Xiao Family Clan Assessment, Fallen Genius!

Xiao Cang sat atop Little Silver's broad back, soaring swiftly through the sky.

The scenery below rushed past. Though this third-tier Flying Magical Beast was far slower than Xiao Cang, a Five-star Dou Wang, it was still extremely fast.

They could travel from the Imperial Capital to Wutan City in less than two days.

For most of that time, Xiao Cang sat cross-legged in meditation, consolidating his cultivation.

During his spare time, he also took out the Human-Demon Puppet and checked it for any damage.

"As expected of a puppet comparable to a Nine-star Dou Wang. Its body is indeed incredibly tough. After taking a punch from me head-on, its fist was only slightly dented. There was no serious damage," Xiao Cang praised.

If any Dou Wang expert heard those words, they would likely be stunned speechless.

After reaching the Dou Wang realm, every additional star represented an enormous increase in strength.

With the cultivation of a Five-star Dou Wang, Xiao Cang had exchanged a full-force blow with the Human-Demon Puppet, which was comparable to a Nine-star Dou Wang. Not only had he not fallen behind, he had even dented the puppet's fist. It was enough to shock every Dou Wang expert.

Then, Xiao Cang used Heavenly Flames and Dou Qi to repair the dent in the Human-Demon Puppet's fist.

Thinking of his objectives for this return to Wutan City and his later plans in the Tagar Desert, as well as the pills he might need for other matters, Xiao Cang used the time on the road to refine several potentially useful medicinal pills.

In the blink of an eye, two days passed.

As the morning sun slowly rose over the horizon and its rays spilled down to illuminate the world,

Xiao Cang looked ahead and saw a city located in a remote region of the Jia Ma Empire, neither particularly large nor particularly small.

The sight felt familiar.

Seven years ago, when Yun Shan had accepted him as a personal disciple and he had left Wutan City aboard a Flying Magical Beast, this was the very scene he had seen when he looked back.

Yet seven years were enough to change many things. He was no longer the Xiao Family genius confined to Wutan City back then. He was now a Dou Wang expert whose name had spread throughout the Jia Ma Empire!

"Seven years."

"Xun'er, Mei'er, have you been well?"

"I'm back!"

A trace of nostalgia flashed through Xiao Cang's eyes. Then he leaped into the air, unfolded his Dou Qi Wings, and his hearty laughter rang across the heavens.

"Little Silver, Wutan City is still some distance away. Let's see who gets there first!"

"Screech—"

Little Silver let out a sharp cry, flapped its wings, and flew swiftly toward Wutan City alongside Xiao Cang.

Wutan City, Xiao Family.

Today was the day of the Xiao Family Clan Assessment.

The Xiao Family plaza was packed with people.

"The annual Clan Assessment is here again. Today, everyone will verify their cultivation on the Spirit Testing Stone Tablet."

"Yeah. I wonder whether another genius will emerge from our Xiao Family this year."

"A genius? Our Xiao Family has only one genius, and that's Cousin Xiao Cang! I heard he broke through to Dou Wang a month ago! An eighteen-year-old Dou Wang! He's the first eighteen-year-old Dou Wang in the history of the Jia Ma Empire! Before long, Cousin Xiao Cang might lead our Xiao Family in swallowing up the Jia Lie Family and the Ao Ba Family, making us Wutan City's number one family!"

"That's right. Cousin Xiao Cang is absolutely the greatest prodigy our Xiao Family has seen in centuries! The only one who could compare to him was Xiao Yan three years ago."

"Is Xiao Yan worthy? Never mind that he's lost all his talent and become trash now—even with the talent he had three years ago, he wasn't qualified to compare with Cousin Xiao Cang!"

"Exactly! Cousin Xiao Cang condensed his Qi Vortex and advanced to Dou Zhe after cultivating for four years, then earned his Rank 1 Alchemist qualification after only one more year of cultivation. How could trash like Xiao Yan compare?"

The Xiao Family plaza was filled with clamor.

