Nangong Yu followed the crowd toward the entrance to the trial.
She wasn’t nervous in the slightest. She even had the leisure to look around.
Players got scrubbed clean by mobs before being taken to meet the boss. She had seen it happen countless times.
It was only a change of skin. The essence was no different.
“Huh?”
The moment she stepped onto the first stair, her vision was suddenly obscured by white mist. The scenery on either side of the heavenly ladder vanished completely.
The only people around her were the new disciples climbing the trial. Some wore cautious expressions and made their way upward slowly. Others were strong and healthy, racing up the stairs until their figures soon disappeared into the white mist above.
Nangong Yu belonged to the group that climbed at an unhurried pace. Yet as she continued up one step after another, the people around her gradually disappeared, leaving her surrounded by emptiness and deathly silence.
There was no one and nothing—only the steps beneath her feet, leading upward toward an unseen destination. The very top was shrouded in mist, making it impossible to tell how far away it was.
“Pretty much the same as in the novels,” she thought.
When she reached the hundredth step, her body suddenly grew heavy, as though she were carrying dozens of pounds on her back.
“Tsk.”
She glanced over her shoulder.
There was nothing there. No little demon was clinging to her back. What kind of technique was this? An array formation?
She hopped back and forth between the hundredth and ninety-ninth steps, sensing how the pressure changed.
No matter how quickly she moved, the weight on her back followed without the slightest delay.
“Not a little demon.”
It had to be at least a mini-boss to keep up with the speed of her jumps.
“What’s wrong with that disciple?” asked an elder watching her from outside the trial, puzzled.
The others had also noticed the girl jumping back and forth. One of them stroked his beard. “She’s still childish.”
“Far too lively.”
“She seems quite clever.”
The elders soon shifted their attention elsewhere.
“This child possesses extraordinary talent.” One elder watched an eight- or nine-year-old boy on the heavenly ladder, his admiration impossible to conceal.
The boy was Mo Jiuyou. He had walked so quickly that he had left his two followers behind. By now, he had already reached more than two hundred steps. Under the doubled gravity, he was climbing on all fours.
Even when he fell and scraped himself bloody, his eyes remained bright and his expression stubborn and unyielding. His entire body radiated a refusal to admit defeat.
“His will is remarkably strong.”
“He possesses a lightning spirit root. He is clearly meant to become my disciple.”
“Oh, please. How many years has it been since you last broke through? Your own cultivation method is flawed. Don’t ruin the boy—give him to me instead.”
As they argued, the elders divided their attention into countless strands of divine sense to observe the other disciples.
“This child from the Xiao Dynasty is quite impressive as well.”
“He is two parts steadier than Mo Jiuyou.”
“Of course. He’s a few years older.”
“It’s just that he hasn’t shed his mortal habits yet. He still relies on external aids.”
Four guards remained by Xiao Junlin’s side the entire time, surrounding him from the front, back, left, and right.
An elder formed a hand seal. At once, the white mist on the heavenly ladder transformed into ferocious beasts that roared and charged downward.
The four guards were all scattered. Soon, Xiao Junlin was left alone.
“A trial for a single person?” Xiao Junlin lowered his eyes and pondered. Before long, he raised his head and continued climbing.
“Not bad. His temperament is sound.”
“A single fire spirit root, rated ninety-two. With talent like this, he should clearly become my disciple.”
Some elders were also observing a female disciple who had brought six guards with her.
“A single water spirit root, rated ninety-six. In terms of talent, she is even slightly better than Xiao Junlin.”
“Too pampered.”
“That’s called being cautious.”
“Do you think the person we are waiting for is among them?”
The voices that had been discussing the disciples suddenly fell silent.
“Perhaps.”
“In the past hundred years, we have accepted one thousand three hundred disciples. More than a few possessed outstanding talent, but…”
One strand after another of divine sense quietly looked down upon the three hundred and forty-five figures on the heavenly ladder.
Was the future of the Ziyang Sect among them?
Two thousand years ago, an elder of the Ziyang Sect who was skilled in divination had calculated a heavenly omen.
A great calamity was about to descend upon the cultivation world. Life would be slaughtered, mountains would collapse, seas would be polluted, and all races would wail. The sun and moon would lose their light, and the entire cultivation world would fall into darkness with no hope of survival.
That elder had been beaten soundly.
“I’ll help clear your head.”
What kind of nonsense was that? The spiritual energy was abundant, and all the races lived in peace. The entire cultivation world would be finished in only two thousand years?
