Chương 34: Initial Assessment

The training field of the outer sect was larger but more basic than the one Jianyi had visited to observe the inner disciples exercise and spar. His muscles had objected to getting out of bed even more than the day before. Minghao had laughed at him for moving like an old man, but confirmed that soreness sometimes got worse on the second day after a large exertion like the mountain run during the test and recommended he spend extra time on stretching before heading to the training ground.

There were four dozen circles lowered into the ground for individual spars, all surrounded by a couple of steps that served as benches to observe or rest between bouts. About one hundred and fifty disciples were waiting for the assessment to take place, some sitting solitary, some standing in groups, others huddled in conversation. All were wearing the sect robes they had received on the previous day; by the way they caressed or smoothed the clothes, one could tell how proud many were. Just like Jianyi.

He almost balked at the idea of sitting on the stone steps, but realized that the fabric was made to endure a lot more than sitting on them. They all had brought spears with them. Some looked well-worn, as if the owner had spent the last century fighting on the frontlines; some were elaborate, with golden inlays in the shaft; some were held with confidence, some with anxiety.

Jianyi had his father's spear in his storage ring, but he did expect them to use the blunted training weapons for the spar, which were arrayed in a rack on the side; otherwise, disaster was sure to strike.

"Good morning, birthday-mate. It almost feels like the tests never end, doesn't it? First the trial, then the test, now the assessment…" It was Deng Shuhua, decidedly not 'Shushu' as she had suggested he call her, that sat down beside him.

"Good morning. I hope you have settled in well?" It wasn't an answer to her question, but he felt that it was at least less awkward than some of his other interactions with his fellow disciples recently. She smiled broadly at him, so it couldn't have been too bad.

"Yes, the quarters are fine. I haven't seen you, though?"

"I, eh, I don't stay at the dormitories. I am working as a servant for an elder and live in his compound."

"Oh, that must be so exciting! I have heard about the inner sect from my mother. She didn't make it there, but visited a couple of times. She even had a meal there once and said that the kitchen was much better than in the outer sect!" She had placed her hand on his arm as she talked breathlessly about food. Exuding excitement that Jianyi struggled to share.

"I wouldn't know. We cook our own food, and I only work as a dishwasher at the central kitchen in the evenings." Before Shushu, no, Deng Shuhua, could respond, a group of people entered the training ground, very much on time, led by a tall man, looking middle-aged and familiar. He felt steel gray eyes briefly looking at him before moving on. It was the elder from the test who had been so surprised when he had heard that Elder Sun was Jianyi's teacher.

He was so surprised by the development that he almost missed the small group of inner sect disciples that followed the elder. Among them were Cai Fangyin and Yuan Ruolan, whom he had both seen last at the inner sect training ground when Ruolan had 'taught him a lesson' on awareness. Neither of the women seemed to have noticed him or reacted in any way.

"My name is Elder Fang Baotian. I have been asked to introduce you to the Fivefold Spear Art this year." The elder had positioned himself in one of the sparring circles centered in front of the disciples, now sitting attentively on the steps around the field. He wore dark gray robes that went all the way to his ankles. His voice was carefully neutral, and no expression marred his line-free, symmetrical face with a slightly hooked nose.

"Today, I will assess your capabilities with the spear, based on which you will be allocated to one of three groups: Amber, Lapis, and Jade. I will personally oversee the training of the latter group. In six months, I will assess you again, and it is your opportunity to move up a group or defend your place at the top. Those in Amber…" he paused a moment and swiped away some invisible dust from his robe "… will be under special scrutiny to see whether they are worthy of remaining in the sect.

Those in Lapis are, I guess, well-positioned for a… decent… path as a cultivator. Those in jade, if they strive without fail and hesitation, are destined to grasp the attention of the sect and leave their mark on the frontlines. Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

"Let me be clear, this is the Fivefold Spear Sect. If you are unwilling or unable to wield the spear, this is not the place for you.

"Let us begin." The elder stepped back to stand beside the closest training circle, and one of the inner sect disciples handed a bucket with a piece of cloth covering most of the top to one of the youths waiting anxiously for the assessment. They pulled out a small piece of jade with a number on it and handed the bucket to the next disciple. When the bucket came to Jianyi, he drew a number and passed it on to Deng Shuhua. Once everyone was done, the disciple spoke up.

"You have just drawn the number of your spar. There should be two of you who have drawn the number one. Leave your spear behind and step forward." Jianyi had drawn the number 27; he wasn't sure whether he should be happy for having some time to watch the other disciples or displeased for having to wait quite a while until it would be his turn. Two young women that Jianyi had not had any interaction with so far rose from the steps to move towards the inner disciple.

