The test begins

Chapter :10; The test begins

The surrounding in the central plaza as hundreds of participants congregated for the first test. Qiangu Qitian was among them, his face unruffled, his mind clear. A sea of young cultivators rustled with nervous energy; their conversations flowed with speculation about the tests.

There, in the center of the plaza, an enormous stone was engraved with an intricate pattern. The array sent out soft light and pulsed with spiritual energy.

"Silence!" the voice of the examiner loudly boomed as the whole crowd fell silent in an instant. "The first test will be on your bone age, a procedure needed to make sure that only those participating are sixteen years or younger, after which all the ones above this age limit would be eliminated then and there."

He nodded toward the glowing slab: "Step forward, place your hand on the array, channel a trace of your spiritual energy, and the array will show your bone age. Those who are suitable shall go on to the next test. Line up, each in your turn."

They began to line up, a few full of extreme confidence, some very anxious. The first boy to go forward was a stout-looking cultivator; he looked so nervous. He placed his shaking hand on the slab and channeled his energy.

The array lit up even further, with glowing numbers appearing atop the slab: 15 years, 4 months.

"Pass." the examiner said.

The relieved boy stepped aside as one by one the participants went onto the stage, showing their bone ages. Those who passed were escorted to one side, and those over the limit from the test left with the guards.

As the line progressed, Qiangu Qitian faced it serenely, meticulously checking the pattern. His spiritual inscriptions should be able to find the minutest differences.

When it was his turn, he came forward with a sure and steady gait, cocked his wrist, and channelled a strand of spiritual energy onto the slab. In a burst of radiance, the array roared to life with a set of aglow numerals in mid-air above it: 15 years, 6 months.

"Pass," said the examiner peremptorily.

Qiangu Qitian nodded and moved aside, joining the growing group of successful participants.

Hours dragged on with test-takers protesting their failure. When it was finally over, almost 500 had been whittled down to around 300. The examiner glanced over the remaining crowd. His face gave nothing away.

"Those who have passed the bone age test, congratulations."

"But that's just the first step. Worth will be decided by the true test. Prepare yourselves."

The rest were whispering among themselves, some excited and others filled with foreboding.

Qiangu Qitian said nothing. His gaze was cold, knife-sharp as his eyes crisscrossed over the other participants. "So 300 of us passed this test," he thought.

Finally, the sun began to set, and the examiner lifted his hand. "You will be given one day to rest and prepare. The second test will begin the next day."

Next day

When the contestants arrived the next morning, the place had been remade into an arena: a huge round stone stage with a barrier glazing with spiritual energy in the middle. The second test was obviously about the battle-the most straightforward manifestation of strength in a cultivator.

The crimson-robed examiner stepped forth, his presence commanding attention. "Congratulations to the 300 of you who passed the bone age test. But passing that means little if the strength to back it up is lacking. This next challenge will decide the positions of the rest. Prepare yourselves, for you will all face each other in battle."

A murmur suddenly burst forth from the people, the sounds of excitement and trepidation mingling together. Qiangu Qitian's face was expressionless, but his eyes shone brightly with expectation.

He lifted his hand for silence. "Listen up, rules are simple. Every one of you will be assigned a number and battles are to be in groups. You will be assigned with others at random. Your aim is either to knock your opponent out or to force them to back out. Killing is out of the question. If it so happens, then the person shall be immediately disqualified and punished by the sect itself.

He allowed a short moment for the weight of his words to sink in. "The last 100 standing will go through to the next round. Strength, strategy, and endurance are going to be your allies. Prepare yourselves."

With a wave of his hand, a few assistants stepped forward and distributed numbered tokens to each participant. Qiangu Qitian grasped his, bearing the number 87.

"Your number is your group and the order of fighting. Now, step into the arena when it calls for your group," the examiner finally said.

As their numbers called out, the first group of ten participants was called into the arena. The shining barrier covering the stage well made sure a stray attack could not reach the spectators.

Qiangu Qitian watched with fixed eyes as the fight began. Nobody was wasting any time; spiritual techniques or martial skills flowed out one after another. Fireballs, gales of wind, spikes of earth: the two opponents fought until the field was filled.

One girl was dodging deftly in between blows as she struck squarely on her opponent's body, where on other fronts another boy was only brute force using pure power, blasting his opponents around.

In just under a quarter of an hour, only two were standing where most on the grounds either groaned to their feet or yielded.

"Yes, numbers 12 and 34 through please while others step aside", said the Examiner, nodding his head, approving them.

As the battles raged on, Qiangu Qitian's anticipation grew. Until, finally, when it was time for his turn to take place, he stepped into the arena with nine other competitors.

The barrier began to hum as it closed in on them. The examiner's voice rose, "Begin!"

Chaos rose to an extreme in the field once the order came.

The tallest boy among them in, into action against Qiangu Qitian straight on; he wanted him out of his way as fast as possible. Qitian dodged it, nimbly-smooth and tidy. He followed it with a sudden palm to his chest, forcing him to back away.

Before he could press the advantage, another participant-a girl with twin daggers-suddenly darted up to him; her movements fast and wild, her blades shining with a faint aura of poison.

