To the far side, adjusting his wristguards in silence, stood Ro Yilin of the Verdant Sky Sect, a guest student at Abyssal. He was built like a boulder, broad-shouldered and calm. His aura was completely grounded no sparks, no haze just solid pressure, as if he were a mountain waiting to fall.
In the upper balcony, arms resting on the edge and legs swinging like a bored child's, was Linnet Qiao, a transfer from Mistvale Institute to Oculus. Her laugh had already echoed twice through the hall both times during dead silence. She was unpredictable. Her techniques were said to blend elemental misdirection with trickster formations. Wuxie watched her spin a marble of cloudstuff between her fingers absently. Her gaze met his for a moment and she winked.
Then came the wild cards.
Every year, the Imperial Council allowed a handful of unaffiliated cultivators those not bound to the four great academies to enter the exam under special circumstances.
