Chapter 3: Tool Man Xiao Ming
The three of them quickly arrived at the Xiao family's enormous, stone training ground. Before their arrival, many young men and women of the Xiao family had already gathered here. A cacophony of noise filled the air, and the entire training ground was brimming with youthful vitality!
The moment Xiao Yu and the others stepped onto the training ground, the entire place fell silent. Everyone's eyes turned to Xiao Yan and the others, but most of their attention was focused on Xiao Yan, who in their eyes had become a worthless piece of trash!
The silence was only temporary. After a moment, the entire training ground returned to its chaotic state, and their discussions were all about Xiao Yan.
"How dare he still come to take the assessment?"
"He's just a useless piece of trash. Coming here is just embarrassing our Xiao family!"
"That's right, that's right. What's the use of him coming? He's still only at the third level of Dou Disciple? After next year's coming-of-age ceremony, even if he's the clan chief's son, he'll still have to go to the branch clan. With his three-level Dou Disciple, he'll be lucky if he can manage a market town!"
As soon as these words were said, a burst of laughter erupted. Xiao Yu glanced at Xiao Yan behind him, only to see Xiao Yan's body trembling slightly, his fingernails digging into his palms, drawing blood, but he seemed oblivious to the pain!
Xiao Yu narrowed his eyes and looked towards the group that was laughing. He was somewhat familiar with the leader of the group, after all, he was the first person to be used as a stepping stone. His name was Xiao Ke, and he was a follower of the Great Elder of the Xiao family!
Upon seeing Xiao Yu's gaze, the few people froze for a moment, then quickly lowered their heads. When Xiao Ke saw Xiao Yu, his expression changed, but he forced himself not to lower his head. Xiao Yu smiled playfully, "You guys are quite good at gossiping behind people's backs, just like a long-tongued woman, how annoying. Dare you come up to the training ground and spar with me?"
"You, don't think I'm afraid of you. Brother Xiao Ning will be here soon. He's already at the seventh level of Dou Disciple now, so don't get any ideas!" The threatening words seemed to have lost all their deterrent effect at this point, even he himself felt that his confidence was lacking, and his face turned slightly red!
They all knew that the clan chief had given birth to two good sons. When Xiao Yan was eleven years old and became a Dou Practitioner, he was already an unprecedented genius in the Xiao family. And that year, Xiao Yu, at the age of ten, had already cultivated to the seventh level of Dou Disciple, becoming the second genius in the family. Many people said that the Xiao family's position in Utan City would rise sharply because of Xiao Yan and Xiao Yu!
Later, although Xiao Yan lost his original strength, Xiao Yu's strength continued to improve steadily. He remembered that he had already reached the ninth level of Dou disciple the previous year, and this time he probably had already advanced to Dou Practitioner. Becoming a Dou Practitioner at the age of fourteen, although not as good as Xiao Yan's achievement of becoming a Dou Practitioner at the age of eleven, was still the second best in the Xiao family!
"Don't let me hear you talking behind my brother's back again, or don't blame me for being rude!" Xiao Yu said with a sinister smile.
Perhaps it was Xiao Yu's creepy expression that scared them, so they quickly nodded, saying they wouldn't dare do it again, and immediately ran away. Although Xiao Ke was also scared, he stubbornly continued to glare at Xiao Yu. Seeing this big, stubborn guy, Xiao Yu was about to scare him even more when a voice sounded from the side: "What, so now they can't even tell the truth?"
Xiao Yu turned his head and saw that Xiao Ning, the backup of these lackeys, had arrived. Xiao Ning walked in from outside, casting a loving glance at Xiao Xun'er. Then, noticing Xun'er holding onto Xiao Yu's arm, his eyes turned red with jealousy, and he said through gritted teeth, "Xiao Yu, don't be so smug. Maybe your branch has done too many bad things, which is why your brother suffered from the backlash of losing his battle energy. Perhaps soon your power will fade, just like his!"
Hearing Xiao Ning's words, Xiao Xun'er, who had remained silent all this time, flashed a golden light in her eyes and coldly said, "You'd better watch your mouth."
