Jinling City, City Lord’s Mansion.
City Lord Qin City showed up bright and early at his daughter Qin Xi’Er’s villa, gently telling her, "Xi’Er, today is the annual Bronze Hall trial. This year, more than a dozen geniuses are coming. The odds are slim, but if by some chance someone obtains the Emperor Level Medical Dao inheritance, you should come with me at noon to meet everyone, just to get your face known."
Qin Xi’Er was curled up under her blanket, still deep asleep, her soft voice drifting out, "Mmm!"
"Dad, I’m not going!"
"I swear, I’m not going this time even if I die!"
Qin City shook his head, "No, you have to go, this is about solving your constitution problem."
Qin Xi’Er poked her head out from under the covers, her exquisite and beautiful face exposed to the air. Her cheeks were silky smooth and the lines of her face graceful, but those pure eyes of hers carried a look of melancholy as she blurted out,
"A year ago, it was because I went to meet them that they got infected with bad luck. Eight people entered the Bronze Hall and only two came back safely. The other six died because of me!"
"Even if you kill me, I’m not going today—what if more people die because of me?"
Qin City opened his mouth, speechless, and said helplessly, "Xi’Er, you’re overthinking it. The Bronze Hall trial is an opportunity, and the greater the chance, the higher the risk. If they fell there, that’s their fate, it has nothing to do with you."
"You’re just meeting them for a second, it’s not like you’re going to bring that much horrifying bad luck."
Qin Xi’Er was still panicked, "No, what if something happens? I’m not going."
Qin City’s face turned stern as he said seriously, "You have to go, be good!"
"Get up right now and get yourself presentable!"
Growing up in a single-parent home, Qin Xi’Er, who was usually obedient, heard the seriousness in her dad’s voice and crawled out from under the blanket with a wronged look, starting her morning routine and dressing up.
Qin City sighed, saying, "Show up at the main hall of the City Lord’s Mansion at noon sharp. I have other things to do."
He left as soon as he finished.
Walking out of the villa, as the top-level supreme, Qin City suddenly slipped, almost doing a faceplant, but luckily he reacted fast, flipping in a front somersault and landing steadily.
The floor here was granite with an anti-slip design, so slipping like that usually shouldn’t have happened.
Qin City felt helpless—*this was just a side effect of interacting with Qin Xi’Er. Even a little bit of contact meant he’d pick up a bit of her bad luck. But she was his only child, his only daughter, so even if he caught bad luck, he’d never shun or push her away.*
After freshening up and getting dressed, Qin Xi’Er stood dumbly in front of the full-length mirror.
In the reflection, the frail-looking girl looked completely blank, her eyes empty.
She looked incredibly sad.
"Pfft!" Suddenly she felt a surge in her aura as her realm broke through to Six-Star Honors Level.
Qin Xi’Er was stunned and at a loss, panicking, "Why did I break through again? I really tried to suppress it, seriously!"
"The higher my realm goes, the crazier my bad luck gets. And right after a breakthrough, it’s at its worst—how am I supposed to face people at noon now?"
This year she was 28, and though she usually disliked cultivation, her talent was terrifying. Even with her realm suppressed, breakthroughs just happened anyway, as if her body was on auto-cultivate mode—she didn’t even have to work at it.
*Irritated and frazzled, she’d lost her appetite for breakfast, so she left the villa and headed toward the Demon Plant Mountain Range behind the City Lord’s Mansion just to clear her mind.*
Elsewhere, in Shanghai Base City.
Xiao Ye snoozed in the master bedroom, a long-haired girl clinging to him like an octopus.
He patted Mu Qingxue’s cheek, saying, "Arrogant little girl, time to get up."
Mu Qingxue cracked her sleepy eyes open and mumbled,
"Let me sleep a little longer."
As she spoke, she tangled herself around Xiao Ye even tighter, finding herself an even cozier spot.
Xiao Ye grumbled, "You’re lying on my hair!"
Mu Qingxue wiggled a bit.
Xiao Ye’s eyes widened, "Now you’re on my leg."
Mu Qingxue complained, "So what if I am? I’m not heavy."
Xiao Ye wanted to say, it wasn’t those two legs he was talking about—it was the other ’leg.’
Since it was getting late, he tossed off the covers and untangled himself from Mu Qingxue.
"Quit messing around, we’ve got important stuff today."
After washing up, the two headed downstairs. Everyone else was already up and just waiting for them.
There were bowls of nourishing soup on the table.
Once breakfast was over, the group got ready to set off.
Mu Qingxue looked a bit reluctant. Liu Ya comforted her, saying, "The Bronze Hall trial will take at most two days—Xiao Ye will be back before you know it."
Xiao Ye grinned, "You could come along too, hang out in Jinling City."
Mu Qingxue shook her head, "I’m going to cultivate."
"Hmph! Don’t flatter yourself, it’s not like I’ll miss you anyway! Just go already!"
Then, Yunxi opened a spatial rift, taking Xiao Ye, Nangong Siyao, and Cheng Bingxi away with her.
Mu Qingxue watched them go, eyes following them long after they disappeared, totally lost in thought.
Liu Ya waved a hand in front of her face, "We’re going to go cultivate."
Mu Qingxue sounded a bit down, "Oh."
On the avenue outside the City Lord’s Mansion, a spatial rift suddenly appeared, and Yunxi, Xiao Ye, and the other three stepped out.
Xiao Ye’s face suddenly changed as he felt like his bladder was about to explode. He blurted out,
"Yunxi sis, you guys go ahead, I’ll be there in a sec."
Yunxi, "What are you up to?"
"Pee escape!" Xiao Ye shot across the sky like a streak of lightning, unconsciously dropping down in a random direction.
He landed in the branches of an ancient, lush tree where he immediately started doing his business.
The arc of yellow fell with gravity, splashing down into a clear, shallow creek below and making little bursts of spray.
Downstream, just over ten meters away from Xiao Ye, a stunning, frail-looking young woman was bowed over the creek, cupping water into her hands to take a drink.
Xiao Ye hummed a tune as he peed, but suddenly startled, he shouted, "Hey, lady down there, stop! Don’t drink that water!"
Qin Xi’Er had just raised her mouth to take a sip. When she heard the voice, she looked up in confusion—and immediately spotted a handsome guy peeing, right in her line of sight.
"Ah, pervert!" she yelped, blushing hard and turning her gaze away.
Finishing his business, Xiao Ye appeared in front of her, saying helplessly, "I warned you, so why did you still drink?"
"You drank it yourself—you can’t blame me."
As it sank in, Qin Xi’Er’s pretty face went blank. She looked down at the water she’d just scooped up, then glared at Xiao Ye, pissed off, "How can you just pee wherever you want like that?"
She flicked her hands, splashing the water straight back into the creek.
Xiao Ye glanced around and realized that after all this mess, he’d totally lost his sense of direction. With a headache, he apologized, then asked,
"Hey beautiful, can you tell me which way the City Lord’s Mansion is?"
This was literally right behind the City Lord’s Mansion.
Qin Xi’Er studied Xiao Ye. On a day , was he here for the Bronze Hall trial?
She freaked out and stammered, "Stay away from me!"
She backed up from Xiao Ye on instinct, scared to get him infected with bad luck. But in her panic, she missed a step and her foot slipped. She crashed headlong into the creek, landing with a splash and getting totally soaked. Her white dress clung to her figure, showing off her curves.
Xiao Ye’s eyes went wide.