The First Marquis of Daxuan

"Su Mu?"

Du Rongcheng's expression froze.

He was familiar with this name; in fact, one could say he knew it very well.

He had heard too many legends about Su Mu. Although he didn't think Su Mu was that great, he had to admit that he was no match for Su Mu at the moment.

That's why he chose to come to Nanheng Mountain and let Liu Rufeng deal with Su Mu.

He never expected that Su Mu would suddenly come to Nanheng Mountain.

What is Liu Rufeng good for?!

He was busy dealing with Su Mu, yet Su Mu still had time to run around everywhere!
Du Rongcheng cursed inwardly.

"No, as far as I know, Su Mu doesn't look like that."

Du Rongcheng said in a deep voice.

“Young Master Du, have you forgotten? Su Mu achieved physical sainthood, so he can change his appearance at will. Back then, he also disguised himself and went to the Martial Sect. Even the Martial Ancestor and the then Sect Master of the Azure Sky Sect did not recognize him.”

The martial artist said with a serious expression, "I was wondering why such a genius would suddenly appear in the Yang Realm."

If we ignore his displayed Heavenly Profound Realm cultivation level, wouldn't he be exactly the same as Su Mu?
Looking across the world, perhaps only Su Mu could climb the Heavenly Ladder of Mount Heng as easily as breathing water.

The warrior's eyes revealed a fanaticism.

This was a behavior he never displayed when facing Du Rongcheng.

Du Rongcheng was furious. He had been plotting in Nanheng Mountain for so long, so why was Su Mu's name enough to make these people he had not yet subdued so convinced?

The other party wasn't even sure if the person climbing the mountain was Su Mu!

The saddest thing is that Du Rongcheng himself felt that if the person climbing the mountain was Su Mu, it would not be surprising if the other party climbed six thousand steps, or even seven thousand or eight thousand steps.

This is what angered Du Rongcheng the most.

Even he himself felt that he was not as good as Su Mu!
Du Rongcheng is someone even Liu Rufeng respects, so why is he so afraid of someone he's never met?

Is it just because of those legends about Su Mu?

Well, if he were in Su Mu's shoes, Du Rongcheng certainly wouldn't be able to do the things that Su Mu supposedly accomplished.

"Hmph, so what if you are Su Mu? I don't believe you can reach the summit of Nanheng Mountain!"

Du Rongcheng thought to himself.

There was a pause.

He added another sentence in his mind.

"Even if you could climb to the top of Mount Heng, I don't believe you could comprehend anything!"

Although he thought this to himself, a hint of unease still flashed across Du Rongcheng's face.

There's only one chance; if Su Mu takes it, then he'll lose it.

Du Rongcheng caught a glimpse of the fervor on everyone's faces out of the corner of his eye, and he clenched his fists involuntarily, his heart burning with jealousy.

…………

Su Mu was unaware that his identity had been exposed.

In fact, with his current strength, even if he tries to keep a low profile, it will be difficult to completely hide his brilliance.

Just like a sun appearing in the night, no matter how it disguises itself as a star, it is ultimately not a star.

Su Mu was unaware of the extent of his fame.

With just the slightest hint, everyone had already guessed it was him.

There aren't that many geniuses in this world!

No one else believed that anyone else could do the same thing except him.

However, Su Mu disguised himself only to avoid trouble, not because he was afraid of anything.

Even if his true identity were exposed, he wouldn't care too much.

For him, all that matters is achieving his goal for this trip.

His goal for this trip was the Chaos Chart atop Mount Nanheng.

Su Mu focused his attention on his feet and climbed upwards step by step.

It has to be said that even Su Mu felt a bit strained when he reached the height of seven thousand steps.

Seven thousand times the force of gravity is enough to crush an ordinary martial artist into a pulp.

Even martial artists who specialize in physical training would probably be unable to move in the face of this level of gravity.

Even with Su Mu's current strength, every movement he makes now consumes countless times more energy than usual.

Every step must be taken with all one's might.

All the muscles in my body feel sore.

This was a feeling Su Mu hadn't experienced in a long time.

He slowly circulated the Eight-Nine Mysterious Technique, feeling more pleased than alarmed.

The pressure from thousands of times the force of gravity caused his physical body to begin to improve in a long time.

