Xu Gan and Xu Xia, who were about to leave, turned back to Xiao Ning upon hearing him call. Xu Gan was disappointed. For a moment, he thought that foolish boy would let them leave without causing major trouble or making outrageous demands. But that didn't seem to be the case.

  "What do you want?" Xu Xia questioned harshly.

  "You see..." Xiao Ning spoke in a carefree tone with a relaxed smile. "I really don't mind not getting the dowry back or anything like that. But... how can I put this... I doubt the honorable Xu Family would feel comfortable canceling a marriage without giving anything in return, right?" he provoked.

  "Speak at once!" Xu Gan huffed, seeming displeased. Hearing Xiao Ning use such a mocking tone when speaking of the Xu Family's honor irritated him.

  On the other hand, when he heard Xiao Ning provoke not only someone like Xu Gan but also the Xu Family itself, Xiao Chang let out a slight sigh while shaking his head. In truth, this wasn't all that surprising. This carefree and disrespectful attitude had always been and would always be Ning's way.

  Knowing that at this moment he could ask for anything, Xiao Ning let out a slight smile, leaned his body forward, and said:

  "I don't want anything excessive, just an Enchanted Cauldron. It doesn't even need to be very expensive; a silver or bronze one is fine for me."

  "Enchanted Cauldron?" Everyone looked at him in astonishment and surprise, as if doubting their own ears.

  But Xiao Ning just smiled confidently and nodded:

  "That's right, an Enchanted Cauldron!" he confirmed.

  Xu Gan paused momentarily while he studied Xiao Ning a second time. He looked him up and down before finally responding:

  "I will have the cauldron brought over!" Saying this, he turned and left, accompanied by Xu Xia.

  "Thank you!" Xiao Ning thanked them, smiling, appearing extremely satisfied as he waved goodbye.

  After the now ex-fiancée and the Xu Family Elder left, Xiao Chang looked at the relaxed boy, sitting carelessly without minding his manners, and made a strange expression. He wanted to ask, but hesitated. The thought was simply ridiculous. However...

  "Little Ning, why do you want an Enchanted Cauldron? Are you thinking of practicing Alchemy?" he inquired with curiosity.

  Finishing that question, Xiao Chang immediately realized how ridiculous his words were and regretted saying them. Someone like Xiao Ning could never practice Alchemy. The reason was quite simple, actually: to learn this art, one needs high cultivation and natural talent, not to mention the necessary dedication. And Xiao Ning had none of the three. He was a well-known vagabond, famous for his lack of devotion. He was just a loafer who didn't take his obligations seriously and cared only about how much he could sleep in a day. His cultivation was low, and his talent poor. And even if he made an effort, there was no guarantee of success.

  And that wasn't all. In the Central Continent, Alchemy is considered one of the most difficult arts to practice, as well as one of the most prestigious. Years of study are required to make the simplest of pills and potions.

  Pills made through Alchemy possess diverse functions, able to increase a cultivator's cultivation or even heal a mortal wound. That is why Alchemists are so prestigious throughout the continent, regardless of which kingdom or empire they belong to.

  But becoming an Alchemist was difficult. So much so that in the entire Golden Empire, containing millions of people and tens of thousands of cultivators, there were only a few dozen Alchemists.

  For this reason, Xiao Chang regretted asking. It was impossible for Xiao Ning to be interested in something so laborious.

  But to his surprise, the lazy boy replied, demonstrating resolute confidence:

  "I read a book and it seemed interesting, so I thought I'd give it a try. Who knows, maybe I'll get lucky," he uttered with such confidence, followed by a relaxed smile.

  Hearing this, Xiao Chang couldn't hide the surprise on his face. That lazy boy reading a book was something rare. But regarding the other matter, he knew this curiosity wouldn't last long.

  However, despite Xiao Ning's carefree answer, the truth was that he had already read much more than just a book. At least in his past life.

