The Sky Chariot cut through the clouds like a blade, its starmetal sails shimmering under the sun. Below, the world unfolded in a tapestry of jagged mountains, dense forests, and serpentine rivers that glinted like molten silver. Li Tian stood at the helm, his hands steady on the controls, the Celestial Core's energy humming in harmony with the vessel's resonance array. Behind him, Zhang Wei leaned over the rail, spitting into the wind, while Su Lin sharpened her sword with methodical precision. Elder Qiang meditated near the mast, his weathered face unreadable.
"Smooth sailing," Zhang Wei remarked, squinting at the horizon. "Too smooth. Where's the fun in that?"
Su Lin sheathed her blade. "Don't tempt fate. The Magic Emperor didn't bury his temples in easy places."
As if summoned, the sky darkened. A gale roared from the east, thick with the stench of rot and iron. Li Tian's scar flared, and he banked the chariot sharply. "Brace!"
---
**First Trial: The Stormborn Drake**
The creature erupted from the clouds—a drake the size of a warship, its scales black as tar and wings crackling with violet lightning. Six eyes burned like molten coal as it loosed a deafening screech.
"Stormborn!" Elder Qiang shouted. "Its lightning can shred qi defenses!"
Li Tian veered the chariot into a dive, narrowly avoiding a bolt that split the air where they'd been. Zhang Wei whooped, hefting his broadsword. "Finally! Something worth gutting!"
Su Lin lashed a rope around her waist and leapt onto the mast. "Get me close!"
Li Tian gritted his teeth, weaving the chariot through the drake's attacks. The beast banked, its tail whipping toward them. The mast shuddered as Su Lin leapt, her sword plunging into the drake's flank. It roared, thrashing, but she clung on, carving a bloody path toward its wings.
Zhang Wei leaned over the rail, hacking at the creature's talons. "Hit the joints! They're softer!"
The drake's maw glowed, gathering lightning. Li Tian slammed the helm forward, ramming the chariot's prow into its throat. The blast misfired, scorching the drake's own chest. Seizing the opening, Su Lin severed a wing tendon, and the beast spiraled downward, crashing into a mountainside with an earth-shaking boom.
Zhang Wei wiped drake's blood from his face. "Told you this thing needed a test run."
---
**Second Trial: The Crimson Talons**
They landed in a valley to repair the chariot's scorched hull. The air was still, the forest eerily silent.
"Ambush," Su Lin murmured, her hand on her sword.
Arrows hissed from the trees. Li Tian deflected them with a qi-infused gust, but a dozen cultivators emerged, their crimson robes marked with a clawed insignia.
"The Crimson Talons," Elder Qiang said coldly. "Mercenaries. They must've tracked us from the Wastes."
Their leader, a woman with a scarred lip, smirked. "Hand over the chariot and the Core. We'll make your deaths quick."
Li Tian stepped forward, his dagger glowing. "You're welcome to try."
The Talons attacked in unison, their formations flawless. Li Tian parried a saber strike, countering with a blast of celestial energy that flung three attackers into the trees. Zhang Wei brawled at the center, his broadsword clashing against twin axes. Su Lin dueled the leader, their blades ringing in a lethal dance.
Elder Qiang wove barriers of flame, but the Talons shattered them with explosive talismans. "They're using void-piercer runes! Don't let them flank!"
Li Tian's Core surged, his vision sharpening. He saw the pattern—the Talons herding them toward a trap. "Zhang Wei! The gully—now!"
The big man roared, cleaving a path. Li Tian slammed his palm into the earth, triggering a tremor that collapsed the gully's edge. Half the Talons fell, screaming, into the ravine. The leader cursed, retreating into the trees. "This isn't over, Celestial Dog!"
Su Lin nursed a cut on her arm. "We need to move. They'll return with reinforcements."
---
**Third Trial: The Mirage Peaks**
At dusk, they reached the Azure Expanse—a desert of shifting silver sands, its horizon blurred by heat haze. The Sky Chariot shuddered as they descended, its sails flickering.
"The sands disrupt qi," Elder Qiang warned. "Navigation will be impossible without a guide."
Li Tian activated the mast's resonance array, but the Core's energy splintered, projecting fractured images—a mountain here, an oasis there, all false. "Illusions. The peaks are alive."
They pressed on, the chariot buffeted by phantom winds. Shapes flickered at the edges of vision—their own doubles, beckoning, taunting. Zhang Wei growled, gripping his sword. "Ignore them. They're not real."
But the illusions grew tangible. A replica of Su Lin lunged at Li Tian, her blade aimed at his heart. He disarmed her, the mirage dissolving into sand. "They feed on doubt. Focus on the Core's pulse!"
The real Su Lin gripped his shoulder, her touch steadying. "We're with you. Lead."
Li Tian closed his eyes, trusting the Core's resonance. The chariot veered sharply, dodging a spire that materialized from nowhere. They weaved through the illusions, the mast's sigils flaring as it burned through layers of deceit.
Finally, the haze parted, revealing a moonlit plateau. The chariot landed, its energy spent.
Zhang Wei collapsed against the mast. "Remind me why we're chasing a dead tyrant's trinkets?"
Su Lin smiled faintly. "Because someone has to keep you out of trouble."
Li Tian studied the stars, the Core's warmth a constant thrum. "Rest. Tomorrow, the real work begins."
But as they slept, the sands stirred. Crimson Talon scouts watched from the shadows, their leader's scarred lip curling into a vow.
---