Nine Star Hegemon Body Art c1-2048
Page 475
Each extra step would increase the benefits. And the 333rd stair was a dividing line. After passing it, the benefits would be dozens of times greater.
It was regretful that despite knowing that, they were unable to help their disciples. This was something related to their will. They had also climbed this staircase before, so they knew just how difficult it was. It was practically impossible to block the silent invasion of your negative emotions.
Only the Celestials had it slightly better. That was because they were the favorites of the heavens. They were assisted by the Heavenly Daos, which helped to suppress their negative emotions.
But the ordinary disciples didn’t have that advantage. They had to rely on their own will to defeat their negative emotions. It was truly too difficult.
After six hours, only half of the one hundred thousand disciples managed to reach the 333rd stair. The rest had all collapsed, sleeping on the lower steps.
Furthermore, after the 333rd step, the pressure would increase. Some people had only taken one or two steps after obtaining their reward when they were unable to continue any longer.
More and more people collapsed. With each passing breath, several disciples lay down. And once they lay down, they wouldn’t get up until the trial was over.
Boom! The Netherworld Heaven Staircase trembled. Everyone looked up to see five figures had already reached the 666th stair.
“They really are monsters!” A powerless roar rang out in those disciples’ hearts.
Chapter 732 Brilliant Feather Dress
Long Chen and the others were still neck and neck. They arrived on the 666th stair together. Long Chen was breathing a bit heavily now. But he saw that Shui Guanzhi and the others didn’t seem the least bit tired.
That surprised him. They truly were worthy of being the Four Heavenly Geniuses. This kind of perseverance was admirable. Even he felt that some of his negative emotions were starting to stir, and he had to force them down.
What he didn’t know was that he was the most shocking one to the vice sect master and the monastery heads.
It had to be known that the Heavenly Daos would block ten percent of the Netherworld Heaven Staircase’s power for rank one Celestials. As for rank two Celestials, thirty percent of the power would be blocked.
But Long Chen, who wasn’t a Celestial, was still neck and neck with the rank two Celestials. That was monstrous. Even those old fellows with so much experience had their jaws drop.
The vice sect master was shocked as well, but he put on a calm expression. However, in truth, he was wondering whether he should call the sect master over. Such a fellow might be worth directly sending to the Central Plains.
“Hahaha, this thing’s not bad!” laughed Zhao Wuji as he took out a warhammer from his ball of light.
The hammer head was huge, even larger than a table, and earthen runes shone on it. The powerful pressure coming from it showed that it was a terrifying heavy weapon.
“A middle grade Enchanted weapon and one with earth element runes. Zhao Wuji really is lucky!”
Heavy weapons were already rare, and for the runes carved onto it to match Zhao Wuji’s element, it was practically tailor-made for him.
“Hahaha, the final treasure will be mine!” Zhao Wuji was filled with confidence now.
Shui Guanzhi and the others’ hearts sank. Zhao Wuji had always been a power-type fighter. Now this heavy weapon would cause his power to increase explosively.
“Hmph.” Shui Guanzhi snorted and also reached into his ball of light. But this time, his luck wasn’t so good. It was a set of armor and a metallic kind at that. It was not suited to him at all.
Furthermore, it was just a low grade Enchanted item. It wasn’t useful at all. Shui Guanzhi was dissatisfied, but he acted as if he didn’t care and put it away.
Zhong Wuyan’s luck was not bad, and she obtained a middle grade Enchanted sword. However, it wasn’t useful to her, as she possessed weapons that were more suitable to her.
Yue Qianshan received a secret tome about formations. It was useless to him, but it wouldn’t be useless to his sect.
If you were unable to use something, you could exchange it with the Dao Sect for treasures better suited to you.
Long Chen reached into his ball of light. This time, he didn’t pull it out immediately for fear of embarrassing himself again. He felt it carefully. It appeared long, and it didn’t feel bad.
When he pulled out that long thing, he couldn’t help being stunned. It was actually a belt.
The belt was new, and it had been made of black silk. It was extremely high-end and grand, and then… and then there was nothing else to say about it.
The odds for the 666th stair were as follows: one percent high grade, sixty percent middle grade, thirty-eight percent low grade, and one percent trash. To have pulled out trash twice, his luck was truly heaven-defying.
