The Anger of the Gu Clan Princess

"Young Miss, that is everything I witnessed yesterday. Shall I investigate the source of Cousin Xiao Han's unknown strange fire?"

Kneeling on one knee behind the thirteen-year-old Xiao Xun'er, Ling Ying reported truthfully what he had seen the day before.

"A strange fire... of unknown strength?"

The young girl, as pure and ethereal as a green lotus, narrowed her beautiful eyes, lost in thought.

"Enough. There's no need for an investigation. Everyone has their own secrets. You should know very well how Cousin Xiao Han has treated me all these years."

"Perhaps a person's appearance can be feigned, but the emotions that slip out unintentionally cannot be faked."

Xiao Xun'er recalled how Xiao Han had cared for her like a real brother all these years, and ultimately did not order Ling Ying to take any action.

She knew that once that bottom line was crossed, the bond of brother and sister between them would be severed, and from then on, they would likely be enemies.

"But this Xiao Han is far too unstable. I suspect he is..." Ling Ying opened his mouth but ultimately did not speak the name of that ancient emperor clan known for its evil deeds.

"Cousin Xiao Han is definitely not an undercover agent for the Hun Clan. You can rest assured on that."

Xiao Xun'er calmly refuted her subordinate's concerns, but Ling Ying was still uneasy: "But..."

"Enough..."

A pressure born from nothing crushed down on Ling Ying, making it hard for him to breathe. This was not a suppression of strength, but a suppression from the very source of bloodline!

Her hair danced without wind, the image of the refined young girl vanished. Xiao Xun'er turned to face Ling Ying, who was still kneeling on one knee. Her originally black eyes had been dyed completely gold, like burning golden eyes!

"I don't want to say this a third time! From today onward, withdraw the surveillance on Xiao Han. Understood?"

Though her body was so small and delicate, she was like a supreme sovereign, exuding overwhelming dominance!

"Yes."

Bowing his head deeply, Ling Ying was already subdued by the little girl he had watched grow up.

That little girl who used to run around crying had unknowingly grown to this level.

The terrifying bloodline suppression receded like a tide. Ling Ying felt a pair of tender hands support his right arm, helping him rise. He turned his gaze to the right, and the previously domineering young miss had once again returned to her usual gentle and lovely self.

"Xuner knows that Elder Ling does all this for Xuner's safety, but Xuner is no longer a child. Please, Elder Ling, trust Xuner's judgment, alright?" Like a little girl acting spoiled, Xuner tilted her cute little head, comforting the guard who had followed her for years.

"Young Miss, you really are... ah, forget it..."

Ling Ying smiled bitterly. This was the first time he had seen Xiao Xun'er so forceful, which showed that Xiao Han's place in the young miss's heart was indeed extraordinary.

But as a servant, he could not overstep his bounds. Without the young miss's permission, he would never dare to privately warn or teach Xiao Han a lesson.

To be a servant who obeyed his master's orders completely—that was the mission Clan Leader Gu Yuan had given him when he sent him to the Xiao Family to protect the young miss.

"Oh, right... Young Miss, there is one more thing I must report."

As if remembering something, Ling Ying cupped his hands and said to Xiao Xun'er: "The radicals within the clan have been causing trouble these past few days. They believe that the young miss has been staying in the Xiao Family for so long, and it's a complete waste of time."

"The Great Elder's people have already begun inciting some of the younger clan members, saying that they should just send people to capture everyone in the Xiao Family and bring them back to the clan, torturing them to find out the whereabouts of the Ancient Jade..."

Listening to Ling Ying's report bit by bit, Xiao Xun'er's exquisite face had unknowingly taken on an expression of extreme cold. The flames in her eyes reignited; she clenched her fists, gritted her silver teeth, and a boundless rage erupted from her small frame.

"Good, very good..."

Xiao Xun'er's tone was calm, but in Ling Ying's eyes, it was more terrifying than any other time he had seen the young miss.

He knew that calm was the precursor to a storm!

"I am aware of this. My father and I will handle it. Elder Ling, you may withdraw."

"Yes, this subordinate takes his leave."

Ling Ying sighed. Those few young men from the Great Elder's faction had angered the most unyielding person in the clan. They were in for a world of trouble.

But Ling Ying felt no sympathy for them. After all, those who bring disaster upon themselves have no one else to blame.

Of what happened with Xiao Xun'er, Xiao Han and Old Man Yao were completely unaware.

After voluntarily revealing that he was the culprit behind Xiao Yan losing his Dou Qi, Old Man Yao did not face the anger from Xiao Han that he had imagined.

Instead, his newly accepted disciple had a different view on the matter: "Master, do you know? Back when Xiao Yan was a genius, he was arrogant and looked down on everyone. Hardly anyone in the entire family could get along with him. He made many enemies and few friends—that was basically his daily routine."

"And that's exactly why, after he lost his Dou Qi cultivation, everyone turned against him."

"These past two years, although Xiao Yan lost his Dou Qi and became a waste, this might not be a bad thing. How can an untempered heart support the ladder to the peak?"

"Moreover, these two years of bitter training have laid an extremely solid foundation for my cousin. Even I, who deliberately tempered my own foundation, might not be as solid as his. If Xiao Yan one day cultivates again, he will surely be like a trapped dragon ascending to heaven, soaring straight up."

"I never thought someone so young could think so deeply." Even Old Man Yao, an elder who had seen countless geniuses, couldn't help but marvel at Xiao Han.

