"When you become Saintcrest Prodigies, you'll naturally know," the white-robed middle-aged man said calmly. "Oh, and one more thing - anyone who makes it to the top of the Primordial Steps will be automatically granted a Saintcrest!"

Boom!

This caused another sensation, as the nearly three thousand geniuses in the plaza simultaneously gazed toward the stairway that climbed to the heavens. There were a full eleven thousand steps. Just reaching the top would grant one a Saint Crest?

According to the intelligence I received from the Eldritch Court, throughout the dozens of Megaverse Crossroads iterations in all the samsara cycles of heaven and earth so far, there's never been a rule allowing one to claim a Saintcrest outright.

Wu Yuan thought to himself in shock.

This Megaverse Crossroads values those with aptitude for the Primordial Doctrine so highly?

Cultivating the Primordial Doctrine to profound levels didn't necessarily mean one's power would be stronger.

This is my ray of hope.

Wu Yuan thought to himself.

Though I wonder just how difficult it’ll be to ascend these eleven thousand steps?

𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

Over thousands of years, both of Wu Yuan's true selves had comprehended the Primordial Doctrine to extremely profound levels. Both also cultivated the Primordial Technique. In particular, his body refiner self was stronger in this aspect, so Wu Yuan still held some confidence.

"Reach the top?"

“Climb over eleven thousand steps?"

"Claim a Saintcrest directly?" The thousands of geniuses whispered among themselves.

"I relied on comprehending the Primordial Doctrine to enter the Heavenly Domain stage. In terms of raw power, I might not win, but when it comes to the Primordial Technique, even those Supreme Geniuses might not be my match."

"I must give it my all!"

"At least, I must become one of the top 320 on the Primordial Steps stairway and enter the second trial."

"Charge!" Many geniuses felt hope rising within them. If it came down to pure power, they definitely couldn't match the Supreme Geniuses. But now? They saw hope!

"I didn’t study the Primordial Doctrine seriously in the past. After all, this is the path of matter and I had already fully comprehended a Greater Law - dividing my attention would only be a waste of time."

"This is troublesome!"

"This Megaverse Crossroads' selection process for the final Saintcrest Prodigies favors those who cultivate the Primordial Doctrine too much." Many Supreme Geniuses felt vexed by this, as these Supreme Geniuses had immediately qualified for the Heavenly Domain stage. Thus, many Supreme Geniuses hadn't seriously comprehended the Primordial Doctrine.

This choice wasn’t necessarily wrong. On the path of cultivation, trying to bite off more than one can chew rarely worked. When already on a smooth path, cultivators rarely spent too much energy exploring other paths. Specialization was often the right way.

Time flowed on.

While nearly three thousand geniuses contemplated their strategies, the colossal stairway spanning ten thousand li began radiating a mesmerizing glow, flowing with light.

"Go," the white-robed middle-aged man pointed. "You only have a thousand years. The earlier you start comprehending, the faster you might progress.

“When a thousand years are up, those qualified to advance to the second trial of the Heavenly Domain stage will be selected."

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Upon hearing this, the thousands of geniuses in the plaza all rushed toward the steps shrouded in hazy light just a short distance away.

Thud!

"Not good, we can't fly!"

"Be careful!" Those who tried to fly over felt as though they were struck by lightning and fell to the ground.

Many quickly discovered that flight was impossible in this place, forcing them to rely on the most primitive method of movement—running. However, in their burst state, these peerless geniuses moved with astonishing speed.

Soon, some geniuses made it to the first step, but their speed abruptly decreased, like a high-speed car plunging into sandy terrain.

"Complete the first of the Three Thousand Foundation Diagrams?"

"So that's how it is." The first batch of geniuses to enter all understood what the test was about.

They had to contemplate the miniature Primordial Star and complete the Three Thousand Foundation Diagrams from the Primordial Doctrine.

Regardless of which chapter of the Primordial Technique one comprehended, they all began with comprehending the Three Thousand Foundation Diagrams, just that they branched out in different directions.

However, even though the thousands of geniuses here had all comprehended at least several hundred of the Three Thousand Foundation Diagrams, completing them one by one still took time. They inevitably slowed down, climbing the steps one at a time.

Whoosh!

Wu Yuan's two true selves moved steadily, with his qi refiner self staying close to Master Dong Yang, Zhuo Haiyue, and Bai Yi as they entered one area.

Meanwhile, his body refiner self entered another area alongside Zhu Shan, Wan Bao and other Supreme Geniuses of the Eldritch Court.

Fortunately, the entire Primordial Steps stairway was ten thousand li wide and a hundred thousand li tall, spacious enough to accommodate thousands of geniuses.

Upon entering, Wu Yuan's two true selves simultaneously felt incredible pressure. Two different incomplete Foundation Diagrams appeared before each of them. One belonged to the Spacetime Chapter, the other to the Life Chapter.

Incomplete! Complete it?

Wu Yuan thought to himself. He could clearly sense that if he tried to step onto a higher step, the pressure bearing down on his two true selves would increase exponentially. It prevented him from moving at all.

These Primordial Steps can't be overcome by force, only through comprehension of the path of matter.

