After explaining the situation to the Third Elder, Xiao Yao also asked him to arrange an identity for Xiao Yi Xian.
The Third Elder also gave Xiao Yi Xian a token identifying her, so those little brats of the Xiao Clan wouldn't be blind enough to provoke her.
After leaving the Third Elder's residence, Xiao Yi Xian asked curiously,
"Young Master Xiao Yao, what is the Third Elder's standing in the Xiao Clan? Why does he seem so kind even to a mere maid like me?"
Xiao Yao glanced at Xiao Yi Xian, somewhat amused.
"Of course. The Third Elder was only kind to you for my sake. He's one of the elders who hold real power in the Xiao Clan."
Only then did Xiao Yi Xian understand. It seemed her young master's standing in the Xiao Clan was even higher than she had expected.
Even an elder with real power had to treat Xiao Yao courteously and was quite kind even to those around him.
Xiao Yao walked through the Xiao Clan grounds with Xiao Yi Xian, telling her a little about himself and the clan.
As Xiao Yao's maid, Xiao Yi Xian might not be able to swagger around the Xiao Clan as she pleased, but at least no one would dare provoke her without reason.
Thus, Xiao Yao didn't tell Xiao Yi Xian too many rules; she only needed to act as she normally would.
As Xiao Yao walked along, he saw Xiao Yan dart out from a side path.
When Xiao Yan saw Xiao Yao, he hurriedly greeted him, an unmistakable smile on his face.
"Brother Yao, didn't you say you were going out?"
"Things went very smoothly, so I came back before long."
Xiao Yao explained with a smile, then introduced Xiao Yi Xian and Xiao Yan to each other.
Although Xiao Yan was somewhat surprised by Xiao Yi Xian's striking beauty, he didn't lose his composure and merely greeted her.
"Xiao Yi Xian, if you run into any trouble in the Xiao Clan and Brother Yao isn't free, you can come find me too."
Xiao Yan knew that Xiao Yao usually stayed in the Xiao Clan's forbidden grounds to cultivate and sometimes couldn't attend to everything.
Hearing this, Xiao Yi Xian glanced at Xiao Yao. He smiled and nodded, and only then did she bow slightly.
"Thank you, Young Master Xiao Yan."
Xiao Yan waved a hand. In a very good mood, he said to Xiao Yao,
"Then I'll head back first, Brother Yao. In a while, I'll give you a big surprise."
Xiao Yao smiled, raised a fist, and lightly punched Xiao Yan's shoulder.
"Then I'll look forward to your big surprise, Little Yanzi."
Xiao Yao watched Xiao Yan's figure recede into the distance.
Now that Yao Lao was no longer absorbing Xiao Yan's Dou Qi, Xiao Yan should soon display his talent again.
Xiao Yao took Xiao Yi Xian to Xun'er's residence.
On the way, Xiao Yao told Xiao Yi Xian about Xiao Yan's circumstances, leaving her quite astonished.
He had shown talent as a child, only for his Dou Qi to suddenly regress for no apparent reason after he broke through to Dou Zhe, and it had remained at Three-Stage Dou Qi all these years.
Young Master Xiao Yao's younger brother really is pitiful.
Xiao Yi Xian thought to herself. She noticed that Xiao Yao seemed to be in a very good mood and couldn't help finding it a little strange.
"Young Master Xiao Yao, aren't you and Young Master Xiao Yan close?"
"We're quite close."
"Then why do you seem to be in such a good mood?"
Xiao Yao smiled and said meaningfully,
"Take a guess. What big surprise is Little Yanzi going to give me?"
Xiao Yi Xian frowned slightly and thought carefully. Connecting it to what they had just been discussing, she couldn't help widening her eyes.
"Could it be that Young Master Xiao Yan's talent has returned?"
Xiao Yao nodded and said to Xiao Yi Xian with a smile,
"Just keep this to yourself. Don't spread it around. When Little Yanzi reveals his surprise, play along too."
