As Xiao Xun'er calmly agreed to Xiao Yan's words, the corner of Jialie Ao's mouth twitched. His clenched fists trembled slightly, and his venomous gaze glared fiercely at the calm-faced youth before him.
Seeing their young master's dark expression, the group of subordinates behind Jialie Ao took the hint. They stepped forward and surrounded the two, their eyes filled with ill intent.
Deep within the marketplace, the heavy foot traffic meant that the commotion quickly drew a crowd of curious onlookers. After all, both of them were quite well-known in Wutan City—Xiao Yan for his reputation as a "trash," and Jialie Ao for his notorious philandering. Though neither had a particularly good reputation, they were still considered local celebrities of sorts.
Watching their movements, Xiao Yan frowned slightly. A trace of amusement flickered across his youthful face as he turned his head and offered a faint smile toward a certain corner of the marketplace.
Prompted by Xiao Yan's gaze, the onlookers curiously turned their heads, only to see the marketplace's guard unit, led by Captain Pei En, rushing over with aggressive momentum.
Pei En quickly arrived with his guards. With a wave of his hand, his men immediately moved to aggressively block Jialie Ao's servants. In an instant, the atmosphere grew tense, with weapons drawn and tempers flaring on both sides.
"Third Young Master, what is going on here?" Stepping up behind Xiao Yan, Pei En first swept a glance over Jialie Ao's group before immediately asking with a respectful smile.
Xiao Yan smiled, tilting his head to look at Jialie Ao's dark face. He said slowly, "Young Master Jialie Ao, this area is the territory of the Xiao clan. Do you really think you can make a move here?"
Jialie Ao's eyes showed a hint of wariness. He sneered at Xiao Yan, "Do you only know how to rely on your family's influence? If you were a real man..."
"Are you trying to say that if I were a real man, I would have a fair duel with you?" Xiao Yan waved his hand dismissively, cutting Jialie Ao off with a chuckle.
Jialie Ao sneered, challenging him. "That's right. Do you dare?"
Looking at Jialie Ao's provocative expression, Xiao Yan let out a helpless sigh and rubbed his forehead. After a moment, he raised his head, shrugged slightly, and said with a look of pure innocence, "Young Master Jialie Ao, let me ask you a question. How old are you this year?"
Jialie Ao's mouth twitched, his face darkening as he remained silent.
"My dear big brother, you are twenty-one this year. And how old am I? Fifteen! You want to duel a child who hasn't even had his coming-of-age ceremony? Don't you find such a request embarrassing?" Xiao Yan sighed, a look of utter helplessness on his face. Beside him, Xun'er couldn't help but cover her mouth and let out a soft giggle.
"Haha."
Hearing the youth's innocent words, the surrounding mercenaries and merchants burst into laughter. Indeed, at Xiao Yan's age, he was at most a wet-behind-the-ears youth, whereas Jialie Ao was already a full-grown adult. Issuing such a challenge truly made everyone look down on him.
The mocking stares from the crowd acted like a bucket of cold water, splashing Jialie Ao back to his senses. Because Xiao Yan always carried himself with such maturity and composure, Jialie Ao had unconsciously forgotten his age. Only now, upon being reminded, did he remember that the former genius youth standing before him was only fifteen years old...
Gritting his teeth in frustration, Jialie Ao looked at the Xiao clan guards standing behind Xiao Yan like tigers watching their prey. Knowing he had no chance of teaching the boy a lesson today, he could only shake his head coldly and say in a low, heavy voice, "In a year, you'll be having your Coming-of-Age Ceremony, right? Hehe, a piece of trash like you will probably be sent off to some remote, desolate place afterward. In the future, you won't even have the right to enter Wutan City. How truly pitiful."
Xiao Yan smiled, shrugging without giving an answer.
Jialie Ao's eyelid twitched. For some reason, just looking at the calm and unruffled face of the youth in front of him made his anger flare up. *You're just a piece of trash, why the hell are you putting on this profound and unfathomable act in front of me...*
Forcing down the rage in his heart, Jialie Ao let out a cold snort, waved his hand, and led his subordinates away.
"Oh, that's right..." Suddenly stopping in his tracks, Jialie Ao seemed to remember something. He turned around and sneered, "Young Master Xiao Yan, I heard your Xiao clan was forcefully rejected and had your marriage contract annulled by Nalan Yanran of the Nalan clan? Hehe, actually, it's nothing. With your cultivation talent, you were never worthy of Miss Nalan anyway, haha..." Having spat out these words, Jialie Ao finally laughed loudly and departed.
Xiao Yan's eyes turned slightly dark as he watched Jialie Ao leave. Holding back Xun'er beside him with one hand, he said calmly, "He's just a mad dog. If a dog bites you, are you going to bite it back?"
"But he... he went too far. Are we really just going to let him off like this?" Xun'er knitted her delicate brows slightly, speaking with a hint of indignant anger.
"Haha, there will be an opportunity..." Xiao Yan smiled, his eyes narrowing. The chilly tone slipping from the corner of his mouth made even Pei En, who was standing nearby, feel a sudden shiver. A lion that bites isn't scary; what is truly terrifying is a lion that knows how to bide its time...
"Uncle Pei En, sorry for the trouble," Xiao Yan turned around and gave a friendly smile to Pei En and his men. The dark, chilling aura from a moment ago vanished instantly, replaced by a cheerful and candid demeanor.
Marveling inwardly at Xiao Yan's rapid shift in emotions, Pei En's smile carried a touch of genuine awe and respect. No matter what Xiao Yan's cultivation talent was, with this level of mental fortitude alone, his future achievements would certainly not be low.
"Haha, the Third Young Master jokes. This is our territory to begin with, so how could we let the Jialie clan come here and cause trouble?" Pei En chuckled. Seeing Xiao Yan looking around the market, he took his leave and sensibly led his men away.
Watching Pei En and his men depart, Xiao Yan finally turned around, reached out to stroke Xun'er's soft, long hair, and said in exasperation, "You silly girl, did a mere rank-one monster core really catch your eye? Don't you know what kind of person he is? If you accept his things, won't he take advantage of the situation?"
Smoothing down the strands of hair Xiao Yan had messed up, Xun'er waved her hand helplessly. "Since it was delivered right to our door, there was no need to refuse."
Xiao Yan rolled his eyes, caught between amusement and exasperation. "It's not even anything precious, yet you had to stir up trouble like this. You are the genius young lady of the Xiao clan, after all..."
Xun'er wrinkled her cute nose slightly and raised the bracelet on her wrist, teasing playfully, "So, it turns out Xiao Yan-gege has been paying close attention to Xun'er all along."
Giving Xun'er a mock glare, Xiao Yan took her hand and continued walking toward the shops deeper inside the marketplace...
After passing by several shops, Xiao Yan finally stopped. Turning around, his eyes fell upon a green crystal still stained with a bit of blood. Letting out a sigh of relief, he smiled and said, "Finally found it."
Reaching out, Xiao Yan was about to pick up the magic crystal when his hand suddenly froze, a strange sensation rising in his heart...
Licking his lips, Xiao Yan picked up the magic crystal as planned, while his eyes casually swept over the rest of the stall...
A moment later, his gaze locked onto a black iron shard lying right next to the magic crystal.
The black iron shard looked extremely ancient, its surface covered in intricate patterns, though some unwashed dirt still clung to it, making it look like something recently unearthed.
"Heh, Xiao Yanzi, buy that black iron shard. It's good stuff..."
Just as Xiao Yan was feeling puzzled by his own reaction, Yao Lao's voice suddenly echoed in his mind.