As Jin Hao stepped into the glowing array, a subtle shift in reality struck him. The ground blurred, and an icy wind brushed past his face. When his vision cleared, he was no longer on the Sect Trial grounds.
He stood in a vast, white battlefield under a stormy red sky. The air was filled with frost and silence. Snowflakes swirled around him.
The trial had begun.
---
First Illusion – Army of the Forgotten
Hundreds of warriors in Ice Serpent Valley robes emerged from the mist. Some were elders, others disciples he had known—each one wearing a hollow expression.
"You should have led us…"
"You were the prodigy, but you left us to die…"
Jin Hao's fists trembled. These were the fallen warriors of his sect—illusions of those who had once placed their hope in him.
"I didn't leave you!" he shouted, slamming his palm onto the icy ground. A massive surge of cold burst out, freezing the army in place. "I was never strong enough… but I'll never run again."
As the illusions cracked and faded like brittle ice, the battlefield vanished.
He passed the first trial.
---
Second Illusion – Weight of Expectation
Jin Hao found himself back in the sect's temple. Elders argued around him.
"Too soft-hearted."
"He's too proud to accept help."
"He has talent, but not the heart of a true leader."
Jin Hao tried to speak, but his voice was gone. The pressure of their words bore down on him, heavier than any mountain.
Then, a glowing symbol appeared before him—his clan's crest. It pulsed in time with his heartbeat.
He gritted his teeth, stepped forward, and reached out to grasp it.
"I don't need their permission to grow."
The illusion shattered.
---
Third Illusion – Flame Rejection
The scene changed.
He was inside a burning crater, lava dripping from walls, flames licking his skin.
His ice was melting.
"No," he muttered, backing away.
But a voice spoke from the fire: "The fire within you is not your enemy."
From the flames emerged a version of himself—his body glowing with a soft, golden-red aura. Fire flowed through his veins alongside ice.
The truth dawned on him. He had always rejected the fire bloodline inherited from his mother's side, clinging only to his sect's ice cultivation.
Now, he embraced both.
A whirlwind of fire and frost spun around him, balancing perfectly.
Trial passed.
---
Fourth Illusion – Endless Isolation
He wandered a foggy plain for what felt like years. No sound, no people, no warmth—only loneliness.
His robe was worn. His eyes tired. He fell to his knees.
"Is this all I'll ever be…?"
Then, through the mist, a faint memory of Su Yang appeared—offering him a cup of tea from when they first trained together.
The warmth of friendship.
A single flame flickered to life in Jin Hao's chest.
He stood up.
"I'm not alone. I was never alone."
And the fog disappeared.
---
Fifth Illusion – Temptation of Control
A floating scroll appeared in front of him.
"Sign this," it said, "and all power shall be yours. Control the sect. Control the city. Control destiny."
Visions played before him—Sun Xiyan kneeling in defeat, Su Yang retreating in shame, elders calling him the Ice Lord.
He clenched his fists.
"Power without principle is destruction."
He tore the scroll with a blade of frost.
The illusion burned away.
---
Sixth Illusion – Mirror of Self
Jin Hao faced a version of himself—eyes cold, body surrounded by violent snowstorms and jagged ice shards.
This version struck first.
The real Jin Hao defended with controlled grace, parrying with icy chains and precise steps.
The mirror Jin Hao roared, "You hold back because you're weak!"
"No," he replied calmly. "I hold back because I have strength."
He fused fire into his next strike, burning through the storm. As the false self tried to retaliate, Jin Hao delivered one final punch, shattering it.
---
Seventh Illusion – Despair and Identity
He stood at the center of the Ice Serpent Valley, broken and bloodied.
Disciples ignored him.
Elders looked away.
He watched himself become forgotten—a nobody, a failed genius.
Then... the voice of his younger self echoed.
"You're not done yet."
Inside Jin Hao's dantian, something stirred.
A symbol of sixteen petals flared into existence.
The topmost petal burned crimson.
A miniature image of himself—bathed in flame—emerged in meditation.
The sixteenth petal glowed, flooding his body with balance, clarity, and power.
"I… am Jin Hao."
The final illusion shattered.
---
He awoke from the array—standing on solid ground. A gentle breeze swept through the trial grounds. Spectators stared in awe.