Concluding The Selection Exam

Wei turned to look at the two remaining jade slips. First, he would take the cultivation method slip, knowing that it came with the immediate benefit of five sparks which would promote his cultivation technique immediately to the next layer.

Then, he would investigate the Windswept Step movement tablet. If the requirements for activation were not too high, he would activate it now. Otherwise, he would take it with him and practice it when he returned to the Arcane Tower Sect.

Moving quickly, he realized he had already spent too much time here. Picking the cultivation method up from the tablet, energy rushed into his core and then back out again into the tablet, activating it and immediately imprinting the second layer of the Phoenix Ascending Hidden Flame cultivation method into his mind.

He felt a searing, hot, stretching pain within his core. The pain was overwhelming, and it made his knees buckle. He knew that his capacity was being violently increased by the power infused by the ancestor spirit within this tablet. He should not have been able to activate the second layer of this cultivation technique by any means.

Not only that, but visions of a phoenix far away began to punctuate his vision. He heard its majestic caw, and as he listened, his meridians blazed with fire and heat. The pain was overwhelming, and he crumpled to the ground before the altar. It felt as if his entire body was burning. Surely this was not a normal basic cultivation manual for any selection test student?

As his meridians burned, the power of the Phoenix rushed through his veins. As quickly as he died, he was reborn. His body did not burst into flames; outwardly there was only an intense, thick drenching sweat that covered his entire body and soaked through his clothes. However, he new that his meridians were being reborn and reshaped a thousand times.

Perhaps surviving this transformation itself was part of the inheritance process. Eventually, his meridians cooled down, and he lay on the cool carpet in a pool of sweat.

He knew instinctively what powers he had gained from the transformation. First and foremost, he could now hold up to three sparks in his core at a time. This was normal and neither superior nor inferior to other cultivation methods. The swordsmen he had just defeated outside was also on the second layer of his technique, and could also hold three sparks.

The second benefit was that he would cultivate much faster. In the same time it used to take him to cultivate one spark, he would now be able to cultivate three. Again, this was not extraordinary, but to be expected.

What was extraordinary was the divine healing power the phoenix transformation had imparted to him. As long as he could recite the mantra, even if he was drained of all sparks, his body would naturally rejuvenate itself at an incredible pace.

Not only that, but he could now alternate the power of his origin Chi to heal instead of harm. What this meant, incredibly, was that if he “punched” an ally, he could actually heal them. Furthermore, although he wasnt able to access this ability yet, he had a premonition that at the third layer, he would be able to project this healing strike across the field of battle, healing his allies from afar.

Finally, this layer came with an incredible increase in his bodies strength and toughness, as long as the Phoenix Ascending state was activated. Essentially, his Phoenix Ascending state’s power had nearly tripled!

After all of this, he was finally able to pull himself from the floor and investigate the movement technique on the altar. However, as soon as he picked it up, a vision pinged within his mind of Na Alakee fighting against a formidable foe in the forests below.

He could spare no further time here. Immediately, he put away the three jade tablets into his robes and quickly fled from the cultivation chamber.

Below, the crystal clear blue waters of the river glistened lazily as they swam towards the forest temple at the far side of the trial arena. On the bridge, where Thomas had fought his opponent, there was now only a massive black smoke stain, as if an incredible explosion had taken place there. From far away, the clang of weapons in battle sounded out from the Temple.

His friends were in trouble. They needed him, and he needed to be there.

He set out at once. If he had been able to cultivate the movement technique, then he could have used it to speed his progress. Unfortunately, he knew that he didnt have the sparks to open the technique. In fact, his core was currently empty.

If it wasnt for the afteraffects of opening the second layer of the Phoenix Ascending cultivation technique, he would have been in really desperate state. However, as it was, the aftereffects included a period when the Phoenix Ascending state would be activated as if he had spent a Chi spark. He could only count this as the ancestors grace.

He raced down the cliff face, jumping from boulder to boulder until he made it to the waters edge, and then raced along the rivers shoreline towards the bridge. When he reached the bridge, he didnt pause to survey the seen of destruction, but carried on without stopping, barreling forward towards the southern Temple.

