Nine-Star Dou Practitioner

After leaving Hu Gan's office, Xiao Yan finally had the chance to ask:

"Nizi, how did you end up at Canaan Academy?"

"I missed Brother Xiao Yan, so I came here." After saying that, Xun'er deliberately pretended to be angry and pulled back the hand that had been holding Xiao Yan's arm.

"I finally managed to settle down at the academy, and I immediately went looking for you. Who knew Brother Xiao Yan had found himself such a nice place, happily playing around with other girls..."

Watching Xun'er puff out her cheeks as she tried to look angry, Xiao Yan did not expose how she had sidestepped the question. Instead, he reached out and pinched her cheeks, pulling them to either side as he had done in the past.

"You little Nizi, you've gotten awfully bold. You're even teasing me now..."

Xun'er's flimsy act fell apart once more, and the two began fooling around again. Yet Xiao Yan could not help sighing inwardly. Xun'er's background was truly mysterious and powerful—powerful enough to make Canaan Academy agree to let her live there.

One had to know that even families like Lin Xiuya's, whose influence far surpassed that of the Xiao Clan and who had considerable ties with Canaan Academy, still had to meet the admission requirements before they could enroll.

For the ever-detached Canaan Academy to make such a concession, who knew what sort of connection that power had with the Xiao Clan.

The two had not been apart for long, and back in the Xiao Clan, there had been times when they had gone more than a month without seeing each other. Yet here and now, this reunion naturally felt completely different to both Xun'er and Xiao Yan.

"Brother Xiao Yan, are you still going to train later?"

"Mm. Wu Protector told me that training after exhausting all my Dou Qi and strength actually produces better results. Although I've recovered quite a bit of my Dou Qi by now, daily training is still indispensable."

Xun'er nodded lightly. "In that case, Brother Xiao Yan doesn't need to spend too much time with me. The earlier you train, the earlier you can rest. I know your workload at Canaan Academy is heavy..."

Xiao Yan felt a little embarrassed. He had not thought much of it back home, but now... He reached out and rubbed Xun'er's head.

"Xun'er, it can't have been easy for you to come all this way to find me. But with my studies so demanding, I'm afraid I really can't spare much time to keep you company."

"Training is naturally the highest priority. Brother Xiao Yan is right to focus on it; how could I not understand? Besides, I came here to train properly too, not just to play with you!"

In the days that followed, Xiao Yan continued living a busy, repetitive life. Whenever he had a little time to rest, he would go see Xun'er, or have a meal with Lin Xiuya and the others. Like a young tree taking root in Canaan Academy's fertile soil, he desperately absorbed the nutrients he needed and grew stronger by the day...

The Grand Elder flipped through the papers in his hand, nodding repeatedly as he read. Clearly, he was quite satisfied with their contents.

"Tsk, tsk. I thought that little fellow wouldn't be able to endure such a heavy training regimen. I never expected him to persist for so long without complaining of hardship or fatigue. With such tenacity in his bones, as long as he has even a little talent, his future achievements won't be poor. Not to mention this boy..."

After muttering to himself, he asked, "His cultivation is...?"

"In three days, it will have been one month since he became a Nine-Star Dou Practitioner."

Su Qian looked at the person answering him with some surprise. "Hu Gan, you old fellow have always been so careless. How did you manage to remember the date so clearly?"

Hu Gan smiled bitterly. "Don't mention it. Whenever my granddaughter sees me these days, she complains about how quickly Xiao Yan is cultivating. Every day, she counts on her fingers how many days remain before Xiao Yan breaks through. How could I possibly forget?"

Su Qian understood. He knew that Hu Gan had sent his granddaughter, Hu Jia, to receive Wu Protector's guidance alongside Xiao Yan, so it was only natural for him to know about Xiao Yan's recent circumstances. Still, Xiao Yan had actually provoked that "little witch" so badly that Su Qian could not help shaking his head with a laugh as he consoled Hu Gan.

"The Dou Qi stage is indeed somewhat slower. It simply cannot compare to the Dou Practitioner stage, where cultivation methods can provide assistance. You should advise Hu Jia not to take it so seriously. Her talent is not poor. When she reaches that stage in the future, her progress will not be slow either."

Though he said that, Su Qian did not believe Hu Jia could catch up to Xiao Yan. Xiao Yan was already a Nine-Star Dou Practitioner, which meant he had likely gone from newly entering the Dou Practitioner stage to becoming a Dou Master in only eight months!

Although this cultivation speed was related to the top-tier fire-element Mystic Tier cultivation method Xiao Yan practiced, obtaining such a cultivation method was itself part of one's talent and strength.

Cultivation methods had to be practiced step by step. It was impossible for a Dou Practitioner to cultivate a Heaven Tier method. In the early stages of cultivation, Mystic Tier was already the pinnacle.

Thus, Su Qian guessed that Xiao Yan's cultivation method was probably among the very best high-tier Mystic Tier methods. In the eyes of those powers that did not lack advanced cultivation methods, such a Mystic Tier method might be even more valuable than an ordinary Earth Tier method!

Ordinarily, Xiao Yan's background should have made it impossible for him to possess such a cultivation method. But when Su Qian thought of Xiao Yan's relationship with that girl, he was not surprised at all.

Then Su Qian turned to Fire Elder. "How are things on the alchemy side?"

