Douluo Continent V: Suppressing Tang San with the Might of the Super Beast God

"It's very simple, just intuition."

Qiu Hougong finished speaking with a smile, and then the inspector's voice rang out again, "Next, Xiao Xun'er!"

"Go ahead, I'll wait for you here."

Qiu Hougong waved to Gu Xun'er, whose eyes were full of admiration.

Seeing Qiu Hougong's reaction, Gu Xun'er nodded and then turned to walk towards the Demon Stone Tablet.

"A fighter... no, a two-star fighter, a two-star fighter!!!"

Upon seeing the test results, the inspector shouted loudly, and the Xiao clansmen surrounding the area also stared at the results displayed on the magic stone tablet with expressions of disbelief.

"A thirteen-year-old two-star Dou Zhe, truly worthy of being that person's daughter, her talent is indeed extraordinary."

Hearing the exclamations and envious voices that seemed to explode in the arena, Xiao Zhan, the head of the Xiao family, sitting in the main seat, admired Gu Xun'er's talent while also worrying about the current situation of his own son, Xiao Yan.

While Xiao Zhan was pondering Xiao Yan's future path, Xiao Xun'er had already returned to Qiu Hougong's side amidst the envious and jealous gazes of everyone.

"Brother, let's go."

Gently brushing aside her long, black hair, Xiao Xun'er spoke sweetly to Qiu Hougong.

"Okay, I found a fun place in Utan City. Shall I take you there?"

Qiu Hougong smiled and reached out to pat Gu Xun'er's head. Then, amidst the curious and envious gazes of those around them, the two walked together out of the training ground.

"Huh? Who is that person? I've never seen him before."

With his gaze fixed on the receding figures of Qiu Hougong and Gu Xun'er, Xiao Zhan, who had temporarily put Xiao Yan's matter aside, frowned slightly. He then turned to the elders sitting on either side of him and asked, "Does anyone know who the man next to that child is?"

When Xiao Zhan brought up Xiao Xun'er, the three elders, who had originally wanted to use Xiao Yan's matter to mock Xiao Zhan, also became serious.

"I don't know. This is the first time I've seen this person, and he's very mysterious. I can't even tell what level of cultivation he has..."

After the elder finished speaking in a deep voice, he looked at Xiao Zhan and asked, "Can you see anything?"

"No, but we must ensure her safety no matter what, otherwise..."

Xiao Zhan shook his head, his two large hands, hidden in his sleeves, clenched tightly. "Do you know what the consequences will be?"

"You don't need to tell us, of course we know..."

The Second Elder stood up, a mocking look on his aged face. "We will handle the matter of that child. Xiao Zhan, you should worry more about your own son."

"Hmph! I know my son well, you don't need to tell me."

Upon hearing the Second Elder's words, Xiao Zhan stood up, snorted coldly, and then turned and headed towards his room...

That night, the bright moon hung high in the sky.

At the top of the cliff behind the Xiao family's mountain, Xiao Yan, who was in a very bad mood because of today's test, lay on the grass and quietly looked at the bright moon in the sky, which was like a jade plate.

"The child doesn't know the moon, calling it a white jade plate. Hehe, hehehe..."

He muttered a line of poetry from his past world, his anger barely contained. He sprang to his feet, then pointed a ferocious finger at the sky and roared, "You two old bastards! I'll fucking kill you! You brought Old Zi into this world in the first place just to see what a piece of trash's life is like?! Huh?! I'll smash your rice cakes, I'll fucking smack you to death..."

After giving the sky a proper demonstration of the art of language, Xiao Yan, whose mood had finally calmed down a bit, sat back down on the ground. He looked at the ring his mother had given him on his finger and sighed silently, while pondering what exactly was wrong with his body.

A few seconds later, Xiao Yan, sensing someone in the woods behind him, turned around and said with a smile, "Father, is that you?"

"Hehehe. Yan'er, it's so late, why are you still up here?"

As the branches swayed, Xiao Zhan, no longer hiding himself, emerged from the woods and looked at Xiao Yan with concern, smiling.

"Of course I want to be with you, Father."

Looking at Xiao Zhan, who doted on him so much, Xiao Yan felt reassured, and the smile on his face deepened.

"Haha, you silly child..."

Xiao Zhan walked slowly to Xiao Yan, his slightly aged face filled with affection for him. "Let your father guess, are you still thinking about the test this afternoon?"

"These are all expected things, what's there to think about?"