When he was halfway between the Temple and the bridge, the sounds of battle from the Temple rang clear in his ears, and he pushed his head down and circulated the Phoenix Ascending mantra to push his body to its maximum capacity.

However, at that moment from within the foliage of the forest, he heard another ‘Clang!’ Ring out.

In the vision, it had been Na Alakee who needed his help. He stopped in his tracks, and in a split second made a decision. Although he cared for Leah and was concerned about her, it could be said that he knew instinctively this vision to be the voice of the ancestor spirit, and perhaps even part of his inheritance selection test.

If he failed to heeds its voice, he would surely die.

Recognizing this, he turned and barreled into the forest. The path here was narrow and it wound back and forth through the forest, obscuring his vision as he ran. However, the sounds of clanging steel on steel were getting louder with each passing moment.

He turned a corner to witness an incredible sight!

In midair, Na Alakee was flying down with her spear in her hand, but her opponent was too quick! Below her, a man wearing the garb of a ninja and holding a long katana dodged to the side and then leapt up to meet Na’s spear. As Na fell, the ninja’s katana cut cleanly into her abdomen, slicing her open and spraying a trail of blood along the ground.

”No!” Wei shouted. He should not yet have been able to access this power, nor did he have the spark necessary to use it, and yet pushed to the limit he threw out a Chi Strike!

Bang!

The Chi Strike blastwave carried like an oceans tide across the battlefield, hitting Na Alakee with healing power even as she fell to the ground.

Not waiting to see the result of his Healing Chi Strike, Wei closed the distance to the ninja in three more steps, and then, power of the Phoenix Ascending Hidden Flame guiding him, rose into the air.

The ninja was fast, however, and even in midair was able to twist around to meet Wei’s assault. He lifted his sword and struck out.

“180 Kick!” Wei cried, pivoting his body to dodge the katana strike, and then, miraculously, as if the power of fire was a jet compelling his body forward, brought his right leg around and smashed down on the ninja face.

This the ninja could not dodge. As Wei’s foot connected, his facial bones crumpled, and then his head hit the Earth.

Almost as soon as he was downed, thick black smoke began to rise from his body. Wei didnt have time to concern himself with his dead opponent, however. Turning, he looked for Na Alakee.

“Are you alright?” He asked.

“I’ll be okay. You go and help the others. I think they are fighting the last of them now.”

With a nod, Wei took off again at full blast through the forest. He choose a branching path that led directly to the temple, instead of returning to the river, and leapt up the Temple steps with a single bound.

Just as he landed on the Temple precipice, however, he watched as Aaron Murphy, holding a thick wooden quarterstaff in his two hands, smashed their final opponent in the back and plastered his dead body upon the Temple floor.

To the side, Leah had just notched her bow, and Thomas was also standing, waiting for the fight to conclude.

They had won. And what was more, they hadn’t lost a single team member.

———

The Arcane Tower second floor slowly materialized before Wei’s team. For a moment, they stood quietly, realizing that returning with all five members standing at this point was a major accomplishment.

In the previous round, only four teams had remained. That meant that they had dominated the opposition in the quarterfinals and would move on to the final round with a full roster.

Looking around, the Tower floor was almost empty now. The three judges sat at their table, and looked up with serious, albeit inscrutable expressions on their faces.

To the side, there were 3 other youth present who had been given a bye in the quarterfinals. Depending on the outcomes of these matches, they could either join one of the surviving teams, or may have to fight at a disadvantage in a partial-quarterfinals makeup round.

Other than them, the Tower was empty.

There was silence.

Once or twice, the beautiful female judge opened her mouth as if to speak, but then shut it again. It was as if this moment was sanctified in the quiet, not to be broken by any.

Then, two more forms materialized next to Wei’s team. Incredibly, one of the forms was that of Hui Li!

”You!” Leah immediately cried out, breaking the holy silence.

”Leah, calm down,” Wei guarded her off.

