Perfect

A bright and sunny day within the City of Paper in the Great Solar Realm. On that day, thousands were gathered inside a single avenue to spectate the Talisman Craftsman Tournament that only occured oncenevery three years.

With the first roundnalmost over, everyone but a single young man had yet to demonstrate his performance. The crowd, the other contestants, as well as the host, and the judging panel were all waiting for his performance.

The young man in brown, called Qian Fuyou got up from his seat and held his talisman in between two fingers. Facing the wooden puppet, he injected Spiritual Qi into the talisman and threw it towards the wooden puppet.

Whoosh!

A huge fireball that could be mistaken for a small meteor broken through the air and smashed into the wooden puppet. The wodden puppet was intact, and no damage was to be seen, however, everyone could tell that this talisman was many times greater than those that were created by the other contestants.

Not only in size, but the power was clearly much stronger. Even such a simple Fireball Talisman held such power. Everyone watching, including the crowd and ofher contestants who had doubts shut their mouths without a word. "Perfect." the judging panel granted him. After such a display, it was obvious that he would receive the highest grade from the judging panel.

"The first round is over. Congratulations on completing the first round. The second round will begin shortly." Situ Kong announced. "Those who received a failing grade can leave now. Those of you who heard that you wouldn't be eliminated during the first round and didn't give it their all do not need to continue onto the next round. As for those who had failed because of the lack of skill, please do not lose hope and try again in three years time." Master Shen spoke.

Many were unwilling, but those who had failed left the avenue filled with bitterness. After they left, there were still forty contestants who remained after the first round. "The second round will now begin. The first round required you to create a talisman of any kind, now you will need to give your own understanding of this talisman created by Master Shen." Situ Kong announced.

A talisman was held in his hand, as he let it float from his hand and projected the image so that the crowd could see using his Divine Will. The strokes were complex and seemed perfect. For those who didn't understand, they wouldn't find any faults. Those that did understand, would find it hard to find a fault, while only those thst were gifted could understand it.

"Once again, you will have two shi of time to understand this. Once the time is up, each of you will display your understanding. Begin!" Situ Kong said. Immediately, the contestants all focused on the talisman, all but for one man. Qian Fuyou seemed like a stone statue, not moving an inch. It was hard to tell if he even saw the talisman since his eyes were completely shut.

In the crowd, Yan Lenglei and Mo Jidong observed and comprehended the profoundness of the talisman. After a few moments, they understood it completely and turned their attention back to Qian Fiyou. As time passed, many contestants were struggling and pulling their hairs, while others tore apart countless pieces of paper. Only Qian Fuyou seemed relaxed as ever, simply being a stone statue that didn't budge.

When time was over, and two shi had passed, the second round was over. Now, it was time to test the understanding of the forty contestants that had survived through the first round of the tournament. The first contestant got up and started his explanation. "From what I have comprehended, the talisman created by Master Shen is a Grade Five Talisman, known as the Earth Quaking Talisman. Each stroke was perfect and blended in with each other and complementing each other, in order to complete the talisman and increase its power. After understanding this, I have created a talisman of my own that incorporated these elements." the first contestant said.

Holding a talisman, he injected his Spiritual Qi and threw the talisman forward. Once the talisman burned out, dozens of blades from the earth pierced through the ground and stabbed into the wooden puppet. "Pass." the judging panel said.

Hearing that he passed, the first contestant sighed in relief. Then, the second contestant got up. "This talisman was created after spending two days and two nights to complete. While observing, I came to my own conclusion in which I will now demonstrate." the second contestant said.

Throwing a talisman forward, the ground beneath the wooden puppet shook and cracked as though something heavy had landed on the puppet. "Fail." the judging panel spoke. Hearing that they had failed, the contestant sighed and left the avenue.

"Why did he fail? Shouldn't he have done better than the first contestant?" someone wondered. "You don't understand talismans hence you could say that, only those involved directly will know why they failed." someone replied.

Soon, dozens of contestants each showed their understanding of the talisman, with many failing to pass, and not many had passed. Soon, it was Qian Fuyou's turn to demonstrate his understanding of the talisman. Getting up, Qian Fuyou only said one word which shook the entire avenue, including Master Shen himself. "Failure."

Qian Fuyou had said that the talisman created by Master Shen was a failure. Many wondered if he had chosen to give up after making it this far, before they suddenly heard the sound of laughter. "Hahahahahahahahahaha. Good, good. Qian Fuyou, you receive a perfect score for this round." Master Shen spoke. The crowd was suddenly filled with disbelief once again. Such a talisman was deemed a failure by a contestant in which everyone believed that he was a luantic. Only until the creator, Master Shen himself verified it and proved them wrong, did everyone feel as though their faces were slapped by an invisible hand.

