The Strange Flame Rekindles in Battle Through the Heavens

Chapter 4 Xiao Family Market

"Brother Xiao Yan, are you up? Xun'er made you breakfast." A sweet voice rang out from outside the door.

Upon hearing that Xun'er had arrived, Xiao Yan immediately sat up in bed, dressed, and walked to the door. He opened the door and saw Xun'er standing there with a food box in her hand, smiling at him.

"You silly girl, why are you making me breakfast again? I already told you not to make it anymore, come in!" Xiao Yan shook his head and said helplessly.

Every time this girl brought him food so early, Xiao Yan was terrified. He was genuinely afraid that Gu Yuan would see him and slap him to death. He didn't even need a slap; a sneeze or a cough would probably be enough to crush him to pieces.

"Brother Xiao Yan, eat quickly! It won't taste good if it gets cold!" Xun'er walked into the room with a smile, opened the food box, and took out several dishes that she had carefully prepared and placed them on the table.

Looking at Xiao Xun'er's expectant face, Xiao Yan had no choice but to pick up his chopsticks and start eating, glancing around as he ate to see if there were any spatial fluctuations. He finished his breakfast with trepidation and told Xun'er not to bring him anything again next time.

"Xun'er! Do you have any money on you?" Xiao Yan scratched his head, somewhat embarrassed. Those medicinal herbs would cost a considerable amount of gold coins; with his savings, he estimated he could only afford to buy a magic core!

"Brother Xiao Yan, do you need money?" Seeing Xiao Yan's rather embarrassed appearance, Xun'er smiled and asked.

"Um, I need some money to buy medicinal herbs," Xiao Yan said rather awkwardly.

"There are hundreds of thousands of gold coins in this card, is that enough?" Xun'er reached behind her back with her fair hand, flicked her fingers, and a five-patterned purple-gold card appeared at her fingertips.

"That's enough! That's enough! It only costs a few thousand gold coins." Xiao Yan looked at the purple-gold card he had just received. What a little rich girl! Only those at the Dou Ling level or above are qualified to possess such a purple-gold card.

"Brother Xiao Yan, take them all! You'll definitely need them for your cultivation in the future," Xun'er said with a big smile.

"Then I won't stand on ceremony." Xiao Yan tucked the purple-gold card into his pocket, thinking to himself with a touch of melancholy, "It's so good to be a kept man! But if my strength doesn't improve, I can't keep eating like this for long."

"Brother Xiao Yan, are you going to go shopping later? Can I come with you?" Xun'er looked at Xiao Yan expectantly.

"Of course, I'd be more than happy to have a beautiful woman with me," Xiao Yan said with a smile.

The two chatted and laughed as they walked out of the clan. The clansmen were not surprised to see Xiao Yan and Xiao Xun'er together, as the two often went out shopping together. They just lamented the unfairness of fate, that a swan would be willing to be with a toad.

As the two chatted and laughed, they finally left their family home and arrived on the main street of Wutan City.

Utan City, as expected of one of the major cities in the Gama Empire, is extremely popular due to its location nestled against the Monster Mountain Range. The streets are bustling with people, filled with shouts and calls. Most are mercenaries; some hunt monsters in the Monster Mountain Range to obtain magic cores and then sell them, while others gather herbs from the mountain range to sell here.

Magic cores and medicinal herbs are always hot-selling products, indispensable to alchemists. The pills crafted by alchemists not only have healing effects but also enhance strength, naturally ensuring a steady market. Countless people beg alchemists to refine pills for them, even offering their own cultivation techniques and fighting skills, making alchemy the most prestigious profession on the Dou Qi Continent.

Finally, there are items found in caves or accidentally picked up that are then sold. Of course, these vendors might also be selling counterfeit or substandard products. Buying these things is purely a matter of luck. If you're lucky, you might find some good cultivation techniques or fighting skills, but most of the time they're just useless junk.

As soon as Xiao Xun'er stepped onto the street, she was incredibly excited, as if she'd been injected with adrenaline. She dragged Xiao Yan from one shop to another, buying clothes and snacks, then heading into another store to buy food and toys. It seemed she wasn't satisfied until she'd explored the entire city of Wutan.

After visiting several shops, eating a lot of delicious food, and buying a lot of fun things, Xiao Yan ended up with more items on his hands and body.

Holding a candied hawthorn skewer, Xiao Xun'er twirled around and said with a smile, "Xun'er is so happy today!"

"As long as you're happy!" Xiao Yan was a little tired; shopping with a woman was exhausting!

Looking at Xiao Yan's somewhat tired face, Xiao Xun'er secretly smiled, seemingly quite pleased with him in this state. However, seeing that Xiao Yan was exhausted, Xun'er immediately took his belongings and stored them in her storage ring.

With his belongings gone, Xiao Yan finally felt much more relaxed. Looking at the storage ring on Xun'er's hand, he guessed it was a high-grade item.

