The martial stage hummed with the clash of steel and the guttural cries of the younger generation.
Disciples, honed by the rigorous training of their chosen clans, unleashed a whirlwind of techniques upon one another.
Yet, no victor had emerged; no one had reached ten straight wins in this brutal ballet of blades.
The closest contender, a woman in her mid-twenties, had danced through four matches with the grace of a viper and the ferocity of a tigress.
But in her fifth, her Qi, the lifeblood of her power, waned, leaving her vulnerable.
Her opponent, a hulking brute, capitalized on her exhaustion, sending her flying with a final, resounding blow.
The other disciples fared no better. Many fell in their first encounter, their youthful bravado shattered against the cold reality of combat.
As the day wore on, the air thickened with desperation, the playful sparring of the morning morphing into a desperate struggle for survival.
