The final threshold of the recruitment trial opened onto the high summit terrace of Mount Heaven's Reach, a vast expanse of white granite slabs overlooking the smoky basin of Iron Wall City.
Three hundred surviving candidates emerged from the stone exit of the gorge, their breathing heavy as they stepped onto the open flagstones under the blazing afternoon sun.
Standing at the far end of the terrace beside a towering stone archway was Senior Elder Fang, his slate-gray robes embroidered with silver swords fluttering slightly in the high altitude wind.
He rested his right hand on the pommel of a long, unpolished broadsword resting upright in the stone, his cold gaze sweeping across the arriving youths with the dispassionate weight of an executioner.
A deep, resonant hum of vibrating swor
