“Why do I have to wear this again?” Yu asked, pulling at the edge of her dress, whose skirt was far too short in her opinion.

“It is the current fashion in the capital for casual noble dress. Your rank as my disciple dictates that is what you wear. Not that I keep track of such things, but I trust the clan seamstress to advise correctly.”

“Are you sure? It’s awfully short.”

“Any misjudgment on the seamstress’s part would reflect equally poorly on her as it would you. From what I understand, over the last century, noble women cultivators in and around the capital have taken it upon themselves to show increasingly more skin. It is why your shoulder was exposed and your Qipao had such a large slit in the leg at the palace meeting. It was a much more official and formal setting, thus the dress was more subtle, but this tournament is supposed to be a relaxed event, thus the skin. While I personally could not care less, anything that draws positive attention to you is something I support.”

“Positive attention? How is showing my legs and arms going to bring positive attention?”

Her current wardrobe lacked sleeves and her legs were exposed to the knee. Moreover, what she was wearing was extra tight. That plus the exposed skin... well, exposed was the right word, because that was how she felt. She could feel the looks she was getting from the men around her, and they made her skin crawl.

“I am not a good judge, but I have been told you are quite attractive for a young woman. You should use that to your advantage. You do with the prince after all, I have seen it while monitoring your status. What is the difference?”

Yu covered her blushing face. “It’s different! Can we not talk about this, please?”

He shrugged. “You brought it up. And it is not as if you are some vulnerable mortal girl. You are a cultivator on the verge of condensing her Qi.”

“Never mind. I wish I hadn’t said anything. Just forget I asked.”

“As you wish. But if what I hear about you is true, you should flaunt your assets. Especially against men – well most men. Being sexy can be a weapon like any other, and you weaken yourself when you leave weapons unused.”

“I can’t believe you just said the word sexy. No. Just no. I am not talking about this with you!”

Yu regretting bringing it up at all. This conversation was utterly mortifying.

Instead, she tried to deflect the conversation. “Why no Poki today? Wouldn’t it be a perfect place to show him off.”

He waved it away. “It is not even close to formal enough for me to include my dear Poki in this event.”

“Hello citizens of the Empire!” The announcer’s voice echoed around the arena.

“Thank the Heavens,” Yu whispered, glad for the unintended rescue.

“Welcome to the first day of the semi-finals. This event will take place over a period of a few days, each full the brim with one-on-one battles between fierce competitors. There are eighty competitors but there can be only twenty winners. I hope you came prepared to cheer for your favorites. I know I did!”

Yu winced as the crowd roared and she put more focus into her sense-control mantra.

One of these days, I need to figure out how to control that.

Not being able to raise or lower the sensitivity of individual senses has always been a real problem for Yu. She had hope that Qi compression would somehow allow her to gain more precise control, but nobody really knew since, as far as Yu was aware, she was the first to actually successfully complete the foundation building method Granda Huan had used. Everyone else died… horribly.

On that happy thought, the announcer continued.

“The pairings will be determined by luck, because sometimes luck is the greatest strength of all.” The crowd’s reaction was mostly agreement in one form another.

The rotating enchanted display appeared just as it had the prior days of the tournament and on it was no longer the announcer, but rather a bamboo bucket. In the bucket were painted sticks, half green, half gold.

“Here is how it will work. All of the contestants will come forward in order of their winning the prior round and pick one of those sticks. On each color stick is a number, from one to forty. The combatants will clash with their matching number of the opposite color. There will be no trading or swapping or hiding of numbers. It will be viewable by all of us as they pick it and show their number.”

“Well, that’s at least transparent,” Yu said.

“Yes. Surprisingly open of them. The fact that there are no back-room deals taking place tells you what?”

Yu thought about that. “Ummm… that nobody really cares about the outcome?”

“Exactly so, proving yet again that this entire endeavor was a complete waste of our time.”

“How else were they going to pick the last twenty people?” Yu asked him, honestly curious how he would do it.

“That’s exactly my point. Who cares? Pick them out of a barrel, roll bones, let the emperor decide. Who cares? None of them matter.”

“Well, personally, I’m glad Li gets a chance.”

“Your friend’s chances are actually lower now. I could have just forced her in, like I did you, if a more political method had been selected. Using this process, I give her at best a fifty percent chance.”

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

Yu glared at him. “How do you figure that? I thought you didn’t pay attention to my friends.”

“I did not, nor do I intend to. However, I have been watching the tournament, which, I will point out, you have not; although you cannot be blamed as your absences were mostly due to your recovery.”

That was fair and hard to argue against. It annoyed Yu, but she had to ask. “You think she only has as fifty-fifty chance?”

“Actually, I am being generous. Her chances are not good. Speaking of recovery though, I understand the healer will lift the blockers soon? Are you looking forward to having Qi again?”

“Yes to both, but back to Li. Why are you so sure? As you said, I haven’t really been able to watch.”

“You tell me,” was his annoying response.

“Well, I can only guess, but Air Warriors without compression are at a distinct disadvantage against most ranged opponents. Based on what I know, mages in general are more likely to advance, so I would wager that most of her opponents will be able to attack from range and whittle her down, speed or not.

She pondered that for a few breaths and tried to be more specific.

“Personally, when I’m across the ring from her, I try to reduce her mobility. That last Ice Mage had pretty terrible form, using throwing motions and basically telling Li where he was aiming. He also only targeted the torso, which was not the best choice. I have to imagine these people are finalists because they aren’t stupid, so they’ll focus on her legs. They also probably have better aim, so there’s that too.”