A trace of a smile appeared on Fire Elder's normally stern face. Ever since he had begun teaching Xiao Yan, this expression, once rarely seen on him, had appeared more and more often.

"Though his foundation in knowledge is somewhat lacking, his alchemy skills have already reached the standard of a qualified first-tier alchemist."

Su Qian nodded. He was not an alchemist, and now that he had asked, he had a general idea. He could leave this matter entirely to the Alchemy Department.

Hu Gan added worriedly, "Oh, right. Wu Protector seems to intend to take Xiao Yan and the others to the Black-Corner Region for experience. He said Xiao Yan's cultivation is growing stronger by the day, yet he has barely seen blood. That isn't a good thing."

Su Qian frowned slightly at that. His fingers tapped against the table. "Put that matter aside for now. No matter how strong he is, he is still only an eleven-year-old child..."

At the same time, Xiao Yan was in his personal pill-refining room. His small hand rested against the medicinal cauldron Fire Elder had given him as he calmly and intently watched the blazing crimson flames within.

"Alright, the last one... powdered rainbow maple leaves." Xiao Yan muttered to himself as he poured the refined ingredient from the final jade bottle beside him into the cauldron, carefully controlling the flames for the final fusion.

As the flames rose and fell, the originally multicolored liquids continuously churned and evaporated. During the process, their color and form gradually changed, slowly becoming a dark-green gel with a texture that resembled jade.

Having achieved the desired result, Xiao Yan slowly stopped supplying Dou Qi and extinguished the flames. Only then did a delighted expression appear on his face.

This first attempt at refining Ice-Clear Paste, one of the most difficult types among first-tier medicinal pills, had finally succeeded.

This medicinal paste could effectively heal bruises and internal injuries, far surpassing the effects of simply applying herbs. Xiao Yan figured that with this stuff, Wu Protector could raise the intensity of his and Wu Hao's training again.

After all, Wu Protector's method of strengthening the body was through brutal physical conditioning! Only after the fact did Xiao Yan realize why Wu Protector had recommended that he study healing pills—training caused injuries, alchemy could heal them, and once healed, they could immediately train again!

The more Xiao Yan's alchemy improved, the faster his injuries healed. The faster they healed, the more intense his training could become. And the more intense the training, the more severe the injuries he would suffer.

So the better his alchemy became, the worse his injuries would be!

Xiao Yan opened the lid of the medicinal cauldron and carefully scraped off the Ice-Clear Paste bit by bit with a small spoon, placing it into the prepared jade bottles while calculating how much profit the stuff before him could bring.

Though he had not been an alchemist for long, Xiao Yan had already fully experienced the benefits of the profession, even if he was only a tiny first-tier alchemist!

Ever since Xiao Yan had tasted some success selling pills he refined through Lu Mu, he had found a way to make money. Especially with Canaan Academy's deliberately cultivated martial culture, healing pills were never short of buyers. Rather, Xiao Yan regretted that he could not squeeze out more time to refine them.

It was not that Xiao Yan was greedy for money. Cultivation cost money, and geniuses cost even more. Although Xiao Yan might have many ways to easily obtain cultivation resources, and both Xun'er and the academy were capable of providing them...

But since he could solve the problem himself, Xiao Yan would not shamelessly hold out his hand and ask for them. Besides, being self-sufficient while training and earning a considerable extra profit besides—what could be better than refining pills...

When it was about time, Xiao Yan packed up his things and headed toward the Enforcement Squad. He had long grown used to eating while on the road.

On his way out, he ran into Han Xian. After exchanging cold looks, the two went their separate ways. Ever since Xiao Yan had learned that Han Xian wanted to cause trouble for him, he had not given Han Xian a pleasant look either.

After discovering that Xiao Yan received unusually special treatment, Han Xian had been somewhat anxious. Yet Xiao Yan had always kept to himself and barely knew anyone, let alone posed any threat to Han Xian's status among the Alchemy Department students. Thus, Han Xian did not do anything further. The two barely maintained a state of mutual noninterference.

Xiao Yan arrived at Wu Protector's courtyard and found Hu Jia talking with Wu Hao. After several months, the three had become familiar with one another, though Hu Jia still seemed to have little patience for Xiao Yan.

"Xiao Yan, you're here!" "Hmph!"

Too lazy to bother with Hu Jia as she turned her head away, Xiao Yan tossed a jade bottle to Wu Hao. "Use this from now on. I just refined it!"

Wu Hao caught it, both delighted and worried. "You upgrade things so quickly. Looks like the frequency of our injuries is going up again."

Xiao Yan did not charge Wu Hao for this portion. Wu Protector would teach Xiao Yan some of his privately owned Dou Skills. Although Xiao Yan had said that he only wanted to help Wu Hao and repay Wu Protector for his guidance, Wu Protector had merely said coldly, "Business and personal matters are separate."

The three chatted and bickered as they each began training. Wu Protector was absent today, but they had all grown used to it, since he had work with the Enforcement Squad.

After so much time, Xiao Yan had also learned what kind of organization the Enforcement Squad was.

Outside Canaan Academy lay an area called the Black-Corner Region, a land of chaos where no unified power had established order. It was a place where the most vicious criminals freely vented their violence.

According to Wu Hao, Wu Protector described the Black-Corner Region as "nothing more than a place where the law of the strong preying on the weak is expressed in a more direct manner."

And Canaan Academy's Enforcement Squad was the department responsible for fighting those people in the Black-Corner Region!