Chapter 22

The next one to fight in Aurora's group was Rose. Rose wasn't a bad fighter, but her specialty was in alchemy, which was good for Aurora since she had one more person to help her study her new passion. But it was terrible for Rose in this coming fight.

Rose's opponent was someone like Aurora, who spent a lot of time honing her battling skills. Yet, luckily for the young alchemist, this person was two levels below Rose. Since there wasn't an equal number of people at each level, one could fight someone weaker or stronger. However, it would never be by too much unless you somehow got to the final rounds.

Thanks to this, Rose managed to eke out a victory, entering the top five thousand disciples in the sect. Even though these rankings technically only existed in the tournament and had no official meaning outside it, the disciples took them seriously. A bottom five thousand disciple would be a no-name in most cases, while the top one thousand were all people who demanded respect from their fellows. The top one hundred were naturally the most famous and often led groups of their own, forming factions between the disciples.

There wasn't much political warfare, but these faction leaders would lead many disciples in major missions or expeditions.

Another purpose of the rankings was promotions in the sect hierarchy. Generally, one had to at least get into the top one thousand to become an inner disciple, and even that wasn't guaranteed. On the other hand, if one showed enough promise, even a top five thousand disciple might get the promotion. But this was usually only the case for new disciples who could benefit significantly from the nurturing or those who had become really unlucky in their matching. For example, Rose's opponent. Since she could keep her own against someone two levels above her, she might be considered. And if she won, she'd definitely get a promotion, even if she lost the next match.

Rose entered the top five thousand, and next was Rila. The twins were jacks of all trades, having taken courses in enchanting arrays, alchemy, and anything deemed valuable for noble ladies to know. However, one of their biggest focuses had always been combat. They weren't like Aurora and Koren, specialists in the field, but they both possessed some skill.

Rila fought her opponent, a girl of a similar level to Rila, for just over five minutes, before coming out victorious.

The third was Koren. Koren's opponent was another girl at the eighth level. Koren had reached the ninth level recently, doing so at an astonishing speed. Comprehension had always been his forte, so he'd probably gotten lucky and comprehended the first level of mastering his own body.

Koren's battle didn't last long. He played with the girl for about a minute before getting bored. In a flurry of eight strikes, he had briefly knocked the girl unconscious, winning by knockout after the ten seconds passed. Koren was a sword fighter but hadn't even drawn his blade.

The display shocked everyone in the group except for Aurora, as she was the only one who regularly sparred with him. Koren only took combat classes, so naturally, he was a good fighter. His family fought in wars, and every male member was a warrior, and even most female members too. Even though he wasn't close with his family anymore, he still planned to make a career out of fighting for the sect and country.

Finally, near the end of the first round, it was time for Sila to fight. She turned out to be the big disappointment of the group, facing a young man two levels above her, who also was a good combatant. The fight lasted for a couple minutes before Sila was knocked out.

Sila had fought desperately, absolutely unwilling to be the only one in her new family to lose in the first round. Her opponent's blade had even ended up tearing her clothes, exposing Sila to everyone who happened to be looking at her fight. Which wasn't many, as 250 fights were happening at the same time.

But in the end, she had been choked out. She regained consciousness almost immediately, but by then, she'd already lost. She had fought well, but her luck was just too bad. When she returned to the group, she was nested between Aurora and her twin.

"It'll be alright. You'll participate in the alchemy, enchanting, array, and talisman competitions. If you do well in all of them, that might be enough to get promoted to the inner sect. And if not, just wait six months and try again," Aurora consoled her.

But the truth was that becoming an inner disciple for the twins was no certainty. They had both been outer disciples at the old sect. The twins were the same age as Aurora, but they'd joined the sect a bit later, and eighteen was already pretty young to be an inner disciple there.

The other three had good chances, Rose because she was a genuinely skilled alchemist, and Aurora and Koren because they were good fighters. In Aurora's opinion, it would be a travesty against nature if Koren didn't become an inner disciple.

The whole first round lasted for just over ninety minutes. After only a short break, the second round began. The tournament would last four days, with only three rounds today, since there were so many participants.

The second day would be eight grueling rounds to determine the top sixteen disciples of the sect. On the third day, eight battles would be fought simultaneously before the quarter and semi-finals started. During the finals, there would only be one fight at a time.

Aurora was once more the first person in her group to be called to fight. She jogged to her arena and saw her opponent. This time, it was a man at the eighth level of Energy Storage. This guy had a sword at his hip and stood comfortably, waiting for Aurora.