Although the improvement is small, for Su Mu now, any improvement is a qualitative change.

It should be noted that he had already cultivated the Eight-Nine Mysterious Technique to the Great Perfection, and his physical body was perfectly integrated and almost reached its peak.

He had tried every possible method before, but he could no longer improve his physical body in the slightest.

Now, it's just climbing the steps, and the body, which hasn't changed in a long time, is already showing signs of loosening.

This is only seven thousand steps. If you climb eight thousand or nine thousand steps, wouldn't the effect be even better?
Upon realizing this, Su Mu felt a surge of excitement.

He quickened his pace without realizing it.

To Du Rongcheng and the others, it looked like Su Mu, who had slowed down, suddenly started to speed up!
On the seven thousand steps, he actually started to accelerate!
Logically speaking, the higher you climb, the greater the pressure, and the slower you will naturally go.

Especially at extremely high altitudes, it's difficult to even maintain a normal speed, let alone accelerate.

Now everyone is witnessing this illogical scene.

Su Mu is not only accelerating, but it is even faster than its previous fastest speed.

Previously, Su Mu's fastest pace was two steps per step; now, Su Mu takes three steps per step!
He seemed to be running up the steps.

In the blink of an eye, Su Mu had already run up dozens of steps.

Everyone held their breath, as if afraid that their breathing would disturb Su Mu.

Even Du Rongcheng stared wide-eyed, not daring to blink for even a moment, for fear of missing such a wonderful scene.

He was still a little unconvinced when Su Mu broke his record, since Su Mu's actual cultivation level was one level higher than his, so wasn't it normal for Su Mu to climb a step higher than him?
But now, no matter how much Du Rongcheng didn't want to admit it, he had to admit that, for the time being, Su Mu was indeed stronger than him.

Running up the Heavenly Ladder of Nanheng Mountain was something Du Rongcheng could hardly believe.

Even if Du Rongcheng has now broken through to the Heavenly Fate Realm and has a powerful treasure by his side, he still wouldn't dare say he could do that.

"This person is definitely my formidable rival!"

Du Rongcheng thought to himself.

Although he is only at the Heavenly Profound Realm now, he has never doubted that he will reach the Heavenly Fate Realm in the future, and the most outstanding Heavenly Fate Realm.

Looking across the world, there are very few powerful beings at the Heavenly Fate Realm who can catch his eye.

He hasn't broken through yet; he's just trying to solidify his foundation.

With his pride, he finally found his match.

He forgot that he was no match for Su Mu in the present moment.

…………

Su Mu moved with incredible speed, and in no time he had already stepped onto the eight thousand steps.

This is a record once set by Emperor Wuzong and Emperor Wuzu.

When the Martial Ancestor broke through to the Heavenly Fate Realm, he came to Mount Nanheng, but he could not continue after reaching the 8,000th step.

After that, the Martial Ancestor never came again.

Some speculate that with Martial Ancestor's current strength, he should be able to reach the summit of Nanheng Mountain, but there is no concrete evidence to support this claim.

In short, as far as the world knows, eight thousand steps is already the limit.

As for Qi Lingyun and Lei Tianzun, even if they climbed the Heavenly Ladder of Nanheng Mountain, it would be impossible for ordinary martial artists to know.

After all, for a Celestial Venerable to undergo a test from another Celestial Venerable is not a glorious thing.

Reaching the summit of Mount Heng in the south was hardly something for the Celestial Venerable to boast about.

"Eight thousand steps."

The onlookers were so tense that they could hardly breathe.

They witnessed the birth of history firsthand.

It's hard to say whether anyone will ever come after this, but eight thousand steps is absolutely unprecedented.

"Do you think he will be able to reach the summit today?"

Someone couldn't help but ask in a low voice.

I think it's very likely!

Everyone nodded.

"Even if you reach the summit, so what? The opportunities of the Supreme Celestial Venerable are not so easy to obtain."

Du Rongcheng sneered, "Right now, it only proves that he's tough and thick-skinned, but to get the opportunity at the top of Nanheng Mountain, he needs to rely on his comprehension."

I think he's all brawn and no brains; he definitely lacks comprehension.

Everyone subconsciously glanced at Du Rongcheng, their eyes filled with surprise and a hint of disdain.

