Most of this was, of course, to curry favor with Michael Bolton, this innate expert at the eighth level of Qi Refining, but the impressive achievements of Chad Sullivan and Emily Thompson—both under sixteen and already stepping into the fourth level of Qi Refining—were enough to make the city’s elite take notice. Building a good relationship with a future disciple of the Sacred Xuanzong could never be a mistake.

Compared to the rather overwhelmed William Sullivan, Michael Bolton appeared much more at ease.

As an innate expert, there was no one in the entire Shunhe City who dared force him to do anything he didn’t wish to do. Those who came to pay their respects from all over, if he was in a good mood, he’d grant them an audience—which was their honor. If he wasn’t, he’d simply throw them out, and they wouldn’t dare utter a single word of protest.

Meanwhile, the two main characters responsible for today’s lively scene at the Qin residence—Chad Sullivan and Emily Thompson—were curiously sorting through the various gifts they had received.

Although they were also children of prominent families, under the tutelage of Michael Bolton, this innate expert, they rarely interacted with outsiders and had never received so many flattering gifts. Today, with both Qin’s father and their master in high spirits and not paying attention to such details, the two of them naturally couldn’t resist picking through the gifts with great interest.

After a while, Emily Thompson suddenly picked up a piece of jade and said happily, “This is Xuewen Jade. I read about it in a book before. It’s said to have the magical effect of nourishing the skin and keeping it moisturized. Little Zhan, can I have this piece of jade?”

Chad Sullivan chuckled, “These gifts were given to both of us. Maybe that piece of jade was meant for you anyway. Besides, what’s mine is yours—there’s no need to distinguish between us.”

Emily Thompson, delighted, playfully pecked his cheek, then giggled as she held up the jade and tried it against herself, as if deciding where it would look best.

Chad Sullivan touched his cheek, smiling as he watched her compare the jade in different ways. Naturally, his gaze followed her movements and landed on the piece of jade… Only, as he looked at the crystal-clear Xuewen Jade, a strange thought suddenly popped into his mind…

Uh… I want to eat it!

This bizarre thought startled Chad Sullivan. That was jade—Xuewen Jade, not some kind of snack. If he really ate such a big piece of jade, who knew what unimaginable things might happen.

Thinking of this, Chad Sullivan quickly shook his head, trying to dispel this utterly absurd idea.

Emily Thompson noticed his odd behavior and asked curiously, “What’s wrong, Little Zhan? You keep staring at this jade, zoning out and shaking your head…” As she spoke, her gaze returned to the Xuewen Jade. “Is there something wrong with this piece of jade?”

“No, no,” Chad Sullivan quickly shook his head, feeling a bit guilty. He certainly didn’t dare tell Emily Thompson about the strange thought that had just popped into his mind, or she’d definitely think he was a weirdo.

But soon, he discovered something even more troubling.

It wasn’t just the jade that whetted his appetite—even an ancient sword gifted by his grandfather sparked a strong interest in him… Looking at the sword’s sharp blade and gleaming body, it was as if the world’s most delicious feast was laid out before him, exuding a powerful temptation that constantly stimulated his nerves…

For a moment, Chad Sullivan was completely dumbfounded.

Bite the sword with his teeth? And such a sharp ancient sword at that?

Just thinking about it made his teeth ache inexplicably.

“Hey, Little Zhan, you’ve got good taste. This sword is really nice. Are you planning to swap out your spirit-linking sword?”

Chad Sullivan quickly snapped out of his absurd thoughts. Hearing Emily Thompson’s teasing words, he shook his head and said, “No way. I’ve said before, in this life I’ll only use one sword for spirit-linking—the Luofeng Sword, which is a pair with your Xueshuang Sword.” As he spoke, to show his resolve, he deliberately patted the treasured sword hanging at his waist, which had never left his side.

But as he patted it, he nearly fainted.

Because… it wasn’t just the Xuewen Jade and the ancient sword—even the Luofeng Sword that had accompanied him for a year immediately made his appetite surge, and he almost couldn’t resist the urge to take a bite out of its sharp blade.

Chad Sullivan felt his mind spinning. What on earth was he thinking about eating… It seemed that ever since he advanced to the fourth level of Qi Refining, he’d suddenly developed a strong appetite for these things…

“Shan’er, are you hungry?”

Emily Thompson gave him a strange look and said, puzzled, “Didn’t we just eat an hour ago? And we ate with all those uncles…” She nodded, “It must be that Little Zhan drank with those uncles and didn’t eat enough. Sigh, I’ll go get you something to eat.” With that, she stood up and headed straight for the kitchen.

Although Emily Thompson was at the Qin residence, she was already as familiar with the kitchen as she was with her own home.

Chad Sullivan also attributed his strange appetite for all these objects to being simply too hungry—so hungry he’d eat anything, which was why he wanted to bite into all those odd things… Though even he felt this explanation was a bit far-fetched.