Battle Through the Heavens

All gazes present gathered on Xiao Yan, who was slowly walking to the stone tablet. The testing of the few people earlier might be eye-catching, but the the one everyone was anticipating was still Xiao Yan…

This was because he was representing the Ye clan by taking this test. This first test would thus determine the fate of the Ye clan from now on. Whether or not they could keep stay a member of the five great clans would all be determined by this test!

Cao Dan’s eyes were viciously staring at Xiao Yan’s back. The corner of his mouth contained ridicule. If the Ye clan wished to pass this test, they would need to enter the top three in every segment. Currently, the first three places of this soul test were occupied by Dan Xuan, Cao Xiu, and Bai Ying. None of those three competitors were ordinary people. Cao Dan did not believe that Xiao Yan really possessed such an ability.

Xiao Yan’s feet paused in front of the stone tablet under the focus of all the eyes present. He raised his hand and touched the stone tablet.

The stone tablet was ice-cold. It was as though he was touching a piece of ice. There was a slight piercing pain from the spot where his hand made contact with its surface. This kind of feeling appeared to penetrate deep into his soul, causing him to feel uncomfortable.

“Xiao Yan, the Ye clan must enter the top three if it wishes to pass this test. Currently, the one ranked third is Bai Ying. His Soul Value has reached 785. Only if you surpass him will the Ye clan stand a chance…” Elder Cheng stared at Xiao Yan from beside the stone talisman. His expression was a little grave as he softly informed Xiao Yan. If the Ye clan were to fail this time around, it was likely that nice words put in on their behalf would not be able to prevent the Ye clan from being eliminated from the five great clans.

Xiao Yan slowly nodded. He had a better understanding than anyone that he was currently controlling the fate of all the members of the Ye clan in his hands…

Both of Xiao Yan’s eyes were shut. His entire figure appeared to have instantly become silent. Even his breathing had weakened…

Silence covered the interior of the hall. Not the slightest unusual sound appeared. The entire hall appeared to have been covered by a kind of faint pressurizing atmosphere.

This kind of silence continued for around half a minute or so. Just when everyone within the hall were looking at each other, an unusually vast and mighty spiritual pressure slowly swept out of the body of the young man in front of the stone tablet, like a large dragon had just awoken.

“Bang!”

A deep, muffled sound erupted around Xiao Yan. At the same time, an invisible spiritual storm formed around his body. The space around him had become extremely distorted when this storm was formed.

When this storm appeared, Elder Cheng, who was closest to Xiao Yan had a sudden change of expression. His body hurriedly pulled back, and his eyes stared intensely at the blurry figure within that distorted space. It was not the first time that he had seen such an unusual phenomenon occurring during the test of one’s Soul Value. When Cao Ying had taken the test back then, she had also stirred such an unusual phenomenon. However, when compared to Xiao Yan, it seemed that the spiritual storm of hers back then… was a little smaller?

Dan Xuan, Cao Xiu, Bai Ying, and Qiu Ji in front of the stone tablet also experienced a change in expressions when they saw this unexpected change. They hurriedly took over ten steps back. At the same time, their eyes were shocked as they stared at that figure, especially Bai Ying. His expression was exceptionally shocked. Never had he expected Xiao Yan to reach such a shocking level.

The jade bead rotating in Cao Ying’s hand, while she sat on the Cao clan’s seat, suddenly paused. Her temptation-filled eyes were focused on that blurry figure in front of the stone tablet. Her face finally revealed a surprised expression. She had actually misjudged this time around. Moreover, she did not expect this young man called Xiao Yan to hide his true ability so deeply…

The invisible spiritual storm stirred an uproar throughout the entire hall. It was awhile before the storm finally weakened. Around a dozen plus seconds later, it finally completely disappeared…

Xiao Yan slowly withdrew the hand in contact with the stone tablet after the spiritual storm scattered. After which, he turned his eyes to the plate in the middle of the stone tablet at the same time as everyone else!

“1395!”

The blood-red number remained on the plate in a startling manner. That number caused the entire place to turn dead silent. Many eyes seemed to have solidified as they remained on the number without being able to shift away.

The silence continued in the large hall for a moment before it was broken by numerous sounds of cold air being inhaled. Many eyes contained shock, that was difficult to hide, as they looked at the somewhat skinny back of the figure in front of the stone tablet.

“1395!”

This number was more than three hundred points greater than the record Cao Ying had set back then!

