Core

The day after his fourth Soul Ring took shape, Lin Qing went to the training ground as usual.

The bells marking the hour of the hare had yet to finish ringing, but seven or eight people were already standing in the courtyard.

As he entered the line, several gazes fell on his feet. He had already withdrawn the Soul Ring, but the words "ten thousand years" written in the register yesterday had spread quickly among the Golden Generation.

A ten-thousand-year fourth Soul Ring was practically unheard of.

Shen Du leaned against the wall, his fingers rubbing the shaft of his short spear. His gaze lingered on Lin Qing for a moment.

Lu Qingya stood on the right side of the line. He did not turn around, but his shoulders angled half an inch farther than usual.

Qin Wuj iu opened the register and read out two names. "Lin Qing, Lu Qingya."

Lin Qing stepped out of line. Lu Qingya emerged from the right, his steps as light as ever, making no sound as they touched the ground.

The two took their places in the center of the field, five zhang apart. Qin Wuj iu glanced at them. "Begin."

Lu Qingya did not wait. His figure split into three, and the three phantoms scattered at once, one to the left, one to the right, and one straight ahead, closing in on Lin Qing from all sides.

This was his fastest movement technique. Three days ago, in the three-way free-for-all, he had used it to push both Lin Qing and Shen Du out of bounds at once.

But this time, Lin Qing did not retreat.

He raised his right hand, gathering a ball of blue-gold light in his palm.

The blade light flew toward none of the phantoms. Instead, it landed three zhang in front of him and exploded on impact. Countless blue-gold bamboo leaves swept up from the ground, forming a tornado-like vortex that covered a full five zhang.

All three phantoms were swept into the vortex, and two dissolved the instant they touched the blade light.

The third-Lu Qingya himself-flashed out from the edge of the vortex, but the bamboo leaves had cut several bloody gashes in his left arm. His sleeve was shredded, and he staggered.

Before he could regain his footing, Lin Qing was already moving. He pole-vaulted across the five-zhang gap in a single bound, cold Qi gathering in his right hand as he struck at Lu Qingya's chest.

Lu Qingya barely managed to raise a hand to block, but Lin Qing's palm changed direction halfway through the strike. The cold Qi went around his arm and struck the side of his shoulder.

Cold Qi seeped into his meridians. Lu Qingya's movements stiffened instantly, and a thin layer of frost coated half his body.

He looked down at his shoulder, then at the hand Lin Qing had withdrawn, and fell silent for two breaths. "I lost."

Qin Wuj iu's voice rang out. "Lin Qing wins."

Lin Qing drew back his right hand, and the blade pattern on his palm slowly sank deep beneath his skin.

As he walked back to the line, he felt several gazes settle on his back. Shen Du's fingers came to a stop on the spear shaft, no longer rubbing it.

Hu Liena stood on the other side of the training ground. Her deep-purple eyes rested on him for a breath, then moved away.

Yan leaned against the wall with his arms folded. His gaze lingered for a moment on Lin Qing's withdrawn right hand, and his brows furrowed slightly.

Qin Wuj iu opened the register and read out the next pair of names without commenting.

After afternoon training ended, Lin Qing did not do any extra practice.

He returned to his quarters, opened his training log, and wrote a line under today's date: "Sparring match, Lu Qingya, victory.

"Bamboo Blade Storm: thrown wind covered five zhang, close-range cold Qi control. Did not use Bamboo Transformation at any point."

As he closed the log, someone knocked on the door. Lin Qing stood and opened it to find Hu Liena outside.

She had changed into a clean set of fitted training clothes, her purple hair still tied behind her head.

"Qin Wuj iu sent me to tell you that starting tomorrow, you'll train with us." Her gaze rested on his face for a moment. "Core training, in the north district."

Lin Qing looked at her. Core training, the north district, together with Xie Yue, Yan, and Hu Liena. He had crossed the first threshold into the Core Circle.

"Why?"

