Xiao Yan's Reaction!

Early the next morning, Xiao Yan slowly exhaled a breath of stale air. Feeling that the Dou Qi within his body still hadn't increased, he couldn't help but offer a bitter smile.

"Heavens! Why on earth did you let me enjoy such talent only to ruthlessly strip it away!"

Xiao Yan couldn't help but exclaim.

At this moment, he had yet to attain the calmness and maturity that come after enduring cold mockery and sarcasm; his mindset was still somewhat unstable.

"Forget it, today is the day to collect the allowance."

Xiao Yan thought for a moment and decided to go in person.

After all, there would be many cold stares to endure in the future; if he hid this time, could he really hide forever?

It was better to start adapting slowly from now on and learn to ignore the cold looks of others.

The Xiao Clan provided a gold coin allowance for underage members, with a fixed amount every month.

On top of this, to encourage the younger generation to cultivate diligently, the clan granted extra gold coins to those with higher cultivation levels.

When Xiao Yan's cultivation was previously at the one-star Dou Practitioner level, he could receive a full fifty gold coins every month.

Since Xiao Yan had been stuck at the third stage of Dou Zhi Qi, his monthly allowance had been slashed to twenty gold coins.

Yet on the Dou Qi Continent, an ordinary commoner family, provided they had enough to eat and wear, only needed twenty gold coins to get by for an entire year!

Xiao Yan thought to himself that the allowance he would receive in a moment would likely be only twenty-odd gold coins.

Walking along the road, Xiao Yan suddenly noticed two Xiao Clan members not far away. He lowered his head slightly and quickened his pace.

He waited until he had walked past the two Xiao Clan members, but he didn't hear them whispering to each other.

Once he was far away from the two, Xiao Yan couldn't help but feel a bit strange.

He had noticed just now that those two Xiao Clan members not only didn't treat him with cold eyes, but there was even a hint of fear in their gazes.

Especially the moment they saw him, the two Xiao Clan members who had been chatting instantly fell silent.

It was as if they were terrified of offending him with their words.

Xiao Yan certainly didn't think his halo as a Dou Practitioner was still intact.

After all, he had just been beaten to the ground by Xiao Ning yesterday.

The name of the "fallen genius" had likely spread throughout the entire Xiao Clan by now!

However, Xiao Yan felt he couldn't have misread the fear in the eyes of those two Xiao Clan members.

Xiao Yan was puzzled, and soon he encountered two or three more groups of Xiao Clan members.

Without exception, the looks they gave him were all somewhat fearful.

Whenever they saw him, they would shut their mouths, not daring to speak.

This caused the confusion in Xiao Yan's heart to grow exponentially.

Could it be that his father had issued some kind of prohibition? But even as the Clan Head, his father wouldn't be so biased toward him in this regard, would he?

Doing so would easily incite dissatisfaction among the Xiao Clan members.

Not to mention that there were three Grand Elders in the clan whose power was on par with the Clan Head!

Thinking of this, besides confusion, a hint of worry surfaced in Xiao Yan's heart.

He was afraid that his father might do something impulsive for his sake.

Just then, a delicate cry rang out, and Xiao Yan couldn't help but lift his gaze toward the direction of the sound.

It turned out to be Xiao Mei, who used to follow behind him calling him "Cousin Xiao Yan" back when he still possessed the halo of a genius.

Seeing someone slightly familiar, Xiao Yan wanted to ask what had happened.

"Xiao Mei, what happened in the clan? Everyone seems to have changed their attitude toward me."

Xiao Yan didn't hesitate and asked directly.

Upon hearing this, Xiao Mei was stunned.

"Cousin Xiao Yan doesn't know what happened yesterday?"

Xiao Yan raised an eyebrow. What happened yesterday?

Wasn't it just him getting beaten to the ground?

Xiao Yan truly didn't know; he had spent the entire day yesterday resting quietly in his room.

Although Xiao Zhan was an eyewitness, he had to deal with the aftermath of the Grand Elder stepping down.

Moreover, he felt it wasn't quite right for him to be the one to break the news to Xiao Yan.

After all, Xiao Yan and Xiao Ze were both his sons; favoring one over the other might hurt the self-esteem of the other child.

