Xiao Yan

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Xiao Yan (萧炎)
Alias(es)	Pill Refiner Xiao Yan 32
Gender	Male
Age	Sixteen 37
Affiliation	Xiao Household; disciple of Yao Lao 9
Occupation/Role	Cultivator; First-Grade Alchemist 31
First Appearance	Chapter 1

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Third Stage of Dou Power	1	Publicly assessed at the Xiao Household cultivation test after three years of declining cultivation.
Dou Zhe	1–2	Xiao Dongchen identifies Xiao Yan’s maternal ring as the cause of his suppressed cultivation. After removing it, Xiao Yan consumes seven top-grade Qi-Raising Pills, restores his Dou Energy Vortex, and returns to the Dou Zhe realm. 1 2
Five-Star Dou Zhe	21	Reached after three months of intensive cultivation, pill use, and instruction from Yao Lao. 21
Six-Star Dou Zhe	23	Breaks through from five stars while approaching the reassessment monument during his coming-of-age ceremony. 23
Seven-Star Dou Zhe	36–37	Reaches seven stars within four months of beginning at the third stage of Dou Power; Jia Nan Academy formally rates him at SSS-Level Potential. 36 37

Background / History

Xiao Yan is a transmigrator who initially suffers public humiliation after his cultivation falls to the third stage of Dou Power. The decline began after he wore his mother’s heirloom ring, which concealed Yao Lao’s soul and absorbed Xiao Yan’s Dou Qi for three years. 1 9

Xiao Dongchen exposes the ring’s role, takes possession of it, and supplies Xiao Yan with seven top-grade Qi-Raising Pills. The treatment restores his cultivation and allows him to reform his Dou Energy Vortex, ending the period in which the Xiao Household considered him talentless. 1 2

After Nalan Yanran seeks to dissolve their arranged engagement, Xiao Yan rejects being treated as an inferior who can be compensated with pills and sect access. He establishes a three-year agreement to challenge her at the Misty Cloud Sect. 5 6

Xiao Dongchen later forces Yao Lao into cooperation and arranges for him to teach Xiao Yan for ten years. Although Xiao Yan initially resents Yao Lao for draining his Dou Qi, he accepts him as his master after learning of his alchemical expertise. 8 9

Appearance

Xiao Yan is described as a handsome-faced, lean youth with dark eyes. 1 6 36

• Carries himself with increasing calm and confidence after regaining his cultivation. 4 23
• Uses purple Dou Qi infused with Beast Fire in combat. 25
• Appears high-spirited and composed during his coming-of-age reassessment. 23

Personality

Xiao Yan has a strong sense of dignity and reacts fiercely when others decide his future without consulting him. Nalan Yanran’s condescension turns his anger into a commitment to surpass her through the three-year agreement. 5 6

He is competitive and measures his progress against Xiao Dongchen, whom he regards as both an overwhelming rival and an ideal to pursue. Despite the gap between them, Xiao Yan continues attacking in their spar and later resolves to master Heavenly Flames and stand beside him. 24 27 43

His confidence can become excessive; after Yao Lao’s encouragement, he briefly imagines defeating Nalan Yanran and Dou Wangs with one hand. Xiao Dongchen corrects him, and Xiao Yan accepts the lesson rather than resisting it. 15

Xiao Yan is also disciplined and resilient. He endures harsh training, medicinal treatment, and the backlash risk of the Super Saint Pill in pursuit of strength. 18 26 34

Abilities & Skills

Cultivation

Xiao Yan’s recovery is unusually rapid, rising from the third stage of Dou Power to Seven-Star Dou Zhe in four months. 1 36 37

• Possesses SSS-Level Potential according to Jia Nan Academy’s testing. 37
• Cultivates with abundant medicinal resources and Yao Lao’s guidance. 18 21
• Follows a fire-oriented path and can fuse purple Beast Fire into his Dou Qi. 25
• His cultivation remains far below Xiao Dongchen’s, a fact that shapes his humility and ambition. 25 27 38

Dou Techniques

Xiao Yan develops several combat techniques under Yao Lao’s instruction.

• Attraction Palm — A low-grade Xuan Rank technique that pulls targets or objects toward the user; Xiao Yan fully masters it within three months. 15 21
• Fire-Blowing Palm — Fully mastered alongside Attraction Palm. 21
• Mountain-Splitting Fist — A high-level Huang Rank fist technique used with purple Beast Fire against Xiao Dongchen. 25
• Eight Extremes Collapse — His principal offensive technique; at major mastery, it can punch through large trees and later forms the basis of his assault on Xiao Dongchen’s Golden Light Mantra. 21 25 26
• Explosive Super Illusion Eight Extremes Kill — A combined barrage of Eight Extremes Collapse strikes empowered by the Super Saint Pill; it shatters the Golden Light Mantra. 26
• Flame Splitting Wave Devouring Ruler — A ruler technique he practices while training with the Mysterious Heavy Ruler. 34

