157: Chapter 157 Ning'er, why are you so cold today?

"Let him in."

Xiao Ninger rubbed her temples, her voice cold and clear.

A moment later.

At the rear cliff of the Divine Mountain, a pavilion was built beside a hanging waterfall.

Sunlight spilled through the sea of clouds, and a gentle breeze blew across the spiritual lake, causing ripples on the water's surface.

Xiao Ninger sat upright at a white jade table, her simple and elegant dress swaying gently with the wind.

Qing Yuan stood quietly half a step behind her, head slightly bowed, without saying a word.

The sound of hurried yet deliberately lightened footsteps approached.

Lin Aotian, dressed in luxurious robes and holding an exquisite jade box, walked into the pavilion with a face full of smiles.

His gaze was fervent, fixed intently on Xiao Ninger.

"Nickname, sorry to keep you waiting."

Lin Aotian's voice was gentle and doting as he carefully placed the jade box on the white jade table.

"This morning, I specifically went to the back mountain cliff to personally pick three stalks of Purple Rhyme Dragon Saliva Grass covered in dew, and then I personally brewed them for two hours."

"This spiritual meal is best for nourishing the Divine Soul. You've been worrying about my affairs these past few days; hurry and drink it while it's hot."

As he spoke, he naturally reached out, wanting to hold Xiao Ninger's hand that was resting on the table.

This movement was very practiced; he must have done it many times before.

Xiao Ninger's gaze fell on Lin Aotian's reaching hand.

That hand was slender and powerful, with well-defined knuckles.

If it were yesterday, she would have definitely held it, complaining sweetly in her heart, 'Brother Aotian is so silly, the back mountain cliff is so dangerous.'

But now.

Watching that hand get closer and closer, Xiao Ninger only felt her brow twitch inexplicably.

An indescribable sense of repulsion welled up from the depths of her heart.

She abruptly pulled her hand back, taking the opportunity to tidy the stray hairs at her temples, avoiding Lin Aotian's touch.

Lin Aotian's hand froze in mid-air.

The atmosphere in the pavilion instantly became a bit off.

"Brother Aotian is very thoughtful. Leave it there; I'll drink it later," Xiao Ninger said flatly, her emotions unreadable.

The smile on Lin Aotian's face stiffened for a moment.

But he quickly withdrew his hand and awkwardly rubbed his fingers, assuming Xiao Ninger was just throwing a small tantrum because he hadn't replied to her transmission Jade Slip.

"Nickname, did I disturb your quiet cultivation?"

Lin Aotian took the opportunity to sit opposite Xiao Ninger, sighing as his gaze turned melancholy.

"To be honest, after reshaping my Physical Body, although I've opened up three main Meridians, my Origin is still empty."

"Although the primordial life liquid is powerful, it can only reshape the Physical Body. If I want to bring glory to you at the Prodigy Grand Competition in three months and secure a spot in the Void Divine Treasury, I'm still lacking a bit of foundation..."

At this point, Lin Aotian paused, looking at Xiao Ninger with burning eyes and a face full of expectation.

Xiao Ninger watched him quietly.

For some reason, that handsome face had become somewhat unfamiliar in her eyes.

Lacking a bit of foundation?

So this was his true purpose for rushing over today to deliver a spiritual meal?

Yesterday he was laughing wildly in the main hall, saying he would trample upon the myriad worlds of the heavens.

Today he comes before her acting pitiful to ask for resources.

And what he wanted was definitely no ordinary resource.

Things that could replenish the Origin—even in the Xiao Family, there were only a few such rare treasures, like the 'Nine-Turn Divine Phoenix Blood' or the 'Heaven and Earth Dao Origin Fruit.'

Which one of them wasn't a treasure being watched over by those old fellows in the Family?

"And so?" Xiao Ninger's tone remained flat, as if she were questioning a servant who had made a mistake.

Lin Aotian was stunned.

"And so?"

In the past, as long as he showed this slightly melancholy look and mentioned a minor problem in his cultivation,

Xiao Ninger would be incredibly distressed and immediately promise to get him the best resources from the Xiao Family treasury.

