When the sun dipped below the horizon at the end of the day's tournament, the tension within the Cloud Heavens Sect's temporary quarters was suffocating.
The disciples sat in uneasy silence, their usual smug camaraderie replaced with glances of trepidation. The faint flicker of lantern light illuminated the room, but it did little to soften the storm brewing in Elder Xue's expression.
The Elder, known for her composed and calculating demeanor, now paced the room with a sharpness in her steps that mirrored the fury emanating from her. Her hands were clasped tightly behind her back, and the muscles in her jaw worked furiously as if holding back a volcanic eruption of anger.
"How," she began, her voice icy, "does a rogue, an unaligned nobody, continue to defy us at every turn?"