  Xiao Ning had always been a vagabond. And that was a fact even in his other life. Despite being five thousand years old, his cultivation remained low relative to the cultivators of that era and continent where he found himself. He possessed various Cultivation Techniques, techniques that caused envy even in the most powerful cultivators. However, lazy as he was, he never cultivated them; with the exception, of course, of the Eternal Sleeper. But that one doesn't count. After all, it didn't demand any tremendous effort to practice, only comprehension.

  But despite never having taken cultivation training seriously, on his path while fleeing from demonic forces back in the Central Continent, when he was around twenty-two years old, Xiao Ning one day found some books that spoke of Alchemy in an abandoned place. At that time, he didn't expect to end up falling in love with such a difficult and laborious practice.

  In the following years, he studied Alchemy in his free time, and even without having much talent, his travels through diverse continents and thousands of kingdoms compensated for this lack of aptitude with experience and wisdom, such that in the last continent he was in—the place where he lost his life, known as the Kingdom of Atlantis—he received the title of Divine Alchemist, as well as becoming one of the three greatest Alchemists of that kingdom.

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  Throughout his entire life, Alchemy was the only thing that sparked his interest and to which he dedicated himself entirely. And in this life, he didn't intend to lose the habit. Furthermore, this was how he planned to help the Xiao Family survive the great disaster.

  Seeming not to care about the fact that Xiao Ning wanted to learn Alchemy, Xiao Chang looked at him and said:

  "What are you going to do now?"

  "I think I'll go back to my hut," answered Xiao Ning, standing up, but still with his back slightly hunched due to poor posture.

  "...I see!" murmured Xiao Chang. That wasn't the question he had asked, but it was better to leave it be. "I have some matters to attend to now, so if you want to stay a little longer and eat something, feel free." Then, he turned and left.

  As he watched Uncle Chang walk away, Xiao Ning thought about his offer of a free meal. But he soon put it out of his mind. If he was indeed going to help the Xiao Family survive the first attack of the demons, he needed to start formulating a plan as soon as possible, not to mention that he preferred preparing his own food.

  Thus, he got up and left the hall. While passing through the mansion's outer courtyard, he saw someone approaching. With a keen look, he realized it was a beautiful girl, with long light-blue hair, almost white, endowed with eyes the color of the sky on a cloudless day. She wore a type of leather armor that covered her shoulders, bust, back, legs, and part of her arms. And at her waist hung a sword that wasn't very long, but not very short either.

  With a firm walk and a not-very-friendly expression, the girl, whose age didn't seem far from the current Ning's—perhaps a little younger—approached. Xiao Ning stared at her fixedly, unable to look away. But it wasn't due to her beauty. He could swear he knew that girl from somewhere.

  He thought and thought, but couldn't remember why that face was so familiar to him. You know, after five thousand years, you tend to forget things.

  Without caring about discretion, Xiao Ning continued staring at her until she got very close.

  "What are you looking at, you useless bum!" the girl shouted, returning a stern look full of contempt to Xiao Ning.

  She, who didn't even bother to stop, huffed coldly as she passed him. And this attitude, watered with contempt, awakened memories in him, and he smiled upon remembering. That was Xiao Shui, Uncle Chang's daughter.

  In his past life, he never had much contact with her, so he didn't know much about her, other than that she hated him. But, to be honest, he cared little about that.

  Thus, not feeling offended by Xiao Shui's contempt, Xiao Ning turned and left the courtyard.

  Relaxed, he crossed the Xiao Family territory. Instead of heading straight to his isolated hut, he decided to take a walk and stroll through that place that had long been forgotten in his memory, and perhaps recall some nostalgic memories.

  He was now passing along a wide winding path, surrounded by verdant grass. At a certain spot, he spotted a covered hall, supported by imposing pillars, with figures of Dragons and Tigers inlaid around them, showing their sharp fangs and dancing upon the clouds. Inside, there were dozens of young boys, who seemed to be around twelve years old. And in the back, next to a board full of scribbles, a white-haired man could be seen talking endlessly.

