Xuanwu War Sovereign

"The second round of testing is different from the first," Zuo Quan said with a smile. "The first round was just the simplest screening conducted by the All Stars Academy. To even be considered, you have to be a Martial Artist under the age of eighteen and at the Martial Arts Fourth Layer or higher. That’s the most basic requirement!"

"Good heavens! And that’s just the *basic* requirement?" Qin Shou’s face was a mask of shock. He clicked his tongue, his eyes filled with awe. "An eighteen-year-old at the Martial Arts Fourth Layer... In our Qin Family, that’s a talent we might see once a century! We have just one guy at the Peak of Martial Arts Three Realms, and our Clan Leader dotes on him like he’s the family’s most precious treasure! Calls him a once-in-a-century Revival Lord!"

"The Qin Family?" Zuo Quan’s expression flickered as he spoke. "Brother Qin Feng, are you disciples of the Qin Family from Mountain and River City?"

"Just a disciple from a branch family, an abandoned one at that. It’s not worth mentioning." Qin Feng sneered, clearly disdainful of his identity as a member of the Qin Family. He shot Qin Shou a glare, and Qin Shou smiled sheepishly, realizing his mistake.

Seeing the glint in Qin Feng’s eyes and his unwillingness to continue, Zuo Quan wisely dropped the subject. He went on, "The second test at the All Stars Academy is even more stringent. It’s all about one’s martial aptitude."

"Isn’t martial aptitude just divided into Low-tier, Middle-tier, and Top-tier Talent, with the Flawless Saint Body above that?" a voice suddenly cut in.

Qin Feng followed the sound of the voice and saw a young beggar in simple cloth garments, looking impossibly scruffy.

The young beggar looked to be about fourteen or fifteen. He wasn’t tall, his face was dusty, his whole body was filthy, and his hair was a messy bird’s nest, but none of it could hide the sharp intelligence gleaming in his eyes.

"Greetings to you, esteemed Xuan Master," the young beggar said, not at all nervous as Qin Feng’s gaze fell upon him. He grinned and sidled closer, offering a surprisingly proper bow. "This humble one is Duan Xiaolou. I overheard you two gentlemen talking and couldn’t resist joining in. I hope you will forgive my forwardness!" He was remarkably familiar, not acting like a stranger at all.

Qin Shou and Qin Gang quickly moved to block him.

A flicker of shock passed through his eyes. Qin Feng stopped the two of them and stared at the disheveled young beggar with a solemn expression. "You’re Duan Xiaolou?"

"That’s right! I’m Duan Xiaolou! In all of heaven and earth, the one and only Duan Xiaolou!" the boy declared with a carefree grin. He seemed to have a penchant for boasting.

"Wait, that’s not right," Duan Xiaolou said, surprised. "Do you know me? But I’m just a little beggar who’s survived on the charity of others since I was a child. How could a great figure like you possibly know me?"

’Duan Xiaolou... In all of heaven and earth, the one and only Duan Xiaolou!’ Hearing those familiar words, Qin Feng couldn’t help but fall into a trance.

Qin Feng was a man of immensely strong will. He wouldn’t so much as flinch if the heavens collapsed and the earth ruptured before him. Yet, in the face of this young beggar, he couldn’t help but be stunned for a moment. It was because that slogan was simply too unforgettable.

In all of heaven and earth, the one and only. Even a million years from now, that slogan would still echo throughout the world, never fading, revered, cursed, and feared by countless people.

The Demon Ancestor. The Ancestor of Ten Thousand Demons. The tenth Demon Dao Emperor of the Earth Abyssal Esophagus. The peerless Dominator who truly founded the Demon Dao. The patriarch to innumerable demonic disciples in the ages to come. One of the most sinister powerhouses of the Golden Era.

Any one of those titles was an immortal legend in its own right.

In his past life, Qin Feng had been hailed as a peerless powerhouse, the likes of which appeared only once every hundred thousand years, and was known as the Second Demon Ancestor. But compared to the young beggar before him, he was still a pale imitation.

Qin Feng’s heart trembled. Since his rebirth, he had speculated that he might one day meet this fearsome character, hailed as the great ancestor by countless Demon Dao Strong Persons. But he had never imagined it would be today, nor that, so ironically, the man would still be a young beggar.

"Brother Qin Feng, do you know him?" Zuo Quan couldn’t help but ask, noticing Qin Feng’s stunned expression. He sized up the young beggar, but he couldn’t see anything special about him.

Duan Xiaolou’s sharp, crafty eyes were also sizing up Qin Feng.

Although Duan Xiaolou looked young, he had grown up surviving on the charity of others, which had made his mind exceptionally sharp. He was a master at reading people. Based on his observations, he could tell that Qin Feng was indeed familiar with him, which came as a huge shock. He was just an ordinary beggar, while the other was a lofty Xuan Master. He had seen those Black-robed Xuan Masters before; every one of them was high and mighty. Even the great families he’d always had to look up to would have to bow respectfully before such a person.

’How could such a great personage possibly know a little beggar like me?’

