Cao Ying

Although Gu Xun'er gave her her assurance, Xiao Yan was still a little worried because the Gu Clan had only sent one Half-Saint. He asked Tang Zhen to ask the Old Ancestor Huoyun to also go to Ye City.

As for Xuan Yi and the Dou Sheng within the Pill Tower, there's no way to contact them. Right now, the Pill Tower still prefers to stay within its own little territory and has little interest in fighting the Soul Hall.

Several days passed, and the assessment period for the Five Great Families quietly arrived.

The assessment site for the Five Great Families is located in a grand hall within the Sacred Pill City Inner Domain. This site was specially built by the Pill Tower for the assessment.

This assessment was not held in secret, but rather in a semi-public manner. Some influential figures would arrive here at the start of the assessment to watch it.

It's not just about getting to know the new generation of the Five Great Families, but also about seeing if any family is insufficient to pass the test and is attempting to take their place.

Of the Five Great Families, the Ye Family's position is now precarious. If they fail this assessment, they will lose their status as one of the Five Great Families.

However, with an Eighth Grade Alchemist like Xiao Yan intervening, the Ye Family has no chance of failing this time. After all, in the last assessment of the Five Great Families, Cao Ying, a Seventh Grade Alchemist, broke the previous record.

When Xiao Yan and his group arrived at the magnificent hall, the entrance was already packed with a dense crowd.

As members of the Ye Family participating in the assessment, they naturally had a special passage and arrived at the entrance of the main hall under the gaze of everyone.

The guards at the door also looked at each other strangely, clearly holding different opinions about Xiao Yan and Ye Zhong.

Passing through the main gate, the interior of the hall presented a completely different scene. There were many people sitting on the seats around the hall. Leaving aside those who were standing, all those who were sitting were Seventh Grade Alchemist.

Xiao Yan's gaze sharpened as he saw a familiar pretty face—it was none other than Gu Xun'er.

Gu Xun'er met Xiao Yan 'Xiao Yan gaze boldly and waved vigorously, clearly cheering him on.

Xiao Yan nodded and smiled in response, then looked towards the front of the main hall. There were five seats there, and the members of the other four major families were already seated in their respective places. Surprisingly, the Ye Family had arrived the latest.

Xiao Yan's gaze swept over the four families. The most eye-catching were the two Eighth Grade Alchemists from the Dan Family and the Cao Family. The rest were not worth mentioning.

The Eighth Grade Alchemist from the Dan Family was a petite and frail young woman who appeared extremely timid. Upon noticing Xiao Yan's gaze, she immediately reacted by hiding behind the man beside her, using his body to shield herself from Xiao Yan's gaze.

On the other hand, the Cao Family's daughter was tall and slender, dressed in a black dress, exuding a cold and aloof temperament. Her face was slightly thin, but exceptionally delicate, like porcelain, making people feel reluctant to put her down.

The woman leaned back in her seat. After noticing Xiao Yan 'Xiao Yan gaze, she met his eyes without hesitation. A smile curved her lips, making her appear alluring and seductive.

Xiao Yan didn't know who the woman from the Dan Family was, but the woman from the Cao Family was clearly the rumored demoness of the Cao Family, Cao Ying.

Xiao Yan withdrew his gaze. Both women appeared to have just broken through to the Spirit Realm and were not yet able to control their spiritual Spiritual Qi well, which made them particularly charming to outsiders.

But in Xiao Yan's eyes... the overflowing Spiritual Qi looked delicious.

After Xiao Yan and his group took their seats, the ground inside the hall suddenly began to tremble slowly. The seats of the five families moved back one by one, and in the blink of an eye, an extremely spacious square appeared in the center of the hall.

An elderly man dressed in white slowly walked out, then stopped in the center of the square. He glanced around the area and smiled, saying, "Since Five Great Families have arrived, I won't say any more. I will preside over this year's assessment. I hope you all have no objections?"

"Hehe, with your status as one of the Pill Tower Three Giants, who would dare to have any objections?" In response to the white-robed elder's laughter, only Cao Ying responded with a charming smile.

Cao Ying then turned to Xiao Yan and said with great interest, "This is Xuan Kongzi, one of the Pill Tower Three Giants, and also my teacher. In the past, the Cao Family wanted to use my relationship with my teacher to make things difficult for the Ye Family, but they did not expect to be reprimanded by another giant Xuan Yi."

Xiao Yan looked at the white-robed old man and could feel a faint pressure. He guessed that this man was already at the Spirit Realm Great Perfection, and the next step would be to become Ninth Grade Alchemist.

Xuan Kongzi smiled kindly at Cao Ying, then looked at Xiao Yan with surprise before speaking, "It's almost time. The examiners from the Five Great Families, please enter!"

As soon as Xuan Kongzi finished speaking, five figures stood up from their seats in the Five Great Families, and exclamations of surprise filled the hall.

Xiao Yan glanced to the side and was surprised to see that Cao Ying, the previous champion, had also stood up to represent the Cao Family in the assessment.

Cao Ying was Seventh Grade Alchemist two years ago. After two years, many people speculate that she has broken through to the Eighth Grade. Now that she is representing the Cao Family in the battle, it is clear that she is going to have a showdown with Xiao Yan.

The audience in the main hall erupted in excited cheers, eagerly anticipating the duel between the Eighth Grade Alchemist.

"No wonder Xuan Kongzi personally presided over the assessment."

"Hehe, I've been wanting to experience your amazing skills for a long time!"

The five people stepped out of their seats and followed Xuan Kongzi to a stone tablet about ten feet tall. The stone tablet appeared to be completely transparent, like a piece of crystal.

"Each of you will input your Soul Power into this Mirror Disk, and it will measure your soul value. The Pill Tower calls this value Soul Value. Soul Value of 400 or above is considered passing," Xuan Kongzi explained.

Although it was called an introduction, the five people present all knew about it to some extent, so Xuan Kongzi's words were just a formality.

"Who wants to go first?" Xuan Kongzi asked Xiao Yan.

"I'll go first! It'll be perfect for breaking my record," Cao Ying said, stepping forward first.

Cao Ying smiled at Xiao Yan, closed her eyes, and reached out to touch the stone tablet.

All eyes in the hall were on Cao Ying, and even Xuan Kongzi's eyes revealed a hint of anticipation—he also wanted to know what level his disciple was at now.

"Boom..."

A slightly deep, muffled sound emanated from the space around Cao Ying, and a vast and extremely solid Soul Power suddenly erupted, transforming into Soul Storm that distorted the space itself.

After a full dozen breaths, the storm slowly subsided, and a number appeared on the Mirror Disk in the center of the stone tablet.

"1976!"

This is a number so powerful it's almost despairing. Cao Ying's "907" had already broken the record back then, and now she has broken it herself, more than doubling it!