Before the Misty Cloud Sect's mountain gate, the atmosphere across the plaza, as vast as the belly of a giant beast, was as tense as a bowstring about to snap.
Yang Yuan roared again and again like a maddened beast, his voice making the air around him hum.
The wind-attribute Dou Qi throughout his body surged out uncontrollably like a raging flood, gradually forming a faint, almost imperceptible veil over his skin.
The veil looked thin and delicate, yet it radiated a heart-pounding power, shimmering faintly as Dou Qi flowed through it.
"An almost complete Dou Qi veil! Senior Brother Yang Yuan really is about to become a Dou Shi!" a sharp-eyed disciple cried excitedly, his eyes filled with envy and admiration.
To them, Yang Yuan's impending breakthrough to Dou Shi at such a young age undoubtedly made him both a goal to chase and a role model to admire.
Elder Yun Lei stood to one side and nodded slightly.
Although his appreciation for Xiao Qian's peerless talent had led him to favor replacing Yang Yuan with Xiao Qian, he still genuinely acknowledged Yang Yuan's talent for cultivation.
After all, Yang Yuan had only just turned twenty, yet already had one foot in the Dou Shi realm. Such talent was exceptional even among the Misty Cloud Sect's younger generation.
"Xiao Qian! Go down!"
Yang Yuan's eyes blazed red like burning flames. Rousing all his Dou Qi, he leaped high and struck viciously at Xiao Qian with his palm.
The wind from his palm came howling like a ferocious beast, carrying an ear-piercing shriek as it tore through the air with astonishing force.
Yet Xiao Qian remained unhurried. With a slight shift of his body, he easily evaded Yang Yuan's fierce blow.
Then, seizing the opening, he drove his knee forward