"Second Elder, is the test finished?"
Xiao Yan gazed at the great golden characters upon the black magic stone tablet, slowly drawing back his palm. He glanced sidelong at the Second Elder, whose mind still wandered in a daze, and asked the question in an even, unhurried tone.
"Ah, er—yes, it's done..." Jarred from his trance by Xiao Yan's voice, the Second Elder nodded with a touch of flustered haste. From the way his gaze drifted and scattered, he was plainly still caught in the grip of his shock.
A sigh. Five grades of Dou Qi in a single year? This pace of cultivation... terrifying. He recovered his wits only after a long while, and looked upon the boy before him with a gaze grown heavy and complex. A faint sigh, inaudible even to himself, escaped the old man's heart — and the last shreds of doubt that lingered in his aged eyes finally faded into nothing before the unyielding force of reality.
On the black magic stone tablet, the golden radiance gradually dispersed. A moment later, it settled once again into that deep, cold black.
Yet even with the light gone, the whole field remained steeped in an unbroken silence. Plainly, all those gathered were still drowning in the shock that had swept over them moments before.
"Cough..." Up on the high platform, the Second Elder's cough finally drew every gaze back to him.
"The re-test of the ceremony is complete. Now, in keeping with our custom, Xiao Yan will receive a challenge — a challenge open to all below the rank of Dou Warrior. Who will step forward?" The Second Elder swept his gaze across the younger generation of the Xiao Clan, calling out in a low clear voice.
If the trial of the coming-of-age ceremony measured the strength of one's Dou Qi, then this challenge measured the clan members' mastery and grasp of the Dou Techniques. After all, once life and death were staked in battle, a Dou Technique could well decide the outcome — and every family set no less store by this than by the cultivation of Dou Qi itself.
At the sound of the Second Elder's call, a low stir rippled through the crowd below. The youths of the Xiao Clan glanced at one another, too timid to speak. That brilliant, blazing eighth-grade Dou Qi that had burned upon the black stone tablet had already shattered whatever slender hope of luck still lingered in their hearts.
Now, none of them retained the standing to flaunt himself before Xiao Yan.
Xiao Yan stood quietly at the center of the field, casting a casual glance over the boys of his own age gathered below. Yet every time his gaze touched upon one of them, that youth would hurry to retreat a step.
"Hah, a pack of cowards!" Xiao Ning spat in contempt at the clansmen who kept shrinking back, then lifted his head and fixed his challenging gaze upon the boy in black standing in the middle of the field. He took a step forward, ready to mount the platform — when a slender jade-like hand reached out and pulled him back.
His brows knitted in displeasure, Xiao Ning turned an irked look upon his sister. "What is it?"
"He too has reached the eighth grade of Dou Qi now. Even if you went up, there is no telling you could beat him." Xiao Yu sighed.
A trace of hesitation flickered across Xiao Ning's lips as they twitched. His gaze strayed, beyond his own control, toward Xun'er not far away — only to see the young maiden gazing tenderly at Xiao Yan, the very image of that gentle, delicate charm she had never once shown before him...
He ground his teeth in fury, shook off Xiao Yu's hand, and across his still somewhat boyish face spread a cold, jealous malice. "I have stood in the eighth grade of Dou Qi for over a year now. Do you mean to say I cannot deal with some novice who has barely just arrived at it?"
Looking at a Xiao Ning so stubborn and so eaten up with jealousy, Xiao Yu could not help but feel a pang of helplessness. She hesitated for a moment, then suddenly drew out a round, glossy green pill. She stroked it with some reluctance, then swiftly pressed it into Xiao Ning's hand, lowering her voice: "This is a Tier-2 pill, the Vitality-Enhancing Powder. It will grant you the strength of a Dou Warrior for a short while. But once you take it, you will have to spend the next month lying in bed. If there is any other way, it is best you do not use it."
At these words, Xiao Ning snatched it up in delighted surprise, a grin lighting his face: "With this, I can surely teach that fellow a lesson he will not forget!"
Xiao Yu frowned, her finely arched brows drawing together as she chided him in a murmur: "Don't you dare go too far with me. Just give him a little taste of hardship. If you wound him gravely, not even Grandfather can protect you. He is no longer the good-for-nothing he once was."
"Mm, mm, I know..." Xiao Ning nodded without great concern, a wry smile tugging at his lips as he cast his gaze toward Xun'er. Inwardly he gloated: I will make you see that the fellow is nothing but a brocade cushion with straw for stuffing.
He sneered, wrenched himself free of Xiao Yu's hand, climbed the high platform, and called out at the top of his lungs: "I will do it!"
At the sound of an answer, every gaze on the field gathered at once upon Xiao Ning. This feeling of being the focus of all eyes made the pride on his face swell a little more.
Seeing Xiao Ning come striding over, the Second Elder furrowed his brow, casting his gaze up at the seats of honor. He saw, as he had expected, the Grand Elder's face grown none too pleasant. With a helpless sigh, he cursed inwardly: Stubborn, ungrateful fool! Do you still take the Xiao Yan of today for the good-for-nothing he used to be?
Xiao Ning noticed none of the Second Elder's displeasure, striding forward with a smug laugh: "Xiao Yan, let me personally test just how strong your battle strength truly is."
Xiao Yan raised his eyes with studied languor at the Xiao Ning before him — yet could not be bothered to offer so much as a word in reply.
"Xiao Ning challenges Xiao Yan. Xiao Yan, do you accept?" Perceiving that Xiao Ning had already taken his place at the center of the field, the Second Elder had no choice but to call out in a raised voice.
"You would not refuse, would you? Xun'er is watching, you know. Surely you would not disappoint her..." Xiao Ning gave the pill hidden in his sleeve a stroke, his confidence soaring to a fever pitch, flashing a cold smile as he glanced at that tranquil, lotus-like maiden below the platform.
Idiot... Two words formed in Xiao Yan's heart. He touched his nose, and under the eyes of the crowd gave a slight nod, replying in a flat tone: "Accepted."
Seeing Xiao Yan nod, the Second Elder let out another helpless sigh. He waved his hand, and as he withdrew, murmured in a voice low enough for two ears only: "Mark my words — to the point, and no further."
Xiao Ning curled his lip.
Xiao Yan gave no more than a noncommittal shrug in return.
And as the Second Elder withdrew, the air upon the high platform tensed to a razor's edge!