Free Web NovelChapter 506: Chapter 218: No Rest Until the Qi Sea is Broken
Chu Lingguang and Yan Zhen also started walking up the mountain together.
"Yan, do you know what the academy is up to? Why are they having us climb the mountain on our own?"
Chu Lingguang asked in a low voice.
"I’m not sure either. The academy has always been mysterious. Its tests are ever-changing and impossible to predict. However, one thing is for sure: the academy will use all sorts of methods to enhance our Mental Realm. Only once our Mental Realm has evolved can we hear more ’responses.’ So don’t overthink it. Just do as they say."
Yan Zhen said.
"Mm."
Chu Lingguang nodded.
As they walked on, their steps grew heavier and heavier. Everyone discovered that the mountain steps were emitting a strange energy that made every step a struggle.
"Walk on the sides!"
"There’s no resistance on the sides!"
"It’s true! The sides are just like normal ground."
Some people discovered that as long as they avoided the steps, the heavy sensation would vanish. They could move as if flying, and they began running all the way to the summit.
However, most people chose to climb one step at a time. Chu Lingguang, Yan Zhen, and many other examinees, including Xuanyuan Jinkang and Ma Weibing, were among them.
They believed the resistance on the stone steps had to be a deliberate part of the academy’s test. If they tried to take a shortcut, they would surely be found out.
So, after the small group of opportunists up ahead had been running for a while, they noticed that no one was following them and began to hesitate.
Some returned to the stone steps, once again shouldering the resistance as they climbed. Others stubbornly pushed on, convinced that the first to reach the summit would receive a generous reward.
Still others, after climbing a stretch of steps, would try to be clever. They would quietly slip off to the side for a short distance before getting back on the steps, repeating the process.
As the resistance grew stronger, more and more people couldn’t take it. Many of them had the strength to persevere, but the sensation of struggling with every step, of crawling slowly upward, was simply too agonizing. Unable to bear it, they started looking for ways to cheat.
Chu Lingguang watched Yan Zhen’s back and followed resolutely, climbing one step at a time. Yan Zhen was stronger than him and a bit faster.
The two ascended at a steady pace, both seeming to understand that this climb wasn’t a race for speed. It was about taking it one step at a time, not missing a single stair. It was about treading upon every last step, no matter the hardship, until they reached the summit.
"ARGH!"
Xuanyuan Jinkang let out a low growl.
He had already activated his sixth-level Dharma Aspect and Primitive Power, even drawing on his Qi Sea Power to fight the resistance. Yet the higher he climbed, the less his legs would obey. His resolve finally began to waver. He slowly lifted his foot, about to place it on the ground beside the steps.
"Xuanyuan Jinkang, what are you doing?"
"If Eunuch Liu finds out you can’t even endure this much hardship, he’ll be sorely disappointed."
But just then, Chu Lingguang’s voice boomed like thunder, making Xuanyuan Jinkang shudder and quickly pull his foot back.
Chu Lingguang knew exactly what made Xuanyuan Jinkang tick. To stop him from making a mistake, he added harshly, "If, in the end, Eunuch Liu sees that of the two of us, only I made it all the way... what do you think he’ll think then? How will he see you? It’s not so easy to become his disciple."
"You..."
"Chu Lingguang, I, Xuanyuan Jinkang, am no worse than you! Just you wait!"
Xuanyuan Jinkang was seething with rage.
He knew Chu Lingguang meant well and was trying to stop him from giving up, but the words still got under his skin. He had seen the look of admiration and fondness on Eunuch Liu’s face more than once when Chu Lingguang was mentioned.
This ignited his competitive spirit.
He wanted to prove to everyone that he was better than Chu Lingguang.
And so, those with a firm Mental Realm continued to climb, one step at a time. Slowly, both Chu Lingguang and Yan Zhen began to feel that each step was as heavy as a mountain. The summit seemed to be an endless, unreachable destination.
Even a prodigy like Yan Zhen let out a furious roar. His Mental Realm wavered, but his Martial Arts Heart was one that challenged the impossible. He quickly regained his composure and continued upward with unshakable determination, never missing a single step.
As for Chu Lingguang, the gap in their strength meant Yan Zhen had already left him some distance behind, to the point where he could no longer see his back. But the steps beneath his feet became incredibly clear. As someone who had always preferred to simply put his head down and work, his will never wavered on these stairs.
He didn’t worry about how far the summit was. He only focused on the next step. A single thought remained in his mind: ’As long as I keep moving forward, I’ll reach the top eventually.’
And so, Chu Lingguang lost track of how many steps he had climbed, how many people he had left behind, and how many had surpassed him. He no longer even had a sense of which direction the summit was in. All he knew was to use all his strength to plant his foot on every single step he saw.
In the end, all Chu Lingguang knew was the repetitive motion of climbing step by step. Where Yan Zhen was, whether Xuanyuan Jinkang had given up halfway—he had no idea about any of it.
He took another step and felt his body plummet as if into a bottomless abyss. He pitched forward and collapsed onto the ground. A medley of complex sounds reached his ears. He struggled to look around, only to realize that he had, without knowing it, reached the summit. Nearly a hundred other examinees were standing around.
Many of them were staring at him with looks of disbelief, as if they couldn’t fathom that someone could actually make it up one step at a time, just as he had.
A middle-aged man walked over, pulled Chu Lingguang up from the ground, and placed him in a pool of water.
