"To think I opened the second dantian so easily..."
Xiao Qian narrowed his eyes slightly, excitement and contemplation glimmering within them.
Mindful of how much his meridians could withstand, he did not recklessly continue cultivating. Instead, he stilled like an old monk entering meditation and sank deep into thought.
He blinked, his eyes full of bewilderment. Everything seemed utterly inconceivable, like a cloud of fog shrouding his heart.
"No matter how I look at it, I only did one thing: nurtured Xiao Xun'er's meridians," he murmured, his brows tightly knitted.
Could nurturing someone else's meridians really be the key to awakening his dantian? But that raised plenty of questions. If so, could he nurture just anyone's meridians, or would it only work with Xiao Xun'er? Possibility after possibility flashed through his mind as he tried to find the key.
"No big deal. I'll try it on Xiao Yan tomorrow morning."
Xiao Qian quickly made up his mind, his gaze turning resolute.
As far as he was concerned, opening his nine dantians was his greatest priority. Once all nine were functioning normally, he would have nine times as much Dou Qi at his disposal as anyone else!
Coupled with his uniquely gifted physique and cultivation speed as an Ancient Void Dragon, he could almost see himself standing invincible beneath the heavens.
"Power is the theme of this world."
Xiao Qian slowly lay down and closed his eyes, ready to bring this chaotic day to an end.
Yet the thoughts in his heart surged like a raging tide, wave after wave, leaving him tossing and turning, unable to sleep.
Questions about dantians, chains, and nurturing meridians kept circling through his mind like a swarm of buzzing bees he could not drive away.
"No, I can't sleep with this hanging over me!"
He sprang up with a kip-up and leaped out of bed, his movements swift and agile. With a whoosh, he rushed out of the room like a gust of wind.
"Where did Xiao Yan live again?"
Xiao Qian paused, suddenly realizing that he knew nothing about the layout of the Xiao Clan Residence.
He had spent all his time cultivating and had never even paid attention to where the clan chief lived...
He scratched his head, somewhat annoyed at his own impulsiveness, but now that he was out, he had no intention of going back.
"I'll just look around first. In any case, the clan chief's courtyard must be somewhere grand and conspicuous. It can't be that hard to find."
Muttering under his breath, Xiao Qian followed the path and searched along the way.
Fortunately, hardly anyone was out and about in the dead of night, and the patrols generally stayed around the perimeter, leaving far fewer obstacles in his way.
"This courtyard is right in the center. It should belong to the clan chief..."
Xiao Qian silently speculated as he surveyed his surroundings, trying to glean clues from the details.
"I'll pick a room beside the main bedroom and take a look..."
He moved swiftly, opening and closing the door in one fluid motion like a well-trained thief. He made not a single sound, afraid of disturbing anyone else in the courtyard.
Stepping around the screen, Xiao Qian looked at the figure on the bed.
"Hmm, so long, so pale."
But he looked away after a single glance. Xiao Yan could hardly have those proportions, after all. He knew perfectly well that this was not the person he was looking for.
"I haven't heard of the Xiao Clan Chief having a daughter. Could this be Xiao Yu from the Great Elder's family?"
Xiao Qian did not hesitate, nor did he steal another look.
Even Xiao Xun'er, a budding beauty, did nothing for him, much less Xiao Yu, who was only seven or eight. In his eyes, none of that deserved his attention right now. All he wanted was to test his theory about his dantian.
"Mmm..."
Perhaps it was a girl's uncanny sixth sense, but just as Xiao Qian was about to turn away, Xiao Yu suddenly opened her bleary eyes.
Their eyes met. "..."
For a moment, the air seemed to freeze. Both stood stunned, staring wide-eyed at each other.
"Ah! Mmph, mmph!"
Xiao Yu reacted extremely quickly, opening her mouth to scream the instant she came fully awake.
Xiao Qian was quicker still. The moment her first scream escaped, he clamped a hand over her mouth and smothered the sound.
"Huh? Biting me?"
Unexpectedly, the girl had a fierce temper. With her mouth covered, she sank her teeth into Xiao Qian's hand.
Unfortunately, to Xiao Qian, the force was little different from a kitten's ticklish scratching. She did not even leave tooth marks.
"Keep your mouth shut."
In a few brisk movements, he stripped off the girl's thin nightclothes and twisted them into a rope, tying it across her mouth. Then he bound her long legs with the bedsheet to ensure she would not be getting out of bed anytime soon. Only then did he clap his hands and stroll leisurely out, shutting the door behind him.
The entire process was clean and efficient, without the slightest hesitation.
"Mmph! Mmph!"
Anger blazed in Xiao Yu's resentful eyes, flames that seemed ready to burn everything before her to ashes. She wished she could burn that retreating figure to death.
You dared sneak into my bedroom at night and tie me up like this! You little bastard! If I don't find out who you are, I swear I'm not worthy of the name Xiao Yu!
The night was dark, so she had not gotten a clear look at Xiao Qian's face. She had only noticed his sleeping robe, with a golden dragon design along its hem that shimmered mysteriously in the moonlight...
"Wait, why didn't I try it on her?"
Only after closing the door did Xiao Qian think of it. But on second thought, he felt that would be far too dishonorable. Repeating Xiao Yan's behavior was not an option.
