Butterfly Effect

"Who?"

Xiao Yi Xian looked to the side and shouted softly. Dou Qi gathered in her hand as well. She had been too focused on herself just now and had barely noticed anyone nearby.

"Don't misunderstand, don't misunderstand!"

A youth in green stepped awkwardly out of the bushes. He had merely been passing by.

"You are?"

Xiao Yi Xian looked at the young man before her. She could guarantee that she had never met him before. Weren't there usually very few people on the Xiao Family's back mountain?

"My name is Xiao Ning. Who are you?"

Xiao Ning looked at the beauty before him. As far as he remembered, there had never been anyone like her in the Xiao Family. There was no way he would have forgotten someone so beautiful.

"Hm?"

Xiao Yi Xian looked at Xiao Ning in surprise. Why had Xiao Ning appeared on the back mountain?

Wasn't that guy always throwing his weight around in the Xiao Family?

Xiao Ning, Xiao Yan's cousin and Xiao Yu's younger brother. He was also the first person Xiao Yan defeated after recovering some of his strength, the stepping stone for the protagonist's rise?

"Me? I'm Xiao Yan's distant cousin. I just finished watching the sunset on the back mountain."

The Dou Qi in Xiao Yi Xian's hand slowly dissipated as she idly twirled a strand of purple hair around her finger.

"Oh, Cousin!"

Xiao Ning greeted Xiao Yi Xian with a broad smile. The strength she had displayed just now was definitely not weak. She was an expert.

"Cousin, you must have only arrived recently. Would you like me to show you around the Xiao Family?"

Xiao Ning scratched the back of his head awkwardly and warmly invited Xiao Yi Xian.

She was beautiful and powerful. He wanted to draw her to his side. That trash Xiao Yan was completely useless.

Xiao Yi Xian shook her head and headed toward the marketplace. Why would she want to stroll around the Xiao Family?

She was a stranger, after all. Though she could be considered Xiao Yan's cousin in a sense, Xiao Zhan did not know that!

Xiao Ning watched the white figure grow farther and farther away, his fists unconsciously clenching tighter.

That trash had not only caught the eye of Xun Er, the goddess, but even this woman regarded him differently.

"Why?"

He was clearly already trash. Why?

"Why?"

When he had been a genius, he had crushed them so badly they could barely breathe. Why did people still refuse to abandon him after he became trash?

Did all his hard work mean nothing?

"Humph!"

Xiao Ning shook his fists and stormed toward Xiao Yan's room.

The enormous marketplace was packed with people, with all manner of goods laid out on the various stalls.

Before long, a shabby Bronze Mask at one of the stalls caught her attention.

Xiao Yi Xian picked up the battered Bronze Mask and drew out a thread of Dou Qi from within her body, letting it probe the mask.

"Miss, this mask was once sold by the City Lord's Mansion. They say it was forged from a meteorite that fell from the heavens. It passed through an auction house and changed hands many times before ending up here.

"The quality is absolutely first-rate. Even a Da Dou Shi's full-force strike cannot break through its defense."

Seeing that someone was actually interested in the mask, the stall owner's eyes flashed with amazement as he looked at Xiao Yi Xian. Then he watched from the side with a fawning grin.

Xiao Yi Xian withdrew the Dou Qi clinging to the mask. It was indeed very sturdy. Even her Poison Sword Qi could not damage it.

"How much is this mask?"

The moment the stall owner heard her words, his eyes lit up. Rubbing his greasy hands together, he said with a smile, "Since you're so beautiful, Miss, I'll give you a discount. One thousand gold coins!"

Xiao Yi Xian put on the mask, tossed down a pouch, and walked deeper into the marketplace.

The stall owner laughed heartily as he counted the money in the pouch, his shining eyes seeming as though they wanted to melt into the gold coins.

The nearby stall owners could only look on in envy. They looked at Xiao Yi Xian as if she were a foolish rich girl.

Though the mask was indestructible, it was ugly beyond belief. The only reason anyone had bought it before was to study its forging method.

"Ah!"

The stall owner looked at Xiao Yi Xian's retreating back and shook his head. Why did such a sucker not come to his stall?

At that moment, a large group of guards hurried past Xiao Yi Xian. The leader waved his hand, and the guards under him immediately surrounded the group ahead with fierce expressions. In an instant, the atmosphere between both sides grew tense.

Xiao Yi Xian looked over and saw another group of familiar faces. For some reason, seeing Xiao Yan's smug expression made her want to punch him.

Xiao Yi Xian did not bother with the protagonist's group. What could possibly happen to them?

In all of Wu Tan City, there were probably only a few people who could threaten the protagonist's group, yet that person could barely be considered part of the protagonist's group as well.

Xiao Yi Xian continued wandering through the marketplace without purpose. She did not possess the protagonist's Qi Luck, so she did not find any treasures.

She had the spiritual power of two lifetimes, after all. Although she was only at the Mortal Realm Middle Stage, she still had not found a single treasure.

She had bought the mask on her face simply because she liked it. Nothing more than her admiration for the Ruthless Great Emperor.

Whenever she thought of the Ruthless Great Emperor from the neighboring Shrouding Heaven Universe, she truly wanted to become her intimate friend.

Without realizing it, she had wandered somewhere unfamiliar. The crowds around her gradually thinned, while the winding streets grew more numerous.

"What do you want?"

At that moment, a delicate female voice came from a fork in the road. Xiao Yi Xian instantly thought of something. Dou Qi surged within her body, and with a leap, she landed atop a wall.

In an alleyway, a familiar pink figure appeared before her.

Seeing the figure before her, Xiao Yi Xian remembered seeing this person back when she had read, "Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river; do not bully the youth because he is poor."

Xiao Mei, Xiao Yan's cousin. She was also someone who valued status and wealth, yet her alluring and innocent appearance made even Xiao Yi Xian unable to help feeling favorably toward her.

At that moment, Xiao Mei was actually being pinned against the wall in the alley by a green-haired young man.

The green-haired young man looked at the beauty before him with a lecherous grin. "Beauty, come with me. I'm a First-grade Alchemist, and my master is a Fourth-grade Alchemist!"

Hearing this, Xiao Mei, who had been about to curse and resist, froze. She did not even know what to do.

On the Dou Qi Continent, there was a profession even more noble than that of a Dou Zhe. People called them Medicine Masters!

As the name implied, Medicine Masters could refine all kinds of miraculous pills that enhanced one's strength. Every Medicine Master would be courted at all costs by every faction, their status and position exceedingly prestigious!

Standing on the wall nearby, Xiao Yi Xian looked at the scene in surprise. All she could say was that this did not seem like the original story at all!

Had her arrival changed something, creating a butterfly effect?

A glimmer flashed through her purple eyes beneath the battered mask. Strands of purple hair drifted in the wind as she considered whether to intervene.

Fight?

Or not?

Liu Xi could be considered one of the most disgusting villains, but should she keep watching the scene unfold before her?

Who could tell her?