By Edit Team NO 1 "Power of Dou: Level Three!"
Looking at the five dazzling, almost blinding, characters on the Magic Testing Stele, the young boy's face remained expressionless. A trace of self-deprecation lingered on his lips. His tightly clenched fist caused his somewhat sharp nails to dig deep into his palm, bringing a wave of piercing pain...
"Xiao Yan, Power of Dou: Level Three! Rank: Low!" Next to the Magic Testing Stele, a middle-aged man glanced at the information displayed on it and announced it indifferently...
As soon as the middle-aged man finished speaking, it was no surprise that a wave of sarcastic commotion was stirred up in the crowded square.
"Level Three, heh, just as I expected. This 'genius' is still stuck in the same place this year!"
"Ugh, this waste has really brought shame to the family."
"If the clan leader wasn't his father, this waste would have been expelled from the family long ago to fend for himself. How could he have the chance to live on the family's dime?"
"唉, the prodigious young genius of Wutan City who was once renowned, how did he end up like this now?"
"Who knows? Maybe he did something wrong and angered the gods..."
The disdainful laughter and regretful sighs from the surrounding crowd fell on the ears of the young boy who stood like a stake, as if sharp thorns were piercing his heart, making his breathing slightly quicker.
The young boy slowly raised his head, revealing a somewhat delicate and youthful face. His dark eyes scanned indifferently over the mocking faces of his peers around him, making the self-deprecation on the corner of his lips seem even more bitter.
"Are all these people so harsh and snobbish? Perhaps it's because they once showed the most humble smiles in front of me, so now they want to pay me back..." With a bitter smile, Xiao Yan turned around lonely and quietly returned to the last row of the team. His lonely figure seemed out of place in the surrounding world.
"Next, Xiao Mei!"
Upon hearing the tester's call, a girl quickly ran out of the crowd. As soon as the girl appeared, the nearby chatter became quieter, and pairs of slightly fiery eyes firmly locked onto her cheeks...
The girl was only about fourteen years old. Although she was not extremely beautiful, her young face with a hint of coquetry, a blend of innocence and charm, made her the focus of attention in the entire square...
The girl quickly stepped forward and familiarly touched the black Magic Testing Stele, then slowly closed her eyes...
After the girl closed her eyes for a moment, light once again shone on the black Magic Testing Stele...
"Dou Qi: Level Seven!"
"Xiao Mei, Dou Qi: Level Seven! Rank: High!"
"Yeah!" Upon hearing the tester's announcement, the girl's cheeks raised a proud smile...
"Wow, Level Seven Dou Qi, impressive! At this rate, she will probably become a true Dou Zhe in just three years..."
"She truly deserves to be a top-tier talent in the family..."
Listening to the envious whispers from the crowd, the smile on the girl's cheeks became even more filled with vanity, an temptation that many girls cannot resist...
Chatting with her sisters as usual, Xiao Mei's gaze suddenly passed through the crowd and stopped on the lonely figure outside the crowd...
After a moment of thought, Xiao Mei still decided against approaching him. The two of them were no longer on the same level. Based on Xiao Yan's performance over the past few years, he would only become a lower-class member of the family when he grew up, while she, with her outstanding talent, would become a powerful warrior focused on by the family, with a promising future ahead.
"Sigh..." With a inexplicable sigh, Xiao Mei's mind suddenly flashed back to the confident young boy three years ago. He began cultivating Qi at age four, reached the ninth level of Dou Qi at ten, broke through to the tenth level at eleven, and successfully condensed the Dou Qi vortex, becoming the youngest Dou Zhe in the family's history within a hundred years!
The young boy at that time was confident and had immeasurable potential, making many girls, including the former Xiao Mei, have crushes on him.
However, the path of a genius seems to be always full of twists and turns. Three years ago, this genius whose reputation reached its peak unexpectedly received the cruelest blow in his life. Not only did his hard-earned Dou Qi vortex, condensed over ten years of practice, disappear overnight, but his Dou Qi inside also decreased strangely over time.
The direct consequence of the disappearance of Dou Qi was a continuous decline in his strength.
