Razor-Sharp Soul

	It was not Leika that presented the newly forged Soul Blade to Rio, but one of her apprentices. The leader of the Nagamaki family did understand. With the superior quality of crystal that the Jewel Trees provided them, the crystalsmith was keen to actually put her skills to proper use instead of wasting it on side adventures like she had with the tools for the miners earlier. So it was that the weapon was given to him by her apprentice instead.
	Bowing properly, he took the weapon in both hands. To the uneducated (of which there was at least one such foreigner in the crowd for certain) it would appear that the "weapon" was nothing more than an empty hilt and guard, decorated with crystal and wrapped in the finest of silk. That was not what made these weapons special. One might think that the precision and care with which the "small" weapon was crafted might make it special. How the grip was the perfect length to comfortably fit one's hands. Literally every inch of it was designed to fit the user perfectly. There was no such thing as a 'common' weapon in Clan Seiryuu. Even that however, was not what made a Soul Blade so special.
	The crowd that had gathered at the base of the crystalsmith's hill eagerly awaited the showing of the blade. Long ago the Longwei smiths had hit a conundrum. With limited metal resources, what kind of weapon could the smiths hope to forge that would serve the clan's needs? What weapon could they make that would stay as sharp as the day it was made, and never need to be reforged? Their answer. The only weapon that they could make that would match the keen edge of their warriors, was their own warriors. They found crystal resonated with the latent powers of the Longwei, and what looked like a simple stick, could make a weapon of immense size, that could be reformed simply by returning it to a dormant state and then refocusing one's mental energies on it. Not only that, such weapons were in comparison virtually weightless to their steel-based counterparts, the pyschic energy that physically manifested had no real weight behind it, being just that - energy. Thus began Clan Seiryuu's weapon-based martial arts to focus more and more on weapons with long reach to capitalize on the uncanny speed they could bring to bear.
	Rio took the blade, pouring his focus into it. He had yet to truly interact with any of the Jewel Tree's crystal, but even without being a crystalsmith, he could feel how much more attuned the crystal was than what he had used before. The blade that extended from the hilt was blue, and nearly clear like glass stained in the deep blues of the sea.  Rio did his best to keep his mouth from flopping open.
	"It's not even that big," he could hear one of his subordinates saying towards the front end of the crowd. His eyes focused on the girl, Sung of the Liao family. She was young, but had an illustrious career ahead of her... assuming she could keep her head level. Her skill was proven, her judgement less so. It was true, his weapon was rather reasonable, it was in total length perhaps five feet, considered small in a society that frequently made use of weapons as tall as the body.
	"Tae-Hyun!" Rio barked. A scarred rust-scaled Longwei saluted from his position in the front and stepped forward. The loyal captain of his family's guard, and one of the more experienced fighters in the clan. While the families did not wage outright war against one another, they held an event simliar to a war during the summer festival. For as long as Tae-Hyun had served as the head of the guard for the Nagamaki family, their main camp had never been taken, and his reputation came with him. Rio had avoided public duelling, but now seemed like it would be a good time to demonstrate exactly what made this blade he held so special.
	"Let all assembled know, this is no duel! There is no feud between us, and no scores to be settled this day. Our blades shall dance for the honor of the crystalsmiths of this generation and those already past, that we may celebrate the work they have done for Clan Seiryuu!" The excitement in the crowd gathered, and Rio nodded at his loyal guard. Rio knew before he'd even called the veteran on stage that he would be given no quarter, though they obviously would not fight to the death in this match.
	Tae-Hyun adopted his stance, a defensive posture his psychic energy manifesting his own crimson-hued Soul Blade. The differences between the two would be immediately apparent. While the guard captain's possessed nearly two feet of length more than Rio's, the blade flickered with light, and the light of the crystalline-looking blade diffused into the air around it. Rio's was solid. And if one had not just seen him create the blade out of nothing, one would have assumed that it had always been a single weapon. The light was steady, and the edges clear and crisp. No light spilled further than the edges of the blade.
	The Nagamaki family leader smiled a bit at seeing the comprehension dawn on Sung's face. She realized too what it meant. The purer the crystal, the stronger, the more precise the blade.
	However he did not have time to gloat. Tae-Hyun stood ready and Rio nodded. The two of them circled slowly, though it would be the scarred captain that would approach first. Rio already knew he intended to make use of his defensive stance, and longer reach to dictate the pace of the fight and limit the available avenues of attack that Rio would have. The first strike came in as Tae-Hyun's crimson blade raised in his hands, resembling the tail of a scorpion for a brief moment before striking forward. It was true that the guard captain held the advantage of reach and experience, but Rio had skill that he had spent many long years cultivating, and a grasp for understanding the flow of things, whether that be people or strategy.