"Hi," Aurora said as she jumped on the arena. The man smiled and waved at his beautiful opponent.

"Name's Tor; how's it hanging?" Aurora looked at the man for a while, finding the greeting humorous.

"Things are good. Just about to become one of the top 2,500 disciples in our sect. I'm Aurora, by the way."

"Oh, I heard someone else was about to get that particular ranking. It's me, in fact. You must have some faulty sources."

"I don't think so. Let's fight!" Aurora grinned, drawing her straight sword. Tor smiled back at her and raised his own weapon. A loud ding signaled the start of the fight.

Aurora flicked her wrist and sent a massive blade of energy at her opponent, forcing him to sidestep, just like last time. This guy seemed way quicker on his feet and flickered around effortlessly as Aurora shot her energy blades at him. Things seemed very one-sided. Aurora swung her sword as fast as possible with the Streamline Sword technique while Tor almost looked like he was strolling around.

"That is a very basic technique you got there. Your last opponent must have been completely hopeless at fighting. Have a taste of this."

Tor could feel the energy waves in the air, the intensity of it growing with every step he took. Aurora was inching closer and closer toward failure, and Tor was ready to take advantage of it. Every moment seemed like an eternity until, eventually, Tor was standing right behind Aurora.

"It's time for you to be humbled!", Tor roared as he raised his sword and prepared to strike. But before his blade could reach its target, Aurora moved with a speed that looked like a blur. In the blink of an eye, she smashed her heel into Tor's chin, flipping her body over to his side before finally landing her knee on his jaw with the force of a cannonball.

Tor felt himself flying through the air as he heard the sound of his own skull thudding against the ground. He couldn't move or think of what had just happened - he had been knocked out cold in less than a few seconds! Finally regaining his senses, Tor slowly stood up again and realized he should have kept his mouth shut. Luckily, only nine seconds had passed.

"You need to be less full of yourself, man. You almost lost in the first exchange just because you thought you were way better than me," Aurora commented as she jumped lightly on her bare feet, ready to go again.

"You're right. I won't make that mistake again. You're skilled. I can admit that. Your legs move faster than my fists. But then again, I'm a swordsman. Let's see how you do against that," Tor said.

Compared to his earlier carefree self, his eyes were serious now. Holding his sword in a defensive stance, he proceeded toward Aurora. With a swift strike, he almost grazed her nose, but she took a step back and returned with a sword strike of her own. She no longer used the overly flashy Streamline Sword but fought with the physical sword, like she'd been taught by elder Vara and Han.

Tor struck, Aurora blocked, she swung, he parried.

"Who said I can't use the sword, huh?" Aurora taunted as their blades clashed.

"Sure, you can use the sword, but it seems like it's not quite at the level of your martial arts."

"That's true. But no one said I have to use one or the other."

As Aurora's sword was blocked by Tor's, she spun on her heel and kicked with the other! Her legs did a complete split, as her foot formed into a sword line, aiming to chop off Tor's head! Tor breathed deep as he stepped back and blocked with his forearm. But kicking once and letting go was not Aurora's style.

As soon as one foot had left the ground, the other already followed! Tor's arm blocked the first foot, but the second heel hit his arm, and then the third sword was barely blocked by him before the fourth hand grabbed his shirt! In an astounding feat of acrobatics, Aurora threw herself above him, striking at his scalp with her sword before landing behind him.

Tor barely managed to block the sword, but a spinning sidekick in the back sent him stumbling a dozen steps in the front.

"Damnit, you're one difficult woman to fight. Here I thought my movement technique was impressive, but just your natural agility is almost enough to match it," Tor said.

"Many people at my old sect wanted to rape me. I wasn't into sex back then, so when it's fight or be raped, you learn to fight! Maybe after you fight with fear for your own life, you'll improve drastically. But you're way better than my last fight. Do you have anything left to show, or should we end this?" Aurora asked.

"Well, I did say that your agility is almost a match for my movement technique. I'm ready for you this time," Tor said.

He swung his sword, and he flickered. One moment he stood four meters in front of Aurora; the next, he was right in front of her! His sword came down like the executioner's axe, but Aurora ducked and rolled! Another flicker and Tor's blade met Aurora as she got out of the roll. She blocked it, but then another blade came from behind!