Falling from the pedestal of a genius overnight to a level inferior to ordinary people, this blow left the young boy disoriented, and his reputation as a genius was gradually replaced by disdain and ridicule.
The higher you climb, the harder you fall. This fall might mean never having a chance to rise again.
"Next, Xiao Xun'er!"
Among the noisy crowd, the tester's voice rang out again.
As this somewhat elegant name echoed, the crowd suddenly fell silent, and all gazes shifted abruptly.
Where the gazes converged, a girl dressed in purple was standing gracefully. Her calm and youthful face did not change at all because of the attention of the crowd.
The girl's calm and indifferent demeanor was like a blooming lotus, exuding an extraordinary aura even at such a young age. It was hard to imagine how breathtakingly beautiful she would be when she grew up.
This purple-clad girl was undoubtedly even more beautiful and elegant than Xiao Mei in terms of beauty and temperament, which explained why everyone present reacted like that.
Taking delicate steps, the girl named Xiao Xun'er walked up to the Magic Testing Stele, reached out, and her purple sleeve with gold threads slipped down, revealing a section of her snow-white and delicate wrist before gently touching the stele...
After a brief silence, the dazzling light on the stele shone again.
"Dou Qi: Level Nine! Rank: High!"
Looking at the words on the stele, the field fell silent for a moment.
"...She's actually reached Level Nine. That's terrifying! The top young talent in the family must be Miss Xun'er now." After the silence, the surrounding boys couldn't help but swallow, their eyes full of awe...
Dou Qi was the path that every Dou Zhe had to take. The beginner stage of Dou Qi was divided into ten levels. When one's Dou Qi reached the tenth level, they could condense the Dou Qi vortex and become a respected Dou Zhe!
In the crowd, Xiao Mei frowned slightly and stared at the purple-clad girl in front of the stele, a trace of jealousy flashing across her face...
Looking at the information on the stele, the indifferent face of the middle-aged tester actually showed a rare smile and respectfully said to the girl, "Miss Xun'er, in half a year, you should be able to condense the Dou Qi vortex. If you succeed, then at the age of fourteen, you will become the second person in the Xiao family's hundred years to become a true Dou Zhe!"
Yes, the second person. The first person was Xiao Yan, who had lost his genius aura.
"Thank you." The girl nodded slightly, and her calm face did not show any joy because of his praise. She quietly turned around and, under the intense gaze of the crowd, slowly walked to the depressed young boy at the back of the crowd...
"Brother Xiao Yan." When passing by the young boy, the girl paused and bowed respectfully to Xiao Yan. A graceful smile appeared on her beautiful face, making the surrounding girls envy her.
"Do I still deserve to be called that way?" Looking at the brightest pearl in the family, Xiao Yan said bitterly. She was one of the very few people who still respected him after his downfall.
"Brother Xiao Yan, you once told Xun'er that one must be able to let go before they can take hold, and to be at ease is to be free," Xiao Xun'er said softly with a smile, her somewhat youthful voice warming the heart.
"Heh, being at ease is something I can only say. Look at me now, do I look like someone who's at ease? Moreover... this world doesn't belong to me," Xiao Yan said sarcastically, looking disinterested.
Facing Xiao Yan's depression, Xiao Xun'er's delicate eyebrows furrowed slightly, and she said earnestly, "Brother Xiao Yan, although I don't know what exactly happened to you, Xun'er believes that you will rise again and reclaim your glory and dignity..." Here, she paused for a moment, and the pale cheeks of the girl turned slightly rosy for the first time: "The Brother Xiao Yan of the past was indeed very attractive..."
"Heh..." Facing the girl's candid words, the young boy awkwardly chuckled but didn't say anything. Youth without romance is wasted, but he didn't have the qualification or mood for it now. He turned around dejectedly and slowly walked towards the exit of the square...
Standing still, Xiao Xun'er gazed at the lonely figure of the young boy, who seemed isolated from the world. She hesitated for a moment, then, amidst the envious howls of those behind her, quickly stepped forward and walked alongside the young boy...