Nurturing Meridians

Chapter 3: Nourishing the Meridians

When Xiao Ling reached Xiao Xun'er's door, he gently pushed it open and slipped inside. Seeing that no one had noticed him, he quietly approached the bed. By the moonlight, he saw Xiao Xun'er's adorable face. Compared to the rosy complexion she had worn that morning, however, she was now somewhat pale. Her brows were tightly furrowed, as if she were enduring some torment.

Xiao Ling could more or less guess the reason. The Golden Emperor Burning Heaven Flame had been directly sealed inside a young child's body, and she was clearly still struggling to adapt to it. The Gu Clan had not even had time to examine her before bringing her straight to the Xiao Family. It truly was quite taxing on her. Once she grew older and her body fully developed, this condition would ease somewhat.

Slowly walking to the bedside, Xiao Ling saw the fine sweat on Xiao Xun'er's forehead. Without time to think of anything else, he placed his hand over her wrist and began nourishing her meridians.

As he injected a thread of Dou Qi, he felt warm currents within his body flow through his fingers and into Xiao Xun'er's body. Xiao Xun'er, whose body had initially been somewhat tense, gradually relaxed. Her furrowed brows eased as well.

Xiao Ling examined Xiao Xun'er's current state. Her breathing was now calm and steady, and she looked like a sleeping beauty. Though her pretty face was still slightly childish, the outline of a great beauty could already be seen.

Several minutes later, Xiao Ling's face had turned pale, and sweat covered his head. The Dou Qi within him had become so thin that he could barely sense it. Dou Qi Stage One still isn't enough. It gets used up all at once. After withdrawing his hand from Xiao Xun'er's wrist, he wiped away his sweat and let out a breath. Seeing that Xiao Xun'er was already sleeping soundly, he rose and left. He quietly opened and closed the door, then vaulted out of the courtyard and dashed back to his little wooden hut.

What Xiao Ling did not know was that Xiao Xun'er opened her eyes the moment he stepped out of the room. She stared in the direction he had left, a complicated look flashing through her eyes.

Inside the wooden hut, Xiao Ling lay on his bed, still shaken.

When he had left Xun'er's room, he had felt someone's gaze fixed on him the entire time. It had scared him into a cold sweat. Xiao Ling had been born with exceptionally powerful Soul Power, making him extremely sensitive to being watched.

"Could Ling Ying have returned to the courtyard, or had he never left at all?"

"After all, Xiao Xun'er's safety should be more important than a fragment of the Tou She Ancient God Jade. He may have been staying by Xiao Xun'er's side the whole time."

Rubbing his chin, Xiao Ling pondered.

"Still, things went quite smoothly today. I hope everything can be completed without incident tomorrow."

"Sigh, I really don't get it."

Fatigue washed over him, and Xiao Ling did not think any further. He closed his eyes and drifted into sleep.

The next morning, Xiao Ling got up, tidied his room for a while, washed his face, and opened the door to head out for breakfast.

On his way to the dining hall, he noticed someone staring at him from behind. When he turned around, he found Xiao Xun'er watching him with a complicated gaze. Feeling somewhat uneasy, Xiao Ling hurried into the dining hall.

After breakfast, Xiao Ling left the dining hall and headed back toward his wooden hut, planning to begin a new day of cultivation.

Returning to the wooden hut, he sat on the bed, formed a cultivation hand seal, and began meditating to cultivate Dou Qi.

Night descended beneath a bright moon and sparse stars.

After the bustle of the day, the Xiao Family sank into silence.

Within the Xiao Family compound, a dark figure nimbly darted through the courtyards. In a moment, he had reached the outside of Xiao Yan's courtyard. Xiao Ling looked into the room and saw that Xiao Yan was already sleeping soundly on his bed.

Xiao Ling breathed a sigh of relief. "It seems that after what happened yesterday, Xiao Yan has given up on experimenting with Dou Qi." He then turned and ran toward Xiao Xun'er's courtyard.

The second time was much easier. Xiao Ling effortlessly arrived outside Xun'er's room.

After confirming that Xiao Xun'er was asleep, he entered, stirred the Dou Qi within his body, and began nourishing Xiao Xun'er's meridians.