  That was one of the twelve Spiritual Halls, used to teach the Family's future cultivators things like: what Combat Techniques are, how to cultivate properly, what not to do during secluded cultivation, etc.

  Xiao Ning peeked inside the Spiritual Hall but didn't remember much. Only that he was always skipping that class.

  Then, continuing the stroll, he passed by a lake. He spotted a sequence of pavilions. And finally, he arrived at the area that had the highest concentration of people, mostly young ones, aged between ten and seventeen.

  The location Xiao Ning was in now was a place containing four large arenas, two on each side, hundreds of meters each. The square-shaped arenas, whose floors were made of properly fitted stone blocks, were filled with people. In the first one on the right, it was possible to see young people of the same age facing each other in a battle of fists and kicks. In the one next to it, there were fewer people, but every now and then a flash coming from a Combat Technique radiated through the surroundings.

  In the center of one of the left arenas, there were some wooden dummies, some whole and others destroyed, pierced by arrows or burned by some technique. In the other, a circle formed by young people could be seen, and in the center of it, a woman was giving a solemn lecture.

  Xiao Ning calmly strolled between the arenas, observing what was happening there, when a buzz touched his ears:

  "Hey! Who is that?" asked a girl, who was at the edge of one of the right arenas, right next to the path separating the rings, to a boy with a puffed-out chest standing next to her. "I've never seen him around here. Is he from another Family?"

  "That's the failure of the Xiao Family," mocked the boy, a little older, without caring about his loud voice.

  "Don't speak so loud, he'll hear you," the girl asked.

  "HAHAHA! And what is he going to do? He's just a failure who can't get out of the 2nd Layer of the Mundane Realm," the friend laughed, while his tone of voice became even louder.

  Xiao Ning glanced sideways at the two but didn't give much importance to the comments. It wasn't strange for a boy to want to show off in front of a girl, right?

  Anyway, trying to be discreet, he concentrated and tried to sense the levels both were at. After all, that was why he had sought out a place with plenty of people; he needed to hone his Spiritual Sense.

  "The girl... is at the 4th Layer of the Mundane Realm... And the other... I can't say for sure. Maybe the 5th or 6th Layer." Finally, Xiao Ning murmured after a moment of silence.

  Then, he continued walking while examining everyone with his Spiritual Sense. Most people were at the 5th Layer of the Mundane Realm and others, a few, at the 6th. But there was no one like him, at the 3rd Layer. Even the youngest ones, who appeared to be around ten years old, had more Spiritual Energy.

  This wasn't all that strange. After all, in the Xiao Family, reaching the 5th Layer was something normal. Even those without any aptitude achieved such a feat. The only exception was Xiao Ning, who was always neglecting his studies and never cultivated. That is why he was so looked down upon, as it wasn't a matter of lack of talent. It was something much simpler. He was a complete vagabond and with much pride, thank you!

  As he passed by the arenas, slanderous comments of all kinds were heard. Some people just ignored him, however, others—the few who actually recognized him—made a point of being heard:

  "Hey, failure, haven't you been expelled yet?"

  "Look there, the failure decided to show up."

  Childish provocations like these were heard in every corner. No one cared if it was offensive or not; they simply couldn't miss the opportunity, since the times that failure showed his face were rare.

  However, Xiao Ning didn't care about that. In fact, most of them he didn't even hear. All he needed to do right now was concentrate on honing his Spiritual Sense, since this would not only influence his cultivation and help him during battles, but it was also a fundamental skill for Alchemists.

  It was a primary requirement for Alchemists to possess sharp senses, for everything in this world, even stones, possess some type of Spiritual Energy. And how could they, practitioners of such a special and delicate art, distinguish between an ingredient of inferior quality and a superior one, if not for the Energy contained within them?

  Therefore, he needed to continue honing his senses until he was satisfied. Thus, he continued examining the people around him, without caring about the malicious comments.