Saying someone lacks comprehension—where does that confidence come from?

That's Su Mu, after all.

The youngest Heavenly Fate Realm expert in the history of the Yang Realm.

It is said that he is also the top weaponsmith and alchemist in the mortal realm.

You would say someone like that lacks comprehension?
If he lacks comprehension, then what are you?
You are twice their age, yet your cultivation level is far inferior to theirs.

"I've heard that when Su Mu was young, he comprehended eight primordial realms and sixty-four extraordinary phenomena, his comprehension was nothing short of heaven-defying..."

A martial artist said weakly.

Since Su Mu became famous, many of his stories have been no secret.

His cultivation process, in particular, has been a topic of much discussion for many years.

Du Rongcheng: "..."

"You know nothing!"

Du Rongcheng said angrily.

“You all say that Su Mu is already a powerful being at the peak of the Heavenly Fate Realm. If he takes another step forward, he will become a Heavenly Venerable. However, becoming a Heavenly Venerable requires the recognition of Heaven and Earth. Cultivation will not play a significant role in this. What is he doing at the summit of Nanheng Mountain?”
Logically speaking, the opportunity presented by the Celestial Venerable wouldn't be of much help to him anymore. Those powerful figures at the peak of the Heavenly Fate Realm, like the Martial Ancestor, certainly possessed the ability to ascend to the summit of Nanheng Mountain, yet none of them came.

After a moment of silence, a martial artist suddenly asked a question.

This sentence brought Du Rongcheng back to his senses.

They had been so amazed by Su Mu's climbing speed that they hadn't thought about it carefully. Now that they thought about it, it really was a problem.

When a martial artist cultivates to the peak of the Heavenly Fate Realm, they will reach the threshold of the Heavenly Venerable Realm.

Breaking through to the Celestial Venerable realm is not something that can be achieved through mere cultivation.

Once a martial artist reaches this threshold, it becomes very difficult for them to improve their strength further.

For martial artists at this level, ordinary martial arts techniques are meaningless.

Therefore, the opportunity at Nanheng Mountain is very important to martial artists in the Heavenly Profound Realm or those who have just broken through to the Heavenly Fate Realm, but almost no one in the peak Heavenly Fate Realm cares about it.

Su Mu is now the most outstanding peak Heavenly Fate Realm martial artist in the Yang Realm, and there are even rumors that he is the number one person below the Heavenly Venerable.

Logically speaking, he should be focusing all his efforts on breaking through to the Heavenly Venerable Realm right now, all for an opportunity that's of little use to him. What's he doing here at Nanheng Mountain?
"Speaking of which, does any of you know what kind of fortuitous opportunity the Celestial Venerable Jue Tianzun spoke of at the summit of Mount Nanheng?"

Another martial artist asked curiously.

All that everyone knows is that at the summit of Mount Nanheng, there are opportunities and fortunes left by the Celestial Venerable for those who attempt to break through the barriers.

But what exactly it is, it seems, has never been seriously considered by anyone.

The Chaos Record is a secret known to only a very few people in the Yang Realm, and ordinary martial artists obviously have no chance of coming into contact with it.

Du Rongcheng's eyes flickered, but he remained silent.

He knew, but he was unwilling to tell these martial artists.

Listening to the crowd's discussion, he couldn't help but sneer inwardly.

These martial artists don't even know what's on the mountaintop, yet they spend their days fantasizing here.

The things on the summit of Nanheng Mountain were not prepared for them at all!
Only Du Rongcheng could handle that stuff!
"Do you think there might be some special reason for the fortune at the summit of Nanheng Mountain? Otherwise, why would a powerful figure like Su Mu waste his time here?"

After much discussion, no conclusion was reached. At this moment, a martial artist spoke up.

Everyone nodded in agreement.

"It's a pity we can't see what's happening at the top of the mountain. We don't know what it will be like when Su Mu reaches the top."

The crowd sighed as they spoke.

While they were talking, Su Mu had already climbed the nine thousandth step, with only nine hundred and ninety-nine steps left to reach the summit.

Now no one doubts whether Su Mu can reach the summit.

Everyone was curious about what would happen after Su Mu reached the summit.

At the same time, everyone was almost certain that the climber was Su Mu, as it was virtually impossible for anyone else to do so.

