Hui stepped over the final step and onto solid stone. He dusted off his robes and turned, helping Zhubi over the last ledge. Huh. The pressure never really got that bad. Zhubi didn’t seem bothered, either. Was the trial just glitched for us, or was it really that easy?

“Look who finally showed up,” a familiar voice chuckled.

Hui turned. Bai Xue? Where—

A black-haired girl raised her hand from the corner, beside a somewhat rumple-clothed man with flushed cheeks.

Oh, right. Everyone’s in disguise. Hui walked over and smiled, offering his hand. “I don’t believe I’ve had the pleasure of your acquaintance?”

“Bai Xue,” Bai Xue replied, shaking his hand.

Hey, come on now, Hui thought, narrowing his eyes at her.

“It’s a common name,” Bai Xue continued, as if he hadn’t.

I’m not sure about that… ah, maybe in a cultivation world. Hui bowed to her. “This small cultivator is Xie Hao. I wanted to thank you for fixing my friend’s hair.”

“There’s no need to be so formal. We’re already quite intimate, no?” Bai Xue said, waving her hand.

Hui glared at the man beside her. Peak Lord barely met his eyes before looking away, blushing furiously.

“I see you overcame the stairs trial…?” Hui asked, slowly looking Peak Lord up and down.

“Ah, yes. With many thanks to my companion here, who greatly assisted me when a… heart demon cropped up,” Bai Xue said, her eyes slightly narrowed and a wicked smile on her lips.

What heart-demon, huh? What heart demon! You just wanted to play around with Peak Lord. Dammit, why not me—

Ahem, I mean, now isn’t the time! Nodding at Bai Xue and Peak Lord one more time, Hui looked around the others who’d completed the trials ahead of him. A handsome man with a cocky face and an extra-high ponytail saluted Hui from the back. Rogue in the back there. So over to the left… A slightly slimy-looking man with a shifty expression dodged Hui’s gaze. I’m guessing… Sectgoer?

Ying Lin hurried over to Hui’s side and smiled. “We all made it!”

Hui nodded, looking over the crowd. In the corner, Jin Xian drooled, her eyes staring blankly into the distance. It is all me and my friends right now. Did we do it? Did we get all the winning spots?

Well, there’s still Bai Jingwen…

A delicate pale foot stepped over the threshold of the stairs. Bai Jingwen looked around, frowning slightly. She stared upward, as if searching for someone.

Hui walked up beside her. “Elder Sister, are you looking for Gui Yutong?”

Bai Jingwen turned toward him. She tilted her head.

“Ah, well…” She isn’t here and she won’t be for a while… but! But that’s not what I want to tell Bai Jingwen! “If you pass the trials, you’ll be able to see her again!”

Bai Jingwen turned away from him and drifted off, dismissing him.

“Jingwen, is that you?” Bai Xue asked, startled. She stepped forward, looking at Hui. “You found her?”

“Ah… yes. I meant to tell you, but… I kept forgetting,” Hui said, embarrassed. He rubbed the back of his head. “That’s really what happened… I’m sorry, Bai Xue.”

“No, no. It’s not as if she and I were best of friends, and… I do remember what she and her mother attempted to do to my clan. Even if she chose not to go through with it at the last second, she still betrayed us. Still… it is good to see her again,” Bai Xue said.

Bai Jingwen glanced at Bai Xue, then looked away. Her expression didn’t change at all.

“She isn’t whole, is she,” Bai Xue murmured.

Hui hesitated. After a moment, he shook his head. “She’s never fully woken up. Not… since she became a lotus beast. There are moments, but…”

“Does she hate it? Being a beast… As far as you can tell, does she…” Bai Xue said, her voice fading at the end.

Hui licked his lips. “How to say this… Bai Xue, she, er, she remains as vigorous as the rest of your clan, and is already pursuing a new lover.”

Bai Xue laughed aloud. “Is that so? Wonderful! I’m glad to hear it.”

Ying Lin looked from Hui to Bai Xue. A grin crawled over her face.

Hui shot her a disapproving look, but didn’t say anything. After all, what can I say? She’s right! What she’s assuming… is actually correct right now! How terrible, that my disciple’s romance-addled mind actually came up with the truth… Ah, oh well.

Bai Xue leaned in. Her voice sounded in his head. So from what I understand, you’re the clone-in-charge here?

Somewhat tenatively, Hui extended his mental energy to meet hers. That’s… not correct, but it’s the easiest way to put it.

What’s the plan? Bai Xue asked. My Hui just asked if I wanted to become a peak lord. It sounded fun, so I tagged along.

Ah… yes. Can anyone pick up on this? Hui asked, glancing around.

Bai Xue smirked. Not unless they’re close enough to see us. Besides, we’d know.

“You’re safe,” Chen Wuya murmured.

Hui nodded at the crow. “Thank you, Senior.”

I’m planning to take down All-Heavens Sect, as you well know. When I heard they were recruiting peak lords… well, the fewer they have, the easier it is for us to take down the sect, Hui explained.

Ha! So we become the peak lords, and then… I like it, Bai Xue thought, nodding. She grinned at Hui. Excellent. Let’s become admirable peak lords!

Another contestant appeared out of the fog. She staggered over the finish line, bent and haggard, slowly straightening once she reached the top. She blinked, scanning around the top, then stopped and did a double take. Her jaw dropped. To herself, she muttered, “I’m only… tenth?”

Hui licked his lips, nervous. Uh oh. Did we stand out too much? But… I barely even tried. The trial didn’t show up! It’s not my fault it was so easy. Besides, besides, it’s not as if I could stop everyone else from trampling over the trial. It was simply a trial well-suited for myself and my friends!

