Chapter 16

As the young man slowly approached, Xiao Mei and the others all stopped in their tracks, their playful laughter gradually fading.

The few graceful young women beside Xiao Mei looked at the young man who was once considered the pride of the family with wide eyes. The expressions on their small faces were indescribable, a mix of pity and something else.

Xiao Mei stood still, her heart somewhat tangled. In her heart, she actually wanted to chat freely with the young man who once made her admire him greatly. However, reality told her that the gap between them was growing larger and larger. It was clearly unwise to still have feelings for a "waste of a person."

Her curved eyebrows furrowed slightly, then relaxed. Xiao Mei thought to herself with a hint of helplessness, "I should greet him. No matter what, he is still my cousin."

Unaware of Xiao Mei's thoughts, Xiao Yan walked over with his arms behind his head, looking rather lazy.

As Xiao Yan approached, Xiao Mei's pretty face was about to show a smile, but the young man's actions made that smile freeze on her face, looking somewhat ridiculous.

With his arms behind his head, Xiao Yan walked past the few young women without a glance, showing no sign of lingering.

Staring at the young man's back with her rosy lips slightly parted, Xiao Mei was somewhat taken aback. With her appearance, when had she ever been treated like this? A wave of inexplicable shame and anger surged in her heart, and she couldn't help but call out, "Cousin Xiao Yan."

Xiao Yan's steps paused slightly, but he didn't turn around. His tone was indifferent, like a stranger's, "What's up?"

The indifferent and distant tone made Xiao Mei hesitate, and she stammered, "No..."

Xiao Yan's eyebrows twitched slightly, and he shook his head, not bothering to respond further, and continued walking.

Watching the figure disappear at the end of the path, Xiao Mei stomped her small foot in frustration and then followed the same path.

Turning a corner, Xiao Yan looked up at the spacious room before him. The sign on the door read "Fighting Techniques Hall" in bold, blood-red characters.

Hearing the shouts coming from the Fighting Techniques Hall, Xiao Yan was somewhat surprised. This place was usually deserted, so why was it so lively today?

Shrugging, Xiao Yan dismissed the thought and stepped into the Fighting Techniques Hall.

As soon as he entered, the cheers and applause of the young men and women rolled in.

The Fighting Techniques Hall was divided into two parts. The eastern part housed the family's fighting techniques, while the western part was a large training ground. At this moment, many people were gathered around the training ground, watching the two people sparring with great interest.

"From the concentration of the fighting aura, Xiao Ning must have reached the eighth level of fighting aura, right?"

"Hehe, two months ago, Cousin Xiao Ning already advanced to the eighth level of fighting aura."

"Even though he has the eighth level of fighting aura, Cousin Xun'er has the ninth level. It seems unlikely that Cousin Xiao Ning will win."

"Go, Cousin Xun'er!"

Hearing the surprised cheers from the crowd, Xiao Yan stopped, his gaze sweeping across the training ground and finally resting on the beautiful young woman in light purple attire with interest.

"What's she doing, having the leisure to spar today?" he muttered to himself. Xiao Yan stopped at the eastern side of the hall, casually picked up a black scroll from a nearby shelf, and slowly unrolled it. The unrolled scroll revealed several large yellow characters.

Intermediate Yellow Rank: Stone Crushing Palm!

Leaning casually against the bookshelf, Xiao Yan read the cultivation method of the Stone Crushing Palm while occasionally glancing at the intense battle on the training ground.

The spacious hall seemed to be divided into two worlds: the western side was noisy, while the eastern side was peaceful.

Xun'er's opponent was also a young man, but he was about seventeen or eighteen years old, quite handsome, and not much different from Jialuo whom he had met before.

The young man's name was Xiao Ning, the grandson of the family's eldest elder. He had a good talent for cultivation and had already reached the eighth level of fighting aura at the age of seventeen. In the family, only Xun'er could surpass him.

Xiao Yan didn't have much impression of this cousin. When they occasionally met, they would exchange a distant greeting and then go their separate ways. Perhaps because of the somewhat strained relationship between his grandfather and his father, Xiao Yan always felt that this cousin was not very satisfied with him. Or perhaps because of the decadence he showed a few years ago, this cousin had not deliberately come to trouble him in the past three years...

Xiao Yan smiled faintly, shook off the memories, and continued to study the Stone Crushing Palm in his hand.

On the training ground, Xun'er moved like a light purple butterfly, gracefully and agilely dodging Xiao Ning's fierce attacks. Her delicate and elegant face remained calm and composed.

Bored, she deflected Xiao Ning's close-range attack and casually glanced around the hall. After a moment, her gaze suddenly stopped.

Looking at the young man leaning against the bookshelf on the eastern side of the hall, Xun'er's calm face showed a gentle and refined smile.

At the sight of Xun'er's fleeting, refined smile, the young men nearby were all momentarily stunned.

"Be careful, Cousin Xun'er!" Just as Xun'er was slightly distracted, a young man's urgent voice came from the crowd.

Feeling the fierce aura coming from behind, Xun'er's eyebrows twitched, but her gaze returned to the young man by the bookshelf.

At the same time, Xiao Yan also looked up, watching Xun'er suddenly being attacked from behind. He frowned and shook his head helplessly, his eyes revealing a subtle concern.

Seeing the scolding and worry in Xiao Yan's eyes, Xun'er playfully blinked her beautiful eyes and then suddenly took a small step to the left. This single step strangely avoided Xiao Ning's attack perfectly...

As she moved, a faint golden glow appeared on Xun'er's delicate, jade-like hands. Like a flower piercing through leaves, her hand passed through the gap between Xiao Ning's palms and lightly landed on his chest.

Her toes lightly touched the stone floor, and Xun'er gracefully turned, neutralizing the counterforce. She calmly watched Xiao Ning retreat more than ten steps and finally step out of the training ground.

Seeing Xun'er defeat Xiao Ning with a single palm, the crowd around the training ground fell silent for a moment, then burst into applause.

"Hehe, Cousin Xun'er, as the top young talent in the family, you are truly getting stronger and stronger," Xiao Ning said with a warm smile as he walked forward, despite being knocked off the stage.

Staring at the beautiful young woman before him, the admiration in Xiao Ning's eyes was almost impossible to hide.

Although they were cousins in name, Xiao Ning knew that most people in the family did not have close blood ties, and Xun'er had no blood relation to him at all.

Seemingly unaware of Xiao Ning's intense gaze, Xun'er politely but distantly shook her head and said softly, "Cousin Xiao Ning was too modest." Without waiting for Xiao Ning to continue, she smiled and walked toward the young man buried in the scroll on the eastern side of the hall.

As the focus of the hall, Xun'er's actions were naturally noticed by everyone. Their gazes followed her path and finally rested on the young man by the bookshelf.

Unaware of the burning gazes from the entire training ground, the young man remained immersed in his own world.