Hu Liena got straight to the point. "In your match against Lu Qingya today, you didn't use Bamboo Transformation at all. You only used Bamboo Blade Storm and cold Qi control.

"Qin Wuj iu said your overall combat strength has already surpassed the reserve team's upper limit."

She paused. "But core training isn't as lenient as the reserve team.

"Once you join, you'll face direct pressure from Xie Yue and Yan, as well as the suppression of my spiritual domain. By then, even if you want to hide anything, you won't be able to."

"I wasn't planning to hide anything."

Hu Liena glanced at him, said nothing more, and turned to leave. Her footsteps gradually faded down the alley.

Lin Qing closed the door and returned to sit beside his bed. He looked down at his right palm. The twin ice and fire marks and the blue-gold blade pattern rested quietly deep beneath his skin.

Bamboo Blade Storm's thrown-wind form covered five zhang, his close-range cold Qi control was precise enough, and he had yet to use Bamboo Transformation. He still had a trump card he had not revealed.

Core training would begin tomorrow. He closed his eyes, circulated Bamboo Breath once through his body, then lay down.

Outside the window, wind passed through the alley, while the fourth bamboo segment shone steadily in the depths of his sea of consciousness.

Early the next morning, Lin Qing stood before the iron gate of the north district.

The guard looked through the register and stepped aside. Beyond the gate was an open field nearly twice the size of the training ground.

Dark gray flagstones paved the ground, and eight black stone pillars stood around the field. Dark-colored Soul Tools were embedded in their tops, with fine patterns slowly flowing across their surfaces.

Three people stood in the center of the field.

Xie Yue leaned against a stone pillar with his eyes closed, his Moon Blades tucked at his waist.

Yan crouched on the ground, one hand braced against it, faint embers of flame flickering around his knuckles.

Hu Liena stood on the north side of the field, her purple hair tied behind her head. When she saw Lin Qing enter, she gave a slight nod.

Qin Wuj iu was there too. He stood at the edge of the field without a register in his hands and simply glanced at Lin Qing.

"Starting today, you'll train with them." He paused. "They'll decide what the training entails. I'm only responsible for keeping records."

With that, he withdrew to the side of the field and said no more.

Yan was the first to stand. He rolled his shoulders, fixed his gaze on Lin Qing, and got straight to the point.

"I heard you kept Lu Qingya pinned down throughout your match yesterday." His voice was not loud, but it had a directness to it. "So today, I'll test your limits."

Hu Liena did not stop him, and Xie Yue did not open his eyes.

Yan walked to the center of the field, bent his legs slightly, and clenched his fists.

A layer of flame seeped out from beneath his skin, spreading along his arms to his shoulders and back, where it gathered into a blurred beast-shaped phantom behind him.

Flame Lord. The temperature rose sharply, and a layer of rippling heat spread across the flagstones.

"Begin." Hu Liena's voice came from the side of the field.

Yan moved. He did not use his full strength, merely taking a step forward and driving his flame-wreathed right fist straight at Lin Qing.

His speed was not exceptionally fast, but the wind from his punch was scorching, and tiny tongues of flame burst through the air around his fist.

Lin Qing did not retreat. He pressed his left hand to the ground and activated Bamboo Sea Emergence.

Bamboo shot out from the gaps between the flagstones, erecting a barrier between them.

Yan's fist smashed into a bamboo stalk, which burst apart at the middle, sending flaming fragments scattering.

But his second punch followed close behind, and a second bamboo stalk shattered in the fire.

Lin Qing moved among the bamboo branches, adjusting his position with a pole vault. He released Bamboo Soul, sending it sweeping toward the edge of Yan's consciousness.

Yan's movements paused for an instant, but he practically forced his way through the interference, smashing both fists into the ground at once.

Flames exploded from the ground and spread in every direction along the gaps between the flagstones.

In other people's eyes, Yan's fire-attribute Martial Soul was Lin Qing's natural bane. Unfortunately, how could Chaos Lone Bamboo, baptized by the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, fear flames?