Once the Dou Qi in his body had been exhausted, Xiao Ling turned and left. He returned to his wooden hut, collapsed onto his bed, and fell asleep.

Time flew by, slipping away unnoticed. Four years passed amid cultivation.

In a courtyard in the Xiao Family's rear compound, Xiao Ling formed the hand seal to end his cultivation and awakened from meditation. He let out a long breath, then summoned the system panel with a thought.

"System, open my Personal Panel."

"Ding. Automatically opening the host's Personal Panel."

Host: Xiao Ling

Gender: Male

Cultivation: Dou Qi Stage Nine

Age: 8

Cultivation Method: None

Dou Techniques: Cracked Claw Strike (Yellow Grade Mid-tier), Mountain Splitting Palm (Yellow Grade Mid-tier), Stone Shattering Palm (Yellow Grade Mid-tier)

Items: Twenty-Four Bridges Moonlight Night, Qi Gathering Powder

Draws Remaining: 8

Rising from the meditation cushion, Xiao Ling brushed the dust from his clothes. He pushed open the door and went to sit in the pavilion within the small courtyard to rest, recalling the events of the past four years.

Since he had never intended to hide his cultivation talent, Xiao Ling had stepped forward for the annual Dou Qi tests every year since he began cultivating.

He still remembered the scene during the younger generation's test when he was five years old. On the Magic Stone Tablet, the other young members of the family were all at Dou Qi Stage One, while some had not even cultivated any Dou Qi. Even Xiao Yan, the Xiao Family's greatest genius at the time, had only reached Dou Qi Stage Two. Yet when Xiao Ling approached the Magic Stone Tablet, the result displayed was directly Dou Qi Stage Three. Xiao Yan, who had just stepped down from the platform, froze on the spot, while even the middle-aged elder conducting the test was too astonished to speak.

At first, they thought the Magic Stone Tablet was broken. Yet after testing him three consecutive times and obtaining Dou Qi Stage Three each time, they confirmed that the Magic Stone Tablet was functioning normally.

The surrounding young members of the family were all left questioning their lives, their jaws dropping in shock. The family elders collectively sucked in a breath of cold air and cried, "This child is terrifying indeed!"

Xiao Ling had secretly enjoyed it a little, and he could understand their shock. A five-year-old at Dou Qi Stage Three was unheard of even in the Jia Ma Empire, let alone tiny Wutan City. With such cultivation speed, he would surely become a Dou Zhe before turning ten. Just imagine it—a Dou Zhe under ten years old. His future achievements would definitely be limitless, and the family might well rise again.

Xiao Yan had only just secured his position as the Xiao Family's number one genius, yet he was replaced after only a year. Xiao Ling received increasing attention within the family, and his treatment steadily improved. Even his lodging was changed from a small wooden hut to an independent courtyard, with two maids assigned to attend to his daily needs.

After Xiao Ling's extraordinary talent gained the family's recognition, the benefits were obvious, and the number of people flattering him increased as well. However, Xiao Ling did not become arrogant, conceited, or overbearing because of it. He treated people with great kindness and often guided peers who came to seek his advice. Although such talent could be considered formidable in little Wutan City, it was nothing before the Ancient Races, special constitutions, and Divine Bloodlines. At best, it could barely compare with the geniuses of the Central Plains. Even within the Jia Ma Empire, there were several people more talented than him.

Because Xiao Ling had taken away his position as the family's number one genius, and because Xiao Xun'er and Xiao Ling had grown increasingly close, Xiao Yan was deeply dissatisfied. He often came to challenge Xiao Ling, though he lost almost every match against him.

Instead, Xiao Yan vented his anger during sparring matches with the family's younger generation. Xiao Ning in particular was often beaten up. Xiao Yan's temperament also became increasingly domineering, but because of his exceptional talent—and because the family patriarch was his father—Xiao Ling did not take the initiative to challenge him, and no one dared to criticize him to his face.

Xiao Ling had watched all of this unfold. He could only say that the mockery Xiao Yan later endured during his lowest period had been inevitable. If Xiao Yan had not been so high-profile, perhaps the people in the family would not have only wanted to ridicule him. More of them might have felt sorry for him instead.