Du Rongcheng's expression grew increasingly grim.

Although he didn't believe Su Mu could take the Chaos Record from Jue Tianzun's hands, what if he did?
Others may not know, but he is very clear that Su Mu came to Nanheng Mountain most likely for the Chaos Diagram.

If Su Mu obtains that Chaos Record, wouldn't all of Du Rongcheng's efforts over the years become a joke?
He absolutely cannot let this happen.

"I originally wanted to suppress it for a while, but now it seems I can't wait any longer."

A glint of light flashed deep in Du Rongcheng's eyes.

The next moment, he slowly took a step forward.

After taking that step, his aura surged dramatically.

Rumble.

With a sound like muffled thunder, Du Rongcheng broke through to the Heavenly Fate Realm.

Du Rongcheng's cultivation level was actually already high enough to break through to the Heavenly Fate Realm, but in order to solidify his foundation, he had been suppressing his breakthrough.

Unaware of the truth, everyone was shocked to see Du Rongcheng break through to the Heavenly Fate Realm in one step.

Du Rongcheng had no time to enjoy the praise of the crowd. He popped a pill into his mouth, and with a surge of power, he once again stepped onto the Heavenly Ladder of Nanheng Mountain.

pedal!
pedal!
pedal!
Du Rongcheng continued walking, climbing several steps in a row.

As he climbed upwards, his aura also steadily increased.

Initial stage of the Heavenly Fate Realm, intermediate stage of the Heavenly Fate Realm, and advanced stage of the Heavenly Fate Realm.

Du Rongcheng had accumulated his strength over time, and by the time he stepped onto the hundredth step, his aura had reached the peak of the Heavenly Fate Realm.

The onlookers were stunned.

They've really seen something new today.

First, I saw someone break the mountain climbing record of Nanheng Mountain and was about to reach the summit. Now I saw someone break through from the Tianxuan Realm to the Tianming Realm in an instant. And it wasn't just any Tianming Realm, but the peak of the Tianming Realm!
In a short time, they had completed a journey that would take ordinary people hundreds of years to complete!
"What kind of pill did Young Master Du take? It can actually raise a person's cultivation level directly from the Heavenly Profound Realm to the peak of the Heavenly Fate Realm!"
If only I could get one too…

One of the martial artists muttered under his breath.

Although his voice was soft, it was still heard by those around him.

Those gathered here at this moment are mostly at the Heavenly Profound Realm.

If you don't have the ability, you don't even have the right to join in the fun.

With their sharp ears and keen eyes, how could they not hear the whispers around them?
"What are you thinking? You think the changes in Young Master Du are because of a mere pill?"

One of the martial artists said disdainfully, "Believe it or not, even if I gave you the same pill, you still couldn't achieve what Young Master Du has done."
He was able to break through because he had accumulated a lot of experience and knowledge; what are you daydreaming about?

“That’s right. Young Master Du’s pill should just be an ordinary pill to replenish vital energy. His change is because he is Young Master Du.”

Another martial artist chimed in, "If you want to be like Young Master Du, you first need to have a Heavenly Venerable father."

"Father, Celestial Venerable?"

The martial artist who spoke first showed a look of regret.

The Heavenly Venerable Father is gone, but it's unknown whether he will have the chance to become someone else's Heavenly Venerable Father.

Everyone looked up, their expressions varied.

In just a short while, Du Rongcheng had already climbed a thousand steps.

After completely releasing the suppression, Du Rongcheng unleashed his accumulated power and directly entered the peak of the Heavenly Fate Realm.

At this moment, his strength was more than a hundred times greater than before, and when he climbed the Heavenly Ladder of Nanheng Mountain again, he felt completely at ease.

Du Rongcheng felt that he would not feel any pressure before reaching the 3,000th step.

"I must reach Nanheng Mountain before Su Mu!"

Du Rongcheng gritted his teeth and frantically circulated the power within his body, even producing a booming sound.

That was the sound of his blood and qi circulating within his body.

One step at a time.

A moment later, Du Rongcheng began to take off, climbing two steps at a time.

His speed is now comparable to that of Su Mu before him.

He slowed down after he had climbed three thousand steps.

Just as Du Rongcheng was desperately chasing after him, to everyone's astonishment, Su Mu, who was almost at the summit, suddenly stopped when he was still ten steps away from the top.

