The void he was once in, now filled with the sprout of a tree he had planted slowly fell away as it was time to leave the core of his soul. It happened slowly at first, then suddenly as it felt like he slammed right back into his body and all his senses returned to him. His eyes cracked open looking at the marble held in his hand.

  Now instead of a black void, it thrummed and swirled with green and brown energy that came from its depths. No longer feeling cool, but warm to the touch, the sight made him smile as he had done it. He had no clue if it was enough for the sects, but just stepping over the threshold meant a lot.

  He could feel it in his body down in his stomach, where his budding energy was; like a tree that if he nourished and helped grow it would grow providing him with more. So focused on the new sensation that he barely noticed the Rainfeather circle envoy standing in front of him.

  Yin nearly jumped out of his skin as he looked up at the man who reached down and picked up the now glowing marble wordlessly. He turned it over in his hand looking at it closely before setting it back down in Yin’s hand. “Wood aspect with enough potential. Pass.”

  A slip was produced by the man and handed to Yin, then he walked off in a swish of feathers and clicking jewelry. Leaving Yin sitting there a bit, shell-shocked as he looked at the slip with the words pass on it and smiled wide. The first hurdle was down; he had the potential and that meant more than anything.

  It was at that point he looked up and noticed the sun had moved considerably overhead, and he realized he had spent hours like that, even though it had only felt like minutes. His eyes widened at the revelation, and he quickly looked around to see how many others were left and if he was one of the last.

  At first glance, it looked like he was one of many awakening from their trances, all getting graded by different envoys and others he didn’t recognize though they seemed to be dressed in the same style of robes from each of the sects present, so he assumed they were aides.

  He saw many awake with barely any color coming from their marbles or nothing at all and they were all summarily kicked out. Others with different colors, red, blue, white earthy browns and a few more, could only catch glimpses of others who passed. It felt like a never-ending cycle between those passing and failing. Though many more failed than passed.

  “But it’s glowing!” He heard an angry voice yell and looked over to see a commoner yelling at the envoy of the Gold Crow Sect.

  “And there isn’t enough potential for one of our sects. Go join a smaller sect.” The bald man stated flatly which just enraged the man more who lost leave of his senses. Yin’s eyes went wide wanting to yell for him to stop.

  Yet he never got the chance as the other commoner moved to take a stand and swing the envoy of the golden crow almost lazily, swung his hand out into the man’s head. Yet when it connected, he could only watch in horror as the head popped like an overripe fruit. A spray of blood, bones and brain matter splattered outwards splattering over other test takers.

  The body dropped and the Envoy didn’t even spare a glance as he just walked on to the next person. Hundreds of test takers stared in shock and horror not at the violence but at how easily it was done. Yin felt his stomach churn he knew how easy it was, he had done it and he knew how easy it became to justify it.

  Looking away from the headless body he caught his breath, trying to ignore it all, eyes looking around to see who else was still kindling. Looking to see if Jifeng had passed, wondering if perhaps her confidence may have been unwarranted, though he hoped she did pass.

  He finally spotted her, still sitting with her eyes closed, moving as the marble in her hand didn’t show any change. He winced at the sight, not expecting nothing to have happened. Yet he kept watching, as she hadn’t opened her eyes yet and suddenly, he had a feeling that something was going to happen.

  Then it did, inside of her marble, he saw at first a flicker in its depths like a candle fluttering to life. Softly at first, then growing stronger a red flame pouring out from its depths beginning to swirl inside of the marble. Yet it wasn’t done, as the flames seemed to grow and the red turned white and began to glow around the marble.

  In one moment, she was still sitting with her eyes closed right in front of him, and in the next a billow of white robes appeared in front of her. Even from the back he could recognize the Envoy of the Divine Azure Sword Sect. He strained to hear what was said but couldn’t make out anything still too far away.

  Eventually the woman moved away, leaving Jifeng sitting there with a grin on her lips, if it was possible her ruby eyes seemed to shimmer even more. Pride seemed to radiate out from her. She had kindled, but he was sure that it was more than just that. In her hand was a slip of paper as well, though from his vantage it looked like a seal was pressed upon it.

  She finally caught him looking towards her and seeing him holding his own slip she nodded her head in satisfaction. Giving him a smile that made his heartbeat quickly once more before turning her attention to Ji who leaned in to speak with her.

  Yin looked away and caught his breath, wondering what that white flame of hers he saw meant, and what that seal on her slip meant. No answers would happen now, so he continued to sit and watch.

  This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

  During that time, he noticed a few Envoys appearing in front of people, though he couldn’t see the person or their marbles. It went like this for some time, with more people leaving, though thankfully no more brutal killings. The headless body from earlier having cleared off by guards with no fuss given,

  By midday it finally came to an end as the last person finished and passed. By Yin’s estimation a little more than half who had started in the morning were already gone. He genuinely felt bad for those who didn’t make it, but at the same time right now he could only worry about himself.

