The gates of Wu Tan City loomed ahead. To the common citizens, it was just another day of trade and gossip. But to the Xiao Clan, today was the Coming-of-Age Ceremony—the day the youth of the clan were tested to see if they had the right to remain in the inner circle or be relegated to the branch businesses in the outskirts.
Xiao Chen walked through the main gates. His silver Alchemist robe was a mess of dried blood and scorch marks, but he didn't change. The battle-worn look suited the cold, sharp aura he now radiated.
As he approached the Xiao Clan estate, he heard the cheers and the jeers coming from the central plaza. He didn't need to be there to know what was happening. His 4x Perception picked up the voice of the Testing Officer.
"Xiao Yan! Dou Zhi Qi: 3rd Stage! Rank: Low!"
A wave of mockery rippled through the crowd. The "Genius" had fallen to the very bottom.
The Plaza of Judgment
Chen stepped into the plaza just as Xiao Yan was walking down from the stage, his head bowed, his fists clenched so hard his knuckles were white. The crowd was merciless.
"Look at him, the former star. A 3rd stage waste!"
"Even the branch disciples have surpassed him now."
Suddenly, the crowd went silent. It wasn't because of Xiao Yan. It was because a young boy, barely eleven, was walking toward the testing stone. He was covered in the blood of magical beasts, and the silver silk of his robe—though torn—glinted with the unmistakable insignia of the Alchemist Association.
"Who is that?"
"Wait... is that the orphan, Xiao Chen? What is he wearing?"
Chen ignored them. He walked past the First Elder, whose eyes widened in a mix of fury and fear. He walked past Xiao Zhan, who looked at him with a glimmer of hope. He stopped right in front of Xiao Yan.
"Head up, Yan-er," Chen said, his voice cutting through the murmurs like a blade. "The path of cultivation isn't a straight line. Sometimes you have to go down to see how high you can actually climb."
Xiao Yan looked up, stunned. "Chen... you're back? And your energy... it's..."
"Watch," Chen whispered.
The Stone Shaking Test
Chen stepped onto the platform. The Testing Officer, a middle-aged man who usually looked down on branch members, stuttered as he held out the ledger. "X-Xiao Chen... please place your hand on the stone."
Chen didn't just place his hand. He funneled a fraction—just a tiny fraction—of his 4x-Multiplied Dou Shi Qi into the monolith.
HUMMMMMM.
The black stone didn't just glow; it began to vibrate. The symbols for 'Dou Zhi Qi' were skipped entirely. The symbols for 'Dou Zhe' flashed and were instantly bypassed.
Finally, a blinding emerald light erupted, forming two large, solid words in the air:
[DOU SHI: 4-STAR]
The silence that followed was absolute. It was the silence of a thousand people forgetting how to breathe.
An eleven-year-old Dou Shi.
In the history of the Jia Ma Empire, even the founding ancestors hadn't reached the Dou Shi realm at eleven. And a 4-Star? It was a mathematical impossibility.
"The stone... it must be broken," the First Elder gasped, standing up so fast his chair toppled over. "It's a trick! A branch orphan cannot be a Dou Shi!"
Chen turned his head slightly, his emerald eyes locking onto the First Elder. "Elder, if you think the stone is broken, perhaps you'd like to test my strength personally? I promise to use the same 'trick' on your ribs that I used on the Frost-Fire Python."
The First Elder turned pale and sank back into his seat. He remembered Xiao Kui's shattered arm.
The Grand Betrayal and the Savior
Just as the shock reached its peak, a servant rushed into the plaza, panting. "Clan Leader! Guests from the Misty Cloud Sect have arrived! They... they are here to see Xiao Yan!"
The crowd shifted. The Misty Cloud Sect? The giants of the Empire?
Three figures walked into the plaza. Leading them was a young girl, beautiful and arrogant—Nalan Yanran. Beside her was an elderly man with a haughty expression, Ge Ye.
They weren't here to congratulate Xiao Yan. They were here to break the marriage contract.
