Xiao Wufeng stood before the imposing gate of Hell’s Gate, a place whispered about in fearful tones throughout the land. He gulped, staring up at the massive, intricately carved doors. “I’ll just get into the sect, get healed, and leave. That should be easy,” he told himself, though his shaking legs betrayed his confidence.

As he shuffled closer, he noticed a group of new recruits approaching. They looked at him with disdain. “You must be new here, dumbass,” one sneered. The group marched forward, bowing in unison before the gate. A guard appeared, his face obscured by a dark mask, his attire marked with an emblem resembling an upside-down fork.

“The path of Yin or the path of Yang?” the guard intoned, his voice cold and authoritative.

“The path of Yang,” the group replied confidently. The guard called them over one by one. Each recruit engaged in a fierce sparring session with the guard, losing but earning a token. “You may enter for the trials. The path of Yang,” the guard declared.

Wufeng’s eyes widened in horror. “What the hell, those guys are recruits? Even if they lost to the guard, they were decent fighters. You need to fight to get past the gate? I can’t fight… I’m screwed… I’ll just die,” he muttered, panic setting in.

“Are you going in or what, buddy?” a cheerful voice interrupted his thoughts. Wufeng turned to see a bubbly, handsome young man, exuding an aura of infectious positivity. “Why are you standing there if you’re not going to go?” he asked, resting a hand on Wufeng’s shoulder.

“I… don’t know any martial arts,” Wufeng admitted, feeling his face flush with embarrassment.

The young man burst into laughter, clutching his stomach as tears of mirth rolled down his cheeks. “Oh man, what? Ayayaya,” he chuckled. “You’re interesting. My name is Fengxi.” He glanced at the guard in the distance. “Listen quick. You can either take the path of Yin or Yang. The Yin path guarantees you a token to enter the main grounds, but you have to answer really difficult questions. Most people can’t even get one right. If you choose the path of Yang, you’ll have to fight that guy. He’s strong as hell, but you don’t have to win. Strength speaks here, so if you’re somewhat tolerable, you’ll get a ticket. Now, once you get a token, you’ll have to fight three battles and win them all if you chose the path of Yang. If you chose the path of Yin, you need to win one fight. They don’t expect you to be good at martial arts anyway.”

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Fengxi faced Wufeng again, his smile warm and encouraging. “Good luck. If fate allows, we’ll meet again and I’ll treat you to snacks.” With a confident stride, Fengxi approached the guard, sparred briefly, and lost. The guard handed him a token without hesitation. Fengxi’s face lit up like a child’s. “Yay! Hell yeah, I am in!” he shouted, skipping through the gate.

Wufeng took a deep breath and approached the guard, feeling his knees wobble. The man’s presence was dark and intimidating, making Wufeng’s heart race. “Yin or Yang path?” the guard asked, his voice slicing through Wufeng’s fear.

“Y… Yin,” Wufeng stammered. I’ll go for the Yin path. It’s my best shot. I am a scholar, after all.

Hours passed as Wufeng sat in a small room outside the gate, wrestling with a series of grueling literacy tests filled with intricate questions on politics and military strategies. “Okay, Xiao Wufeng, you can do this. You’re a top scholar, remember?” he whispered to himself, his hands trembling slightly as he wrote.

Finally, the guard returned with another masked man, who handed him an envelope.

The guard read the contents, his eyes widening in astonishment. He handed Wufeng a Yin token. “You may enter,” he said, a note of respect in his voice. “How did he get such high scores? Almost everyone fails this test, yet he did better than that one kid who came an hour before him. But is he ready for the martial arts brawl that awaits? Who will win, I wonder?”

Wufeng’s relief was palpable. “Thank heavens! I didn’t have to fight that monster!” he thought, clutching the token as if it were his lifeline. But as he stepped through the gate, the weight of the elder’s words hit him. He had to win at least one fight, something he had never prepared for in his scholarly life. “Oh boy, Xiao Wufeng, what have you gotten yourself into?” he muttered, steeling himself for t

he challenges ahead