“Decent analysis. For your information, no Earth Warriors made it though, and the mage to warrior count is fifty-six versus twenty-four.”

Yu exhaled. She had to admit those numbers did not favor Li at all.

Then suddenly Yu, who had been keeping an eye on the enchanted display, saw Li approach the bucket. She had a huge grin on her face as she skipped, skipped, across the circle to the sticks in the center. Yu could only shake her head at her friend’s antics.

“And our next fighter is named Jao Li,” the announcer called to the barely interested crowd. “As you can see by her robes, she is a member of the prestigious Black Dragon Sect, one of the five largest in the Empire.” He looked away for a breath or two and then spoke again. “What a treat! I’m told the leader of that sect is presently in the stands.”

“What!?” Yu yelped. “Oh, no. No no no!” Yu looked around frantically, scrambling to think of something, anything she could do.

Then her master’s utterly mad face was on the big display as he looked around, completely confused. He then saw his face on the screen and was first astonished, then excited, and then waved both his hands in the air wildy, while… looking over at Yu, who was suddenly also on screen.

The hefty portion of the crowd which had mostly been clapping casually for each participant, went berserk as soon as she was on screen. Whistles, cheers, screams, declarations of her beauty, marriage proposals, and Yu could make out far too many cruder comments, all flooded her sensitive hearing. She watched as a gigantic version of herself and her much too exposed skin blushed scarlet as she covered her face.

Kill me now. Please, Gods, send down lightning and end it…

Thankfully, the display soon turned back to Li, who was pulling out a stick. She showed the gold number seventeen proudly and then skipped back to her spot on the sidelines.

“Well, that was exciting,” her master opined with a satisfied look on his face.

“Did you enjoy doing that to me?” Yu asked him flatly. “Ignore that question, I know you did.” Then, more to herself than him, added, “Can’t I just go into the spirit realm already?”

“It was too good an opportunity to waste, and I did tell you to flaunt your assets,” was his answer. “Weapons are meant to be wielded after all.”

***

The fights were… insightful, if a bit frustrating to Yu. For example, during a particularly brutal battle between a Wood and Ice Warrior, Yu found herself almost screaming in frustration when the Ice Warrior leaped into the air with his spear, leaving himself wide open for the Wood Warrior’s spines. But instead of attacking, he allowed his opponent to reach the ground where he use Iced Burst of all skills, a Grade 1 Qi skill which was mainly useful for wide area attacks against weak enemies. She therefore was not the least bit surprised when the bark-like skin of the Wood Warrior, the only other skill shown by him, was barely punctured.

That led to Yu’s second insight. These combatants barely had any Qi skills at all. At first she was astonished, but then she remembered that less than a fraction of a fraction of a fraction of cultivators in the empire had access to Qi skills. Or any resources to help them cultivate, really.

And that realization was a bit of a wake up for Yu. Despite her situation, she was advancing in her cultivation journey, and it wasn’t because she was talented or gifted. It was because she had been born into a family that could help, and then later because that same family had a connection to a sect.

I’m really lucky, huh?

And that led to her next thought.

What right do I have to complain about anything?

Suddenly Yu felt like a complainer. What right did she have to mope about her master making her stronger, even if she was manipulated to make her that way?

After watching a cultivator with patchwork armor and a bent staff use the same two skills over and over again, she shook her head at the woman.

I bet you would give up anything and everything to have a master who made you stronger. What would you go through to have access to skills? I have what, ninety-something now?

The more Yu dug into herself and her actions and attitude, the less he liked what she saw.

What is wrong with me? I’m a conceded ass.

She turned from the enchanted display to look at her master and reflected on his manipulations.

Why did you do those things, really? What is your true goal, and how much have you sacrificed to get me closer to it? And what’s more, does how you got me there really matter?

Yu sat quietly, reflecting on that question. Did it matter? She thought it did, but how much? What extremes would she endure to get stronger. That caused her to look into herself. Her hopes and desires.

More than anything, Yu wanted choice. She wanted freedom.

The problem was, those took power – the strength to back up her choices and to stay free. But had she earned those things? The answer was blatantly obvious, and it made her think of the words her master had said.

I need to be stronger. To be more.

What I give then, to be more? And is that even the right question? Okay, so I want choice. What will take and am I willing to do whatever that is to get there?

The answer nearly made her laugh. She needed to allow to herself to be manipulated more.

I need to give up freedom in order to earn it. How ironic is that? I have to accept that I lose choice to gain it later. Am I willing to make that sacrifice?

She looked at her master as she asked herself that question.

What have you sacrificed, I wonder? What have you given to make me stronger? And what are you prepared to still? Because it is pretty obvious you’re not done.

Looking at herself from that perspective made her feel like a spoiled child. A brat who complained that she didn’t like a gift because it was wrapped in a way that was hard to open.

Am I really that conceited? How am I any different from these spoiled nobles who are gifted things but don’t appreciate them, who believe they deserve better just because? What kind of hypocrite am I?

Those self-directed questions made Yu furious with herself and at the same time want to do better. She wanted to be better. And in order to do that…

Still looking at the man next to her, she thought, You said I have and would earn what I will become. Well, it’s time I start proving it.

So Yu took a deep breath and said in a firm voice, “Master?”

He turned his head to look at her and must have been surprised by whatever he saw, because his eyes went wide just for a moment, and then narrowed as his face got serious.

She tried to put as much earnestness and honesty into her words as she could.

“Thank you.”

His eyes flashed for a moment, then his face softened. “You are welcome, disciple.”