The morning sun cast long shadows across the Azure Heaven Sect as a massive bronze bell rang out across the floating peaks. The sound was deep and powerful, making the air itself vibrate. Ryven and Victoria walked slowly with hundreds of other candidates toward the central examination area.
The path was made of white stone that seemed to glow softly under their feet. On both sides, tall pillars covered in glowing runes marked the way. The pillars hummed with formation energy that made the hair on Ryven's arms stand up slightly.
"Look at the size of this place," Victoria said quietly, pointing ahead.
The examination arena was huge - easily big enough to hold ten thousand people. The walls were made of polished black stone that reached up at least a hundred feet. Floating platforms hung in the air around the arena, where sect elders could watch the tests from above.
Elder Chen stood on the main platform in the center. She wore deep blue robes with silver thread that caught the morning light. Her voice carried clearly to every corner without her needing to shout - formation magic made sure everyone could hear perfectly.
"Welcome, candidates, to the Azure Heaven Sect trials," she began. "Over the next three days, you will face challenges that test every part of your cultivation abilities. Today, we start with combat."
The arena floor began to change as soon as she spoke. Stone blocks rose up from the ground, creating dozens of separate fighting rings. Each ring was about fifty feet across, with glowing barriers around the edges to keep fighters safe. Above each ring, crystal screens appeared to show the matches to observers.
"You will fight opponents at your same cultivation level," Elder Chen continued. "We care about more than just winning. We want to see your technique quality, how you think during fights, and how you handle new situations."
Sect disciples in white robes began moving through the crowd of candidates. Each disciple carried a jade tablet that glowed when they scanned someone's cultivation level. When they reached Ryven and Victoria, both disciples stopped and looked surprised.
"Unity Realm," one whispered to the other. "Both of them. Why are they here instead of getting direct appointments as elders?"
Elder Chen sent a spiritual thought to Ryven and Victoria "You both have to surpress your cultivation to make the battle fair."
Ryven was assigned to ring number seven. The fighting area was surrounded by a dome of shimmering blue energy that would protect spectators while letting them see everything inside. The floor was covered in sand that had been raked smooth, with white lines marking the boundaries.
His opponent was a young man who looked to be in his early twenties. The man's sword was well-maintained but simple, and his robes showed the kind of wear that came from serious training. When he bowed, his movements were precise and respectful.
"I'm Zhang Wei from the Falling Star Sword Academy," he said. "It's an honor to face someone of your reputation."
"Ryven Strathor," he replied, returning the bow. "Let's have a good match."
Before the fight began, Ryven carefully suppressed his Unity Realm cultivation down to Foundation Realm level. It wouldn't be fair to use his full power against someone so much weaker. Instead, he planned to focus on technique and try to help his opponent learn something from the fight.
The match began when a sect elder raised a green flag. Zhang Wei moved quickly, his sword cutting through the air in flowing patterns. His footwork was good - he stayed balanced while attacking from different angles. For someone at Foundation Realm, his skills were quite solid.
But Ryven could see several areas where the young man could improve. His grip on the sword was slightly too tight, which slowed his recovery time. His stance left his left side open to counterattacks. His timing was good, but he telegraphed his big moves too early.
Instead of simply defeating Zhang Wei quickly, Ryven decided to guide him toward better technique. He moved just fast enough to avoid the attacks while staying close enough to create teaching opportunities.
"Your sword work is good," Ryven said calmly as he deflected a thrust. "But try relaxing your grip slightly. You'll find your sword moves faster."
Zhang Wei looked surprised but adjusted his grip as instructed. His next few attacks were indeed quicker and more fluid.
"Better," Ryven said, catching the sword between his palms in a move that should have been impossible. "Now watch your stance. You're leaving your left side open."
For the next few minutes, the match became more like a private lesson than a combat trial. Ryven would point out weaknesses, demonstrate better techniques, and give Zhang Wei chances to try improvements. The young man's sword work became noticeably better as the fight continued.
The watching elders took careful notes. This wasn't typical examination behavior, but they could see that Ryven was displaying incredible skill and knowledge by teaching while fighting.
When Ryven finally ended the match with a gentle tap of his finger against Zhang Wei's chest, the young man bowed deeply.
"Thank you, senior," Zhang Wei said with genuine gratitude. "I learned more in this fight than in my last month of training."