Those Xiao Family juniors spoke quite loudly, yet not a single junior nearby who heard them thought there was anything wrong with their words. Instead, they deeply agreed, feeling that they were absolutely right.

Amid the crowd, however, one young figure stood completely apart from the rest.

His face was blank, though his complexion was somewhat unsightly. His hands were clenched tightly, his fingernails nearly digging into his palms.

That person was none other than Xiao Yan.

To him, although the words of others were mocking, they were also brutally piercing truths.

From the moment he was born, he had, like most children his age, stuck behind Xiao Cang as a little follower.

Later, when he began cultivating, although his talent far surpassed that of the other members of his generation in the Xiao Family, he had always remained beneath Xiao Cang's shadow.

He began cultivating at six, advanced to Dou Zhe at ten, earned his Rank 1 Alchemist qualification at eleven, and was accepted as the final disciple of Yun Shan, the Eighth Generation Sect Master of the Misty Cloud Sect...

That series of accomplishments was something he could never surpass.

Of course, he had never dared compare himself to Xiao Cang.

He knew that compared to Xiao Cang, he was like a firefly before a bright moon. There was simply no comparison.

The only thing that left him unwilling to accept it... was the girl beside him, Xun'er.

He glanced at the girl his age beside him, dressed in a purple gown and carrying a somewhat cool, aloof air, and a wave of longing rose in his heart.

Back then, he and Xun'er had both been Xiao Cang's little followers, so they could be considered playmates.

But ever since Xiao Cang left, Xun'er had begun distancing herself from him.

Xiao Yan naturally knew the reasons. First, after Xiao Cang left, he no longer had any reason to play with Xun'er. Second, Xun'er did not want Xiao Cang to misunderstand.

But he regarded Xun'er as his white moonlight. The feeling of the woman he loved having someone else in her heart wounded him deeply.

Over the past few years, he had also tried to build a friendship with Xun'er, but she always kept a layer of distance between them. After repeatedly running into walls, he could only give up.

"Next, Xiao Yan!"

Suddenly, an aged voice rang out, and everyone's gaze turned toward Xiao Yan.

Under the teasing, mocking, and ridiculing gazes of the crowd, Xiao Yan forced himself to walk onto the high platform and press his hand against the Spirit Testing Stone Tablet.

"Dou Qi, Third Stage!"

"Level: Low!"

The aged voice rang out again, drawing a burst of laughter and ridicule from below.

Xiao Yan's expression remained blank, but his heart ached sharply.

The countless taunts he had endured over the past three years had toughened his state of mind, but humiliating himself before the girl he admired left him especially dejected.

Yet when he quietly looked toward Xiao Xun'er, his heart hurt even more.

Because Xun'er had not looked at him even once from beginning to end.

"Next, Xiao Mei!"

As the aged voice rang out once again, a girl with a rather developed figure and a tender, pretty face carrying a seductive charm beyond her years walked onto the high platform.

She extended her fair hand and pressed it against the Spirit Testing Stone Tablet.

"Dou Qi, Seventh Stage!"

"Level: Advanced!"

"Yay! If Brother Xiao Cang sees that my cultivation has improved again, he'll definitely be happy for me!"

Xiao Mei beamed brightly, and her charming little face gained several more touches of allure, leaving many disciples below the platform staring in fascination.

As she spoke, she happened to brush past Xiao Yan, and her words made his heart ache even more.

At the same time,

A tall, handsome figure quietly entered the Xiao Family Compound. Looking at the densely packed crowd in the plaza, nostalgia appeared in his eyes.

The first time he had become famous throughout the Xiao Family had been during his first Clan Assessment.

But when Xiao Cang saw Xiao Yan being mocked by the crowd, a strange look flashed through his eyes.

What a coincidence.

This Clan Assessment was the one from the beginning of the original story.

By this time, Old Yao should have awakened.

It was time for Xiao Yan to make his comeback.

But unfortunately...

He was very interested in Yao Chen's Bone Spirit Cold Flame!