Visitors from the Ancient Clan

Xiao Yun awkwardly chatted with Xiao Zhan and the others in the courtyard for quite a while, listening to many of their past experiences traveling the world. It was not until the sky darkened that the few of them reluctantly took their leave.

After seeing the four of them off, Xiao Yun returned to his room. That afternoon had truly been fruitful. Besides one hundred thousand gold coins, he had obtained a high-grade Yellow Tier fire-attribute cultivation method and several other Yellow Tier Dou Techniques, saving him another trip to the Dou Technique Hall.

After breaking through to Dou Zhe, everyone became qualified to cultivate a cultivation method. Once one began cultivating a method, the colorless milky-white Dou Qi within the body would transform into Dou Qi matching that method's attribute.

The first conversion of Dou Qi did not take long. After merely two hours of cultivation, Xiao Yun had already converted all his Dou Qi.

By then, the sky had completely darkened, yet Xiao Yun could clearly see everything in the room. Without a doubt, this was the enhancement of his senses brought about by cultivating a Dou Qi method.

He stretched out his palm and saw a faint glow emanating from it. It was dark yellow—the sign of successful cultivation.

What a pity. There's no chance to cultivate that miraculous Flame Mantra. Could Yao Lao really be asleep? With talent as good as mine, he still won't take me as his disciple!

Xiao Yun was extremely eager to obtain the Flame Mantra, a cultivation method capable of evolving.

Unfortunately, Yao Lao had been betrayed by Han Feng, whom he had treated like a son, in his lifetime. He no longer trusted anyone easily. Even Xiao Yan, the protagonist favored by fate, had his Dou Qi drained for three years and was observed for a long time before being granted the Flame Mantra. Even Han Feng only possessed half of the Flame Mantra.

"At last, I've become a real Dou Zhe. It's just that my Dou Qi method is a little too low-grade. With the amount of Dou Qi I have now, if I run into a Dou Zhe cultivating an Xuan Tier method or above, I'll just be throwing my life away."

With that thought, Xiao Yun closed his eyes and began cultivating, condensing his Dou Qi.

The next day, Xiao Yun got up early and headed to the Xiao Clan's dining hall for orphans to settle his breakfast.

Based on Xiao Yun's performance the previous day, Xiao Zhan and the others had originally intended to assign him a butler and maids to handle his daily needs. However, Xiao Yun declined their kindness on the grounds that he was used to living alone.

When he arrived at the dining hall and had just found a seat to eat breakfast, Xiao Yun heard people around him chattering about news they had learned from who knew where.

"Hey, hey, have you heard? Important guests came to the clan today. The Clan Chief personally welcomed them at the main gate just now."

"What? The Clan Chief is a Da Dou Shi-level expert. Anyone worthy of being personally welcomed by him must be a Da Dou Shi as well, right?"

"Yeah. I just saw the Clan Chief heading to the main hall with an unfamiliar middle-aged man. That man had an extraordinary presence, so he must be an expert. There was also a five- or six-year-old girl beside him."

Listening to their conversation, Xiao Yun understood that Gu Yuan had brought his precious daughter to the Xiao Clan. It was just that no one in the Xiao Clan knew Gu Yuan was not some Da Dou Shi, but a Peak Dou Sheng!

Gu Xun'er had been the female lead in the novel from Xiao Yun's previous life, a top-tier rich beauty. Xiao Yun would be lying if he said he was not interested. As the Ancient Clan's young lady, she was certainly worth relying on, and she was unwaveringly devoted to the person she loved.

Still, as appealing as that sounded, Xiao Yun felt that anyone harboring such thoughts was committing a crime. A very punishable crime.

Don't get the wrong idea! Xiao Yun wasn't some copper-refining master. No normal person would do something like that, okay!

Anyone with that kind of idea, step forward on your own!

After finishing breakfast, Xiao Yun prepared to head to his secret training base in the back mountain. He had only gotten halfway there when he ran into Xiao Yan, who was showing Gu Xun'er around the Xiao Clan.

Xiao Yan wore a helpless expression. Beside him stood a girl with a cool, aloof face and skin as fair as a doll's.

Originally, Xiao Yan had not wanted to show this so-called cousin around the Xiao Clan. Such a task required no skill at all and could have been handed to any servant.

Yet they had actually made him, the Xiao Clan's number one... number two genius, do it. And his cheap father had even told him to indulge her a little and not offend her. Wasn't she just some little brat?

After spending several years as a young master of the Xiao Clan, Xiao Yan had developed a bit of a spoiled young master's temperament. He wanted to quit, but when he remembered Xiao Zhan's stern expression while giving him the instruction, Xiao Yan decided to put up with her for now.

"Cousin Xiao Yun, what a coincidence. I was showing Cousin Xun'er around the Xiao Clan when I ran into you."

Seeing that it was Xiao Yun, Xiao Yan greeted him.

Xiao Yan did not actually know much about Xiao Yun. He only knew that they were close relatives and both members of the Xiao Clan's direct line. Xiao Yun's parents had died early, but beyond that, he knew little else.

