Sun and moon

Crack!

Xiao Ning held a sharp kitchen knife and chopped off the Heavenly Dragon Fish's head in a single stroke, splashing blood all over the face of the boy opposite him.

"Xiao Ning, we stole so many fish. Won't the grand elder beat you?" Xiao Cheng asked from across from him, his face full of worry.

Among the children of Xiao Lin's lineage in this generation, Xiao Cheng had the strictest upbringing.

Coming from such a family, his character and conduct were naturally beyond reproach, making him a shining example among the younger generation.

But that same environment also left him a little less daring and decisive than the others.

"Xiao Cheng, I hear your grandfather still has plenty of fine wine he picked up on missions outside." As the two chatted, Xiao Yan's voice came from behind them.

Xiao Cheng's expression changed. Turning around, he forced a smile uglier than a grimace. "Brother Yan, he does, but I wouldn't dare steal any."

"Cheng, how can you have so little faith in yourself? Trust me, stealing a few jars of wine couldn't be easier!"

Xiao Yan encouraged Xiao Cheng with a cheerful smile. "You've been basking in the group's glory all this time. Now it's your turn to contribute!"

"Brother Yan, could you please not make me do this?" Xiao Cheng was nearly in tears.

With how strict his family was, stealing a few bottles of his grandfather's wine would probably get him beaten half to death by his parents.

"Xiao Cheng, is that all the backbone you have?" A voice rang out nearby, and a round little fatty walked over.

The little fatty was named Xiao Feng. His cultivation ranked near the bottom of their group, but like Xiao Jiande, he had a Dou Zun grandfather.

Had Xiao Yan not kept him in check and guided him over the years, Xiao Feng's temperament might well have made him the next Xiao Jiande.

"Brother Yan, don't worry about the wine. I'll steal my grandfather's." Xiao Feng patted his wobbling chest and spoke confidently.

"Great! Looks like Feng's the one who really comes through."

In the end, you still need a good grandfather, Xiao Yan thought, though his face still wore an approving smile.

After all, when his underling put in the effort, he ought to offer some praise.

"Hehe, this is nothing, Brother Yan. Once my grandfather dies, I'll get you the best jars from his secret chamber to try, too," Xiao Feng said smugly.

Xiao Yan's smile stiffened slightly. Suddenly, he no longer wanted to talk to this little fatty.

"Xiao Feng, how is your Dragon Subduing Art coming along?"

A calm voice sounded. At some point, Xiao Li had appeared before Xiao Feng and posed the question coldly.

"Ah! Teacher Li!" Xiao Feng's expression changed. Nothing frightened him more than Xiao Li asking about his progress.

"You're already sixteen, yet you're still a nine-star Dou Shi. Perhaps by the time you die of old age, your grandfather will have fathered another uncle for you," Xiao Li said, striking without mercy.

Xiao Feng lowered his head and dared not speak. He was terrified of Xiao Li.

"Second Brother, you rarely get a chance to gather with your students like this. Aren't you afraid that icy face of yours will scare them all senseless?" Xiao Yan joked.

"Very well." Xiao Li nodded slightly and said to Xiao Feng, "I'll let you off this time. If I ever hear such outrageous, unfilial words from your mouth again, slap yourself!" With that, he vanished from the spot.

"Phew." Xiao Feng drew a deep breath and said gratefully, "Brother Yan, thank goodness you got me out of that. Otherwise, Teacher Xiao Li would have scolded me to death."

"Don't mention it. You're my underling, after all."

Xiao Yan waved a hand, then said thoughtfully, "But your strength really is lacking. Once I become a Dou Sheng, if you're not even a Dou Zong, don't tell anyone you follow me. I can't afford to lose that much face."

"Yes, Brother Yan, don't worry." Xiao Feng solemnly vowed, "I'll definitely cultivate to Dou Zong. Then I can outlive my grandfather."

Xiao Yan: "..."

"Does your grandfather beat you often?"

"No."

"Then do you have some grudge against him?"

"No, not that either."

"All right, understood." Suddenly, Xiao Yan had no idea what to say.

Once Xiao Feng left, he turned back and patted Xiao Cheng's shoulder with a smile. "Cheng, I was only joking earlier. Don't let it weigh on you, and don't feel like you owe everyone anything.

