Later That Year: Cliff Warden Trials, Part 1

Time Until First Rift Appears: 5 Years, 2 Months, 1 Day

"Young master, it is time," an elderly voice drifted through the open doorway. Squinting up from the script he was studying, the young man noticed that the sun had already risen.

Dammit, dammit. Today is the day of the trial. Way to go, dumbass.

Rubbing his eyes, he called back, "Thanks, Mrs. Chuu. Could you please bring some of that wonderful tea the script master left for us?" he asked hopefully.

It didn’t take long for her to respond, though he could hear the reluctance in her tone. "If that is what you wish, young master. But didn’t the script master say it was a potent stimu—"

"Yes, yes, he did," he hurriedly interrupted. "But, you know, with the trials today, I think it’d be better to have that extra pep in my step." He could almost hear her frown.

"As you say, young master. Should I run you a bath?"

"Please and thank you," he shouted back, knowing full well he’d need it.

"A pleasure, as always, young master. I’ll let you know when it is ready."

He rubbed his eyes again and leaned back in his chair. Ugh, this is going to suck. Master Lu Ri had said this year's trial would be much harder than the last—something about increasing the resources distributed throughout the sect and making things “fair”—as he liked to call it—by raising the difficulty across the board. He could already picture the old man’s smirking face as they all struggled.

He glanced down at the scripting he had been trying to decipher for the past few hours. The elegant strokes of the runes mocked him. After four hundred attempts, he was still no closer to understanding how to activate it than he had been the first time.

How is it possible to feel so drained before the day even begins?

Well, doing consecutive all-nighters in a row, I guess I should have expected it, huh? Glancing back at the script, he sighed and moved to put it away with the rest of the script master’s tests. And he was using "tests" very lightly, as they might as well be unbreakable seals from some lost civilization. A memory flashed as he recalled the script master's words:

"Now remember, young master, these are the very basics of scripting. I cannot stay and watch over your progress, but once you have completed these with full activation and can replicate them, I will slowly increase the difficulty. Now off with you—I have some work to finish before I depart."

He shivered. If this was the easiest of the tests, I don’t want to know what the hardest ones are. Scripting was said to be a lost discipline, and as he had found out, it was probably one of the most difficult things he’d ever tried.

"It's a mixture of ancient runes, integrating ambient Qi from the surroundings, while also incorporating mathematics," the script master had said. "Each rune acts as a conduit, drawing in natural energies, but it is through precise mathematical formulas that we shape and control them, bending chaotic forces into harmonious patterns. In essence, it's the perfect fusion of spiritual intuition and logical precision—a language that speaks to both the heavens and the laws of the mortal realm."

He sighed. The mathematics came easily enough, but once ambient Qi and runes entered the equation, things became far more complicated. With his deficiency, understanding the spiritual essence of Qi was... challenging.

His fingers drifted absently to his lower abdomen, where his dantian should have been brimming with energy. But no. Of course not. Even the heavens had deemed him unworthy of such a simple thing.

He’d heard Mei Mei had reached the ninth and final stage of the body tempering stage. He wondered how she was doing now.

Something stirred within him, a cold, hollow sensation creeping up uninvited. Before it could take root, he pushed it aside.

"She made her choice," he muttered quietly. A sudden knock came from his bedroom door, jolting him out of his dark thoughts.

"The bath is ready, young master," Mrs. Chuu said.

Finishing putting the script sheets away, he darted to the door and out of his room into the hall, where Mrs. Chuu was waiting with a steaming cup of tea. Thanking her, he took the cup and gulped it down in one go. It wasn’t overly hot, as Mrs. Chuu always made sure it was at the perfect temperature for comfortable drinking. Bracing himself, he shivered as the bitter aftertaste sent goosebumps across his body.

"Blegh, that stuff tastes worse and worse every time," he muttered. Realizing who he was with, he looked at Mrs. Chuu, who cocked one eyebrow at him. "Uh, I mean, it's delicious as always. Thanks, Mrs. Chuu!"

He dashed toward the bathroom, not waiting for her to respond. As the steam enveloped him, he heard her faint yell, "I will be bringing your robes, young master."

Stripping off his clothes as quickly as he could, he climbed into the bath. Like the tea, its temperature was perfect. His body felt like it was melting like ice in the sun.

Heavenly.

But he knew he couldn’t stay in the bath for too long, even though he really wanted to. Washing off the stink was one thing, but there’s a special kind of funk that comes from pulling an all-nighter. It’s like your body’s way of protesting—Oh, you want to push me that hard? Fine, enjoy smelling like a walking trash heap.

