Inside the sect secret realm.
This was Bai Zhirou's first time experiencing spatial traversal.
The shock it produced left even a Qi Condensation cultivator like her feeling dizzy.
The nearby Beast-Taming Peak disciples were in even worse shape, crouching on the ground and throwing up copiously the moment they landed.
Bai Zhirou gave her head a vigorous shake before she could finally take in her surroundings.
In front of her stood a colossal, solitary peak towering into the clouds.
A winding flight of blue stone steps stretched all the way from the foot of the mountain up to the mist-shrouded summit, where faint silhouettes of blades and swords could be seen among the swirling clouds.
The spiritual energy here was more than ten times denser than the outside world! Yet at the same time, a sweeping pressure enveloped the entire area.
An elder from the Main Peak stepped forward and loudly announced the rules:
“This trial is named the 【Thousand-Jun Stone Path】!
“It is designed specifically to temper your physical bodies and essence blood!
“Fourth through ninth place of the tournament, ascend the stone path first!”
They stepped forward with hardened resolves; two disciples came from Beast-Taming Peak, while the remaining three were from Dao Mystic Peak.
The moment they stepped onto the blue stone stairs, they felt a heavy weight drop onto their shoulders, though it was only equivalent to carrying a bucket of water. Their expressions relaxed slightly, feeling that this trial was not as terrifying as rumored.
However, before the five could even take ten steps, their faces paled dramatically!
Thud!
Unable to withstand the sudden, terrifying gravity, one of the Beast-Taming Peak disciples gave way at the knees and crashed heavily onto the stone slabs.
A crisp crack of breaking bones echoed.
“Aaagh!! My bones are breaking!”
A nearby Dao Mystic Peak disciple looked on coldly, curling his lip in disdain.
These useless trash from Beast-Taming Peak spend all day playing with pets instead of tempering their bodies. Serves them right to make fools of themselves.
He took a deep breath and pushed upward against the gravity.
As he climbed higher, the weight pressing down on him multiplied exponentially.
By the twentieth step, he was panting heavily like an ox, sweat pouring off him like rain.
He could clearly feel sticky impurities inside his body being expelled through his pores, but he had no time to pay attention to it.
Before he could catch his breath—
Swish!
An invisible blade of astral wind suddenly materialized from the void on both sides of the path, slicing straight down at him!
Scared out of his wits, the disciple hurriedly funneled his protective spiritual qi.
Yet the spiritual qi barrier, normally firm and sturdy, was like thin paper before the wind blade!
Pfft!
The wind blade shredded the barrier effortlessly, slashing a bone-deep bloody gash across his chest!
“Aaargh!!”
Agonized screams echoed through the valley.
The first batch of five was completely wiped out.
Not a single person managed to pass the twentieth step.
Some were pinned flat against the ground by gravity, unable to budge, while others were hacked bloody and mangled by the relentless barrage of wind blades.
The True Disciples watching from behind sneered with disdain.
“Ninth-layer Qi Condensation trash can't even make it past twenty steps?!”
Many echoed in agreement:
“That's what happens when you only cultivate spiritual qi and ignore body tempering!”
The higher-ups leading the teams frowned at the sight, clearly displeased with the disciples' performance.
Standing below, Bai Zhirou watched the miserable state of those above, her palms sweating from nervousness.
Soon, the five were carried down by deacons.
Though they looked like a bloody mess, their injuries were mostly superficial. The deacons fed them a few pills, quickly stabilizing their conditions.
The Main Peak elder's cold voice rang out once more:
“The remaining four, ascend the path.”
The two remaining Beast-Taming Peak disciples swallowed hard as they looked at their fellow sect members' tragic state, their legs trembling uncontrollably.
If their master hadn't strictly ordered them to participate before departure, saying it would be immensely beneficial for refining their physical bodies and essence blood, they would have forfeited long ago.
Perhaps because of the beating Jiang Ye gave him last time, Du Ziteng was unusually taciturn today.
He took the lead, being the first to step onto the stone stairs.
Boom!
The instant he stepped onto the stone stairs, gravity crashed down on him, causing his body to sink abruptly!
As for the two Beast-Taming Peak disciples, before they could even cover a few steps, veins bulged on their foreheads while their muscles quivered violently. Clenching their teeth, they emitted beast-like grunts, finding every single step an agonizing ordeal.
