The second day of the tournament began with Li Heng taking the stage against a Second Realm. With the memory of the humiliation that Sha Xiang had delivered to her opponent the day prior still fresh in He Yu’s mind, he was grateful that Li Heng conducted himself more or less how he always did. As a noble.
Upon stepping into the arena, Li Heng saluted and bowed, despite his higher advancement and station. They were—for the duration of the tournament, at least—to treat each other as peers. With the formalities completed, Li Heng’s jian fell into his hand as he took a stance He Yu had seen hundreds of times.
Given their difference in cultivation, the Foundation disciple stood no chance. The bout that followed was far more civilized than the previous day’s, however. Despite being over rather quickly, the two fighters did manage to exchange several techniques. The Foundation never managed to land a hit on Li Heng, but he did manage to defend—at least for a handful of strikes.
Following his easy victory, Li Heng returned to his seat next to He Yu and shook his head. “It’s all a bit tedious if you ask me,” he said.
He Yu couldn’t really disagree. “Hopefully things get a bit more interesting in the next round.”
“They won’t,” Li Heng replied. “There will still be too many Second Realm disciples left, and the elders won’t allow any truly interesting fights to take place until at least the third or fourth round.”
“What do you mean?” He Yu asked, turning away from the pair of Foundation disciples on the arena floor. Zhang Lifen’s comment about getting what she wanted and making concessions had suggested something similar, but he hadn’t given it too much thought until now.
From her seat just in front of him, Tan Xiaoling was the one to answer. “The matches are set up beforehand. The disciples who are to join the inner sect were all but chosen before the tournament even began. The tournament itself is just a formality. The only thing it really decides is your initial rank.”
“It isn’t as guaranteed as she makes it sound,” Li Heng added, “but it’s close. There’s always the chance for an upset. But competition will be stiff this year, that’s for sure, with all of us along with Xiao Jun’s little coterie.”
“That doesn’t seem fair,” He Yu said.
“That’s sect politics for you,” Yan Shirong muttered from beside him.
“Disciples like myself and Tan Xiaoling will be given easy matches in the earlier rounds to ensure that we qualify for the later ones,” Li Heng said. “Our families are too powerful to risk angering.”
“Such a thing would never stand in the Jade Kingdom,” Tan Xiaoling said. “But if it lets me crush Xiao Jun, I’ll abide for now.”
“So what about me?” He Yu asked, trying not to let his rising worry win him over. If the inner sect was just a playground for nobles, did he even have a chance to make it in? What about having the opportunity to face Sha Xiang? Zhang Lifen had seemed fairly certain that his placement was a given, but how much sway could she have if the elders didn’t want him in?
Yan Shirong scoffed. “You think they’d just cast you aside? Zhang Lifen invited you to the sect herself, and you’ve managed to come further than anyone else who joined this year. The only other disciple who began in the First Realm and has managed to reach Body Refining is that other girl from your village.”
“I didn’t exactly do it on my own, though,” He Yu admitted.
“Who cares?” Yan Shirong asked. “Take whatever advantages while you can. We all have a long way to go, after all.”
He Yu fell into silence as he tried to calm his worry. Yan Shirong was right, however. He’d come far, and the sect would be foolish to keep him restricted to the outer sect. He may be able to reach Golden Core in time without the training and resources the inner sect would bring, but he could do it faster with them. Zhang Lifen had treated his promotion as a given though, so that would have to be reassurance enough.
When Chen Fei took to the stage as one of the last contestants of the day, He Yu’s worry shifted to her. What if she didn’t make it in? She was like him—of low birth. Practically a barbarian by the standards of most outer disciples. She didn’t have the backing of a notable core disciple like he did, either. Then there was the fact that she didn’t like fighting with other disciples. While she’d mostly gotten over her reticence towards sparring, she hadn’t issued a single challenge since the end of the truce as far as he knew.
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At first glance, the match-up appeared to be a bad one for her. Her opponent wielded a spear, while she still fought bare-handed. The boy she was fighting was early Body Refining, which He Yu thought would likely be her salvation as she’d reached the middle Third Realm just days before the tournament. That should, he thought, even out the advantage of her opponent’s weapon.
He needn’t have worried about her. Just before the signal to begin the match, Chen Fei apologized to her opponent. Then, when the gong sounded, she exploded into action. The disciple across from her clearly knew how to use his weapon to the fullest, as he met her advance with a swift thrust.
A formation barrier shimmered into being between Chen Fei and the spear. Unlike the time she’d used it against Xiao Jun, it held. Chen Fei tucked into a roll, coming inside the spear’s reach from below. Then she surged back to her feet delivering an uppercut that lifted her opponent into the air. She followed up with a kick that sent him flying across the arena, then she dashed after him.
