She's Here, She's Here, She's Coming with Graceful Steps!

[No way, you're actually giving it?]

The moment he heard the prompt, Xiao Yuan froze.

He never expected that a mere mental grumble would actually yield a reward, and the drop rate was so high—just looking at the name, he knew it was something powerful!

So much so that he failed to notice the flicker of confusion and faint anger on Xun'er's young face.

What had she just heard?

Someone wanted to punch her, and then cry for a long time?

Her cold eyes swept across the surroundings, then she frowned and glanced back at the tightly shut door of the reception hall behind her, before finally letting her gaze fall upon the various Xiao clan disciples gathered near the wall not far away.

"Hey, hey, she's looking over, she's looking over!"

"She must be looking at me!"

"Tone it down, tone it down, she's clearly looking at me!"

A single glance was enough to send countless youths into a frenzy.

But the most excited of them all was a young boy with a face full of arrogance.

Xiao Ning, the younger brother of Xiao Yu, felt his heart captured the moment he met the young girl's gaze. He felt that such a girl should be his, Xiao Ning's, wife!

However, Xun'er paid no heed to his burning gaze, her eyes continuing to wander as if searching for something.

It was then that the familiar voice rang out again.

[Sigh, a bunch of brats, why are they daydreaming all day? How many drinks have they had to be this delusional?]

[That's the wife of the Flame Emperor, the high and mighty young lady of the Ancient Clan; how could she possibly fancy any of you?]

[Besides, even if she were willing, that old geezer Gu Yuan wouldn't be. That's a Nine-Star Dou Sheng! The pinnacle of the Dou Qi Continent!]

This time, Xiao Yuan didn't receive any reward for his grumbling.

He didn't know if it was because his luck had run dry or if his complaints hadn't hit the mark.

But what he did know was that the young lady of the Ancient Clan had already fixed her gaze on their group, and for some reason, his heart skipped a beat!

[No way, no way, this young lady of the Ancient Clan isn't looking at me, is she?]

[No, impossible, absolutely impossible! How could this young lady look at me? She must be looking at Xiao Yan.]

After all, they were the male and female leads.

Although Xiao Yuan was confident in his appearance—even at a young age, he looked refined and otherworldly, with a polite temperament—he didn't think he could attract the attention of a girl with such high standards based on his looks alone.

Just as he was grumbling to himself, the young lady of the Ancient Clan began to walk gracefully toward them, her lotus-like steps moving with poise.

She was now certain of one thing: the source of the voice was these few people in front of her.

"That girl is coming over. Little Yan, Little Yuan, which one of you do you think she's taken a fancy to?"

Xiao Li continued to tease them with a laugh.

Xiao Yuan's smile was somewhat awkward.

"I think it must be Cousin Xiao Yan. After all, Cousin Xiao Yan is the genius of our generation."

Xiao Yan straightened his back upon hearing this, looking quite pleased, but Xiao Li nudged his shoulder and laughed, "Forget it, Little Yan's talent is indeed strong, but you're not bad either, kid. You've clearly already cultivated Dou Qi, so why are you still pretending?"

Their conversation reached the ears of Xiao Ning nearby, word for word.

Young Xiao Ning immediately felt a surge of jealousy, but he still put on what he considered a handsome posture. Just as the girl was about to reach them, he stepped out to block her path.

"You must be the girl the grandfather mentioned who will be staying with the Xiao clan, right? My name is Xiao Ning. You can call me Cousin Xiao Ning. If you encounter any trouble in the Xiao clan, you can come to me."

Xiao Ning thought his etiquette was perfect, painting himself as a warm, big-brother figure.

Unfortunately, Xun'er didn't even glance at him, brushing past him as if he weren't there, which caused Xiao Li and the others to burst into laughter on the spot.

Humiliated like this, Xiao Ning's face flushed red, and tears welled up in his eyes.

He was so angry he could cry.

He barely held back his tears to keep from breaking down.

Xiao Yuan, who was enjoying the show, almost laughed out loud at the sight.

[Serves him right, trying to be a suck-up and getting the cold shoulder. Purely deserved.]

