"An eleven-year-old Warrior! Truly worthy of being the Xiao Clan's number one genius!"
(Warrior = Fighter)
Hearing the tester's announcement, everyone in the training ground couldn't help but gasp, their faces filled with shock.
As one's cultivation level increases, the bottlenecks for advancement become harder to break through.
To break through the barrier from Dou Qi to become a Warrior, the prerequisite is to condense a Dou Qi Cyclone within the body.
However, condensing the Dou Qi Cyclone carries a significant failure rate. After failure, a person's nine-stage Dou Qi will regress to eight stages.
Some unlucky individuals might need to attempt the process over a dozen times before they can succeed.
Repeating this process repeatedly causes people to miss the best cultivation time, severely damaging their future prospects.
"Young Master Xiao Yan truly deserves his reputation as a genius among geniuses. Not only is his cultivation speed incredibly fast during the Dou Qi stage, but he also succeeded in forming his Dou Qi Cyclone on his first attempt."
Xiao Mei stared at the dazzling golden characters on the black stone tablet, her small cherry-red mouth agape in surprise.
At eleven years old, he had already become a One-Star Warrior. It was likely he could become a Battle Master at fifteen.
In the history of the Northwest Region, only a handful of people had ever achieved this, and those few had long since become pillars of the Dou Qi cultivation world.
At the back of the crowd, Xuner also admired the feat, and pursed her jade lips in amazement. She hadn't expected her Xiao Yan gege to advance to Warrior so quickly!
Such a terrifying cultivation speed was almost unheard of, even among the Ancient Clans.
The Ancient Clans valued their bloodlines. Before their bloodlines awakened, they were not much different from ordinary people.
Even she, with her current strength, had only achieved it through her remarkable Soul Force and the constantly nurtured meridians that allowed her to progress so rapidly.
Gazing at the black-robed youth standing by the stone tablet, Xuner blinked her bright eyes and murmured, "If Young Master Xiao Yan's strength hadn't been affected by the Mysterious Person, his current strength would probably shock the old geezers in the clan."
"I hope that person doesn't have any ill intentions, otherwise… even if you hide inside Brother Xiao Yan's body, I will drag you out." Sighing softly, a faint golden flame flickered gently in Xuner's autumn-like eyes.
Slowly retracting his hand, Xiao Yan knew in his heart that today was absolutely an extremely important day for him.
Although Old Man Yao had been continuously devouring his Dou Qi, his consumption speed was clearly limited.
As the cultivation method continuously broke through with the enhancement of his heaven-defying comprehension, he soon caught up to Old Man Yao's consumption speed, and then surpassed it.
Therefore, his strength had only decreased once, and in the time afterward, his strength had been increasing. Today, he had once again condensed a Dou Qi Cyclone.
The most crucial thing was that, after receiving the nurturing of Dou Qi for many years, his foundation had become solid to a level that even a genius could hardly imagine.
"Today is Brother Xiao Yan's joyous day of breaking through to become a Dou Zhe, Brother Xiao Yan has to treat us." Xuner pouted playfully at Xiao Yan, who was walking back.
"Alright." Xiao Yan nodded slightly. Finally, he was going to start cultivating Battle Qi, which was indeed worth celebrating.
"I'm afraid the next period will be arduous training," Xiao Yan thought.
"Hehe, I want the most expensive one..." Hearing this, Xuner smiled sweetly. The girl's crisp, ringing laughter made many people's hearts flutter.
However, they also knew that only a genius like Xiao Yan could be worthy of a girl as pure as Miss Xuner.
Xiao Mei, in a fiery red dress, walked forward, her pretty face flushed with excitement. "Cousin Xiao Yan, congratulations on becoming a Dou Zhe."
"With your talent, Cousin, I believe you'll also break through to become a Dou Zhe soon," Xiao Yan smiled slightly.
Xiao Mei chuckled, "I'm afraid that will take another two or three years."
Looking at the slightly bulging curve beneath the red dress, Xiao Yan, who had watched this girl grow up since childhood, didn't snub her. He invited, "We'll think about the future later. We're going out for a big meal later; come with us, Cousin."
"Cousin Xiao Mei, come with us," Xuner raised her hand to fix her hair, smiling.
Xiao Mei nodded, "I'm just wondering what it's like to condense a Dou Qi Cyclone."
To celebrate the upcoming start of his Battle Qi cultivation, Xiao Yan took Xuner and Xiao Mei on a long stroll through Wutan City before they parted ways within the Xiao Clan.
The moon was like a silver plate, and the stars filled the sky.
At the peak of the cliff, Xiao Yan stood with his hands behind his back, lightly caressing a simple, ancient ring in his right hand.
After a moment, Xiao Yan spoke to the air, "Old Monster, you've been absorbing my Battle Qi for so many years. Come out and show yourself?"
"Little brat, how did you know of the old man's existence?" The air trembled slightly, and a bone-white light flickered on the surface of the ring. An aged figure drifted out.
Xiao Yan shrugged, "Once, when I wasn't wearing the ring, my Battle Qi disappeared. When I put the ring back on, my Battle Qi rapidly vanished. After a few more tests, even a fool would understand the reason for the Battle Qi's disappearance."
"Little kid, you're quite clever." Old Man Yao stroked a strand of his beard and chuckled.
Xiao Yan rolled his eyes, "Don't talk about useless things. You've absorbed my Battle Qi for so many years. Hurry up and bring out the high-level cultivation techniques you've collected. I need a scroll right now. If you can't help me, I think you should find another unlucky fellow."
Lowering his gaze to the bottomless cliff, Xiao Yan chuckled, "Falling down there… who knows how many years it would take to get out again."
Hearing Xiao Yan's insignificant threat, Old Man Yao laughed, "Others don't possess your powerful Soul Force perception. Since I've chosen to reveal myself, I will naturally give you great benefits. What's a high-level cultivation technique… Do you want to become an Alchemist?"
"On the Dou Qi Continent, everyone wants to be an Alchemist," Xiao Yan scoffed.
"I am called Yao Lao. As for my background, I won't tell you for now, lest it distract you. You only need to know that those so-called Kings of Pills are, in truth… just small fries."
Speaking of his identity, Old Man Yao's body trembled slightly, like a waking primordial beast. The terrifying power caused the sky to churn rapidly.
Absorbing the constant Battle Qi to nourish his soul, Old Man Yao's soul injuries had completely recovered over these many years.
Although there was still a considerable gap from his peak strength, he could absolutely walk around the Jia Ma Empire without any issues.
Xiao Yan held up his hand in front of him, pure white Battle Qi and his own Soul Force pouring out together, condensing into a semi-circular shield in front of him.
Having been forced back a step by this pressure, Xiao Yan slowly stopped, looking at Old Man Yao with a slight daze.