The Butterfly's Wings Quietly Stir
Twelve years ago, the ancient book had first appeared.
At the time, she had been pursuing Ice Emperor Hai Bodong, intent on killing him. Thinking she had fallen victim to a sneak attack, she had immediately sat down on the spot, held her breath, and focused on erasing the ancient book's phantom from her sea of consciousness. But she had been unable to do a thing.
Over the years, she had grown accustomed to the phantom occupying her sea of consciousness. She had also discovered by chance that she could observe it whenever necessary to restore the soul power she expended suppressing her companion snake soul.
As time went on, she had grown used to the phantom's presence. She had never expected the day would come when the ancient book would "come to life" and display words.
"A diary?"
Queen Medusa's delicate brows drew together slightly, and a glint flashed through her long, narrow purple eyes.
As the name suggested, it was a book for keeping daily records, though she did not know who its author was.
"Third Stage of Dou Qi, Xiao Yan?"
Queen Medusa patiently examined the contents of the ancient book, her expression growing increasingly strange.
It did not seem like a diary. It was more like a record, or one of the storybooks circulated in the human world, with a protagonist named Xiao Yan.
"The Jia Ma Empire, the Xiao Clan of Wutan City, a fallen genius?"
"He broke through to Dou Zhe at twelve, but his Dou Qi then mysteriously dissipated over the next three years."
"The soul of an adult from another world!?"
"A ring?"
"There's something strange about this ring!"
After reading everything, curiosity flickered in Medusa's eyes.
This was a wondrous object that could restore soul power merely by being observed. The contents it recorded were surely extraordinary as well.
She knew of the Jia Ma Empire and had heard of Wutan City, but she did not know whether there was a Xiao Clan there.
"Once I finish dealing with matters here, I'll go take a look at Wutan City."
"Perhaps then I'll find out what this diary is all about."
With that thought, Queen Medusa put away her copy of the diary.
She circulated her Dou Qi and turned into a streak of light, flying downward through the ice dust filling the sky. Before long, she arrived above a frigid pool in a secluded valley.
Looking at the cold vapor rising from the pool, a gorgeous smile appeared on her face. "The information was accurate. There really is an Ice Spirit Cold Spring here!"
Meanwhile, on the mountain behind the Misty Cloud Sect.
Clouds and mist wreathed the summit. Sect Master Yun Yun had just finished teaching Nalan Yanran a Dou Technique. Dressed in white, she remained atop the cliff, her sword laid across her knees, contemplating the profound mysteries of Extreme Wind alone.
At one moment, her eyes flew open. The energy of heaven and earth stirred and transformed into sword Qi, tearing a massive rift through the clouds and mist ahead.
Her brows knitted slightly, and she raised a hand to manifest a book.
"This thing has finally stirred again."
Twelve years ago, while she was practicing a Dou Technique, the ancient book's phantom had suddenly appeared in her mind.
She had tried every method at her disposal to erase the phantom, but none had worked. Instead, she had discovered by chance that observing it regularly could help her refine her understanding of Extreme Wind's profound mysteries and condense sword intent.
Over the years, she had observed the diary's phantom whenever she finished cultivating. It had become a habit.
"A diary? That's easy enough to understand. I wonder who wrote it. Perhaps then I can learn where this book came from."
Even a mere phantom could give a Dou Huang expert like her something to gain from observing it. Its true form was bound to be even more extraordinary.
"Third Stage of Dou Qi... Hm?"
"Xiao Yan!?"
Yun Yun's pupils contracted sharply.
Could this Xiao Yan be the one she knew?
As Yun Yun read on, her heart, which had been hanging in suspense, sank completely.
The Xiao Clan of Wutan City-it was definitely the Xiao Yan whose engagement her disciple Nalan Yanran had broken off.
Yet this Xiao Yan, who had become a good-for-nothing, had actually been recorded in the strange diary.
Had she really been wrong to let Nalan Yanran go to his home and break off the engagement?
Yun Yun patiently continued reading.
The earlier contents stirred no ripples in her heart.
On the Dou Qi Continent, strength reigned supreme. Fawning on the powerful, trampling the weak, and showering others with scorn and ridicule could not have been more commonplace.
In the neighboring Black-Corner Region, even burning, killing, and looting, with the weak as prey to the strong, would not have been out of the ordinary.
"Hm!?"
When she reached the later contents, Yun Yun lost her composure.
This Xiao Yan actually possessed the soul of an adult from another world.
Could that be why this mysterious diary had recorded him!?
"Xiao Zhan told Xiao Yan that honored guests would visit the next day. This happened when Xiao Yan's strength was still at Three-Stage Dou Qi. Could those guests have been Yanran and the others?"
"If so, what's recorded here happened a year ago."
Given the Misty Cloud Sect's position and influence in the Jia Ma Empire, countless people sent word of Xiao Yan to her even if she did not deliberately seek it out. After all, the matter concerned Nalan Yanran, the young sect master.
Thus, Yun Yun knew that Xiao Yan had regained his talent for cultivation and was even more outstanding than before. In the short span of a year, he had risen from Three-Stage Dou Qi to One-Star Dou Practitioner.
"There's something strange about this ring?"
When she reached the end, a sharp glint flashed in Yun Yun's eyes.
As for the truth, she would know once the rest appeared.
If there was indeed something special about Xiao Yan, she would have to observe him personally before making a decision.
Whether to strangle him in the cradle ahead of time or mend their hostile relationship.
Meanwhile, in a small courtyard filled with the fragrance of medicinal herbs in Qingshan Town.
Xiao Yi Xian sat in a bamboo chair, a wooden tray piled high with spirit herbs before her.
She deftly sorted the medicinal ingredients, her movements flowing like clouds and water, a pleasure to behold.
When she put down the last herb, a disturbance suddenly came from her mind.
"This book has finally stirred again!"
Twelve years ago, the phantom of this book had suddenly appeared in her mind, but she had not known what use it had.
Then, nearly ten years ago, she had touched poison while gathering herbs, and an intense desire to devour it had suddenly surged through her.
When she swallowed the poison, a strange power had suddenly emerged in her abdomen. Bizarre energy had erupted within her body, and a presence had spread outward.
That energy had been so powerful that she had nearly collapsed unconscious. At the critical moment, it was the phantom that had allowed her to retain control of her mind.
Not only that, the energy fluctuations spreading from her body had also been contained and had spread no farther.
When she regained control of her body, she discovered that all the animals within several hundred zhang had died of poisoning, and the plants had withered.
At the same time, some information appeared in her mind, telling her that all these changes were connected to her special constitution.
Whenever she came into contact with poison, she could not resist devouring it. Doing so could cause her to lose control and endanger those around her.
Had the book's phantom not suppressed it that time, the effects would have reached several li in every direction, and the villagers living in the small mountain village would all have died, including her mother.
That meant this diary, or rather its owner, was her benefactor.
To avoid harming others, Xiao Yi Xian had found an excuse to travel and left the village where she had once lived. After wandering from place to place, she had eventually settled in Qingshan Town for certain reasons.
"A diary?"
"Xiao Yan of the Xiao Clan in Wutan City?"
"A ring?"
"Who exactly owns this diary, and why are they recording Xiao Yan's experiences?"
In a small desert city in the Eastern Province of the Jia Ma Empire.
A girl with a pair of emerald-green eyes was sweeping sand and dust from a courtyard when her expression suddenly froze.
"This ancient book has stirred again."
"Xiao Yan of the Xiao Clan in Wutan City-isn't he the younger brother the commander and second commander talk about?"
A look of confusion appeared in the girl's eyes.
"Why would the owner of this diary write about the commander's younger brother?"