The Outer Sect Championship drew crowds from across Azure Peak. Thousands of disciples gathered in the Arena of Ascension, a massive amphitheater carved into the mountain's eastern face.
Chen Wei watched from the furthest seats, his presence unremarkable among the masses. His crippled cultivation ensured no one paid attention to him. Perfect invisibility through irrelevance.
Liu Yan dominated his early matches, dispatching opponents with brutal efficiency. Each victory brought him closer to the perfect-grade pill. Each victory tightened the noose Chen Wei had spent months preparing.
Zhang Hua also advanced, utilizing the flaw Chen Wei had revealed. In the quarterfinals, he faced Liu Yan.
The match was spectacular. Zhang Hua's newfound knowledge of Liu Yan's weakness allowed him to hold his ground for seventeen exchanges—far longer than anyone expected. The crowd roared.
But in the end, Liu Yan's superior cultivation prevailed. He adapted mid-fight, covering the flaw Chen Wei had exposed.
Probability of victory: 8%, Chen Wei had calculated for Zhang Hua. Actual outcome: within expected parameters.
Zhang Hua's purpose hadn't been to win. It had been to force Liu Yan to reveal his adaptation strategy, which Chen Wei observed carefully.
Two other disciples Chen Wei had advised also fought Liu Yan, each one forcing him to show more of his technique, each one depleting his spiritual energy incrementally.
By the finals, Liu Yan faced Feng Qing—a dark horse candidate Chen Wei had specifically avoided advising. Liu Yan won, but barely, his victory hard-fought and narrow.
Perfect, Chen Wei thought. Spectacular enough to earn the pill, exhausting enough to require immediate use.