Hui Li scoffed, looking at the team he had previously abandoned in scorn. Of the two that returned, both were longsword users. Hui Li’s new partner was a girl, with pale white skin and dark brunnette hair. Even though she was only twelve, somehow she already had a scar on her face, as if she had fought in real battle long before this test began.

“You three,” the girl said, her voice strangely empty of all emotion. “Join our team. Judges, we can start the final round immediately. The numbers line up perfectly.”

Immediately! Wei was taken a back, but the first to say a word was clearly Thomas.

”Now you wait a moment, who are you to set the schedule! Judges, masters, don’t we deserve a hard earned rest? Other contestants have no right to decide when the matches start, right?”

”Thomas, stop,” the voice who spoke belonged to Wei. The words of the Ancestor Spirit still rung in his mind “Now go and pass this trial. If you continue to do well, maybe I will speak to you again in the future.” Now, his opponent seemed to be offering their life up on a platter.

Could this be considered destiny? A divine test. Was he bold enough to take the challenge of the Ancestor Spirit? Clearly, the spirit had said to go and pass immediately. Therefore, Wei wouldn’t stop them from courting their own death!

“It’s okay. Honorable Judges of the Arcane Tower Selection test, my team is ready and willing to deal the killing blow and achieve victory in this selection. We will soon return to you, prepared to enter the Tower as apprentice cultivators.”

As Wei spoke, the three leaning against the wall shrugged and moved onto the array formation next to the girl and Hui Li. They seemed ready as well, since they had been waiting around this whole time with nothing to do but prepare anyway. In their mind, starting sooner only meant that they had an advantage over Wei’s team.

“Very well, the Final Match of the Arcane Tower Selection Test will commence at once!” The beautiful woman spoke with authority, and before anyone could say another word, the world was already blazing with the lights of the transmission array.

———

A blazing fire surrounded them on all sides.

They were standing on platform in the middle of a volcano. Blazing lava popped and bubbled in the distance, threatening to engulf in flames any who came too close.

The platform was made of smooth, polished stone. Unlike the snow field, they were very close to the opposing side. Not more than 25 feet away, Hui Li and his team stood, vicious scowls written across their faces.

“Hui, let’s get this over with,” the mean looking girl said ruthlessly.

Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author's preferred platform and support their work!

With that, they both drew their swords and began to slowly walk forward, as if they had no fear whatsoever.

Behind them, their three newcomers looked at one another and shook their heads. Since they had just joined, they naturally had no idea about the skills or abilities of these two sword wielders. However, from their demeanour and attitude any idiot could see that they both more than confident.

Because of that, the other three could only draw their weapons and preparing to take up the backline, ready to engage any enemy that got out position. Altogether, they had a boy with a massive mace, a girl with a fan, and a short boy with a gleaming dagger.

“The boy with the sword is vicious,” Wei said for the benefit of Na Alakee and Thomas Portsworth. “He has a cultivation method and a combat technique that goes with his sword. He uses lightning. He was in our group originally, and nearly killed Aaron before leaving us.”

“Heh, if Wei hadn’t saved me, I would have been long gone already. That was before I found my new staff!” Aaron happily slapped the head of his thick, six foot long oaken quarterstaff with his bare hand.

”Got it,” Na Alakee said, and then in a burst of smoke disappeared.

“Well, since you two seem to know each other, don’t let me ruin your reunion. I’ll take those three in the back!” Thomas wasn’t normally one to avoid a fight, but apparently he figured his chances were better three-on-one than with the two in the front line.

“Wei,” Leah said timidly. “I’m glad you’re our leader.”

“And after this I will continue to be. I promise,” Wei said. His smile was both kind and charming, and Leah couldn’t help but blush.

“Okay, I’ll take your word for it!” She responded.

“I’ll take Hui Li on myself. I have a score to settle with him. Aaron, Leah, since we don’t know what Na Alakee will do, and Thomas already said he will take the three in the back, you two take on that sword girl.”

“Got it Boss,” Aaron said, stepping up to the plate. “Leah, you rain down the cover. When I use my Earth Hold Technique, blast her with your Ice Arrow, and I’ll land the finishing move.”

