The original street vendor economy had directly transformed into a storefront economy, which clearly showed the immense scale of this change.
All of this was naturally greatly related to Xiao Yan.
The sale of medicines like the Blood Coagulation Powder allowed mercenaries to enter deeper areas of the Magic Beast Mountain Range and kill more magic beasts.
This naturally increased the output of magic cores and some medicinal herbs, stimulating the economic operation of Wutan City.
Secondly, Xiao Yan's cultivation required numerous resources.
The conversion of resources from the Chu Yun Empire and the Jia Ma Empire, the sale of unneeded items, and the procurement of useful goods were all orchestrated by Ya Fei.
Wutan City had almost become the largest resource gathering warehouse for the Primer Clan. Every month, large quantities of goods were transported from here to various major cities in the Jia Ma Empire, and massive resources were sent to the Chu Yun Empire.
Under these two reasons, it was difficult for Wutan City not to prosper.
Perhaps due to Xiao Yan's companionship, Xun Er became much livelier after leaving the family, pulling Xiao Yan to wander around various shops.
The girl's clear and delicate laughter made even the hot and scorching streets feel a bit cooler.
Xiao Yan also took this opportunity to relax thoroughly, following the girl's footsteps, wandering through the various streets and alleys of Wutan City.
After Xun Er tired of playing, Xiao Yan once again focused his thoughts on cultivation and led Xun Er towards the Xiao family's market.
Hidden in Wutan City was a mysterious black iron piece.
This small iron piece contained a Xuan-tier Dou Skill, Suction Palm.
Although this Dou Skill was merely Xuan-tier and insignificant to Xiao Yan,
The method of storing Dou Skills in this way had immense value.
The Dou Qi Continent had no dazzling magic, only Dou Qi that had developed to its twilight.
The mystery of breaking through to Dou Di, even ancient clans had to experiment with the lives of their entire families; the soul cultivation methods mastered by ancient alchemists are now only stably passed down by a few top forces...
And this method of storing Dou Skills in iron pieces was also a broken lineage of inheritance.
Currently, most Dou Skills and cultivation methods are recorded in scrolls, far from this easy and portable storage method.
He just didn't know if he could still find it now that Wutan City had changed so much.
Xiao Yan was still quite interested in this method of storing Dou Skills.
If he could master its production technology through that "iron piece" and then upgrade it, reducing the difficulty of its production and information acquisition, this would bring considerable benefits.
The most direct point among them was that this could be considered an evolution of cultivation civilization.
Although Xiao Yan didn't consider himself a good person, he knew that there was a wider world beyond the Dou Qi Continent.
After achieving Dou Di, being able to change the cultivation of the Dou Qi Continent would also be beneficial.
(End of Chapter)
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