Coming-of-Age Ceremony

Today, Salt City was practically the liveliest place in the entire Jia Ma Empire. Countless experts and factions had gathered from every direction, bringing Salt City's crowds to a terrifying level.

Of course, an important reason for such popularity was the Xiao Family, now Salt City's number one faction.

For a family to remain prosperous for generations, the most important thing was to maintain its vitality. That vitality came from the younger generation of the family. They were the family's fresh blood; only through a constant influx of fresh blood could the great machine that was a family continue operating without pause.

Thus, the coming-of-age ceremony was a major day every family valued greatly, and the Xiao Family was no exception.

If one were to ask which family had the greatest momentum in the Jia Ma Empire today, none could surpass the Xiao Family of Salt City.

Especially after forming a marriage alliance with the Imperial Family of the Jia Ma Empire, they had risen in one stroke to become the empire's fourth great family.

Therefore, the Xiao Family's coming-of-age ceremony had naturally drawn the attention of every faction throughout the Jia Ma Empire.

Aside from their curiosity about the Xiao Family's younger generation, the invited guests had received a letter along with their invitations, and its contents had greatly interested them.

The prizes for this coming-of-age ceremony had shocked every faction even more.

First place: one Earth-tier Dou Qi cultivation method and a peak seventh-tier Mysterious Bodhi Foundation Pill.

This pill was an exceptional medicinal pill used by the super factions of the Dou Qi Continent to establish a foundation for their younger generations.

Not to mention the Jia Ma Empire—even across the entire Northwest Continent, the number of alchemists capable of refining it could be counted on one hand.

Such extravagance inevitably led people to suspect that the Xiao Family had the support of some super faction behind it, or that it had inherited the legacy of an ancient sect.

The former was more likely, because all those who chose to believe the latter and acted on it had vanished without a sound.

As for who had made them disappear, everyone knew perfectly well.

Thus, during this period, the major factions throughout the Jia Ma Empire feared and dreaded the Xiao Family even more than the Misty Cloud Sect.

Second-place reward for the coming-of-age ceremony: a matching Xuan-tier high-grade cultivation method and Dou Technique, one flying Dou Technique, and a mid-grade seventh-tier medicinal pill—the Universe Primordial Bone-Shaping Pill.

Third-place reward: a matching Xuan-tier high-grade cultivation method and Dou Technique, one Xuan-tier high-grade finger technique, and a low-grade seventh-tier medicinal pill—the Azure Origin Foundation Pill.

Fourth through tenth place would all receive Xuan-tier high-grade cultivation methods and Dou Techniques, along with medicinal pills of varying grades according to their rankings.

Even the Misty Cloud Sect, the Jia Ma Empire's number one faction, would find it impossible to produce such lavish rewards.

This was also an important reason why this coming-of-age ceremony had attracted so much attention.

At the very center of Salt City stood an enormous arena that was awe-inspiring to behold. It covered nearly ten thousand zhang, towering and majestic, its vast and imposing aura soaring into the heavens and forcing admiration from all who saw it.

This arena, capable of holding nearly ten thousand people, was where the Xiao Family's coming-of-age ceremony was being held.

At this moment, the immense arena was already packed to capacity. A sea of black-clad heads stretched as far as the eye could see, and countless voices gathered together before soaring into the sky, even tearing apart the clouds high above.

The arena was divided into inner and outer sections. The outer section received ordinary people, while the inner section was reserved for renowned experts and famous factions from the Jia Ma Empire and neighboring empires. Here, one could see nearly eighty or ninety percent of the Jia Ma Empire's top major factions. Looking across the empire, only the Alchemist Association, the Misty Cloud Sect, and the Imperial Family possessed such influence.

The central grounds of the arena were also exceptionally strange. Rather than an ordinary plaza, they consisted of an enormous conical structure, narrow at the top and broad at the bottom. Hundreds of huge platforms crisscrossed its surface, each clearly separated from the others. The higher one went, the fewer platforms there were. At the very top, nearly level with the enormous arena itself, there was only a single platform.

At this moment, figures were already flashing and weaving across that unusual field within the arena. Waves of Dou Qi energy erupted one after another. Clearly, the Xiao Family's coming-of-age ceremony had already begun!

"This round, Xiao Mei wins!"

"This round, Xiao Ning wins!"

"This round, Xiao Mei wins!"

"This round, Xiao Ning wins!"

As one of the only two members of the Xiao Family's younger generation to break through to the Dou Shi realm, Xiao Ning stood upon the stage in high spirits.

Among those of his generation, almost no one could last ten moves against him.

Though the gap between a Dou Shi and a Dou Zhe was not enormous, it was not one that just anyone could overcome. Xiao Ning had also mastered a Xuan-tier mid-grade Dou Technique, allowing him to defeat opponent after opponent.

In truth, Xiao Yan was the only one in the entire Xiao Family whose talent surpassed Xiao Ning's. Unfortunately, Xiao Yan had yet to return due to his training journey.

Xiao Ning and Xiao Mei had never lacked talent. With the cultivation methods Xiao Chen had left behind, the Earth Core Jade Mother, Holy Spirit Pool Water, and various medicinal pills that enhanced Dou Qi assisting their cultivation, the two of them had progressed by leaps and bounds.

In less than three months, they had broken through from Dou Zhe to Dou Shi.

"Next round, Xiao Yan versus Xiao Ke."

As the Third Elder's voice fell from the referee's platform, the noisy plaza abruptly quieted considerably.

