The two months of preparation passed in a blur of intense and focused training. The Azure Serpent Lake became a crucible, its quiet valley echoing with the clash of spiritual energy and the roars of demonic beasts as Li Yu and his friends sharpened their skills against each other.
When the day of the Triennial Sect Grand Competition arrived, the entire Green Mountain Sect was buzzing with electric energy. Thousands of disciples, from the lowliest outer sect members to the reclusive inner sect geniuses gathered in the sect's massive central arena. It was a colossal structure, a series of ten massive, circular stone platforms arranged in a grand circle with a single larger and more ornate platform in the center reserved for the final rounds. High above, floating on clouds were the viewing platforms for the Sect Master and the various elders.
Li Yu, Brother Kai, Hu Jian, and Lin Tao arrived together, a small, unassuming group that was easily lost in the sea of powerful and ambitious disciples. Li Yu's aura was carefully suppressed to the Fifth Stage of Qi Condensation, a level that was impressive for his age but not so monstrous as to be unbelievable. Hu Jian and Lin Tao, both at the Third Stage, were a picture of coiled nervous energy. Their eyes wide as they took in the sheer scale of the event. Li Yu was also overwhelmed by the sheer number of people and the spectacle. He was taking the moment in as well, forging a memory to remember. Brother Kai was over the age limit so he was there purely as a spectator and a pillar of support.
"So many experts," Hu Jian murmured, his usual boisterousness replaced by a sense of awe. "I can feel at least fifty auras that are stronger than mine."
"That is why we are here," Li Yu said. "To test ourselves against the strong. Remember the goal. It is not to win no matter what but to learn. Fight with everything you have but do not be afraid to lose. Every battle is a lesson."
His friends nodded, their expressions firming with a shared resolve.
The competition began with the drawing of lots. A massive glowing crystal sphere floated in the center of the arena. Hundreds of disciples flew up, placing their hands on it and receiving a numbered token that assigned them to a specific platform and opponent for the preliminary rounds.
Hu Jian went first from their group. He returned with a grim smile, holding a token with the number '78'. "Platform Six. My opponent is a Fourth Stage disciple from the Fire Cloud Peak named Wang Lei."
Lin Tao was next, returning with the number '121'. "Platform Nine. I am facing a fellow Third Stage disciple, a woman from the Spirit Herb Hall named Chen Hua."
Finally, Li Yu approached the sphere. He drew his token. Number '34'.
"Platform Three," he said upon returning to his friends. "My opponent is a Fifth Stage disciple named Feng Tao."
"Feng Tao?" Brother Kai's brow furrowed. "I know that name. He is one of Jin Ao's most loyal followers, a core member of Elder Jin's faction. Be careful, Junior Steward."
"Thank you for letting me know, I appreciate that," Li Yu replied, his expression unchanging. "It is a good opportunity to test my skills."
The preliminary rounds began with a deafening roar from the crowd. On Platform Six, Hu Jian's battle was a clash of pure explosive power. His opponent, Wang Lei, was a classic fire-attribute cultivator. His martial spirit was a Fire-Mane Ape and he fought with a reckless overwhelming aggression, his fists wreathed in spiritual flames.
In the past, Hu Jian would have met this aggression with his own, turning the fight into a brutal slugfest. But his training with the group had taught him better control. He manifested his own Armored River-Tiger spirit but he did not fuse with it. Instead, he let it circle the battlefield, a constant threatening presence that forced his opponent to divide his attention.
Hu Jian focused on defense. He used a simple earth-attribute shield technique, a common art he had purchased with his own contribution points. He did not try to win; he simply endured. He weathered the storm of fiery punches, his shield cracking and reforming, his body absorbing the shocks, his expression one of grim, stubborn determination.
"Is that all you can do, you muscle-bound oaf?" Wang Lei taunted, his attacks growing more frantic. "Hide behind your shell like a coward?"
Hu Jian did not reply. He simply waited. After five minutes of relentless, exhausting attacks, Wang Lei's spiritual energy began to wane with his movements becoming a fraction slower. It was the opening Hu Jian had been waiting for.
"Now!" he roared internally. He dropped his shield and with a surge of power he fused with his tiger spirit. His body swelled, his muscles bulging and fiery stripes of spiritual energy appeared on his skin. He did not meet his opponent's attack head-on. He used a clumsy but effective movement technique, sidestepping the main blow and bringing his own fist, now wreathed in the power of a king of beasts, crashing into Wang Lei's exposed side.
There was a sickening crunch of breaking ribs and Wang Lei was sent flying from the platform, defeated. Hu Jian stood, his chest heaving, a wide triumphant grin on his face. He had not just won with power; he had won with patience.
On Platform Nine, Lin Tao's battle was a silent and deadly chess match. His opponent, Chen Hua, was a wood-attribute cultivator. Her spirit was a Thousand-Vine Creeper and she was a master of control. The moment the battle began, the stone platform was covered in a writhing mass of thorny, spiritual vines that shot up to ensnare Lin Tao.
But Lin Tao was a master of a different kind of control. He manifested his Blue-Ringed Octopus spirit and its eight ethereal tentacles became an extension of his own will. He did not try to fight the vines. He simply moved, his steps a fluid evasive dance. As the vines shot towards him, his water whips would lash out, not to sever them but to gently redirect them, causing them to tangle and knot with each other.
The battle was a strange, almost beautiful spectacle. It was a contest of skill and control with neither side landing a decisive blow. Finally, Lin Tao saw his chance. He allowed a single vine to wrap around his ankle. Chen Hua, thinking she had finally caught him, poured her energy into the attack. But at that moment, Lin Tao reacted.