Xiao Yan shook his head with a smile, but this time the smile didn't look as natural as before.

"Yan'er..."

Seeing the change in Xiao Yan's expression at a glance, and knowing that he was not feeling well, Xiao Zhan sighed softly, "In another year, you will have your coming-of-age ceremony."

"Yes, Father. Yan'er knows everything!"

Xiao Yan nodded and said. On the surface, he was calm, but in reality, he had clenched his fists so tightly that they couldn't be tighter.

“I’m sorry, Yan’er. You know the family rules. If you still can’t meet the standard next year, then your father will have no choice but to…”

Looking at Xiao Yan in front of him, Xiao Zhan felt increasingly distressed and said with both heartache and guilt.

"Father, don't worry. I will definitely reach the seventh level of Dou Qi in a year and bring you glory!"

Seeing Xiao Zhanxin's expression, Xiao Yan smiled and comforted him.

"Yes, I believe you..."

Seeing Xiao Yan say this, Xiao Zhan sighed inwardly and gently patted his head. Then he suddenly smiled and said, "It's getting late, go back and rest. Also, there will be distinguished guests from the family tomorrow, so you must come early and remember not to be impolite."

"Yes, Father..."

Xiao Yan agreed, then asked with some curiosity, "But who exactly is this person who came? Why do you take them so seriously?"

"I can't tell you this as your father. You'll know everything when you arrive tomorrow."

Xiao Zhan patted Xiao Yan on the shoulder, laughed, and flew away.

Seeing Xiao Zhan leave, Xiao Yan, who was secretly encouraging himself, also started walking down the mountain.

However, just as Xiao Yan had taken a few steps forward, an unfamiliar male voice suddenly rang out behind him, "Stop."

"Um?!"

Upon hearing this voice, Xiao Yan immediately tensed up and turned around, only to see a tall, handsome young man standing in the moonlight looking at him.

Who are you? What do you want?

Secretly circulating the meager amount of Dou Qi within his body, Xiao Yan shifted his weight backward while staring intently at Qiu Hougong as he spoke.

"Me? I'm one of your kind. As for what I'm going to do..."

With a wave of his hand, an invisible wall formed behind Xiao Yan. Qiu Hougong smiled and said to him, "Of course I'm here to help you recover your strength."

"The same kind? Recovering strength?"

Realizing he had no way out, Xiao Yan was shocked, but he remained calm on the surface. "How are you going to help me? And what do you mean by 'kindred spirits'?"

"Helping you regain your strength is a piece of cake for me. As for what constitutes 'the same kind'..."

Slowly, Qiu Hougong raised a chair behind him and sat down. He smiled and said something to Xiao Yan that almost made him collapse on his knees: "Goose, goose, goose."

"?!!"

Xiao Yan's pupils contracted. "What did you say?!"

"Goose, goose, goose."

Qiu Hougong repeated it again, his smile growing even wider.

"With a bent neck, singing to the sky?"

"White feathers float on green water."

"Red palms, stirring the clear waves..."

After reciting an ancient poem that awakened dormant memories, Xiao Yan, who already knew who Qiu Hougong was, pointed sharply forward and said in a trembling voice, "You, you also come from there?"

Do you think I'm from there?

Qiu Hougong asked a question in return, and then Xiao Yan, looking excited, quickly walked to Qiu Hougong's side and began to chat...

Half an hour later, Xiao Yan, who was chatting happily with Qiu Hougong, reached out to put his arm around Qiu Hougong's shoulder, but Qiu Hougong dodged it with a shrug.

"Forehead……"

Xiao Yan scratched his head awkwardly, then changed the subject to what Qiu Hougong had told him at the beginning, "Brother Qiu, you weren't joking with me before, were you? You can really help me regain my strength?"

"Of course..."

Qiu Hougong, who had already stored Yao Chen's soul in his system inventory during their previous chat, smiled and nodded at Xiao Yan. Then, he took out a candy that was slightly disguised and said to Xiao Yan, "This pill is called the 'Eat-it-for-Free Pill,' and it's a sixth-grade pill. If you eat it, your tendency to get easily discouraged will be cured, and your talent will naturally be able to play its proper role."

"So this is a sixth-grade pill? It's indeed much better than those first- and second-grade pills..."

Sniffing the rich "fragrance of elixir," Xiao Yan, deeply moved, reached out and picked up the candy. Then, with an extremely serious expression, he said to Qiu Hougong, "Brother Qiu, I am deeply grateful. If you ever need my help in the future, I will definitely go to great lengths for you without hesitation."