Just how useless were they?
“We need to look at this another way.” The divination elder had struggled to save his own life before producing another result.
If his prediction of the cultivation world’s future was wrong and he was unqualified to divine its fate, then what about the future of the Ziyang Sect?
Two thousand years later, the Ziyang Sect would have dimmed into obscurity, shrouded in misfortune and filled with a stagnant, lifeless air. It would not even qualify as a minor sect with a hundred members.
The sect master and elders studied the two predictions again and again. At first, they refused to believe them. Later, however, a vague instinct began to take root in their hearts.
Cultivators possessed a sense for fate, and the higher their cultivation, the clearer their premonitions became.
“There must be a ray of hope. Where is it?”
“In Taihua Province,” the divination elder said. “The Purple Star will descend into the world. It will turn the tide and save the Canglan Realm from catastrophe.”
That was the true reason the Ziyang Sect had moved its sect headquarters two thousand years ago.
If the Canglan Realm was destined to be destroyed, and the Ziyang Sect was destined to perish, then they absolutely had to seize that ray of hope.
The Purple Star had to join the Ziyang Sect.
“Could it be Zhao Ziyun?” one elder asked. “She has the greatest talent, and her name even contains the character ‘zi,’ meaning purple.”
Several more gazes turned toward Zhao Ziyun.
“She possesses a pure water spirit root and is naturally kindhearted. Perhaps she is the one.”
Over the past century, as the predicted date drew nearer, the elders had paid increasing attention to the recruitment of new disciples.
During the previous recruitment, they had accepted two disciples with exceptional talent and immortal affinity. Talent referred to innate aptitude, while immortal affinity referred to one’s character. Even if someone possessed extraordinary aptitude but had a mind as stiff as a block of wood and could not comprehend the Great Dao, it would all be useless.
One of them was Yu Zhizhi. She had excellent talent, a fine temperament, and was well-liked by everyone. Her reputation within the sect was outstanding.
The sect had originally held great hopes for her, believing there was a strong possibility that she was the Purple Star. She had even established a good relationship with the Young Lord of the Demon Clan—
The calamity of all races mentioned in the divination included both the demon clan and the demon race.
The demon clan had never been humanity’s enemy. Since Yu Zhizhi was capable of communicating with them, the sect had held her in even higher regard.
However, Shen Yuheng had fought with the Young Lord of the Demon Clan because of her, and Yu Zhizhi’s behavior had been somewhat disappointing. No matter what, Shen Yuheng was her fellow disciple. Her actions had been overly heartless.
Because of this incident, the elders’ expectations of Yu Zhizhi had been greatly reduced.
It was a minor matter, but the person capable of saving the Canglan Realm in the future could never be a muddleheaded fool.
As for Shen Yuheng, his case was even more regrettable. After making such a grave mistake, it was impossible for him to be the person they were waiting for.
The elders’ gazes settled on Mo Jiuyou, Xiao Junlin, and Zhao Ziyun. Their excitement was impossible to conceal.
The three did not disappoint them. They successfully reached the nine hundred and ninety-ninth step and passed the Heart-Questioning Trial.
“Excellent!” several elders cried excitedly before turning and leaving to prepare for the disciple-acceptance ceremony.
The sect master and the other elders remained where they were, continuing to watch the disciples still undergoing the Heart-Questioning Trial.
“This girl is quite good.”
“That young man is impressive.”
“Optimistic, determined, and intelligent enough. I’ll take this child.”
The Sect Leader said nothing. He was swamped with affairs and already had more than enough disciples under his wing, so he had no intention of taking on a new apprentice.
His gaze lingered on each of his disciples for a moment, but when it fell on Nangong Yu, he could not help but spare her an extra glance.
"This child... she does not seem to be troubled by the illusion."
The other elders turned to look over upon hearing his words. "Huh? Did the illusion break?"
"No, it's still functioning properly."
"Does she have a treasure on her that lets her see through illusions?"
"Add another layer to it."
The Heart-Seeking Trial tests the firmness of one's dao heart.
Only children who can keep climbing unwaveringly even under the dual strain of physical burden and mental shock are qualified to step onto the path of cultivation.
Because this path is never easy. Every day that follows will only be tougher than the last. If you cannot endure hardship and lack a resolute character, you might as well go back to being a mortal and live a plain, peaceful life.
On the Heavenly Ladder.
Nangong Yu stared at the garbage scattered all over the ground, completely speechless.
