Chương 139: Chapter 138: After the Trial

The remaining performances were all competent. None of them came close to what the first few participants had shown. When the last performer left the stage, the hosting elder returned and walked to the center of the stage.

"The results of the late-stage Golden Core Wide Resonance Trial." He clasped his hands behind his back.

"Third place goes to disciple Sui Li, for her vine cultivation technique." A soft ripple of acknowledgement moved through the audience. It was all visual since Yang still couldn't hear the usual sounds that came with such reactions.

"Many of you saw the vines as a visual spectacle. That is understandable. But the vines that spread through this arena were not merely an effect of her music. Rather, they were extensions of herself. Her music technique did not merely influence the world around her. It reached outward through the qi her playing shaped and became, in a literal sense, her own body extended into new forms. Each vine that wrapped around your seat was as much a part of her as her own hands.

The blooms acted as an organ to further extend the reach of her music and, in the same way, made it possible for her music technique to extend farther than possible at her cultivation level." He paused to let the audience appreciate the effects of the technique before moving on to the next place.

"Second place goes to disciple Huo Dong, for his pipe-flute technique." The atmosphere in the arena shifted immediately. Several disciples looked at each other and began speaking; an uncertainty ran through the seats. The background noise would have increased by now if it weren't for whatever formation existed here that affected sounds.

Looks like the disciples who were too distracted by this Huo Dong's music initially had now enough time to digest what happened during this particular performance and were now willing to voice any question they may have had. The elder raised a hand.

"I understand this was unsettling. Having a technique act upon you without your awareness or consent is not something any cultivator takes lightly. However, I want to be clear. The technique caused no harm. It showed you nothing that was not already within you. And I would ask you to consider something before you let your discomfort settle into grievance." He walked slowly across the stage.

"The formations and techniques used in ancient secret realms and sealed tombs employ similar methods. Soul-affecting trials and barriers are used in those places to mislead, to test, and to break the will of cultivators who are not prepared for it. Even our own entrance trials, for those of you who entered that way, use it. Having experienced this today, under the supervision of your elders, in conditions of complete safety, is an advantage. You now know what it feels like.

You will likely recognise it when you encounter it again." The murmuring faded. The disciples did not look entirely happy, but the feelings in the room eased.

"Now for the best performance. The first place goes to Gu Chengyu, for his guqin formation technique." The applause that followed was immediate and lasted considerably longer. The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

"The judges were particularly impressed by the qi-gathering formation. For those who are not familiar with the craft, that formation was the performer's own creation, designed using a few versions of qi gathering formations and the disciples' own original work. The judges have awarded first place not only for the formation's practical applications, which were evident to everyone present, but for the creation of the work itself. Creating something new is the highest expression of any cultivator's craft.

Music cultivation is no exception." He looked out at the arena one final time.

"All three winners will receive a musical instrument treasure suited to their cultivation techniques. In addition, Third place receives five hundred mid-grade spirit stones, and fifty hours in the cultivation chambers. Second place, one thousand mid-grade spirit stones, and one hundred hours in the cultivation chambers. First place receives three thousand mid-grade spirit stones and two hundred hours in the cultivation chambers." Yang was impressed.

The prizes were considerably more generous than those at the foundation stage events. Yang reflected on the elder's thoroughness as people began making their way out. He had appreciated it. The detailed explanations of each winner's performance. But on reflection, it made sense. He himself had only understood that the second-place performer had used a soul-based technique when the elder described it. He would not have known otherwise.

For an event this specialised, at a cultivation level this far above most of the audience, the explanations were not just courteous. They were necessary. Even Senior Brother Lin Yi and Senior Brother Liu Te had grown quiet watching the late-stage Foundation Establishment alchemy events and that was a difference of only minor realm. The cultivators in this audience were likely in the same position, watching golden core performers. Most of them would not have fully understood what they were seeing without being told.

Around him, people were rising and beginning to make their way toward the exits. Yang took out Senior Brother Wu Nai's gold coin and pressed his thumb against it. The coin warmed. He made his way down through the peak's winding paths, the mist still moving in its quiet rhythmic patterns around his feet, and reached the landing area just as Senior Brother Wu Nai descended on his sword. Yang climbed on without ceremony.

The sword rose smoothly and they flew back toward the outer sect peak without conversation, the evening air cold and clean around them. When they arrived at Yang's cave residence, Yang stepped off and reached into his sleeve.

"Thank you, Senior Brother. Here, take this," Yang said as they landed, passing over a bundle of talismans. There were a few more than the agreed amount, but Yang thought it worth it. Senior Brother Wu Nai was reliably available at short notice, and Yang would like to maintain that arrangement well beyond the competition if he could.

"Thank you, Junior Brother," Senior Brother Wu Nai said, looking at the bundle with a smile.

"Send me a message whenever you need a ride. I will take my leave." He stepped back onto his sword and flew off in the direction of the inner sect. Yang went inside, brewed a pot of Pink Lotus Tea, and settled on the floor cushion next to the table with the cold cup between his hands. He thought about the day. Seeing Grandpa Chen again was worth the entire trip on its own, even if he had been only a construction of Yang's own deepest desires given form by someone else's technique.

But what occupied his thoughts now was the first-place performer. He had never felt qi flood into him like that. The only comparable moment he could reach for was when he had absorbed from the crystal source in the Cardwright World, the energy that had come in a wave larger than anything his cultivation could have accumulated in the full seventeen years he had spent there.

He still didn't fully know how much of that had gone to the bead, how much to his soul, or whether if his body had received any of it at all after he came back. That question remained open and probably would for a long time. He found himself wondering how he could get access to something like that again. And not for the first time his thoughts went to the cultivation chambers in the inner sect.

If they weren't restricted to inner sect disciples, he would have been more than happy to use all his points to take advantage of them. They had enough concentrated qi to make a prize for the late-stage Golden Cores, so it should be more than enough for his own current needs. But for that, he'll need to either win his own events, which was almost impossible, or better yet for permanent access, become an inner sect disciple.