Xiao Yi Xian didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Young Master Xiao Yao had already seen that Young Master Xiao Yan's talent had returned.
Still, Xiao Yi Xian nodded in agreement, a playful smile appearing on her face.
"As you command. Should I put on a more exaggerated reaction when the time comes?"
"Up to you, as long as you don't overdo it."
As they spoke, they arrived at Xun'er's residence, just as the main door opened.
Xiao Xun'er's breathtakingly beautiful face appeared, leaving even Xiao Yi Xian momentarily dazed.
It was the first time she had seen such a beautiful young woman.
Xiao Xun'er's noble and mysterious bearing in particular filled Xiao Yi Xian with admiration.
"Brother Xiao Yao, you're back?"
Xiao Xun'er greeted Xiao Yao naturally.
Xiao Yao offered an explanation, then introduced the two women to each other.
"Xun'er, this is a friend I met outside. Her name is Xiao Yi Xian. For certain reasons, she's currently serving as my maid."
"Xiao Yi Xian, this is Xiao Xun'er, my childhood friend. We grew up together and share a deep bond."
After Xiao Yao finished introducing them, both women smiled and greeted each other.
As for what they were thinking, Xiao Yao couldn't read minds. Judging by the atmosphere on the surface, things seemed pretty good.
Xiao Yao and Xiao Yi Xian sat for a while at Xun'er's residence before getting up to leave.
Back at his courtyard, Xiao Yao said to Xiao Yi Xian,
"There are still a few empty rooms in this courtyard. Pick whichever one suits you and settle in."
Xiao Yi Xian wasn't picky. She chose an empty room near Xiao Yao's, tidied it up, and settled in.
After taking the cave ruins in Qingshan Town, Xiao Yao stopped going out. Instead, he went to the Xiao Clan's forbidden grounds to cultivate every day, hoping to break through to Da Dou Shi before the Jia Nan Academy recruitment team arrived.
Time flew, and in the blink of an eye, more than a month had passed. On this day, Xiao Yao had, unusually, left the Xiao Clan's forbidden grounds and come to the summit of the mountain behind the clan.
By now, Xiao Yao had reached the peak of Nine-Star Dou Shi, only one step away from Da Dou Shi.
Although his Panel merely recorded his growth and had no ability to help him break through, Xiao Yao wasn't going to get stuck at the Da Dou Shi stage.
Thus, when he saw that his cultivation had reached 99% of Nine-Star Dou Shi, he came to the mountaintop to attempt a breakthrough to Da Dou Shi.
If he attempted the breakthrough in the Extreme Yang Land, the disturbance to the energy of heaven and earth might destroy that entire batch of fire-attribute medicinal herbs. That would be a wanton waste of nature's gifts.
Atop a large blue-gray rock on the summit, Xiao Yao felt utterly comfortable despite the blazing midday sun beating down on him.
The energy contained in the sunlight poured into his body in an unending stream.
Guided by Xiao Yao's mind, it circulated according to the cultivation method he had created himself, before finally flowing into the Dou Qi Vortex in his lower abdomen.
Inside the Dou Qi Vortex, a great quantity of pale-golden liquid energy flowed along with its rotation, like an endlessly surging golden river.
As time passed, the liquid energy inside the Dou Qi Vortex seemed to reach a limit. Under the pressure of Xiao Yao's mind, it began gathering toward the center.
The quantity of liquid energy began to dwindle rapidly, but a qualitative transformation continued at its center!
At the very center of the liquid energy, an exceedingly tiny crystal had appeared.
Though the crystal was tiny, the energy it contained far surpassed that of the liquid energy.
Time continued to pass. When the last ray of sunlight vanished from the mountaintop, Xiao Yao's presence suddenly surged.
Inside the Dou Qi Vortex, a crystal-clear Dou Crystal spun round and round, giving off terrifying energy fluctuations.
I've finally broken through to Da Dou Shi!