Xiao Yan: Killing May Be Crude, but It Feels Good

Of course, the fact that the brat had his eye on Xun'er was a major reason too.

Xiao Yan smiled and put all the Pills he had refined into a Storage Ring. He slipped into his father's room, left the ring in the most conspicuous spot on the table, and withdrew.

On a rooftop stood a young man dressed in fitted black.

He looked down coldly at the Jia Lie Family compound nearby. Only a few courtyards still had lights burning.

After a moment's thought, he darted across the rooftops and found Liu Xi's quarters within a few breaths.

He watched from above, his gaze calm.

Best to kill him in one strike without making a sound. The Jia Lie Family's Clan Leader is about as strong as Father, roughly a Five-Star Da Dou Shi, and there are bound to be other Da Dou Shi experts in the family. If they pin me down, it'll be troublesome.

Inside, Liu Xi was too consumed by lust to notice Xiao Yan at the window. Grinning lecherously, he ran his hands over a pretty maid who lay unconscious before him, clad in nothing but a gauzy veil.

"Scum."

Xiao Yan spoke quietly. If he remembered correctly, this brat had even asked the Jia Lie Family's Clan Leader to get Xun'er for him in the original story, whether by drugging her or by force.

All the more reason for him to die.

But just as he was about to strike, a bell-like laugh sounded beside him. "What a coincidence. I didn't expect Brother Xiao Yan to still be awake. Out for a stroll?"

"Y-yeah..." Xiao Yan's eye twitched.

Who takes a midnight stroll through an enemy's compound?

Xiao Xun'er stood beside him in a golden dress. Moonlight made her exquisitely beautiful face look like a fairy's. With her hands behind her back, she bent forward and brought her face close to his.

Mischief danced in her eyes.

"The moon's awfully round tonight." Xiao Yan grinned, embarrassed but shameless enough to play along.

"I remember Brother Xiao Yan saying killing was the crudest way to deal with someone. So why..." Xiao Xun'er touched a finger to her lips, looking adorably puzzled.

"You little..." Xiao Yan bared his teeth and rubbed her head.

"Killing is crude, but... it feels good!"

"Stay here!"

Xiao Yan glared at her, then rushed into the room. One swing of his staff smashed Liu Xi's skull. He burned the body to nothing with Qi Fire, wiping out the evidence.

He moved so swiftly and smoothly that even Xiao Xun'er's lips parted in surprise.

Does Brother Xiao Yan kill people and dispose of their bodies often?

The next instant, he burst from the room, swept an arm around her slender waist, and carried her off in his arms. "Stop using that secret technique so often. The backlash is too severe. If you have to, let Elder Ling handle it..."

She heard his breathing, a little ragged, close to her ear.

"Mm..."

The girl gazed at the face so close to hers, losing herself in his familiar presence. A maid's startled cry shattered the night's quiet, and the Jia Lie Family compound behind them came alive. But the two of them kept running like assassins fleeing after a successful kill.

The absurdity of it, and how real it felt, swept her away.

Brother Xiao Yan will always hold Xun'er like this, won't he?

A sweet smile curved her lips as she slipped an arm around his neck.

She gently kissed his cheek.

And Xun'er will always love Brother Xiao Yan.

Meanwhile, Xiao Yan, still running: ???

What just happened?

How did she go from running for her life to blushing, staring at me like that, and kissing me?!

Is this really the time?

Gritting his teeth, he smacked her bottom. "We're escaping! Cut it out."

"Mm..." The haze in Xiao Xun'er's eyes deepened, a faint flush spreading across her face. She bit her lip but said nothing.

With difficulty, she drew her gaze from Xiao Yan's profile and looked toward a dark figure moving alongside them in the distance. Her eyes regained some of their coolness, and she jerked her chin toward the pursuers.

"Stop them..."

The figure slowed and vanished from sight. At the same time, the shouts of the pursuers behind them began to fade.

"Hah..."

Only when Xiao Yan was certain no one was following did he set Xiao Xun'er down. "All right. After tonight, the Jia Lie Family is finished for good."

The Jia Lie Family had survived the Xiao Clan's assault these past few days only because they held the low-end market. The Xiao Clan was powerful and had a Three-Rank Alchemist, but its efforts were focused on the high end. It had no time for lower-grade Pills, such as first-rank ones, and that gap had kept the Jia Lie Family alive.

But after tonight,

it would all be over.

The Jia Lie Family would most likely fall for good.

"And you, little troublemaker..." Xiao Yan glared at her, ready to give her a talking-to.

But Xiao Xun'er stepped forward, hooked her arms around his neck, and pressed her beautiful face to his. Their lips met. Only after a long while did they slowly part.

Gulp.

Xiao Yan stared at her, stunned. He could still taste her sweetness when Xiao Xun'er smiled and asked, "Brother Xiao Yan, do you need Heavenly Flames?"

"Uh... the Golden Emperor Burning Heaven Flame?" Xiao Yan froze.

She had not fully absorbed that immensely powerful Heavenly Flame, one of the highest-ranked, but Gu Yuan had sealed it inside her. She could refine it bit by bit as her strength grew.

In the original story, she had refined it very slowly. Given her talent, she had clearly held back her cultivation to spend more time with Xiao Yan. Could she have already refined it in this life?

"Mm, Brother Xiao Yan really does know. That old gentleman must be far more remarkable than Xun'er imagined," she said with a soft laugh.

"You haven't refined it yet..." Xiao Yan fell silent for a moment.

He did need Heavenly Flames. And once she had complete control over the Golden Emperor Burning Heaven Flame, she really could separate off a wisp of Child Flame for him.

"For Brother Xiao Yan, Xun'er only needs... three months to finish refining it." Xiao Xun'er smiled and held up three pale fingers.

Xiao Yan sucked in a sharp breath.

He had underestimated her talent after all.

But...

A smile tugged at Xiao Yan's lips. "You don't need to hold back your cultivation for me. If you keep doing that, I'm afraid you won't be able to catch up with me."

With that, he let the aura of a Three-Star Dou Master show in full.

Xiao Xun'er's calm eyes widened in shock.

In just half a year, he'd gone from third-stage Dou Qi to a Three-Star Dou Master?!

Even if she had not held herself back at all, she might not have reached that terrifying pace.

But that made things interesting.

The girl smiled again. "In that case, Brother Xiao Yan, Xun'er will give you a big surprise next time we meet~"