The Easy Way

"We're here!", Liu yelled out as they reached a river, their legs getting soaked from walking through the water. They stopped in the middle of the river to wash up and rest.

"How much longer do you think we have left till the end of the stage? Maybe another couple of hours or so?", Liu asked.

Zhang Yi and Jian Li were stunned as both of them realized Liu had not paid attention.

"Sorry... I forgot how long the match should be. It feels as though I've been going all day.", she smiled apologetically.

The rest of the trio felt the same way. They had fought many different opponents and defeated all of them, but it had felt as though the whole thing had gone on forever.

"There's not long until an hour has passed so we're almost done here.", Jian Li said as she patted Liu on the back.

"We must keep our focus. I am sure the last groups of people will make a mess of this place to disqualify and defeat as many as possible.", Zhang Yi said.

"What? Who would even do such a thing? It sounds stupid to me.", Liu replied with her usual sarcastic attitude.

After moving on and walking for a time, they finally made their way down from the small mountain. Liu, Jian Li and Zhang Yi all had swords strapped to their waist but none of the weapons seemed to shine in the darkness. Jian Li tried to forcefully brighten her sword but the glow was suppressed.

"Are we still in the same world?", Zhang Yi questioned as he saw how dark it was around them. The moon and stars became absent. In front of him, everything looked dimmer than usual. He could barely see anything except his immediate surroundings. Even his vision had become blurry.

The ground was covered with thick white snow. It was hard to move through and the cold was unbearable. The freezing wind bit into their skin, making it feel as if their flesh was burning. All the while, the snow fell from above without pause.

"This isn't normal, with our cultivation levels, we shouldn't be affected by the elements unless there's something strange happening...", Jian Li commented quietly.

She figured that if she, a Peak Mortal level Body Art cultivator was having problems, a non-cultivator would already be half dead.

All of a sudden a dull thud echoed throughout the area.

"Ow? What the-"

Jian Li turned and saw Zhang Yi touching the air in front of his face. Suddenly he looked as though he were drunk.

"What happened? Did you trip over your feet? Is it a broken leg? Are you okay?", Liu asked anxiously.

Zhang Yi shook his head slightly to answer Jian Li's questions, "No... It's something else."

Zhang Yi stared intently into the air in front of him and punched it. Another dull thud was heard as Zhang Yi's hand bounced back from the hit. A realization suddenly dawned on Jian Li.

"It's a barrier. We're at the edge of the realm. Our senses are distorted because we are so close to the border and it makes us unable to tell what's right in front of us."

Jian Li had experienced this before in her inner world during her meditation. This was similar to that but even more intense. Her eyes were filled with blurry shapes.

It was impossible to see anything. It made her uncomfortable to be so close to the border of the realm where the energy felt so dense and chaotic.

"It works both ways though, if we have trouble with finding others, that means others won't be able to find us easily as well. Let's just stay here till the time runs out and we survive till the second half of the tournament.

They rested in silence for a short while before Zhang Yi spoke up again.

"It's almost time."

He glanced at Liu and Jian Li before looking up into the sky. The sky was dark and pitch black with no stars or moon to light their way.

"We'll meet again in the second half of the tournament. Good luck!", Zhang Yi said to Liu and Jian Li before walking back toward the way they came.

Liu stared dumbfounded after Zhang Yi.

"Is he mad?", she asked.

They would have passed the first half of the tournament if the three of them just kept hiding at the boundary of the realm.

But Zhang Yi chose to leave and Jian Li felt like she understood why. She was starting to feel restless as well. The reason she had for being in the tournament was to gain fighting experience in the first place.

If she wanted to get stronger, advance her cultivation, be able to take care of herself and protect her loved ones, then she had to keep training.

To achieve that goal, she knew what she had to do, but she also knew that this wasn't the way to achieve it. She had to take risks.

She had to put herself at risk. She needed to fight. Fight, suffer loss and win in order to get stronger.

Jian Li made a decision.

She was going to continue fighting till the end of this tournament.

She was going to fight her heart out no matter what and never give up.

"I think we should go as well, there's no point to advancing like this." Jian Li said as she stepped forward, feeling more determined than ever before.

"Nice! I was starting to feel a bit bored now that I got my energy back!", Liu shouted out, running her hand over her swords.

Liu walked beside Jian Li as both girls headed for their destination.