BTTH : Treasure Exchange System

Xiao Se had paid no attention to the dispute between Xiao Yan, his father, and the three elders of the Xiao family. His eyes remained half-closed, quietly resting while his mind replayed the battle with Hong Kui, reviewing which move went wrong or where his footwork faltered.

"Brother, why is it so noisy outside?" Long Kui's slightly lazy, gentle voice suddenly echoed in Xiao Se's heart.

Unlike Hong Kui's voice, Long Kui's was soft and soothing, like a balm for the soul. Xiao Se immediately recognized it was Long Kui.

"Long Kui, are you awake?" Xiao Se responded with a faint smile in his heart.

"Yes, I haven't slept this well in a long time... but it's too noisy outside now." Long Kui's sweet voice rang out in his mind once again.

"Don't worry about it. How about I sing you a song, little sister?" Xiao Se smiled.

"Mm, okay. I'm listening, brother." In the space of the Demon Sword, Long Kui lay on the soft bed Xiao Se had prepared for her, her face blushing as she recalled the scene from the previous day when Hong Kui had helped her change clothes.

"Twinkle, twinkle, little star, how I wonder what you are..." Xiao Se softly hummed a tune, audible only to himself.

Xun'er, who was sitting next to Xiao Se, froze for a moment. While others may not have heard the tune, but since she was siting just beside him, she naturally heard the melody.

She turned her head slightly and frowned, wondering, "What song is that? Why does it seem so familiar?"

She tried to remember but couldn't figure it out. Shaking her head in frustration, she decided to stop thinking about it and refocused on Xiao Yan.

At that moment, Xiao Yan was already in a heated confrontation with the three elders.

"Xiao Yan, do you really want to continue being the Young Clan Leader?" the Great Elder asked, narrowing his eyes.

"It's not that I want to cling to the position. It's about protecting my father's reputation. If I'm stripped of the title of Young Clan Leader, how will my father command respect among the clan?" Xiao Yan replied sternly.

"The title of Young Clan Leader has always been given to the capable. Even Xiao Lin, the previous Clan Leader, won the title by defeating the son of the former Clan Leader. We cannot break the rules just because you're the Clan Leader's son," the Great Elder sneered.

The mention of "respect" made the Great Elder smirk inwardly. His goal in removing Xiao Yan was to weaken Xiao Zhan's influence and seize more power for himself and the other elders.

"You—" Xiao Yan's face stiffened, unable to respond.

"Yan'er, stop speaking. The clan's laws cannot be violated," Xiao Zhan, sitting at the head of the table, spoke with frustration.

Though he knew the elders were targeting his son deliberately, they weren't wrong. Both the position of Young Clan Leader and Clan Leader had always been based on merit, and Xiao Zhan had become the leader because he was the most powerful in the family.

Seeing Xiao Zhan relent, the Great Elder smiled in satisfaction and solemnly announced, "In that case, I officially declare Xiao Yan stripped of his title as Young Clan Leader. We will choose a new successor when a more capable candidate emerges. Xiao Yan will be demoted to an ordinary clan member, removed from the main family residence, and his training resources will be reduced by 90%. His monthly stipend will now be only 10 gold coins. The excess resources will be redistributed to the more promising younger generation."

As soon as the Great Elder finished speaking, the room buzzed with mocking comments.

"Three stages of Dou Qi? He won't reach the Dou Fighter level again for another seven or eight years, even if his talent returns."

"That's what he gets for being so arrogant. Other than his father, he looked down on everyone."

"At twelve years old, he's still only at the third stage. Most kids his age are at least at the fourth stage."

"He wasted years of the clan's resources; he should've been kicked out long ago."

The scornful remarks from around the room pierced Xiao Yan's heart like needles, causing his breath to quicken.

As the situation settled, Xiao Yan glanced at Xiao Zhan, who seemed to have aged significantly in an instant. His throat tightened, and without saying a word, he ran out of the hall, leaving behind a lonely and desolate figure.

He needed to release his pent-up rage.

With Xiao Yan officially stripped of his title, the clan meeting came to a "perfect" end, and both the elders and the younger generation began to disperse.

"Xiao Se, Cousin Xiao Se, the meeting is over. It's time to go." Xun'er hesitated for a moment but gently nudged Xiao Se, reminding him.

Xiao Se slowly opened his eyes, glanced at the people gradually leaving, then looked at Xun'er. A trace of surprise flickered in his eyes—Xiao Yan had left, but Xun'er hadn't followed him.

"Oh, thank you." Xiao Se nodded at Xun'er and stood up to leave.

"Cousin Xiao Se, please wait a moment." Xun'er's soft voice suddenly called out behind him as he walked out of the meeting hall.

Turning around, Xiao Se responded indifferently, "Miss Xun'er, is something the matter?"

"No, it's nothing. I just wanted to ask what song you were humming earlier. It seemed so familiar to me," Xun'er asked with her large, curious eyes.

Hearing this, Xiao Se frowned. The song was a nursery rhyme from Earth—there's no way Xun'er should've heard it. The only explanation was that Xiao Yan, a fellow traveler from a parallel world, might have sung it to her.

Cursing himself for being careless, Xiao Se realized he had forgotten that Xun'er had a powerful senses and could hear even the faintest sounds.

"I think you must've misheard, Miss Xun'er. I wasn't humming anything. I have matters to attend to—goodbye." Without waiting for a reply, Xiao Se walked away, not looking back.

Xun'er stood there, confused by Xiao Se's cold response. She stomped her foot in frustration and pouted, "Hmph, if you don't want to say, then fine!"

-

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In a deserted alley in Wutan City

"Long Kui, is anyone watching us?" Xiao Se scanned the surroundings carefully before asking in his mind.

"Don't worry, brother. That person who was monitoring you last time didn't follow us," Long Kui's soothing voice reassured him.

Nodding slightly, Xiao Se waved his hand, and a black robe appeared out of thin air. He quickly donned it and ensured his appearance was completely hidden before heading toward the Mitel Auction House in the city center.

Once inside, and under the vigilant gazes of the guards, Xiao Se easily made his way to the appraiser.

The middle-aged man behind the desk was momentarily stunned when he saw Xiao Se. He stood up quickly and respectfully asked, "Are you Master Pu?"

"Mm." A raspy voice, familiar to the middle-aged man, came from beneath the black robe.

Recognizing the voice, though Xiao Se appeared slightly taller than a month ago, the middle-aged man didn't question it. Excited, he led Xiao Se into a private VIP room.

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