Why wasn't she taking the bait today?

"Nickname, you..."

Lin Aotian gave a couple of dry laughs.

"I meant to say, I heard that there's still a drop of True Dragon Undying Blood in the Xiao Family treasury. If you could ask the Grand Elder for it and let me use it."

"I promise, at the Grand Competition, I will definitely trample the prodigies of other clans under my feet! When I take first place, it won't just be the glory of our Lin Family, but also a reward for your feelings."

True Dragon Undying Blood.

The corner of Xiao Ninger's eye twitched slightly.

That was a trump card left by the Old Ancestor for her to use to save her life when she attempted a Breakthrough to the Immortal King realm.

He actually had the nerve to ask for it?

And he said it so righteously, as if that thing belonged to him in the first place.

The suggestion planted in her mind by Qing Yuan began to take effect.

After her emotions were stripped away, Xiao Ninger's perspective on the matter became absolutely rational.

This was the man she had loved for ten years?

A waste who only knew how to speak empty words and rely on sweet talk to try and swindle the Family's top treasures?

Without the filter of 'love,' every action of Lin Aotian's in her eyes now exuded a disgusting aura of greed and hypocrisy.

"The True Dragon Undying Blood is something bestowed by the Old Ancestor; no one can move it without the Clan Chief's handwritten order."

Xiao Ninger picked up the cold tea in front of her and took a sip. "I don't have the authority to take it."

The refusal was crisp and clean.

The smile on Lin Aotian's face completely collapsed.

He looked at Xiao Ninger in disbelief; she had actually refused?

In the past, let alone the True Dragon Undying Blood, even if it were the stars in the sky, as long as he spoke, Xiao Ninger would try to get them for him.

What was wrong today?

Was she still angry just because he had lost his temper a few days ago and accidentally slapped Qing Yuan?

"Nickname."

Lin Aotian took a deep breath, suppressing the unhappiness in his heart, and lowered his voice with a hint of reproach.

"Are you blaming me for losing my temper with Qing Yuan yesterday?"

Standing behind Xiao Ninger, Qing Yuan's eyelids flickered upon hearing this, and a flash of blood-red light passed through the depths of her pupils.

"Qing Yuan is your personal maid; I was indeed impulsive."

Lin Aotian put on a magnanimous front.

"But you have to understand, I suffered all kinds of humiliation in the Lower Realm, and my Physical Body was crushed inch by inch by that villain Su Yun."

"During those days, I truly wished I were dead! If I hadn't been thinking of you and the vows we made since childhood, I would have given up long ago."

"Nickname, we've known each other for ten years. Can the feelings between us not even compare to a drop of blood?"

His gaze was miserable, trying to use his past pain and their childhood friendship to move Xiao Ninger.

When Xiao Ninger heard the words 'known each other for ten years,' some images from her memory involuntarily surfaced.

The two of them sitting side by side on a cliff watching the sunset, him blocking a Vicious Beast's claws for her...

Her heart stirred slightly.

However, before this touch of emotion could expand, deep in her mind, that black-clad figure whose face could not be seen suddenly radiated a massive pressure.

Submit.

This subconscious command caused the bit of warmth that had just emerged in her heart to vanish instantly.

The confusion in Xiao Ninger's eyes immediately cleared.

Looking at Lin Aotian, who was still incessantly recounting how miserable he was, her heart felt no ripples; she even found it a bit laughable.

You were defeated by Su Yun in the Lower Realm because you were incompetent yourself.

You can't even take your own revenge and have to rely on me, a woman, to use Family resources to save you.

Now you come looking for me for a life-saving item and dare to use our feelings to pressure me?

Truly childish.

Too unsightly.

If not for those ten years of childhood memories still being there, she would want to call someone to throw this babbling waste out of the Divine Mountain right now.

"Brother Aotian, I know you've suffered. I'm very aware."

Xiao Ninger set down her teacup, letting out a crisp sound.

Lin Aotian was delighted, thinking she had finally softened.