During holidays and festivals, Xiao Zhan would bring Xiao Yun over, but they rarely interacted. Mainly because Xiao Yun was always buried in hard cultivation.

"Mm. I'm going to the back mountain to cultivate. You should show Cousin Xun'er around properly." Xiao Yun nodded, making it clear that he did not want to awkwardly chat with Xiao Yan. He still needed to train.

Watching Xiao Yun's departing back, Xiao Yan clenched his fists unwillingly. He had only displayed his talent yesterday, and the title of the Xiao Clan's number one genius had not even had time to settle before Xiao Yun, who had suddenly made a name for himself, snatched it away.

Moreover, Xiao Yun was only two years older than him, yet his cultivation had already reached the Ninth Duan of Dou Qi. Xiao Yan was not confident he could reach the Ninth Duan of Dou Qi by the age of seven. Someone more talented than him was already off cultivating, while he could only waste time showing this cousin around.

"Cousin Xun'er, let's go visit our Xiao Clan's Dou Technique Hall. You can learn any of the low-grade Yellow Tier techniques inside."

Xiao Yan grew increasingly unhappy, but he did not show it. Instead, he continued leading Gu Xun'er around the Xiao Clan.

Xiao Yun did not give much thought to the two people he had just encountered. He quickly ran toward the Xiao Clan's back mountain. To cultivate well, a strong body was indispensable.

Every day before cultivating, Xiao Yun would run for half an hour, only beginning his Dou Qi cultivation once his body had warmed up.

Xiao Yun's reputation as a genius swept through Wutan City for nearly a week. Then, as people quickly grew tired of the new and turned to the old, their attention gradually shifted to another major event.

That event was Jia Nan Academy's upcoming recruitment.

As one of the renowned advanced academies on the Dou Qi Continent, Jia Nan Academy was practically a holy land in the hearts of all young people. As long as one graduated after further study there, their future would nearly be a smooth road, and they would become a prized target for every major force.

Jia Nan Academy was located in the Black-Corner Region near the Jia Ma Empire, a lawless area beyond anyone's jurisdiction.

In the Black-Corner Region, Jia Nan Academy was like a giant dragon entrenched there. No one dared provoke it lightly. Even the surrounding empires greeted the teachers and students who came to recruit new students with smiling faces and escorted them along the way.

All of this made Jia Nan Academy's prestige even greater in the eyes of ordinary people. Every year, Jia Nan Academy dispatched many instructors to neighboring nations to recruit students.

Jia Nan Academy's recruitment ignored one's identity and status. As long as one's talent was good enough, whether beggar or thief, they could enter and cultivate there.

Every year, many young people eagerly awaited the arrival of the recruiting instructors. As long as they passed the test, they could step through those gates that symbolized light.

Amid this atmosphere, the young people of Wutan City also became restless. The city was even livelier than during festivals, and every day people waited at the city gates with eager eyes for the recruitment teams.

Walking slowly through the clan grounds, Xiao Yun looked at the training fields that had suddenly become crowded and felt somewhat helpless.

The approaching recruitment by Jia Nan Academy had stirred up the entire Xiao Clan.

Quite a few young people in the training fields were cultivating bitterly, drenched in sweat. They all hoped to make a breakthrough at the last moment in the final few days and meet Jia Nan Academy's recruitment requirements.

Standing outside the training field, Xiao Yun raised his head and looked around. To his surprise, he spotted several familiar faces. In one area, a young man and woman had taken their stances and were preparing to spar.

"Xiao Yan and Xiao Yu? I can understand why Xiao Yu is here, but has that kid Xiao Yan been provoked by me? Instead of fooling around with the other children, he's actually started cultivating diligently."

Xiao Yun thought about it. In his memories, Xiao Yan and diligent cultivation simply did not go together. He had always been the sort to train for three days and slack off for two, relying entirely on his talent. If he could play a little more, he would play a little more.

After watching the battle between the two for a while, Xiao Yun found it boring. The gap between him and them had already grown rather large. In his eyes, their fight was no different from children playing house.

Most of those in the training field were the sort who never prayed until trouble came knocking. Xiao Yun had no sympathy for them. His own talent was excellent, yet he had never once stopped cultivating diligently.

Most people in the clan, however, lacked talent but enjoyed using the clan's influence to chase after women everywhere. Their behavior was exactly like the spoiled playboys Xiao Yun had read about in novels from his previous life. He truly looked down on them.

Jia Nan Academy's recruitment threshold was not particularly high. Before the age of eighteen, one had to reach the Eighth Duan of Dou Qi. Yet even with such a requirement, many would still be eliminated.

From Xiao Yun's perspective, only two people on the training field had any hope of passing the recruitment test. Every last one of the others would be eliminated.

With his hands clasped behind his back, Xiao Yun pushed these people from his mind. How many of them would ultimately get in had nothing to do with him. Shaking his head, Xiao Yun continued leisurely strolling through the clan grounds.