He activated his own spirit's innate ability. The beautiful blue rings on his octopus spirit's tentacles began to glow. A wave of numbing spiritual venom traveled from the octopus through Lin Tao's own body and down into the vine that was touching him. The venom shot through the entire network of vines in an instant.
Chen Hua's face went pale as she felt her connection to her spirit suddenly went numb. Her writhing vines went limp, falling to the platform like dead ropes. In that moment of shock, a single, silent water whip snaked around her and gently but firmly pushed her from the stage. Lin Tao had won, not with power but with cunning.
Finally, it was Li Yu's turn on Platform Three. His opponent, Feng Tao, was a tall sneering disciple with the aura of a predator. His martial spirit was a Wind-Slicing Falcon and he was known for his incredible speed.
"So, you are Li Yu," Feng Tao sneered as the match began. "I have been looking forward to this. I will enjoy breaking your limbs and throwing you out of here."
He vanished. He moved with a speed that was almost impossible for a Fifth Stage disciple to follow, his body a blur as he circled Li Yu, looking for an opening.
Li Yu stood in the center of the platform, his expression calm. He closed his eyes. He did not try to track his opponent with his sight, his eyes weren't going to keep up when his body was self suppressed. He simply listened and spread his spiritual sense outward. His spiritual sense was feeling the subtle disturbances in the air, the faint whispers of his opponent's movement.
Feng Tao appeared behind him, his hands shaped like talons wreathed in sharp green wind-blades. "Fool!"
Li Yu did not turn. He simply swayed to the side, a single, fluid motion of his «Rippling Shadow Step». Feng Tao's attack sliced through the empty air where he had been a moment before.
The battle that followed was a frustrating one for Feng Tao but a deeply unsettling one for Li Yu. He could dodge. His techniques were profound, his spiritual sense was sharp and his body was resilient enough. But he quickly realized a terrifying truth: he had no true killer instincts. While true warriors could predict several steps ahead he would only see one or maybe two. While others might have an instinct about where the opponent would go or what they would do, he could only react after sensing or seeing it.
Feng Tao was a true warrior. His every movement, his every feint was designed to create a fatal opening for his attacks. Li Yu, by contrast, was someone who reacted. He was a master of defense and evasion but he could not see the natural flowing openings for a counter-attack. His mind kept focusing on how to keep himself safe and unharmed rather than focusing on how to finish off his opponents. Feng Tao's mind was a predator's, constantly seeking the weakest point to strike.
"Stand and fight, you coward!" Feng Tao roared, his frustration mounting.
'He's right,' Li Yu thought, a cold realization dawning on him. 'I'm just dodging. I'm not fighting. His Koi spirit, a being of vitality and absorption offered him no offensive insight. There was no bloodlust, no innate understanding of combat. It was a heaven-defying tool for cultivation but on the battlefield, it was a silent observer.
He himself was even worse. With his cultivation and body suppressed, he didn't have access to the speed and power that he normally had. He wasn't faster than Feng Tao in his current state so he couldn't take advantage of the few openings he did see. As soon as he saw them, Feng Tao had already shifted and moved before he could attack himself.
His lack of true combat experience was showing. He had been used to being a monster, overpowering his opponents with strength and overwhelming force. Now he needed to be more technical and seasoned.
He had to think of a different way to beat him. A thought came to his mind, something he had done during a sparring session that caught Hu Jian off guard. He slowed his movements and was standing in place now. Waiting for Feng Tao.
Feng Tao, seeing this as an act of supreme arrogance, poured all of his power into a final decisive strike. He fused with his falcon spirit, his speed increasing to a terrifying degree, his hands becoming a whirlwind of slicing wind energy. He shot towards Li Yu's exposed back.
Li Yu did not see an opening. He did not sense a weakness to take advantage of. He simply executed a pre-calculated maneuver that he had used before in his spar, believing that it would work. He couldn't match Feng Tao's speed so he would remove his speed from the battle. His hand came up to meet the attack. He was using a basic shield from the «Flowing Water, Still Shadow» art.
To Feng Tao, it looked like a suicidal last-ditch defense. But as his wind-blades struck the simple water shield, they did not shatter it. They were simply… absorbed. The shield rippled, the chaotic wind energy flowing into it and vanishing without a trace. It was the principle of the «Tidal Aegis Art», a concept of yielding and dispersing.
In that moment of shock, as his opponent was overextended and off-balance, Li Yu's other hand, which had been resting at his side, suddenly shot forward. It was a simple, direct palm strike. The first seal of the «Deep-River Seal». He used only the power of a Fifth Stage disciple but his control was perfect.
Crushing Current.
The palm struck Feng Tao's chest. There was no loud explosion. There was only a dull, heavy thud. Feng Tao's eyes went wide as a deep, heavy and irresistible force of Qi invaded his body. It disrupted his meridians and sent him stumbling back, a spray of blood erupting from his lips. He fell to his knees, defeated.
He had won. But as he walked off the platform, the victory felt hollow. It had been a victory of profound techniques and a superior foundation over a better fighter. He had crushed his opponent with a power his enemy could not comprehend because his body was stronger. He didn't think there was anything wrong with winning with his strengths but he realized his lack of combat experience was hindering him more and more.
He was growing up in a sheltered glasshouse, one of his own doing. While it had its advantages and suited his nature more, it also came with disadvantages. It was similar to when he was ambushed, those much weaker than himself there were no issues for him to handle. But once that foundation expert showed up, he had no idea what to do or how to react.
He met the proud, smiling faces of his friends, but his own heart was heavy. The first round was over. He had passed the test, but he had also learned a humbling, dangerous lesson about himself.