The Central Dread Arena of the Academy of Shattered Nightmares was less a stadium… and more a wound carved into the island's volcanic heart.
A colossal crater yawned beneath the dawn.
Jagged tiers of obsidian seating rose in serrated rings, packed with spectators whose murmurs blended with the island's ever-present dread leaks. The combat floor below was divided into multiple pocket arenas—each sealed beneath shimmering ward domes that glowed blood-red, like captive suns straining against glass.
Observation towers jutted along the rim like blackened teeth.
Within them stood instructors, clan envoys, and sovereign representatives—banners snapping violently in the salt-laced wind. Each insignia radiated pressure: ancient bloodlines, sealed horrors, embodied Chains.
The air thrummed.
Not excitement alone—
—but contained terror.
Crimson interfaces ignited across the sky, projecting tournament brackets large enough to eclipse the rising sun.
Solo elimination first.
Then cohort warfare.
Twenty elite students stood within the participant pits below, uniforms pristine… auras anything but. Nerves flickered like unstable flames. Hunger, fear, pride—all bared beneath the Veil.
At the center tower, Headmaster Vale stepped forward.
His voice rolled across the crater like distant thunder.
"Embody your Chains."
A pause.
"Survive the dread."
Another.
"The strong ascend."
A final, colder breath—
"The weak feed the Veil."
He raised one hand.
"Begin."
The arena erupted.
Cheers crashed like waves against stone, yet beneath them… whispers coiled. Xia Ying felt them brush his shadow.
Yesterday's "accidents" had spread.
Eyes flicked toward him—then quickly away.
Good, he thought.
Let them fear the shadow before it moves.
---
### Participant Pit — Trio Formation
Lin Mei stood at his right, healer light faintly blooming across her fingers like dawn through silk. Devotion anchored her presence—steady, radiant, absolute.
Wei Jun stood at his left, gaze sweeping the arena with tracker precision. Every exit, every ward fluctuation, every aura spike—catalogued.
Xia Ying stood between them, motionless.
Only his shadow moved.
Just slightly too long.
---
## Solo Bracket — Round One
**Opponent:** Sira Gale
**Dominion:** Wind Velocity
The ward dome sealed.
The arena transformed into a storm-ravaged ravine—cyclones screaming through jagged cliffs, Flaw-amplifying mist saturating the air.
Sira moved instantly.
She blurred into existence—then vanished—then reappeared behind him, wind blades shrieking through the air.
Fast.
Precise.
Lethal.
Xia Ying simply stepped back.
One step.
His Adolescent Phantom stirred within his shadow… feeding him threads of her fear.
Abandonment.
Being left behind by her clan.
Speed failing when it mattered most.
He released a precursor pulse.
Small.
Precise.
Invisible to all but her.
Reality twisted.
Her winds turned inward—phantom gusts shredding her limbs. She saw herself slowing… slowing… slowing…
Clan faces above the ravine rim.
Watching.
Turning away.
Disgusted.
Her body scattered into leaves beneath their gaze.
The illusion lasted seconds.
But terror did not measure time.
Sira screamed mid-dash, tumbling across the stone.
Her blades dispersed.
She clutched her head, sobbing.
"Stop—please—!"
Xia Ying extended a calm hand.
"Yield."
She did.
The dome lifted.
Cheers rose—
—but faltered halfway.
"He barely moved…"
"What did he do…?"
Harvest flooded inward.
Clean.
Primal.
Delicious.
---
## Round Two — Illusion Dominion
**Opponent:** Lir
Arena: Shifting labyrinth.
Mirrors. False corridors. Endless duplicates.
Lir's laughter echoed everywhere.
"Let's see your shadows find the real me!"
Xia Ying did not move.
He pulsed deeper this time.
Lir's illusions inverted.
Every duplicate became a nightmare reflection—skin cracking, essence leaking, Flaw devouring form. Smiling faces melted into screaming husks.
The real Lir saw himself multiplied… then unraveling.
They laughed at him.
They *were* him.
He collapsed instantly.
"They're me—MAKE THEM STOP—!"
Forfeit.
Under one minute.
Applause came thin.
Uneasy.
---
## Round Three — Earth Dominion
A brute.
Seismic fists shattered the rock field arena.
Xia Ying allowed the first strike close.
Then—
Pulse.
The fighter saw himself as a statue.
Cracked.
