Nine Star Peak!

Mitel Auction House.

After presiding over an auction, Ya Fei returned to her room with weary steps.

She removed her sable-fur coat. Under the lamplight, Ya Fei's gaze flickered uncertainly.

"I still can't forget that little guy..."

Ya Fei muttered to herself. What had happened in that alley that night had left a deep impression on her.

Although she often saw such plotlines in "adventure storybooks," experiencing one firsthand still struck her deeply.

"That little guy said I'd met him before, and that he was also in Wu Tan City. There would be chances for us to meet again."

Ya Fei's delicate brows drew together slightly. She hosted so many auctions every day and had seen countless people.

Even if there had truly been a young man watching her from below the stage, she probably would not have known.

Looking at the invitation on the table, Ya Fei suddenly froze.

She seemed to have fallen into a mental rut before. Mitel Auction House was where she spent most of her time.

So she had subconsciously assumed that she had met that young man at Mitel Auction House.

But she did not only appear at Mitel Auction House!

As one of Wu Tan City's foremost powers, Mitel Auction House often received invitations from the major families.

Whenever the major families held grand ceremonies, they would invite other powers to display their family's prosperity and strength.

"Now that I think about it, that does make sense... That young man possessed the strength to instantly kill a One Star Dou Master at such a young age. He is definitely a top-tier genius!"

"If we did not meet at an auction, then I must have seen him among the major families. In other words, that young man came from one of the three great families!"

"He witnessed Young Master Aoba being killed and did not intervene. There is a high chance that he is not from the Aoba Family. That only leaves the Xiao Family and the Jialie Family..."

Following this line of thought step by step, Ya Fei's eyes grew brighter and brighter.

She felt that she was on the right track and would soon uncover that young man's identity.

"In recent years, there has been no news of any rising genius from the Jialie Family. On the other hand, the Xiao Family seemed to have produced a genius youth last year, said to be the youngest Dou Zhe in the Xiao Family's past hundred years!"

Thinking of this, Ya Fei hurried to the cabinet and searched through the records. Before long, she found the information on that youngest Dou Zhe.

"Xiao Yan... the Patriarch's son, third in rank. Come to think of it, I really did attend the Xiao Family's clan ceremony last year!"

"Could it be him? I should investigate the Xiao Family and see whether anything major has happened recently!"

Ya Fei had needed to deal with certain matters last year, so she had left in a hurry and had never seen Xiao Yan in person.

She summoned one of her trusted aides and ordered her to investigate whether anything significant had happened recently in the Xiao Family.

After what had happened before, she had requested that her guards be replaced with women.

She did not want to experience anything like that a second time.

While Ya Fei worked hard to investigate Xiao Ze's identity, Xiao Ze remained within the Xiao Family and did not go out again.

At the summit of the back mountain, beneath the shade of a tree, a figure sat cross-legged atop a deliberately flattened stone.

That figure cultivated with his eyes closed. The surrounding Dou Qi surged toward him like fledgling swallows returning to their nest.

A small energy vortex formed around his body.

Xiao Ze had slightly loosened the Dou Zhi Qi Cyclone's attraction at this moment.

A vast amount of energy circulated through his Meridians before finally flowing into the Dou Zhi Qi Cyclone.

Xiao Ze felt his Meridians swelling, accompanied by faint, piercing pain.

Ever since the first time he had operated the Dou Zhi Qi Cyclone at full power, he had known that this thing was more than he could handle right now!

The Dou Zhi Qi Cyclone returned by the system did not match his body's strength.

If he operated it at full power for too long, his Meridians would burst apart inch by inch, blown apart by the excessive Dou Qi!

However, over the course of his subsequent cultivation, Xiao Ze had also discovered the benefits of this Dou Zhi Qi Cyclone.

That was, controlling its absorption capacity and keeping it within the limits his Meridians could endure!

Once his Meridians adapted, he could loosen the absorption capacity further!

This way, the strength of his Meridians could gradually improve without him noticing!

In the future, if he absorbed energy at full power, his Meridians would be able to withstand it completely.

Then Xiao Ze's cultivation speed would definitely increase severalfold!

The shadows beneath the trees gradually lengthened, while the Dou Qi vortex around Xiao Ze slowly dispersed.

Xiao Ze opened his eyes and slowly exhaled a breath of turbid air, which dissipated into the air.

"My Dou Qi growth has reached its limit. All I need now is one final push to achieve Dou Qi Liquefaction and officially become a Dou Master!"

Xiao Ze looked inward at the Dou Zhi Qi Cyclone in his body. The pale-blue Dou Zhi Qi Cyclone slowly rotated, as though it carried the sound of crashing waves striking the shore.

Vast!

This was not a word that should have described a cultivator at the Dou Zhe level.

But if other cultivators of the same rank saw just how dense Xiao Ze's Dou Qi was—

They would surely wonder whether all those years of cultivation had gone to the dogs.

"I can say that I'm at the peak of Nine Star Dou Practitioner now, right?"

Xiao Ze chuckled to himself, recalling those absurd realm classifications he had seen before.

Just then, Xiao Ze turned to look down the mountain.

A pretty figure fluttered through the woods like a nimble butterfly and quickly arrived at Xiao Ze's side.

"Big Brother Xiao Ze, have you finished cultivating?"

Xiao Xun'er asked with a smile.

This was what she admired most about Xiao Ze. Not only were his talent and aptitude unparalleled, but his diligence was also among the very best.

"Mm! I feel like I've improved a little."

Xiao Ze nodded, reaching out to rub Xiao Xun'er's head.

"What about you? How has your cultivation been?"

"What else could it be? Just slow, steady work. Dou Zhi Qi Stage Nine... I'm still some time away from breaking through."

"There's no need to rush. Cultivation at the Dou Zhi Qi stage is all slow, steady work. Once you become a Dou Zhe, you'll advance by leaps and bounds."

Xiao Ze offered a word of comfort, and Xiao Xun'er nodded in understanding.

"I know. I'm quite satisfied with my current progress. After all, not everyone can compare themselves to a big monster like you, Big Brother Xiao Ze~"

"You little brat, I was kindly comforting you, and you call me a big monster!"

Xiao Ze rubbed Xiao Xun'er's head even harder, ignoring her slightly resentful gaze.

"Will you dare call your Big Brother Xiao Ze that again?"

"I won't..."

After escaping Xiao Ze's clutches, Xiao Xun'er stuck out her pink little tongue at him and said with a grin.

"Big monster!"

After saying that, Xun'er immediately ran off, dodging Xiao Ze's reaching hand.

"You little brat, I see your fighting techniques need more practice, huh? Let's have a proper fight!"

Xiao Ze dashed forward, suppressing his strength to Dou Zhi Qi Stage Nine as he began sparring with Xiao Xun'er.

The two exchanged blow after blow. The gusts from their clashes swept away every fallen leaf around them, leaving behind a large open clearing.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Xiao Ze's arm darted out like a spirit snake and lightly smacked Xiao Xun'er's pert backside.

"Ah~"

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