After that night, Xiao Yan's life gained a sacred and solemn ritual.
He regarded the cardboard box from another world as his dragon's reverse scale, something no one must touch. He carefully hid it in the most secluded corner beneath his bed boards, meticulously disguising it with a few worn-out clothes.
After finishing his cultivation each day, he would quietly lift the bed boards like a devout believer. After a grueling inner struggle over the dazzling array of "holy relics," he would finally take out a small potato chip or a piece of candy.
He would place that tiny morsel in his palm and study it for a long time before reverently putting it into his mouth.
The way he chewed slowly, closing his eyes to savor the taste, made it seem as though he were eating not a snack, but a miraculous elixir capable of increasing his Dou Qi.
Yao Lao, who resided in the ring, witnessed all of this. At first, he dismissed it as childish behavior, but after several consecutive days of the same thing, an inexplicable anger at the boy's failure to live up to his potential surged higher and higher.
Finally, as Xiao Yan performed his sacred "eating ritual" once again, Yao Lao's illusory figure floated out, displeasure written all over his aged, imposing face.
"Boy! How long will you keep indulging in these soulless morsels that serve only your appetite! The truly strong allow nothing to distract them and seek only the Great Dao! If you keep being this useless, beware-your growth might stall, and you'll spend the rest of your life looking up at that sworn elder brother of yours!"
"Looking up at your sworn elder brother!" Those words exploded through Xiao Yan's mind like a thunderclap. He jerked his head up, half