Chapter 252: Wang Xuanling, where have you gone? Say something!

The illusions found the scene that had just played out before them too complex to process. They didn't seem to understand at all what Chu Liang had shouted at them.

However, when Chu Liang leaped forward and climbed onto the first plank walkway of the Stairway to the Heavens, the illusions followed him anyway.

Right then, Chu Liang felt as though he was lugging something that weighed a thousand jun[1] behind him. Each illusion was like a huge and heavy iron ball and chain shackled to him... imposing an enormous burden on him!

What's going on?

Chu Liang continued moving forward, but he couldn't increase his speed at all. Then that white-robed elderly man showed up in front of Chu Liang again.

The Conservation Master didn't seem to be in a good mood. Well, no one—even if it was just their clone—would be happy about getting killed all of a sudden, seemingly without rhyme or reason.

"I believe you've realized it, haven't you?" the Conservation Master said slowly. "It's not that I'm forcing you to kill one of them. These attachments manifest as sources of resistance against your ascent, and as you climb higher, the resistance will keep getting stronger. If you don't let go of your attachments, you won't be able to catch up with the others."

Chu Liang responded with a smile, "Then let's talk about it when I can't walk forward at all."

He continued climbing the Stairway to the Heavens, with the heavy pressure weighing down on him.

Chu Liang's physique, strengthened by the Secret Dragon Blood Technique, had surpassed the level of the Power of Ten Tigers a long time ago. The strength he possessed now was much closer to that of a half dragon. The pressure weighing down on him was immense, but it was not enough to hold him back.

Chu Liang was unwilling to kill the illusions because he had this nagging feeling that this trial couldn't be that simple.

Choosing to kill one of the illusions is an admittedly simple decision to make, but what about afterward? Will I have to kill an illusion every time I can't move forward? And what would happen after I've killed them all?

This trial was meant to test their Dao hearts. In that case, shouldn't taking a slow climb be one of the ways they could make it to the top of the mountain?

Of course, Chu Liang didn't know if it was right or wrong to persist with this. Nevertheless, he decided to follow his heart.

This is probably what the saying, “Stay true to your Dao Heart and not let external factors influence it” means, right?

he thought.

Thud, thud, thud

...

Chu Liang appeared to be strolling leisurely, but in reality, every step he took was extremely heavy.

...

Unlike Chu Liang, most of the other people in the competition hadn't killed the Conservation Master's clone. Yet, surprisingly, there was actually someone else who had.

Like Chu Liang, Lin Bei was gritting his teeth and persevering despite the immense resistance.

"Excluding my good bro, the others are the loves of my life," Lin Bei muttered. "I can't bring myself to let go of any of them. I must take them to the top of the Stairway to the Heavens."

He bent forward and did his best to keep walking.

Lin Bei also had a group of illusions following him, but he seemed to have even more illusions than Chu Liang. Nevertheless, Lin Bei was obviously nowhere as strong as Chu Liang, so this trial was probably unimaginably difficult for him.

"Such wishful thinking." The Conversation Master shook his head. "With the strength you possess, it's absolutely impossible for you to climb all the way to the top while bearing such immense weight."

"

Ha.

" Lin Bei bitter smile. "A real man emerges after being tempered by the world[2]. Knowing something is impossible but still doing it—that's what it means to be a true hero."

"Well said. Then why don't you step forward? Why are you just standing there with those shaking legs?" the Conservation Master asked, mocking Lin Bei at just the right time.

It turned out that Lin Bei had only walked till midway of the first level of the winding mountain path. Now, he was just standing there, stuck. His legs were shaking with strain and fatigue; moving forward had become a monumental task.

Despite that, Lin Bei showed no signs of backing down.

He raised his head high and loudly proclaimed, "My legs are weak!"

"There's no need for you to be so prideful," the Conservation Master remarked in annoyance.

...

Lackey B was in the same situation as Lin Bei.

All the dishes that had shown up were Lackey B's favorites, and he didn't want to give up any of them. Yet, the moment he tried climbing the Stairway to the Heavens and felt the weight pulling him down, he was unable to take a single step.

Lackey B turned around and gazed at the delicious dishes with conflicted emotions. He couldn't decide.

"What should I do?" Lackey B uttered.

The Conservation Master rolled his eyes. He hoped that his fellow immortality cultivators attending the Mount Shu Summit wouldn't pay any attention to Lackey B.

...

Meanwhile, Xu Ziyang had sped through the winding mountain path and was already on the sixth level. On the obelisk, his and Jiang Yuebai's names were at the top. They were on levels far above everyone else.

Then when Xu Ziyang stepped onto the plank walkway for the seventh level, he felt a sense of resistance.

As he'd expected, this trial wasn't as simple as it seemed. He'd killed all of his attachments, but there was still something hindering him.

Regardless, this level of resistance was too weak to cause him any problems. He raised his qi output and continued charging forward like a gust of wind. It looked as if he hadn't been slowed down at all.

Outside the hidden realm, Wang Xuanling watched as his disciple's name repeatedly alternated with Jiang Yuebai's name in the rankings for first and second place. Nonetheless, Xu Ziyang took the lead in the end, and Wang Xuanling nodded in satisfaction.

