The outer courtyard was simple but massive. From a glance, I surmised it was approximately the same size as a football field, only covered in smoothly cut stones of preposterous sizes. Around the courtyard, ornate pillars were erected supporting a roofed wall of Asian aesthetics. Beyond the pillars, numerous buildings of various sizes loomed.

  The size, cleanliness, and attention to every minute detail made the starting plaza in Easton look like a construction zone in comparison.

  Additionally, it came as no surprise that the courtyard was absolutely riddled with teenagers. The majority of whom were male and NPCs of Asian descent. Yet, for every dozen NPCs, I counted one player observing the crowd warily.

  The white-clad cultivators stationed around the courtyard had naturally not escaped my or anyone else’s notice either. Thus, despite the crowdedness, the courtyard remained as silent as the grave as more and more provisional disciples amassed.

  Evidently, Lana and I were neither the first nor last players who would arrive here tonight. Nevertheless, with the sky becoming increasingly darker with each passing minute, I surmised that dusk would descend in at most an hour or so.

  Until then, I decided it was time to take a well-deserved breather. Fortunately, it didn’t take long before Lana and I had found a nice, semi-secluded spot on the outskirts a bit farther away where we could relax without having to be constantly pestered by new arrivals.

  “There are so many people…” Lana whispered as she observed the crowd with interest. “Can you see the bastard anywhere?”

  I shook my head in denial. “The bastard”, I’d learned, was how Lana preferred addressing Carlos.

  In fact, there were plenty of players missing from the gathering. Even after several minutes of searching, I hadn’t been able to spot either Percival or the others. Neither had I seen a trace of Atom or Dark, both of whom I knew were online thanks to their appearance on my friendlist.

  Still, despite my acquaintances’ absence, I reckoned there were nearly three hundred provisional disciples present.

  “Hopefully they’ll make it…” I sighed softly.

  And so, an hour passed in silence as more and more people found their way to the courtyard.

  …

  “So they made it after all.” I smiled faintly when I caught sight of a ragged-looking Percival, Grim, and Lilac entering the courtyard. Based solely on their appearances, it was safe to assume that they hadn’t passed the trial unmolested.

  Notably, Raven and the other aspirants from Durnatel were nowhere to be seen.

  “Including me, only four people from Durnatel have passed the trial so far…” I frowned as I watched the trio settle down on the opposite side of the courtyard. A part of me wanted to walk over and congratulate them but, after some deliberation I refrained.

  There would be time for celebration later.

  Finally, as the last rays of sunshine vanished from the sky, the sunset made room for dusk.

  By now, adorned lanterns had been lit along the pillars around the courtyard, making the contestants’ shadows dance on the smooth stone floor.

  Yet, just as a cultivator was about to shut the gate leading into the courtyard, a final group of aspirants made it through in the nick of time.

  “That was close...” I released a breath of relief as Atom and Dark scrambled into the courtyard, breathing erratically along with a group of strangers whom I did not recognize. Yet, my smile couldn’t help but freeze when I noticed Dark’s striking appearance.

  “He’s crippled?” Though I’d seen a number of NPCs arrive with grievous wounds, Dark was the first player to arrive with a missing arm.

  “What happened? I didn’t even know you could lose limbs in this game.” I mused at the discovery, curious on how one could go about regrowing a limb without having to commit suicide and respawn. Maybe there were potions or pills available?

  Thereafter, the gates to the outer courtyard were closed with a loud boom that reverberated through the area, symbolizing the end of the trial’s deadline. Based on the sound that the gate had made, I doubted even a dozen mortals could open it.

  Thus, a deafening silence spread around the courtyard. Yet, just as I was wondering if they’d forgotten about us, a single cultivator dropped from the sky.

  Clad in an ornate white-and-black robe, the flying cultivator gracefully landed on a pedestal before his sharp eyes swept over the attentive crowd. Unlike the younger-looking cultivators standing guard around the courtyard, this cultivator was obviously of higher rank and standing. If that wasn’t clear by his embellished clothes, the commanding presence he emitted certainly underscored it.

  “Welcome mortals.” The cultivator’s voice echoed like a crack of thunder. “To the prestigious White Tiger Sect Outer Courtyard.”

  “For many of you, whilst you progress in your cultivation, this will serve as both a gathering place and a home. Nevertheless, before I may begin my introduction in earnest, we have two minor issues to address.”

  The crowd listened to his words attentively, me included.

  “You, you, you and you.” The cultivator arbitrarily singled out four teenagers in the crowd. Despite being unable to see them all, the one person who I did catch a glimpse of looked completely frozen, like a deer caught in headlights.

  “You do not have the required amount of talismans and are thus summarily eliminated.” The cultivator’s verdict was swift and brokered no disobedience.

  Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author's preferred platform and support their work!

  The crowd watched on silently as younger cultivators appeared to escort the four teenagers off the premises.

  At least I hoped that that was what they were doing.

  “Now that the first issue has been sorted out…” The cultivator’s impassive eyes swept over the rest of us.

  “For the first time since our sect’s founding nearly two-thousand years ago, over five-hundred trial-takers have successfully managed to pass the induction trials.” A hushed celebratory reaction spread throughout the crowd. “Yet, as all aspiring cultivators are aware, the road to immortality is arduous and the resources both scarce and precious; it is my firm belief that they cannot and must not be wasted on mongrels, halfwits and recreants pretending to cultivate.”

