Chapter 9 – Everyone Is Shocked; How Is He So Fast?
The other youth was traveling as fast as Li Guanqi.
He wore white robes with jade pendants hung around his waist. When he passed Li Guanqi, he even snickered mockingly.
Li Guanqi frowned. The other person did not look like he had reached the Body Tempering Realm, so how was he moving so quickly?
Then, he spotted the two Clear Wind Talismans beneath the youth’s feet.
Li Guanqi shook his head, regulating his breathing and the rhythm of his footsteps. He did not know how many steps there were, so he had to conserve his energy as best he could.
At the thousandth step, many people sat on the ten-zhang-wide staircase. Only a two-chi-wide pathway was left for other candidates to pass.
If the people in front slowed down, the people at the back had no choice but to wait too. The young men and women resting on the steps watched every passerby with a mocking look, some of them not even hiding their smirks.
Word-of-mouth must have brought these people together, gradually forming a dense crowd. Only a narrow path remained, just wide enough for one person to pass at a time.
Li Guanqi smirked coldly when he saw the crowd. “These people are trying to break another person’s umbrella after getting soaked in the rain![1] Hmmph! ”
Li Guanqi observed his surroundings with full alertness using his heart's eye. He saw hand railings on one side of the staircase and a thousand-zhang cliff on the other.
Despite the terrifying drop, Li Guanqi stepped off the ground with all his might, springing high into the air. When he was two zhang high up in the air, he stepped on another youth’s shoulder to leap even higher.
Such a shocking move triggered a wave of gasps from the crowd.
“Wow! How is that person leaping that far up?”
“Has he gone mad? What is he doing? This is a cliff!”
Step! Step!
Li Guanqi bent his knees when he landed on the railing, then sprang upward again like a panther on the hunt.
Although the crowd cried out with surprise at his stunts, no one was brave enough to imitate him due to the steep drop on the other side of the staircase. If they stumbled and fell, their bones would break, and they knew better than to rely on the Daxia Sword Sect for help.
However, Li Guanqi was not the only one who showed such courage.
The crowd had blocked hundreds of steps. If they tried to pass through normally, they would be left far behind.
There were many youths from large clans in the crowd. These people had trained their bodies since they were young and reached the Body Tempering Realm.
Someone used pure arm strength to climb up the wall on the side of the staircase, overtaking the crowd like an orangutan swinging on vines. There were also people forcefully stepping on others’ shoulders to make it through the crowd.
The participants started to pull all sorts of tricks to sprint to the end of the staircase.
“Hoo... Haa...”
Li Guanqi had passed the two thousandth step, maintaining the same speed. The strips of cloth tying the sword coffin to his back had cut two deep, bloody lines on his shoulders. Sweat drenched his eyes.
Few people remained around him.
Panting heavily, he finally reached the final step. With that, the talisman on his chest stopped burning.
Li Guanqi bent over, resting his hands on his knees to catch his breath. A muscular youth approached him and reached out to pat his shoulder, but Li Guanqi sensed him and dodged aside.
Surprised, the youth retracted his hand and gave Li Guanqi a thumbs-up. “Nice one! You’ve got such a strong physique, brother!”
Li Guanqi turned his head at the tanned youth and smiled. “That’s high praise, brother. You did well too.”
The youth laughed and scratched his head. “I’ve been trying to catch up with you the whole time. I was drenched in cold sweat when you overtook the crowd by stepping on the railings! You’re brave! Let me introduce myself. My name is Lin Dong.”
Li Guanqi froze briefly when he saw Lin Dong hold out his hand. After a moment of hesitation, he shook his hand. “I’m Li Guanqi, and I’m blind.”
Lin Dong froze, looked at the strip of cloth covering Li Guanqi’s eyes, then grinned. “My friends call me Dongzi; you can call me that too. Let’s go. The event will be ending soon.”
Li Guanqi had a good impression of Lin Dong, so they both went to the plaza together.
When they entered, Li Guanqi scanned his surroundings and found that the plaza was at least two thousand zhang in radius. Behind the plaza, there were more than one hundred steps, which led to an entrance built in a gap between two mountain peaks.
