The night was colder than usual in the Xiao Clan.
Under the pale silver moon, a lone figure stood silently in the courtyard. His thin robe fluttered gently in the wind, yet his eyes burned with a stubborn fire.
Xiao Yan.
Three years ago, his name echoed through Wu Tan City like thunder.
At the age of eleven, he broke through to Dou Zhe, shocking even the elders. At twelve, he was hailed as the clan's greatest genius in a century.
And at thirteen—
His Dou Qi vanished.
Like water evaporating from the desert, his strength drained away day by day. From prodigy to trash.
From pride to humiliation.
Inside the clan hall earlier that evening, whispers cut sharper than blades.
"A genius? More like a waste now."
"The engagement with the Nalan Clan… how embarrassing."
Xiao Yan clenched his fists until his nails pierced his palms.
Pain.
But compared to the cold stares of the clan, it was nothing.
Back in his small room, a faint green glow flickered from the ring on his finger — a plain jade ring left behind by his late mother.
For three years, he thought it was nothing more than a keepsake.
Tonight… it pulsed.
"Strange…"
As he focused his mind, a sudden chill filled the air. The candles extinguished one by one.
A deep, ancient voice echoed in his mind.
"Little fellow… you have endured quite enough."
Xiao Yan staggered back, heart pounding.
"Who's there?!"
From the jade ring, a translucent figure slowly emerged — an old man with piercing eyes and an aura that felt boundless, like a mountain that had witnessed ten thousand years.
"I am Yao Lao," the old man spoke calmly.
"And for three years… I have been borrowing your Dou Qi."
Silence filled the room.
Borrowing?
Xiao Yan's mind exploded with shock and anger.
"You… YOU were the reason I became like this?!"
Yao Lao nodded slightly.
"Yes. And also the reason you shall rise again."
Outside, thunder rolled across the dark sky.
Inside the small room, fate began to shift.
Yao Lao's voice turned solemn.
"Your talent is rare even in the vast Dou Qi Continent. I needed your Dou Qi to awaken my soul. Now… I shall repay you."
A flame ignited on Yao Lao's fingertip — a pale white fire that seemed gentle, yet the space around it distorted from terrifying heat.
"This is a Heavenly Flame's fragment."
Xiao Yan's breathing grew heavy.
The humiliation.
The broken engagement.
The sneers.
All of it ignited into one blazing determination.
"If I train under you," Xiao Yan asked, voice trembling slightly, "can I become strong again?"
Yao Lao smiled faintly.
"Not just strong."
"You will stand above all."
Xiao Yan knelt without hesitation.
"Master."
The word echoed firmly in the room.
For the first time in three years, hope returned to his eyes.
Outside, the storm finally broke.
Rain poured over Wu Tan City.
But in that small, dimly lit room—
A dragon was awakening
The rain outside had turned the night into a silvery blur, but inside Xiao Yan's small room, a new kind of fire burned—one that came from determination, not flame.
Yao Lao stood quietly, observing the boy who had lost everything yet clutched his last hope like a lifeline.
"Your Dou Qi is gone, Xiao Yan," Yao Lao began, "but talent like yours… it never truly disappears. You just need to awaken it."
Xiao Yan swallowed his pride, nodded, and followed Yao Lao to the training courtyard.
The First Trial: Awakening the Dou Qi
Xiao Yan knelt, placing his hands gently on the ground. Yao Lao's hand hovered above him, and a faint green light shone from the jade ring.
"Focus. Feel your own energy. Don't think, just feel."
The first moments were torturous. Xiao Yan felt nothing but emptiness. Doubt gnawed at him like a wolf in the night.
But Yao Lao's voice cut through the fear:
"Pain is your teacher. Embrace it."
With a roar, Xiao Yan forced his mind to reach deeper. A strange warmth began to flow in his chest, timid at first, then growing like a river breaking free from a dam.
Suddenly, his body shivered violently, and a tiny spark of green light flickered from the ring into his palm.
Dou Qi… returned.
The Second Trial: Learning Control
"Good. Now, control it. Shape it. Let it flow naturally," Yao Lao instructed.
Xiao Yan's body burned as the Dou Qi coursed through his veins. He tried to form it, guide it—but the first few attempts ended in collapse. His muscles ached, sweat poured, and his mind screamed to stop.
Yet each time he fell, Yao Lao encouraged him, teaching him small meditations, breathing techniques, and ways to connect with the energy inside.
Days passed like weeks. Nights blurred into mornings. Each drop of sweat, every bruise, every failure—was a step closer to power.
The Third Trial: A Glimpse of Flame
After a week, Xiao Yan finally succeeded in manifesting a faint, pale white flame in his palm. It flickered weakly but surely—proof that his Dou Qi was not only returning but becoming stronger than ever.
Yao Lao's eyes twinkled.
"This is only the beginning. The flame you see is the smallest fragment of your potential. Once mastered, you will challenge the heavens themselves."
Xiao Yan looked at the flame, determination blazing in his eyes. Three years of humiliation, pain, and loss had forged a resolve that no one could break.
A New Dawn
Outside, the storm had passed. The courtyard glistened with fresh rain. Xiao Yan stood tall, feeling the Dou Qi pulse within him—a silent promise of revenge, of growth, and of glory.
"I will rise… stronger than anyone," he whispered to himself.
Yao Lao nodded approvingly.
"Tomorrow, we begin real training. The path to the top is long, Xiao Yan. But it begins here."
And so, under the pale moonlight and the mist of the recent storm, the first spark of the legend of Xiao Yan began to burn.
writer [S.A Evan]