A cultivator in short blue robes and billowy white trousers rode up to the opposite side of the stone square on a pure black panther. Like his panther, his hair was sleek and shiny, slicked back from his forehead and bound into a low ponytail. He hopped off and strode up to the arena, one hand on the panther’s shoulders.

“Are you my opponent?” he asked, holding up a fist that read: Weiheng Hui.

Ah… seeing it laid out in text is a little too painful. Master, couldn’t you have picked a slightly less grandiose set of characters than ‘Greatest, Loftiest?’

At least it’s the Hui for clever. That’s how I’ve always thought of my name.

In response, Hui held up his fist with Shan Xe written on it.

Shan Xe crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes at Hui. “Answer me. Are you the disciple of Weiheng Wu?”

Hui nodded.

“That bastard utterly disrespected my master recently, do you know? Stole his seat at a banquet and didn’t even look in his direction, let alone utter an apology. Thinks he’s so much better than us beast cultivators, huh? All you other soft, weak cultivators like to look down on us, as if we’re no better than beasts ourselves! All because we’re the only ones who see the true potential in spirit beasts. But don’t worry. My Zhenmao will beat you until you learn the might of beast cultivators and apologize properly to my master, in your master’s stead!”

In response, the panther stretched and yawned, showing off vicious white fangs.

Er, I’m sorry, but my master thinks he’s better than everyone equally, beast cultivator or no, Hui thought.

Outwardly, he grinned and crossed his arms. “Your precious kitty? Pitiful beast cultivator, allow a true cultivator of the most powerful, most martial path, a sword cultivator, to put you in your place. Zhubi!”

At his call, the snake lifted its head out from under Hui’s robes.

“Before your eyes, this small—ahem. This grandmaster will defeat your cat with the snake he raised as a pet, proving once and for all that sword cultivators are stronger than all other cultivators in all ways!”

Zhubi turned and hissed at Hui angrily.

Hui tipped his head toward the snake and spoke from the side of his mouth, quietly. “Zhubi, Zhubi, I understand. I’m only taunting him. Of course this small cultivator sees you as a friend and equal. But if we want to win this battle… if we want to survive, we have to get him to underestimate you!”

Zhubi paused, thinking, then dipped his head in consent.

Shen Xe’s face reddened. “A pet? You dare call a spirit beast a pet?”

“Ah, your little kitty is very cute, too,” Hui allowed. “Though not as adorable as my Zhubi.”

Zhubi hissed happily, swaying against Hui’s neck.

“Damn sword cultivators! Never understanding the worth of spirit beasts!” Shen Xe spat. His eyes narrowed.

“You’re fortunate I’m only going to fight with my pet. If I unsheathed my sword, I might accidentally kill your sweet kitty in one stroke,” Hui boasted, putting a hand on Gu Tian’s sword.

“Then I, Shen Xe, swear that I and Zhenmao will force you to unsheathe your sword!” Shan Xe shouted, incensed.

“You and Zhenmao? See, Zhubi, this is why beast cultivators are no good. They can’t do anything on their own,” Hui said, shaking his head.

Zhubi hissed back at him.

Shen Xe shook his head at Hui. “I’m not afraid to stand up for the beast cultivator’s way of life! There’s nothing shameful about teamwork!”

Beside him, Zhenmao narrowed its golden eyes and bared its teeth at Hui.

Hui clicked his tongue, annoyed. So much for luring him to fight on his own without that scary panther of his. Oh well, I’ve already done enough mental damage to give myself a hand up in the fight!

“Then, you both will bow before the might of my pet!” Hui said, drawing himself to his full height to look down on Shen Xe.

The arena rapidly filled. Disciples from each of the sects staked out a section of the stands, each group sitting together. The silkpants’ section glittered and shone, almost too brilliant to look directly at. Hui shot them a jealous glance. Why couldn’t I fight a silkpants cultivator first instead of a beast cultivator?

Ah, though beast cultivators do tend to be more straightforward, and therefore easier to trick, silkpants-style cultivators should be easy to suppress by moving early before they can use their expensive equipment and… talismans…

Hui paused. I’m far too poor to be a silkpants cultivator, but… why do I suddenly feel like I fight like one?

Fellow contestants took their spots at the other arena. Lifting his dark robes subtly, Hui glanced around at the other matchups.

In the arena beside him, Su Yan faced off against a Mysterious Heavenly Forest cultivator with a wooden sword that shone with strange light. Behind Shen Xe, a pink-robed female cultivator stood opposite a silkpants cultivator in robes so white they glowed, a treasured sword encrusted with gems on his hip. Diagonally from them, the triplets faced a Silk Heart cultivator who smirked back, each hand resting on a beautiful metallic construct in the shape of a jade beauty, one silver, one gold.

That girl in pink… she feels familiar. From the arena, even. I… Hui frowned and bit his lip thoughtfully.

The arena broke out with applause. Hui looked up as four cultivators passed overhead, hands raised. He furrowed his brows, then ducked and pulled his robe tighter over his head. That’s the Sect Master! Those must be the sects’ representatives!

Aside from the Sect Master, there was an elegant, scholarly man in long green robes decorated with leaf and branch patterns. Like the Mysterious Heavenly Forest cultivator in the arena beside Hui, he rode a wooden sword glittering with strange light. Beside him, a rowdy-looking woman in blue sat in lotus pose atop an enormous hawk, her hair wild and her robes half-up, half-down to reveal her undershirt, her hems decorated with fur. She tossed back a gourd of liquor and wiped her mouth, letting out a pleased sigh.

The final cultivator in the group, a silkpants in all silver, so committed that even his hair shone in glistening silver, let off a much less impressive aura than the other two. He rode a treasured sword nervously, hands fiddling behind his back.

He reminds me of the Golden Merchant. Not his demeanor, but certainly the way he dresses, Hui thought.

As the Sect Master passed overhead, he paused. He looked down at the fighters.

Hui clamped down on his qi even further. He slumped where he stood, no longer strong enough to stand upright. Around his neck, Zhubi joined in and turned belly-up.

Not now, Zhubi!

“Ah? Were you overcome by the fierce aura of by Zhenmao?” Shen Xe asked, crossing his arms.

“Absolutely not. This grandmaster simply had to stretch,” Hui bluffed. He glanced up. Move on already, Sect Master! Move on!

“Sect Master Lan?” the scholarly man asked, adjusting his glasses.

The Sect Master shook his head and flew on. “It’s nothing, Sect Master Mu.”

Following the Sect Master’s lead, the sects’ representatives settled into the highest box in the arena, the same place where Lan Taijian had watched Hui’s fight with Chang Bolin. Hui glanced up. Alongside the sects’ representatives, the Peak Lords and other high-ranking cultivators from the other sects sat in the box. Lan Taijian sat near Sect Master Lan, as far from Weiheng Wu as he could. For his part, Weiheng Wu sat in the center front of the box, without a single care for showing proper respect to the sect masters around him.

Ah, that’s my master! Hui thought, shaking his head. I hope Sect Master doesn’t kill him when it’s revealed I’m out of forced seclusion and fighting in the tournament.