Brittle.
Strength hollowed to dust.
Clan spectators watched as he crumbled.
He screamed mid-charge, swinging at ghosts before collapsing.
"I'm… breaking…"
Harvest surged again.
Thick.
Satisfying.
The stands grew quieter.
Whispers spread like oil fire.
"Like the hall incidents…"
"He breaks them from inside…"
---
## Parallel Field — Zuo Flameheart
Where Xia Ying was silence—
Zuo was spectacle.
Flames detonated across the adjacent arena like miniature suns.
Opponent one: obliterated in seconds.
Opponent two: a blazing phoenix construct devoured the battlefield, drawing thunderous cheers.
Clan envoys nodded.
"Flameheart blood runs true!"
Yet Xia Ying saw what others missed.
A flare flickered mid-summon.
Brief.
But real.
Zuo's eyes twitched—hearing phantom whispers seeded days ago.
Doubt burned hotter than fire.
Still, the crowd roared for him.
They always roared for light.
They feared the dark.
---
## Break Interval — Preparation Lounge
Lin Mei rushed to Xia Ying immediately, hands glowing.
"No injuries—but let me refresh you."
Healing essence flowed through him—warm, reverent.
"They're afraid of you now," she whispered fiercely. "Good. They won't dare touch what's ours."
He allowed a faint smile.
"Your support is flawless, Mei."
Wei Jun leaned nearby, slate projecting rotating data.
"Bracket analysis complete. Your next opponents clear slower. Zuo's aura flickered twice—instability rising. Team rounds tomorrow heavily favor us."
Xia Ying nodded.
"I'll handle psychological weight. Maintain formation integrity."
They watched another team struggle on a side projection—synergy collapsing under dread pressure.
The trio exchanged a glance.
They would not fracture so easily.
Before leaving, Xia Ying released faint Terror Aura seeds into two neutral teams nearby.
Tiny pulses.
Barely detectable.
Enough to bloom tomorrow.
The arena itself provided ambient harvest.
A steady feast.
---
## Final Solo Match — Elara Veil
**Dominion:** Perception / Aura Reading
Dangerous.
The arena became a misted void.
Elara circled slowly.
"You hide depth," she said softly. "I feel it."
Her probes brushed his concealment.
He let them.
Then—
He unleashed his strongest precursor yet.
Her perception inverted.
Infinite reflections flooded her mind—truths layered upon truths until identity dissolved. She saw herself becoming a Veil puppet… screaming secrets no one wished to hear.
The illusion stretched longer than prior casts.
Sharper.
Heavier.
She collapsed instantly.
"Too deep… too much…"
Forfeit.
The harvest that followed was the richest yet—layered terror flooding his core in tidal waves.
Dread Projection precursors stabilized further.
Duration increased.
Personalization instinctive.
Awakening neared.
---
## Day One Conclusion
Sunset bled across the crater.
Leaderboards ignited in the sky.
**Physical Dominance Leader:** Zuo Flameheart
**Psychological Efficiency Leader:** Xia Ying
**Highest Terror Yield:** Xia Ying
**Lowest Exertion Rating:** Xia Ying
The contrast was unmistakable.
Flames ruled the eye.
Shadows ruled the mind.
---
## Arena Overlook — Twilight
The trio regrouped.
Lin Mei beamed with fierce pride.
"You were incredible. Let them fear you—we stand with you."
Wei Jun crossed his arms.
"Team brackets tomorrow. Rest while you can."
They departed.
Xia Ying remained alone at the overlook.
Harvest refined within his core—audience dread, opponent terror, second-hand fear… all condensing into power.
Shadows coiled eagerly around his feet.
Footsteps approached.
Zuo.
Flames flickered along his fists—triumphant… yet unstable.
"Enjoy your shadows while they last," Zuo said. "Flames consume all in the end."
Xia Ying met his gaze.
Smiled faintly.
"As you wish."
A subtle Terror Feedback pulse slipped free.
Zuo's flames guttered for a heartbeat.
He stiffened—rage spiking… unease rising.
Another thread harvested.
He turned sharply and stormed away.
---
Xia Ying faced the darkening arena once more.
The crowd had cheered flames today.
Tomorrow—
They would learn to fear what fed in the dread they could not see.
His shadow stretched long behind him as night swallowed the crater.
The opening round was complete.
But the real tournament…
Had only just begun.