"Big sister, tell Mr. Ghost Face that he's heading in the wrong direction!" The little girl said directly to Lin Bingxuan: "It's not that the keyhole is blocked, it's the key that's wrong!"

Lin Bingxuan didn't have time to delve deeper, and instead expressed the little girl's meaning in another way: "Could it be a problem with the key itself, and not the Five Elements crystal that's malfunctioning?!"

"It's not impossible. I've just completed my first attempt at solving it, and we'll need to investigate further to pinpoint the exact issue!" Ghost Face replied, neither confirming nor denying.

"What investigation!" The little girl said anxiously: "Big sister, just tell him, oh not the key, the pendant's energy is cut in half, and persisting like this won't yield results!"

Lin Bingxuan said to Ghost Face: "Regarding this issue, I wonder if a part of the pendant's energy is missing, causing the Five Elements crystal resolution to stall?!"

This time, Ghost Face remained silent for a long time, before asking Xiao Tian: "Does the pendant have another half?!"

Xiao Tian pondered for a moment and shook his head: "I don't know, when Qin Shaoyuan gave it to me, there was only one. To find out if there's another half, I'll have to ask him."

"In that case, I'll continue my attempts to decode it here, and you go find Qin Shaoyuan, who gave you the Jade Pendant, and we'll decide after we've met!" Ghost Face proposed.

Soon, everyone nodded in agreement.

Melinda stood up and said: "There's no need for us all to go. I'll stay here to assist Mr. Ghost Face, and you and Bingxuan go!"

Xiao Tian nodded: "Alright, let's talk when we return!"

Thus, the four split into two groups, with Lin Bingxuan and Xiao Tian going to find Qin Shaoyuan, while Melinda assisted Ghost Face in advancing to the second round of Five Elements crystal decoding.

——

Bai Xiaoxuan followed the pair into the bustling little town, her little head scanning left and right, seemingly fascinated by everything around her.

Midway there, Sun Miaohan, who thought Ji Dantong wouldn't bring a little girl back without reason, took a sugar-coated haws from a roadside stand and approached Bai Xiaoxuan with a smile: "Little sister, here's the candy I promised to buy you, eat up!"

However, Bai Xiaoxuan's expression dimmed when she saw the familiar sugar haws, as she couldn't help but wonder how her younger sister and mother were doing...

Bai Xiaoxuan finally snapped back to reality a moment later, looked at Sun Miaohan still smiling at her with the sugar haws offered, and thanked politely: "Thank you, sister!"

Sun Miaohan pinched Bai Xiaoxuan's smiley face, praising: "What an adorable and sensible child!"

Ji Dantong slapped her hand away, and scolded Bai Xiaoxuan: "Xuanxuan, don't get too close to people like her, they'll lead you astray!"

"I-Is that so?"

Looking at the gentle smiling Sun Miaohan, Bai Xiaoxuan asked hesitantly.

"Yes!"

Ji Dantong nodded firmly: "Some people aren't as good-natured as they seem on the surface, don't let yourself be fooled!"

"Don't you think saying slanderous things about someone in their presence is a bit much?!" Sun Miaohan raised her eyebrow and asked coldly before Bai Xiaoxuan could respond.

"Slander?!"

Ji Dantong saw nothing wrong about it and said: "I'm just stating the truth! Moreover, I didn't mention your name, why are you standing there agitatedly?!" 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

"Ha, all you do is deceive yourself and then trick little kids!" Sun Miaohan ignored Ji Dantong and instead turned her gaze to Bai Xiaoxuan, crouched down and asked: "Little sister, do you think I'm a bad person?"

Bai Xiaoxuan glanced at Ji Dantong, shook her head: "No!"

"That's my good girl!" Sun Miaohan beamed: "Then, if possible in the future, would you like to live with me?"

With an idea in mind, Sun Miaohan seized the opportunity to extend an olive branch. Regardless of Ji Dantong's purpose in bringing the little girl, she first wanted to block this path!

Seeing the naïve Bai Xiaoxuan about to fall under the cunning Sun Miaohan's spell, Ji Dantong hurriedly whispered into her ear in a voice only they could hear: "Xuanxuan, let me remind you, if you agree to that bad sister's words..."

Ji Dantong paused briefly, then said: "You will become as disliked as she is, and those who originally liked you will be very disappointed and hurt!"

Bai Xiaoxuan felt a pang of fear, thinking about her mother and sister being disappointed in her, that even her big brother wouldn't like her anymore...

"I'll stick with Sister Dantong!" Bai Xiaoxuan declared emphatically.

Sun Miaohan glared fiercely at the smug Ji Dantong. Unable to discern how Ji Dantong managed to control the little girl so firmly, she thought to herself, but just wait until we see the master!

Thinking darkly, Sun Miaohan still said to Bai Xiaoxuan: "Well, you're always welcome to come find me for fun!"

Sun Miaohan strove to leave Bai Xiaoxuan with a positive impression, at least confirming one thing from the previous exchange, that Ji Dantong wanted to keep her in their midst.

Since that was the case, Sun Miaohan, who had always outshone Ji Dantong since childhood, began planning her next moves.

...

As they continued, Bai Xiaoxuan realized that Ji Dantong's mentioned master's sect wasn't in this little town, but on a towering mountain behind it.

Ji Dantong and Sun Miaohan each extended a hand, letting Bai Xiaoxuan sit between them, her small hands holding onto their shoulders as they sped upwards.

However, it was clear that both Ji Dantong and Sun Miaohan were highly resistant to each other's contact, displaying much reluctance and rejection.

Watching the rapidly changing scenery before her, Bai Xiaoxuan couldn't resist looking down, only to find they had unknowingly reached a considerable height, causing her to close her eyes in fear and tightly clench her small fists.

Opening her eyes again, Bai Xiaoxuan found herself firmly on the ground, finally seeing the mountain gate they often mentioned.

Bai Xiaoxuan looked around but saw only a three-zhang tall redwood gate, flanked by cyan brick walls, looking no different than those in the town, yet the grandeur and imposing spirit were unmistakable.

Once through the gate, Sun Miaohan enthusiastically responded to greetings from around them, appearing quite popular and friendly.

"Little sister, did you see?" Sun Miaohan said to Bai Xiaoxuan between them, "People only warmly greet those they like, those who are disliked won't get any attention!"

Ji Dantong was simply exhausted from their incessant bickering during the journey, which caused her to feel worn out, not to mention the upcoming questioning from their master; she knew she had to save her energy for more important matters.

Little did they know that among the three, the most beleaguered was Bai Xiaoxuan, the little girl who spoke little on the journey and remained mostly clueless.