With that, Aaron moved forward like a bear on the hunt, and Leah swept out to the far side, taking up a flanking position. Seeing this, Wei Wang moved in the opposite direction, meaning to pull Hui Li and the girl apart.

Hui Li grinned, then nodded to the girl, who nodded back, and started heading for Aaron.

So far, so good, Wei thought, they are doing exactly what we want. When I have Hui Li alone, I’ll finish him as quickly as possible, and then I’ll back up whoever needs it most. Hopefully Na Alakee will do the same.

“I should have finished you off first back then,” Hui Li shouted across the arena platform. “Then I could have dealt with your little girlfriend and that stupid oaf without anyone stopping me.”

“You never would have gotten close, Hui. Not then, not now!” Wei Wang responded.

“Heh, you never really figured it out, did you Wang?” Hui Li replied. “What are you going to do, hit me? I thought by now you would have found a real weapon. You really think your fists are sharp enough to take on my longsword?”

“Try me, Hui!” Wei Wang shouted at the top of his lungs. He was still burning with the aftermath of the ascension ritual, and filled with confidence. Earlier, he had been able to utilize a healing Chi Strike even though he didn’t have any sparks.

Now, nothing much had changed. The Phoenix state was still burning strongly within his core, but the one thing he had to worry about was it running off. If Wei let this battle go on for too long and the Phoenix state burned out, then he would be in a difficult situation to say the least.

However, Hui Li and his new partner had just finished their semifinal as well, so it was likely they were running on fumes also. There were several possibilities here. One was that Hui Li had found the previous stage so easy he hadn’t consumed all of his sparks. That was very likely, based on his confidence and the confidence of the girl he was with.

Another was that he had somehow managed to cultivate to a higher level than Wei. Wei found this possibility unlikely. The five sparks the second layer of the Phoenix Ascending Hidden Flame had already been difficult to find. To go to the third layer would cost no less than nine sparks. That was almost as much as he had accumulated during the entire trial so far.

The third possibility, which Wei was banking on, was that Hui Li was also at the second layer of his cultivation technique, but was guessing that Wei Wang was severely underleveled compared to him at this time. From the lack of any real weapon, Wei judged that Hui might think Wei was at the second layer of his cultivation technique, but didnt have a real combat manual yet.

If that was the case, Hui would be underestimating Wei’s combat effectiveness severely. The truth was he had already completed two full revolutions of the first and second layer of the Basic Hand-to-Hand Combat Technique, as well as one revolution of the third layer. Additionally, he was on the second layer of the Pheonix Ascending Hidden Flame technique, which we was starting to understand to be a heavenly tier manual.

From his conversation with the Ancestor Spirit, there were typically three grades. If that applied to cultivation techniques, Wei guessed that Hui Li’s cultivation technique was at best an inferior medium grade cultivation manual. Compared to Wei Wang’s inferior heavenly grade cultivation manual, they were an entire step separate!

On the other hand, it could be said that Hui Li was correct in his sword art being superior to Wei Wang’s Hand-to-Hand combat art. In fact, the Basic Hand-to-Hand Combat Technique was an inferior low grade manual! It was the lowest of the low! On that statistic alone, it was sure that Hui Li would win.

When Wei Wang shouted “Try Me, Hui!” The other party scowled and launched forward into a piercing blade strike. The sword tip gleamed in the burning ashen sky. Hui held the blade horizontally, both of his hands holding it high at eye level.

A piercing strike has too much momentum, I have to dodge to either side, Wei thought as the piercing blade hurdled forth.

Left side!

Moving on his feet as quickly as he could, Wei dodged forward, and then relying on his same move from the previous battle, reached out to grab Hui’s hand as he flew past.

This time, however, Wei was burning with the energy of the Pheonix state, and suddenly inspiration opened within his mind.

“Premitory Phoenix Strike!”

“Breakthrough to the fourth level!”

“Knee Strike!”

Wei had glimpsed this several times before, but in the current state, he was finally able to activate it thoroughly. The Pheonix Ascending Hidden Flame technique had a secret breakthrough strike, which would allow the martial artist to transcend their limits and access knowledge one layer higher than what they currently knew.

