Chapter 2270: One Step At A Time

Lu Yin arrived at an altitude of 20,000 feet. At this time, he became… a teapot? Really?

What sort of life did a teapot live? Brewing tea, pouring tea, and eventually shattering. That was the life of a teapot that Lu Yin lived.

He really could not understand how this worked. How had he become a teapot? His die’s Possession ability allowed him to Possess various kinds of creatures, but it was impossible for him to Possess an object. The closest that he had ever come was when he had Possessed the mechanical ant, but even that could be considered a creature, as Lu Yin had Possessed a being with perception and consciousness, which essentially meant that it was sapient. There was no way a teapot could be regarded as sapient.

Lu Yin’s strongest impression about his time as a teapot was that time passed extremely slowly. To him, it felt like decades had passed. The teapot that he had become had practically become an antique when it had finally shattered.

After reaching an altitude of 20,000 feet, Lu Yin continued to rise, but his speed slowed. He had already become numb to the cycles of life and death, and he had no idea that, at the moment, the black and white halves of a yin-yang symbol that were part of the power within his chest were revolving and growing at a frenzied rate. The cycles of life and death had triggered the death energy, which in turn allowed Lu Yin’s unique power to continuously grow, though he was completely ignorant of it for the time being.

More and more members of the Celestial Frost Sect arrived at the mountain, and all of them stared into the sky in surprise as they watched “Yu Hao” continue to climb towards the clouds. While his speed had slowed down, he was still moving at a steady pace.

Wu Yao's face revealed his shock. The fact that Yu Hao was able to reach such a height on his first attempt suggested that he would actually be able to touch the clouds if he was allowed to try again!

Ascend past the clouds and become an immortal. This was possibly the only way for a person to remember what they experienced during the Sky Beyond the Sky trial. However, many of the Celestial Frost Sect's most talented disciples only hoped to be able to touch the clouds, and Yu Hao was showing that he was very likely capable of doing so.

This was an accomplishment that very, very few members of the Celestial Frost Sect had ever achieved throughout the sect’s entire history.

If this youth can actually touch the clouds… Wu Yao's eyes suddenly went wide, as he realized that Yu Hao’s value went far beyond simply being a talented Lockbreaker and Grandmaster Gu Yan’s apprentice. With the height that Yu Hao had reached in the Sky Beyond the Sky trial, the Celestial Frost Sect would not be the only one eager to recruit him, as the Xia family and the other two would go absolutely crazy trying to recruit him.

…

Lu Yin was a dried piece of fish. Yes, just a small, dried piece of fish. There was no sense of self-awareness, though there was an odd variation of some sort of self-consciousness. This was not the remnant consciousness of the fish, but the consciousness of the piece of dried fish. It was a brand new perspective, but the dried fish was quickly taken and eaten, which forced it to experience the horror of being chewed and swallowed. It was enough to drive a person mad.

Lu Yin slowed down even further, and he was moving even slower than when he had first started the trial, though he still was steadily moving upwards.

No one could be more familiar with the feeling of death than Lu Yin. He had already committed suicide on several different occasions, and he had also become very familiar with the sensation of dying.

Everyone possessed a different sort of determination, and their perception of death and their reaction to dying would also be different. This was what the Sky Beyond the Sky trial tested.

Lu Yin surpassed Bai Weiwei’s record height, which produced a great shock for the Celestial Frost Sect.

Bai Weiwei stared upwards as Lu Yin surpassed her achievement. Beneath the cloud canopy, the beam of light that shone on “Yu Hao” gave him a somewhat divine appearance, and many people stared at his gorgeous face. It was a rather intoxicating appearance to many people.

Reaching a height of 10,000 feet was a threshold, and 20,000 feet was another threshold. The final barrier that stopped people was the final 1,000 feet. It was recognized that the final 1,000 feet needed to be traversed one step at a time to pass through, and it had stopped countless geniuses from passing the trial.

For example, if Bai Weiwei were given another chance, then it was possible that she would be able to ascend to the final 1,000 feet, just as Bai Shaohong and countless of the Celestial Frost Sect’s greatest geniuses had done in the past. This was a height of 29,000 feet from the ground, and it was incredibly difficult to reach such a height, but practically all of the challengers stopped there. Very, very few were ever able to rise higher than 29,000 feet and continue to move closer to the cloud canopy.