  Smiles were replaced by expressions of worry as the cultivator kept on speaking.

  “Listen closely because if it was up to me, every pathetic 12-star talent would immediately be dismissed.” The cultivator scoffed. “But that would be against the long-established tradition of the ferocious White Tiger Sect.”

  I grabbed the hilt of my sword tightly as I picked up on where this was going.

  “Fortunately for the majority of you, I am not in charge of the induction trial.” The cultivator scoffed. “No, the elders have decided that another purge is in order: Your acceptance into the sect is therefore delayed until three-hundred provisional disciples remain.”

  I felt my face drain of blood as I realized what was going to ensue momentarily. After taking a glance at Lana, I confirmed that she’d caught on by now as well.

  “There will be no running.” The cultivator sneered as he looked at the cultivators guarding the exits. “The White Tiger Sect will not sully its prestigious halls with the presence of cowards.”

  Gesturing with his sleeve, the cultivator finished his monologue.

  “You have an incense stick’s worth of time.” He declared before elaborating. “If you are unwilling or incapable of sorting this issue out amongst yourselves, this year’s three-hundred disciples will be selected by me personally.”

  “Now begin.”

  Immediately, the first thing I did was grab a hold of Lana’s arm. Pulling her along with me, I retreated towards the edge of the courtyard, which fortunately for us wasn’t far away.

  With our backs against one of the pillars, I observed the chaos that unfolded before us.

  Some teens took this opportunity to throw their previous companions under the bus, others were sandwiched between multiple groups who didn’t mind collaborating temporarily.

  Heart-wrenching screams filled with pain, anger, and fear echoed throughout the courtyard. And on the pedestal, the cultivator observed it all impassively.

  “Sorry Hou Wen…” I readied my sword when four teens suddenly began to approach me and Lana; I read both murder and determination in their eyes. “Meng Ai will have to take care of herself.”

  Without waiting for my enemies to coordinate their attack, I seized control of the tempo by attacking the one closest to me.

  To his credit, he reacted swiftly, blocking my sword with his own. Sadly for him, he underestimated the strength I had put behind the swing.

  Utilizing the momentary opening created from his lapse of judgement, I allowed my newfound instincts to take control of my body and, in extension, my sword.

  “That’s one.” I counted as a severed head flew through the air, dismissing the pop-up prompt with a flick of my wrist.

  Unluckily, my opponents weren’t waiting for me to recollect myself.

  Two teens attacked me, both wielding swords of their own. The last one focused on Lana.

  “Good luck.” I wished my ally before forcefully forgetting about her. If I was to survive this, I couldn’t afford any distractions.

  The first attack came from my left.

  Despite a successful parry, I winced as my second assailant landed a critical hit against my ribs.

  “Fuck you.” I cursed the bastard while fanning the flames of anger higher, hoping it would muffle the pain.

  I found that it helped a little.

  Moving swiftly, I narrowly managed to land a nasty gash on one of the teen’s thighs before hurriedly evading the retribution by awkwardly fumbling backwards.

  “That was close.” I thought as I felt blood gush from my wound. I was operating under a time limit.

  With one of my opponents clutching his bleeding leg in anguish, I could momentarily focus on the other.

  When he parried my swing with his sword, I leaned in and headbutted him.

  It was super-effective, but the recoil was absolutely dreadful.

  Disoriented by my attack, I ignored the pain and renewed my assault only to discover that my second opponent had chosen to shrug off his wounded leg and pounce at me.

  Clicking my tongue I awkwardly abandoned the attack, unwilling to commit to mutual destruction. After all, my goal wasn’t to kill my opponents, it was to pass the trial.

  “If I don’t bleed out by then…” I thought as I clutched the bleeding wound on my ribs. By this point, my tunic was so tattered that I might as well go shirtless.

  I heard Lana release a scream but I ignored her.

  Repositioning myself, I attacked my opponents from a new direction.

  Thankfully, with one of my opponents suffering from a mild concussion and the other from a wounded leg, they were just slow enough for me to adjust my angle of attack so that their bodies hindered each other from responding properly.

  I prioritized the one with the wounded leg. One swift strike turned into two, then three, and then, unable to keep up with my swordsmanship, his stomach was slashed open.

  “Entrails, really?” I suppressed the sudden urge to vomit. What was even the point in making a game this realistic?

  A prompt appeared saying-

  Moving on instinct, I reflectively blocked my second opponent's swing before taking a nasty punch to the face.

  “That’s going to leave a mark.” I thought as I humourlessly spit out a mouthful of blood. The prompt could wait until after I’d liberated this guy’s head from his shoulders.

  Utilizing the bloodlust, I briefly activated my Killing Intent.

  For less than a second, my opponent’s eyes widened in fear, his movements suddenly slow and sluggish.

  Needless to say I took advantage of the opportunity to follow up on my promise.

  Another head subsequently sailed through the air.

  Breathing erratically, I turned around to help Lana, only to curse at what I saw.

  “You disgusting bastard.” I clenched my teeth in anger, all my fatigue forgotten as I discover Lana struggle against the man pressing down on her, attempting to strip her of her clothes.

  Before I knew it, my sword had pierced through his chest, subsequently turning Lana’s assailant into crystalline pixels before vanishing.

  “A player.” I gnashed my teeth in anger. The one person I’d actually wanted to kill wasn’t actually dead.

  ...