"She's quite the little rich woman!"

"Brother Xiao Yan! What do you need to buy? Xun'er will go with you. I've been so busy with myself that I've forgotten about you, Brother Xiao Yan." She said with a smile, her small chest bobbing against Xiao Yan's arm.

Feeling the softness on his arm, Xiao Yan's lips curved into a strange smile. He touched his nose and said, "Let's go deeper into the market! That's where I can find what I need."

The items sold deep within the market are generally much more valuable than those sold outside, so customers who can come here to make purchases are considered to have some financial strength in Wutan City.

Deeper into the market, they found what they needed. Accompanied by Xiao Xun'er, they began to pick and choose what to buy.

Unfortunately, after spending most of the day shopping, I only managed to collect five portions of medicinal herbs. Although it's only five portions, it's enough, since one portion can last for almost a month.

As dusk fell and the sun began to set, Xiao Yan and Xiao Xun'er grew tired from their stroll and were about to head back. However, they noticed the market had suddenly become quiet, and the number of people had dwindled, which puzzled them.

A clear, cheerful laugh suddenly came from behind the two of them.

"Oh, isn't this Miss Xun'er? Hehe, I didn't expect to meet you here, what a coincidence! Miss Xun'er, what would you like to buy? I can help you! I know this market area like the back of my hand."

The two turned around and saw a crowd of people rushing towards them. In the crowd, a richly dressed young man was surrounded like a star around the moon.

The young man was around twenty years old and quite handsome, though his face was slightly pale.

"Heh, why is Young Master Galio coming to find my Xun'er instead of chasing after your girls? Let me tell you, she's still young, stay away from him." Xiao Yan felt annoyed when he saw that the person who came was Galio.

When Xun'er heard Xiao Yan say she belonged to his family, a blush rose to her cheeks. However, when Xiao Yan mentioned her childhood, she pouted and murmured softly, "Xun'er isn't little anymore!"

Seeing Xun'er's appearance, Galeo felt as if his heart had been stolen. However, upon seeing Xiao Yan beside him, he frowned and said sarcastically, "What level of Dou Qi did the young master get in this year's test? It couldn't be only level three, could it? Ha! Ha! Ha!" His entourage also burst into laughter.

Seeing her brother Xiao Yan being humiliated, Xun'er's face flushed with anger, and she wanted to teach them a lesson. But as soon as she took a step, she felt her little hand being pulled back.

"Brother Xiao Yan, don't stop me, let me teach them a lesson," Xun'er said angrily.

"Hehe, Xun'er, if a dog bites you, are you going to bite it back? Just let him bark and ignore him. Let's go." Xiao Yan said calmly, his eyes slightly narrowed.

"Did I say you could leave? How dare you call me a dog?" Galeo ordered his men to surround the two men, clearly not intending to let the matter rest.

Watching the actions of the other group, Xiao Yan raised an eyebrow, a playful look appearing on his young face. He turned his head slightly and whistled softly towards a spot in the market.

Amidst the puzzled gazes of the crowd, they saw the market's guards, led by their captain, charging aggressively towards them.

A large group of guards quickly surrounded Galeo. The atmosphere between the two sides became tense.

"Young Master, my name is Payne. I am the captain of the guard personally appointed by the clan leader, and I am responsible for protecting the safety of the market. What happened?" After arriving behind Xiao Yan, the captain first glanced at Galeo and the others opposite him, and then asked respectfully with a smile.

Xiao Yan smiled and turned his head to look at Jia Lie'ao, whose face was somewhat unpleasant. He said casually, "Young Master Jia Lie'ao, are you planning to make a move in my Xiao family's market?"

Galeo glanced at Payne with some apprehension, then turned to Xiao Yan and sneered, "Is all you can do is rely on your family's power? Can't we have a duel between men?"

"Hehe, Young Master Galeo, you're already twenty, while I'm still a minor! You actually want me to duel with you? Don't you feel ashamed?" Xiao Yan said helplessly.

"Ha ha."

When the others in the market saw that Galeo was actually going to duel with a callow youth, they shook their heads and laughed with disdain.

The mocking gazes around him were like a bucket of cold water, making Galeo more aware that the person in front of him was still a teenager.

This is understandable, as Xiao Yan is over forty years old in both his previous lives, so his words and actions inevitably make him seem somewhat mature.

Gritting his teeth fiercely, Galeo glanced at the group of guards standing menacingly behind Xiao Yan, knowing he wouldn't have a chance to teach Xiao Yan a lesson today. He could only suppress his anger, let out a cold snort, and with a wave of his hand, led his men through the crowd.

"Are we just going to let him go like this?" Xun'er said somewhat indignantly.

"Heh, of course I have to teach him a lesson myself. I think that day shouldn't be too far off." Watching Galeo walk away, Xiao Yan narrowed his eyes and said with a cold smile.

(End of this chapter)