He Yu’s jaw hit the ground. “When did she learn that?”
Tan Xiaoling smirked as she looked back at him. “Little Sister has been training,” she said. “Her time up on the mountain was instructive, and I’ve been spending quite some time with her since her breakthrough.”
Apparently.
Chen Fei made good use of her momentum, pressing her opponent and keeping him from using his weapon to its fullest. He was a Third Realm, however, so he wasn’t so fragile as the Second Realms. While he did manage to score at least a dozen hits that He Yu could count, he never really managed to come off the back foot. It was clear that the match was over as soon as it had begun.
When her opponent finally vanished in a puff of mist, Chen Fei looked embarrassed at the cheers. She returned to her seat, the minor wounds she’d taken already closing up. Finally, now that she was among her friends and no longer the center of attention, she deflated.
“That felt so mean,” she said.
“He’s fine,” Tan Xiaoling said. “You did well. Just remember, they’ll put up more of a fight in the later rounds.”
Chen Fei nodded. “You’re right,” she said, but to He Yu it sounded forced. She sat up straight and squared her shoulders, looking firmly in front of her.
“Why did they put her against another disciple of the same stage?” he asked. So far all the Body Refining disciples had fought Foundation stage opponents.
“They wanted to see if she’d fold,” Yan Shirong said. Tan Xiaoling gave him a sharp look, and Chen Fei shrunk in on herself once again.
He Yu couldn’t help but think that Yan Shirong was probably right. The elders had to know that she had difficulties when it came to fighting other disciples. He wanted to say something to reassure or comfort her, but he couldn’t find any words that he didn’t think would sound awkward. So he just kept his mouth shut while wishing that he hadn’t.
Any self-misery that he was ready to wallow in was washed away by the announcement of the next round. Xiao Jun and another female disciple of the Second Realm. The whole time the two of them were approaching the stage and going through the formalities of proper respect, Tan Xiaoling stared death at Xiao Jun. The sense of sharp danger that was always present around her increased as her killing intent spilled over. Many of the disciples seated near them moved further away, creating a ring of empty seats around the five of them.
He Yu wasn’t entirely certain he wanted to be so closely associated with someone whose obvious hunger for violence scared off their peers. Yan Shirong, of course, seemed to delight in it, practically preening from where he sat behind Tan Xiaoling. Chen Fei didn’t notice, and Li Heng was focused on the coming match.
For his part, Xiao Jun either didn’t notice the disturbance in the stands, or he didn’t care. He was late Body Refining, after all—the most advanced disciple in the tournament besides Tan Xiaoling herself, who’d broken through a week ago. The shadow cultivator seemed wholly focused on appearing as casual and indifferent as he possibly could. Against a Second Realm, the match was already decided.
Xiao Jun swung his meteor hammer in lazy loops around him, only occasionally launching it to disrupt his opponent’s techniques. It was painfully obvious he was toying with the poor girl. She was clearly doing her best to put up some kind of a fight, but Xiao Jun would simply disrupt her techniques before she could fully form them. If she tried to advance on him and attack with her weapon, he’d simply trip her up.
The whole time they fought, Xiao Jun laughed. The fight dragged on and on—to the point He Yu found himself growing bored. It was clear all Xiao Jun was doing was trying to humiliate her. He was doing a decent job of it. The girl fighting him was growing more and more frustrated and desperate, completely unable to land a single hit while Xiao Jun simply laughed. Finally, she’d had enough and sent her weapon back to her storage treasure in surrender.
That’s when Xiao Jun struck. It was so fast that He Yu could barely track it. The meteor hammer lashed out in a wide loop, moving at blinding speed. The instant the weight at the end made contact with the side of her head, she vanished, transported to safety by the arena’s formations.
“Outer Disciple Xiao,” thundered Zhou Shanyuan’s voice. It was a deafening sound, and although He Yu could still feel nothing of the sect leader’s presence, Xiao Jun slammed to the ground. “Outer Disciple Hou surrendered to you, ending the match. See that you conduct yourself in a manner befitting your advancement.”
Although the weight of Zhou Shanyuan’s spirit had retreated, Xiao Jun kowtowed before returning to his seat.
As he returned, Tan Xiaoling stood, raising her chin in his direction. “Xiao Jun,” she said. “When we finally exchange techniques, I will show you no mercy. I will butcher you like a rabid dog. Pray that your advancement fails you, so that your death may be swift.”
Xiao Jun shot her an unbothered grin. “I’ll look forward to the day, Jade Princess.”
Even though Xiao Jun left the arena rather than sit for the remainder of the fights, Tan Xiaoling’s killing intent took a long time to fade.