My little sect, which disappeared a thousand years ago, has become a sacred site!

To take multiple steps at once means bearing the combined pressure of those steps, especially when you're carrying a child, the difficulty is unimaginable.

Despite the astonished looks of the crowd, Gu Changyuan's speed did not slow down in the slightest.

Before the exclamations had even faded, Gu Changyuan had already stood firmly on the tenth step, his expression unchanged and his breathing steady.

He did not stop.

Taking the next step, one directly arrives at the twentieth step.

Step Two, Thirty Steps

The third step, the fortieth step.

......

His movements were fluid and without the slightest hesitation; each step he took, whether lifting or lowering, precisely covered the distance of ten steps.

Gu Xing'er, whom he was holding in his arms, seemed to be protected by a gentle force and did not feel any discomfort. Her big eyes were full of surprise.

Below the Ascension Platform, the once bustling square was now eerily silent.

Everyone gaped, their eyes wide, as if petrified, staring intently at the dark figure who was ascending rapidly on the Ascension Platform as if walking on flat ground.

How...how is this possible?!

The higher you go on the Ascension Platform, the greater the pressure becomes, increasing exponentially!

Every ten steps is a huge hurdle!

Many geniuses struggle at the fortieth or fiftieth level, needing to spend a lot of time and willpower to adapt and break through.

But this person in front of me... is he running?!

No, even running isn't that easy! He's even leading a group!

"I...I must be dreaming..."

A cultivator pinched his friend's thigh hard, and the friend instantly winced in pain and slapped the cultivator's hand away.

"You should pinch yourself!"

"An illusion! It must be some kind of illusion!" another cultivator muttered to himself.

Even the other examinees who were struggling to climb the Ascension Platform were so shocked by this "inhuman" sight that they almost lost their composure and nearly fell off the steps!

Gu Changyuan's speed did not slow down at all.

Fifty steps, sixty steps...

When he stepped steadily onto the sixtieth step, the entire square finally erupted in a thunderous roar.

"Sixty steps already! And we haven't stopped for a single step!"

"He brought men! He still brought men with him!"

"What...what kind of monster is this?!"

Meanwhile, the ten elders who had been sitting upright and watching Dugu Shiling in the audience all stood up at the same time.

Their faces were filled with shock, disbelief, and deep confusion.

The Ascension Platform has existed for a thousand years. They have presided over countless grand ceremonies and witnessed countless geniuses, but have they ever seen such a sight?!

Who climbs Sendai like it's a stroll?!

Who would dare to climb this mountain with others, and do so with such ease?!

"This...this child..."

An elder with a fiery temper pointed at Gu Changyuan on the Ascension Platform, his finger trembling slightly.

"How did he do that?!"

"His aura... is completely unfathomable!"

Another elder, skilled in perception, frowned deeply.

"It seems to have no spiritual energy fluctuations, yet it is unfathomable..."

"Could there be something wrong with the Ascension Platform?" someone couldn't help but wonder.

"impossible!"

The elder in the center spoke in a deep voice. Although he was equally shocked, his gaze was as sharp as an eagle's.

"The Ascension Platform was left by our ancestors and is connected to the core array of the sacred land; there are absolutely no problems!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he seemed to realize the seriousness of the situation and immediately crushed a communication jade talisman, clearly to urgently notify Elder Taiyin to come.

It's sixty steps now.

Gu Changyuan felt that the pressure was indeed much greater than that of the first stage, enough to make an ordinary Nascent Soul cultivator feel strained.

But for his body, which had endured a thousand years of chaotic battles and been tempered and refined by the cultivation of tens of thousands of disciples... it was still like a gentle breeze brushing against a mountain, unable to even cause his blood and qi to fluctuate slightly.

Gu Changyuan understood.

His existence has long exceeded the scope of the detection designed for the Ascension Platform.

Now that we've had our fill of the experience, there's no need to be polite anymore.

His gaze went upwards, locking onto the position of the seventieth step.

Then, amidst countless numb and dazed gazes below, he lifted his foot once more.

One step, seventy steps!

One more step, eighty steps!

The whole process was as fast as lightning, even giving people the illusion that the terrifying pressure and the distance of the steps did not exist for him at all.

"..."

The square was eerily quiet at that moment.

Everyone lost the ability to speak and could only stare blankly at the dark figure who was already standing on the eightieth step, almost at the same height as Dugu Shiling who had caused a sensation earlier.

Oh no, Dugu Shiling climbed the eighty steps only after giving it her all and enduring a long and arduous ordeal.

And this person... walked up, carrying a child.

The contrast is so stark it's almost heartbreaking.

Even the Supreme Elder was completely flustered at this moment, his mouth slightly open, his hand twirling his beard frozen in mid-air, unable to put it down for a long time.

Two figures had appeared beside him at some point, their auras equally unfathomable; they were clearly the Taiyin Elders who had come after receiving the message.

The three looked at each other, each seeing extreme shock and bewilderment in the other's eyes.

Gu Changyuan stood on the eightieth step, his gaze fixed on something higher.

There, Dugu Shiling stood on the eighty-ninth step, her delicate body trembling violently, her beautiful face devoid of color, and even a trace of blood seeping from the corner of her mouth.

Her eyes were now filled with defiance and stubbornness as she stared intently at the ninetieth step above.

That was her goal, the height she wanted to reach no matter what.

"ah--!!"

A suppressed growl burst from her throat.

She mustered the last bit of strength in her body, forcefully lifted her leaden leg, and stomped down towards the ninetieth step!

"boom!"

The moment she stepped onto the ninetieth step, a terrifying pressure far exceeding that before suddenly descended upon her!

Like a towering mountain crashing down, or an endless ocean being overturned!

Dugu Shiling's vision went black, her ears rang, blood seeped from all seven orifices, her consciousness blurred instantly, and her body fell backward uncontrollably, about to tumble down the ninety steps.

"What a pity..."

In the audience, an elder sighed softly.

Ninety steps, that's too difficult.

This woman's willpower was already exceptional, but ultimately she fell short by a hair's breadth.

However, just when everyone thought she was about to fail, or even be seriously injured—

An indescribable stubbornness and unwillingness, originating from the deepest part of the soul, erupted like a volcano that had been ignited.

A faint yet unwavering will resounded in her sea of ​​consciousness, which was about to completely sink!

His body, already half-fallen, froze in mid-air!

Her unfocused pupils regained a faint but tenacious light!

Then, amidst countless incredulous gazes, she actually used trembling hands to grip the edge of the ninetieth step tightly, her fingernails cracking and bleeding from the force!

Then, using the last bit of strength, he painstakingly dragged his body up the ninetieth step!