For Wei, this meant breaking through to the fourth layer of the Basic Hand-to-Hand Combat Technique when he was only on the third layer. In the past, when he was at the second layer, he had already used a partial 180 kick, and a partial jump kick.

Not only that, but the Premonitions of the Phoenix would allow Wei to catch glimpses of things that were going to happen before they did. This was what allowed him to realize that he had to assist Na Alakee in the forest. It needs to be said that the Premonitions of the Phoenix arrive just on time. They should never arrive late, nor do they arrive early. When it’s a premonition, it comes just as it's needed.

Now, using the Premitory Phoenix Strike technique Wei Wang was able to breakthrough to the fourth level of the Basic Hand-to-Hand Combat Technique, and access the Knee Strike.

The Knee Strike is a special technique in all of martial arts. It is well known that the Knee Strike has a more powerful punch than any other kind of strike. So why isn’t it used more often?

Every other strike is able to aim at an opponent. If you want to punch their face, you do so. Kick their ribs, you can. But the Knee Strike, well, it has a very limited target region. Because of this, it can only be used in conjunction with a specialized grab. First you have to move your target into the strike zone, and only then can you utilize the overwhelming direct force of the Knee Strike.

On the third level of the Basic Hand-to-Hand Combat Technique, Wei Wang had learned the technique for grabbing an opponent and using their momentum to throw them to the ground. On the fourth layer, this grab strike combined with the knee to form the Knee Strike. One would grab their opponent, and then use their own momentum against them to guide them into the target zone for the Knee!

Wei grabbed Hui’s arm and pulled him down, bringing up his knee to slam into Hui’s chest!

Slam!

Together, the two were locked in hand-to-hand combat and spiraled across the battlefield. The knee strike had hit Hui hard, but he wasn’t phased for more than a split second.

Twisting his hands, he first broke Wei’s grip, and then slashed down with his sword!

Wei leapt backwards, just in time to make it out of the range of Hui’s longsword. Hui was enraged, now, however, and lunged forth immediately. This time instead of opening with a piercing strike, he didn’t make the same mistake.

Piercing attacks, with their straight momentum, were particularly vulnerable to grab counters. However, a slash with its wide angle of movement was another story! It was impossible to grab a slash in the same manner!

Wei could only dance backwards, pedaling on his feet to the right and then the left as Hui brought his sword down over and over again. He was hard pressed to make a move. Hui seemed to have no opening!

If Wei couldn’t find a way to defeat him soon, the Phoenix State would collapse and Wei’s only edge in the fight would disintegrate.

At that moment, a flash of inspiration crossed his mind. Could he try to use the Phoenix Premonition to access a technique he didn’t know yet?

It was his last shot. If this didn’t work, perhaps he really would fail the ancestor, and not only would he be disqualified in the trial space, but the ancestor spirit would kill him in the mortal world as well!

Reaching into his robes, Wei withdrew the jade tablet that contained the Windswept Step movement technique, even as he continued to dodge Hui’s attacks. Circulating the Phoenix Ascending Hidden Flame mantra, Wei gripped the tablet and tried to inject his consciousness into it.

“Premitory Phoenix Ascension!”

“Breakthrough to the First Level!”

“Windswept Step!”

Hui grinned, ignoring his opponents words and bringing his sword over his head and down for a final finishing strike. They were nearly at the edge of the arena now, and if Wei dodged backwards any further he would fall into the lava at the side and die.

He had no where to run!

However, at that moment, a light breeze danced across the combat arena. Wei’s footstep was light, like a dancing angel, and in that moment he disappeared!

Hui’s blade came down on only empty space!

Front kick!

Wei appeared directly behind Hui, and kicked out hard, slamming his foot into Hui’s back!

“Argh!” Hui coughed and fell forward. In that split second their positions had reversed, with Hui now pinned at the edge of the arena instead.

Ferocious anger rising through his body, his cheeks flushed with hatred and he turned, bringing his sword around and across horizontally.

