The golden sun rose slowly over the high peaks of the Cloud-Soaring Mountain. The morning light was bright and beautiful, but it brought no warmth to the terrified people hiding behind the wooden gates.The loud, terrifying war horns had stopped blowing.At the bottom of the long, steep stone staircase, three thousand elite golden knights of the Saint-Aurelius Clan stood in perfect, silent lines. Their armor shined like a second sun. They held long, sharp spears and heavy shields. They looked like an unstoppable ocean of gold and steel. But they did not march up the stairs.Lord Julian, Lucien’s cruel cousin, was a very smart and very wicked man. He knew that the entire Empire was watching him. If he simply marched his army up the mountain and slaughtered thousands of young teenagers, the other sects in the world would get angry. They might rebel. Julian needed to steal the mountain legally. He needed to make it look like the Cloud-Soaring Sect gave up their home by their own choice

Rakan spun around and walked back to the center of the dirt circle. He raised his jagged red sword high into the air."You have no fighters left!" Rakan announced to the crowd. "You are beaten! Give us the deed to the spirit-mine! Surrender the mountain, or we will take it by force right now!"The Cloud-Soaring Sect was finished. The disciples dropped their heads. Some of them dropped their wooden practice swords into the dirt. They had lost. The Empire had won."Bring the deed, Sect Master," the Herald ordered the sick old man in the chair.Master Tian coughed up dark blood. His shaking hands reached into his white robes to pull out the paper that would end their thousand-year history."Excuse me." The voice was lazy. It was bored. It sounded like someone complaining about the weather.Everyone in the courtyard froze. The crying stopped. The cheering of the Iron-Fang thugs stopped.The crowd of terrified disciples slowly parted.Walking through the middle of the crowd was a man in a

Lucien stepped forward. He moved with a speed that defied the laws of physics. He raised the thick, heavy, leather-wrapped stick. He swung it casually, like a man swatting a fly.SMACK!The heavy stick hit Rakan right on the wrist. The sound of breaking bone was incredibly loud. Rakan shrieked in agony. His fingers popped open, and the jagged red sword flew out of his hand, landing far away in the dirt.Before Rakan could pull his broken wrist back, Lucien moved again. Lucien swung the bottom of the stick sideways.CRACK!The heavy stick smashed into the side of Rakan’s left knee. The joint shattered instantly. Rakan’s leg gave out, and the arrogant prodigy fell hard to the ground, kneeling in the dirt."You talk too much," Lucien said lazily.Lucien spun the wrapped stick in his hand. He brought it down directly on top of Rakan’s right shoulder.THUD!Rakan was slammed face-first into the mud. The breath was knocked completely out of his lungs. He lay spread-eagled on the ground, gro

The cold wind blew across the dirt courtyard. The heavy wooden gates of the Cloud-Soaring Sect were broken.Down in the valley, the loud, terrifying war horns of the golden army had sounded. But the three thousand knights did not march up the stairs immediately. Lord Julian Saint-Aurelius was a cruel man, but he was also careful. When he saw the Iron-Fang proxy fighters running away in total terror, he knew something had gone wrong.Julian’s army stayed at the bottom of the mountain, hiding in the thick white fog. They were setting up siege camps. They were preparing for a full, massive attack. They were waiting.Inside the courtyard, the young disciples were cheering. They hugged each other. They had survived the proxy duel. The terrible debt was cancelled.But Elder Seraphina did not cheer.She stood in the snow that her own magic had created. Her pale blue eyes were locked onto Lucien.Just a moment ago, this dirty beggar had thrown off his brown cloak. He had unwrapped a terrifyin

Lucien leaned forward. His dark eyes locked onto the Sect Master. "That is my only demand," Lucien said firmly. "Access to the books. No gold. No mansions."Master Tian stared at Lucien for a long, heavy minute. The old man was dying, but his mind was still sharp. He weighed the risks. Yes, giving a stranger access to the secret library was incredibly dangerous. But the sect was going to die tomorrow anyway if they did not get help."I accept your demand," Master Tian finally whispered."Master!" Seraphina cried out."Enough, Seraphina," Master Tian ordered gently. He reached a shaking hand into his white robes. He pulled out a small, glowing piece of green jade. It was carved in the shape of a soaring cloud.Master Tian held the jade key out to Lucien."You are now a Guest Elder of the Cloud-Soaring Sect, Mo Yan," Master Tian declared. "This key will open the iron door of the Restricted Ancestral Library. You may enter whenever you wish."Lucien stood up. He walked over to the old ma