Oh No, I've Become a Stand-In

Seeing the shock in Nalan Yanran's eyes, Xiao Yuan felt no ripple in his heart. Though this favored daughter of the Misty Cloud Sect was indeed beautiful and talented, she held almost no advantage before him now that he had regained the ability to cultivate.

Still, she was a guest. With his eldest and second brothers away from home, he, the Third Young Master, naturally understood the proper etiquette of hosting guests. Thus, he smiled at Nalan Yanran, who had only just managed to recover her senses.

Nalan Yanran had intended to keep a stern face, but when she saw the charming smile on Xiao Yuan's exceptionally handsome features, her heart inexplicably skipped a beat. A blush rose to her previously cool and lovely face, instantly setting the youths secretly observing her ablaze with longing.

"Father, three Elders!"

Xiao Yuan came to a stop, and Xiao Yan behind him stopped as well. The two then bowed to the four people on the platform almost in perfect sync, speaking in unison.

"Hehe, Yuan'er and Yan'er are here. Come, sit."

Looking at his two upright, handsome sons, Xiao Zhan smiled and nodded, waving them over.

"Yes, Father!"

Xiao Yuan and Xiao Yan answered in unison again. Xiao Yuan then led Xiao Yan toward the right.

However, there was only one empty seat there. It was in front of Xiao Xun'er, among the seats reserved for senior clan members with authority in the first row.

That seat had been reserved for Xiao Yuan.

Over the past three years, through his management of the markets, Xiao Yuan might have been somewhat looked down upon by those his age in terms of cultivation, but the clan elders did not dare slight him. After all, the Intermediate Market under Xiao Yuan's control was said to be on the verge of advancing to an Advanced Market in the market grade assessment held every three years.

Moreover, a quarter of the Xiao Clan Market's total income now came from the Intermediate Market managed by Xiao Yuan.

If not for his lack of seniority and inability to cultivate, his seat would likely have been several places further forward.

But Xiao Yan was the truly unlucky one. Once a genius, he had now fallen into a useless wreck. He continued to "shamelessly" receive the clan's cultivation resources, yet his strength could not improve in the slightest, earning him an extremely poor reputation within the clan.

Thus, there was not even a seat for Xiao Yan in the hall.

"Brother Xiao Yan, come sit here!"

Seeing the reminder in Xiao Yuan's eyes as he approached, Xiao Xun'er immediately understood. She smiled lightly and spoke.

This sort of tacit understanding had begun three years ago, after Xiao Yan's strength started declining and he began suffering countless criticisms and exclusions.

In a sense, Xiao Yuan was Xiao Xun'er's wingman in her pursuit of Xiao Yan.

After all, only this way could he take large amounts of startup capital from Xun'er, the little rich girl, with a clear conscience.

Xiao Yan naturally saw his own situation at a glance. As he followed behind his Third Brother, he had been worried that his Third Brother would do as he usually did—leave his own seat to him, then casually glance at the clan elders whose authority was lower than his, signaling for them to get lost and give up their seats.

But now, being able to sit beside Xun'er was quite nice too.

"Go sit beside Xun'er. With guests here, it wouldn't be convenient for me to be too conspicuous."

Hearing Xiao Yuan's quiet instruction, Xiao Yan gave a soft hum. Only after Xiao Yuan had taken his seat did he pass by him, walk over to Xiao Xun'er's side, and sit down with a low laugh. "You helped me out again."

Hearing the whispers behind him, Xiao Yuan smiled. This silly kid still had not noticed that whenever Xun'er was around, when had he ever found an excuse not to help him out? As for their subsequent topic about nourishing the Meridians, Xiao Yuan did not care much about it. After all, he had been the first to experience that method—or rather, he had been Xiao Yan's test subject.

After all, being unable to cultivate Dou Qi was exceedingly rare on the Douqi Continent. And because they were blood brothers, Xiao Yuan and Xiao Yan had been very close since childhood.

So, after Xiao Yan's cultivation talent had manifested, he had tried it once on Xiao Yuan. The results had not been ideal, and when he tried again the second time, Xiao Yuan stopped him from wasting his efforts.

