Chapter 1174 - Test

The Nebulous Divine Palace was the sole overlord of the Tianwu Continent three thousand years ago.

In fact, even ten thousand years ago, it held unrivaled dominance over the land.

Although it had long faded into the annals of history, its past glory, along with the treasures and legacies it left behind, still stirred envy in many.

Put simply, anyone who obtained the palace’s opportunities and inheritances might not surely rule the world but would certainly rise to greatness overnight.

“Haha, the divine palace has appeared. It’s finally appeared. The time for me, Jun Tianchou, to soar to the skies has come.”

“Opportunities, treasures, legacies... they’re all mine now. No one can stop me!”

Across the core region, countless people saw the palace’s silhouette emerge in the sky, and chaos erupted.

Rumble!

Suddenly, the entire core area shook violently.

Then, a blinding light burst forth as a sky-piercing staircase descended from the heavens, stretching directly to the palace, like a divine path welcoming all.

“This is...”

“Do we have to climb the staircase to enter the divine palace?”

“

Hmph

, I don’t believe it. Flying up is quicker!” some scoffed, launching into the air.

Although many speculated the staircase was the only way in, temptation clouded reason, and countless figures chose to fly straight toward the palace, seeking the fastest route to fortune.

After all, the core area was filled with prodigies, and everyone could enter the divine palace. Being one step ahead meant a better shot at seizing its opportunities, treasures, and legacies.

While many grew restless and considered flying straight in, miserable screams suddenly rang out.

“

Ahhh

...”

Those who had taken to the sky exploded mid-air.

The people present were all outstanding figures with high cultivation levels. So all of them sensed it: a formless force surged from the void, crashing into the intruders and detonating them on the spot.

Suddenly, a collective gasp swept through the crowd.

“

Hiss, hiss

...”

Especially loud were those who had nearly followed. Seeing the tragic state of their predecessors, beads of cold sweat as large as beans instantly appeared on their foreheads.

“Gulp, what a close shave. Luckily, I held it in, otherwise...”

“

Hmph

, a bunch of fools.”

“Good, good, good. The more people died, the better. Hahaha.”

“It looks like flying directly into the palace is suicide. They let their greed get to their head, forgetting just what kind of place the Nebulous Divine Palace is. You think it’d let people barge in unchecked?”

“Well, their deaths weren’t in vain. At least we now know that we must take the staircase. No time to waste. Let’s go!”

“Let’s go, climb the staircase!”

The death of those people didn’t scare the crowd into retreating.

Furthermore, the deaths served as a grim reminder to the survivors: to enter the divine palace, one must follow its rules.

𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

People flew over to the staircase from all directions like locusts.

Those nearby had already reached its base and begun climbing.

“Senior Brothers and Sister, let’s go too!”

Light shone in Chen Fan’s eyes. Immediately, he and the other Peerless Peak disciples transformed into five streams of light and flew toward the staircase.

They were some distance away from the staircase, but they quickly overtook many people and soon arrived beneath the towering structure.

By then, several cultivators were already climbing, some fast, others slower.

“This sky-piercing staircase must be a trial set by the Nebulous Divine Palace. Only by passing this test can one enter the divine palace to obtain its opportunities,” said Zhuge Mingyue.

Yan Weiyi nodded in agreement and said, “Makes sense, but I wonder what the trial actually is.”

“We’ll find out soon enough.”

Impatient as ever, Zhu Yue stepped onto the first stair before he’d even finished speaking.

Chen Fan and the others weren’t slow to act either and stepped up one after another.

Boom!

As soon as he set foot on the first step of the staircase, Chen Fan shook a bit.

He felt the surrounding air tighten, an oppressive force pressing down as if a half-ton weight had landed on him.

A strange look flashed across his eyes. That much force acting on him was trivial, no more than the weight of a stone tablet. He immediately stepped onto the second step.

Immediately, the pressure increased slightly.

Step by step, the force intensified.

I see

. Chen Fan came to a realization.

This should be the Nebulous Divine Palace’s entrance test.

But this level of pressure was nothing to Chen Fan at all.

His figure flashed, rushing up like a gust of wind, and he arrived at the two hundredth step in an instant.

By now, nearly ten thousand people had gathered, flooding the staircase. Some advanced quickly, already halfway up; others lagged behind, struggling step by step.

Chen Fan continued climbing upwards.

After ascending two hundred steps, he felt that the pressure had increased tenfold. Even the flow of his true primeval began to slow under the oppressive force.

It can even suppress the flow of true primeval?

Chen Fan was shocked inside.

Still, he pressed on, overtaking many so-called prides of heaven.

Chen Fan and the other disciples of the Peerless Peak weren’t slow. Soon, they reached around three hundred steps.

The staircase exerted different levels of pressure depending on the climber’s cultivation. The stronger one’s cultivation, the heavier the suppression.

“Senior Brothers and Sister, how are you feeling?”

Even though the oppressive force had become ten times stronger, Chen Fan was still very relaxed. His face was not flushed, and his heart wasn’t beating heavily.

His physique was too strong.

Although the oppressive force made the flow of his true primeval slightly less smooth, it did not affect him greatly.

“This is rather interesting. The staircase can suppress true primeval, and the higher we go, the greater the suppression. At some point, it may block it entirely,” Yan Weiyi said with a smile.

He wasn’t as relaxed as Chen Fan; compared to most, he still looked composed.