The air was colder here, biting and unforgiving. Xu Wang and Li Wang stood in a vast arena of stone, the ceiling shrouded in darkness. Pale blue torches lined the circur walls, their ghostly fmes flickering as if alive. Shadows danced across the floor, shifting and swirling like mist.

  Xu’s senses were on high alert, his body tense, every muscle coiled like a spring. The Ajna Qi Path hummed within him, the lines of energy flowing in rhythm with his heartbeat. He could feel the weight of the invisible eyes watching, judging.

  “They led us here,” Li whispered, her voice tight. Her eyes flicked over the arena, sharp and calcuting. “This is no accident.”

  Xu nodded, his pulse quickening. “The Trial of Shadows… this is the final test.”

  A low rumble echoed through the chamber, the walls trembling. Xu’s breath caught as the shadows on the floor began to rise, their forms twisting and stretching, solidifying into human shapes. There were six of them, their bodies made of pure darkness, faces bnk and featureless. Yet their eyes glowed with a sinister red light, cold and unfeeling.

  Xu’s jaw tightened. He could feel the malice radiating from them, an aura of cold hunger. These were no ordinary illusions. They were hunters, born from the shadows themselves.

  One of the figures stepped forward, its body rippling like water. It raised an arm, its fingers elongating into razor-sharp cws that glinted in the eerie light. The shadows rippled around it, merging into the form of a sword, its edge bck as night.

  Xu’s heart pounded. They were armed. And they were ready to kill.

  Li’s voice was steady, her stance shifting into a fighting posture. “No holding back. We end this quickly.”

  Xu nodded, his body moving instinctively. The Ajna Qi Path surged within him, energy flooding his limbs. He felt the power coil in his muscles, waiting to be unleashed.

  The shadows moved.

  They came without warning, blurring forward at inhuman speed, their forms flickering like smoke. Xu’s instincts screamed as he twisted, the first sword slicing through the air where his neck had been. The force of the swing sent a shockwave through the arena, the stone floor cracking under the pressure.

  Xu’s heart raced. They’re fast. Too fast.

  Li was already moving, her body flowing like water as she danced around the bdes. Her movements were impossibly graceful, her form flickering like a mirage. She spun, her leg shing out in a sweeping kick that shattered one of the shadows into bck mist. But the fragments swirled, reforming behind her, cws aimed at her back.

  Xu’s body moved before he could think. He darted forward, his fist glowing with qi. “Dragon’s Fang!”

  His punch connected, the force exploding outward in a shockwave. The shadow was bsted apart, the red glow in its eyes fading. But the others closed in, their swords sshing in deadly arcs.

  Xu’s movements became a blur as he weaved between the bdes, his body bending and twisting in impossible ways. The Ajna Qi Path guided him, his reflexes heightened, his senses sharp. He could see every strike, every feint, every flicker of movement. But the shadows were relentless, their forms rippling and shifting, attacking from every angle.

  Li fought beside him, her strikes precise and lethal. She moved like a dancer, her body flowing from one attack to the next, her qi swirling around her like a veil. She spun, her palm glowing with blue light. “Ocean’s Embrace!”

  A wave of water exploded from her hand, crashing into the shadows. The liquid coiled around them, binding their limbs, their forms writhing as they struggled. But even as they were trapped, their eyes glowed brighter, their bodies growing more solid, more defined.

  “They’re adapting!” Xu shouted, his heart pounding. “They’re feeding off our qi!”

  Li’s eyes widened. “Then we can’t overpower them. We need to break them.”

  Xu’s mind raced, his gaze snapping to the shadows’ eyes, the only part of their bodies that glowed. The source of their power…

  “Target their eyes!” he shouted, his body moving before the words left his mouth. He dashed forward, his fist bzing with energy. The nearest shadow swung its sword, but Xu twisted around it, his momentum carrying him forward. His fingers curled into a spear-hand, his qi condensing at the tip. “Heaven’s Piercer!”

  His strike was precise, the energy piercing the shadow’s glowing eyes. The red light shattered, and the creature let out a silent scream, its body crumbling into bck dust.

  Li followed his lead, her fingers dancing through the air as she unleashed a flurry of strikes. Her movements were fluid, her form weaving between the shadows, her hands striking with pinpoint accuracy. Each hit shattered a pair of glowing eyes, the shadows disintegrating in her wake.

  But the st two were faster, their bodies blurring as they fused together, forming a rger figure with four arms and a crown of horns. Its eyes bzed with crimson light, its aura pulsing with malevolent power.

  Xu’s breath caught. It was stronger, more solid, more real. And it was staring right at him.

  The creature’s four arms moved simultaneously, its swords whistling through the air. Xu’s body reacted instinctively, his movements guided by the Ajna Qi Path. He ducked, weaved, and twisted, his limbs bending in ways that defied logic. But the creature was faster, its strikes coming from every direction.

  A bde grazed his shoulder, pain ncing through him. Another sshed across his leg, the sting sharp and cold. Xu gritted his teeth, his vision blurring. He could feel his qi draining, his energy slipping away.

  Li’s voice cut through the chaos. “Together!”

  She was already in motion, her body flickering like light on water. Her hands moved in fluid arcs, forming a complex pattern as she gathered her qi. Xu felt the pull, his energy resonating with hers, their auras merging.

  A memory fshed through his mind—the vision from the Qi Resonance Crystal. Light and shadow, yin and yang, intertwined in a dance of bance. Dual Spirits…

  Xu’s heart raced. He understood. Together, they were stronger.

  He moved in sync with Li, their bodies mirroring each other as they circled the creature. Their qi flowed as one, spiraling around them in a vortex of light and shadow.

  The creature roared, its eyes bzing as it charged, its swords descending in a cross ssh.

  Xu and Li moved as one, their bodies blurring as they surged forward, their combined qi coiling around their arms. They struck simultaneously, their fists piercing the creature’s eyes, their energy shattering the red light.

  The creature’s body convulsed, its form fracturing as cracks of light spread across its surface. It let out a silent scream, its body imploding in a burst of darkness, the shadows evaporating into mist.

  Silence fell, the cold air still and heavy. Xu’s knees buckled, his body drained, his breaths ragged. Li steadied him, her eyes wide with disbelief.

  “We… did it,” she whispered, her voice trembling.

  Xu looked around the empty arena, the ghostly fmes flickering in the aftermath. But he could still feel the weight of invisible eyes, the presence that had been watching them all along.

  The Trial of Shadows was over.

  But the judgment had only just begun.

  To be continued......