Seeing that Xiao Xun'er stood up for Xiao Yu, Xiao Ning's eyes twitched with even more jealousy. But he wasn't stupid; after all, both Xiao Yu and Xiao Xun'er were much stronger than him, and he didn't dare provoke them. He thought to himself that he would wait until his sister returned.
Xiao Ning shot a resentful glance at Xiao Yu before leaving with Xiao Ke. The family test was about to begin.
On the high platform, the important figures of the family had already taken their seats. Xiao Yu immediately spotted his father, Xiao Zhan, standing there. After looking around the training field, Xiao Zhan spoke in a commanding voice: "Today is the family's annual test to assess your progress over the past year. It's also meant to encourage you to train even harder in the coming year! Without further ado, I now announce the official start of the test!"
As Xiao Zhan's voice fell, the teenagers in the field became nervous. After all, the higher their strength, the higher their status in the family. Who wouldn't want to stand out in the family?
The familiar black stone monument stood there, and the test examiner, with a stern face, stepped forward. He pulled out a roster from his pocket and began calling out names for each person to step forward and be tested.
Since there was still time, Xiao Yu, Xiao Xun'er, and Xiao Yan sat cross-legged under a nearby willow tree, finding a shady spot to rest.
Watching the other teenagers step up for the test one by one—some proud, some disappointed, all with different expressions—Xiao Yu found it amusing. Soon, the examiner called out a name that Xiao Yu recognized, causing even Xiao Yan, who had been indifferent to everything else, to raise his head slightly in interest.
"Xiao Mei!"
A red figure quickly ran towards the stage. Her youthful face carried both innocence and charm, perfectly fitting her name. Xiao Yu, somewhat dazed, recalled scenes from a novel as he watched Xiao Mei. Suddenly, a sharp pain came from his waist. Looking down, Xiao Yu saw that it was Xiao Xun'er's small hand pinching the soft flesh of his waist. A cold voice followed in his ear, "Does she look good?"
Xiao Yu immediately snapped back to his senses. Xun'er, this little girl, was jealous! He quickly smiled and said, "Is there anyone in this world more beautiful than Xun'er? In my heart, Xun'er is the most beautiful!"
Xun'er rolled her eyes at him and ignored him. Xiao Yu, in a hurry, used all his wit to coax her. Xun'er, unable to handle Xiao Yu's straightforward and cheesy compliments, blushed and scolded, "Stop it! I forgive you!"
Xiao Yu chuckled and sat back down.
On stage, Xiao Mei had already placed her hand on the magic stone monument, and a beam of light appeared.
"Dou Disciple, Level Seven!"
"Xiao Mei, Dou Qi: Level Seven Dou Disciple! Rank: Advanced!"
Seeing Xiao Mei's slightly proud smile, Xiao Yu softly chuckled and said, "Seven level of Dou Discipleat fourteen years old? That talent is just average."
Unexpectedly, Xiao Yan shook his head with a bitter smile and said, "Even level seven is enough to stand firmly in the Xiao family, but I'm still only at level three."
"What are you afraid of? You'll regain the glory that belongs to you!" Xiao Yu said indifferently.
As they were speaking, the examiner, with a somewhat complicated expression, called out, "Next: Xiao Yan!"
The crowd immediately burst into a wave of chatter, and the examiner had to shout, "Silence!"
Xiao Yan stood up, walked towards the magic stone monument, and placed his palm on the cold surface. A flash of light appeared, and a line of small characters emerged.
"Dou Disciple: Level Three!"
"Xiao Yan,Dou Qi:Dou Disciple, Level Three! Rank: Low!"
On the high platform, Xiao Zhan sighed softly, while the First Elder sneered, "Your genius son has been stuck in the same place for three years!"
The Second Elder mocked, "No, he's actually regressing!"
While the discussion on stage continued, the noise from the crowd below became even louder.
"Ha! Still just at level three Dou Disciple!"
"Looks like he's truly become the family's failure!"
Seeing this scene, the examiner quickly called out, "Next: Xiao Yu!"
In an instant, the training field fell silent!
Weekly Power Status
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