More and more people began arriving each day after the first day of the preliminaries. The stands that had once been filled only with participants had now gained a much wider audience. Nobles, wealthy merchants, and a few lucky commoners had all arrived to watch. Of course, it was still just the preliminaries. More people would arrive on the last day so they could attend the first day of the actual tournament.

It was the fifth day of the preliminaries. Hou Jingshu woke up early that morning and did one hour of stretching and meditation before meeting up with everyone else for breakfast. She didn’t eat a whole lot. Zhou Lihua teased her, asking if she was nervous, but that wasn’t the case. Hou Jingshu was simply too excited to eat. She would finally get to help her father achieve one of his lifelong dreams.

How could she not be excited?

While Wu Jian, Yu Qiang, and Zhou Lihua made their way to the stands with everyone else, Hou Jingshu traveled to the arena floor. She was in block eighty, which meant she wouldn’t take part until the second half of the day’s matches. But she wanted to be up close to the fights. That way she could immerse herself in the sensation of combat.

Hou Jingshu knew that she was highly competitive. While she didn’t like violence and killing, she loved proving her strength to others. She wanted everyone to know how powerful she was. She wanted everyone to know the Shang Kingdom was not weak.

Today’s matches were not nearly as exciting as yesterday’s, but both Hou Gun and Hou Chāo took part. They were in separate blocks. Hou Gun fought in block 70 and Hou Chāo was in block 75. Hou Jingshu wondered if the space of their blocks was a coincidence or not, but she didn’t think about it for long. Her block was soon called up to compete. She was in the last block of the day.

“Hou Jingshu and Yan Guo. Please come up.”

Hou Jingshu leapt onto the platform. She eyed the man who joined her. He was relatively handsome, she supposed. His dark hair and eyes gave him a mysterious air, but the smirk on his face ruined his good looks. He wielded a spear like her. The way he twirled it around was showy and frivolous.

“My dear princess, I am honored to be your opponent. Sadly, I shall be both your first and last. Oh, how cruel. Was it fate or misfortune that caused us to meet here on the field of battle?”

So not only was he showy, but he was also pompous and loved to pontificate. That mysterious aura he exuded at first suddenly seemed a lot less mysterious.

“…”

“What is wrong, my princess? Have you nothing to say? Ah, I see. You must be concerned to have met me in your first match. Do not worry. I won’t tarnish your reputation. I shall even let you have the first blow as a show of chivalry.”

A show of chivalry? Does he really think letting me attack first is chivalrous of him? Is he an idiot?

This man was obviously a pig. Their cultivation was roughly the same, which was perhaps why he felt so confident, but any cultivator with real combat experience knew better than to underestimate your opponent like this. Just where did his arrogance come from?

“Are both competitors ready?” asked the elder responsible for their match.

“I am,” said Hou Jingshu.

“Same here,” said the man.

“Then you may begin in three, two, one… fight!”

Since Yan Guo offered her the first blow, Hou Jingshu did not waste time. She summoned her spear, bolted forward, and thrust her weapon out as though to impale him. Yan Guo’s eyes bulged as he stumbled back. Her attack missed, but she merely spun around her spear, impaled it into the ground, and used it to keep her balance as she launched a kick. Her attack this time got the man in the chest. The loud impact of her attack echoed around the arena as he was lifted off his feet and sailed back in a parabolic arc. He did not strike the wall like Wu Jian’s attacks had done. However, he landed hard on his back. Fortunately, he was already unconscious by the time he struck the ground.

Hou Jingshu snorted as she spun her spear so the blade pointed up and tapped the butt end on the ground.

“Th-the winner is Her Highness, Hou Jingshu!” the elder announced.

Hou Jingshu stored her spear back inside of her storage ring and hopped off the stage. The people around her parted as she walked toward the back. She looked up at the stands, where she found Wu Jian, Zhou Lihua, and the others. Wu Jian was wearing his mask so she couldn’t see his face. She wished he didn’t have to wear it. She really wanted to see him smile at her, but she knew that wouldn’t happen right now.

We have no idea who is after Wu Meiying… but they must know who Wu Jian is. That’s why he has to wear the mask. We don’t know where his enemies are. They could be here right now.

It bothered her immensely that they had no idea who was after him, and they couldn’t do an investigation. Not only did they not know anything about the people who destroyed the Wu Clan, but looking into it now would bring attention onto them. Wu Meiying’s enemies might look into them and discover that Wu Jian was alive.

“Hou Jingshu and Duan Xiang. Come onto the stage.”

Hou Jingshu proceeded to beat every opponent who went against her. She showed no mercy to anyone and did her best to display the overwhelming might of a dragon during all of her matches. However, she also limited herself to purely physical combat. That was her specialty anyway, but she didn’t want anyone to know about her techniques. Those were going to be a surprise for her brothers and Húndàn Wang if she had a chance to meet them in the tournament.

She hoped she would.

***

The matches continued to proceed apace, and the last day of the preliminaries arrived. Wu Jian, Hou Jingshu, and Yu Qiang watched all the matches and held discussions on the most powerful contenders. Most everybody who won their preliminaries had held themselves back. They were all sure these people hadn’t revealed all their cards, but they at least got a good estimation of the abilities they had shown. All three agreed that they would need to keep an open mind if they fought any of these people. Adaptability would be the key to winning against stronger opponents like Húndàn Wang and Mei Xilan.