"As the leader of this group, if I'm willing to bring you all along, I'm not going to hold it against you just because you can't bring anything nice from home.

"Xiao Feng and the others are still young. They might not understand the warmth and coldness of human relations yet. If one day you feel they've gone too far with what they say, remember to come to me so I can sort it out."

"Brother Yan!" Xiao Cheng's eyes reddened slightly.

"Go on, get those fish cleaned." Xiao Yan gave him a meaningful smile.

Not everyone was born with an extraordinary grandfather or father. Most of the boys around Xiao Yan only had Dou Zong fathers or grandfathers.

Even so, from the moment they were born, their starting line was already ahead of most people born among the descendant populace, such as Xiao Niu and Xiao Ma.

In his previous life, Xiao Yan had been like Xiao Cheng, born into a modest middle-class family with a strict upbringing. When he first stepped into society, he had been just like Xiao Cheng was now.

He had feared being mocked, approached many things with trepidation, and sometimes sunk into inferiority and inner turmoil. He had even been something of a people pleaser.

Such a disposition often made a person overly sensitive and cautious inside, even fragile.

But... such an upbringing was not an unmitigated tragedy, because alertness and caution were themselves rare instincts.

So long as someone suitable came along to guide them, once they overcame their inferiority, cowardice, and other shortcomings, they would transform into someone truly strong within.

Such people might still lack boldness, but their steadiness and caution would be first-rate.

In Xiao Yan's eyes, the consistently unremarkable Xiao Cheng might be more worth nurturing than these privileged youngsters with Dou Zun grandfathers.

Fortune and misfortune leaned upon each other; light and darkness intertwined. A good leader ought to know how to polish the dark sides of his subordinates until they shone, turning weaknesses into strengths.

Night fell. The milky-white sunlight in the sky gradually dimmed, and a black full moon abruptly appeared.

In the little square, more than a dozen bonfires formed a circle.

Over a hundred youths gathered around them. Above the bonfires, the Heavenly Dragon Fish that Xiao Ning and Xiao Cheng had painstakingly cleaned roasted to a glistening golden brown, giving off a tantalizing aroma.

"Sis, was the world outside exciting when you went out this time?" As Xiao Yan's personal lackey, Xiao Ning had the privilege of sitting with him. He looked curiously at Xiao Yu.

As beauties, Xiao Yu and Xiao Mei sat directly on either side of Xiao Yan.

"It was all right, but the outside world is very poor."

Xiao Yu tore off a piece of roast fish, crisp outside and tender within, and chatted as she ate. "They say the Central Plains is the richest region on our Dou Qi Continent, where the continent's greatest experts gather."

"But the so-called One Tower, Two Sects, Three Valleys, Four Pavilions, and all those other factions I saw this time didn't seem like much.

"One or two Dou Zun experts can establish some pavilion. Aside from the Pill Tower, which was a little wealthier, the other factions didn't even seem as well-off as our branch."

Xiao Yu curled her lips, showing her disdain for those major factions outside.

In the Xiao Clan, branches like theirs, backed by a Dou Sheng Expert, were called King Lineages.

The entire Xiao Clan had over a hundred King Lineages. Above them were the ten great Emperor Lineages, whose leaders were said to be at least Seven-Star Dou Saints.

"What about the sun and moon outside?" Xiao Mei's little face was curious, too.

"Those are quite different from the ones in our Xiao Realm."

Xiao Yu thought for a moment and said, "The sun outside rises in the east and sets in the west. Its color changes as time passes.

"The moon is silvery white, like a great jade platter hanging in the sky, but its shape also changes with time."

After hearing this, the youths could not help looking up at the sky.

The Xiao Realm's sun was eternally milky white; only the intensity of its light changed with time.

Its moon was black and always looked the same. In fact, the moon was even lazier: its brightness stayed the same all night, and its shape never changed.

Nor was there a gradual transition between sun and moon. Every day at this hour, they would appear together briefly, and then the former would swiftly disappear.

Of course, occasionally they fought, too.

Just like what everyone was seeing now: the white sun and black moon began colliding in the sky.

After several collisions, the white sun seemed unable to match the black moon. It flickered a few times, then abruptly vanished.

Beneath the shroud of night, the black moon looked as though... yet strangely gave off a cool, clear light, coating the ground in a layer of luminescence.