Zuo Xiaoduo ladled soup in the kitchen, his ears pricked up as he listened, his lips jutting out. Another present for my sister. I wonder if there's one for me... If there is, just give me the money instead...
"What are you so happy about?" A serene voice drifted softly in. There was a faint rustle at the door, as though someone was changing into slippers; then a girl in a long blue dress walked inside.
Her slender figure stood just about five foot seven. She was slightly thin, yet her proportions were just right, with soft, flowing hair, a serene face, and beautiful eyes like two little pools so clear you could see straight to the bottom... She was like a lotus in pure water, untouched by worldly dust.
Anyone who saw this girl would naturally feel: What a clean, pure girl! Only then would breathtaking admiration suddenly fill their hearts!
This girl seemed born with a quality that made everyone who saw her involuntarily grow calm and peaceful inside. Faced with such heaven-given, nation-toppling beauty, they could not even summon a profane thought, only pure appreciation!
She was none other than Zuo Xiaoduo's elder sister, Zuo Xiaonian.
"Daddy, you're home early." Warmth spread across Zuo Xiaonian's serene face. She craned her head and looked around. "Is Doggy not home?"
Zuo Xiaoduo roared furiously from the kitchen, "Don't call me Doggy!"
Zuo Xiaonian chuckled. That smile added a touch of girlish charm, and she instantly became more lively. Rolling her eyes, she said, "What can you do if I call you Doggy? Doggo! Little Doggy! Hahaha..."
Zuo Xiaoduo charged out brandishing the rice spoon, only for Wu Yuting to catch him by the ear. "Are you staging a rebellion?"
"Ow, ow, ow..." Zuo Xiaoduo tilted his head, his face contorted. "Mom! Aren't you being a little too obvious with your favoritism? I'm your son too! Your own flesh and blood!"
Zuo Xiaoduo could never understand his mother's great ear-twisting technique.
How had she trained it? No matter how fast he moved, as long as he passed her, if she wanted to twist his ear, she never missed!
One reach, and she had his ear-and could even twist it a full turn!
"Favoritism? Hmph, I think you've misunderstood what favoritism means."
Wu Yuting gave a cold snort.
How does this not count as favoritism? With his head tilted, Zuo Xiaoduo watched Zuo Xiaonian mime twisting an ear at him, then pull a face...
Such girlish gestures only appeared at home. Outsiders would never see them.
At dinner, Zuo Xiaoduo finally learned what true favoritism was.
"Xiao Nian," Zuo Changlu said mildly as he ate, "how confident are you about breaking through the Yin-Yang Boundary this time?"
Zuo Xiaonian instinctively straightened her back and replied respectfully, "There shouldn't be any problems. I'll make the breakthrough in the martial academy's star power chamber. There's plenty of star power, and I've prepared quite a few spirit medicines, along with several star beast inner cores in reserve. Besides, security there is tight, the instructors at the martial school are diligent in their guard duties, and my master and several others will be protecting me. Nothing will go wrong."
Zuo Changlu grunted in acknowledgment. "As long as you know where you stand." As he spoke, he took a small, exquisite box from his pocket, set it on the table, and pushed it toward her. "Take it. If you need it, don't hesitate to use it. If not, keep it yourself."
Zuo Xiaonian murmured an acknowledgment and took the box. When she opened it, she suddenly gasped and covered her little mouth, her eyes filled with incredulous shock. "A Life-Origin Pill?! Father, this... this..."
She was actually too shocked to speak.
Zuo Xiaoduo shuddered too and looked over, his eyes shining. Inside the box lay a pill, one half pure black, giving off a dim glow, the other pure white, radiating a lustrous white light. The pill rested motionless in the box, yet its black and white colors seemed to flow naturally, revolving without cease.
It was indeed the sacred medicine of martial artists, the Life-Origin Pill!
For martial artists below the Dan-Origin Stage, taking one instantly replenished all their vital energy! Thus, it had always been said, "One pill, one life."
It was perfectly suited to the life-or-death hurdle of Zuo Xiaonian's attempt to break through the Yin-Yang Boundary. Martial artists attempting this breakthrough commonly exhausted themselves until their oil ran dry and their lamps went out. Having this pill was equivalent to having an extra life.
Zuo Changlu smiled faintly. "Take it!"
"This..." Zuo Xiaonian gradually regained her composure. Holding the box closed in her hand, she asked softly, "One Life-Origin Pill costs a million. Dad, where did you get so much money? Besides... even if you have money, these things have a price but no supply. On the black market, they've already been driven up to five million, and crowds of people are waiting for one. How did you get it? If the price was too high, we don't want it."
A million.
Zuo Xiaoduo was startled.
A million Star Origin Coins!
Enough for the whole family to live comfortably for a lifetime... and the old man had just... spent it?
A trace of anxiety appeared on Zuo Xiaonian's lovely face. "I really am confident. I don't need this."
Zuo Changlu said firmly, "If I tell you to take it, take it! What are you arguing for?! Is the family's money something you should be worrying about?"
His voice was very stern.
Zuo Xiaonian's eyes reddened. Her slender fingers clutched the Life-Origin Pill, trembling faintly. After a long while, she said quietly, "Yes. I was wrong."
Zuo Changlu's voice softened. "That's more like it! Xiao Nian, you have a great future ahead of you. After the Yin-Yang Boundary, you'll break into the Dan-Origin Stage, and there are all the major realms beyond that... Your mother and I can't help you much, but you are our daughter, after all. We'll help you as far as we can. When we truly can't do anything more, you can walk on your own. Until then, don't worry about too much. Do you understand?"
"Other money, I might not be able to come up with. But money to buy my daughter's life-no matter what, I must be able to come up with that."
Zuo Xiaonian was silent for a moment before saying, "Dad, if I can successfully break through to the Core Origin this time, I'll be perfectly content. I don't want to go any farther... This road is truly exhausting! I feel I can't bear it. After this breakthrough, once Xiaoduo turns twenty, I think I'd like to marry him then..."
Zuo Xiaoduo's eyes widened in shock.