Dawn broke over Mount Sangzhao with a furious sky, the horizon split by streaks of crimson light and roiling iron clouds. The Crownless Tournament's final preliminary round—known as the Trials by Fire—was set to begin. The arena crackled with anticipation; from every corner rose the scent of smoke, ash, and burning spirit.
Kai Jin stood alone at the edge of the caldera arena, his blades sheathed at his back, heart steady despite the maelstrom of gazes upon him. The ground beneath his feet was scorched stone, etched with runes that flickered faintly. Walls of flame would rise, whirlwinds of ash would swirl, and competitors would face elemental trials meant to test more than their skill—these fires would test their very souls.
He glanced at Yue, Bai Ru, and Lin Su, who watched from the stands carved into living rock.
Yue's eyes were fierce with pride and concern. Bai's calm presence felt like a tether to home. Lin Su's smirk held mischievous confidence.
His resolve coalesced.
⸻
Across the arena, Jin Hualong emerged, flame-eater of the Fire Lotus Sect. His armor glowed like molten gold, and his aura shimmered with heat. He raised both arms, summoning a pillar of living flame that danced in his palms.
The herald's voice rang out: "Begin!"
In an instant, the arena transformed. Four columns of fire erupted, encircling each combatant. The air roared, and the walls that separated them lifted, birthing a ring of scorching trial.
Jin Hualong hurled a burning orb that split the ground at Kai's feet. Kai leapt back, the blast scorching the hem of his robes. He drew both blades and advanced.
"Your fire is fierce," Kai called, voice carrying over the roar. "But it blinds you."
Jin snarled, another wave of flame surging. The heat was suffocating. Kai felt sweat bead on his brow—and then cool as Yue's practiced water spirit qi flowed through a hidden conduit, a protective whisper in his ear.
He wove between blasts, blades flashing silver. Each strike he landed snuffed out segments of Jin's flame armor, revealing the man beneath. Jin countered fiercely—his blade strikes precise, infused with burning qi.
The ground cracked and gave way beneath them, an eruption of fire swallowing the cracked stones. Kai caught Jin's gauntleted wrist mid-thrust, twisted, and disarmed him, sending the flaming sword clattering across the scorched earth.
Jin stumbled, fury and respect warring in his eyes. He bowed, smoke curling from his shoulders. "Your blade… is sharper than fire."
Kai exhaled, pressing a hand to his chest where the heat had burned. "Steel tempers fire. Never forget that."
⸻
Barely a breath later, the second trial began: a vortex of ash formed at the arena's center. From its heart, Fei Chen, master of the Blood Thread Sect, advanced with silent menace. His every movement seemed woven from shadows as he summoned red qi threads that writhed like serpents.
Kai faced him with focused calm.
The Blood Thread serpent lunged, coiling around Kai's leg. Kai sidestepped, blade slicing the crimson coil. Fei's eyes glittered with battle-lust.
They traded strikes beneath ash-laden gusts, each blow a negotiation of life and death. Kai parried a swift lunging strike, countered with a precise thrust that cut through Fei's shoulder robe.
Fei staggered back, clutching his wound. He smiled in pain. "You fight with heart… yet your threads are bare."
Kai sheathed one blade, grasped Fei's gauntlet, and pulled him close. "Then feel mine." He pressed two fingers against Fei's temple, releasing a pulse of steady qi. Fei's Blood Threads dissolved in feathery smoke.
Fei fell to one knee, bowing deeply. "You… deserve the blade."
⸻
As the Trials by Fire ended, Kai Jin stood alone amidst smoldering ruins. The crowd erupted—not in cheers, but in reverent silence.
From the imperial dais, the Emperor's voice broke the hush: "Kai Jin has survived fire and ash, blood and shadow. The Sovereign Blade stands among us."
A heavy hush fell. Then murmurs of awe and envy rippled through the stands.
Kai bowed once—to the Emperor, to the arena, to the flames that had tested him.
He looked up to where his companions waited, and their unified gaze was all the victory he needed.