Dawn broke.
Hearing the crisp knocking sound, Chen Xiao woke up from his cultivation.
"Come in, Qing Lin."
Jumping off the bed, Chen Xiao picked up a clean robe from the side and put it on.
Because of the medicinal bath last night, he was only wearing thin innerwear at the moment. Although it didn't expose anything, it wasn't exactly presentable.
As he was putting on his robe, the door was gently pushed open.
However, Chen Xiao quickly sensed something was off.
Today, Qing Lin didn't call out sweetly as usual, Young Master, it's time to wash up.
Chen Xiao looked up in confusion, only to find that the person who pushed the door open was someone else entirely.
"Xun Er?"
Looking at the girl with a charming smile, who practically had the words 'Surprise, surprise' written on her pretty face, Chen Xiao was indeed taken aback.
Although Xun Er had been coming to see him often during this time, she had never come this early.
"Qing Lin ran over to my place before dawn and asked Xun Er to come and call Brother Chen Xiao, so you wouldn't miss the registration and assessment time."
Seeing Chen Xiao's confusion, Xun Er explained with a smile.
Hearing this, Chen Xiao didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
The Jia Nan Academy recruitment team wouldn't just stay in Wu Tan City for one day.
"Where did that girl run off to?"
"Brother Chen Xiao might as well guess."
"Given Qing Lin's personality... she went to help me queue?"
On the first day the recruitment team arrived, there were the most people registering and being assessed. If you went late, you wouldn't even get a turn. This was one of the reasons why various cities hoped to be chosen as recruitment locations – they could get a head start.
With Qing Lin's thoughtful and meticulous nature, getting up early to help queue was indeed something she would do.
"Brother Chen Xiao understands Qing Lin very well." Xun Er nodded with a smile, confirming Chen Xiao's guess.
"It's my fault for not explaining it clearly to her beforehand. Actually, there's no need to be so rushed."
Chen Xiao shook his head helplessly, warmed by the little girl's actions once again.
Sighing, Chen Xiao quickened his movements, quickly getting dressed and tidied up. After washing up, he took Xun Er and headed towards the Xiao Family's main gate.
It wasn't until they left the Xiao Family that the sky completely brightened.
But even so, when the two arrived at the designated square in the city center for recruitment, they couldn't help but gasp at the seemingly endless sea of people.
Clearly, there were quite a few people who had the same idea as Qing Lin.
In a way, Qing Lin was quite prescient.
Above the huge square, waves of noise rose into the sky. Countless young people were desperately trying to squeeze into the square. If it weren't for the diligent and disciplined army maintaining order at the edge of the square, these excited crowds would probably have rushed in recklessly long ago.
Qing Lin hadn't grown tall yet and was submerged in the sea of people, making it impossible to spot her with the naked eye.
However, Qing Lin was very clever and had anticipated this problem. Using a branch and her nimble hands, she made a roughly discernible model of a Two-Headed Fire Spirit Snake, held it high in her hand, standing out in the dense crowd. This allowed Chen Xiao to determine her location without even needing to sense it.
"She's so far forward, she must have been here for a long time."
"It's been about an hour since Qing Lin came to find Xun Er."
Chen Xiao nodded slightly and took a deep breath. "Let's go over. That girl has the Two-Headed Fire Spirit Snake protecting her, so there's no need to worry about her safety, but being squeezed in the crowd isn't comfortable either."
Xun Er nodded gently.
Seeing this, Chen Xiao no longer hesitated. He took Xun Er's hand and squeezed into the crowd.
The dense wall of people was impenetrable, but that was only for ordinary people. Chen Xiao, who was already at the Dou Ling level, was not among them.
Protecting Xun Er in front of him, Chen Xiao moved his hands, and the extremely cold ice-attribute Dou Qi within him was slightly released. The walls of people on either side shivered as if pricked by needles, and were forced to squeeze outwards, creating a passage.
With this kind of 'cheating', the two had a smooth journey and quickly arrived at Qing Lin's position at the front.
The congested wall of people outside could only rely on brute force to get ahead, but in this area closer to the center, it was orderly. The lines were neat and tidy, and no one dared to act presumptuously, fearing they would anger the recruitment team.
"Young Master, Sister Xun Er~"
Feeling the stuffiness around her disappear, Qing Lin instantly realized that Chen Xiao had arrived.
Having been by Chen Xiao's side for so long, she had already discovered a little secret: when the weather was hot, it was very pleasant to stay by Chen Xiao's side and enjoy the coolness.
"You've worked hard, Qing Lin. Let's just queue normally from now on."
Rubbing Qing Lin's head, Chen Xiao said.
When they squeezed in, he and Xun Er had seen that Qing Lin had been at the back of this line, repeatedly letting others go first, waiting for them in this way.
Therefore, although Chen Xiao was certain that he could attract the attention of the recruitment team's mentors simply by releasing his Dou Ling level aura, he didn't do so, not wanting to disappoint the girl's good intentions.
Anyway, each line only had about twenty people, so it wouldn't take too long to get their turn.
"It's not hard. Qing Lin had Xiao Ling protecting her, so it was very easy to squeeze in."
Xiao Ling was the name Qing Lin gave to the Two-Headed Fire Spirit Snake.
As the first snake-type Magical Beast she controlled, the Two-Headed Fire Spirit Snake held a significant place in the girl's heart.
Chen Xiao returned an appreciative look and said no more, following the team as they gradually moved forward.
The efficiency of the recruitment team's prediction phase was very high; each person took only about a minute to complete.
Therefore, in less than half an hour, it was Chen Xiao and the other two's turn.
"Place your palm on the crystal ball on the left and inject your Dou Qi. If you reach eight segments of Dou Zhi Li, the crystal ball will light up. Otherwise, you don't meet the requirements. The crystal ball on the right is for testing bone age. The process is the same, but if it lights up, it means you are over twenty years old and don't meet the requirements."
A young man in a tight-fitting outfit stood behind the table, his expression numb, like a emotionless repeating machine, having to repeat the instructions every so often.
Chen Xiao nodded to show he understood, immediately extended both hands, placing them simultaneously on the two crystal balls, and a trace of Dou Qi surged from his left palm.
The next moment, the crystal ball on the right remained completely still, while the one on the left burst forth with a dazzling light, making one worry if it would explode.
Fortunately, the quality of Jia Nan Academy's items was sturdy enough, and the worrying incident did not occur.
Looking at the somewhat blinding light, the young man's numb expression couldn't help but widen his mouth. He rubbed his eyes, confirmed he hadn't seen wrong, and then announced in a surprised tone.
"Qualified!"
"Those behind, please wait a moment. You, come with me first. Those with you can also follow."
The young man was very suspicious, wondering if there was a problem with the crystal ball.
After all, he was a top performer in the recruitment team, possessing the strength of a seven-star Dou Zhe.
But even he couldn't make that crystal ball emit such a light!
Given this premise, the problem arose.
Whether it was a crystal ball malfunction or Chen Xiao's strength was truly far superior, the leading instructor had to be notified.
"It seems Brother Chen Xiao is going to make a splash this time."
Following behind the young man, Xun Er said with a low chuckle.
She had come today precisely to see what kind of expression the recruitment team would show upon discovering that a newcomer registering for the assessment was actually stronger than them.
Looking at it now, it was indeed as expected!
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