[Who is Gu Xun'er? She's the number one ice-cold heroine of the Dou Qi Continent, born with innate arrogance. Even if she's a bit of a romantic fool, why would she pay attention to a grandson of an elder like you?]

[But then again, it seems Yun Yun was also quite cold before she became a romantic fool...]

As his thoughts drifted, Xiao Yuan's inner voice suddenly cut off, and he stood there completely stunned.

For no other reason than the fact that the unapproachable heroine had actually come to a stop right in front of him!

Like a flower bud about to bloom, a noble and precious smile blossomed on her young, noble, and cold face.

Hidden in the depths of her eyes was a flicker of shame and irritation.

What "lovestruck fool"?

You're the lovestruck fool!

However, that devastatingly beautiful smile had already caused Xiao Yuan to subconsciously ignore the look in her eyes.

[A single glance back, a hundred charms born; the beauties of the six palaces lose all their color.]

This was the only thing he could think of.

Even though she was still young, no one could find a single flaw in that smile, especially that touch of innocence which was enough to make all flowers pale in comparison.

At this very moment, Xiao Xun'er heard that familiar voice once again.

She could now be certain that the voice she heard was coming from the person in front of her.

But he hadn't opened his mouth, so where on earth was this sound coming from?

And why did he know so many things? Even her own background and her father...

With a look of inquiry, Xiao Xun'er reached out a small hand and said softly:

"Nice to meet you, I am Xiao Xun'er. From today on, I will be staying with the Xiao family."

Xiao Yuan reached out and gave her hand a light shake.

"...Hello, my name is Xiao Yuan."

[The Xiao of Xiao Xuan, the Yuan of Gu Yuan.]

Pfft!

Xiao Xun'er couldn't help but cover her mouth and giggle.

She felt like she had met an interesting person.

It was the first time she had seen a member of the Xiao family who not only knew of the existence of the Ancient Eight Clans but also showed them no respect.

He didn't even show any reverence for his own ancestor.

[Ding, congratulations on obtaining one Marrow Cleansing Powder.]

The familiar system chime rang in his mind again, but Xiao Yuan was completely oblivious to it, feeling only a tingling sensation on his scalp.

Some say that a "white moonlight" is nothing more than a youthful infatuation fueled by looks, combined with a bit of deep-seated inferiority, casting a halo of brilliance over one's crush.

Under the weight of unrequited love, she becomes the white moonlight, while one becomes a slave to that light.

But at this moment, Xiao Yuan had to admit it.

He was indeed feeling inferior.

Not long after, the doors to the reception hall were pushed open, and several unknown elders departed from the Xiao residence.

The Xiao Clan Head, Xiao Zhan, along with several elders, walked out of the hall to introduce Xiao Xun'er and the news of her staying with the Xiao family to the clan members.

"Something's not right. Something is nine-tenths not right."

Lying on his bed, having been teased by Xiao Li the whole way back, Xiao Yuan stared quietly at the ceiling, muttering to himself.

Today's events were strange in every way.

First, there was the matter of Xiao Xun'er taking the initiative to come up to him and introduce herself. According to the original story, shouldn't Xiao Xun'er be indifferent to everyone except Xiao Yan?

Moreover, her good relationship with Xiao Yan only developed after the period of Dou Qi nourishment.

Secondly, there was Xiao Yan. Although that guy hadn't gone through his three years of decline yet and was quite arrogant, his relationship with him should have been decent enough.

So what was with that inexplicably defiant little look in his eyes when he came back today?

It felt like a top student who had been ranked first in the grade for years suddenly having his spot taken by a slacker.

Could it be that he was targeting him just because he had condensed his Dou Qi?

Was his capacity for tolerance really that small?

"Forget it, I won't think about it. Let's look at the reward I got today first."

As the saying goes, when in doubt, ask the spring breeze.

Wait for the spring breeze to arrive, then ask.

He was just that much of a slacker.

However, when he saw the description of the reward, Xiao Yuan immediately sat bolt upright as if rising from the dead.

"Holy crap, is this for real? Is it actually this overpowered?!"