Tor moved short distances in rapid bursts and struck like a group of opponents! But Aurora was a weapon! The Ten Limbed Warrior technique turned her every limb into a soft metal bar. Tor's blade was blunt, so she could easily block it. As one sword appeared, Aurora's forearm acted like a shield! When the next appeared, her blade stopped it.

Another attack and Aurora grabbed Tor and twisted around him, tripping him with her leg. But his movement technique was too powerful to trip. Like two uninterruptible forces of nature, the two danced around the arena. Tor appeared all around Aurora while Aurora maneuvered around his body, attacking from every angle. Tor could never predict what Aurora would do. If she'd jump above him or go between his legs, Aurora could never tell where Tor would suddenly appear.

Even though Aurora wasn't going all out, this was the hardest she'd ever fought. She had impeccable control over every limb, everything moving just like she wanted it to! Then, it clicked! An unexplainable concept had appeared in her mind. This, this was how she, Aurora Boralis, worked! Her body was her weapon, and her sword was an extension. Her limbs would obey her will.

Aurora took several steps back, a large smile on her lips.

"What's going on? Did something happen?" Tor asked.

"I think I just gained what I need to break through to the ninth level. I feel such an intense connection to my body right now," Aurora said.

"Oh? Congratulations. I'm not there yet, but it won't help you for now."

"That's true. I'm still months away from actually breaking through. But I think it's about time to go all out. If you have anything left in your sleeve, I suggest you use it!"

"You were holding back?" Was everything Tor got the time to say before Aurora went into a full sprint against her opponent. When she was only a few meters away from him, she jumped into the air and did a full aerial split! Her legs turned into a windmill as she kicked Tor dozens of times at insane speeds!

Tor looked at the girl in puzzlement, but then he was on the ground! Aurora landed almost a dozen invisible kicks on the man, forcing him down on one knee. Tor didn't even have time to breathe after getting back up. Aurora landed on the ground again and did four side kicks that shouldn't have landed but still forced Tor back, clutching his stomach.

Aurora spun on the floor, and yet another kick that shouldn't have hit swept Tor's legs and felled him. Aurora kicked twice more while Tor was falling, sending him into the air before following him into the air and axe-kicking him to the ground.

Tor slammed into the ground, and Aurora jumped on him, wrapped her thighs around his neck, and choked him.

"Give up?" Aurora asked. Tor tried to escape, but he was battered. After several seconds, he tapped against Aurora's bare thigh, a universal sign of surrender. Back on her own legs, Aurora reached out to Tor and helped him up. The guy was bleeding from his mouth, but injuries were expected. As long as you didn't go overboard and severed a limb or cause deadly wounds, it was alright.

"That was a miserable loss. It wouldn't have been as bad if I knew about those invisible energy weapons all over your body," Tor finally said after catching his breath.

"That's the point. I catch you by surprise, and you get fucked," Aurora chuckled.

"I don't recall any fucking happening, though. Let's rectify that later."

"Sure, call me. This time, you can fuck me. I think you deserve at least that much after helping me take the first step toward the ninth level."

As Aurora made her incredible display with the Ten Limbed Warrior Technique, Elder Vara Kiera and Mura Han paid close attention.

"The Ten Limbed Warrior is a decent technique, but Aurora displays an incredible aptitude for it. Very few people can't move like her. She uses it to its fullest potential, essentially becoming a weapon," Mura said.

"Yes, Aurora always had superior agility. But I've never seen her go all out. Even I'm a bit surprised. When she learns a movement technique, she'll become a menace. I'm not surprised she managed to get the first level of understanding of her body in this battle. But it's still a rare thing. Her place as an inner disciple is now guaranteed."

"Indeed. That boy has a terrible movement technique, though. Very predictable, and Aurora's skill and agility are more than a match for it. You must care for that girl, Vara, and guide her well. I, too, will teach her swordsmanship."

"You'll teach her? This is unexpected," Vara said.

"She is important, my wife-to-be. I'm sure you will come to realize this soon. I look forward to seeing what she will grow into."

"She is already important to me, dear husband-to-be. I may have only known her for five months, but I care for her. She is hard-working, talented, and, as far as I can tell, very caring when she gets close to someone. You won't believe how often she calls or texts me just to chat. Even if she ends up mediocre, she will still be like family to me."

"That is good. But I'm sure she'll join us as elders within a decade or two," Mura Han said. Vara couldn't tell why exactly Mura was so excited about Aurora, but she did not mind. In just a few weeks, they would become husband and wife. Then Aurora would be considered to be related to him through her martial family.