"But the rules of the Xiao Family cannot be broken."

Xiao Ninger looked up, her gaze like a pool of deep water, devoid of any emotion.

"Using the primordial life liquid for you was already an exception. Don't even think about the True Dragon Undying Blood. If you really want to make a name for yourself at the Grand Competition, go hone yourself on the Life-and-Death Stage. Don't spend all day thinking about taking shortcuts."

"You—"

Lin Aotian's face instantly turned bright red, as if he were being choked by the neck.

Xiao Ninger's words made his face sting with burning pain.

She actually lectured him about taking shortcuts?

When had he, the dignified Child of Destiny, ever received such a rebuke!

Moreover, this rebuke came from Xiao Ninger, who had always been completely submissive to him!

"If Young Master Lin has no other business, please return. The Young Miss still needs to comprehend the Creation Jade Stone today; it is inconvenient for her to expend too much mental energy."

Qing Yuan took a step forward at the perfect time, her voice gentle yet clearly dismissing him.

Lin Aotian stared fixedly at Xiao Ninger, trying to find a trace of a joke on her face.

There was none.

Nothing at all.

Only deep estrangement and a flat indifference that made him feel a stinging pain.

This address of 'Young Master Lin' felt even more like a thorn piercing his heart.

In the past, Qing Yuan had always called him 'Young Master Aotian'!

"Good, very good!" Lin Aotian stood up abruptly, his movement so large that he knocked over the jade box in front of him.

Clatter.

The jade box fell to the ground, and the warm spiritual meal spilled everywhere.

Those three stalks of Purple Rhyme Dragon Saliva Grass he claimed to have 'personally picked' looked exceptionally pathetic on the jade tiles.

Lin Aotian's chest heaved violently, his gaze shifting uncertainly.

Finally, he forced out a smile that looked worse than crying.

"I was presumptuous today. Nickname, you rest well; I'll come to see you another day."

After speaking, he turned sharply and strode out of the pavilion, his back exuding an air of wretchedness and gloom.

A gentle breeze blew, and the pavilion returned to silence.

Xiao Ninger glanced at the mess on the ground, her elegant brows furrowed tightly.

"Clean this place up. In the future, there's no need to bring such boring things up here."

Xiao Ninger stood up, her tone carrying undisguised annoyance.

"Yes, Young Miss," Qing Yuan replied with a bow.

Watching Xiao Ninger turn and leave without a hint of lingering attachment, a cold and eerie curve formed at the corners of Qing Yuan's mouth.

The Mistress's methods are truly formidable.

Lin Aotian, your doom has only just begun.

...

On the small path of the Divine Mountain.

Lin Aotian walked faster and faster, his expression terrifyingly dark.

"What is wrong with this bitch!"

Once out of Xiao Ninger's sight, Lin Aotian finally stopped pretending.

He slammed a fist into an ancient tree by the roadside, smashing a deep pit into the trunk and causing leaves to shower down.

These past few days, not only had Xiao Ninger become cold toward him, but today she had even seemed reluctant to call him 'Brother Aotian,' completely perfunctory as if to a stranger!

"Could it be because of those women in the Lower Realm that she thinks I'm incompetent and has started to doubt me?" Lin Aotian gnashed his teeth.

No, absolutely impossible!

How could ten years of feelings change just like that?

"Someone must have said something bad in her ear!"

Qing Yuan's face flashed through Lin Aotian's mind, and a murderous intent flickered in his eyes.

Yes, it must be that lowly servant girl.

Yesterday he had slapped her in front of Xiao Ninger; she must be holding a grudge and sowing discord!

Lin Aotian stared intently at a leaf in his hand, his fingers suddenly tightening.

With a 'bang,' the leaf turned into powder.

"I can't let this drag on any longer. Those old fellows were already dissatisfied with me; if I even lose Nickname as a backer, I won't be able to stay in the Xiao Family."

A hint of madness and ruthlessness flashed in Lin Aotian's eyes.

"Since the soft approach isn't working, it seems I must use strong medicine..."