In recent days, as the Xiao Family rose to prominence, Xiao Yan's name had regained its former glory throughout the Jia Ma Empire.

Many people had come to this coming-of-age ceremony specifically to see just how far Xiao Yan had progressed after recovering his talent.

Especially the white-robed elder seated among the honored guests—Yun Leng.

The First Elder of the Misty Cloud Sect, he was also the person in the entire sect most opposed to the marriage agreement between Xiao Yan and Nalan Yanran.

Though the original story had not mentioned it, Yun Leng's influence had in fact been indispensable behind Nalan Yanran's visit to the Xiao Family to break off the engagement.

He had come this time partly to "congratulate" the Xiao Family on its marriage alliance with the Imperial Family.

And partly to see exactly how far Xiao Yan had reached.

Just as the Third Elder was about to declare Xiao Ke the winner, Xiao Zhan, seated at the head of the honored guests, burst into laughter.

"Yan'er!"

Before his voice could fade!

A piercing sound of something tearing through the air suddenly rang out, drawing everyone's gaze.

As the sharp whistle sounded, a black figure shot down violently from the sky and crashed onto the stage. The hard stone floor was shattered directly into powder, which billowed upward and shrouded a small area.

Under countless gazes, faint footsteps sounded from within the dust. In the suddenly silent arena, those footsteps seemed to tread directly upon everyone's hearts, making their pulses pound along with them.

"Thump, thump." The soft sounds gradually grew clearer. A black-robed youth carrying an enormous black ruler on his back emerged indistinctly from the dust. Moments later, he finally appeared before everyone's eyes!

"Xiao Yan of the Xiao Family!"

The youth stepped forward and raised his head slightly. His calm voice resounded like thunder beside every person's ears throughout the arena.

That sudden, indifferent declaration instantly silenced the arena once more, just as whispers had begun to rise. Countless startled gazes turned toward the black-robed youth in the plaza, carrying a massive black ruler as tall as he was. For a time, the entire arena fell utterly silent.

"A Dou Shi... what terrifying talent."

After seeing the faint Dou Qi mantle around Xiao Yan's body, Mitchell sucked in a breath of cold air from the honored guests' seats.

As far as he knew, Xiao Yan had only recovered his talent not long ago. Yet in such a short time, he had risen from the third stage of Dou Qi to the Dou Shi realm.

Calling Xiao Yan a genius was no longer enough to describe the terror of his talent. He was simply a monster among monsters.

"Heh, this Little Fellow is truly lucky. He actually obtained a Heavenly Flame."

High above the arena, Heavenly Fire Venerate looked down over the entire venue.

Wind Fury Dragon Flame—ranked eighteenth on the Heavenly Flame Ranking.

It was born within the eye of flaming tornadoes in ancient deserts.

Unlike other Heavenly Flames, it had no fixed location. During the hottest days of each year, it would appear at random somewhere in the desert, making it exceptionally rare. When unleashed, it took the form of a tornado, combining wind and fire. Its flames could reach hundreds of meters high, like a gigantic fire dragon roaring as it spun forward, possessing extremely destructive power and turning everything in its path into a sea of fire.

This was the Heavenly Flame Xiao Yan had obtained, ranked one place higher than the Green Lotus Core Flame from the original story.

"How can this be possible? It has to be fake!" At the edge of the plaza, Xiao Ning licked his dry lips and muttered viciously.

To reach the Dou Shi realm, he had trained day and night during this period. Even with the Xiao Family's enormous resources, he had only broken through a few days ago.

He had originally believed that Xiao Mei was the only person in the Xiao Family capable of competing with him.

But Xiao Yan had unexpectedly reached the Dou Shi realm as well.

"It should... be fake, right?"

Amid the crowd, Xiao Mei, surrounded like the moon among stars, lightly bit her rosy lips. She felt somewhat lost. She likewise found it difficult to believe that this youth, who had been silent for three whole years, could suddenly achieve such terrifying results.

Under countless complicated gazes, Xiao Yan and Xiao Ke had already completed the formalities before their match. Xiao Ke held his palms upright as powerful Dou Qi swirled around them. He took a deep breath, stomped the ground, and charged straight at Xiao Yan.

Although Xiao Ke's talent was inferior to Xiao Ning and Xiao Mei's, the Xiao Family's vast resources had still allowed him to reach the five-star Dou Zhe realm. Moreover, the Xuan-tier mid-grade cultivation method he practiced suited his Dou Qi constitution extremely well, and he also possessed matching Dou Techniques.

Even against seven-star, eight-star, or even nine-star Dou Zhes, he would not be afraid.

"Mountain Opening Palm!"

Closing in on Xiao Yan in an instant, Xiao Ke rapidly gathered Dou Qi into his right palm. He swung it fiercely, chopping diagonally toward Xiao Yan's chest.

The Mountain Opening Palm was a Xuan-tier low-grade Dou Technique, and it was also the technique most commonly taught at the Xiao Family Martial Hall during this period.

Watching the energy palm imprint, seemingly capable of splitting mountains and cutting rivers, draw ever closer,

Xiao Yan finally shifted one step to the left, unhurried and unflustered. His hellish training during this period had made his reflexes exceptionally sharp. That single step, neither too much nor too little, perfectly avoided Xiao Ke's attack. Turning slightly, Xiao Yan's hand slipped past Xiao Ke's arm like a hand plucking flowers and leaves, then casually pressed against his shoulder.