Year 663 of the Stable Era,

  Twenty-second day of the eleventh month

  Five minutes past the start of the 6th Inner Hour

  Chao Ren swore as he turned over the pages in his hand, rereading the words again as though another repetition would somehow unlock the trick to comprehending their meaning. But the words to the Five Elements Unification Technique remained as oblique as they had before his fight with Yuze…Line, was it?

  He couldn’t remember clearly, and that wasn’t important for the matter at hand. He had already wasted too much of his last reprieve attempting to grasp fundamentals of his manual’s techniques, and he couldn’t afford to let that sacrifice go to waste by simply stopping so short of his goal. He just needed a little bit more to understand it all, but ANCESTORS it was a hard read.

  A breath of the mountain’s cool, refreshing qi did little to calm him as he forced himself to start again, reading each character with deliberate care and slowness so as to avoid misinterpreting their meaning.

  As with most applications of fire, considerations towards precision are paramount. While most of the other primary elements, including water, are aligned with the material, fire possesses greater familiarity with the ephemeral. It is for this reason that it has been often referred to as the ‘King of Elements’ (although in this humble cultivator’s opinion such a title belies a lack of fundamental understanding as to the nature of the natural world), as its form(insofar as the flame and the spark can be considered to have something so rigid) is closer to qi, that mighty force that empowers and flows through all things, than any of its kindred(referring, of course, to the Five Foundational Elements and no others).

  This title is in many ways a misnomer, as in truth fire is far more deserving of the title ‘The King of Convenience’. Unlike its brethren it has no material that must be carried in some quantity to be intrinsically used (such as the deep gourds so often used by cultivators that are masters of water techniques), and is the easiest element to manifest from qi.

  Any mortal knows that the components required for fire are simply a spark and fuel, and for a cultivator the latter is far easier to acquire than any of its kin. Barring those that dwell in the benthic depths(for whom this chapter is doubly important for, as fire is the element most foreign to them), both air and the qi that flows through it so mightily in this burgeoning era are ready, ever-present sources of the vital fuel required to create fire.

  But even the title of ‘King of Convenience’ is in its own way a misnomer, as while fire may be more readily formed from nothing, it is just as quick to return to it. Yes, it is ephemeral in nature and ephemeral in life, as many cultivators are so quick to forget the truth that mortals know so well: that fire requires fuel to survive.

  Its creation is easy, but its continuation is less so, as even the apparent abundance of air will not sustain it without a compounding exertion of qi. Some view this as the weakness of fire techniques, and is often the reason that they are considered to be the exclusive domain of cultivators that have greater natural aptitude or dedication to the pillar of qi (a consideration that has no doubt lead to the perpetuation and growth of the title ‘King of Elements’ in no small way, in this humble cultivator’s opinion). A misconception born from poor understanding, perhaps, but one that has been perpetuated far and wide as such misconceptions born from ignorance so often do.

  Fire’s existence is that of the ephemeral, and understanding this fundamental truth is essential to one’s comprehension of its nature. As powerful as breath, but equally fleeting, in comparison to the lasting nature of metal, earth, wood, and even water (so long as it is contained so as to not disperse into the winds over time).

  At earlier stages of qi cultivation, when the conversion of qi to the material is hardest, fire may appear the easiest to wield (as the core of its ephemeral nature is easily conflated with the fragile nature of poorly formed elements). It is for precisely this reason that the first fire techniques many cultivators learn produce bursts of flame, as their brevity conceals the fact that their flames are unable to do more than briefly sustain themselves off of ambient qi, as a novice’s control will almost inevitably transform fire’s already ravenous hunger into an endless gullet of greed.

  But it is important to correct this mistake in its infancy, lest it become a stumbling block later in one’s cultivation. As while other elements grow more lasting as one’s cultivation improves, many will grow frustrated that fire will not develop a similar characteristic, despite the fact that such a feat is antithetical to its very nature.

  It is for precisely this reason that precision is paramount when aspiring to produce what could be considered “true” fire in the same way that a cultivator might produce “true” iron with sufficient skill and effort. Yes, the skill of control and qi will allow conjured flame to persist in a similar manner to its natural twin, but it is not from the strengthening of its existence, but rather the basis for it. Understanding this fundamental truth of fire is a simple, yet essential, part of truly comprehending the element, so this humble cultivator would encourage internalizing it as early as possible.

  Chao Ren sighed as he read over that last line, massaging a sore rib as he reread it again. He understood most of the description, and the characters used to compose it, but still the fundamental truth it was describing continued to elude him.

  Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

  He knew how to fuel fire; his last opponent was a testament to that. Their overabundant wood qi had been the exact sort of fuel that this section had described, allowing him to properly compensate for the compounding cost of sustaining conjured flames that it had described. But even after having burned off the vines, producing fire as he had, why couldn’t he produce any more flames now that he had the time to produce more at his leisure?

  Or at least the close approximation that his last few sticks of reprieve allowed him, without the pressing threat of violence to distract his focus. What was he doing wrong, that he couldn’t use the technique described further in the manual? He flipped ahead in the text, returning to the section on techniques.