After a rigorous scrubbing, he shot out of the bath as quickly as he had gotten in. Moving to where his old, stinky clothes had been, he noticed they were gone, replaced by fresh underclothes and neatly folded new robes.

Instead of the usual black and blue robes of the Frozen Edge Sect, the new robes were a mottled mix of browns, whites, and greens. They were meant for the cliffs, and unfortunately, wearing the usual black and blue would make him stand out from a mile away. Usually, one only got the robes after the trial, but with him working for Lu Ri Sr. these past couple of months, he got his slightly earlier than expected.

With little effort, he put on his underclothes and fastened his new robes. Once everything was in place, he gave himself a once-over in the mirror on the wall.

Not too shabby, not too shabby, if I do say so myself.

The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

Nodding to himself, he walked out of the bathroom, heading straight for the main entrance of the house. Just as he was about to leave, he saw his mom.

"Uh, hi, Mom. How have you been?" he stammered, unsure of what to say.

"Rin," she said with a slight nod, looking him up and down.

Feeling nervous, he spoke, "It’s for today's trial, you know—the Cliff Wardens," he said with forced cheer.

"I see," was all she said as she turned and moved toward her study, her throng of apprentices following after her.

Frowning, his hand moved to his stomach. "Young master, you know the Mistress—" Mrs. Chuu suddenly spoke.

Startled, he jolted. "Aaah! Where did you come from?" he asked, looking at the old woman.

"Never mind that; it doesn't matter. I am off, Mrs. Chuu. See you tonight," he said as he dashed toward the road.

Mrs. Chuu watched as the young master dashed off, a fond smile tugging at the corners of her lips. She shook her head softly, her heart swelling with both pride and sorrow. That boy... Always pushing himself harder than anyone should, carrying burdens no one so young should bear.

“He’s got the heart of a warrior,” she whispered to herself, her gaze following his fading figure.

She wiped her hands on her apron and sighed, eyes glimmering with a grandmotherly mix of hope and worry. A small chuckle escaped her as she shook her head once more. “Go on, young master. Give them hell, and don’t let them dull your light.”

She glanced toward where the Mistress was, and a pang of sorrow raced through her. "Why do it this way, my lady? Surely, there are better ways than to shut out the only family you have," she said ruefully. But alas, she would do as directed, busying herself with the household chores.

Meanwhile, Rin raced down the winding passages that made up the Frozen Edge Sect, completely unaware of his caretaker’s feelings and thoughts. Not wanting to be late, he picked up the pace.

I believe Master said the trials are going to happen around the Frost Fang Mountains. Ugh, he really is going for it, isn't he? The damn masochist.

The Frost Fang Mountains were—or rather, are—the most dangerous area surrounding the Frozen Edge Sect. I wonder how many will pass this year’s trial, he thought absentmindedly as he continued to run.

It didn’t take him long to reach the entrance to the pass leading to the Frost Fang Mountains. The entrance was packed with participants and Cliff Wardens alike, their mottled robes interspersed with different colors. What surprised him was the number of Frozen Edge Sect members standing and waiting.

One in particular caught his eye. Is that... But before he could get a closer look at the boy, a massive hand clasped his shoulder, nearly knocking him off balance.

“Rin! You're finally here!” A familiar, booming voice filled the air, and he didn’t even have to look to know who it was.

“Gorou…” he sighed, pulling away from the boy's vice-like grip. “You do realize this is a trial, not a wrestling match, right?”

Gorou grinned, his broad frame towering over most of the other participants. “Maybe for you, it isn’t! But I can’t help it if my enthusiasm scares people off.” He winked, and Rin rolled his eyes. Gorou was always like this—strong, loud, and a little too eager to throw his weight around.

Gorou was one of the first friends Rin made while training under Master Lu Ri Sr. He had a few disciples at the time when he offered to train Rin, and Gorou was one of them. He was probably the tallest boy Rin had ever seen, a veritable mountain, and he had only just turned ten years old. He came from the west, apparently, but Rin hadn’t gotten that close to him. That hadn’t stopped Gorou from bothering him every time he saw Rin.

“Yeah, well, try not to scare off the competition before we even get started,” Rin smirked.

As he scanned the crowd again, his eyes landed on the boy he’d seen earlier—tall, thin, with an aura that seemed to exude cold even from this distance. He squinted, trying to make out the boy's face. Was that…?

Before he could finish the thought, another voice chimed in, softer but tinged with amusement. “You two look like you’re already planning to take down half the competition.”

