Xiao Yan hovered in midair and shattered the marriage contract with a single palm strike. Then he looked down at Nalan Yanran below, his eyes utterly calm.
"Nalan Yanran!"
"You—"
He spoke each word slowly, his voice icy.
"Are you satisfied?"
Buzz—
An invisible pressure enveloped the entire hall!
The pressure was so immense that everyone could barely breathe!
The Xiao Family members stared in stunned disbelief, their faces filled with shock.
Although they already knew Xiao Yan was a Dou Wang, seeing him transform Dou Qi into wings with their own eyes still shook them to the core.
The Xiao Family's three elders were even trembling with excitement. A fifteen-year-old Dou Wang was more than enough to lead the Xiao Family to greatness.
"A golden-scaled creature is no pond-dweller; when winds and clouds arise, it transforms into a dragon!"
"Brother Xiao Yan, this is how you were always meant to be!"
Gazing at the peerless young man at the center of the sky, Xiao Xun'er's eyes flashed with a hint of daze, and her heartbeat inexplicably quickened.
And Nalan Yanran—
Her pupils suddenly widened, her pretty face filled with disbelief and horror.
Dou Wang...
Xiao Yan was a Dou Wang?
A fifteen-year-old Dou Wang?
"This... how is this possible... wasn't he a useless Ninth Stage Dou Qi?"
She murmured to herself, her voice trembling.
She remembered the things she had just said—
That Xiao Yan should join the Misty Cloud Sect to cultivate...
That she would offer four Qi Gathering Powders as compensation...
In her eyes, that had already been an enormous act of grace toward the Xiao Family.
But now...
A fifteen-year-old Dou Wang, with a master whose alchemy skills surpassed even Pill King Gu He's, needed her to dole out those few Qi Gathering Powders?
A fifteen-year-old Dou Wang, with such monstrous talent—was the Misty Cloud Sect even worthy of recruiting him?
At that moment!
Nalan Yanran felt the world spinning around her. Her whole world had collapsed.
She looked at the young man hovering in midair. His figure seemed utterly invincible, and an unprecedented sense of loss suddenly welled up within her, along with a trace of regret.
If...
If she hadn't come to break off the engagement...
If she had honored their betrothal...
Then Nalan Yanran would have been the wife of a fifteen-year-old Dou Wang!
What glory would await Nalan Yanran in the future!
Wasn't he exactly the kind of monstrous prodigy she had always yearned for as a husband?
She had already had him all along!
But now...
It was all too late.
"I..."
Nalan Yanran parted her lips, wanting to say something, but her throat was dry, and she couldn't utter a single word.
Watching the scraps of the marriage contract flutter through the air, all she could do was look bitter and bite her lip.
And yet—
At that moment, a storm raged in her heart.
Dou Wang!
Xiao Yan was a Dou Wang!
A fifteen-year-old Dou Wang!
What did that even mean?
Nalan Yanran prided herself on being a prodigy of the Misty Cloud Sect. She was now an Epic Three-Star Dou Zhe.
That level of talent made her stand out even across the Jia Ma Empire.
But compared with Xiao Yan...
It was laughable!
What was a Three-Star Dou Zhe before a Dou Wang? No better than an ant!
And Xiao Yan was only fifteen, yet he had already reached such an absurd realm!
A profound sense of helplessness welled up in Nalan Yanran's heart.
The one thing she couldn't understand was—
How had Xiao Yan gained such terrifying power?
According to the information she had received earlier, Xiao Yan was clearly a useless Ninth Stage Dou Qi!
"Could it be..."
A thought suddenly flashed through Nalan Yanran's mind.
"Had he been hiding his true strength all along?"
"His cultivation hadn't regressed, and his talent hadn't vanished. He'd simply kept a low profile and disguised himself, deceiving everyone?"
"Was it so he wouldn't be targeted and killed early by jealous forces?"
"And only now, after reaching the Dou Wang realm and gaining enough confidence, had he openly revealed his cultivation?"
The more she thought about it, the more reasonable it seemed.
After all—
Xiao Yan really had once been Wutan City's most monstrous prodigy!
He had begun training at four, reached the Ninth Stage of Dou Qi at ten, and broken through to Dou Zhe at eleven...
If talent like that had been revealed too early, those forces with ulterior motives would have set their sights on him long ago.
"What terrifying self-control..."
Nalan Yanran was shaken.
He had endured three years of mockery and scorn, all to silently build his strength in secret.
Who else could have such restraint, such a will?
At last, she understood why the other members of the Xiao Family had worn such mocking expressions when she announced she was breaking off the engagement.
They had known Xiao Yan's true strength all along!
They had known that Nalan Yanran had come today only to humiliate herself!
Feeling the strange, amused gazes around her, Nalan Yanran's cheeks burned.
Those looks were like needles, stabbing into her heart.
At that moment, she felt deeply unwilling to accept it.
She wanted to demand that Xiao Yan tell her why he had hidden his strength, making her look like a clown now.
She wanted to demand that Xiao Yan tell her why he hadn't revealed the truth sooner, letting her make such a foolish decision.
But—
Before Xiao Yan, a Dou Wang, she ultimately had no courage left.
Her pride and confidence had been utterly crushed by the Xiao Yan standing before her.
She looked up and met Xiao Yan's gaze.
His eyes were calm as water, yet deep as an abyss.
In that gaze, she saw no anger, no mockery—not even the slightest hint of emotion.
It was as if Nalan Yanran wasn't worth stirring any feelings in him at all.
Nalan Yanran shuddered and hurriedly lowered her head.
For the first time, facing the otherworldly young man before her, she felt utterly unworthy.
She...
Simply wasn't worthy of Xiao Yan!
Meanwhile—
Master Ge Ye forced himself to his feet and staggered over to Nalan Yanran, spreading his arms to shield her behind him.
He watched Xiao Yan warily, his body trembling, yet still gritted his teeth and spoke:
"Xiao... Xiao Yan, don't do anything reckless!"
His voice was hoarse and trembling, his fear impossible to hide.
"I admit that we were in the wrong this time."
"But... but she is the Misty Cloud Sect Master's personal disciple. If you dare lay a hand on her..."
He swallowed, cold sweat pouring down his forehead.
"Even if you're a Dou Wang, the Misty Cloud Sect will never let this go!"
As he spoke, Ge Ye's whole body trembled.
He had no idea where a Da Dou Shi like him had found the courage to speak this way to a Dou Wang.
But he couldn't stand by and watch Nalan Yanran get killed by Xiao Yan in a fit of anger.
All he could do now was hope Xiao Yan would consider the Misty Cloud Sect's power and spare Nalan Yanran.
And yet—
Faced with Master Ge Ye's actions, Xiao Yan only gave a cold laugh.
"Heh."
The corner of his mouth curled into an amused smile.
"Master Ge Ye, are you threatening me?"
His voice was not loud, but it carried a bone-chilling coldness.
Ge Ye's heart jolted, and he instinctively took half a step back.
Xiao Yan looked down at the two of them, a trace of disdain flashing in his eyes.
A threat?
With his current cultivation at Three-Star Dou Emperor, he could kill the two of them instantly with a mere thought.
And if he added the Lotus Lantern, the Devouring Ancestral Talisman, the Hundred Thousand Dou Wang Death Soldiers, and his many other trump cards, then even marching on the Misty Cloud Sect and wiping it out would be no difficult task.
If they insisted on courting death...
Then he wouldn't mind destroying the Misty Cloud Sect right then and there.
Before you continue