"Keep practicing," Ryven replied with a smile. "You have good foundation. Just focus on the basics."
The ring supervisor announced Ryven as the winner, but added notes about "exceptional teaching ability" and "master-level technique understanding" to his evaluation.
Victoria's match in the neighboring ring followed a similar pattern. She had also suppressed her cultivation to match her opponent - a young woman who specialized in fire techniques. Instead of overwhelming her opponent, Victoria guided the match to help the woman improve her flame control.
Victoria's ice techniques were beautiful to watch. She created delicate barriers of crystal-clear ice that didn't just block attacks but showed her opponent how fire energy could be redirected and controlled. Her movements were graceful and precise, like a dance that happened to involve combat.
"Try focusing your fire energy more tightly," Victoria suggested as she easily avoided a wide flame attack. "Smaller, hotter flames are more effective than big, spread-out ones."
The young woman followed the advice and immediately saw improvement. Her next fire technique was much more concentrated and powerful.
Both matches attracted attention from other candidates and observing elders. Word began spreading that the mysterious Unity Realm participants weren't just powerful - they were skilled teachers who could improve other fighters just by sparring with them.
Ryven and Victoria continued through several more matches each. In every fight, they used the same approach: suppress their cultivation, focus on pure technique, and help their opponents learn. They won every match easily, but their opponents left feeling grateful rather than defeated.
By midday, both had advanced through multiple rounds without breaking a sweat. The combat trials were clearly not going to challenge them, but they had demonstrated something perhaps more impressive than raw power - the kind of deep understanding that allowed them to teach while fighting.
During the lunch break, many of the other candidates approached them with questions about technique and cultivation. A small crowd gathered around their table in the dining hall as Ryven and Victoria patiently answered questions and offered advice.
"How do you make your ice techniques so precise?" asked one candidate.
"Practice basic control first," Victoria replied. "Master making one perfect ice crystal before you try to make a hundred imperfect ones."
"Your sword forms look so natural," said another to Ryven. "How long did it take to develop that level of skill?"
"The key is understanding why each movement exists," Ryven explained. "Don't just memorize the forms. Understand what each motion is supposed to accomplish."
Elder Chen watched these interactions from across the dining hall. She had been evaluating candidates for decades, but she had never seen participants who could teach others so effectively while still being candidates themselves.
As the afternoon session began, more challenging opponents were arranged. The sect brought in some of their outer disciples to provide stiffer competition. But the results were the same - Ryven and Victoria continued their pattern of controlled victories combined with helpful instruction.
One particularly memorable match involved Ryven facing three opponents at once. All three were skilled Foundation Realm cultivators with different specialties - one used a spear, one fought with twin daggers, and one relied on palm techniques.
Instead of ending the fight quickly, Ryven turned it into a demonstration of how different weapon styles could work together. He moved between the three fighters, showing each one how to support the others better and how to avoid interfering with their teammates' attacks.
"Spear user, stay in the center," he called out while dodging attacks from all three. "Let your reach advantage control the distance. Dagger fighter, work the flanks. Palm technique user, wait for openings the others create."
By the end of the match, the three opponents were working together much better than when they started, even though they had never trained as a team before. They actually managed to force Ryven to use slightly more complex techniques to avoid their coordinated attacks.
When the combat trials ended for the day, Elder Chen approached Ryven and Victoria personally.
"Your performance today was... unusual," she said carefully. "We've never had candidates who turned their matches into teaching sessions."
"We thought it was more valuable than just showing off our power," Victoria replied.
"Indeed," Elder Chen nodded. "Your approach has been noted and appreciated. Tomorrow's tests will be quite different, but equally revealing."
As they walked back to their dormitories, other candidates continued approaching them with questions and requests for advice. Word had spread throughout the examination group about the two mysterious participants who could fight and teach at the same time.
"Tomorrow is law comprehension," Victoria said as they reached their building.
"That should be interesting," Ryven replied. "Though probably not much of a challenge."
The first day had established them as unusual candidates, but it had also given them insight into the sect's values and teaching methods. The Azure Heaven Sect clearly prized knowledge and wisdom alongside raw power, which aligned well with Ryven's goals of learning rather than just demonstrating strength.
Tomorrow would bring different challenges, but today had shown that their approach of guidance rather than domination was creating exactly the kind of impression they wanted to make.