“Congratulations to all the people who passed the preliminaries. 512 of you have made it to the tournament proper, but all of you have displayed skill and talent that brings honor to your families and sects. You have proven yourselves to be truly capable cultivators. I am astonished by the strength that has been displayed these past seven days.”

Húndàn Qie was giving a speech to close the preliminaries. He stood on the stand overlooking the ten platforms. Standing beside him was the head elder, Hou Cai, Hou Gun, and Húndàn Wang.

He was a good orator. The man certainly knew how to give a speech. Even the cultivators who lost looked a little better about themselves, though there were some who still appeared bitter. Wu Jian noted with some amusement that everyone who had gone against him, Hou Jingshu, or Mei Xilan looked like they had swallowed a lemon regardless of this man’s kind words.

“The tournament begins tomorrow, so tonight, we shall have a feast to honor those who have made it this far.”

A cheer went up when Húndàn Qie mentioned a feast. Good food always made people happy.

Each nation had their own food culture. Some nations were more concerned by a food’s texture, or flavor, color, or aroma, while others cared more about its nutrition. Shang Kingdom food culture was all about texture and flavor. They were a nation that preferred hearty meals with lots of meat. Of course, they didn’t neglect their grains, vegetables, or fruit, but the main dish of almost every meal would have some kind of meat.

Everyone was led to the mess hall, where the Saintly Sword Sect’s chefs had already prepared an open buffet style meal. Over a dozen long tables were set up near the back. Each table featured different types of food. Most of it was Shang Kingdom cuisine, but Wu Jian saw a few that looked foreign. There were dishes with a type of grain he had never seen before, and some vegetables he couldn’t remember eating.

“Are you curious about those foods?” asked Zhou Lihua.

They were standing before the buffet with plates and bowls in hand. Hou Jingshu was sticking to the foods she knew, but Wu Jian was curious to know what these other dishes were.

“They’re not from the Shang Kingdom, are they?”

“Correct. The grain is called millet. It’s a type of small-seeded grass that grows widely in the Xia Dynasty. It’s slightly sweeter than most grains like rice and has a very delicate flavor if toasted before cooking. The meats next to it are pork, chicken, duck, goose, and dog.”

Wu Jian made a face. “The Xia Dynasty eats dogs?”

Zhou Lihua smiled slightly as if she could see the disgusted expression behind his mask. “There are supposedly a lot of stray dogs in the Xia Dynasty, more so than any other country.”

“But that’s not why they eat dogs, is it?” Wu Jian said.

“You catch on quick.” Zhou Lihua got herself a bowl of millet, then added pork, chicken, and some kind of soup to her bowl. “It’s actually just a money-making scheme. A Xia Dynasty philosopher named Mencius who was often described as the “Second Sage” mentioned that dog meat was edible. Several decades after he passed away, a down on his luck merchant spread a rumor that dog meat has medicinal properties and raised your body’s temperature. It became so popular to eat dog meat that a festival was even made for people to consume it.”

Wu Jian felt sick to his stomach. “I’m not sure I want to know more… and please don’t tell this to Hou Jingshu.”

Hou Jingshu had a fondness for animals. She didn’t have any pets herself, but she always went out of her way to protect animals when they were in trouble. He still remembered how they first met. She had been protecting a cat from several young boys.

“What kind of soup is that?” asked Wu Jian.

“Shark fin soup,” said Zhou Lihua.

“They eat sharks too?”

“Yes. It’s very popular, though it doesn’t have any health benefits. Oh! But it does have a lot of chi. They use shark fins from shark type magical beasts, which does provide a boost to your cultivation. I haven’t tried it myself, so I’m somewhat curious about its taste. Would you like to try some?”

“I think I’m good… I’ll stick to the more standard foods.”

“Suit yourself.”

Zhou Lihua shrugged as Wu Jian piled a combination of millet, chicken, pork, and several vegetables he didn’t know the name of onto his plate. They made their way back to the table where their group sat. Hou Jingshu was already sitting down. It looked like she had gone through at least two plates already.

Cultivators ate a lot more than normal people. The food consumed turned into chi that further aided in a cultivator’s cultivation. Of course, foods made from magical beasts contained higher amounts of chi and were therefore more highly sought after than regular meals.

“How’s the food?” Wu Jian asked as he sat down beside Hou Jingshu. Zhou Lihua sat on his other side.

“Delicious,” Hou Jingshu said after she finished swallowing. “I hate to admit it, but the food prepared here is better than what we have at the palace.”

It wasn’t necessarily a slap to the royal family’s face, but it was a slight against their chefs, which was probably hard for Hou Jingshu to take. The Saintly Sword Sect and royal family weren’t at odds. However, they had been in competition for some time. The royal family did not want to be beholden to this sect, but the Saintly Sword Sect was a branch of the Heavenly Sword Sect, which meant they had a higher standing. That was another reason Yu Chenguang was hailed as a hero. He was the royal family’s means of curtailing the Saintly Sword Sect’s influence since power trumped everything.

All the dishes Wu Jian tried were delicious--even the foreign foods. He thought Wu Meiying would have liked them as well. They matched her tastes. He hoped they would one day be able to eat this together--all four of them.

Later that night, Wu Jian found himself standing before the open window, gazing at the moon and stars. He reached out a hand as though to grasp the moon.

Wait for me, Mei. I promise. I will find you.

Promise made, Wu Jian turned around, sat on his bed, and crossed his arms. He did not intend to sleep tonight. Instead, he would meditate on the Dao of Space. The tournament was beginning tomorrow, and he would do everything he could to win it.