Chaos Void was a vast, gray expanse, desolate and cold.
Xiruan flew swiftly through the Chaos, carrying her Milk Bottle all by herself.
Her little face was full of determination and anticipation.
Find a new home! Build a big house!
Just thinking about how she'd soon be able to give Daddy and all those poor employees a big, beautiful new home filled her with energy.
But... where should she look?
The Primeval World was so vast, and she didn't know her way around.
Xiruan stopped and floated in the Chaos, scratching her head in frustration.
She tried her best to recall what Holy Mother Wudang and the others had told her earlier.
"Golden... Golden Turtle Island?"
She remembered. That old auntie had said Daddy's company headquarters used to be somewhere called Golden Turtle Island.
It had been destroyed, but there was no harm in taking a look, right?
Maybe she could even find some valuable things the bad guys hadn't carried off.
That was it! She'd go to Golden Turtle Island!
With her destination decided, Xiruan immediately knew which way to go.
She closed her eyes and carefully sensed the guidance of the Interception Sect's fortune, which shared its origins with Daddy's bloodline.
Before long, she picked up a faint trace of its aura.
"Found it!"
Xiruan's eyes lit up, and she immediately flew in that direction. The scenery ahead began to change.
The gray Chaos currents gradually faded, giving way to a boundless, deep-blue ocean.
Sunlight shimmered across the waves, and immortal energy hung in the air. From time to time, enormous sea beasts leaped out of the water, sending towering sprays into the sky.
"Wow! What a huge fishpond!"
Xiruan gasped in amazement. In her eyes, a pond this big had to be full of all sorts of delicious fish!
She couldn't help swallowing, already planning to catch a few fish to take home for Daddy once she'd finished her business.
She flew onward, and soon the outline of a vast island appeared on the horizon.
The island must once have been cloaked in immortal energy, a wondrous paradise blessed by nature and among the finest in the Three Realms.
But what Xiruan saw now was a horrifying field of ruins.
An unimaginable, terrifying force had split the entire island apart down the middle!
Enormous rifts like centipedes crisscrossed every corner. From the bottomless chasms, streams of black earth fiend energy erupted from time to time.
The once-majestic palaces and pavilions had been reduced to rubble. Shattered glazed tiles and broken jade pillars lay scattered everywhere.
The island's spiritual veins had been severed completely. Its once-lush exotic flowers and plants had withered and died, leaving nothing but dust.
The air was thick with an oppressive, lingering aura of death and resentment.
This was the ancestral home of the Interception Sect, Golden Turtle Island—the sacred land where ten thousand immortals had once paid homage.
Xiruan hung motionless in the air, staring at the apocalyptic scene before her.
Her little mouth slowly fell open, and her round eyes were full of shock and disbelief.
Th-this was Daddy's old home?
How... how could it be so badly wrecked?
She'd heard Holy Mother Wudang and the others say Golden Turtle Island had been destroyed.
She'd thought maybe a few houses had collapsed, or a few holes had been knocked in the walls.
"That's just too much..."
Without realizing it, Xiruan clenched her little fists. Her small body trembled with anger.
She'd always thought her poor Daddy was a down-and-out man saddled with gambling debts.
Only now did she truly understand just how miserable his situation was.
His home had been demolished, his employees had been taken away and forced to work like slaves, and he was locked up in the Small Dark Room while debt collectors came knocking every day.
It was enough to make anyone who heard about it weep!
What kind of villains could do something so utterly despicable?
That wicked old loan shark, Hongjun?
That village bully called Haotian?
Or those awful uncles, Big Uncle and Second Uncle?
Several suspects flashed through Xiruan's mind.
She thought every one of them could be guilty!
They had to be in cahoots—a gang of thugs who specialized in picking on honest people!
"No! I have to avenge this!"
Xiruan made up her mind. She wouldn't just help Daddy pay off his debts; she'd find every villain who'd torn down his home and make them pay dearly!
She'd teach them not to bully honest people!
Just as her fury blazed and she vowed to avenge her father—
[ Ding! Current scene detected: Ruins of Golden Turtle Island. ]
[ Host's emotions detected: extremely angry, extremely heartbroken, extremely eager to hit someone! ]
[ Divine Choice triggered! ]
The system's announcement sent Xiruan's anger soaring to its peak.
She stared at the three options that appeared before her, her round eyes practically spitting fire.
[ Option One: Be frightened into tears by the devastation and crouch in a corner, clutching your Milk Bottle sadly. Reward: One lollipop (strawberry flavor). ]
[ Option Two: Kneel upon the ruins and swear to rebuild Golden Turtle Island with your own hands, laying every brick and tile with your sweat. Reward: One pair of specialized bricklaying gloves, an acquired Merit Spiritual Treasure. ]
[ Option Three: Recognize that rebuilding a home requires startup funds and building materials. The neighboring East Sea Dragon Palace, as the richest "big shot" in these waters, should "generously contribute" to the Interception Sect's reconstruction!
Head to the East Sea Dragon Palace at once and "borrow" some things! Upgrade reward: Primordial Treasure—the Qiankun Cauldron (perfect for storing treasures or stewing seafood)! ]
Xiruan pouted as she looked over the three options.
Cry? What good would crying do? Would it bring the house back? Would it punish the villains? No!
Lollipops were tasty, but this wasn't the time for sweets!
As for the second option—rebuilding the place herself?
Xiruan looked down at her little arms and legs, as slender as lotus roots.
If she had to build the house one brick at a time, who knew how long it would take?
Daddy and all those employees were waiting for their new home!
That was far too slow! It didn't fit her MAX-efficiency style!
Only the third option!
It was practically made for her!
She understood that rebuilding a home took money and materials!
What should you do if you didn't have money or materials? Borrow from a rich neighbor!
Nothing wrong with that logic!
As for the East Sea Dragon Palace...
Xiruan remembered that the huge fishpond she'd passed on the way here was called the East Sea.
The water had sparkled so brightly. It looked like the place was loaded!
Anyone living somewhere like that had to be a super-rich big shot!
"That settles it!"
"I pick Option Three!"
[ Ding! The host has made a choice. Reward issued! ]
[ Congratulations! You have obtained the Primordial Treasure: Qiankun Cauldron! ]
As the system's announcement sounded, a flash of golden light appeared, and the upgraded Qiankun Cauldron materialized in front of her.
"Wow! The pot got bigger!"
Xiruan's eyes lit up, and she circled the Qiankun Cauldron.
"Mm, it looks sturdier, too."
She nodded with satisfaction.
A pot this big would surely hold heaps and heaps of shiny bricks when she went to borrow things from that huge fishpond!
And the system had said it could stew seafood, too!
Wonderful!
After borrowing the bricks, she could scoop up a few big crabs and lobsters while she was at it, and take them home to give Daddy and the employees a better meal!
At the thought of a delicious seafood feast, Xiruan couldn't help drooling.
She wiped the corner of her mouth and stowed the Primordial Qiankun Cauldron in her red bellyband.
The little bellyband was a system item with endless space inside. It could hold the Qiankun Cauldron, and even the entire Primeval World would fit with room to spare.
"All right, I'm all geared up! Time to go!"
Xiruan turned and took one last look at the ruined landscape behind her.
"Daddy, everyone, just wait for me!"
"I'll be back soon with a new house and a seafood feast!"
(That's 100,000 words! Time for a big updateヽ(〃∀〃)ﾉ)
(Today I'll make up the chapters owed for everyone's five-star reviews with written comments. Each five-star review earns one extra chapter, and each Great God certification earns five!)
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