He hadn't participated in designing this trial, so he didn't know what would come next. However, he believed in his disciple. Moreover, Xu Ziyang had already gained a significant lead. Wang Xuanling thought that it was impossible for anyone to surpass Xu Ziyang now.

Di Nufeng, on the other hand, had a rather displeased expression.

The obelisk only displayed the names of the disciples ranked in the top sixty-four, and Chu Liang's name hadn't appeared on it.

Nevertheless, Di Nufeng could see the disciples in action. Many of them had already slain several of their illusions and were moving swiftly along the mountain path.

Meanwhile, Chu Liang had only just leisurely arrived at the third level of the mountain path. His steps were slow like those of an old man pushing a heavy cart.

At that speed, he was highly likely to fail the preliminaries.

He's my only disciple. He won't really get eliminated in the first round, will he?

Di Nufeng thought worriedly.

Right then, Wang Xuanling spoke serenely beside her. "Di Nufeng, you were pretty lively earlier. Why aren't you saying anything now?"

...

"The resistance is getting stronger."

When Jiang Yuebai reached the tenth level, she was surrounded by an intense pressure that was like a strong tide pushing against her. If she stopped pushing back even a little, she wouldn't be able to make progress and might even get pushed backward.

Jiang Yuebai didn't know how many levels there were above her, but it was clear to her that she hadn't reached the top yet. She didn't have great physical strength, so she couldn't keep advancing by just using her physical strength alone.

Whoosh.

Jiang Yuebai frantically circulated her cultivation energy, transforming it into a great strength that allowed her to advance. Her white robes, which had been fluttering ethereally in the breeze, were now billowing as if a blast of wind were sweeping past, and her cold, limpid eyes took on a grave expression.

Right then, she felt strength spread from her shoulders to the rest of her body.

She realized it was coming from her illusions—the two blurry figures from before. The two figures had placed their palms on Jiang Yuebai's shoulders. The force they were sending into her body was weak, but it was undeniably real.

Jiang Yuebai was stunned.

These illusions had been formed from her obsessions. She hadn't paid much attention to them during the earlier part of her ascent. However, they were now giving her a hand.

Could they actually help me?

Jiang Yuebai wore a pensive expression as she contemplated this.

Ever since she was a child, she had yearned to find the Divine Ruins. To find her parents' whereabouts, she'd avoided the secular world and always sought to have a state of mind that was free of attachments. She didn't want to and didn't dare to have any bonds that would hinder her.

Yet, at this moment, she suddenly wondered,

Is this really the right path?

...

Thump! Thump! Thump!

Chu Liang's steps grew heavier and heavier, leaving behind a footprint with each step. He was drenched in sweat and about to reach the sixth level of the mountain path.

He flipped over his hand and melted a Dragon-Blood Crystal into it.

Boom!

Great power surged through Chu Liang, giving him a tremendous boost. He then continued on his path in large strides, headed toward the top of the mountain.

With his strength replenished by the Dragon-Blood Crystal, Chu Liang now had a burst of energy. He sped through the sixth level, swiftly arriving at the seventh level of the mountain path.

The moment he stepped onto the seventh level, the pressure on his shoulders suddenly became lighter, and the massive burden he'd been lugging around didn't seem so massive anymore.

At first, those changes were very subtle. However, the further Chu Liang climbed, the lighter his steps became.

He continued walking forward and felt a sense of resistance in the air around him. It was right then that he felt a hand suddenly on his shoulder.

Chu Liang turned his head to look and found the illusions of his friends and loved ones placing their hands on his shoulders resting on his shoulders, pushing him forward!

The illusions supported Chu Liang with great power, counteracting the resistance around him.

Chu Liang turned to look at the Conservation Master, seemingly in contemplation about the situation.

The Conservation Master smiled, gazing at Chu Liang with a look of approval. "You made the right choice."

I see.

Chu Liang immediately understood the deeper meaning behind the trial. In the first half, everyone they cared about had been attachments that they needed to let go, so they manifested as obstacles that hindered their advancement. However, in the latter half of the Stairway to the Heavens, each illusion would become a source of support. The more illusions they had left, the stronger the support they would receive!

The bonds they had once thought of as hindrances would ultimately become sources of strength to help them continue walking forward on their paths.

With all his illusions pushing him forward, Chu Liang's steps became lighter and faster. In the later stages when everyone else's advancement was hindered, Chu Liang's speed rose unexpectedly, and his ranking went up rapidly.

Soon after, Chu Liang's name appeared at the bottom of the obelisk with the ranking of sixty-fourth!

Then it continued to rise!

At an unbelievable speed, his name rushed into the top fifty, thirty, ten... and eventually into the top three.

At the next moment, Chu Liang's name took second place. It seemed that there wasn't much distance left between Chu Liang and Xu Ziyang!

Chu Liang's name rose with such fierce momentum that the spectators were in an uproar. Aside from Chu Liang's small number of friends and acquaintances, no one had paid much attention to him earlier. Yet, at this moment, practically everyone's gaze was focused on him.

As Chu Liang's name rose on the obelisk, Di Nufeng's eyebrows rose as well.

She smirked and let out a light cough. "Wang Xuanling, where have you gone? Say something!"

1. 1 jun is around 15kg, so 15,000kg...? Damn, that's heavy. ☜

2. A famous line from a classic ancient Chinese novel, the Romance of the Three Kingdoms. ☜