Xun'er's light, clear voice left the entire tent in stunned silence. Every pair of eyes was locked on the green-clad girl standing beside Xiao Yan, her expression calm and composed. Just when they were still reeling from Xiao Yan's revelation, another thunderbolt struck.
Six-Star Dou Warrior... sixteen years old... this potential rating seemed to surpass even the S-rank threshold. Her talent was, quite frankly, more monstrous than the Academy's legendary prodigy.
Xiao Yan shook his head with a wry smile. Xun'er's announcement had caught him off guard too. He'd estimated her strength at around the Five-Star level, but he hadn't expected her to be this terrifying—her potential rating actually exceeded S-rank. Such monstrous cultivation speed left even him stunned.
Inside the tent, Xiao Yu's jaw had hit the floor. She'd never seen Xun'er fight, so she had no idea what the girl was truly capable of. As for Xun'er's mysterious background, no one had ever told her. In Xiao Yu's eyes, Xun'er was simply the most talented member of the Xiao Clan's younger generation—but she'd never imagined that "most talented" meant something quite this extreme.
"...Well, I guess that monstrous girl at the Academy has finally met her match," Xiao Yu muttered, shaking her head.
In the corner of the tent, Luo Bu and Ge La stared at the green-clad girl with undisguised terror. Remembering how they had provoked Xiao Yan earlier, they broke into a cold sweat, silently thanking their luck that they hadn't offended this beautiful girl directly.
What they didn't know was that the moment they had challenged Xiao Yan, their standing in Xun'er's mind had plummeted to rock bottom.
The silence in the tent stretched on for what felt like an eternity before the others slowly regained their composure. They exchanged glances, each seeing the same shock reflected in the other's eyes.
"My, my. To think I'd encounter a new student whose potential exceeds S-rank," Ruolin said, the initial shock fading from her face. Her eyes shone with admiration as she looked at Xun'er. After a moment, she smiled. "This year, the most outstanding newcomer at Jia Nan Academy will undoubtedly be you."
At Ruolin's praise, Xun'er offered a modest smile—but then, surprisingly, shook her head.
Ruolin blinked, confused. "Is... is there someone even more talented than you?"
"Yes, Instructor Ruolin." Xun'er nodded, her crescent-moon eyes crinkling adorably. "Compared to him, I truly don't count for much."
"Oh?" Ruolin's delicate eyebrows rose almost imperceptibly. Sixteen years old and already a Six-Star Dou Warrior—and that "didn't count for much" in someone's eyes? Despite her skepticism, curiosity won out. "Who might that be?"
Xiao Yan felt a sinking sensation in his chest. Sure enough, after Ruolin's question, Xun'er turned her lovely face toward him, eyes sparkling with quiet amusement.
Every gaze in the tent followed her line of sight—and settled on the young man who was spreading his hands in helpless resignation.
Ruolin studied the direction of Xun'er's gaze, then turned to Xiao Yan with a smile. "Xun'er, Xiao Yan's talent is certainly impressive. An A-rank potential rating places him among the top one hundred new students at the Academy. But... he doesn't seem to surpass you."
"Hey, exactly!" Luo Bu chimed in from the corner, his smile bright and confident. "Xiao Yan's talent is decent, but he's still nowhere close to you, Xun'er."
In truth, Luo Bu wasn't alone in his thinking. Aside from a handful of people in the tent, everyone else was looking at Xiao Yan with skepticism. A-rank potential was strong, certainly, but Xun'er's talent—practically breaking through the S-rank ceiling—was on an entirely different level. The gap between the two seemed insurmountable.
Xun'er didn't even bother glancing at the grinning Luo Bu. Her cold indifference left him standing there, his attempt to ingratiate himself falling flat.
Ruolin's brow furrowed slightly as she watched Xun'er's unwavering focus on Xiao Yan. A thoughtful expression crossed her face, and her gaze shifted to the young man with the helpless look. "Could it be that Xiao Yan has been hiding something?"
"Hey, Yu'er, what's going on? Did Xiao Yan really hold something back?" The girls around Xiao Yu leaned in, curiosity burning in their eyes.