"Wu Yao, how well did Bai Xian'er do when she challenged the Sky Beyond the Sky?" the God of Food suddenly asked. Everyone’s ears perked up when they heard the question.

Bai Xian'er was a true legend. She was from the same generation as Seven Heroes, but she was acknowledged to have surpassed the Seven Heroes. Despite her youth, no one had any idea just what heights she had reached or what realm of cultivation she was currently in.

Even Wu Yao, a Semi-Progenitor with a reputation for being cruel and ruthless, was always respectful when speaking about Bai Xian'er. When the Celestial Frost Sect had been targeted by the other three ruling powers, Bai Xian'er's instruction had resolved the matter. It could be said that, out of everyone in the Perennial World, aside from the Progenitors themselves, Wu Yao respected and feared Bai Xian'er the most.

Everyone knew that Bai Xian'er had passed the Sky Beyond the Sky, but they were curious how smooth her process had been.

"I don't know," Wu Yao replied.

"Then, what about Bai Shaohong?" the God of Food asked again.

Wu Yao glanced over. "There’s no reason to discuss the dead."

"Can you not say?" the God of Food pressed.

Bai Su spoke up. "He also reached the last thousand feet, and he proceeded with each step, approaching the limit to become regarded as an immortal. Junior Progenitor passed 700 feet of the final 1,000 feet, which placed him among my Celestial Frost Sect top ten."

Everyone was surprised. Bai Shaohong had qualified to be ranked among the sect’s top tep in history?

How many Progenitors had risen from the Celestial Frost Sect over the eons? Which of those powerhouses had not been the most talented of their generation, looking down on all of their peers? Despite that, Bai Shaohong had still qualified to be ranked among the sect’s top ten, which proved just how amazing his talent had been. It could only be said to be a pity that he had died so young.

"The most hateful thing that that Lu bastard ever did was kill Bai Shaohong! If it weren't for Lu Xiaoxuan, our Junior Progenitor would not have died young, and my Perennial World would have absolutely had another Progenitor in the future!" one of the Celestial Frost Sect’s members lamented.

Bai Su sighed. "It’s true. No matter if one considers just the challengers from my Celestial Frost Sect, or outsiders, very few people have ever managed to climb 700 feet of the final 1,000 feet. As long as such people don't die young, without exception, they will become Semi-Progenitors, and it’s not uncommon for them to become a Progenitor either. It’s really too sad."

Bai Weiwei's eyes were also filled with sadness. Each of the Celestial Frost Sect’s disciples were given three opportunities to challenge the Sky Beyond the Sky. She had already challenged it twice, and while she did have a third opportunity remaining, she was not confident that she could reach the final 1,000 feet, let alone pass through 700 feet of that last portion. Was there really such a wide gap between her and Bai Shaohong? If Bai Shaohong had been so capable, then what about Bai Weiwei’s senior sister? How far could the Seven Heroes have climbed?

As Bai Weiwei’s thoughts continued to wander, her pride vanished. She unconsciously lifted her head and stared at “Yu Hao” as he continued to slowly climb higher and higher. How high would he be able to reach? Would he prove himself comparable to Bai Shaohong? Was it possible that he was a true genius on the same level as the four Junior Progenitors?

A day passed, and people watched in amazement as Lu Yin reached the last 1,000 feet. This was the start of the portion of the Sky Beyond a Sky trial where every foot of progress had to be traversed one step at a time to reach the final goal.

Wu Yao had completely stopped breathing by this point. Was Yu Hao really this talented? Not even Bai Shaohong had been able to reach this height during his first attempt at the trial. Not even close. Could Yu Hao really be capable of touching the clouds?

Once Lu Yin arrived at 29,000 feet altitude, he became a stone. Only a god could understand how a stone could possess a consciousness, but Lu Yin’s perception of the experience was very clear.

I am a stone. A stone cannot move and is not alive.

I am a stone. A stone cannot move and is not alive.

I am a stone. A stone cannot move and is not alive.

…

Lu Yin was fully aware that he was a stone, and he actually did not know anything more than that. His consciousness was quite clear, and it allowed him to observe the earth, as well as the wind and sand. He existed on a vast grassland, surrounded by all kinds of strange creatures. He was stepped upon, thrown as a weapon, and then fell into the river, where he sat for many, many years. He was buried at the bottom of the river and pushed down to unknown depths.