"I’ve heard talk in Mountain and River City of a beggar so dedicated to the Martial Dao that he tried to sell himself into service," Qin Feng said with a smile, having composed himself. Although the sudden encounter with such a mythical figure had shaken him, the Duan Xiaolou before him was, after all, still just a young beggar. ’It doesn’t matter how great his future achievements will be!’

"So even you’ve heard about that, big brother!" Duan Xiaolou exclaimed, suddenly understanding. Then he cried out in a huff, "Tell me, are those great families blind or what? A unique talent like me, and they actually turned me away! They said I had Low-tier Talent and couldn’t practice Cultivation, telling me to give up hope completely! It’s infuriating!"

Everyone around Qin Feng started to laugh. They all thought to themselves that Duan Xiaolou was simply unlucky. Martial aptitude was Innately determined. Cultivation was a near-impossible task without it, and the Spirit Medicines capable of changing one’s aptitude were far beyond the reach of a young beggar like him.

Qin Feng, however, could only manage a wry smile. The most legendary thing about Duan Xiaolou wasn’t some powerful talent. On the contrary, the man had the most ordinary Low-tier Talent imaginable.

The man had been rejected by countless Major Sects and Noble Families, and all for more or less the same reason: his talent was just too common.

Duan Xiaolou had been a beggar, a handyman, an enforcer, and even a Medicine Testing Child for a few powerful Major Sects. He was destined to never receive any true Martial Arts True Inheritance in his life. The best he could ever get his hands on were common, dime-a-dozen Cultivation Techniques.

Yet this seemingly insignificant figure, unfavored by Destiny, possessed an indomitable will that not even Cangtian could break.

"The way of heaven is to take from that which has a surplus to supplement that which has a deficit." Ever since he’d learned of his Low-tier Talent, the man had been searching for a solution. He proposed a theory: what is deficient Innately can be supplemented Postnatally. ’Since Cangtian won’t grant me Top-tier Talent,’ he thought, ’I’ll just have to seize it for myself.’

’If the world won’t bless me, I’ll take what I want by force! If I can’t take it by force, I’ll steal it!’ This mindset was, in some ways, remarkably similar to Qin Feng’s own.

Duan Xiaolou was a person of extraordinary genius. He managed to analyze and synthesize countless ordinary Cultivation Techniques, ultimately creating a world-shaking technique that could endlessly improve one’s talent. It was called the Heaven-Repairing Book for All Living Beings. Its principle was to plunder the vital essence of all living things to perfect one’s own foundation, using it to undergo continuous transformation until he finally attained the way of the Demon God.

Qin Feng remained expressionless. Right now, Duan Xiaolou was still a beggar; his incredible journey had yet to begin. Naturally, the *Heaven-Repairing Book for All Living Beings*—the scripture that would one day be hailed as a Mythical Level Celestial Book—had not yet been created.

Qin Feng had no intention of interfering with Duan Xiaolou’s path. Other than the future, self-created Mythical Level Celestial Book, the *Heaven-Repairing Book for All Living Beings*, there was truly nothing about the young man worth coveting.

"Kid, I see something in you," Qin Feng said, stepping forward and patting Duan Xiaolou’s thin shoulder with a smile. "There’s a saying: ’When heaven is about to confer a great responsibility upon a person, it first visits their heart with suffering, exhausts their sinews and bones, starves their body, and subjects them to poverty.’ I believe you will be successful one day!"

Duan Xiaolou fell silent for a moment, mulling over the words. His dark eyes began to shine. He might appear carefree and optimistic on the surface, but he was incredibly sensitive underneath. Qin Shou, Qin Gang, and the others around them might have been smiling, but their smiles were filled with disdain, pity, ridicule, or at best, sympathy. Only this young man in the black robe seemed to genuinely believe in him.

Duan Xiaolou keenly sensed the encouragement coming from the Black-robed Xuan Master. He looked at Qin Feng and declared with the utmost seriousness.

"I *will* succeed! One day, I, Duan Xiaolou, will become a great power—the one and only powerhouse in all of heaven and earth! You’re the only one here who respects me, and I, Duan Xiaolou, will repay you for this in the future!" His voice was firm and resolute.

"I’ll be waiting for that repayment!"

A smile touched Qin Feng’s eyes as he nodded. ’The friendship of the future Demon Ancestor... what an unexpected harvest.’

As the carriages of the Nine Great Families rolled past, the group continued toward the Central Square. Zuo Quan spoke again, "The All Stars Academy’s tests are about to start. Actually, the divisions of martial aptitude that young brother Duan Xiaolou mentioned are just a broad generalization. The academy’s system is much more detailed! They refer to aptitude as Martial Arts Talent and further categorize it by Attributes. The stronger your innate aptitude, the higher the grade of your Martial Arts Talent!"

"Martial Arts Talent, huh?" Duan Xiaolou murmured thoughtfully, a glint in his eyes.

"Look, the testing is starting!" a voice suddenly called out.

A voice drifted over from the distance.

"Song Lan’Er! Second-Grade Water Attribute Martial Talent! Eliminated!"