The Sheep Talisman's stirrings

Xiao Lin raised an eyebrow at Xiao Long's words. "You know what this is?"

Although he had been brought to life from a statue, he possessed the same memories and consciousness as Xiao Lin. This could be called the clan's deepest secret.

In truth, even he did not know what this piece represented. Neither had his father, the Clan Leader before him.

They only knew that it was extremely, extremely important.

Yet from what Xiao Long had said, he actually knew what it was?

"Of course I do..."

He had little need to hide anything from Xiao Lin. He could sense the connection between them, and his trust in Xiao Lin was almost unconditional.

With a mere thought, he could turn Xiao Lin back into a statue. Of course, that required him to act deliberately. As for any passive triggers, he had yet to discover them.

This Golden Finger was great, but he had to figure everything out himself. Even the Twelve Talismans had taken him a long time to understand.

Besides, it had come too late. He had not even been able to save his mother.

Mother...

Xiao Long pondered whether he should make a statue of his mother. But if she reappeared, how would he explain it to his father?

Xiao Lin had been away from home, his fate technically unknown. His mother, however, had died of illness, and Xiao Zhan had buried her with his own hands.

Forget it. Once I become a Dou Di, I'll see if there's a way to resurrect Mother.

Xiao Long's attention returned to the Tou She Ancient God Jade in his hand. The moment he took hold of it, his eyebrows suddenly lifted slightly.

The Sheep Talisman had actually reacted?

"What is it?" Xiao Lin could not help asking. After all, he had been curious about this thing for a very long time.

Even his father had not known. All he knew was that their Xiao Clan had originally come from the Central Plains Continent, retreating all the way from there to the Jia Ma Empire.

In the end, they had actually become a noble family in some backwater.

"You shouldn't know."

Xiao Long had become curious about the Tou She Ancient God Jade himself. He answered offhandedly, wanting to go back and study it.

After all, Shendu's power did not exist in this world. Perhaps it could uncover something different.

Xiao Lin, however, froze at his reply. "Hold on. Am I the Clan Leader, or are you?"

Although Xiao Lin knew his existence depended on Xiao Long, such hilariously "filial" words still made him reach out and rap Xiao Long on the head.

"Ow! Grandfather!"

His head smarting, Xiao Long rubbed his forehead. "This thing involves far too much. When your enemies came after you back then, those so-called enemies might very well have been nothing more than a cover."

"This thing was their real objective."

"And you know Xiao Xun'er, right...?"

Xiao Lin nodded. "Apparently, a family that was old friends with Father sent her here. They said she was unwell and had come to recuperate with the Xiao Clan."

Xiao Lin had already fallen by the time Xiao Xun'er arrived. Xiao Zhan had only told him about it during their father-and-son heart-to-heart the other day.

"She came for this."

Xiao Long toyed with the jade. What exactly was the Gu Clan's attitude toward it? With Gu Yuan's strength, if he truly wanted it...

As a Dou Sheng, he could turn the Xiao Clan upside down whenever he pleased. Either Gu Yuan did not want it, but someone within the Gu Clan did...

Or they were afraid of alerting the Soul Clan. After all, the Gu Clan and the Soul Clan were constantly on guard against each other.

"Then what is her background?"

"All right, I'll handle this. Grandfather, just focus on managing the clan."

Originally, Xiao Long had not wanted to take on this hot potato. Why not leave it to his little brother, Little Yanzi?

But now that the Sheep Talisman had reacted to the Tou She Ancient God Jade, he had to study it properly.

"All right."

Xiao Lin stopped dwelling on it. This grandson of his in name, who was actually his master, was far too mysterious.

He could now be considered to have lived a second life, but he had no idea how long Xiao Long could maintain his current state.

While he had the time, he needed to get the Xiao Clan back to Jia Ma Holy City as soon as possible. What were they doing stuck in this backwater?

Both resources and connections were sorely lacking here.

"By the way, how should we handle the Nalan Family?"

"News of my return will probably reach Nalan Jie before long. Given that old man's temperament, he'll definitely insist on going through with the marriage."

"That girl Nalan Yanran may have a poor temperament, but her status..."

Xiao Long waved a hand. "If anyone's marrying her, let Little Yanzi do it. There are some problems with the Misty Cloud Sect. Of course, I'm more interested in her master."

"If Nalan Jie comes to you, just tell him it was only a joke back then. If he doesn't, I'll handle it when the time comes."

"Besides, connections alone won't be enough to return to Jia Ma Holy City. Once I've improved my strength a little more, I'll see if I can get you to Dou Wang."

"If you're only a Peak Dou Ling, we'd be better off staying in a backwater. We'd draw too much attention in the Jia Ma Empire."

With that, Xiao Long cupped his hands in farewell and left to study the Tou She Ancient God Jade. Xiao Lin watched him speechlessly.

One moment, the brat treated him like a subordinate; the next, he treated him like a grandfather.

"Brother Xiao Long, what did Grandfather want to talk to you about?"

Xiao Xun'er's little face looked somewhat anxious. She worried that Xiao Lin might tell Xiao Long there was something suspicious about her background.

If Xiao Long distanced himself from her because of it, that would be terrible.

But she could hardly ask for Xiao Lin to die. He was Brother Xiao Long's grandfather, after all.

"We talked about the clan's future development. I told him I wouldn't be staying in this backwater."

When Xiao Lin told Xiao Xun'er that Xiao Lin was not actually dead, her expression had remained unchanged, but Xiao Lin's cultivation realm was higher than hers at present.

On top of that, the Sheep Talisman had heightened his perception.

The corner of Xiao Xun'er's mouth had twitched noticeably, and he had picked up on something. Xiao Xun'er had only arrived after Xiao Lin fell.

The Gu Clan had probably feared that Xiao Lin's presence as a Dou Wang would send Xiao Xun'er's infiltration plan down the drain.

Of course, Xiao Long had always thought this plan was idiotic. He did not know whether Gu Yuan was an idiot or whether it was the result of internal power struggles within the Gu Clan.

But now that Xiao Lin was not dead, he might very well attract the Gu Clan's attention.

"Grandfather told me his strength has declined. For now, he plans to develop the clan in Wutan City and return to Jia Ma Holy City when the opportunity arises."

Xiao Xun'er's faintly furrowed brows relaxed a little. Grandpa Xiao Lin's strength had declined?

After all, Dou Wang and Dou Ling were on two different levels.

In that case, even if word reached the clan, it should make them raise their assessment of the risks involved in her infiltration plan.

Wouldn't that mean she could spend even more time with Brother Xiao Long?!

"All right, I'm going to work on some Dou Techniques now that I've just broken through."

"Okay. I made some Osmanthus Cake earlier. Remember to come find me once you're done cultivating, Brother Xiao Long."

"Got it."

Xiao Long walked past Xiao Xun'er and waved over his shoulder. Watching his retreating back, she asked, "Elder Ling, did you hear that?"

"I did."

"Send word back to the clan. Tell them it won't affect the plan for now. Besides, with Xiao Lin back, we should have a better chance of obtaining information about that thing."

"But, miss..."

"Hmm?"

"Er... some news came from the clan. They said you're almost of age now, and it would be best to settle an engagement first. They seem to favor the Lei Clan's young master. The clan intends to win over the Lei Clan."

"Just tell them the mission is too important, and I have no interest in dealing with this."

Xiao Xun'er rejected it outright. Ling Ying wanted to say more, but she cut him off. "That's enough. I still have Osmanthus Cake to make!"