Throughout it all, his consciousness remained perfectly clear. In fact, it was too clear, as he was a stone that could sense the passing of time, feeling as it flowed by, carrying with it the slowly passing years. A stone could truly understand the horror of the long river of time.

How much time had passed? Countless years. Truly, they were countless years. Any creature that was forced to exist as a stone with such a clear perception of its existence and the passing of time would go insane, but Lu Yin did not. This was because he was able to observe time, and he saw it as a power. He could only observe it, but even that was enough to erase the burden brought about by the passing years. Time became nothing more than a sensation that was experienced.

Suddenly, Lu Yin’s eyes snapped open, and he moved upwards. However, he did not take a single step, but crossed half of the remaining height; he instantly rose a full 500 feet.

On the ground below, Wu Yao's pupils constricted tightly. "Impossible!"

He was frozen as he stared.

Bai Su was no different.

Everyone who reached the last 1,000 feet of the Sky Beyond the Sky needed to progress up one step at a time. The very, very few exceptions were people like Bai Sheng and Progenitor Wen, those freakish existences who had been capable of ascending above the cloud canopy. And… Bai Xian’er. Aside from those select few, no one else had ever managed to cross as much as a dozen feet in one go. On top of that, Yu Hao had not simply crossed a dozen feet, but a full 500. This was completely unprecedented.

The God of Food’s brows rose. Judging by his limited knowledge of the Sky Beyond the Sky, and more importantly, Wu Yao's reaction, it seemed that Hao Yu had just accomplished something truly extraordinary. It was possible that the consequences of this trial would be even more serious than what had happened during the visits to the Wang family and the White Dragon Clan.

Lu Yin knew nothing of the legends associated with the Sky Beyond the Sky trial, let alone the final 1,000 feet. All he knew was that he was able to sense time more and more clearly. Before returning to the Perennial World, he had tried to sense the power of time by training with Wendy Yushan, but his efforts had failed. Later, he had used the star essence on the Junior Progenitor Planets to Enhance Progenitor Ku's Withered Bark, reaching a new level of mastery of Extremes Must Be Reversed. Lu Yin had successfully created a region of chaotic time and space when using Inverse Step, and he had also developed an initial sense for the power of time, but it had still been extremely indistinct.

However, the last experience that Lu Yin had gone through seemed to have allowed him to perceive time, and if he could replicate that situation, he just might be able to truly sense the power of time.

However, he also understood why some people had such strongly adverse reactions to the Sky Beyond the Sky. After all, if they could not awaken and shake off the experience, they would continue to exist while believing themselves to be a stone.

How long had most of the challengers of this trial lived for? Decades? Hundreds of years? How long could a stone last? Thousands of years? Tens of thousands of years? Longer? When human existence was compared to the time spent as a stone with a crystal clear consciousness, a human life was too fleeting. This was why some people behaved like other creatures after the trial ended, as they likely felt that their human experience was just another part of the fantasy.

Fortunately, Lu Yin had already achieved an initial perception of time, which had prevented him from becoming a vegetable as well!

He looked up, and he saw that the canopy of clouds was almost within reach. It was time to continue. As long as he could perceive time, there was nothing that he needed to fear from this trial.

The triangle-faced Envoy had already descended to the ground. When he looked up and saw “Yu Hao” continuing upwards through the final 1,000 feet of the trial, Gong could not help but steal a glance at Wu Yao. Gong really wanted to ask how the Semi-Progenitor had wanted him to compete with this Yu Hao. Just how could Gong compete with such a freak?

At this point in time, no one was comparing Gong to Yu Hao. All of them were just waiting to see just how far the man would rise.

Once Yu Hao arrived within 500 feet of the cloud canopy, Wu Yao thought of something impossible: could this man actually ascend above the clouds?

Bai Su swallowed. What had he done? He had simply wanted to extend a gesture of kindness in an attempt to win over a talented Lockbreaker. The acting sect master had never expected such a huge thing to come of his offer. If Yu Hao really did join Shenwu's Sky, Bai Su would be regarded as the Celestial Frost Sect’s greatest sinner.