  Forming an elemental technique is a matter of understanding their principles. Once one has reached a sufficient level of comprehension of the elements and their relation, one can truly grasp their nature. Though experimentation might lead to discovery, study is what leads to mastery.

  The introductory techniques described in the further sections of this text will serve to outline the methods for such, as they serve to outline the connections between elements in a safe fashion.

  It is advised to exercise caution when combining elemental qi in a raw state. Many interactions have many nuanced components to them, and overenthusiastic exploration without proper preparation can be quite dangerous. Even an interaction as simple as the production of steam through the combination of water and fire can have lethal consequences, should too great an investment of qi be made into it.

  Should a cultivator aspire to learn through self-exploration rather than study, this humble cultivator advises that small quantities be used to develop one’s understanding without crippling one’s body and cultivation.

  That is not, of course, to understate the importance of the knowledge that may be gained through study. There are many nuanced secrets and twists to the relationship between elements as there are stars in the sky, and awareness of outlier interactions can mean the difference between life and death, particularly in regards to antagonistic relationships between ordinarily friendly elements such as metal and water (a wicked reaction that this cultivator has personally witnessed cripple at least two cultivators on separate occasions). A sad affair, to be certain, and a common danger of the union of inexperience and exuberance, which is why this humble cultivator believes that it is important to delve into detail on the subject.

  On the nuances of explosive metals and water—

  “Round’s starting!” the disciple at the door called. No name this time, as there was hardly any need for one now that he was the room’s sole occupant.

  Already? Chao Ren felt his heart sink, even as the manual in his hand slipped back into his storage ring. His gamble had failed. He’d thought that he’d have been able to glean enough to at least loosely grasp a technique, but instead he had simply gathered less qi than if he had simply focused solely on his meditation and recovery. He had missed both birds, instead of securing at least one.

  But he had known that risk when he’d taken it, so he had only himself to blame for his situation. He’d just have to grit his teeth and bear it, even if it meant that he might end up getting publicly thrashed.

  “Good luck,” the disciple at the door remarked absently as he passed, more focused on the papers in his hand than anything else as he waved Chao Ren in the vague direction of the stage.

  Despite the fact that the seats had been full to capacity in the last round, it felt as though the crowd had only grown since the last time he’d seen it. As though the passage of another round had somehow doubled the rows of packed benches. Chao Ren did his best to avoid looking too closely at them, knowing that even the reassuring sight of Xia Bao in the audience would only be overwhelmed by the hundreds of thousands of strangers staring at him.

  The calm of the stage felt almost too far, as even his dulled senses failed to drown out the din pressing into him from all sides. Still, he hurried towards it with as much dignity as he could muster, savoring the reprieve it granted him as the familiar quiet of the dreaded stage enveloped him.

  “And our first competitor of the final round, and representing the Teal Mountain Sect: Disciple Chao Ren!” the announcer declared, his voice all that the disciple himself could hear as it cut through the arena’s sound array.

  Out of the corner of his eye the crowd silently roared, his whole attention focused on the hall that his opponent would emerge from and absence of audience members around it. His nerves somehow found a way to further tense as the cultivator emerged from his own waiting room, his posture easy as he slowly swaggered towards the stage.

  He waved towards the crowd as he approached, taking time to face each side of the audience as his arms rose again and again. Like a shark at sea—so within his own element that he was unbothered by the eyes of the crowd, while Chao Ren only felt more and more out of his depth as he drifted over. He forced himself to rub his shoulder, loosening his muscles like he was preparing for nothing more out of the ordinary than another spar with his fellow disciples.

  Never let them see you sweat, Lee Han would say. Letting them know you’re rattled is basically telling them that you’re doing their job for them.

  A spring wound too tight will snap under its own power, Shen would probably add, fiddling with that fancy watch of his as he made another metaphor about its now-familiar components. Remain loose, so that you don’t break yourself.

  You can do it! Bao would add, with that ever-present optimism of his.

  Chao Ren did not feel like he could do it.

  He knew his opponent, a familiar cultivator from his own Sect that he’d seen so many times in passing. Ru Li was a tournament veteran, a martial cultivator that excelled at the physical arts. He’d won enough tournaments that Shen and Lee Han had used him as an example by name, which was enough for him to know how lopsided this matchup was against him.

  Ru Li fought with a chain, an unusual weapon that stood out more for its asymmetrical design. A thick hook hung weightily from one end, while a thin blade not dissimilar from that of a robe dart’s dangled on the other. It was deceptively long, longer than a massive constrictor snake when laid straight, a feat that Chao Ren had happened to witness once when Wang Siyang had brought his pet to the training grounds to compare the two. It only looked short when wrapped around his thick leather gauntlets, but Chao Ren knew that Ru Li could unleash it with startling quickness.

  He knew that his luck had run out, even as sweat began to moisten the bottom of his lucky red socks. His only advantage was the fact that he was too insignificant for his opponent to know much about, aside from the fact that he was going to fight with the staff in his hand.

  “And also representing the Teal Mountain Sect—Disciple Lu Ri!” the announcer declared.

  Ah…well at least I remembered his fighting style, Chao Ren thought to himself, as the announcer swept his hand down to start the match.