Battle Through the Heavens: Oh no, I've become the succubus Xiao Yan!

In the winter of his eleventh year, Xiao Yan discovered something strange.

That night, after he finished practicing the Burning Technique and was about to go to sleep, he suddenly felt a faint energy fluctuation from next door.

Next door is Xun'er's room.

Xiao Yan frowned, got up and walked to the wall, probing it with his soul power.

Then he froze.

In Xun'er's room, she lay on the bed, a faint golden light flowing around her, as if something was surging within her. Her brows were furrowed, fine beads of sweat appeared on her forehead, and her body trembled slightly under the covers. A small hole had been burned into one corner of the blanket by her battle qi, and a faint smell of burning emanated from it.

Xiao Yan didn't hesitate and pushed open the door to go over.

This wasn't the first time he'd been to Xun'er's room. When she was little, she was afraid of the dark and often came to sleep in his room. But this time was different. As he approached the bed, he felt a wave of scorching heat wash over him—the kind of intense heat that only comes when one's fighting spirit is out of control, burning his skin.

He reached out and took Xun'er's hand.

It's hot.

Beneath my palm, I could feel her veins throbbing, as if something was about to burst forth.

With a thought, Xiao Yan slowly circulated the Dou Qi of his Fire God Body, channeling it along his palm. He wasn't trying to suppress it, but rather to guide it. Using his experience cultivating the Burning Technique, he helped the chaotic golden Dou Qi find its proper path through the meridians, calming it down little by little.

The golden light swirled for a few more breaths before slowly receding and dissipating into the night. The scorching heat also subsided.

Xun'er's brows slowly relaxed, and her body stopped trembling.

She opened her eyes and looked at Xiao Yan groggily.

"Brother Xiao Yan...?"

"Had a nightmare?" Xiao Yan released her hand, his tone casual, as if nothing had happened.

Xun'er blinked, as if she wanted to say something, but she was too sleepy and closed her eyes again.

"Ugh...it's so hot..."

"It's alright," Xiao Yan said. "I'm here."

Xun'er obediently hummed in agreement, turned over, and fell into a deep sleep again.

Xiao Yan sat by the bed for a while, making sure she wouldn't have another attack, before tiptoeing back to his room.

  

---

The old doctor has already seen it.

"That golden energy," Yao Lao's voice echoed in his mind, his tone unusually grave, "did you sense it?"

"I've noticed it," Xiao Yan said, sitting down cross-legged. "The golden Dou Qi, fire attribute, is more than ten times more concentrated than ordinary Dou Qi—this is the bloodline of an ancient clan."

The old doctor paused for a moment.

"You know?"

"I guessed," Xiao Yan said. "I've long suspected Xun'er's identity. She's the daughter of an ancient clan leader, raised by the Xiao family."

Yao Lao didn't press him for details. He had lived for hundreds of years and witnessed far too many secrets, and the shocks Xiao Yan had brought him over the years were far greater than this.

"The bloodline of the ancient clan," Elder Yao murmured. "If I'm not mistaken, that golden energy is a sign of the awakening of the ancient clan's divine bloodline. This kind of bloodline is extremely rare; there might not be more than a handful in the entire ancient clan. Once fully awakened, her talent will far surpass that of ordinary people. Moreover, the ancient clan's bloodline has a natural affinity with the strange fire—the Golden Emperor Burning Heaven Flame, ranked fourth on the Strange Fire Ranking, is the ancient clan's clan-protecting fire."

"But this is just a sign," Xiao Yan said, "it hasn't fully awakened yet."

"Yes," the old doctor nodded, "She's only eleven years old now, and it takes time for her bloodline to awaken. Moreover, during the awakening process, the battle qi within her body will surge uncontrollably. What you saw tonight is just the tip of the iceberg. The frequency of these attacks will increase in the future, and each one will be more intense. If her meridians cannot withstand the surging battle qi, it may damage her foundation."

Xiao Yan fell silent.

He thought of Xun'er trembling earlier, and the quilt with holes burned by the fighting spirit.

Is there any way to alleviate this?

"Yes," said the old doctor, "you actually did it tonight, using your battle qi to guide the surging energy in her body back into her meridians. You cultivate the Burning Technique and have the Fire God Body, so your control over fire-attribute battle qi is much more refined than ordinary people, which can be of great help. But it only alleviates the symptoms, not cures the root cause. For her to fully awaken, she can only rely on herself."

Xiao Yan nodded upon hearing this.

"Then let's alleviate the symptoms first, so that Xun'er will feel better. Besides, my flames will also benefit Xun'er's body."

The old doctor glanced at him but said nothing more.

---

From then on, Xiao Yan developed a habit.

Every night after finishing his cultivation, he would use his soul power to probe the room next door. Xun'er's signs of bloodline awakening were becoming more and more frequent, from once every ten days at the beginning to once every three to five days later. Each time it flared up, the golden battle qi in her body would surge violently, and the scorching heat waves would burn the quilt, sometimes even waking her up from her dreams.

Xiao Yan would go over every time, and sometimes he would simply hold Xun'er and sleep together.

He never revealed the reason, only saying things like, "I heard it when I was passing by," "You kicked off the covers," or "I couldn't sleep, so I came out for a walk." Xun'er was half asleep and didn't think much of it, only knowing that Brother Xiao Yan had come, and her body stopped burning and her meridians stopped hurting.

One attack was particularly severe; the golden battle qi surged wildly within Xun'er's body, causing her to curl up in pain, her forehead covered in sweat. Xiao Yan grasped her wrist and channeled the battle qi of the Burning Blade Technique into her, guiding the rampaging energy back into its proper place along each meridian. A full quarter of an hour passed before the golden light slowly faded.

Xun'er opened her eyes, her nose covered in sweat.

"Brother Xiao Yan, am I sick?" Her voice was soft, with a hint of unease.

"No," Xiao Yan said, "You just have a special constitution; you'll be fine as you grow up."

"real?"

"real."

Xun'er looked at him for a few seconds, then leaned on his shoulder.

"I don't care anymore," she said. "As long as you're by my side, I won't feel any pain."

Xiao Yan didn't speak, but continued to channel a gentle stream of Dou Qi into her meridians to help stabilize the last bit of restless golden energy.

---

The days passed by.

Xiao Yan cultivated during the day and nurtured Yao Lao's soul at night, visiting Xun'er every few days. The Jia Lie family had been quiet for a while, probably still thinking of new ideas. The cooperation with Ya Fei was going smoothly; the Xiao family's medicinal herbs were distributed through Mitel's channels, resulting in higher profits than before.

Xiao Ding and Xiao Li are also steadily improving. Xiao Ding has already broken through to the three-star Dou Zhe level, and his foundation is becoming more and more stable; Xiao Li has successfully broken through to the ninth level of Dou Qi, and is only one step away from becoming a Dou Zhe.

Everything is moving in a positive direction.

Xiao Yan knew, however, that the peace wouldn't last long.

Xun'er's bloodline is awakening; the ancient clans will arrive sooner or later. The Jia Lie family's district is lying in wait, unsure when they might strike again; we must be on guard. And his own secrets—his identity as an alchemist, the special nature of his Fire God Body, the Burning Technique, and the Old Medicine Master—each of these bombs could explode unexpectedly.

But that's a matter for the future. Xiao Yan turned over and stopped thinking about it.

Xun'er's even breathing could be heard from next door. She didn't have an attack tonight. Xun'er could sleep well.