  “The first trial is over.” Came the booming voice of Zǐ Xīn and everyone snapped their attention to the man as he walked forward into the sea of people still sitting. “You have stepped into the first stage of internal power and mastery called kindling and have enough aptitude to clear the first step for joining one of the major sects.”

  He came to a stop as he finished walking his hands behind his back. “For some your testing is done. If your slip has a seal, stand up and head to the side, you will be accepted directly into the Sect as an inner disciple from your aptitude alone.”

  That earned gasps and murmurs, and Zǐ Xīn didn’t even quiet them. Out of the thousands of people only five stood and one of those was Jifeng. Yin wasn’t even shocked and from her look she wasn’t either as she walked off to the side. From his count there were two other nobles with her and two commoners.

  It wasn’t hard to say he didn’t feel envious he certainly did seeing them all stand to the side apart from them all. He also wondered how great their aptitude was out of tens of thousands of test takers, only five of them met that threshold.

  The whole crowd was looking on with Envy at the five before Zǐ Xīn spoke up and drew all eyes back to him. “You are jealous of their fortune, good. Then strive hard in these next tests and fortune can find you. You can not reach an inner disciple like them if you can’t even become an outer disciple. If you want to even have the chance to touch their heights, then climb and if you fail you can only curse your inadequacy not your luck.”

  That lit a fire inside of everyone it seemed, including Yin as well as he nodded his head. If he wanted to keep moving up the mountain then he had to keep overcoming each obstacle as it was presented. Those fives now stood as a goal for him to reach eventually as well.

  “That look of motivation you all have, keep it as you will need it. The next test will not cut you from the trial, but it is just as important. There is more than martial supremacy to rise in power and so you will all take a test to determine more mental aptitudes.”

  That drew a lot of looks as nobody expected an actual test. “And for those who cannot read and write, the Envoy of the Ten Thousands Wisdom Hall and her aides will administer an oral examination. Stand up and head over to this side.”

  Zǐ Xīn directed with a wave of his hands and a large chuckle of people all from the commoner’s section and headed to that side. Yin had learned to read and write on his last journey, one of the few things he did without the System. He hated every second of it.

  While he lamented that, guards came in and quickly began handing out sheets of paper and sticks of charcoal to write with. When Yin got his and began to read through it, he already began to feel his head hurt.

  Multiple pages, with multiple questions that ranged from herbalism, alchemy, medical and even philosophical. Who in the hell is supposed to know all this?! He yelled internally and picked up the charcoal and closed his eyes letting out a long deep breath.

  Then opening them he began to write and write and write some more. Answering what he could, barely any of the practical questions that required rote knowledge. Sticking more to the philosophical questions that required him just to consider versus having a right or wrong answer. At least that’s what he hoped.

  When he finished, he felt much dumber for it and vowed that he would remove all scholars from the world should he get to the top. Well, probably not but he would strongly consider it for a long while.

  Setting the papers and charcoal down he sighed and rubbed his temples, how some people were scholars and warriors he would never know. While he sat there eventually a man in the purple robes of the Ten Thousands Wisdom Hall appeared. Yin quickly handed the papers over to the man who grabbed them and quickly leafed through them.

  The man finished rather quickly and produced a grey slip handing it over to Yin and without another word moved on. Yin looked at the slip and pocketed it with the other one right with the marble he still had.

  It didn’t seem to be too much longer before Zǐ Xīn stepped forward. “With the tests done there is now an offer presented. Should you have received a grey slip from the test you have the opportunity to join the Ten Thousands Wisdom Hall as an outer disciple right now. You would be done with the testing.”

  That made Yin perk up and sit pulling out the grey slip looking it over, as Zǐ Xīn continued to speak. “You can choose not to, however if you don’t take this now and fail out in the next tests you can not use your slip to join The Ten Thousands Wisdom Hall afterwards. This is a one-time offer, make your decision quickly.”

  Yin looked at the grey slip in his hand and questioned if that’s what he wanted, would he be done with this and take the guaranteed Outer Discipleship in the Wisdom Hall? Was that what he really wanted? It was a step forward but was it the right one?

  As he contemplated, a couple hundred at last stood up and moved off to the outer section, a surprising number of nobles in that group. Though he noted they all seemed pleased and he wondered if their families would rather have their children be scholars to help their houses grow that way.

  He looked down at the slip one last time and closed his hand around it shaking his head. This is not my path. He confirmed to himself and sat there looking at Zǐ Xīn and waited.

  “Time is closed. If you are still sitting where you are then you’ve made your choice. We will move on to the next stage to cut down on what’s left. Group Combat.”