Chapter 215: Chapter 215: Broadening Your Horizons

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    Word Count: 3,511 Words

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    "I''ll make you understand the gap between us in the qualifying competition!" Bai Shan had no choice but to drop this harsh line before taking his leave.

    Xiao Yan watched Bai Shan depart, smiled at Instructor Ruo Ling, and said, "Thank you for your timely assistance, Instructor."

    Instructor Ruo Ling shook her head. "Even if I hadn''t intervened, you wouldn''t have been in any danger, would you?"

    She realized she could no longer gauge Xiao Yan''s current level of strength. She herself was a 5-star Dou Grandmaster, yet in a little over a year, just how far had Xiao Yan advanced!

    Xiao Yan let out a helpless sigh and said, "You can''t put it that way, Instructor Ruo Ling. If you hadn''t come out, I might have accidentally killed him. That would have been troublesome."

    !!!!!!

    A chill swept through Instructor Ruo Ling, her entire body turning cold. Though Xiao Yan spoke with a gentle, somewhat aggrieved tone, she believed he meant every word!

    Had she not been nearby, there was a very real possibility that Xiao Yan would have killed someone outright!

    Instructor Ruo Ling carefully sized up Xiao Yan and asked, "What''s your current cultivation level?"

    Xiao Yan picked up a skewer and said while munching on it, "I''m not telling you. A man needs to maintain a sense of mystery."

    Instructor Ruo Ling''s eyes widened in astonishment. I''m your damn instructor!!

    Then again, she remembered that she''d never really taught him anything. Perhaps being his instructor in name wasn''t worth fussing over.

    "I''m tired of trying to rein you in, so do as you will. Four months from now is the Inner Academy Qualifying Competition. I''ll enter your name and Xun Er''s—no problem there, right?" She sighed. Her students had grown up, and it was hard to control them now.

    Xun Er had actually been qualified to participate in last year''s qualifying competition, but she gave up the opportunity to wait for Xiao Yan.

    Xiao Yan shook his head and said, "Could I trouble the instructor to also submit the names of Xiao Ning, Xiao Yu, Xiao Mei, Xiao Meng, and Xiao Yue Liang?"

    All the members of the Xiao Clan had been taken under Instructor Ruo Lin''s tutelage. "Ah?" Instructor Ruo Ling was puzzled upon hearing these words, "Xiao Ning and Xiao Yu are both 5-star Dou Masters, so they could give it a try. But Xiao Mei''s cultivation talent isn''t high, not to mention Xiao Meng and Xiao Yue Liang, who have only been in the academy for less than a year."

    "They won''t make it into the top fifty."

    Instructor Ruo Ling was still a Huang Class instructor. An instructor''s rank wasn''t just related to the number of students advancing to the Inner Academy; they had to meet certain quotas within four years, under specific time constraints. Additionally, too many failures would affect promotion.

    Therefore, each year''s Inner Academy slots had to be allocated very carefully. This year was a critical period for Instructor Ruo Ling''s promotion to Xuan Class instructor.

    Yet Xiao Yan merely offered a confident smile. "Please rest assured, Instructor Ruo Ling; I, Xiao Yan, don''t make empty boasts."

    Instructor Ruo Ling suddenly recalled that when Xiao Yan first entered the academy, he had spoken similarly, and in the end, he had indeed accomplished what he promised.

    "You truly want them to participate in the examination as well?" she asked.

    "Please be completely assured, Instructor Ruo Ling. As long as they can endure my special training, entering the Inner Academy won''t be a problem," Xiao Yan said with a grin.

    A strange light flashed in Instructor Ruo Ling''s eyes. If Xiao Meng and Xiao Yue Liang, who had only been in the academy for a year, could enter the Inner Academy, that would be truly astonishing.

    "Alright, since you''re so confident, I''ll trust you this time." Instructor Ruo Ling herself wasn''t sure where her confidence came from, but when she saw the look in Xiao Yan''s eyes, she knew she hadn''t made the wrong decision.

    "Thank you, Instructor. If there''s nothing else, I''ll be on my way." Xiao Yan whistled cheerfully, skewers in hand, as he headed toward the pavilion where Xun Er lived.

    "Hey, the men''s dorm is in the other direction!"

    "I''m not spending the night."

    "That still won''t do!"

    In the end, Xiao Yan couldn''t escape Instructor Ruo Ling''s watch. He wound up simply sitting on top of the building with Xun Er, gazing at the stars, nibbling skewers, reminiscing about old times, their hands softly entwined.

    ...