"You don't need to stab me in the back; you've already given me more than enough."

Seeing Xiao Yan's serious expression, Qiu Hougong, who was secretly amused, waved to Xiao Yan and said, "We're all from the same hometown, so don't be so polite. Eat up, your bad luck will end after you finish eating."

"Yes, thank you."

Xiao Yan thanked Qiu Hougong again, and then ate the candy in his hand.

"Hmm? Something's not right..."

Xiao Yan raised an eyebrow after eating the candy, and then said, "Logically, a sixth-grade pill should have very strong medicinal power, but why can't I feel any surge of medicinal power?"

"That's because the medicinal power of my pill is very mild, so you won't feel it at all after taking it..."

After Qiu Hougong finished explaining to Xiao Yan in a serious tone, he stood up and said, "Alright, you've finished the pills. Go back and rest now. You'll feel the effects tomorrow morning."

"Well then, I'll be going now, Brother Qiu, farewell..."

Without harboring any suspicion towards Qiu Hougong, Xiao Yan rose, cupped his hands in greeting, and then turned and walked towards his residence...

The next day, Xiao Yan was so happy to discover that he had really regained his talent that he kept jumping on the bed.

After breaking the bed, Xiao Yan, who had just recovered from his excitement, slapped his head and then went out, heading towards the council hall under the steward's guidance.

A minute later, Xiao Yan arrived at the council hall and sat down in a secluded spot. He then looked up and listened to what Xiao Zhan and Nalan Yanran were saying.

"Patriarch Xiao, my Yunlan Sect has an important matter to discuss with you and your son. Would it be possible to find a quiet place?"

Sitting next to Nalan Yanran, Ge Ye, knowing it was time to get down to business, spoke to Xiao Zhan, who was sitting in the main seat.

"Alright, please come with me over here. Yan'er, you come too."

Xiao Zhan stood up and greeted Xiao Yan, then led them toward the study with a smile.

Upon arriving at the study, Xiao Zhan first invited Nalan Yanran and the others, along with Xiao Yan, to sit down in their respective chairs. Then he asked, "I wonder what Mr. Ge Ye is referring to? Please enlighten me."

"Yes, Clan Chief Xiao, we have come here to discuss the engagement between Yanran and your young master."

Ge Ye looked at Xiao Zhan and spoke.

"The matter of the engagement..."

Upon hearing Ge Ye's words, Xiao Zhan, who had been smiling, slowly withdrew his smile and said in a slightly trembling voice, "Please speak frankly, Mr. Ge Ye."

Noticing Xiao Zhan's unusual expression, Ge Ye, without paying attention to anything else, spoke directly: "By order of the Yunlan Sect Master, we request that Clan Chief Xiao dissolve the engagement between your young master and Yanran."

"Crack!"

As a cracking sound rang out, Xiao Zhan, whose anger had been ignited, slowly stood up and looked at Ge Ye, saying in a deep voice, "Mr. Ge Ye, marriage is a serious matter and cannot be taken lightly."

"I'm not joking, this is the sect leader's intention..."

Ge Ye also stood up, staring intently at Xiao Zhan, whose body was trembling slightly, and said, "The Yunlan Sect has very strict rules, especially for Yanran, the next sect leader. Therefore, I hope that you, clan leader, can understand our sect leader's good intentions and grant us this request."

"you……"

"Father!"

Xiao Zhan, his fists clenched, was about to speak when he was interrupted by Xiao Yan, who was sitting to the side, "We understand Mr. Ge Ye's request, and I am also willing to dissolve my engagement with Miss Nalan."

"Yan'er, you..."

Xiao Zhan looked at Xiao Yan, but before he could speak, Xiao Yan interrupted him again, "Father, the situation is beyond our control. The Yunlan Sect is a large and powerful family, how could they possibly let me marry their future sect leader? Besides, they didn't come to the main hall, but came here to say this, which is already a lot of face for us, so let's just let this matter go."

“I know all this, but Yan’er, this is for you…”

Xiao Zhan looked at Xiao Yan with heartache, but Xiao Yan didn't seem to care. "It's alright, Father. As the saying goes, there are plenty of fish in the sea. Besides, I have no interest in that Nalan Yanran anyway. Getting rid of her is exactly what I wanted. So, Father, you can just agree. Don't worry about Yan'er."