A Genius Not Yet Fallen?

A Genius Not Yet Fallen?

"Young Master, is Jia Nan Academy very far away?"

"Mm. Very, very far."

"Then can Qing Lin still stay with you, Young Master?"

"Of course."

Standing on the second floor of Ten Thousand Medicines Pavilion, Xiao Yi Xian watched the two of them gradually walk away, their voices growing fainter and fainter until she could no longer hear them.

She withdrew her gaze, a trace of confusion flashing through her eyes.

After leaving Green Mountain Town, where should she go?

Elsewhere.

Chen Xiao led Qing Lin onward, stopping and starting along the way, and he did not delay his training even as they traveled.

Though it took him two extra days to return to Wu Tan City, his strength increased by the day. With the help of the Ice Spirit Cold Spring, the Dou Ling realm was finally within reach.

Walking through the market streets, Chen Xiao paid attention to the conversations of the people around him. He had thought he would hear some talk about Xiao Yan, yet from beginning to end, not a single person mentioned him.

"Could it be that the genius has yet to fall?"

Suspicion rose in Chen Xiao's heart. According to the timeline, Xiao Yan's strength should have begun regressing this very year.

With those doubts in mind, Chen Xiao arrived at the Xiao Family compound.

The Guard at the entrance still remembered him. He seemed unaware that the changes in Wu Tan City's power structure had all begun because of Chen Xiao, and when he saw Chen Xiao enter with Qing Lin, he nodded and greeted him as warmly as before.

"Uncle Liu, Uncle Wang, nothing major happened in the Xiao Family during this time, right?"

Chen Xiao returned the smile and casually asked around.

The two guards shook their heads.

"Everything's been great. Ever since the Oba Family disappeared, the Xiao Family has faintly become the overlord of Wu Tan City. Even the Gale Family can't compare anymore. Even guards like us, just trying to make a living, have had our monthly pay raised a little."

"If we have to talk about something strange, it'd probably be Third Young Master Xiao Yan. He used to take people out every day, but lately, thinking about it carefully, I haven't seen him for over ten days."

The two guards did not hide anything. In their hearts, Chen Xiao was also one of their own from the same circle, different in status from the young masters and young ladies of the Xiao Family.

Chen Xiao nodded slightly, waved, and left with Qing Lin.

From the looks of it, Xiao Yan had indeed run into some problems. It was just that the signs might have only begun to show, and he had hidden them rather well.

After winding through the paths, they returned to the small house he had lived in before.

Even though Chen Xiao had been gone for quite a while, no one had touched the little house. Even the furnishings, bedding, and other items inside remained exactly as they had been, neat and tidy.

Chen Xiao could enjoy comfort, but he could also endure hardship. He had originally thought there was no need to go through the trouble of changing residences, but Qing Lin's next words made him realize the problem.

"Young Master, are we going to live here from now on?"

Qing Lin would not disdain it. In fact, because this little house was not large and was similar to the place she had lived in before, she felt even closer to Chen Xiao.

However, there was only one bed inside.

This was a small problem.

Girls generally matured earlier. Looking at the only bed, Qing Lin's little face turned red.

"No. This is where I used to live. We just came to take a look. Let's go find Elder Xiao Shi Yi. The Xiao Family shouldn't be so lacking as to not have two guest rooms."

Chen Xiao denied it with a perfectly normal expression, absolutely refusing to admit that he had failed to think things through.

The innocent Qing Lin chose to believe him and silently let out a breath of relief.

In the rear courtyard of the Xiao Family, in the most central residential area.

A young girl dressed in a purple gown sat on a stone stool in the courtyard, holding a volume of Ancient Texts and reading it carefully.

This volume of Ancient Texts recorded many anecdotes and odd tales. Though she had already read it once, reading it again from the beginning was still just as absorbing.

In this vast Xiao Family, her status was special, and she no longer had any close friends, so she could only pass the time by reading.

Day after day, day after day.

Occasionally, when she saw those of the same age in the Xiao Family playing and laughing in groups, she would also miss that youth who had grown up in the Xiao Family, yet was not a member of the Xiao Family.

When he was around, she too would be like those peers, setting aside two days each month to go to Mitre Auction House and join in the bustle, leaving beneath the morning sun, returning in the evening breeze, strolling through the streets without a care, leisurely and at ease.

When he trained in Dou Techniques on Back Mountain, she could also watch from the side like a teacher. A word of encouragement, a word of praise, was enough to make that youth slightly older than herself reveal a smile.

Sometimes, her sharp eyes would spot wild fruit growing high up. Clearly, she only needed to murmur softly toward the shadows to obtain it, but she preferred relying on that youth, watching the little pride he deliberately suppressed, yet still revealed in the slight lift of the corners of his mouth when he successfully brought it back...

The fragments of memory were scattered, yet when gathered together, they became a torrent powerful enough to affect her emotions.

Hiss~

Suddenly, a ripple stirred in the shadowed corner, and a ghostlike figure walked out from within.

The sound of footsteps was very light, yet it still startled the girl immersed in her book awake.

"Miss, just now, when I came out of the Xiao Family's storehouse, I saw that Chen Xiao had returned."

Hearing this, the calm-faced girl immediately lifted her eyes. She set down the Ancient Texts in her hands, a trace of delight appearing on her pretty face. Only after taking a moment to compose herself did she give a light nod.

"Brother Chen Xiao really did spend rather a long time away on this trip."

"Miss, actually, the last time he went out to train, he was gone even longer."

"Was he?"

Xun Er felt slightly startled. She had clearly felt that Chen Xiao had been gone longer this time.

Ling Ying nodded with certainty. As both Guard and errand-runner, his sense of time was extremely sharp.

Xun Er paused slightly, accepted this irrefutable fact, then picked up the Ancient Texts again and toyed with it in her hands, as though wondering how she could have made such a basic mistake.

"How has Brother Chen Xiao's strength progressed?"

"He is only one step away from Dou Ling. Judging by his condition, he could break through at any moment."

"I remember that when Brother Chen Xiao left, he was only a Seven Star Da Dou Shi, wasn't he? To be ready to attempt Dou Ling so quickly... it seems this journey brought him quite a few gains." Xun Er's smile was relaxed and pleased.

Ling Ying nodded. "Indeed. His growth speed has far exceeded this old servant's expectations."

"Oh, right. There is one more matter I must inform you of, Miss. Chen Xiao brought back a girl. From her appearance, she seems a little younger than you. From the way Chen Xiao addressed her, she appears to be called Qing Lin."

The girl toying with the Ancient Texts paused ever so slightly, then returned to normal in the next instant.

"That's quite a pretty name. I'll go take a look tomorrow. Since Brother Chen Xiao brought her along at his side, I imagine she must have something exceptional about her."

Flowers bloom in two places, each branch telling its own tale.

While Ling Ying was making his little report to Xun Er, Chen Xiao and Qing Lin had already been personally led by Elder Xiao Shi Yi to the guest rooms.

From this Elder's attitude, it was clear that he likely knew some inside information.

After seeing off this familiar Elder, Chen Xiao was just about to go greet Xun Er, and stop by to check on Xiao Yan's condition as well.

Unfortunately, plans could not keep up with change. The moment he rose, Chen Xiao sensed the Dou Qi in his body suddenly begin circulating faster, as though it had slipped beyond his control.

When water filled to the brim, it overflowed—this was the sign of an impending breakthrough!

Joy flashed across Chen Xiao's face. He immediately swept his sleeve out and shut the door tight, then took the last bit of Ice Spirit Cold Spring from his Storage Ring and poured it into his mouth.

Breakthrough!

The breakthrough came first!