Narrowing his eyes, the operation of spiritual energy began then, in an instant, the figure shifted in a dodging way and appeared right behind her. In one swift strike to the wrist, he had disarmed her of one dagger and was forcing her backward.

While the others had already initiated heavy fights, at the center was a bulky young man in strengthening armor furiously casting Earth-element skills to set obstacles and counter-attacks. Meanwhile, at a distance, a skinny boy stood with just his bow and sent arrows hailing, each packed with explosive Spiritual Energy in relentless succession.

The techniques and arms clashing had deafened the entire arena while Qiangu Qitian calmly perused the battlefield.

Qiangu Qitian did not charge headlong into the fray but waited for his opponents to wear themselves out in fighting with each other and thus conserved his energy for the critical moments.

In one stroke, he knocked away the spear held by the attacking spear-carrying boy and then gave a mighty kick that flung the spear-carrying boy right out of the arena.

Then, in one swift motion, the young woman with a dagger suddenly pounced on him; Qiangu Qitian, however, countered her with an onslaught of spiritual energy that sent her stumbling backward. He finished with a palm on the shoulder.

Only three were left in this ongoing fight: Qiangu Qitian, armored youth, and the archer. Armored youth roared and charged to Qitian, fist as big as a bucket, with earth imbued in it. Qitian met the attack head-on, his palm shining with spiritual energy. The shockwave from the clash shook the arena, but Qiangu Qitian emerged unscathed, using agility to counter the brute force.

Seeing an opportunity, the archer launched a barrage of explosive arrows. Qiangu Qitian nimbly dodged each one of them and closed the distance between him and his opponent in an instant. In an instant, he struck just once, sending the archer to the ground, a weapon flying out of his hand.

The armored youth, now desperate, made a final all-out attack. Qiangu Qitian responded with a quick combination of blows, striking at the weak points of the youth and overpowering him in an instant.

Louder than a bomb, it came right across the field with the voice of an examiner, saying, "No. 87 Qiangu Qitian will be promoted to the next round." At the moment, sudden applause and gasps rose from the audience, while his gaze was filled with indifference towards everything. Being deeply impressed with every mistake on the ground deeply impressed every audience member, even participants around.

He walked out of the field, his eyes unyielding; this, he knew, was merely a beginning since the later stages would be the most challenging in the competition.

Of 100 that remained, the real test of strength, strategy, and endurance was to begin.

As these competitors prepared to go into their matches, murmurs were still lingering around them: "I heard the sect is pitting us against cultivators from the Spirit Condensation Realm."

"That is not fair! Most of us have barely reached the peak of the Blood Forging Realm!"

Qiangu Qitian heard the murmurs around him but paid no heed to them. His foundation in the Blood Forging Realm was the most solid, tempered through life and death. If the sect wanted to test them against higher realm cultivators, he welcomed the challenge.

As Qiangu Qitian went up, he entered the arena; on the other side of the opponent waited-a young man clad in sect robes, his aura undeniably from the Spirit Condensation Realm. He sneered with full arrogance.

"So you are the opponent? Only a peak Blood Forging cultivator?" he taunted. "I give you a chance now, damn render and I will not let you be embarrassed."

Qiangu Qitian did not say a word. As his body relaxed, his eyes turned firm, unwavering.

Lifting his voice, the sect elder said, "Begin!"

The Spirit Condensation cultivator struck first as his figure turned into a blur of speed, stopping in front of Qiangu Qitian and punching his fist with spiritual energy toward Qiangu Qitian's chest.

Qiangu Qitian dodged nimbly and precisely, with all his movements calculated. As the fist flew by his head, he immediately launched a counterattack with a palm strike toward his opponent's exposed ribs.

This power sent the Spirit Condensation cultivator flying backward, his face filled with shock and anger.

"You… You're stronger than you look!" the man growled, regaining his stance.

Qiangu Qitian did not say anything but looked calmly.

The opponent counterattacked on the spot with a string of attacks, each stronger than the last. Blades of wind condensed from spiritual energy hacked at Qiangu Qitian. He dodged them with ease, his movements as fluid as water.

Finding an opening, Qiangu Qitian went forward, and his fists shone with the power of his bloodline. Each of his blows was spot on, landed precisely at some important point to destroy the opponent's rhythm of energy.

Although he was in the higher realm, the Spirit Condensation cultivator was on the defensive and grew less confident with each exchange.

Knowing that he could not win conventionally, the opponent roared and summoned a mighty technique. The ground beneath them cracked as a huge spiritual vortex formed around his person.

"This is the end for you!" he shouted as he launched the vortex at Qiangu Qitian.

He didn't back down; instead, his aura spiked. Harnessing the power of his peak Blood Forging Realm cultivation, he launched a counterattack with his technique, and since he didn't practice any technique, he can fight using his physical body only.

The shockwave from that collision sent the arena shaking, and after the dust settled, Qiangu Qitian was standing intact while his opponent lay coughing blood on the grounds.

The sect elder smiled and nodded. "Winner: Qiangu Qitian."

The group of people surrounding them suddenly burst into shock murmurs. A Blood Forging Realm cultivator defeated one in the Spirit Condensation Realm, and still didn't use even a trace of energy.

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