One looked quite nervous and almost tripped over her own spear that she had just put down; the other seemed unfazed.

"Good, now please select one of the practice spears and enter the circle." From afar, Jianyi did not see any differences between the spears; nonetheless, the calm girl tried three different spears before settling on one, while the other disciple took the first one and stepped towards the far side of the sparring ring. Once the two candidates stood facing each other, the inner disciple spoke up once more.

"The spar will last until either Elder Fang ends it, one of you yields, or one of you lands three hits. Rules of honorable duels apply." Jianyi frowned, not sure that he was familiar with these rules. He briefly glanced at Shuhua, who seemed to follow the proceedings, leaned over to her, and whispered.

"What are the rules of honorable duels?"

"No strikes to forbidden zones, which are eyes, throat, and groin; only controlled thrusts; if you disarm your opponent, allow them to pick up their weapon after the thrust." Jianyi nodded in thanks and focused back on the inner disciple who had positioned the two women one step from the border at opposite ends of the circle, then stepped out, and after a moment, shouted.

"Begin." The more composed girl on the left stepped forward, then struck out with her spear, holding it at the very end of the haft. Unfortunately, she did not have the strength to keep the spear tip straight at the angle, and the disciple on the right managed to side-step and employed a form that closely resembled the Unyielding Wall to redirect the attack away from her. You could see from a distance how these first moments, this initial exchange, seemed to take a whole mountain of rocks off of her shoulders.

As she repositioned, she took a deep breath and got into a proper position with her center of gravity lowered and one foot slightly ahead of the other. The original attacker did not want to give up the initiative, however, so she closed in further and struck again. Jianyi could not determine what specific form she used, but it did not look like Piercing Fang.

Again, the defender side-stepped, but this time she used the momentum of her block to move into something like Blazing Arc, a descending diagonal strike that landed squarely on the other woman's shoulder.

"Halt," Elder Fang's voice was everywhere, controlled, while not sounding like a shout. Both of the disciples stepped back, the girl on the left rubbing her shoulder where she had been hit. The Elder pointed at her.

"Amber", then at the other contender, "Lapis". The fight had barely taken more than thirty seconds, and yet a decision had been made. Jianyi instinctively felt that the decision had been correct, to the extent that he dared make a judgment like that, but the idea that one's fate, even on a small scale like this, was decided after two short exchanges was jarring, frightening.

The originally more composed disciple bit her lips and pushed her hand through her hair in a move to hide her emotions, while the other bowed to the Elder and stepped to the rack to return her spear. It looked like the other girl was thinking about speaking up, maybe asking for another chance, but she decided to equally bow and return to her seat on the steps surrounding the training field. The inner disciple called for the next pairing. Four bouts later, and none had lasted for more than a minute.

Without a shred of hesitation, the Elder had announced his assessment, and so far, none of the contenders had made it into the Jade group. It dawned on Jianyi that the three groups would not be of equal size, but likely there would be a lot more people in Amber than Lapis, and Jade would be only a fraction of that. Lu Shan stepped into the ring against a woman who was quite tall and athletic. From the way she carried the spear, Jianyi could tell that she was well-trained and experienced.

Even though he tried to stay above these things, he rooted for her to put the boy, who alternated between bully and karma philosopher, in his place. However, with a casual twirl of his spear and a refined Rooted Stance, Lu Shan killed any hope of a crushing victory for Jianyi's unwitting champion. As the signal came, both contenders carefully stepped sideways and probed their opponent with careful feints.

Then, the woman attacked explosively with a Piercing Fang; Lu Shan blocked, countered, but the female disciple moved away adroitly. Two more exchanges like that happened until Lu Shan managed to land a blow on his opponent's thigh. He looked expectantly at the elder to call the fight, but Elder Fang did not even raise an eyebrow and remained quiet.

The girl seemed slightly impaired by the first hit but did not relent in her pursuit of an aggressive fighting style, and, after a few more exchanges, managed to even the score with a hit to Lu Shan's chest. The boy seemed furious, and for a moment it looked like he would strike right back, but he composed himself to go back into the starting position. The fight continued for a few more exchanges and, at a seemingly random moment, the Elder called it to an end. After the briefest of pauses, he pointed to the girl.

"Jade," then to Lu Shan, "Jade". Both contenders bowed to the Elder and then left the circle. As he turned around, Jianyi could see the broad grin on Lu Shan's face.