"Xiao Zhan," Ge Ye said, his voice echoing. "My young lady, Nalan Yanran, is the successor of the Misty Cloud Sect. A marriage to... a 3rd-stage waste is no longer appropriate. We are here to officially dissolve the engagement."
The humiliation was public. It was brutal. Xiao Yan's face turned from pale to a deep, burning red. This was the moment that would define his life.
Xiao Zhan gripped the arms of his throne, his Dou Qi flaring in anger. "You... you dare humiliate my son in his own home?"
"We offer compensation," Ge Ye sneered, waving a hand. A servant brought forward a box containing a Qi-Gathering Pill. "This should be more than enough for a waste."
Xiao Yan stepped forward, his voice trembling. "Nalan Yanran... you want to break the contract? Fine. But don't think for a second you are the one discarding me. I, Xiao Yan, am—"
"Wait," a calm voice interrupted.
Chen stepped between Xiao Yan and the Misty Cloud Sect members. He looked at the Qi-Gathering Pill and let out a short, mocking laugh.
"A single, low-grade Qi-Gathering Pill? With a purity of barely 50%?" Chen reached into his tattered robe and pulled out a small jade bottle. He poured out three pills—each one glowing with a 99% Peak Purity. "I use these as snacks to feed the stray cats in the mountain. Is this the 'wealth' of the Misty Cloud Sect?"
Ge Ye's eyes bulged. "Those... those are Peak-Grade pills! Who are you?"
Chen didn't answer him. He turned to Nalan Yanran. "You want to break the contract because you think he's a waste? You think your Sect is the peak of the world?"
Chen reached into his storage ring and pulled out the Cloud-Shaped Jade Pendant Yun Yun had given him.
The moment Ge Ye saw the pendant, he fell to his knees as if he had been struck by lightning. "The... the Sect Leader's Personal Token?! How?! Why do you have that?!"
"Your Sect Leader owes me a favor," Chen said, his voice cold. "Tell her that the boy from the waterfall says her disciples need a lesson in manners. As for the marriage... Xiao Yan doesn't need a contract to prove his worth. In three years, he will walk up your mountain and show you exactly what you threw away."
He looked at Xiao Yan. "Right, Yan-er?"
Xiao Yan looked at the pendant, then at Chen. The despair in his eyes was replaced by a roaring fire. "Yes! Three years! Nalan Yanran, in three years, I will challenge you at the Misty Cloud Sect!"
He grabbed a brush, wrote the letter of divorce, and threw it at her feet. "It's not you discarding me. It's I, Xiao Yan, divorcing you!"
The Aftermath: The Shadow and the Ring
As the Nalan party fled in disgrace and confusion, Chen walked Xiao Yan back to his room. The clan was in a frenzy, but the two of them were silent.
Inside the room, Chen looked at the black ring on Xiao Yan's finger. With his 4x Soul Perception, he could see the faint, ethereal "flicker" inside the jewelry.
"Found you, Yao Lao," Chen thought.
"Chen... why did you help me?" Xiao Yan asked, sitting on his bed. "And how are you so strong? A 4-Star Dou Shi... it's like a dream."
"I told you, Yan-er. The world is big," Chen said. He leaned in closer, his voice dropping. "And tell the old man hiding in your ring that if he keeps sucking your Dou Qi, I'll have to pull him out and use him as fuel for my cauldron."
Xiao Yan froze.
From the ring, a faint, weary laughter echoed. A wisp of transparent smoke emerged, forming the figure of an old man with white hair.
"Ho ho... what a terrifying little monster," Yao Lao said, his eyes twinkling with shock. "I thought I was hidden well, but your soul perception... it's already at the Spirit Realm, isn't it?"
"4x Multiplier does wonders for the senses," Chen replied, crossing his arms. "Now, old man, since you've been 'living' off my cousin, I expect you to start paying rent. Teach him well. I have a desert to visit, and I want him ready to join me when I return."
Yao Lao looked at Chen, then at the Cloud Pendant. "You saved the life of that girl, Yun Yun, didn't you? I can smell her Qi on you. You're playing a very dangerous game, boy."
"I don't play games, Master Yao," Chen grinned. "I just double the stakes."