There was a stone with the sect’s name carved in dramatic calligraphy. Dozens of streams of sword qi whirled around it, all in various colors.
Lin Dong started to tell Li Guanqi about the different mountain peaks in the sect. Li Guanqi confusedly replied, “Are you that familiar with the Daxia Sword Sect?”
Lin Dong awkwardly smiled and scratched his head. “I’ve been practicing martial arts at the foot of the mountain since I was five. Joining the Daxia Sword Sect has been my lifelong dream, so of course I know them well. I’ll die happy if I can reach the Foundation Building Realm. I’ll soar through the skies on my sword and fight evil!”
As they chatted away, a fat young man in golden robes struggled to the top of the steps. Panting and red-faced, he collapsed, his clothes soaked with sweat. The talisman pasted on his chest was only the size of a fingernail.
The fat young man carefully held the tiny talisman, feeling such relief that he was on the verge of tears.
After catching his breath, he rose to his feet with difficulty. He spotted Li Guanqi and Lin Dong, then walked up to them with a grin.
He greeted them cheerfully, saying, “Nice to meet you two. My name is Li Sheng’an. I secretly brought a few chicken drumsticks. Do you want to eat with me?”
Initially, Li Guanqi considered refusing because eating a stranger's food wouldn’t be polite. However, his stomach gave in to the delicious smell and started growling.
Li Sheng’an grinned with squinting eyes, then pushed the drumsticks he took out from his pocket into their hands. Li Guanqi realized that the food was still warm.
“I stored them in my pockets,” Li Sheng’an said. “Don’t worry, I wrapped them in wax paper, so they won’t stink of sweat or anything.”
Lin Dong burst into laughter and started to eat graciously. “My name is Lin Dong. He’s Li Guanqi. Honestly... climbing the steps almost killed me. I am indeed starving.”
Li Sheng’an also complained, “Yeah... As far as I know, the people from last year’s batch didn’t have to climb these steps. They could pay someone a couple of taels of silver to carry them up.”
Li Guanqi smiled without replying. He did not believe the Daxia Sword Sect would enforce this rule without a good reason.
As expected, when the three of them had just finished their chicken, two young disciples in white sect robes flew out of the sect entrance.
They flew through the air on their swords, their hands clasped behind their backs and their blades horizontal beneath their feet, leaving the crowd below in awe.
More than three thousand people stood in the plaza, all holding their breath and looking at the two sophisticated figures with shining eyes.
They were a young man and a young woman. The man was handsome, with sword-shaped eyebrows, bright eyes, and a determined look. The woman was elegant and sophisticated, with skin as fair as pork belly fat. She had a round face, willow-shaped eyebrows, a tall nose, and slightly thin lips. They looked very cool.
Impressing Li Guanqi wasn’t easy, but even he felt a surge of emotion at the sight. He fantasized about flying across the world with a sword by his side too.
Li Sheng’an muttered, “My goodness! Eldest Senior Brother Zhou Zhi and Eldest Senior Sister Jiang Su from the Heavenly Metal Peak’s outer sect have personally come to welcome us!”
Li Guanqi’s ears perked up as he silently memorized their names and ranks. Based on his observation, Li Sheng’an did not look like he was from an ordinary family.
The young man and woman landed gracefully. All eyes were on them.
At this point, very few people remained on the staircase.
Zhou Zhi scanned his surroundings with a blank expression. Then, he slammed a gigantic gong. “Time’s up! Anyone who did not make it up the steps may leave!”
His voice traveled far with the help of spiritual power. Many people started to complain, but Zhou Zhi ignored them. He tossed out a jade slip, and the thousand-step staircase vanished.
A thousand-zhang cliff had replaced the previously solid steps.
The plaza they were standing on remained floating mid-air. Then, the mysterious, glowing runes started to glow in the middle of the plaza. They aggregated into a transport array that glowed weakly.
Jiang Su’s cold voice rang out across space. “If the talisman on your chest has completely burned up, please step forward.”
A wave of unease traveled through the crowd.
An invisible force radiated from Jiang Su, and the crowd fell silent. Many people stepped forward, hanging their heads dejectedly.
“Those who did not reach the top within the set time, please step into the array.”