Therefore, Xiao Zhan decided to let Xiao Yan discover it himself, or let Xiao Ze tell him.

Seeing that Xiao Yan truly didn't know, Xiao Mei began to explain.

"Yesterday afternoon, the Fourth Young Master, Xiao Ze, went to the Dou Technique Hall and had a fight with Xiao Ning."

"Ah? Fourth Brother! Is he alright?"

Xiao Yan was suddenly a bit nervous; he never expected that the source of the incident was actually his own younger brother.

"It is quite the opposite of what you imagined, Cousin Xiao Yan. Not only was Cousin Xiao Ze uninjured, but he even blocked a strike from the Grand Elder who had rushed over in a hurry."

"Hiss!"

Upon learning the full sequence of events, Xiao Yan gasped, his heart filled with shock.

Fourth Brother has actually already reached the level of a nine-star Dou Practitioner!?

Terrifying!

Xiao Yan's heart was shaken; he had once reached the level of a one-star Dou Practitioner himself.

He knew all too well how difficult it was to reach one-star Dou Practitioner in the short span of seven years, from the age of four to eleven.

Not to mention that Xiao Ze was already a nine-star Dou Practitioner!

After understanding what happened yesterday, Xiao Yan still had some doubts.

"Even if something like that happened yesterday, it shouldn't be enough to make the Xiao Clan disciples so afraid of me, right?"

"I ran into several Xiao Clan disciples along the way, and the moment they saw me, their eyes were filled with fear; they didn't even dare to speak in front of me."

Xiao Mei nodded, her eyes filled with admiration as she spoke.

"Because Cousin Xiao Ze put out the word."

Xiao Yan was slightly stunned; it seemed it had to do with what his fourth brother had said.

At the same time, he noticed a slight change in Xiao Mei's expression.

Admiration and reverence.

Once upon a time, Xiao Mei had also shown him such an expression.

Xiao Mei did not notice Xiao Yan's slightly complex gaze; instead, she cleared her throat, straightened her posture, and lifted her chin slightly.

Xiao Yan could tell that Xiao Mei was imitating someone.

"These were Cousin Xiao Ze's exact words: Xiao Yan is my Third Brother, and he is not someone just anyone can bully!"

"You lot had better watch your hands and feet, and keep your mouths shut even tighter."

"If I hear even a whisper of gossip again, or hear about it from my Third Brother, don't blame me for being impolite!"

"I am of the same generation as you all. According to the Grand Elder, they cannot interfere in matters between peers!"

"Instead of wasting time on gossip, you would be better off focusing on your cultivation!"

"Rather than belittling others, you should strive to improve yourselves!"

Xiao Mei's attempt to deepen her voice was quite adorable, causing Xiao Yan to reveal a faint smile.

Were these really the words of his fourth brother, who was usually so incredibly low-key?

However, Xiao Yan still felt a warmth in his heart.

With a genius far surpassing his own like his fourth brother putting out the word, the people in the clan would certainly no longer dare to gossip or mock him.

They were even afraid to talk when they saw him, terrified of being caught speaking ill of him.

"Do you know, Cousin Xiao Yan? Many people in the clan now treat that sentence of Cousin Xiao Ze's as a motto to motivate themselves."

Xiao Mei's eyes sparkled, and she repeated the last sentence with a look of worship: "Rather than belittling others, you should strive to improve yourselves!"

"I can see that!"

Xiao Yan smiled and nodded; wasn't Xiao Mei right in front of him a perfect example?

Not having to endure the cold mockery of others anymore, Xiao Yan was naturally very happy.

The attitude of the clan members toward him was even more fearful than before.

This actually made Xiao Yan feel somewhat relieved.

I must redouble my efforts from here on out!

Being surpassed by his fourth brother like this left a bitter taste in Xiao Yan's mouth.

He had a strong personality and wanted to be the kind of older brother who could protect his siblings.

Xiao Yan hardened his heart: As long as I can continue to absorb Dou Qi and cultivate, I will absolutely never give up!

I ask all my dear readers to please keep up with the latest chapters. The current recommendation rankings depend entirely on follow-up reads. Please move your little hands and scroll to the very last page of the book. Thank you!

(End of chapter)