Yu Xiaogang Gets Slapped in the Face

Amid the rising and falling discussions across the Heavens and Myriad Worlds,

more than ninety percent of people felt indignant over what Yao Lao had done in the past—

Xiao Yan, such a promising genius,

had actually been "held back" by Yao Lao for a full three years!

No matter how much Yao Lao helped Xiao Yan afterward,

he had ultimately cost Xiao Yan the most precious three years of cultivation.

For cultivators, those first ten-odd years were of utmost importance!

Therefore,

countless voices across the myriad worlds questioned: Was Yao Lao truly worthy of being Xiao Yan's teacher?

Yet the scene that followed left everyone speechless...

[After Xiao Yan threw away the ring, he immediately regretted it.]

[It was not only a relic left behind by his mother; it also concerned whether he could rise again!]

[Yao Lao had absorbed his Dou Qi for three years. By all rights, he ought to offer something in return, shouldn't he?]

[Sure enough, Yao Lao was extraordinarily capable. The discarded ring returned to Xiao Yan's hand in the blink of an eye.]

[After some bargaining, Xiao Yan formally took Yao Lao as his master and received his promise to teach him alchemy.]

[Under Yao Lao's guidance, Xiao Yan relied on Foundation Building Spirit Liquid, his own talent, and astonishing perseverance,]

[and in just half a year, rose from the third stage of Dou Qi to the eighth stage. At sixteen, he entered the Dou Zhe realm once more!]

[After becoming a Dou Zhe, Xiao Yan sought revenge late at night after an alchemist spoke disrespectfully to Xiao Xun'er.]

[But on the way, he encountered Xiao Xun'er, whose eyes blazed with golden flames—]

[Her strength had somehow leapt from the Dou Zhe level she displayed during the day to that of a Da Dou Shi!]

[She had crossed two entire major realms!]

[Even Xiao Yan, who had a cheat of his own, could not help but exclaim: Wasn't this cheating?!]

[What secret technique could possibly have such miraculous effects?]

[Oh, Yao Lao possessing someone's body was even more outrageous. Never mind, then.]

[Although Xun Er displayed the strength of a Da Dou Shi, she did not kill anyone.]

[In the end, the experienced Yao Lao personally stepped in and dealt with the aftermath cleanly.]

[Afterward, Yao Lao possessed Xiao Yan again, killing Liu Xi's master in one stroke and wiping out the Jialie Clan as well.]

[With that, the Xiao Clan unified Wutan City, and Xiao Yan could finally leave without worry to gain experience.]

With Yao Lao's assistance,

Xiao Yan accomplished in just one year what the Xiao Clan had failed to achieve for over a decade.

And within that same year,

he charged straight from the third stage of Dou Qi into the Dou Zhe realm!

This achievement left those who had previously questioned Yao Lao for "riding a genius's coattails" utterly speechless.

No one could deny that Xiao Yan's rise from the third stage of Dou Qi to Dou Zhe within a year

had not been achieved through talent alone.

Even Xiao Yan himself, when he had first gone from the third stage of Dou Qi to Dou Zhe,

had spent six full years.

But now, Yao Lao's supervision, the Foundation Building Spirit Liquid, three years of tempering his character, and the relentlessly driving Three Year Agreement

had together forged the true genius Xiao Yan!

Looking back from the outcome,

Yao Lao's absorption of three years' worth of Dou Qi had actually laid the firmest possible foundation for Xiao Yan.

Douluo World—

Yu Xiaogang: ...

Tang San: ...

Shrek Seven Devils: ...

After witnessing Xiao Yan's transformation over that one year, everyone fell silent.

The accomplishments of Xiao Yan and Yao Lao in the image

made their earlier mockery seem like the words of clowns.

What "leeching off a genius," what "deliberately suppressing him"...

So every step had been paving the way for Xiao Yan's future.

Instead, they were the ones who had proven short-sighted.

Yu Xiaogang coughed lightly and forced himself to remain composed.

"This sort of suppress-first, elevate-later method is actually not uncommon."

"Just as I had Little San add Spirit Rings to his Blue Silver Grass all along, it was precisely so that the Clear Sky Hammer could bear ten-thousand-year Spirit Rings in the future."

