Chapter Five: The Fighter

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"This Chen Xiao is quite interesting. If his cultivation at the sixth stage of Dou Qi were revealed, the Xiao family wouldn’t have him doing all those menial tasks. They would definitely prioritize his training, yet he tells no one and even quietly stopped Xiao Yan this time, almost as if afraid of being noticed."

Sensing the boy had walked away, Ling Ying smiled and said this.

Thanks to Chen Xiao’s help, Ling Ying avoided some inner conflict and developed a certain fondness for this boy whose presence in the Xiao family was astonishingly low.

Xiao Xun’er nodded in agreement. "Chen Xiao is indeed very low-profile. I’ve seen him several times at the plaza, but each time, he merely greets Senior Brother Xiao Yan briefly and leaves in a hurry, as if he has endless tasks to attend to but no one knows what he is busy with."

Because Ling Ying had mentioned Chen Xiao upon arriving at the Xiao family, Xiao Xun’er had paid some attention to him.

Unfortunately, months had passed, and she could count the number of times she had seen Chen Xiao on her fingers. During those few occasions, they never exchanged words, remaining strangers who only knew of each other.

"The old servant knows a bit," Ling Ying said. "During this time, I’ve investigated almost everyone in the Xiao family. Chen Xiao’s father was unremarkable, nothing worth mentioning. After his passing, by family rules, he had to handle some chores, which gradually brought him into the public eye."

"Perhaps hardship breeds growth. At such a young age, he is more mature than his peers and somewhat aloof. Besides the tasks assigned by the Xiao family, he spends nearly all his time cultivating. His sixth-stage Dou Qi strength is partly talent but also hard work."

"Recently, his habits have changed. Every evening after dinner, he practices boxing for two hours on the back mountain. I even secretly watched once. Honestly, his movements were a bit awkward, but considering he has no instructor and no Dou techniques to practice, I can understand."

"What’s interesting is that his boxing alternates between fast and slow, with some skill in leveraging and controlling force. This bears some resemblance to the Swallow Counterattack technique."

The Swallow Counterattack, a high-level profound Dou technique, was already top-tier in Wutan City.

Yet within the wealthy Ancient Clan, it was hardly recognized, even servants like Ling Ying were qualified to study it.

Still, few among the Ancient Clan bothered to cultivate it.

For them, this level of Dou technique was at best a temporary stepping stone at the start of training, not worth spending too much time on.

Xiao Xun’er had never heard of Chen Xiao’s background before, and in an instant, she understood his unique personality.

Thinking of how Chen Xiao groped blindly in practicing Dou techniques on the back mountain but never quite found the right path, Xiao Xun’er fell silent.

Not only her, but even the clan members of the Xiao family had plenty of Dou techniques to choose from; in contrast, Chen Xiao, with no backing, was at a glaring disadvantage.

With this in mind, Xiao Xun’er took out a scroll from her storage ring and handed it to Ling Ying.

"Old Ling, find a way to gift him this Dou technique. Consider it repayment for his help tonight. According to what you said, he should quickly master the Swallow Counterattack."

Whether out of gratitude or sympathy,

A single high-level profound Dou technique was nothing Xiao Xun’er would hesitate to offer.

Her storage ring was full of such techniques and cultivation methods.

After all, she was sent to the Xiao family and would not return to the Ancient Clan anytime soon; the clan was generous with early-stage cultivation resources.

Ling Ying took the scroll and nodded.

Different experiences naturally shaped different mindsets.

What the entire Kamar Empire might consider extravagant, Ling Ying, a mere servant, found perfectly reasonable.

Meanwhile,

Chen Xiao was still unaware that the pre-granted Dou technique had been legitimized. He only knew that by stopping Xiao Yan from climbing the wall, half the process of pre-granting the Swallow Counterattack was complete.

Next, he could devote himself wholeheartedly to cultivating this Dou technique.

However, seven days later, one night when he went to the back mountain to practice, he found that the green stone he usually sat on had been moved, no longer aligned properly, tilted askew.

For someone with mild obsessive-compulsive tendencies, this was unacceptable.

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Immediately, Chen Xiao stepped forward and adjusted the stone upright.

But as he moved it, he discovered a scroll quietly lying beneath the stone.

"Swallow~ Counterattack?!"

Seeing the three characters on the scroll, Chen Xiao suddenly understood everything.

Nothing good falls from the sky unless someone deliberately makes it happen.

In the Xiao family, those capable and motivated to do this were obvious.

[Pre-grant of Swallow Counterattack completed.]

[Current pre-grant opportunities: One!]

He understood, understood everything.

A hundred thoughts were no match for one action.