“Windswept Step!”

”Leaves Dancing in the Summer Breeze!”

This time, instead of dodging, Wei crouched down, the sword blade ripping over his head, cutting off a single lock of hair. From the crouching stance, Wei immediately launched forward, and in that small space lifted up off the ground.

Jump Kick!

Wei’s foot slammed into Hui’s chest hard! This time Hui coughed blood. He was lifted off the ground by the force of Wei’s kick, and for a brief moment saw his life flash before his eyes.

He was over the arena’s edge!

Wei landed just on the precipice delicately as an acrobat. His eyes widened, however, as he watched Hui snarl and bring his sword blade down again. Where was he aiming?

Crzhkkkk!

Hui had actually stabbed the side of the arena! Looking down, Wei was surprised to see Hui barely hanging on, a single hand gripping the hilt of his sword. His robes fluttered in the wind, bursts of lava licking at his feet.

“It’s over, Hui. Just concede, and go home,” Wei said, looking down at his opponent.

”I’ll never concede to you!” Hui shouted.

At that moment, a cry pierced Wei’s ears. Turning, he looked for the source of the noise.

It was Na Alakee! She was fighting two on one. Her opponents were the girl with the iron fan and the boy wielding a short sword. They had closed in on her, within the range of her spear. It looked like all she could do was block their strikes, but had no room in to throw a response.

Windswept Step!

A breeze seemed to lift Wei Wang as he moved swiftly across the arena. The next moment he appeared behind the boy with the sword, facing away from him.

180 Kick!

Even as Wei landed, facing in the opposite direction, he spun and brought his right leg up and around. The 180 Kick was particularly powerful because it could be a high angled kicked that crashed down on an opponents neck or head!

Slam!

Wei’s foot collided with the sword wielding boys neck, and he crashed to the ground in a single hit. In reality, this boy wasn’t really that strong.

In that moment, the girl with the fan was distracted by Wei’s sudden appearance behind her partner, and Na Alakee immediately seized the initiative.

Using her spear shaft to push the girl backwards, she then flipped her spear over to horizontal and pierced out!

In that moment, blood erupted from the girl’s mouth. Na Alakee’s spear had pierced straight through her stomach!

Standing, Wei Wang now turned to the survey the others. Thomas Portsworth was locked in a standoff with the mace wielder, whose weapon was made of black steel and capable of withstanding Thomas sword blows.

On the other side of the arena, Aaron Murphy and Leah Levi were fighting against the pale girl with the longsword. This girls attack style and bearing were very similar to Hui’s.

Aaron was doing all he could to block the girl’s advance while Leah tried her best to get a shot off with her bow. Unfortunately, this girl moved far too quick! Leah kept missing her shots, and Aaron could barely keep up with her movements!

What was worse, it appeared the the girl had decided to ignore Aaron for now, and was trying everything she could to get past him to strike Leah down first! No doubt she planned to kill Leah with a single strike, and then return to work on Aaron’s Earth Bearing Circle defensive technique.

“I wont let that happen!” Wei yelled, and again stepped forward, rushing across the arena towards the pale girl.

This girl really was fast, however. Before Wei made it within striking range, the pale girl quickly turned and threw out a sword slash towards Wei, forcing him backpedal before he get too close.

However, the girl was still just a twelve year old, no matter where she had learned her fighting technique before the Selection Trial began. Fighting three-on-one was just too much for her. As she turned to deal with the approaching Wei Wang, she left herself open to an attack from behind.

At this moment, Aaron abandoned his staff and lunged forward, wrapping arms around the girls torso, constricting her arms and forcing her to lower her guard against her will.

“Twang!”

The arrow pierced the air, and in that split second Wei watched as it deftly flew forward. Aaron was holding the girl perpendicular to Leah. The arrow was placed perfectly, and seemed to glide through the air as if connected to some invisible railing.

Silently, it pierced directly through the pale girls neck! Blood splashed onto the ground before her, and then began to gush out down her shirt. Her already pale face drained of life, and Aaron released her body as she sunk to the ground.