Alchemy

Under Yao Lao’s tutelage, Xiao Yan learns medicinal-liquid refinement and progresses into pill refining. 15 21

• Approaches First-Tier Pill Refiner level after three months of training. 21
• Becomes a First-Grade Alchemist and accumulates medicinal products for sale. 31
• Personally refines Blood-Coagulating Powder, Qi-Recovery Liquid, Heart-Clearing Liquid, and other practical pills for the Xiao Household. 33 34
• His pills help the Xiao Household seize nearly ninety percent of Wu Tan City’s medicine market. 34

Super Saint Pill Enhancement

During his spar with Xiao Dongchen, Xiao Yan uses a rare Super Saint Pill supplied by Yao Lao to stimulate his potential and gain a temporary surge of Dou Qi. 26

• Enables repeated, full-power uses of Eight Extremes Collapse without immediate depletion. 26
• Lets him break Xiao Dongchen’s Golden Light Mantra. 26
• May leave him bedridden for ten days to half a month afterward. 26

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Mysterious Heavy Ruler — An extremely heavy ruler used for endurance training and practicing Flame Splitting Wave Devouring Ruler. 34
• Attraction Palm iron shard — A rusty black iron shard gifted by Xiao Dongchen; identified as the scroll for Attraction Palm. 15
• Super Saint Pill — A rare, single-use pill entrusted to him by Yao Lao during his fight with Xiao Dongchen. 26

Relationships

• Xiao Dongchen — Benefactor, sworn “big brother,” rival, and adviser. Dongchen restores Xiao Yan’s cultivation, arranges Yao Lao’s mentorship, supports his three-year challenge, and repeatedly pushes him to remain grounded. 1 7 9 15
• Yao Lao (Yao Chen) — Master. Formerly the soul in Xiao Yan’s heirloom ring whose absorption of Dou Qi caused Xiao Yan’s decline; later becomes his teacher in cultivation and alchemy. 9
• Xiao Zhan — Father. Proudly supports Xiao Yan during the annulment dispute and later refuses to confine his son’s ambitions to the Xiao Household. 6 23 33
• Nalan Yanran — Former fiancée and three-year-agreement opponent. Her attempted annulment of their engagement leads Xiao Yan to vow that he will challenge her at the Misty Cloud Sect. 5 6
• Xiao Mei — Clan member who attempts to renew her affection after Xiao Yan regains his talent; he publicly rejects her opportunism. 2
• Xiao Xun’er — Fellow Xiao Household member. Xiao Yan is unsettled by her intimacy with Xiao Dongchen but chooses not to compete with him. 2
• Xue Ni — Jia Nan Academy student who becomes openly admiring and flirtatious after learning of Xiao Yan’s cultivation speed and potential. 36

Story Role / Major Arcs

Restoration of Cultivation

After years of mockery, Xiao Yan learns that his heirloom ring caused his cultivation decline. He removes it, consumes Xiao Dongchen’s pills, and returns to the Dou Zhe realm. 1 2

Annulment of the Engagement

Nalan Yanran arrives to cancel her engagement to Xiao Yan. His refusal to accept her contempt culminates in the three-year agreement, giving his pursuit of strength a personal deadline. 5 6

Yao Lao’s Apprenticeship

Xiao Yan discovers Yao Lao’s identity and initially confronts him in anger. He ultimately becomes Yao Lao’s disciple, gaining access to alchemical knowledge, cultivation guidance, and a structured training plan. 9 15

Rise as a Cultivator and Alchemist

With Yao Lao’s teaching, Xiao Yan reaches Six-Star Dou Zhe, masters several techniques, begins refining medicine, and helps create a profitable pill business for the Xiao Household. 21 23 31 33

Spar with Xiao Dongchen

Xiao Yan challenges Xiao Dongchen, who suppresses his cultivation to the Dou Zhe realm. Even after using the Super Saint Pill to break Golden Light Mantra, Xiao Yan concedes when Xiao Dongchen reveals the Heaven-tier Great Desolate Prisoner’s Finger. 24 27

Jia Nan Academy Recruitment

At Jia Nan Academy’s testing, Xiao Yan is formally identified as a sixteen-year-old Seven-Star Dou Zhe with SSS-Level Potential. He remains unimpressed by the acclaim, believing that his current strength is insignificant compared with the heights he has witnessed. 37 38

Planned Journey

Before Xiao Yan departs for forest training with Yao Lao, Xiao Dongchen warns him against traveling south and directs him north toward the Star Dou Great Forest, predicting a major opportunity there. Xiao Yan accepts the advice and promises to grow stronger. 45

Notable Quotes

“Do not bully the poor young man!” 6

“Once you have looked up and seen the sky, how could you be willing to become an ant?” 38