"Viewed this way, Xiao Yan's teacher does have some skill."

"But he failed to tell Xiao Yan in advance, leaving him to endure three years of cold stares."

"If Xiao Yan's resolve had not been strong enough, he might have collapsed long ago."

"Therefore, Yao Lao's approach was extremely risky. I would never act in such a manner."

"Teacher is right!"

At this point, Tang San could only firmly stand by his teacher.

If he denied it, would that not be slapping his own face?

Besides...

he vaguely felt that

his teacher seemed somewhat shaken...

Across the Heavens and Myriad Worlds, everyone was stunned by the power Yao Lao displayed after possessing Xiao Yan.

Fighting above one's level was standard equipment for a Child of Destiny,

but fighting above one's level as effortlessly as Xiao Yan, with no side effects whatsoever,

was simply absurd!

On the surface, Xiao Yan was merely a Dou Zhe,

but in reality, even a Dou Ling expert likely could not withstand a single blow from him!

Many had previously mocked Yao Lao:

"What are you, that you dare test a genius?"

"You are nothing but an old remnant soul. How dare you act like this?"

But after witnessing Yao Lao's true strength...

—Sorry, we spoke too loudly just now.

[Xiao Yan endured countless dangers while traveling to gain experience and finally reached the Dou Shi realm.]

[Afterward, he embarked on a journey to seek Heavenly Flames.]

[Xiao Yan's first target was the Green Lotus Core Flame, ranked nineteenth on the Heavenly Flame Ranking.]

[Though this flame ranked relatively low, with Yao Lao and medicinal pills protecting him, Xiao Yan still had a fifty percent chance of absorbing it.]

[If it had been a higher-ranked Heavenly Flame, Xiao Yan would certainly have died even with Yao Lao's assistance.]

[However, Xiao Yan was far from the only one coveting the Green Lotus Core Flame.]

[Pill King Gu He and the two Dou Wangs and one Dou Emperor he had hired,]

[along with Queen Medusa of the Snake-People Tribe...]

[Xiao Yan had to seize the Heavenly Flame right under all their noses!]

[And he was only a Dou Shi!]

[This nearly impossible task was actually completed by Xiao Yan!]

[He seized the Green Lotus Core Flame amid a ring of powerful enemies and used it to advance to a four-star Dou Shi!]

[At the same time, he gained a Dou Wang-level pet named Little Cai.]

Seeing this, Cailin of the Battle Through the Heavens World turned green.

That "Little Cai" was none other than herself!

Back then, Xiao Yan had actually raised her as a pet!

Only after she and Xiao Yan developed feelings for one another did she merge with Little Cai's soul,

which also made her unable to lay a hand on Xiao Yan ever again.

Looking back now, perhaps it had not been a bad thing.

There really was something about that man that won her heart...

But even so, having this past exposed before the Heavens and Myriad Worlds

was simply too humiliating!

At this moment, everyone in the Sky Mansion Alliance, even Xiao Xun'er, looked at her strangely—

their eyes clearly said: So Xiao Yan's brother once kept you as a pet!

Skip ahead! Skip this part already!

[After obtaining the Green Lotus Core Flame, Xiao Yan returned to the mercenary group in high spirits, only to receive terrible news—]

[Qing Lin, the young girl in the group, had been abducted!]

[Xiao Yan immediately set out for the Mo Clan, who were under serious suspicion.]

[There, Xiao Yan encountered Nalan Yanran once more, but she did not recognize him.]

[Xiao Yan then wreaked havoc in the Mo Clan, fully displaying the power Yao Lao wielded after possessing him—]

[The pressure of a Dou Emperor swept across the entire scene!]

[Yao Lao's power actually allowed Xiao Yan to leap from Dou Shi to a high-level Dou Emperor!]

The Heavens and Myriad Worlds stared in utter disbelief at this sight.

Seriously...

Was this how cheats were supposed to work?

Was this even reasonable?!

A Dou Zhe instantly killing a Da Dou Shi was one thing,

but now a Dou Shi...

had directly soared to the Dou Emperor realm?!

Why not stop calling him the Flame Emperor and call him the "Cheat Emperor" instead!