Chapter 12: Candidates

Engaged in their eternal chase, the moon trailed the sun as it hid behind the horizon. It was only when the moon finally concealed itself under the horizon that the sun peered out from its hiding place and, seeing the coast was clear, rose into the sky. It was the next day. Out in the stadium we once again find a crowd of people on bleachers. On the stage stood Zhixin and the elders once again.

"For the first round of matches today there will be three groups, the first two groups will consist of four battles while the final group on stage will only be the remaining two contestants. The results of the first round will decide how we arrange everyone in the semi-finals. Before we arrange the duels for this round, I would like to congratulate you all for making it this far. As Clan Chief my most important duty isn't passing judgement on those who breaks the laws of the clan, it isn't making tough decisions, and it isn't even keeping our ancestral home. No, first and foremost I must protect and foster you, the next generation. " A warm look entered Zhixin's eyes as he looked at all of the youths below the stage, his gaze lingering on Weizhe before passing on.

"Having made it this far, you all show great potential. Only three among you will be granted Myriad Body Metamorphosis fruits, however all of you, having placed within the top ten, have earned the qualifications to be fostered as candidates for the position of Clan Chief!" Shouting out the final part, silence filled the stadium. Rather than excitement, a solemn look filled the eyes of many. The position of Clan Chief was not something one vied for because of power, it was a role which held special importance for demon beasts.

Whether mortal or demonic there are two values which beasts hold near and dear to their hearts from the day they are born: survival and the passing of one's genes. Above all else, family is the most important thing to beasts. The emphasis on family was such that the Murky Whip Horse Clan compound had an entire three story pagoda at the center just to light incense to their ancestors. To be the Clan Chief is to bare the weight of carrying the entire family, and so none of these youths were excited at being candidates. Many of them simply sat there, contemplating whether they had the skills necessary to carry such a burden.

Zhixin felt some sympathy, many years ago he too had been in this position. Still, the competition was being held and there was no time to waste, so he broke them out of their reflections and the matches were made. The first group was called up and elders left the stage towards the reserved section. With the chop of a hand and a cry from the elder overseeing the event, the tournament began.

Being the quarterfinals, the fights were far more intense than any of the previous rounds. In one of the rings, a young filly actually bit off a small chunk of flesh from her opponent, and in another ring, a colt was being trampled in a scene not unlike Weizhe's outburst the day prior. Not all the fights were as fierce as these though, there was actually one fight where the opponent's strength was an entire level above in strength the contestant. It was likely the case that the fellow had not been placed against any truly strong clan members, and thus he had luckily made it into the top ten. Unfortunately, his luck had run out as he was quickly driven out of the ring by his opponent. There was no time limit placed on the matches, and so it was only when the final fight ended that the second group could go up and fight.

This time, there were some familiar faces among this group, as both Weidong and Weiyang were placed in the second group, though not against each other. Quietly wishing each other luck, the two went into separate rings to await their own opponents. Not long after, everyone was in their respective rings and the duels began once again. On Weiyang's side, she was fighting against a rather unique opponent. Rather than calling her opponent a Murky Whip Horse, perhaps the term Murky Whip Pony would be more fitting, as her opponent was significantly shorter and stockier than the average Murky Whip Horse. However, underestimating this small opponent wasn't wise, while her opponent was small he was also far faster than the average horse as a result. Typically, this would not be the case among mortal horses where ponies often failed to match the speed of true, adult horses, however the significantly smaller size in this case allowed for her opponent to propel himself far more with the spiritual energy available.

Spiritual energy wastage is not just determined by the level of the technique used, but also by other factors such as size, affinity towards a technique, and many more. It was generally accepted that smaller creatures required less spiritual energy for bodily techniques for reasons similar to why they often need less food to eat than their larger counterparts; however, whereas smaller creatures obviously also had less energy as a result of eating less, when it comes to cultivation the amount of spiritual energy one had in a level was almost always the same. Because the spiritual energy requirement to speed up was far less and his cultivation was only slightly below her own, her opponent could afford to overcharge his technique to match her spiritual energy wastage and receive better results.

Weidong's fight, on the other hand, was actually going far smoother. His opponent seemed to possess the same level of cultivation, however Weidong was easily pushing him back in their current stamina battle. He also sported far less wounds, a sign that his overall strength seemed to be far higher than his opponents. Then, strangely enough, rather than continue to fight Weidong his opponent actually backed up as quickly as he could and conceded. Mixed expressions appeared on the crowd as this somewhat comical scene occurred, to them this young man seemed like a coward. Under mocking and disappointed gazes, the young man walked down from the stage, unfazed. The "Child Elder" actually let out some praise as understanding sparkled in his eyes.

"Knowing one's limits is a good trait to have. To many, he may seem like a coward, however I say he is smart for preserving his strength. After all, many forget that in just two weeks we will be holding our deadly trial by fire. Some have already been injured to the extent where they may not heal in time to be able to display their peak performance when it comes." The other elders nodded and sighed, agreeing with these words. In this tournament, many had been severely injured, among them Weifan and Weijia, and this would greatly reduce their chances of survival. It was a source of much disappointment to the elders who wanted as many of members to survive as possible. Regardless, nothing could be done now but hope for the best.

Returning to the matches, the surrender from Weidong's opponent seemed to have a domino effect as the remaining matches quickly finished one by one shortly after. The second to last among these matches being Weiyang's, who had beat back her opponent with the brute force of her larger body. This was the heaven's way of bringing balance, while smaller beings required less energy for body techniques they still suffered from naturally weaker bodies than their larger opponents. With the current fights having ended, the final group for the round, which would only be Weizhe and his own opponent, could finally head onto the stage.