Pinning the blame on him, however, was fine. He really had done such a thing, after all, whereas Xiao Qian had entered by mistake.
What came next was fairly simple. Since this was the Great Elder's courtyard, the other one of roughly the same size should belong to the clan chief.
"I heard the clan chief has three sons. That makes things a little troublesome. Only Xiao Yan is the right age to have his meridians nurtured," Xiao Qian mused as he walked.
Apparently, his bad luck had run out, because things went smoothly this time.
When he picked a side room at random and pushed open the door, he met the gaze of Xiao Yan, who had opened his eyes upon hearing the noise while cultivating.
"You..."
Xiao Yan had barely begun to ask a question when Xiao Qian cut him off.
"Come on, lie down."
Xiao Qian said nothing more and offered no explanation. His tone carried an unquestionable authority, as though he were issuing an order.
Xiao Yan was baffled, but since he was in the wrong over what had happened that night, he did not press for answers. He lay down as instructed.
But the very next moment, Xiao Qian put his hands on him, catching Xiao Yan off guard.
"Wait, wait! What are you going to do to me?!"
Xiao Yan looked terrified, his eyes full of confusion and unease. He truly could not understand why Xiao Qian was doing this. Had he come to take revenge for Xiao Yan sneaking into Xiao Xun'er's room that night?
"Nurture your meridians."
Xiao Qian held him down, closed his eyes, and immersed himself in controlling his Dou Qi, giving him no chance whatsoever to refuse.
His mind was now entirely occupied with investigating his dantian. He had no attention to spare for anything else.
"What even is all this...?"
When it came to strength, Xiao Yan was no match for him. He could only lie flat and let himself be touched, filled with helplessness. He felt like a lamb awaiting slaughter, entirely at another's mercy.
By the time dawn began to break, this round of meridian nurturing finally ended. Xiao Qian withdrew his hands and opened his eyes. He waited a little longer, but the golden chains that had emerged from Xiao Xun'er never appeared again.
"It looks like the person matters too. It has to be her," Xiao Qian murmured, rubbing his chin in thought.
He felt somewhat disappointed, but he had confirmed one thing: awakening his dantian was connected to a specific person, and that person was very likely Xiao Xun'er.
"Are you done?"
Xiao Yan sat up and looked at him in bewilderment, his expression numb. He had never imagined someone would feel him up from head to toe. Was this what they meant by "he who touches others shall always be touched in return"?
"I'm done." Xiao Qian nodded and stood up.
Xiao Yan thought he was about to leave, only to widen his eyes again. "Y-you, why are you taking your clothes off?!"
Terrifying memories from his previous life surged up. Almost instinctively, he covered his backside as unpleasant images flashed through his mind, filling him with horror.
"Now what are you doing?"
Xiao Qian tossed his sleeping robe at the head of Xiao Yan's bed. Seeing his gesture, his expression darkened with exasperation.
Good thing no one saw this. Otherwise, my reputation as a mighty Ancient Void Dragon would be sullied!
Taking a coat from his Storage Ring and putting it on, he waved. "I'm leaving."
"Oh, okay..."
Xiao Yan could only stare blankly as he left. Even as someone who had transmigrated, he was left utterly lost by this string of actions.
"None of that made any sense. Did he come to get revenge for Xiao Xun'er? But wasn't that already settled? And why did he throw his sleeping robe on my bed?"
Xiao Yan scratched his head.
With so many questions weighing on him, he no longer had any desire to cultivate and could only lie down to sleep.
When he woke again, the sun was already high in the sky.
Outside, chaos reigned, chickens flying and dogs leaping.
"Search! Search every boy's room in the clan!" came a girl's imperious, spirited voice. Xiao Yan was baffled. "What's going on now?"
He rubbed his eyes and sat up in bed, listening blankly to the commotion outside.
There were not all that many boys in the clan, and most did not dare obstruct the Great Elder's granddaughter. They could only swallow their anger and let her search their rooms with her entourage.
Eventually, they arrived at Xiao Qian and Xun'er's courtyard.
"Stop."
Xiao Xun'er had finished washing up and was elegantly eating breakfast, with Xiao Qian naturally seated at the same table.
Seeing Xiao Yu lead her people toward Xiao Qian's room like wolves and tigers, the innately noble Xiao Xun'er naturally felt offended.
"You people, leave."
She set down her bowl and chopsticks and spoke calmly.
Her voice was not loud, but it held an unquestionable authority that made others afraid to disobey.
"Xun'er?" Though Xiao Yu was always ferocious toward boys, she had a fairly good attitude toward other equally outstanding girls.
"Something happened last night, so I need to search every boy's room in the clan for a sleeping robe with a golden dragon design..." Xiao Yu explained, flames of anger flickering in her eyes as she focused entirely on finding the person who had violated her privacy.
Xiao Xun'er's spoon hand paused slightly, sending tiny ripples across the surface of her rice porridge.
From the corner of her eye, she glanced at Xiao Qian's bare robe collar. The outer robe embroidered with an Ancient Void Dragon Mark that he had worn last night was nowhere to be seen.
When she raised her eyes again, a layer of frost had already formed within them...
Before you continue