When Cao Ying had broken the record for the first time back then, she had been bestowed the title of witch, yet Xiao Yan had currently broken the record that she had left behind. Moreover, he had even tossed the record far behind him. This result was really shocking…

Cao Ying’s eyes were also startled when she saw the blood-red number. Her eyes immediately landed on Xiao Yan with some interest. She softly laughed, “Interesting… this Central Plains region does indeed have many hidden talents. I have never discovered someone like this in the past. Looks like the Pill Gathering will be extremely interesting this time around…”

Cao Dan, who was behind her, also stared at the stone tablet in a stunned manner. He only recovered a moment later. A jealousy inevitably flashed across his eyes when he heard the admiration and high regard suggested in Cao Ying’s tone. He clearly understood Cao Ying’s character. One could count the number of people from the same generation whom this extremely cold woman viewed seriously with one’s hands. Moreover, he clearly understood that he had yet to attain that qualification…

However, that Xiao Yan, whom he had mocked a couple of times, had reached this stage ahead of him. This was a blow that caused him to feel extremely terrible.

Ye Zhong and Xin Lan in the Ye clan seats, who had tensed hearts, finally sighed in relief at this moment. The both of them appeared to have been relieved of a great burden. The result that Xiao Yan had obtained was too dazzling. It had even reached a kind of dream-like stage. They never doubted Xiao Yan’s abilities. At the same time, however, they did not expect him to break the record set by the witch from the Cao clan on the first test.

“The Ye clan is saved…”

Ye Zhong’s excited hand slightly trembled. His various worries during this period of time had completely disappeared at this moment. He believed that with Xiao Yan’s extraordinary abilities, it should not be too difficult for Xiao Yan to obtain at least a third place in the remaining two sections…

Elder Cheng by the side of the stone tablet was startled as he looked at the blood-red number. A moment later, he finally nodded. After which, his eyes looking at Xiao Yan had become unusually hot…

1395. Other people might not be certain about what this number represented but he clearly understood it. This represented that Xiao Yan’s Spiritual Strength had already reached the tier 7 high grade level!

Moreover, the most precious thing of all was Xiao Yan’s age. By being able to reach the tier 7 high grade level at such an age, it was likely that only Cao Ying among the younger generation could compare to him. In other words, the Pill Tower had discovered another demon-like genius after Cao Ying!

Of course, Elder Cheng would naturally not think that Xiao Yan could really stand shoulder to shoulder with Cao Ying. After all, that record was something that Cao Ying had created two to three years ago. Today, it was likely that she had already reached an even more terrifying level. Xiao Yan’s age was similar to hers. If one were to really compare them, it was likely that Cao Ying was a little better.

This was indeed the case based on common sense. However, how would he know that this current number was not Xiao Yan’s full strength?

One should always hold a little back in everything one does—leave oneself with some room to form tactics. Xiao Yan was used to doing this. Moreover, creating this result was also something that was beyond Xiao Yan’s expectation.

Although Xiao Yan did not anticipate it, he was able to understand why his Soul Value was this high. This was related to the spiritual aura within his soul.

Although spiritual aura did not possess the great might of Dou Qi, it appeared to be able to cause the value of one’s soul to be raised. If one alchemist had spiritual aura and another did not, the result of the test would definitely be vastly different even if they were of the same tier…

Xiao Yan had quietly suppressed the spiritual storm when it had appeared earlier and prevented his Spiritual Strength from completely erupting. Ultimately, he believed that holding something back would provide him with the greatest guarantee of security.

“Ha ha, not bad, not bad…”

Elder Cheng fondled his beard and laughed. From the looks of it, be appeared extremely excited. If he were to report this matter to the top, it was likely going to stir quite a large commotion.

“The soul test will end here. The person ranked first is naturally Xiao Yan, who represents the Ye clan. Additionally, I will also congratulate him for breaking the record. It is likely that this record of his will not be broken in any test for a very long period of time in the future…”

Everyone in the hall quietly let out a bitter laugh upon hearing Elder Cheng’s voice. This Ye clan was indeed like a hundred-foot worm that refuse to buckle. Even in a life and death situation, they were able to find such a terrifying helper. From Xiao Yan’s performance, it was likely not going to be a problem for Xiao Yan to enter the top three in the two subsequent tests. As long as they passed this test, the Ye clan would once again possess the strength to survive…

“Next, will be the last two sections of the test. Once these two sections are over, the final result for this season’s five great clan test will appear…”

Elder Cheng smiled at Xiao Yan. His smile was filled with an additional earnestness and friendliness. He was undoubtedly much warmer when compared to his indifferent self earlier.

Xiao Yan also smiled in response to Elder Cheng’s friendliness. He took two steps back, only to sense a gaze that caused his soul to feel a little fear. He turned his head, and his eyes collided with the black-clothed lady in the leader’s seat of the Cao clan.

The corner of Cao Ying’s mouth was lifted into a slight arc that was filled with temptation when she saw Xiao Yan shoot his eyes over. A bewitching aura spread all over the place, causing her to appear like a beautiful demon spirit that had descended into the mortal realm….

A cautiousness quietly rose within Xiao Yan’s heart in the face of the fearless demonic temptation of this demon spirit.

This lady was not someone that he could randomly touch!