In any case, Bai Xue was already considered a genius, the inheritor of her clan, so there’s nothing I can do about that. Likewise, Ying Lin is a Master-like cultivator, a true genius who’s fated to trample this world. Then there’s myself, who… must have exploited a loophole, and the mindless beasts… ah, I mean that in a good way, Zhubi! Should I instead say pure-hearted beasts? Yes, yes, that sounds better. The pure-hearted beasts. So ultimately, there was nothing this trial could do but roll over and be conquered by us. Yes. It’s not my fault it was so easy!

As Hui thought to himself, more and more contestants passed the finish line. In the end, of the thousand or so cultivators who’d arrived at the trials, only a hundred passed the first trial. The pair of elders descended from the sky, smiling down at them.

“Congratulations on passing the trial,” Sui Linli said. She glanced at Hui, and she smiled, eyes crinkling at the corners.

Eh? Is it just me, or is Senior smiling at me…? Hui wondered.

“However, keep in mind that from here on out, the trials only grow harder,” Mu Bingshi thundered, putting his hands on his hips. He glared down at the participants, though for some reason, Hui felt as though his eyes rested on him for a beat or five too long.

No, no, the Seniors are definitely singling me out. But why? What did this small cultivator do? Hui wondered, gazing helplessly back at them. It’s not as if I hurt anyone, or hindered anyone’s path. I even offered help and some useful advice to one of the fellow cultivators! Why so much emotion, Seniors?

Ah, I suppose the one is smiling at me… but even then, I feel a chill in her smile! Oh no, oh no. I’ve done it. Here I thought I might be able to skate by until Gui Delun showed up, but no, this small cultivator is fated to be treated as a bug! Once I’m caught by the spotlight, I can only end up squished!

Hui’s eyes flashed. I’m a surprisingly hard bug to squish. Just try it, Seniors!

From across the platform, Jing Ruchen narrowed his eyes at Hui. That man… he spoke as if he knew more about the Seven Swords than myself. That’s impossible. I’m the inheritor. Aside from me, no one should know the technique at all, let alone a slender, weak-looking cultivator like him who barely knows how to hold a sword. And yet… I did notice my legs aching lately. Could it be? Does he actually…?

“The next trial tests your battle prowess!” Sui Linli declared. She waved her sleeve.

A long line of stone arches appeared, one for each contestant. Hui stepped forward alongside all the other Huis. A second later, they exchanged a look and scattered to the four winds, mixing in with the other contestants and taking random arches along the length of the line.

Zhubi clung to his arm all the way up to the arch, refusing to release him the whole way. As they stood before it, Hui crouched down and looked him in the eye. He gave Zhubi a soothing pat on the back. “It’s okay. You’ll be fine. You’re a big, strong snake.”

Zhubi looked at him and shook his head. He hugged Hui’s arm tighter, a protective light in his eyes.

“You… you’re worried about me?” Hui asked.

Zhubi nodded.

Hui laughed. “Zhubi… you know, I only recently got the honor of having your presence again. I can handle myself alone.”

“Just because you can, doesn’t mean he wants to leave you alone,” Ying Lin explained, giving Hui a meaningful look.

Zhubi nodded.

Hui sighed. He looked at Zhubi and took a deep breath. Come to think of it, although I’ve had a long time without Zhubi, Zhubi has always been at my side. From his perspective, we’ve barely spent a moment apart. I wasn’t thinking of his side of things.

“Zhubi, do you trust me?” he asked.

Zhubi considered, then shook his head.

“Zhubi…” Hui sighed, looking at the floor. Am I really that unreliable?

Zhubi shook his head harder.

Okay, so I do play dead a lot. And I have lost a few clones lately. But I’m generally good at surviving! Generally.

Hui met Zhubi’s eyes. “I’ll be fine. You have to go and clear the trial, as a human, if you can. I’m concerned about you, too, you know that?”

Zhubi tilted his head. He nodded.

“So you fight hard for me, and I’ll fight hard for you, okay?” Hui said. Ugh, I’m no good at pep talks. I never know what to say!

Hesitant, Zhubi looked Hui in the eye. After a moment, he nodded.

Hui beamed. He stood. “That’s a good boy. We’ve got this!”

I have no idea if we have this or not. A battle test? Oh no. I hope it’s not like that mist array, forcing me to defeat my prior enemies once more. I have some terrifyingly dangerous enemies in my past, now! Not just a single duck…

Sectgoer’s voice sounded in Hui’s head. Er, everyone… our battle prowess. Isn’t this a problem?

How is it a problem? Rogue asked.

Hui smacked his fist into his palm. “That’s right.” We’ll all have the same attack pattern if we don’t coordinate! How about this. I’ll take life qi, Sectgoer can use Midnight Cutter, Rogue can take—

I’ve already established myself as using the death ducks, Rogue said.

Right, but be mindful of that. We don’t want to be seen using demonic techniques, Hui warned him.

No, no. I’ve told them all it’s a ghostly spirit beast. They seem to believe it, Rogue replied.

Chen Wuya lifted off Hui’s shoulder. “Someone else is taking the sword, eh?” he murmured, almost to himself. His talons glinted in the sunlight for just a moment before he flapped away.

So I’ll take talismans? Peak Lord suggested.

Correct. Does that make sense to everyone? Oh, and Peak Lord, if you have a moment… I recently gathered some new spells and artifacts that can likely be reforged into talismans, Hui mentioned.

I doubt I’ll have time in a battle trial, but send them my way, Peak Lord returned.

Right. Everyone ready?

Yep.

Hope so.

As I’ll ever be.

Hui swallowed and nodded, straightening his shoulders to face the stone arc. So… how on earth do I fight with life qi?