Turning, Rin found himself facing Lianhua, her delicate features framed by the fur-trimmed robes of her tribe. She raised an eyebrow, her usual calm demeanor on full display.

“Oh, please,” Rin replied, grinning. “I’m just trying to survive today without getting flattened by Gorou the Mountain over here.” Lianhua was one of the first to latch onto Gorou's and Rin's little group. Rin still wasn’t too sure of her reasoning, as they’d only known each other for a few months.

“Hey, hey,” Gorou protested, “I’m not that bad!”

Lianhua chuckled, her eyes gleaming with mischief. “No, but you could probably clear the path to the Frost Fang Mountains just by walking.”

They all laughed, the tension of the upcoming trial momentarily easing. But then Rin’s thoughts drifted back to the figure he’d seen earlier.

“Hey, Lianhua,” he asked, lowering his voice, “do you know who that is?” He gestured toward the tall boy standing near the entrance, his expression unreadable.

She followed his gaze and frowned slightly. “Oh... that’s Kaidan, I think. He’s new to the sect, joined just last month. They say he’s a genius, already made it to the seventh stage of body tempering stage.”

Seventh stage? In just a month?

What’s he doing joining the trial for Cliff Wardens? It’s not like the sect would let a prodigy like him go—not even to the Cliff Wardens. He must have completed a special exam, as the Winterforge trials ended months ago.

“Guess we’ve got our work cut out for us,” Rin muttered, feeling a strange mix of curiosity and unease.

Gorou cracked his knuckles, undeterred. “Doesn’t matter. Genius or not, we’ll show him what real Cliff Warden hopefuls are made of.”

Lianhua smiled faintly, a slight crease of worry on her brow.

The Frost Fang Mountains weren’t a place to take lightly. It wasn’t just about fighting; it was about survival, wit, and more than a little luck.

“Well,” Rin said, trying to shake off the unease, “I guess we’ll see who’s ready soon enough.”

As the murmurs of the crowd grew louder, a bell tolled in the distance. Master Lu Ri stepped onto a raised dais just in front of the pass.

"Greetings, all. I am Lu Ri, head of the Cliff Wardens. As you know, I am not one for ceremonies, so I will skip them," he said, tossing aside a stack of papers to the bemusement of the crowd.

"This year's trial is going to be slightly different from previous years. It has been decided, with the generous donation from our young master regarding resources, that a new trial be set up. I believed the previous iteration of the trial to be lacking," he smirked. "So I’ve changed it to be slightly more difficult. But do not fret; Cliff Warden elites will be stationed all over the mountain as your assessors, as well as your saviors if it gets too dangerous."

An audible sigh of relief traveled through the gathered crowd. Frowning, Master Lu Ri continued, "Yet don’t be fooled into a false sense of safety. The Cliff Warden elites are only ordered to step in when your life is actually in danger. That means you have to be a hair’s breadth away from meeting the gods before they’ll be willing to step in."

That brought the mood down quite a bit. Smiling this time, Master Lu Ri continued, "Now that you know the stakes, let me show you what you will be doing in this trial." He motioned for one of the wardens behind him to step forward, who was holding something.

Was that a Qi stone he is holding?

"Now, some of you might know what this is," he said, gesturing to the glimmering jewel in the warden’s hand. "Some of you might not. It’s a Qi crystal."

An audible gasp followed. Rin looked toward Gorou, whose eyes had widened to the point of absurdity, like a toad caught mid-leap, frozen in time. He chuckled at the funny face Gorou made, but he couldn’t fault him. If Qi stones were rare, Qi crystals were nearly impossible to find. Some sects treasured them to such an extent that they would wage wars over them if they were ever stolen. To see one here was a massive surprise.

Waiting for the murmurs to subside, Master Lu Ri spoke again. "I see you understand the value of what my dear colleague is holding. Now, you might ask what you will be doing with this Qi crystal, and honestly, nothing—well, not right now anyway."

What’s the old man talking about now?

"You will be split into three teams of your choosing. There are roughly..." One of the other wardens ran up, whispering something to him before he nodded. "There are two hundred and twenty-five of you participating in these trials, so that means there will be..." Seventy-five teams of three, Rin automatically answered in his head as Master Lu Ri took a few moments to work out the number of teams. "Ah yes, that means there will be seventy-five teams. But unfortunately, we were not expecting so many participants this year and so only have twenty-five Qi crystals available."

Rin's eyes boggled as his brain froze, and judging by the shouts and gasps, he wasn’t the only one.

Wait, wait... did he say twenty-five Qi crystals?!