He slowly turned around and sat down on the steps, his gaze fixed on Du Rongcheng, who was frantically chasing after him down the mountain.

Everyone looked at each other.

Is Su Mu waiting for Du Rongcheng?

Although no one knew Su Mu's exact strength, judging from his calm and composed demeanor, he clearly hadn't reached his limit yet.

No one believed that Su Mu was incapable of reaching the summit.

Keep in mind that if you stay on the steps, you will be subjected to thousands of times the force of gravity.

If you are truly unable to continue climbing, you must come down quickly, otherwise, under thousands of times the force of gravity, you will be crushed into a meat patty.

Su Mu neither continued climbing nor descended the Heavenly Ladder. There was no other explanation besides the fact that he was waiting for Du Rongcheng's explanation.

"Does Su Mu want to compete with Young Master Du?"

The martial artists began to discuss it again.

"You've got it wrong. Even though Young Master Du is the illegitimate son of the Heavenly Venerable, he's still not qualified to compete with Su Mu."

Su Mu is already a renowned and extremely powerful figure; Young Master Du is far inferior to him.

"That's right. I'm not saying anything bad about Young Master Du, but Young Master Du really can't compare to Su Mu. They're not even in the same league."

"If you ask me, only if Young Master Du's father steps forward would he be qualified to stand on equal footing with Su Mu. Young Master Du himself is still a bit lacking."

Du Rongcheng was born not long ago, and his fame is still limited to the area around Nanheng Mountain.

The two are indeed not on the same level in terms of either fame or ability.

It's just that Du Rongcheng himself didn't realize this.

"Regardless of what Su Mu thinks, I think there's bound to be some excitement to watch."

"A martial artist said with great interest."

All the martial artists wore expressions of anticipation, as if watching a show.

…………

"Accumulating knowledge and experience before unleashing it, leaping through the initial, intermediate, and advanced stages of the Heavenly Fate Realm in one step—is entering the Heavenly Fate Realm the pinnacle?"

Su Mu looked down at Du Rongcheng with an expression of great interest on his face.

He had noticed something was off about Du Rongcheng before, but Du Rongcheng's behavior still surprised him.

While it's possible to accumulate knowledge and experience before unleashing it, to leap directly from the peak of the Heavenly Profound Realm to the peak of the Heavenly Fate Realm in one step is something that truly few people can achieve.

The cultivation method that Du Rongcheng practices is quite interesting.

First there was Liu Rufeng, and now there's Du Rongcheng.

Both of them were previously unknown, but then suddenly appeared before the world, displaying extraordinary cultivation levels as soon as they appeared.

Most importantly, the cultivation techniques they practiced were both rare and powerful.

This coincidence made it hard for Su Mu not to connect the two of them.

Although he wasn't sure what their relationship was, Su Mu was almost certain that they definitely had some kind of connection.

It was precisely because of this doubt that Su Mu decided to stop.

He wanted to see if Du Rongcheng could catch up.

"With such profound martial arts skills, why is Du Rongcheng wasting his time in Nanheng Mountain? He must be here for the Chaos Record."

Su Mu thought to himself, "It's just a pity that you met me."

Therefore, this Chaos Diagram in the hands of the Celestial Venerable is destined to be unattainable for you.

Su Mu didn't care what kind of cultivation technique Du Rongcheng practiced, nor did he care how profound Du Rongcheng's accumulated knowledge was.

In any case, no matter how deep Du Rongcheng's martial arts experience is, it is not as deep as his.

Su Mu wasn't even afraid of the Heavenly Dragon God Technique, so why would he be afraid of Du Rongcheng, who had just broken through to the Heavenly Fate Realm?
He was actually looking forward to Du Rongcheng provoking him, so that he could take the opportunity to find out Du Rongcheng's background and see what kind of relationship Du Rongcheng had with Liu Rufeng.

Seeing that Du Rongcheng had already climbed to five thousand steps, Su Mu decided to give him a boost.

"Du Rongcheng, is this all you're capable of?"

Su Mu said loudly, "If this is all you've got, then I advise you not to embarrass yourself and to get down."

"I--"

Du Rongcheng's eyes turned red instantly. He roared, and his climbing speed doubled at once. (End of Chapter)