	The crowd gasped as Rio stepped in, raising his own blade perpendicular to the ground with the point down, a shower of red and blue sparks cascading from where the blades scraped along one another. Rio continued his forward movement, one hand on the hilt of the weapon and one on the back of its blade, and made a swing, shortening the reach of his arms to suit the closer quarters to his foe.
	Tae-Hyun danced back out of reach, the crimson blade arcing down diagonally, meeting Rio's blade in another shower of sparks as he returned his second hand to the hilt and raised his blade in the opposite direction, causing the swords to cross once more. The two of them used the following momentum to spin, Tae-Hyun's swing coming across low and horizontally, with Rio reading the movement and having jumped over the arcing blade. The legendary speed of the Soul Blades came into play, as the veteran was able to raise his blade in time to block Rio's overhand strike. This was a pivotal moment though, and those that understood sword fighting in the crowd knew it. Tae-Hyun practiced "aggressive" defense, using his reach and strength to force opponents into having few options, while his endurance meant that he would simply outlast his opponents. Besting an opponent was a simple matter when they had limited options. However, Rio taking the offensive and forcing him to react meant that he was at a disadvantage. Even that would still leave him on even footing typically.
	Their weapons collided in another shower of sparks as Rio struck another blow following his previous with a swing, using the continued momentum. Rio was fast and agile, and while Tae-Hyun was strong and experienced, he was forced to slowly give way, surrendering a step at a time, to try and regain distance and control of the fight. Making use of momentum, Rio kept up the assault, and saw an opening, focusing his attention on it. It was a trap, Tae-Hyun leaving his right side intentionally open. Seeking to abuse Rio's seeming aggression, and baiting a situation where he could parry and use the advantage of his physique into regaining the distance between the two.
	Rio's blade arced towards the veteran's right side, and as the crimson blade snapped into place it encountered... nothing. Rio's had once again shortened his reach, keeping the back side of the blade virtually pinned against his own arm and chest, passing Tae-Hyun's right side completely without even contacting the older man's blade and time seeming to pause as the glittering blue blade came down in a killing arc.
	As the young lord had said earlier however, the duel was not to the death, and he took a step back as he swung. Tae-Hyun, despite falling for the feint, had managed to raise his blade in the approximation of a defense, though it would have helped him little.
	Another shower of sparks and a distinct rasping noise would be heard, as last two feet of the crimson blade spun off and stuck into the dirt next to the fighters. The hasty block would have ended in the blades properly meeting each other, and it was this one moment that would clarify the difference betwen the new and the old Soul Blades the most. When the two edges met, the new ones were superior enough to simply carve their way through the older blades.
	The crowd which had been collectively holding its breath let it out amid cheers and applause. Rio retracted his blade and placed it in his belt, and Tae-Hyun did likewise before bowing deeply to his lord. "A battle well fought. You honor me."
	"And you honor me," Rio replied, returning the bow. Turning toward Leika's apprentice that had delivered the blade Rio spoke again. "Tell your master that the work is beyond all expectations, and that I'm sure she'll be busy with gifts to the other families soon enough." The apprentice's mouth was still agape, as she nodded wordlessly before nearly sprinting up the hill to the forges, to spread the tale of the duel. Rio scanned the crowd as well, watching retainers to other families returning through the streets to tell their own masters, and peasants chatting in crowds to themselves about the amazing duel they had seen.
	All was going according to the Nagamaki lord's plan. The tale of this duel would spread, and the warriors in the Clan would get better equipment. They had emerged from the civil war in their old homeland as victors, though they had accomplished little. Imagine how the war would have gone if they'd had the blades fashioned from the Jewel Trees. That was the thing most would talk about. If they had held off the other clans during the war with their old weapons, with the new ones they would have been able to take the fight to the enemy and best them. That is the sort of nationalistic fervor that Rio needed to build for his plans to take leadership of the Clan. He'd established himself with this duel as a skillful warrior, if inexperienced. He was already known as an able administrator, but he had to make sure to gather the villages support. Gifting them surplus supplies would be easy enough for that.
	However the biggest obstacle in his plan would be during the Summer Festival. He would need to outmaneuver all the other families and take the day during their mock war, proving his strategic ability. With all of that in place, there would... there could be no doubt that Rio Nagamaki was the only man qualified to take the command of the clan from Lord Geira. Then Rio's ambitions would begin in earnest.