However, Bai Zhirou, standing at the very edge, merely tapped the stone slab lightly with the tip of her foot.
Huh?
Gravity was applied just like that?
Bai Zhirou was stunned.
She had prepared herself mentally to withstand immense pressure, but the instant she stepped inside, she only felt her body grow slightly heavier by a minuscule fraction.
It felt like carrying a light backpack—practically nothing.
Puzzled, she took a step and walked upward with ease.
Two steps, three steps.
She effortlessly overtook the two Beast-Taming Peak disciples who were currently panting like oxen.
By now, Du Ziteng, who had set off earlier, had painfully scrambled up to the twentieth step.
He had trained his physical body, barely reaching the 【Copper Skin Realm】. Relying on his physical toughness and protective spiritual qi, he managed to endure most of the wind blades.
Even so, a few wind blades still grazed his arms, tearing his flesh and drawing blood.
Just as he gritted his teeth, preparing to force his way higher—
A series of crisp sounds suddenly came from beside him:
Clang! Clang! Clang!
It sounded like metal clashing.
Du Ziteng strained to tilt his head to look.
The terrifying wind blades that had easily ripped through his protective spiritual qi...
When hitting Bai Zhirou's body, they failed to leave even a faint white mark, shattering directly into clouds of luminous specks!
If Jiang Ye were controlling her body right now, he would have done a Thomas flare in front of the disheveled Du Ziteng to tease the NPC.
Fortunately, Bai Zhirou was an honest person and lacked such wicked humor.
She simply kept walking straight ahead without glancing aside.
Her relaxed posture looked as if she were taking a casual stroll in a park.
Step thirty.
Step fifty.
Step eighty...
The higher she went, the more the gravity on the stone path multiplied exponentially, and the wind blades grew denser.
Yet Bai Zhirou's pace didn't slow down at all; instead, she picked up speed!
As she walked, she seemed to feel that this stone path was too long and a waste of time.
So, she simply broke into a jog inside the gravity formation!
Tap, tap, tap, tap...
The light, rhythmic pitter-patter of footsteps sounded remarkably clear—and extraordinarily jarring—along this mountain path filled with wails.
In the blink of an eye.
Braving the barrage of wind blades, Bai Zhirou jogged right past every obstacle, standing completely unscathed at the very top of the stone path—without so much as a strand of hair out of place.
The clinking sounds of wind blades bouncing off her body ultimately woke Jiang Ye from his nap inside her mind.
A lazy yawn echoed in her sea of consciousness:
“Oh? We're inside the secret realm already?”
At this moment, the entire mountain fell dead silent.
Not a peep was heard.
Many of the True Disciples present almost had their eyes pop out of their sockets!
They had climbed this path back in their day.
Even if they made it to the summit, who among them hadn't ended up exhausted like a dog and covered in wounds?
How on earth could someone walk up so casually and effortlessly?! She even started jogging?!
If they hadn't seen Du Ziteng behind her still squirming upward on the stone steps like a maggot, they would have genuinely suspected the formation was broken from years of disrepair!
The figures on the high platform looked even more solemn.
“Protective Mystic Gang?!”
“Impossible! How could a mere 【Copper Skin Realm】 body condense the Mystic Gang that belongs exclusively to the Golden Body Realm?!”
Sect Master Song Changfeng, Sun Qiming, and Wei Zhaoyuan simultaneously turned their heads, their eyes locked onto Nangong Yue.
Song Changfeng drew in a sharp breath, unable to hold back his question:
“Peak Master Nangong, is this... is this the body tempering technique you imparted to Bai Zhirou?”
“Mm.”
Nangong Yue didn't even lift her head, calmly nodding as she stared into her teacup, pulling off an immense flex.
Song Changfeng swallowed his saliva, asking no further questions.
Given Nangong Yue's background, it wasn't surprising for her to produce a technique of this caliber.
However, divine arts were not imparted lightly; for Bai Zhirou to learn such a supreme technique, she had likely paid a heavy price.
...
Just as everyone was reeling in shock, Jiang Ye's teasing voice rang out in her mind:
“Not bad, not bad. Good thing you practiced body tempering so diligently. You're still a soft, sweet cake right now.
“If you ended up like those NPCs, excreting gunk from your pores in public, that would've been so awkward.”
Rate on N.U.