    Over the next few months, Xiao Yan hardly had any free time; if anything, he was even busier.

    Not only did he have to act as the Little Clan Leader and instruct Xiao Yu and the others in the cultivation of their new Dou Techniques and Qi Methods, he also had to take care of his own cultivation as well.

    The Asura Soul Reaping Technique, this High Di Class Soul Skill, was extremely challenging to cultivate even with his exceptional comprehension.

    Xiao Yan was born with Spiritual Strength twice that of others. He had originally thought that cultivating Soul Skills wouldn''t pose too much of a problem, but this High Di Class Soul Skill still hindered him.

    Three months passed, and he hadn''t even touched upon the entry-level threshold. It was a harsh slap in the face for this genius.

    Although he was stuck on the Soul Skill, thanks to the power of the Flame Mantra, his cultivation level increased by one star, reaching the 2-star Dou Spirit stage.

    Even though the Flame Mantra hadn''t been upgraded to an Intermediate Di Class Qi Method, the speed at which his Dou Qi condensed had still increased significantly. Three months of time allowed him to advance by one star.

    "Ah... you... let go, you big pervert!!" shrieked Xiao Yu, clutching the hem of her skirt. Her cheeks were flushed, and her eyes shimmered with tears. She glared daggers at Xiao Yan. He had grabbed her ankle and hoisted it up, openly admiring her long legs. "Cousin Xiao Yu, are you getting brazen? You actually dared to challenge me?"

    Xiao Yu bit her lower lip. She had thought that after over three months of intense cultivation, her strength had improved significantly, and she might at least cause Xiao Yan some trouble. So, she challenged him.

    But the result was the same as before. She was easily subdued by Xiao Yan and even embarrassed in front of everyone.

    Just as Xiao Yan was appreciating the beautiful scene before him, a slightly cold voice came

    from behind. "Xiao Yan ge-ge."

    !!!!

    Xiao Yan immediately released his grip, raised his hands in surrender, and turned to look at Xun Er. "Xun Er, you''re free today? What brings you to the Dou Technique Hall?"

    Xun Er''s bright, captivating eyes glanced at him, sending a flutter through his heart. She said, "Xun Er came to bring something for Xiao Yan ge-ge. Here, it''s what Xiao Yan ge-ge asked

    for."

    She took out a piece of sheepskin parchment from her storage ring and handed it to him. Xiao Yan''s spirits lifted upon seeing it. On the parchment was a clearly marked route-it was a

    map.

    him that there was an alchemist in the Black-Corner Region who had also set his sights on the Fallen Heart Flame. That person was called Han Feng.

    ''A peak Dou Emperor... still not enough to threaten Jia Nan Academy, I''d think...'' After pondering for a moment, Xiao Yan said, "Let''s go to the Thousand Medicinal House first

    and see if there are any precious medicinal ingredients."

    They slowly walked along the street. Xiao Yan''s gaze continuously swept over the shops on both sides. But what left him somewhat speechless was that before even walking a mere hundred meters on this short street, he had witnessed no fewer than ten incidents of brawling

    and even bloody knife fights. For a city like this, there was almost only one word to describe it: chaotic! If these people weren''t so weak, Xiao Yan would have used the Soul Command Token to conveniently collect the souls of the deceased.

    The group followed Xiao Ning''s guidance and soon arrived at the Thousand Medicinal House.

    As they stepped into this imposing medicinal shop, they were immediately greeted by an aroma mingled with the scents of over a hundred types of medicinal ingredients.

    The interior of the shop was extremely spacious. Neatly arranged crystal counters were placed

    in all directions. Within the transparent counters were all kinds of medicinal ingredients. At

    this moment, quite a few people were stopping in front of these counters, and the noisy

    chatter echoed continuously. "Not bad," Xiao Yan murmured.

    Having seen Queen Medusa''s treasury and the Medicine Hall of the Misty Cloud Sect, the Thousand Medicinal House naturally couldn''t surprise Xiao Yan too much. However, Xiao Ning and the others were dazzled. It was their first time seeing so many medicinal ingredients.

    The prices at the Thousand Medicinal House lived up to its reputation in the Black-Corner Region. Most of the medicinal ingredients were a full three times more expensive than the normal market price. No wonder crime was rampant in the Black-Corner Region; with such prices, how could ordinary people afford to buy anything?

    In the end, Xiao Yan spent 800,000 gold coins to buy the main ingredient for a tier 5 medicinal pill and then left disappointed.