He might as well spend that time cultivating more Dou Qi for Yao Lao to absorb. If Yao Lao had possessed immense strength from the start, what the hell would the Misty Cloud Sect have counted for? Unfortunately, that old man had indeed awakened, but he had no intention of making a move.

Afterward, Xiao Yuan noticed that the unfamiliar old man seemed to have something difficult to say, always wearing an expression as though he wanted to speak but hesitated.

Honestly, if it had been a pretty young lady, it might have been somewhat pleasing to watch.

But an old man acting so coyly was truly nauseating.

Nalan Yanran, on the other hand, was in no hurry to press the matter. Instead, her gaze occasionally stole toward Xiao Yuan, a flicker of conflict flashing through her eyes.

Before coming here, she had heard that the brothers Xiao Yuan and Xiao Yan were one unable to cultivate at all, possessing only a handsome face, while the other had somehow suffered a decline in cultivation talent and was now practically useless as well.

And what about herself? She was a favored daughter of heaven with outstanding talent, already a Three Star Fighter. What was more, she had entered the tutelage of Yun Yun, the Sect Master of the Misty Cloud Sect, becoming her sole disciple.

On the Douqi Continent, strength was supreme. Besides, the young girl had never been satisfied with this arranged marriage to begin with. She was unwilling to marry some useless stranger without complaint.

Though he really was very handsome, being handsome could not be used as Dou Qi! Yet there was no one to blame for this. When the two old masters had arranged the marriage contract, they had thought the children of the two families would surely grow up as childhood sweethearts. With such a relationship, a marriage contract would only be a fine thing, bringing the families even closer together.

Who could have expected that in the third year after Xiao Yuan and Xiao Yan were born, their grandfather would suffer fatal injuries in battle with an enemy and die? Having lost the support of the family's top expert, the Xiao family had no choice but to move to Wutan City.

At the time, Xiao Yuan and Xiao Yan had still been very young, so naturally the details of the marriage contract had not been explained to them. They only vaguely knew that such an arrangement existed. As for which of them was the groom-to-be, Xiao Yuan believed it was Xiao Yan, while Xiao Yan believed it was Xiao Yuan.

Thus, neither brother had ever cared much about the marriage contract.

Then, after the two families had nearly lost contact, even the basic condition for childhood sweethearts could no longer be met. Nalan Yanran had also reached a rebellious age. On top of that, the girl had her own standards for a suitable husband and a strong-willed nature, so naturally she would not marry a useless man.

Although Xiao Yuan's appearance had left Nalan Yanran stunned upon seeing him in person, making her hesitate somewhat over breaking off the engagement, after a fierce internal struggle, she still made her choice.

She had cultivated diligently all these years, eventually entering the Misty Cloud Sect and becoming the Young Sect Master, all so she could control her own fate and make her own decisions.

If she gave up on this simply because of the other party's handsome face, would all her efforts over the years not have been for nothing?

Today, she had to break off this engagement!

At this moment, Xiao Yan, who had learned the purpose of Nalan Yanran's visit from Xiao Xun'er, was indignant behind Xiao Yuan. Nalan Yanran has gone too far!

But soon, Xiao Yan looked worriedly at Xiao Yuan's back.

If that woman wanted to dissolve the engagement, she could have come to their door and discussed the matter privately. There would surely have been a perfect solution, since he understood his Third Brother's temperament and way of thinking.

But if she truly intended to use the power of the Misty Cloud Sect to forcefully break off the engagement in a setting like this today, then it would be an entirely different matter.

That would not merely be breaking off an engagement. It would be slapping the face of Xiao Zhan, Xiao Yuan's father and the Xiao family's clan leader.

When it came to matters involving his own people, Third Brother was the living incarnation of an asura.

Little did he know that Xiao Yuan, seated in front, was also dazed after hearing their conversation. Though it sounded perfectly reasonable for him, as the Third Brother, to bear this marriage contract, did that not mean he had become a stand-in?

How was he supposed to put Xiao Yan through the wringer now?

Meanwhile, under the meaningful look of Nalan Yanran, who had steeled her resolve to break off the engagement, the unfamiliar old man finally stood up.