Night fell like a blade.
Li Wei stood at the edge of a sprawling forest cloaked in shadows, the air thick with mist and anticipation. The duel with Lin Yao had left his side bruised and aching, but he had been given no time to recover.
Now, this was the real test.
The survival round.
Elder Mo's voice echoed once more from a raised platform:
"You will each be placed in the Forest of Hidden Blades for one night. Survive until dawn, and you may ascend. Attempt to escape, and you will be expelled. Kill without cause, and you will be hunted."
A murmur rippled through the crowd. Everyone knew what really happened in the forest.
It wasn't just a test of survival.
It was a culling.
The trial wasn't watched closely. Accidents happened. Rival sects sometimes placed plants among the initiates. And worse… the forest itself was known to harbor spirit beasts and remnants of old formations—some of which were no longer fully stable.
Yan Rui had warned him: "Don't trust anyone. Especially those who smile."
⸻
One by one, the disciples were led in. Li Wei was the last.
A flash of talismanic light transported him inside. The world spun—and then he was alone, standing beneath gnarled trees whose bark shimmered faintly with dormant runes.
He moved carefully, controlling his breath. He had gathered what qi he could, but his reserves were still recovering.
The forest was quiet.
Too quiet.
Then a low growl broke the silence.
From the shadows emerged a creature with glowing amber eyes, fur like stone, and a horned snout.
A Stonehide Stalker. Late Qi Condensation.
Li Wei's blood chilled.
One-on-one, even at full strength, it would be dangerous. Now…
The beast lunged.
Li Wei rolled aside, barely dodging the impact. Earth shattered beneath the beast's paws. He scrambled behind a tree, breathing hard.
He couldn't fight this head-on. Not now.
He dug into his robe and pulled out the small pouch Yan Rui had secretly given him before the trial. Inside was a smoke talisman and a single Spirit Fragrance Seed—an item that, when crushed, attracted beasts by mimicking the scent of wounded prey.
Risky.
But useful.
Li Wei crushed the seed and tossed it deeper into the trees. Moments later, the stalker froze… and turned. Sniffing. Then it bolted away, following the scent.
He didn't wait.
He ran.
⸻
Hours passed.
He encountered traps—some laid by the forest, others by fellow disciples. He avoided both. His side burned, but he pushed forward.
And then—he heard voices.
He crept closer, moving with the wind.
Three disciples surrounded a girl with a broken leg. She wore the robes of a lesser clan, blood on her face.
"I said stay down," one of the boys growled, raising his blade.
Li Wei didn't think. He moved.
Wind spiraled around his palm—he still couldn't strike with full force, but he didn't need to.
He disrupted their footing.
A sudden gust kicked up dirt and leaves, blinding the assailants for a split second—enough for him to dash in and tackle the lead boy to the ground.
Steel rang.
The fight was brief but brutal.
Li Wei took a hit to his shoulder but knocked two of them unconscious. The third fled.
He turned to the girl, who looked up with wide, stunned eyes. "Why… did you help me?"
"Because next time," Li Wei said, panting, "it might be me."
She laughed weakly. "You're going to die in this sect if you think like that."
He shrugged. "Then I'll die standing."
⸻
Dawn broke like a blade of light through the mist.
Only twelve disciples emerged from the forest.
Bloodied, bruised, changed.
Li Wei walked at the head of them, the girl he saved limping at his side, arm around his shoulder.
Elder Mo raised a hand. "Those who remain… have passed."
Cheers broke out from the outer disciples watching above.
Li Wei didn't celebrate. His gaze drifted toward the other elders—some looked impressed.
Others… displeased.
Especially Elder Yun, whose student Li Wei had defeated.
He whispered something to the man beside him—an older cultivator in red robes with a scar across his neck. The man nodded slowly.
Li Wei saw it.
He knew a target when he felt one settle on his back.
⸻
That night, Li Wei sat alone under the trees at the edge of the sect.
He looked at the stars.
The pendant around his neck pulsed faintly, and for the first time… it responded to his thoughts.
A vision flickered in his mind.
A mountain shrouded in cloud. A sword stuck into its peak, bleeding light. And a voice—distant, cold, and ancient.
"Climb, and be broken.
Fall, and be forgotten.
Or rise… and change the sky."