Chapter 5:Breath, Balance and Burden

The morning mist had barely lifted from the FrostVale Academy grounds when the students of Classes 3A to 5D gathered at the Outer Blooming Field, a vast terrain laced with faint silver vines and glimmering frost crystals that reacted to Qi flow.

The air shimmered with quiet expectation.

Mistress Kim Jones stood on the stone stage, flanked by several senior instructors. Lady Stephanie Kross was not present rumors whispered she had been called to a high council session regarding rising tensions in the lower eastern dominions.

Mistress Kim's voice cut clean through the murmurs.

"You've awakened your Pulse," she began, "now we begin the Breath of Resolve. This stage is not about strength it is about submission. You will learn to draw Qi from the world, not your flesh. Let the environment become your wellspring."

Her hand raised and the crystal pillars around the field pulsed faintly, releasing a soft hum that resonated in students' bones.

"Sit. Cross your legs. Breathe. And listen."

The silence that followed was strange. Even birds dared not chirp.

Guren closed his eyes and let his breathing fall into rhythm. The frost-grass beneath him was cool, steadying. He listened to his heartbeat, to the faint hum of the world, to the shallow breath of the boy beside him. Scott.

They had been told not to force it. Not to chase it.

So Guren waited.

Ten minutes passed. Then twenty.

Then a faint prickling across his skin. Like static. A thread of Qi brushing his presence. He opened the gate in his mind, not pushing allowing.

And it came.

Cool and slow, it entered his chest like a drifting stream of silver mist. His fingers twitched as his internal circuits stirred faintly underdeveloped, but not broken.

Nearby, someone gasped too early, and the thread snapped. Guren held his focus, arms relaxed on his knees. His breathing changed deeper now, rooted. The Qi trickled in like snowfall, subtle but steady.

Scott Kawski opened one eye and yawned. His breath synced with the earth from the beginning.

He drew in Qi naturally, quietly, like it was part of him. It flowed easily too easily. But he kept his presence low, not wanting attention. The threads of power wound around him like invisible mist.

He glanced sideways at Guren, who was completely immersed.

Scott smiled faintly. So he's not a lost case after all.

From Class 3A, a girl named Isabel Tran began trembling violently.

"The flow! It's pushing too hard!"

Mistress Kim appeared at her side in an instant, cutting off her thread with a tap to the center of her forehead. Isabel collapsed into sobs.

"That is what happens when you force the world to your will before it accepts you," Kim said aloud. "Let this be a lesson."

***

One hour later, the stage shifted.

Mistress Kim motioned for the students to rise.

"Those who succeeded in syncing with Qi flow will now enter the second assessment Stability Check. Qi is not a silent servant. If your vessel is flawed, it will break you."

Each student was assigned a training orb a polished silver stone marked with ancient etchings.

"You will circulate the Qi you drew in. Slowly. Carefully. Guide it through the First Circuit."

Guren accepted the orb into his hands. It was heavy, unnaturally warm.

He exhaled slowly. The Qi was still inside him, faint like a candle's glow. He nudged it. Guided it.

And pain bloomed.

A sharp jolt struck his left shoulder, then numbed. His circuits were partially blocked the natural result of someone with strong focus but no prior cultivation.

He grit his teeth and adjusted his posture, realigning his breath. The Qi steadied, resumed its path.

Then a pulse.

The orb in his hand glowed pale blue. Faint, but solid. Guren let out a breath he didn't know he was holding.

Scott's orb flickered bright blue, nearly azure. His internal circuits were nearly flawless.

Mistress Kim walked by him with narrowed eyes but said nothing.

Others weren't so lucky. Tyler Ross from 3C screamed as his orb burst into fragments. Qi backlash knocked him cold. A girl from 5D cried blood as her circulation spiraled out of sync.

The instructors moved quickly, isolating each affected student, recording the results.

Only seventeen students passed the Stability Check cleanly.

Guren was one of them.

Scott was another.

From Class 5A, Naomi Sterling passed without incident. Her orb glowed violet, a rare color.

She never even blinked.

With no time to rest, the final phase arrived: Mental Clarity Trial.

"You will be led into the Crystal Mirror Chamber," Mistress Kim announced. "It reflects not your face, but your spirit. Those with muddled hearts or excessive pride will falter. Enter with a still mind."

The chamber was shaped like an amphitheater of reflective walls. Each student sat alone inside a segment, facing a glowing quartz mirror.

When Guren sat, his reflection didn't move right away.

Then it blinked.

"Who are you?" the reflection asked.

Guren's mouth twitched. This again?

"I'm Guren Von Duran."

"Are you your ambition, or your fear?"

"Both."

"Then which leads?"

Guren didn't respond. The mirror pulsed, flickering. It tried again.

"Would you protect your siblings if it cost your future?"

Guren clenched his jaw.

"Yes."

The mirror dimmed, then flickered with silver light. Clarity passed.

Scott's mirror didn't speak.

It simply nodded at him, then dissolved.

An hour later, only eleven students stood in the inner circle of those who passed all three stages of the Harmony Assessment:

Guren Von Duran, Class 3D

Scott Kawski, Class 3D

Naomi Sterling, Class 5A

Isabel Tran, Class 3A

Jin Park, Class 4C

Lucia Hale, Class 3B

Brandon Reese, Class 5D

Riya Mehta, Class 4B

Sebastian Wolfe, Class 5C

Hina Fujioka, Class 4A

Marco Alvarez, Class 3C

Mistress Kim addressed them at sundown.

"You have taken your first step. The path ahead is brutal. But you've shown promise and more importantly, control. The Academy will now monitor your training for personalized advancement."

She paused.

"And soon, you'll be allowed to choose your Qi Path Discipline. Prepare yourselves."

Guren looked over at Scott, who was already slouching.

"Still trying to pretend you're mediocre?" he asked.

Scott grinned. "Nah. Mediocre people don't get invited to the Advanced Selection Trials."

Guren raised an eyebrow. "Trials?"

Scott shrugged. "Guess they liked our pulse."

To be Continued.