Every step Yan Xiaobao took allowed him to sense the energy ripples released by the Earth into the world. He could perceive every tree and living being within a hundred-ter radius, and every movent that occurred within the soil was easily felt by Yan Xiaobao, as if they ford directly upon his own body.
The white-haired boy broke into a broad smile because he realized this was a success. Hui Yue had managed to amplify his perfect symbiosis with the Earth, but the sensation was vastly different compared to when he was dealing with fire.
Just as he was about to sit down again to ditate, Yan Xiaobao sensed more guests arriving in front of his mansion.
Feeling slightly disappointed, Yan Xiaobao stood up. As he moved, Sha Yun opened her eyes and followed him into the mansion, heading toward the grand entrance.
Yan Xiaobao swung the door open, only to see the Rong twins visiting him once again. Their once lively eyes were now filled with exhaustion and worry. A faint sadness flickered in Hui Yue’s heart, but he had no intention of joining any faction.
"Co in," Yan Xiaobao said, allowing the two inside. He then quickly headed downstairs to the kitchen to prepare so snacks.
"You both look very tired," Yan Xiaobao remarked, handing them two cups of warm tea as he sat on a chair across from them, gazing at them.
Over the past year, things in Rio City had undergone trendous change. Yan Xiaobao had spent his ti focusing on ascending to the Second Master Level star and had finally aligned with his elental affinity to the Earth.
During the first half of the year, things had cald down, but shocking ripples resonated underground as families such as Wang and Deng frantically recruited troops and allies.
Initially, the opposition had no idea about this because everyone was preoccupied with the surge of wealth generated by Rong Liang’s massive steam production and the extraordinary increase in resource mining found nowhere else in Liluo City. They had managed to excavate magic crystals one after another, exporting them to other major cities.
Unfortunately, smaller families in the city began to notice the factional shifts. Tensions rose slowly, becoming impossible to ignore. Markets owned by families began to restrict sales only to mbers of their faction. Eventually, they even barred entry entirely to those from rival groups.
By now, even unaffiliated citizens—those who were not aligned with any faction, living plain but noble lives—were refused entry into these spaces. In day-to-day life, they held no real significance.
The atmosphere in Liluo City turned stifling. No one dared to leisurely stroll around anymore. No one truly understood what caused such sudden animosity between the two factions, but it was evident that sothing significant had unfolded, shaking them to their cores.
This situation had placed the Rong Family in a tough position. They had no clue what the rival faction was planning, but everyone instinctively knew that sothing was underway. The Rong twins, having graduated from the Royal Art Academy, had spent the past year tirelessly working for their family and learning to manage its affairs. Six months ago, they had done everything they could to understand the situation, but even the most skilled eavesdroppers had failed to uncover any useful information regarding the matter.
Looking at Yan Xiaobao, Rong Xing sighed. She deeply cared for the boy who had been her friend for years, viewing him as the younger brother she never had. Because of their bond, Rong Xing understood Yan Xiaobao’s mindset well—she knew he had no intention of joining any faction. Doing so would place him in an agonizing position where he might have to choose between his friends.
Despite his neutrality, the twins kept visiting the young man, finding his ho the only oasis of peace in the tense city of Liluo. This tranquility nurtured their weary hearts, offering them a brief reprieve before they inevitably had to return to the hostile environnt of the City Lord Mansion.
Yan Xiaobao’s ho remained the one place where the Rong twins could relive the sense of belonging they’d experienced during their years at the academy. It felt like ho because Yan Xiaobao had managed to remain unaffected by the city’s factional strife. Friends often gathered at his house to replenish their energy.
Having such guests had beco more common than before, and Yan Xiaobao could not help but feel a pang of pity for the Rong twins and the entire Rong Sect. Though they had remained on high alert, they had spent the past half month observing the movents of the Deng and Wang families, yet had gained no information about their plans.
In a few weeks, the Rong twins would have to leave Liluo City to return to the main campus of the Royal Art Academy, where they’d studied for years, before eventually coming back ho. Yet, under the current circumstances, leaving was simply impossible.
"Everything will be fine," Yan Xiaobao said gently, stroking the elder twin’s head. Yet tears welled up in Rong Xing’s eyes as she thought about the precariousness of their situation. Things had only been worsening. The Wang and Deng families had already succeeded in winning over most of the smaller families in Liluo City, but no one knew the specifics of their intentions.
"They will attack us," Rong Xing said with a grim expression, tears streaming down her lovely face. "They will fight Father and try to seize the City Lord’s position, but the Royal Family neither supports nor will approve it. Why would they even think this is an option?"
"Everything will be fine," Hui Yue said calmly. "Your father is a very strong man, and no one would willingly provoke a fight against him." He continued speaking as Sha Yun arrived with another cup of soothing tea for the crying girl.
Sha Yun was quite possessive, and while she did her best to keep Yan Xiaobao away from Wang Julong, she always seed pleased whenever she was in Rong Xing’s company. Sha Yun recalled how the elderly Rong Xing had once hit Hui Yue, mistakenly believing he’d transford her into a beast contract.
To Rong Xing, Sha Yun was like a second mother to their group. She loved everyone in their circle in her unique way, but she was not one to be swayed by emotion. To her, Yan Xiaobao was like an older brother in her heart. When Sha Yun joined their circle, Rong Xing had readily embraced her as well.
The entire group also knew that Wang Julong was actually a girl. Many years ago, when she began following Yan Xiaobao, she eventually joined their core team and spent all her ti with them. At that ti, Yan Xiaobao had told Wang Julong the sa secret he had only shared with a revered expert—this secret beca her leverage whenever the issue ca up.
However, to Rong Xing, Wang Julong would never feel like a sister but more like a younger brother. This dynamic made the female twin direct most of her parental love toward Sha Yun instead.
On the other hand, although Rong Xing doted on Sha Yun and spent significant ti with her, they frequently argued about her habit of flirting with boys around the city or the academy.
Ultimately, before Sha Yun could settle down, Rong Xing found it necessary to threaten her using Yan Xiaobao as a deterrent.
"Do you really want to be a burden?" she had said sternly, deeply shocking Sha Yun. "Flirting leads to mating, and mating leads to babies. If you had little snake babies, do you really think Yan Xiaobao could stay by your side?"
This stern warning rooted itself deeply in Sha Yun’s heart, causing her to quickly reign in her romantic tendencies. She began spending more ti at Yan Xiaobao’s ho, which led to them talking far more often than they had in quite so ti.
"Thank you for today," Rong Xing said softly after her tears finally ceased. Her face, however, retained a wearied expression, as though she might collapse from exhaustion at any mont.
Yan Xiaobao knew that both Rong Xing and Rong Ming had been working relentlessly during their free ti, pushing themselves without rest. Recently, neither had managed to get sufficient sleep, causing Yan Xiaobao to look at them with a small, sympathetic smile.
"Why don’t you sleep here for a while?" Yan Xiaobao suggested. He had expected the exhausted woman to decline, but she silently nodded. Although she was eager to return, her body had reached its limit. She hoped that by resting in the serene atmosphere of Yan Xiaobao’s ho, she might sleep longer than usual.
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