Many people could think of such things, but a youth as young as Xiao Han who could articulate such profound reasoning was unheard of.

It seemed this time, he had truly found a treasure!

After this heart-to-heart talk, Old Man Yao began to truly trust his new disciple, and he guided Xiao Han to successfully refine all four first-grade pill formulas from the Mittel Auction House.

In just a few short days, Xiao Han had learned all four types of first-grade pills and then ended his seclusion.

And Old Man Yao tirelessly taught Xiao Han various pharmacological knowledge every day, pouring out everything he knew about the medicinal properties and interactions of common herbs.

Mastering four first-grade pill formulas in a single week—Xiao Han's performance fully lived up to Old Man Yao's teaching.

"Hoo—"

Exhaling a mouthful of turbid qi, Xiao Han opened his eyes. He stretched his back, stood up, and moved his slightly stiff body. Since the room was very hot, Xiao Han stripped off all his clothes except for a pair of shorts.

The muscles honed over years of training weren't overly large, but the power contained within them was not to be underestimated in the slightest.

Every time he finished refining pills, Xiao Han would stop to cultivate for a while. According to Old Man Yao, cultivating Dou Qi after alchemy often yielded twice the results with half the effort.

Since he had placed a hidden hand on Xiao Yan, even if Old Man Yao wasn't inside the ring, the ring itself would absorb Xiao Yan's Dou Qi on his behalf. As Old Man Yao put it, Xiao Yan hadn't been tempered yet, so he couldn't be allowed to recover his Dou Qi talent just now.

Though he didn't know what Old Man Yao was planning, it wouldn't harm Xiao Yan, so Xiao Han couldn't be bothered to meddle.

After putting his clothes back on, Xiao Han sat down in the empty room he had converted into a training hall, carefully tallying up how many pills he had refined over the past week.

"Two thousand five hundred and seventy bottles of Qi Returning Pill, three thousand and three portions of Blood Coagulation Powder, two thousand five hundred and forty-four bottles of Energy Accumulation Pill, two thousand nine hundred and sixty portions of Gold Warehouse Medicine..."

Counting the total of each pill type, Xiao Han nodded in satisfaction.

"Han'er, why are you refining so many low-grade pills?" Old Man Yao stroked his beard, a hint of curiosity in his voice. "These low-grade pills are only treasured by those Dou Practitioners and Dou Masters. If you take them to the auction house, basically no one will pay them any mind."

"Teacher, you don't know the value of firewood and rice when you're not the one keeping house," Xiao Han rolled his eyes. "Do you think I went to all this trouble refining so many pills for nothing? It's so my Xiao Family's market can sell them on commission.

With these low-grade pills, our Xiao Family Market can gradually attract cultivators or mercenary group members from a thousand li around to come and purchase pills.

And with more people flowing in, they're bound to bring other business along.

For example, some might want to sell medicinal herbs, magic cores, treasure ores that can forge weapons, or even some heavenly treasures they stumbled upon, right at our Xiao Family Market."

Standing up, Xiao Han twisted his slightly sore neck and smiled. "Maybe in the short term, we'll only reap the huge profits from the pills themselves. But over time, people will gradually get used to trading at our Xiao Family Market.

By then, we can use our strong financial power to swallow up the other two families in Wutan City, then build a massive trading hub within the entire city. From there, we can further cooperate with the Mittel Auction House for mutual benefit.

Only like this can my Xiao Family truly rise.

And when I eventually learn to refine Two-Grade Pills or even Grade 3 Pills, other forces will realize that backing my Xiao Family is an alchemist of no low rank.

Teacher, guess whether they'll choose to make enemies of my Xiao Family or to build good relations? You know how terrifying an alchemist's rallying power can be..."

After saying this, Xiao Han stuck out his tongue. "Of course, these are just this student's shallow opinions. Teacher can take them as a joke and ignore them."

"No." Old Man Yao listened to Xiao Han's plan, and the admiration on his face grew even stronger. He reached out and patted Xiao Han's shoulder. "Han'er, your excellence truly exceeds what this teacher imagined.

I never expected that at such a young age, you'd have such a brilliant grasp of managing forces. Though it's still a bit rough, most of the strategies are feasible. However..."

At the end, Old Man Yao's tone shifted. "The strongest in your family is only a Dou Grandmaster, right? Without strong martial power to suppress others, mere financial strength won't be enough to cow them."

"That's exactly what Han'er wanted to ask Teacher about." Xiao Han scratched his head a little sheepishly at this. "My uncle, Xiao Zhan, is already a Nine Star Dou Grandmaster, just one step away from Dou Ling.

I want to beg Teacher to take action and refine a pill that can break through to Dou Ling, so my Xiao Family can have the capital to rise."

"Heh heh, that's naturally no problem. But as a trade, your Xiao Family will have to gather heavenly treasures that can restore Soul Power for this teacher." Old Man Yao said happily. "After all, this teacher is still too weak right now. If I can find some heavenly treasures that strengthen Soul Power, that would be for the best."

Xiao Han was sharp as a tack and immediately caught the subtext in Old Man Yao's words: refining pills for this disciple Xiao Han was no issue, but refining pills for the Xiao Family was another matter entirely.

"I see. This disciple understands." Xiao Han didn't mind at all. If Xiao Zhan knew that just by acquiring heavenly treasures that restored Soul Power, he could befriend a high-grade alchemist, Xiao Han figured his uncle would sell himself for money just to scour the land for soul treasures.