Li Guanqi burst into laughter at the sight of Li Sheng’an, who was carefully holding his fingernail-sized talisman. “You’re very lucky. You were almost eliminated.”
Li Sheng’an kept his eyes on the yellow talisman paper as he wiped the cold sweat off his forehead and said, “Only Heaven knows how much I suffered!”
Lin Dong looked at the fat youth and said in puzzlement, “Brother, you don’t look like you lack money. Why didn’t you get yourself some talismans to help you?”
Li Sheng’an snickered. “It’s not that easy... Just wait and see.”
Zhou Zhi slowly levitated into the air. Glaring at the crowd, he said, “If you have cheated, please step forward!”
Many people looked down and avoided his eyes.
“Hmmph!”
Everyone felt as if a boulder was pressing on their chests. Then, Zhou Zhi tossed out a few transparent crystal balls. Moving images of people using talismans on their way up appeared within them. There were even images of people who consumed special powders to boost their speed.
All of these cheaters were disqualified.
A muscular youth stepped forward indignantly, looked at Zhou Zhi, and shouted, “I only consumed some Vitality Powder, which improves blood circulation! I’m already at the peak of the Body Tempering Realm; what right do you have to disqualify me?!”
Zhou Zhi turned and looked at him. He narrowed his eyes and said calmly, “Are you asking me for an explanation?”
The youth said stubbornly, “I am! Not only have I reached the peak of the Body Tempering Realm, but my father also hired someone to test my spirit root long ago. I have a Wood-Fire True Spirit Root! How could I be treated the same as these other useless idiots?!”
Zhou Zhi smirked coldly and descended from the sky toward the youth. Zhou Zhi, who was a whole head taller than the youth, looked down at him. “Do you think you’re very talented just because you have a Wood-Fire True Spirit Root? Is that why you look down on other people?”
The youth felt a huge force pressing on him, making his face turn red as he strained against it. He replied stubbornly, “That’s right! How could you disqualify me?”
Zhou Zhi turned to look around and said softly, “Does anyone else think the same?”
When no one else dared to speak up, Zhou Zhi laughed. “You guys aren’t as brave as he is! What is your name?”
The youth looked up at Zhou Zhi. Having calmed down, he said, “Luo Hu!”
Zhou Zhi flew backward and stood mid-air. He looked at the crowd and boomed, “The Daxia Sword Sect does not want cheaters. Anyone else can take him as their disciple if they want him! If there are no other questions, get out of my face!”
Luo Hu’s face darkened as the flames of rage rose within him. He felt like Zhou Zhi was targeting him.
Coincidentally, he spotted Li Guanqi’s trio and took out his anger on Li Guanqi. Pointing at Li Guanqi, Luo Hu roared, “The Daxia Sword Sect is even accepting a blind cripple! I wouldn’t want to join a declining sect like that!”
When Zhou Zhi heard him, his face darkened. Looking at the three thousand candidates who came to join the sect, he said in a low voice, “When the Daxia Sword Sect recruits a disciple, we look at three things: character, resilience, and talent! You feel like you should have been accepted, right? Show me your talisman!”
Luo Hu took out the talisman from his pocket and tossed it at Zhou Zhi. The crowd gasped when they saw he had a quarter left. Most people only had a tenth of their talismans when they reached the top.
Luo Hu gave Zhou Zhi a smug look, as if saying the Daxia Sword Sect had missed out by not accepting him.
However, Zhou Zhi approached Li Guanqi and said gently, “Can you show me your talisman?”
Li Guanqi rubbed his nose, surprised to be dragged into the drama. Then, he gave the remaining folded talisman to Zhou Zhi.
Luo Hu said, “And I thought it was going to be something impressive! He’s almost the same as me—he only has a quarter remaining! It proves that he has decent talent, but so what if he does?”
But then, to the crowd’s shock, Zhou Zhi unfolded the talisman.
Three-quarters!
Only a quarter of his talisman had burned up, leaving a huge section behind. When folded, it had looked tiny.
Even Zhou Zhi was surprised. He looked at Luo Hu coldly and said, “You thought you were good? How about now? That’s enough of your nonsense—get the hell out of here!”
1. Chinese idiom. It’s about sabotaging other people after having experienced hardship. ☜