Xiao Yu didn't answer right away. Her brow was furrowed, emotions flickering across her face. When Xun'er had brought this up, a memory had suddenly resurfaced—Xiao Yan had experienced a three-year void in his cultivation. During that period, for some mysterious reason, his strength hadn't just stagnated—it had actively declined.
And in the year and a half since, Xiao Yan had somehow leaped from the third stage of Dou Power all the way to Four-Star Dou Warrior. When you broke it down that way, his cultivation speed was so terrifying that even Xun'er couldn't compare.
The realization hit Xiao Yu like a splash of cold water. Only now did she truly understand just how frightening the boy who constantly drove her to fury really was.
"There's nothing to hide. Most people in Wutan City know the basics," Xiao Yan said with a shrug, his tone indifferent.
"Would you mind telling me?" Ruolin set her pen down gently, resting her chin on her palm as she gazed at the lean, handsome young man below. Her soft voice carried an almost irresistible warmth. "Knowing each student's full potential helps us plan their training. It's in your best interest."
"Let me tell it. Brother Xiao Yan doesn't like talking about the past." Seeing Xiao Yan's hesitation, the perceptive Xun'er smiled.
"Very well." Ruolin nodded, her eyes lingering on Xun'er with an expression of quiet amusement. The way Xun'er constantly defended Xiao Yan spoke volumes to someone with Ruolin's experience. Right now, the girl was practically showing off her most prized possession to the entire room—a treasure she guarded fiercely, suffering no one to diminish it.
"That boy certainly has his share of admirers," Ruolin thought to herself, her gaze drifting lazily to Xiao Yan.
With no way out, Xiao Yan gave a resigned nod.
Xun'er beamed and paused for a moment to collect her thoughts. Then she began, her voice light and musical: "Brother Xiao Yan began cultivating at the age of four."
Ruolin nodded. Dou Power in its earliest stages was the hardest to cultivate. Starting at four wasn't too early, nor too late.
"By ten, he had reached the ninth stage of Dou Power."
The words sent a visible jolt through the room. Cultivating early-stage Dou Power was notoriously difficult—a universally acknowledged truth on the Dou Qi continent. A talented individual starting at four might reach the ninth stage by fifteen. The truly gifted might manage it by thirteen or fourteen. But ten? That was genuinely frightening.
"At eleven, he advanced to the Dou Warrior realm."
A strange, uncomfortable silence fell over the tent. An eleven-year-old Dou Warrior—even at Jia Nan Academy, no one had ever matched that.
At the front, Ruolin's eyes grew brighter with each word. Something rare and electric flickered in her gaze.
"Now... next..." Xun'er pursed her lips, her voice softening. "From twelve to fifteen, Brother Xiao Yan's cultivation... regressed from Dou Warrior back down to the third stage of Dou Power."
The murmuring in the tent cut off abruptly. Most of the faces in the room froze mid-expression.
"Regressed... to the third stage of Dou Power?"
This dramatic reversal left even Ruolin momentarily stunned. The story had taken such an abrupt turn that it almost felt like fiction.
Ruolin covered her red lips with her hand, and after a long moment, she finally found her voice. "And then?"
"After three years in that cultivation void, Brother Xiao Yan's extraordinary talent returned. From fifteen onward, in just a year and a half, he rose from the third stage of Dou Power all the way to his current level—Four-Star Dou Warrior." Xun'er's lips curved into a proud smile. "So, Brother Xiao Yan's current strength represents only a year and a half of cultivation. I, on the other hand, have been training for sixteen years. Which of us is stronger should be quite obvious."
"Hssss—"
The moment Xun'er finished, the tent erupted in a chorus of sharp intakes of breath. Every gaze that fell on Xiao Yan now brimmed with sheer awe at his monstrous talent.
In the corner, Luo Bu and Ge La swallowed hard, exchanging a look. The same thought crossed both their minds: this kid was an absolute nightmare.
Ruolin exhaled slowly, her eyes still fixed on the young man below. After a long pause, she spoke, her voice gentle but carrying a weight that made everyone listen: "I didn't expect it. The quiet one— the truly terrifying one—was you all along. If Xun'er hadn't spoken up, you might have slipped right through."