Wu Yuan realized this point.

The gazes of his two true selves fell upon the Foundation Diagrams before them. Though called Foundation Diagrams, they were endlessly complex, analyzing a type of matter down to its fundamental nature and profundities. Either you understood it or you didn't. There was no middle ground.

In an instant, Wu Yuan's two true selves had completed the first Foundation Diagram. Immediately, he felt the endless pressure bearing down on him dissipate.

Whoosh!

Both true selves simultaneously flew up ten li, reaching the second step. Once again, they felt overwhelming pressure.

Complete one Foundation Diagram to climb one step?

A thought flashed through Wu Yuan's mind.

Even if I fully comprehend all Three Thousand Foundation Diagrams, I would only be able to climb three thousand steps?

What level of comprehension would be needed for all eleven thousand steps?

This was just Wu Yuan's speculation. But if his guess was correct, Wu Yuan vaguely understood why reaching the top would grant a Saintcrest.

If one could reach the top, it likely meant they had reached a terrifying level of progress on the path of matter, perhaps even fully comprehending it. They could likely sweep aside all geniuses with the Primordial Technique alone, naturally qualifying for a Saintcrest.

These incomplete Foundation Diagrams

. Wu Yuan's two true selves comprehended separately, but quickly noticed something unusual, sensing the differences in these Foundation Diagrams.

It’s different! Could these incomplete patterns be guiding me toward a new method of comprehension?

Wu Yuan had an insight.

Even if someone had grasped a single Foundation Diagram, true understanding required comprehending all Three Thousand Foundation Diagrams. Without this, their understanding remained incomplete. Thus, it was better to follow the guidance of the steps and start from the beginning rather than hastily attempting to complete them.

No rush! There's still a thousand years. If I reach a bottleneck, I would still need to continue comprehending Primordial Doctrine anyway.

Wu Yuan thought to himself.

I might as well comprehend it now.

Both of Wu Yuan's true selves changed their approach, no longer rushing to complete the Foundation Diagrams. Instead, they combined the incomplete aspects of the Foundation Diagrams, following the guidance while also partially sparing some attention to observe the miniature Primordial Star in the void. They jointly deduced and comprehended the Primordial Doctrine from multiple aspects.

The moment they had entered the stairway, they were cut off from all external interference and could no longer sense the essence of the various Daos.

Wu Yuan could detect this as he had already comprehended the Primordial Doctrine to a relatively high level, allowing him to quickly notice this from his elevated perspective. In particular, his body refiner self had made immense progress in the Life Chapter. Even Zhu Shan had expressed amazement during their spar that day, admitting he was far inferior.

"Wu Yuan is really falling behind, actually ending up at the very back."

"Ming Jian too."

"And some other Supreme Geniuses seem very slow too. That Supreme Genius called Lie Jin is only slightly faster than Wu Yuan?" The strange behavior of some Supreme Geniuses caught the attention of many geniuses, causing them to frown in confusion. But since they couldn't understand the reason behind it, they soon stopped paying attention and continued climbing.

Time flowed on.

In the beginning, almost all geniuses progressed extremely quickly, breaking through the first few hundred steps at tremendous speed.

Only a few, like Wu Yuan, Inconstance, Lie Jin, and around ten other Supreme Geniuses, along with fewer than a hundred ordinary geniuses, progressed at a slower pace.

When other geniuses had climbed to the five or six hundredth step, these hundred or so geniuses had barely crossed the hundredth step. However, they were simply slow, not that they had stopped.

But starting from the eight or nine hundredth step, some participants gradually stopped completely, no longer progressing. Evidently, for some, this was the current extent of their comprehension of the Primordial Doctrine.

To continue climbing, one would need to further contemplate and deduce the Primordial Doctrine, only able to advance after making progress. Naturally, this was a very slow process.

At this moment, among thousands of geniuses, the most dazzling was High Eldritch Wan Bao. He moved at the fastest pace, having already reached the 1300th step, taking the lead!

Rush to the highest step at maximum speed, then take my time to comprehend. There's no need to linger too long at the back.

High Eldritch Wan Bao had his own thoughts, believing he had figured it out thoroughly.

In the void far away, the white-robed middle-aged man who called himself the Heavenly Domain Emissary remained silent, quietly observing everything from above.

…

After more than a day, more and more geniuses began to fall behind. They had all gradually reached their current limits of understanding.

The vast majority of geniuses stopped between the nine hundredth and twelve hundredth steps. As for the higher steps? The numbers dropped sharply!

I've reached my limit.

After a frenzied sprint, High Eldritch Wan Bao finally stopped around the 1500th step.

For now, I'm temporarily ranked first, but after some time, many will likely surpass me.

High Eldritch Wan Bao's gaze swept across each Supreme Genius, especially Wu Yuan, Zhu Shan, Inconstance, and some others.

They have incredible strength, but they might not have spent much effort studying the Primordial Doctrine, I still have hope.

High Eldritch Wan Bao calmed his mind and began to observe the miniature Primordial Star in the void, seeking to make further progress.

On these Primordial Steps, one couldn't comprehend Laws, so it was better to focus on cultivating the Primordial Doctrine.