Sitting down, Qian Fuyou joined the nine remaining contestants who had passed, in which he was the only one who had a perfect score. Now, he had two perfect scores in two rounds, in which the third round was the final round, making it almost guaranteed that he would be taking the main prize.

"The third and final round will now begin. For this last round, the contestants will incorporate both round one and two together into a single piece. The contestants will attempt to create their own unique Blade Talisman." Situ Kong announced.

"What?! Is he for real? How can they expect the new generation to do such a thing that even those of the previous generation could not do? Is this Master Shen's idea? That would explain why the contents of the tournament are different this time." someone in the crowd said.

"Silence. The third and final round will now begin!" Situ Kong announced. The time was still the same at one shi of time, giving a short amount of time for the contestants to work with. Nine of the last remaining contestants, who were also the best within the Great Solar Realm began. Some immediately started drawing strokes, while others quietly comprehended and came up with an idea.

As for Qian Fuyou, he was the same as ever and became a stone statue when the round began. Over time, the contestants had scrapped many talismans that were deemed failures. As for Qian Fuyou, he seemed as relaxed and nonchalant as ever, as if it was all a breeze for him. Suddenly, when there was only a dozen or so minutes left, Qian Fuyou moved.

Grinding the ink again in the whetstone, he dipped his brush into the ink and began. Injecting Spiritual Qi into his brush, Qian Fuyou gently and slowly moved his arm across the page. If his previous actions were fast and ferocious, his actions now were as gentle as a feather, completely in contradt with his previous behavior. As time ticked on, Qian Fuyou continued to draw strokes across the page.

When time was over, Qian Fuyou had just finished the final stroke, as a blinding golden light filled the entire avenue, marking the success of a talisman. Seeing this, everyone could already see who the winner of the tournament was. Even so, the contestants would show off their talents as best as they could in front front of the Great Solar Realm.

The first contestant got up and faced the wooden puppet. As the talisman burned out, a sword appeared in his hand, as he slashed the air, in which a streak of light tore through the air and aimed at the wooden puppet. After his display, the first contestant sat down.

Next was a female contestant. A thin red blade appeared in her hand, as a similiar streak of light slashed the wooden puppet. Seeing this, the judging panel had already made a decision. Then, the third contestant had their turn. Tearing the talisman, a dozen swords appeared in the air around him and shot acrosd the sky like dozens of arrows at the wooden puppet.

Then, the fourth, fifth, and so on had their turn, each with similiar talismans. Then it was Qian Fuyou's turn. After his dipsy during the first two rounds, everyone wanted to see him in action. Standing up, Qian Fuyou injected Spiritual Qi into the talisman as it burned apart.

Silence filled the avenue. There were no signs of anything happening even though the talisman was torn. Suddenly, Master Shen, as well as the other members of the judging panel stood up and applauded him. "Perfect! To think that you could create such a talisman basing it off just the Blade Talisman." Master Shen said.

While the crowd didn't understand what had happened, the wooden puppet suddenly had dozens of marks that seemed to come from swords. This all happened in the blink of an eye, and was silent so nobody could understand what happened. Only the judging panel and those of high cultivation bases could see, as well as Yan Lenglei's group.

From their basic understanding of talismans, the Blade Talisman created a sword for the user to use in battle. What Qian Fuyou had done, was create formless swords that were invisible and silent. It was hard to guess when he would attack, since only those with strong Spiritual Senses could avoid it. This was an entirely new talisman that didn't exist before, and was based off the Blade Talisman which was one of the most basic talismans in the Three Thousand Realms.

It was now obvious who the winner of the tournament was. Even the contestants gave Qian Fuyou a round of applause, admitting their defeat. As for Master Shen, he personally awarded the top three with the prize for the tournament. Taking out his brush that had been with him for centuries, Master Shen sighed and looked at his brush as if looking at his wife, before handing it over to Qian Fuyou.

"Young man, take care of my brush. I'm sure your future attainments will be greater than my own." Master Shen told him. Nodding, Qian Fuyou held the brush and put it away. The brush came with a Spatial Ring, allowing him to store it away. After receiving the prize, the contestants could stay for a banquet, or leave the avenue.

Winning the tournament and making himself known, Qian Fuyou silently left the avenue of the tournament, with Yan Lenglei's group following him secretly.