Thanks to You, I Gained Some Insight

The next day came the opening ceremony.

It was undoubtedly torture. After the dean finished speaking, the director spoke; after the director finished, the outstanding teachers took their turns.

By the time the ceremony ended, it was nearly noon.

"Boss, let's go eat together. My treat today!" Xiao Chenyu said.

"Sure." Qi Dao's family circumstances were not bad either. Father and Mother Qi could collect ten gold soul coins from Martial Soul Hall every month, and they occasionally went out to help others hunt soul beasts, so the family had some modest means.

But since Xiao Chenyu, his underling, was offering to treat him, he would not refuse.

It was only a meal.

Just as Qi Dao, Xiao Chenyu, Liu Long, Ling Feng, and a few others were heading toward the cafeteria, another group called out to them from afar.

More precisely, they had called out to Xiao Chenyu.

"Second Brother, aren't you going to greet your big brother when you see him?"

This group was also wearing Notting Academy uniforms, but they were tall and powerfully built, clearly upperclassmen.

Moreover, the leader of the group bore a distinct resemblance to Xiao Chenyu in both build and appearance.

"Who is he?" Qi Dao casually asked.

"He's my eldest brother, Xiao Haijie, a sixth-year student," Xiao Chenyu said, glancing at Xiao Haijie as he introduced him to Qi Dao.

Xiao Haijie?

He had never appeared in the original novel!

After all, even Xiao Chenyu had only been a minor extra in the original story. By the time the plot began, he had long since graduated.

"Looks like the two of you don't get along very well."

Xiao Chenyu gritted his teeth and said quietly, "Boss, you don't understand."

"The fight over the heir's position has always been like this. In the future, only one of us can inherit Father's title!"

Qi Dao's mouth twitched slightly after hearing that.

But it did remind him that Xiao Chenyu had mentioned yesterday that his father was not only the lord of Notting City, but also an imperial baron.

In the Heaven Dou Empire, noble titles could be inherited unless one committed a grave offense and was stripped of the title.

Thinking of this, Qi Dao could not help recalling Xiao Chenyu's first soul ring in the original novel.

The son of a city lord, yet his first soul ring had been a ten-year soul ring.

Could it have been his eldest brother's doing?

As the two spoke, Xiao Haijie had already led his people over.

Soul masters on Douluo Continent developed physically at a rapid rate. Xiao Haijie was only eleven or twelve, yet he had already reached one meter seventy in height.

His eyes were slightly lowered. He first swept his gaze over Qi Dao from on high, then shifted it away as though he had lost interest, his expression carrying faint disdain.

"Second Brother, I heard you acknowledged someone as your boss at the academy."

"To be honest, I'm very disappointed in you!"

"I thought that no matter how much of a loser you were, that was only compared to me."

"But I never expected you to lose to some loser brat with innate half-rank soul power, then acknowledge him as your boss."

"You've really fallen low!"

Xiao Haijie's face was filled with undisguised mockery.

Upon hearing this, Xiao Chenyu's face immediately reddened.

Liu Long and Ling Feng also looked displeased.

Calling their boss a loser was the same as calling them losers, was it not?

If Xiao Haijie were not a sixth-year student, they would definitely have fought him today.

Who the hell was he acting so arrogant for?

A sharp glint flashed through Qi Dao's eyes as he stared directly at Xiao Haijie like a hawk.

Noticing Qi Dao's gaze, Xiao Haijie's face showed an amused, teasing smile.

"Oh? Judging by that look in your eyes, you seem rather dissatisfied with what I just called you?"

"What, do you want to challenge me too, just like you did that loser Xiao Chenyu?"

Qi Dao tilted his head up slightly, his expression calm. Although he was a full head shorter than Xiao Haijie, there was not the slightest hint of timidity in his bearing.

"Why not?"

The moment Qi Dao finished speaking, Xiao Haijie burst out laughing.

Seeing their boss laugh, the group around him immediately followed suit.

"HAHAHAHA!"

This scene made Xiao Chenyu, Liu Long, Ling Feng, and the others grind their teeth in fury.

But even as they fumed, they inwardly thought, Boss is being foolish.

You were only at half a rank of innate soul power—how did you dare challenge Xiao Haijie?!

Xiao Chenyu in particular, as Xiao Haijie's younger brother, knew Xiao Haijie's strength all too well.

That guy was a Level 13 Soul Master!

Qi Dao might have defeated him through swordsmanship, but against Xiao Haijie, who had absorbed his first soul ring, he would definitely be crushed.

Xiao Haijie seemed amused. He looked at Qi Dao with a playful expression.

"Kid, do you know who I am? And you still dare challenge me?"

Qi Dao replied blandly, "What difference does it make whether I know or not?"

"We sword cultivators fear no battle."

"HAHAHAHA!" Xiao Haijie laughed wildly, lowering his head to look down at Qi Dao with contempt.

Then, without warning, he suddenly threw a punch straight into Qi Dao's abdomen.

The instant Xiao Haijie moved, the Peerless Sword in Qi Dao's hand trembled slightly.

Qi Dao immediately sensed Xiao Haijie's sudden attack. His right hand shot toward the sword at his waist, intending to draw it in response.

However, he had only half a rank of soul power. Even with the Peerless Sword's warning, he still could not react in time.

Xiao Haijie's punch sent Qi Dao staggering back seven or eight steps. His stomach churned violently, and he nearly vomited up acid.

Even without possessing his martial soul, Xiao Haijie's physique far surpassed Qi Dao's.

Yet his actions drew furious glares from the first-year students.

"Bastard, do you have no respect for the rules?!"

Xiao Chenyu shouted furiously and immediately possessed his martial soul.

Liu Long and Ling Feng did the same.

The former's martial soul was a staff, while the latter's was a swallow.

Xiao Haijie swept a contemptuous glance over the three of them.

"I didn't expect you to be so united. Too bad—even if all three of you come at me together, you're nothing but a rabble."

"You!" Xiao Chenyu was enraged and could not help wanting to attack.

At that moment, a somewhat weak voice came from nearby.

"Stop!"

Qi Dao had drawn the sword at his waist and stood not far away. His face was somewhat pale, but his eyes held not the slightest trace of fear.

"Boss, are you okay?!"

Seeing Qi Dao in that state, Xiao Chenyu and the other two hurried over to ask with concern.

Xiao Chenyu in particular had a hint of self-reproach in his eyes.

In his view, Qi Dao had clearly been implicated by him and suffered this undeserved disaster.

Qi Dao shook his head and smiled. "Don't worry, I'm fine!"

But...

Someone was about to be in trouble.

Xiao Haijie glanced at Qi Dao in slight surprise and said mockingly, "I didn't expect that punch just now to fail to knock you down. You've truly surprised me."

"Now that you've seen the gap between us, do you still want to challenge me?"

Surrounded by Xiao Chenyu and the other two, Qi Dao slowly turned to look at Xiao Haijie's group, his expression blank.

Yet in his mind, he recalled the scene from the instant Xiao Haijie had attacked.

The Peerless Sword had trembled, warning him!

At that moment, he discovered that his connection with the Peerless Sword had fortuitously deepened by a great deal. His understanding of the sword path had also surged, as though he had suddenly attained enlightenment.

Within his sea of consciousness, the blade of the Peerless Sword he had constructed gave off a faint glow.

Qi Dao straightened his back and held his sword horizontally before him. His voice was as still as an ancient well.

"Thanks to you, I've gained a little insight."

"Today, I'll use you to test my sword and repay the karma of that punch!"