Four down. That only leaves…

Wei stood and turned to watch Thomas in his struggle against the Mace wielder. They were matched perfectly in strength, and it neither seemed to be making progress.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Over and over again broadsword and steel mace smashed together and threw the other back.

Wei glanced around the Arena, refusing to let his guard down. However, where was Na Alakee?

Before Wei could think another thought, Na materialized out of a cloud of smoke behind the mace wielder, and sunk her spear into his back! The gleaming metal pierced through his heart and emerged from this chest, his mouth gapping as his eyes rolled into the back of his head.

Wei let a small smile spread across his face. They had won!

“I… won’t… let… you!”

Wei was astonished as he turned to face Hui Li, whose hands were dripping with blood. He had actually managed to pull himself up by hand, using his own sword to do so!

In that moment, however, all five members of Wei Wang’s young team stood together, tall and proud. On the far right, Na Alakee with her proud black skin and gleaming spear. Next to her, Thomas Portsworth standing tall with his broadsword slung over his shoulder. In the center, Wei Wang, fists at his side still glowing with the last embers of the Phoenix state. On Wei’s left, Leah Levi, bow held horizontally across her skirt. And on the far left, Aaron Murphy, thick oak staff extending vertically behind his back.

“I thought I would deal with you alone, Hui,” Wei Wang said, taking a step forward towards Hui Li with his right foot. At his right and left, even as he took one step, every single member of Wei’s party took one with him. “But I was wrong! This stage isn’t about defeating your enemies alone!”

Wei took another step with his left foot, and so did his party.

“It’s not about who has the strongest technique, or who is the most ruthless!”

Right foot step.

“It’s about friendship!”

Left foot step.

“It’s about loyalty!”

Right foot step.

“It’s about teamwork!”

Now, Wei and his entire team broke into a run.

“So this time, we will all defeat you together!”

Hui Li snarled and brought his sword up to horizontal.

“Like hell!” He yelled, charging forward to meet Wei Wang’s full advance.

“Ice Arrow!”

Leah’s bow twanged, and a brilliantly crystallized arrow covered in ice shot out, slamming into the floor in front of Hui Li and covering it in ice, blocking his path.

Hui Li leapt into the air, trying to leap over the patch of ice.

“Ghost Spear!” Na Alakee had vanished already, and now appeared again like a ghost at Hui Li’s side. Her spear launched through the air as a projectile, forcing Hui Li to pivot mid air and use his sword blade to deflect the spear.

“Earth Bearing Circle!”

Four slabs of rock shot up out of the ground, blocking Hui Li’s path.

“Palm Chi Strike!”

With the last of his Phoenix State reserves, Wei Wang let out a blast of ethereal energy from his palm. The blast collided with Hui Li’s exposed chest, throwing him backwards and knocking him to the ground.

He landed, using his sword to support him, and coughed blood onto the ground.

“Timestone Sword!”

The last voice was Thomas Portsworth, and in that moment time seemed to slow and then, miraculously, ran backwards!

The Earth slabs disappeared, and in their place Thomas appeared behind Hui Li, his sword hilt held high in the air with the blade pointed directly down at Hui Li’s head in an executioner position!

“Sorry, Everyone! But I’ll be taking this kill myself!” Thomas cried out, and brought his broadsword down hard.

The blade cut straight through Hui Li’s neck, severing his head from his body. The head slid down the flat edge of the broadsword slowly, leaving a bloody trail as it went. Hui Li had been decapitated.

In the distance, fire blazed from the pools of lava beyond the trial stage. This time, they really had won.

“Let’s,” Wei said, looking at the four faces staring back at him, “not talk about what happened here today.”

At that moment, however, three glowing figures materialized not far away from the team of five youths. The five held their breath, unsure what would happen next. At this point, they would usually be transmitted back to the Arcane Tower. What was happening?

As the three figures materialized, the bright lights faded from their bodies to reveal the three judges of the Arcane Tower.

“Congratulations, you five,” the beautiful woman said. “You have officially passed the Selection Test to enter the Arcane Tower Sect as First Grade disciples!”