“I’m already surprised,” said the Elder. “I’m surprised two of the weakest cultivators I have ever seen think they are qualified to join our sect.”

I could see Safi’s face heating up, she was undoubtedly still boiling from the prank that had been pulled on us. I quickly spoke up to stop her from snapping at the elder and completely bottling our chances of joining the sect.

“Then allow us to show you why we think we are qualified,” I said figuring the folks here would appreciate actions over words.

“Well, it’s easy to give you a chance,” said the Elder no doubt taking my younger age into consideration. “But what about this woman? She’s chomping at the bit, something you want to say to me?”

“I was just hoping that such a prestigious sect would have the integrity to treat their guests with a bit of respect,” said Safi.

“If you can’t handle this much, you don’t belong in the Hall.”

“Respected Elder, you’re wondering if I’m qualified to join the sect? Well, I’m wondering if your sect is qualified to waste my time,” remarked Safi, a cold stare piercing the taken aback Elder. I flinched, insulting a sect is not usually a good method of joining it.

Luckily, this Elder was made of sterner stuff. “Well, why don’t we find out?” he asked.

“I’d like that,” said Safi, accepting the challenge.

“Meet Chit outside, she’ll guide you,” said the Elder waving us out. We bowed to him, Safi did so a little stiffly, then left. We found Chit waiting for us, standing very straight, her arms straight down and her hands clasped in front of her.

“Your result?” she asked simply.

“I think you’re stuck with us for a little longer,” I said. She nodded and walked further in, we walked alongside for some reason both of us were hesitant to start a conversation with the stoic woman.

After some twists and turns, various closed doors, and a stray Elder or two, the hallway opened up to a huge hollowed-out space. Too large to be called a room, too large to even be referred to as a hall.

I looked down and saw that it carried on below me. The walls of the space were littered with small rooms, dug out uniformly around the edge. Stairs and pathways were carved so that all of them were accessible.

Chit led us around the left side, we walked past door after door of identical rooms. “Chit, the Elder said we would have to prove ourselves first, aren’t these living quarters for disciples?” asked Safi.

Chit only nodded and carried on walking. We were escorted up two more floors until we stopped in front of an empty wall. “Dig,” she said. She stood still assumingly in case we had any questions.

I shook my head, this was a little excessive for new recruits but as difficult as I was expecting considering the sect’s status.

Safi stared at the wall, then back at Chit. “Dig? With what, our hands?” she asked mockingly. Chit only shrugged.

“I don’t think they care what you dig with,” I said.

“Then can I have a pickaxe?” asked Safi. Chit shook her head.

“Okay, they do care what you dig with,” I relented.

Safi looked away from Chit again to stare at the countless already carved rooms around us. “And those were all done by new recruits?” she asked. Chit nodded.

“Alright, whatever,” said Safi, rolling up her sleeves. She began to claw at the rock in front of her, inside the large outline showing us where to dig.

I took my stance in front of the rock and channeled my qi to my hand, launching a palm strike directly into my own outlined space of rock. I immediately recoiled from the pain, some pebbles fell to the ground. I had managed to dislodge some of the craggy surfaces but nothing more.

I looked at my scuffed palm and sighed. I took the same stance and struck the rock again. A particularly sharp bit of the wall cut my palm open. I knew it would not take long for blood to be spilled but after only the second strike was a bit of an annoyance.

Safi was still in the initial stage of cultivation so the control she had over her qi was very limited, nonetheless after seeing my strategy she adjusted her own. She employed what little I had taught her to begin smashing at the wall with palm strikes of her own.

She quickly faced the same pain I was going through, but neither of us shared words or even glances, we just pummelled our respective walls over and over again.

It only took an hour before Safi had expended her qi, her wall was still painfully flat, only a small indent was visible. I snuck a peek at her to check her mentality and saw her recovering qi, her face displaying only determination.

I returned to my own wall, looking at my palm which I had been channeling qi into to heal it. It was starting to harden with callouses, something that I welcomed as it dulled the pain very effectively.

Safi recovered quickly and resumed hitting the wall, she hit the wall until tears fell down her face. She hit the wall until her arm was covered in blood. She hit the wall for four days straight, and all she had to show for it was a hole you could barely crawl inside.

My own room I could walk into, it was not very deep but my next level of cultivation was helping me a lot to power through the rock at a much faster pace. Suddenly I felt wavering qi from Safi’s side. I exited my little room to check what was happening, she was sitting down with her legs crossed. I noted her arms covered in dried blood and her hair which looked incredibly hectic.

The wall she was hitting was similarly coated in dried blood leaving quite a grisly image. Under the intense pressure and continued exertion, I knew it was only a matter of time before she broke through to the next stage, the same stage I was on.

I continued in my section until she was finished before teaching her the more advanced qi controlling techniques, she also took a day out to cultivate the lonely whispers technique so that she could fully utilise some of her qi.

After that, her progress was much faster. Another four days showed far more progress than the first four. I had reached the intended depth in that time and was working on widening it to fill the outline. Safi would exit her room every couple of days to see my progress as I similarly checked on hers.

We slept when we were tired, paying no attention to days or nights. We could have looked at the other disciples' activity but resting when we were drained was all our exhausted minds could comprehend.

We rested in our sleeping bags on the pathway outside our respective rooms, so not a single decent night of sleep was had between us. Undoubtedly we both stank as the poor disciple in the room next to mine had stopped coming home, there was only an empty wall next to Safi so at least it was only one person we were burdening.

After 12 days I was finished with my room. I walked out to appreciate the space I had made for myself. It was smaller than Teteli’s cabin but plenty of space for the basics. I wanted nothing more than to have a shower and a proper meal but I thought I’d show Safi some support by holding back from such pleasures until she had finished.

I checked on her progress, she had reached the necessary depth and was working on clearing out the room. Her clothes were drenched in sweat, no blood was visible on her hand only mud and dirt which was caked up to her shoulders. I noticed that her hair was tied up but not in a standard way rather it looked more like a botched knot, I was never more thankful for short hair.

More striking than anything was her attitude. I was worried the task would be too much but so far my worry was unfounded. If anything I could see that her conviction only rose with every palm strike. Her eyes steeled, unshaken by the still mountainous task in front of her. I was lost for an hour as I watched her continuously smash the wall.

Eventually, I began cultivating. I rested when she rested and cultivated while she worked. On the 18th day, she slumped to the floor. I opened my eyes as she looked around the room she’d carved with her bare hands.

Then she smiled, an exciting and brilliant smile that made me thankful I had an eidetic memory.