Morning light crept into Arin's dorm again—his spiritual alarm clock went off late (again), and his bedsheet somehow got tangled into a noose-like knot that made him briefly question if the system was trying to finish the job early.
> [Ding! New mission from Sect Management.]
[Report to the Northern Courtyard. Elder appointment review begins today.]
Arin blinked, rubbing his eyes. "Elder appointment review? I'm not qualified for any appointment. I haven't even read the sect rules."
> [You are not being appointed. You are being evaluated by the new elder.]
> "Great. Hope she's blind."
---
Northern Courtyard – The Arrival of Doom
The moment Arin arrived, a hush swept over the crowd of disciples. Not because of him (he wished), but because of the woman standing before the disciples.
She was in her mid-30s, perhaps, with violet eyes that shimmered with a kind of dangerous curiosity. Her robes were black with silver trim, and she carried no weapon… which only made her more terrifying.
> "Good morning," she said, smiling. "I am Elder Yuehua. I'll be overseeing this sect's discipline, internal missions, and disciple reviews."
The crowd bowed. Arin didn't.
Elder Yuehua's eyes locked onto him.
> "And you are?"
> "Arin. Trash-tier disciple. Spiritually cursed. Systemically betrayed. Frequently blamed."
The elder smiled wider. "Ah. The one I was warned about."
---
Discipline Sparring: Pick Your Poison
To "test the pulse of the sect," Elder Yuehua initiated random sparring between disciples.
Arin was paired against… Jun Bai.
Jun Bai cracked his knuckles.
> "Still alive, I see."
> "Still salty, I see."
Elder Yuehua clapped. "Begin!"
Arin dodged three strikes by tripping on his own robe, flipped backward into a lucky kick, and then summoned his Rusted Fork of Destiny just in time to block Jun Bai's final sword strike.
They both froze.
The fork glowed.
Everyone stared.
> "...Was that divine resonance?" someone whispered.
> "Nope," Arin replied. "That was pure fear. I nearly peed myself."
Elder Yuehua laughed. "Very entertaining. But I'll need to see more of your… talents."
Arin had a bad feeling.
---
Meanwhile: Trouble Brews
Back in the inner sect, Yue Lan and Yura sat cross-legged, watching the spar from afar.
> "That new elder… gives me a bad vibe," Yue Lan murmured.
> "She smiled at Arin," Yura said. "That's either flirting or a death sentence."
> "For Arin, it's both."
---
Private Evaluation
After the sparring, Elder Yuehua requested a private meeting with Arin.
He arrived at her quarters, nervous.
She poured tea calmly.
> "Tell me, Arin… how do you feel about rules?"
> "Philosophically? They exist. But in practice? I treat them like guidelines in a bad video game."
She sipped her tea, amused.
> "And yet… you've survived poison, assassination, spiritual backlash, and Yura's cooking."
> "I'm basically immune to natural selection."
> "Good," she said. "I like anomalies."
> "That sounds like something a villain says before the torture starts."
She chuckled. "Rest assured, I'm not a villain…"
She paused.
"…I'm worse."
Arin stared. "Why are all the beautiful women in this sect homicidal philosophers?"