    "It''s actually quite a bit larger than the Tian-class auction of the Miteer Clan." Standing on the bustling street, Xiao Yan looked up at the colossal auction house before him

    and couldn''t help but exclaim in surprise. Back when he saw the headquarters of the Miteer Auction House in the capital city of the Jia Ma Empire, he had been somewhat amazed by its

    scale.

    But he hadn''t expected that upon arriving at Black Mark City, he would realize how vast the world truly was. The Jia Ma Empire was merely a weak empire ranked near the bottom in the North-Western Region. At the entrance of the Great Auction Fair, dozens of expressionless men in tight black outfits

    with sharp weapons at their waists swept their eagle-like gazes over the streams of people coming and going. Judging from the auras faintly emanating from these men, five of them were actually at the Dou Master realm, while the rest were at the peak of the Dou Practitioner

    stage.

    Even the gate guards casually assigned were at the Dou Master realm. It seemed the strength of the Eight Gates was truly formidable.

    "There are so many people at this auction," Xiao Yu furrowed her delicate brows as she stuck

    close to Xiao Yan.

    Xiao Yan protected Xun Er in the middle while Xiao Ning and the other two males formed a protective formation, shielding Xiao Yan and the others in the center from the crowd. After following the flow of people into the slightly dim corridor all the way to the end, a

    colossal auction hall appeared before Xiao Yan''s eyes, causing him to draw in a sharp breath. This auction hall was larger than any he had seen before. The densely packed seats and the

    auction stage built entirely from dazzling crystals were enough to make one''s eyes spin. "If I''d known earlier, I would have gotten a VIP card. Sitting at the front would be better," Xiao Yan lamented helplessly.

    He had just learned that one could obtain a VIP card by bidding over a million gold coins. This

    card not only allowed one to sit in the front VIP seats but also provided access to a VIP passage without having to queue.

    Xun Er smiled. "I don''t mind sitting anywhere, as long as I''m with Xiao Yan ge-ge." Just as Xiao Yan and the others were chatting in the regular seating area, in the front row of

    the VIP section, a handsome youth with a pale face dressed in black robes was frowning as he looked at Xiao Yan.

    "Young Sect Master, what''s wrong?" Beside him, an old man with an equally pale complexion asked in a low voice.

    The pale-faced handsome youth slowly retracted his gaze upon hearing this. "It''s nothing. I just felt that fellow is a bit strange. Moreover, looking at him, I actually have a

    strange feeling of... dread in my heart." Fan Ling chuckled at himself and shook his head after saying this. "Hehe, Young Sect Master must have sensed wrongly. Although our Blood Sect''s Qi Methods are extremely cold and naturally fear some extreme flames, flames of that level are possessed

    by very few people in the entire Black-Corner Region," the old man said with a laugh.

    "Perhaps it was just my imagination." Fan Ling nodded and stopped his wild thoughts. Turning his gaze to the crystal stage, he

    muttered in a low voice, "I wonder if that information is true. If it is, Father said that no matter the cost, we must obtain it!"

    "Hehe, rest assured, Young Sect Master. The Sect Master has already secretly made preparations. Even if that item falls into someone else''s hands, they absolutely won''t get ten miles out of Black Mark City!" the old man chuckled sinisterly.

    "Good to hear." The corner of Fan Ling''s mouth curled into a cold smile. He gradually closed

    his eyes and quietly waited for the auction to begin.

    Just as Fan Ling closed his eyes, Xiao Yan suddenly raised his head and glanced in his

    direction. With his Spiritual Strength, he could naturally sense that someone had been observing him.

    However, after a single glance, Xiao Yan didn''t give it much thought. With Fan Ling''s strength, he wasn''t qualified to warrant his attention.

    After Xiao Yan chatted and laughed with Xun Er, Xiao Yu, and the others for nearly half an

    hour, a crisp bell chime slowly rang out within the hall.

    Xiao Yan stopped his idle chatter upon hearing this chime and looked up at the dazzling

    crystal stage.

    At this moment, a white-haired old man who seemed to be the auctioneer was already standing on it with a smile.

    Xiao Yan''s expression instantly turned a bit strange. After all, this was seemingly the first

    auction he had attended that wasn''t hosted by Ya Fei. Moreover, it was being hosted by an

    unfamiliar old man. The contrast was a bit too big. "Finally, it''s about to begin. Let''s hope there are some hidden surprises." Xiao Yan murmured under his breath as he looked at the huge hall that was almost filled to the

    brim, a hint of anticipation in his dark eyes.

    For some reason, he had a feeling that there would be things beyond his expectations at this

    auction.