Gute

Strands of sunlight dispelled the darkness, slowly creeping into every corner of the world...

Xiao Yi Xian woke from her sleep and looked helplessly at Xiao Ling'er, who was sprawled on top of her.

She rubbed her messy hair and gently pushed Xiao Ling'er...

Once they were ready, the two little fairies headed downstairs for breakfast. Xiao Yi Xian put away Chi Han, who was still asleep, and led the groggy Xiao Ling'er downstairs.

"Miss?"

When Liu Yan saw Xiao Yi Xian come down, he greeted her and instructed the waiter to bring two more servings of food.

Xiao Yi Xian sat across from Liu Yan and asked, "Do you know Gute?"

Liu Yan was taken aback for a moment, then nodded. "How could I not? Gute is quite an oddity among alchemists!"

At the mention of Gute, Liu Yan could not help recalling that smug figure. That fellow had an exceedingly eccentric personality. Though he possessed considerable talent for alchemy and was even the older brother of Pill King Gu He—

He was obsessed with collecting all manner of heavenly treasures, to the point that he had remained a third-tier alchemist all this time. His obsession had practically become pathological. Once he discovered that someone possessed something valuable, he would immediately pester them relentlessly, making himself unbearably annoying and giving people a terrible headache.

Hearing that Liu Yan knew Gute, Xiao Yi Xian smiled faintly. "We came here for Gute."

Liu Yan was initially stunned by Xiao Yi Xian's words, but he soon understood. Gute's collection was indeed worth looking through. They might even be able to trade for something useful.

After a pleasant breakfast, Liu Yan led Xiao Yi Xian and Xiao Ling'er through more than a dozen dizzying streets in Blackrock City before finally stopping before a strange building tucked away in a secluded corner near the southern part of the city.

Looking up at the peculiar building before them, Liu Yan took a breath, then turned to Xiao Yi Xian with a smile. "Miss, this is where Gute lives. That fellow is very strange!"

Xiao Yi Xian nodded at this. She knew that already, having read the original novel.

Liu Yan walked ahead and pushed open the door, but before he could even enter, a fierce gust of force carrying overwhelming black powder surged out from within the room.

Faced with this sudden turn of events, Liu Yan curled his lips and sharply waved his sleeve. An even fiercer gust of force appeared out of thin air, blowing all the black powder back inside.

As the black powder gradually dispersed, it revealed the filthy, cluttered room within.

Clapping his hands, Liu Yan turned toward the utterly unfazed Xiao Yi Xian and smiled. "That old fellow always likes setting up these things to prank people. That black powder just now won't poison anyone, but if even a little gets on your skin, it'll itch unbearably."

Xiao Yi Xian nodded behind him. After all, Xiao Yan had already gone through this in the book, so she knew some of it, though not all that clearly.

No matter how good her memory was, she had only been an ordinary person in her previous life. It was already quite good that she could remember the general outline of a novel.

"Come on. Stay behind me, and don't touch anything carelessly." With a smile, Liu Yan entered the room first. Xiao Yi Xian looked at Xiao Ling'er, nodded, and followed after him.

The moment they entered the dim room, the door automatically slammed shut with a loud bang, making Xiao Yi Xian shake her head helplessly once more.

This habit of playing tricks on people is really irritating. I should give him a proper beating!

Her gaze swept across the rooms that resembled garbage dumps. Following Liu Yan across several rotten wooden staircases that swayed as if they might collapse at any moment, and after enduring several more waves of chaotic attacks, they finally arrived at the top floor of the building.

After climbing the final staircase, Liu Yan let out a relieved breath. Raising his head to look at the wooden door at the end of the corridor, he turned to Xiao Yi Xian and asked, "Miss, it should be here."

Xiao Yi Xian nodded to show that she understood. Getting here had truly not been easy.

Liu Yan lowered his head and glanced at the several holes melted into his robe by a basin of corrosive liquid on the stairs earlier. The corner of his mouth twitched as he gritted his teeth. "That old bastard doesn't study proper alchemy. He only plays around with these shady little tricks..."

Hearing his complaint, Xiao Yi Xian merely smiled faintly. She knew that Gute would not end well in the end.

"Proper alchemy, my ass! What's improper about my stuff? You old rascal, don't think I won't throw you out just because you rarely come to visit!" As Xiao Yi Xian smiled, an elderly voice suddenly cursed angrily from the room at the end of the corridor.

"You're the old rascal." Rolling his eyes, Liu Yan unhappily flicked his sleeve and led Xiao Yi Xian down the corridor. When they reached the room, he viciously kicked at the seemingly wooden door.

Clang!

When his foot struck the door, a crisp metallic ring suddenly sounded. Xiao Yi Xian's eye twitched slightly as she turned to look at Liu Yan, whose old face had nearly twisted together in pain.

That looks painful...

Xiao Ling'er looked curiously at the uncle as well. She could clearly sense that a bone had fractured.

"Haha, old fellow! After you kicked down one of my doors last time, I specifically had someone replace it with a door made of refined steel! Haha, fun, isn't it?" The elderly man's uproarious laughter came from within the room once more, though this time it carried a trace of gloating.

"You old bastard..." Liu Yan's distorted face drew in a cold breath. His expression gradually turned livid as powerful Dou Qi slowly rose from his body, enveloping him like a man of fire and directly burning the door to ashes.

Liu Yan stormed inside, looked at the grinning Gute, and instantly pressed down on him with powerful soul force.

"Ugh!" Sensing the immense soul force, Gute immediately wiped the grin off his face and cautiously said, "Brother Liu, don't be angry, don't be angry. Hehe!"

Seeing how unserious Gute was, Liu Yan snorted coldly, withdrew the flames and pressure, and stepped aside.

Though Gute was somewhat surprised that Liu Yan had advanced further, his eyes lit up when he saw the two beautiful women who had entered.

Xiao Yi Xian gave Gute a mysterious smile. The sword case on her back emanated powerful pressure, and an aura of King's Descent... Upon the World bore down on him.

"Urgh!"

Gute let out a muffled groan and wiped away his cold sweat. His eyes were filled with fear as he looked at Xiao Yi Xian.

"A powerful expert—definitely a powerful expert!"

Gute was certain that she was a powerful expert, and not an ordinary one at that. This pressure was definitely at least at the Dou Emperor level.

Suppressing his physical discomfort, Gute smiled awkwardly and said, "May I ask what brings the two of you to my humble abode?"

Seeing Gute like this, Liu Yan could not help sneering inwardly. What a bully who fears the strong and picks on the weak.

If this fellow had not been relying on his brother, Pill King Gu He, and his long-standing friendship with him, then... hehe...