This was the first genuine pre-grant Chen Xiao had completed, unlike the casual nod he received from Xiao Yan.

Completing it perfectly deepened Chen Xiao’s understanding of pre-granting considerably.

At the same time, it served as a warning.

The Xiao family was not so "safe" after all!

Previously, Chen Xiao knew of a Dou Emperor with mysterious movements lurking in the shadows, but since they had no encounters or conflicts, he often ignored it.

But the appearance of the Swallow Counterattack this night made Chen Xiao instantly realize he needed to be more vigilant.

Ling Ying even knew about his mild OCD, so she must have been watching him closely.

Therefore, next time he pre-grants something involving secrets, he must be even more careful!

"Since I now have a proper Dou technique, no need to bite off more than I can chew. Before becoming a full Dou Master, I’ll focus solely on the Swallow Counterattack and not pre-grant any more techniques—save those chances to speed up cultivation!"

With a decision made, Chen Xiao opened the scroll, his youthful face bursting with joy.

He studied it seriously for half an hour, then eagerly began practicing.

Beneath the shadow of a large tree, Ling Ying smiled faintly.

"Finished and left without a trace, hiding one’s merits and fame."

…

The small Wutan City was not very chaotic. Although the three great families constantly fought, it never affected the young Chen Xiao.

Thus, day after day, through arduous cultivation,

Two and a half years passed swiftly!

"Boom!"

Seated cross-legged on his bed, Chen Xiao’s body trembled slightly. His tightly closed eyes opened, joy unmistakable.

He exhaled deeply and his spirit gradually sank into his body.

Internal Vision!

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An auxiliary skill only Dou Masters could master. The higher the level, the more thoroughly they could examine their internal state.

His spirit sank to his lower abdomen, where a palm-sized milky-white vortex slowly spun. Surrounding the vortex was a layer of nebula-like milky energy gas.

This was the Dou Qi vortex!

Forming the Dou Qi vortex meant officially entering the ranks of Dou Masters. From then on, the energy circulating inside was no longer unworthy Dou Qi but true Dou Qi!

[Current pre-grant opportunities: One!]

"Eight years old to ascend to Dou Master. My talent isn’t as good as that demon girl from Central Continent who became an alchemist at seven, but I’m slightly ahead of Xiao Yan."

"However, the Foundation Spirit Liquid saved me a lot of time, so it’s unfair to compare with Xiao Yan. Also, I’ve once again drawn from Xiao Xun’er..."

On the Dou Qi continent, to become a true Dou Master, one must first form the Dou Qi vortex inside the body—a process with a significant failure rate.

If it fails, a nine-stage Dou Qi drops back to the eighth stage.

What’s worse, there’s no safeguard; some unlucky ones might fail over ten times in a row, trapped in a vicious cycle forever.

The Concentration Dispersion Pill ensured a nine-stage Dou Qi would form a vortex with a 100% success rate!

Therefore, although Chen Xiao had high confidence in forming the vortex, he pre-granted a Concentration Dispersion Pill just in case.

As he expected, the conditions for pre-granting the Concentration Dispersion Pill had become much easier—they only required becoming close friends with Xiao Xun’er.

He remembered that when he first thought of the pill, he had to join the Yunlan Sect and perform well.

The difference was like night and day.

Though Xiao Xun’er was noble, surprisingly, it took little effort for Chen Xiao to become friends with her—far easier than dealing with Xiao Yan.

This benefited from the Xiao family’s environment. Chen Xiao was unique and low-profile, only acquaintances with peers like Xiao Yan.

Xiao Xun’er was also solitary within the family.

Moreover, Chen Xiao understood Xiao Xun’er well, and she had paid attention to him for a long time. So naturally, upon meeting, they became friends.

"Today’s cause leads to tomorrow’s effect. These debts I’ve drawn must be slowly repaid later. For now, it’s more important to test my attributes!"

Suppressing his inner fussiness, Chen Xiao rose and straightened the bed before heading to the storage room.

The Xiao family’s attribute-testing crystal ball and the magic stone monument for testing Dou Qi strength were always kept together. After several years of managing them, Chen Xiao knew them well.

He reached the storage room, closed the door, and without needing to look, relied on memory to find the testing crystal ball.

"I’m willing to trade ten years of my life for a fire attribute, and another ten years for a touch of wood attribute!"

The fire attribute was supreme on the current Dou Qi continent.

From the opportunities Chen Xiao recalled, many required the fire attribute to achieve.

Thus, those with the fire attribute were undoubtedly superior.

If he could also have a hint of wood attribute, he’d qualify as an alchemist—an absolute top-tier expert!

Whispering this, Chen Xiao placed his palm on the crystal ball, circulating Dou Qi within.

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