At first, when she saw a jade box drop down, she thought it had been thrown by the person ahead of her, so she bent over to pick it up.
But when she put it into her spatial storage, there was nothing there at all.
Clink-clank.
When her foot kicked one of the items, it made a solid sound, just like a real, tangible object.
Nangong Yu could not resist, and bent down to pick one up again.
"Dammit!"
She tossed it into her spatial storage, and still nothing was there.
This is so infuriating.
Filled with anger, she decided to out of sight, out of mind, lifted her skirt and ran upward.
She had not run very far when a massive behemoth blocked her path.
It was a starship.
Dark blue matte super titanium alloy armor, densely packed weapons and radar arrays, an overwhelming tonnage, so breathtakingly beautiful it made one's head spin.
Nangong Yu even spotted her own signature on the underside of the ship.
Shocked, her heart pounding wildly, she could not help but open her spatial storage to check carefully.
Thank goodness, Little Lan was still there.
"Hmph." Since she could not get around it, she plopped down on the ground. "Fine, block everyone's way. None of us will get past."
As she chose to ignore it, that super, incredibly mesmerizing starship slowly turned translucent and vanished.
She knew it was fake, but Nangong Yu still got a fright. She steadied her nerves, stood up, and kept moving forward.
"Little Yu~"
"Jingling~ Little Yu, look what Grandpa bought for you?"
"Don't go touching things with unwashed hands. Wash your hands first, then we can eat the melon."
A courtyard she knew so well it was etched into her soul appeared ahead. Her grandfather, who always wore a smile, rode in on a bicycle from outside, two white plastic bags hanging from the handlebars—one holding sesame seed cakes, the other marinated chicken feet.
Her white-haired grandmother, who always had the kindest smile, stepped forward with a playful chide, reaching for Nangong Yu's hand. "Look at you, your face is all covered in mud from playing."
Nangong Yu felt as if her heart was being torn apart. She was shaking all over from the pain, staring at those familiar, warm faces, too stunned to blink, unable to move an inch.
She summoned every last bit of strength she had to yank her hand back, keeping the old woman from holding it.
Completely drained, she panted weakly and slumped onto the ground, tears streaming down her face like a waterfall.
"Now that's more like it." Outside the Heart-Seeking Trial, the elder who had been weaving hand seals relaxed his fingers and nodded in satisfaction.
He had added two layers of illusion, and finally this little girl was showing the proper reaction to the trial.
All of a sudden, a sharp curse echoed out from the trial grounds: "Your master's ass just blew up!"
Who? Whose master? What blew up?
The elders were stunned, and then they heard even sharper words boom out: "The idiot who designed this illusion! Your master got blown up by you!"
In the cultivation world, it was not common practice to curse at someone's parents. A master was the one who taught you the path, guided you into cultivation, and was equal to both parent and mentor—the most respected person a cultivator could have.
Nangong Yu had equipped the [Are You Deaf?] title, and shouted through her tears: "This crappy illusion you made! Your master is so mad at you he's rolling in his grave!"
[Are You Deaf?]: When this title is equipped, your voice will be amplified ten thousand times. Even someone who is completely deaf will regain their hearing temporarily.
"You can't do anything right, you're only good at messing with mortals! Your master must regret ever taking you as a disciple!"
"What have you ever accomplished? Have you formed your core? Achieved Nascent Soul? Reached Soul Transformation? Hit the Great Vehicle stage? How many years has it been since you last broke through your cultivation? You've completely shamed your master!"
"What's the point of this lousy illusion you made?"
"So what if I can tough it out? So what if I can't?"
"Even if I can't make it this time, won't I be able to next time? And even if I get through this time, does that mean I'll definitely make it through every time later?"
"Useless! Ignorant! You brain-dead fool who made this garbage thing! You've dragged your master's reputation through the mud!"
Her voice, amplified by the title, boomed across the sky, echoing over most of the entire Purple Yang Sect.
The elder who had just cast the seals was so angry his face turned purple and his hair stood on end. Without thinking, he slapped his palm forward. "You're asking for death!"
"Wait!" The Sect Leader and the other elders rushed to stop him.
A full-powered palm strike from an elder at the Nascent Soul stage would not only turn a tiny mortal girl into mincemeat, it would also destroy most of the Heart-Seeking Trial platform.
But they had been too close to the attack. Though the Sect Leader and the others blocked most of the force, a small amount of residual power still slipped through and shot down toward the trial grounds.
Everyone thought this crude, sharp-tongued girl was surely going to lose her life right then and there.
