Chapter 108: Assessment (Eighth Chapter, Please Subscribe)

Xiao Yan and his companions glanced at Luo Bu, who was poisoned, then at the Little Doctor Fairy, whose expression remained serene. They swallowed nervously, never imagining that the usually gentle Little Doctor Fairy could become so terrifying when angered.

“He deserved it. How dare he bully the young master? If Sister Xian’er hadn’t acted, I would’ve let Little Flame teach him a lesson,” Qinglin said, stroking the twin-headed Fire Spirit Snake coiled around her wrist.

Xiao Yu and the others looked at the small snake on Qinglin’s wrist and found her childish temper rather adorable. If they knew that the little snake could transform into a giant python several dozen meters long, they certainly wouldn’t find it so cute.

“Such a bother!” Qinglin tilted her head in thought, then walked over to Luo Bu. With her small hands, she picked him up and tossed him out of the tent. Dusting her hands, she smiled sweetly and said, “Much more peaceful this way.”

Xiao Yu and the others fell silent.

“Well done,” Xiao Xie said with a laugh.

“Hehe!” Delighted by Xiao Xie’s praise, Qinglin was happier than if she’d received candy. She skipped over to his side and sat down obediently.

Xiao Yu and her companions exchanged glances, finally understanding that neither the Little Doctor Fairy nor Qinglin were as harmless as they seemed. Anyone able to stay by Xiao Xie’s side couldn’t possibly be ordinary or entirely gentle.

Still, they felt no particular unease. Given Xiao Xie’s status as a fifth-ranked alchemist, Luo Bu’s attempts to make things difficult for him had earned him his fate. In the Dou Qi Continent, the weak had no right to insult others without facing serious consequences—being beaten or even killed was not unusual.

Luo Bu had acted out of jealousy. Had he noticed the badge on Xiao Xie’s chest, he wouldn’t have dared provoke him, even at risk of his life.

“Isn’t that Luo Bu? Why is he lying outside the tent? You there, quickly carry him away,” came a sudden gentle female voice from outside, so soft and alluring it could make one’s heart melt.

A woman in green walked into the tent with a warm, graceful smile on her beautiful face. Her eyes, gentle and lively, swept over the crowd, as if a clear spring had flowed silently through their hearts, making it impossible not to be captivated by her uniquely feminine grace.

She appeared slightly older than Xiao Yu and the others, her curvaceous figure exuding a mature charm honed by time, far beyond the reach of the youthful girls present.

Though, in terms of sheer beauty, she was just a shade less stunning than Xiao Xun’er or the Little Doctor Fairy, her genuine gentle aura perfectly embodied the saying “as soft as water,” a compliment she wore effortlessly.

After this woman entered, Xiao Xie noticed several young male students in the tent casting fervent, almost infatuated glances her way.

“Mentor Ruolin! I’ve missed you so much!” Xiao Yu called out in delight upon seeing the gentle woman enter. She darted forward, hugging Ruolin’s seemingly voluptuous yet slender waist.

Ruolin smiled and embraced Xiao Yu. “Hehe, Yu’er, did you enjoy your holiday?”

“It was great,” Xiao Yu replied playfully, nibbling at Ruolin’s delicate earlobe and whispering teasingly, “Mentor, you’re becoming more and more gentle. If this continues, any man you fancy will be hopelessly ensnared by your gentle charms.”

The relationship between Ruolin and Xiao Yu blurred the lines between teacher and friend, allowing such playful teasing. A light blush colored Ruolin’s face as she shook her head indulgently, patting Xiao Yu’s head. Then, gesturing toward Xiao Xie and his companions, she asked softly, “Did you bring these friends? They seem quite impressive!”

“Of course!” Xiao Yu replied proudly, pushing her chest out.

Ruolin chuckled, released Xiao Yu, and smiled at the dozens of new students waiting outside in the sun. “Come in, everyone!”

Hearing her speak, the newcomers, who were sweating buckets under the blazing sun, beamed with relief and hurriedly scrambled into the shade of the tent.

Admittedly, though such a harsh method might seem inconsiderate, it proved effective. At least now, the new students entering the tent were much more subdued than when they arrived, huddling in the shadows and darting nervous glances around.

Mentor Ruolin sat gracefully on the chair at the front of the tent, her eyes shimmering with laughter as she gazed at the newcomers. With a wave of her slender hand, a flash of light from her storage ring revealed a green parchment scroll and an ink brush.

Lifting her beautiful eyes, Ruolin smiled lazily. “Congratulations to all of you for passing the preliminary test and officially entering the gates of Canaan Academy. However, the academy needs to assess each student’s potential, so I’ll need to know your current exact strength.”

“Eight Dou Qi segments corresponds to an F-level potential, by the academy’s standards.”

“Nine segments, E-level.”

“One-star Dou Practitioner, D-level; two-star, C-level; and so forth, up to S-level, which requires five-star Dou Practitioner status. Of course, the age limit here is under twenty.”

“Hehe, in the past ten years, the academy has only encountered one new student with S-level potential—a little enchantress who’s now quite remarkable here!” Ruolin covered her red lips, eyes twinkling. “I don’t expect another genius of her caliber, but if I could recruit a B-level or even an A-level…”

At this, Ruolin’s gaze lingered, intentionally or not, on Qinglin and Xun’er. In her perception, only these two among the newcomers were above three-star Dou Practitioner. As for Xiao Xie and the Little Doctor Fairy, she couldn’t discern their true strength at all.

“All right, let’s begin! Start from the left—state your name, level, and age,” she said softly, ink brush in hand.

Xiao Yu and the others sat down, watching the evaluation in the center of the tent with interest.

“Heiyan. Nine segments of Dou Qi. Age: twenty,” announced a dark-skinned young man from the left.

Ruolin nodded and quickly recorded his information. “E-level.”

“Linton. Eight segments of Dou Qi. Nineteen.”

“F-level.”

“Keli. Nine segments of Dou Qi. Seventeen.”

“E-level.”

…

As the evaluation continued, a few more new students entered, having just passed the preliminary test in the outer plaza. After being sternly warned by some senior students, they obediently joined the line, waiting to report their own data.

Of the nearly twenty who had gone before Xiao Xie’s group, most were below the Dou Practitioner level. Some had originally reached nine segments but had failed to break through, dropping back to eight.

By the time it was nearly Xiao Xie’s group’s turn, the most impressive result so far was a seventeen-year-old one-star Dou Practitioner. By potential standards, only D-level, but even this brought a hint of joy to Ruolin—after all, to reach Dou Practitioner at seventeen already showed noteworthy potential.

“Brother Xiao Yan, it’s your turn,” Xun’er said, nudging the drowsy Xiao Yan back to attention.

“Oh.” Xiao Yan, jolted from his daze, wiped at his mouth as if there were drool, then looked up to see the beautiful Mentor Ruolin smiling at him. Embarrassed, he replied, “Xiao Yan, two-star Dou Practitioner, fifteen years old.”

“C-level,” Ruolin announced, somewhat surprised. Two stars wasn’t particularly high, but at fifteen, it marked him as a prodigy.

Xiao Yu was astonished, knowing that Xiao Yan had spent two years with his Dou Qi falling to only three segments. Otherwise, he’d be even more formidable now.

“Xiao Xun’er, six-star Dou Practitioner, fifteen years old!”

Xiao Xun’er gave Xiao Yan a sweet smile, stepped forward gracefully, and her clear, melodious voice echoed through the tent.

Ruolin, who was just about to jot down the information, froze, her gentle face finally giving way to shock.