Chapter 32

On the high platform, the tester's voice had been cold and indifferent, yet when he called Xiao Xun'er's name, a trace of emotion unexpectedly entered it.

"Brother Xiao Chen, it's my turn. Don't be too surprised later..."

Xiao Xun'er straightened up, then leaned toward Xiao Chen and blinked her bright, watery eyes at him, smiling playfully.

Xiao Xun'er moved gracefully toward the high platform. At once, countless gazes in the field shifted to her flawless, delicate figure.

Hearing what Xiao Xun'er had just said, Xiao Chen wore a strange expression. How could he possibly be surprised? He knew the plot.

Xiao Xun'er walked unhurriedly to the black stone monument. She extended her small hand, and her sleeve slipped down to reveal a stretch of snowy-white, slender wrist.

Her jade-like hand lightly touched the cold black stone monument. Xun'er's eyes slowly closed as the Dou Zhi Li within her body surged rapidly.

As Dou Zhi Li flowed into it, after a brief moment of stillness, the black stone monument suddenly burst forth with brilliant light...

Dou Zhe: One Star!

Everyone stared at the four glittering golden characters on the black stone monument. The training ground fell briefly silent before sharp breaths were drawn all around.

"Miss Xun'er, One-Star Dou Zhe!"

The tester beside her looked at the black stone monument, then could not help shaking his head in amazement as he loudly announced.

"Tsk, tsk... a Dou Zhe at fifteen... truly worthy of being... Miss Xun'er."

Many people in the field looked at the lovely figure before the monument and voiced their praise.

Beneath the monument, Xiao Xun'er glanced at the words on its surface, then turned and returned to the back of the crowd, arriving at Xiao Chen's side.

Xiao Chen's dark eyes looked at Xiao Xun'er beside him, and he could not help thinking that with Xun'er's status and background, reaching One-Star Dou Zhe only at fifteen was highly unusual. However, his face showed no hint of it. He knew that Xiao Xun'er had concealed her true strength.

"Brother Xiao Chen, what do you think?"

At that moment, Xiao Xun'er looked at Xiao Chen with her beautiful eyes, playfully pursed her lips, and smiled.

Hearing this, Xiao Chen revealed a gentle smile. He extended his fair, slender hand, pinched Xiao Xun'er's pretty cheek, and said softly:

"You really are impressive. But I seem to be even more impressive than you."

To cultivate Dou Zhi Li to the seventh stage at around fifteen years old generally required considerable talent. Yet talented people could not be found everywhere; even with the Xiao Clan's influence, those who met the requirement this time accounted for only twenty to thirty percent.

Hearing Xiao Chen's words, Xiao Xun'er's pretty face showed shock. Xiao Chen was stronger than she was? But Xiao Xun'er seemed to think of something, and she looked at Xiao Chen with wide eyes as she asked in surprise:

"Brother Xiao Chen, did you also break through to Dou Zhe?"

A smile appeared on Xiao Chen's face as he nodded. There was no need to hide it, since many people would know soon enough.

However, although Xiao Chen possessed the Cultivation of a One-Star Dou Zhe, his true combat strength was not something an ordinary Dou Zhe could compare to, because the techniques he cultivated now all tempered his body and strengthened his flesh.

As more and more people failed the test, the atmosphere in the training ground gradually became somewhat gloomy. Those clan members who had failed all wore miserable expressions.

Yet whenever another newcomer failed, a concealed trace of schadenfreude would flash across their faces...

Among the more than one hundred people tested, aside from Xiao Xun'er reaching One-Star Dou Zhe, only one or two others, like Xiao Mei, had reached Eight-Segment Dou Qi. As for the ninth stage, not a single person had appeared yet.

As time passed, only a few people remained untested, including Xiao Yan and Xiao Chen.

Suddenly, beneath the black stone monument, the tester called out a name with a complicated look in his eyes.

"Xiao Yan!"

Hearing his name, Xiao Yan swept his gaze around the training ground, taking in the maliciously delighted looks one after another.

Then Xiao Yan shifted his gaze to Xiao Zhan on the high platform and gave him a faint smile. Afterward, he looked at Xiao Chen, smiled, and nodded before slowly rising to his feet and walking toward the stone monument.

On the high platform, Xiao Zhan saw the smile in Xiao Yan's eyes and nodded with satisfaction. He lifted his teacup in one hand and leaned lightly against the back of his chair.

"Oh? Our Xiao Clan's 'genius' is taking the stage."

Some Xiao Clan Members in the field began jeering. Some spoke with mocking sarcasm, while others even started placing bets.

Xiao Yan completely ignored the words around him. His expression calm, he stood before the stone monument. Under the fixed stares of the entire crowd, his chest slowly rose and fell as he extended his palm and gently pressed it against the cold black stone monument.

The tester beside him sighed inwardly. Back then, when Xiao Yan had created miracles, he had been the first to witness them. And over the past three years, he had also personally watched that genius fall step by step.

However, after today, if no miracle occurred, this would likely be Xiao Yan's final test within the clan...

At this moment, the eyes of many Xiao Clan Members were fixed unblinkingly on the stone monument. It remained still for a moment before light bloomed from it. When the glow faded, several golden characters, wild and sweeping like dragons and phoenixes, were revealed.

The golden characters on the monument made everyone's hearts seem to stop beating for an instant. Then the entire field fell silent—dead silent.

"Dou Qi, Seven Stages!"

Everyone in the field stared in shock at the five large characters on the stone monument, their expressions incredibly vivid.

Xiao Chen looked at the golden characters on the monument, then at Xiao Yan standing before it. There was not much surprise on his face at Xiao Yan having reached Seven Stages of Dou Qi.

"Dou Qi, Seven Stages... Yan'er, you... you really did it!"

On the high platform, when Xiao Zhan saw the golden characters on the stone monument, he instantly crushed the teacup in his hand into powder with a single squeeze. Tea mixed with shattered fragments dripped from his palm, but Xiao Zhan paid it no mind as he said excitedly.

The three elders seated beside Xiao Zhan looked at the golden characters on the stone monument with their eyes wide open, their faces filled with astonishment.

Just a year ago, he had only been at three stages of Dou Qi, and now he was at the seventh stage? This speed... was terrifying!

Could it be that Xiao Yan's cultivation talent had returned?

Noisy discussions immediately erupted throughout the field, all about Xiao Yan reaching Seven Stages of Dou Qi.

The tester beside the stone tablet sucked in a cold breath. The icy air jolted him awake from his shock, and he announced loudly.

"Xiao Yan: Dou Qi, seventh stage, high level!"

Hearing the tester's words, the already silent training ground became even quieter, utterly hushed.

A moment later, sharp gasps echoed throughout the grounds.

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