Long Chen didn’t particularly care. He directly wrapped the belt around his waist. In truth, this belt truly did match his disciple robes and made him appear more handsome.
“Trash,” sneered Shui Guanzhi. It was unknown whether he was talking about Long Chen or the belt.
“Yes, but I have no choice. If I wasn’t forced, I definitely wouldn’t accompany trash like you,” said Long Chen helplessly.
The light balls disappeared and they had no more time to fight with words. They once more began rushing onward. But now, their speed had clearly dropped.
Long Chen felt like he was wading through mud. The resistance was extremely high, and it was exhausting.
Moreover, he didn’t know whether it was actually exhausting or just a misperception. He had to constantly circulate his own strength to keep an equilibrium with the exhaustion.
Doing that required constant adjustment. He couldn’t allow himself to get nervous or panicked, let alone be invaded by his negative emotions. The true trial only started now.
While Long Chen was pushing forward, the vice sect master was lost in thought. It should be essentially impossible for a genius to pull out trash twice. It had never happened before, and it shouldn’t be a coincidence. But if it wasn’t a coincidence…
Long Chen and the others were still pushing on, but after less than a hundred stairs, they had become covered in sweat and began gasping for breath.
The exhaustion had already begun to silently invade their minds and bodies. But their wills were strong, and they ignored it. They continued rushing forward, refusing to fall behind the others.
From the start, they had matched their strength. Not one of them was willing to fall behind. That would not only prove they weren’t as good as them, but it would also cause them to lose out on their chance to fight for the final reward.
Furthermore, if they did fall behind, that would shake their confidence. Perhaps it wouldn’t cause problems elsewhere, but on the Netherworld Heaven Staircase, even the slightest disturbance would allow their negative emotions to overcome them.
Once those negative emotions appeared, it was very difficult to completely erase them. So now, they could only persevere.
In truth, the best option would have been to slow down for a while. After adjusting themselves, they could continue forward. But if one person slowed down and the others didn’t, they would just be thrown behind.
Despite knowing it would be best to change the rhythm, they couldn’t. Others would all assume that whoever slowed down had weaker endurance and was weaker.
As geniuses, none of them were willing to admit they were weaker. So if you ride a tiger, it’s hard to get off.
Long Chen also wanted to know just how tough a rank two Celestial was. He didn’t believe he couldn’t surpass them.
He was different from them. Starting from Phoenix Cry, he had relied on his strength to kill his way out. He refused to believe he couldn’t defeat some spoiled brats.
Despite being weary to the bone, Long Chen clenched his teeth and pressed on.
What he didn’t know was that rank two Cele
stials were basically natural-born cheaters. He was at a huge disadvantage. If he were also a rank two Celestial, he would have long since traveled so far that they wouldn’t even be able to see him.
The five of them were stuck advancing as fast as they could, despite being exhausted. Furthermore, they had to act so calm and easy-going in order to cast a shadow on the others’ hearts, in hopes that they would give up earlier. If one person slowed down, then they would be the loser. But then the others would also have a good reason to slow down together.
By the time they had reached the seven hundredth stair, Tang Wan-er and Meng Qi, who had been over two hundred stairs behind them previously, had already reached the 666th stair. That was because Long Chen and the others had slowed down a great deal.
“Brilliant Feather Dress!”
Tang Wan-er obtained a dress made entirely of feathers. The feathers were overflowing with colorful lights. When that dress appeared in her hand, the vice sect master couldn’t help being shocked.
That was a high grade Enchanted item. It was composed of the feathers from ninety-nine different powerful Magical Beasts and refined through a formation. Wearing that dress would greatly increase her defense.
In fact, it would be able to block the full-strength attack of a late Sea Expansion expert. It was an absolutely amazing treasure, and the feathers also contained the Magical Beasts’ bloodline power. By infusing it with Spiritual Strength, it was possible to activate the bloodline power and increase the user’s defensive strength to a whole new level.
“Sister, this is a defensive Enchanted item. It’s just what you need,” said Tang Wan-er.
“Wan-er, as a soul cultivator, I don’t face my opponents head-on. You need this more. Keep it.” Meng Qi shook her head. She could see that this feathered dress’s defensive strength was terrifying, so she wanted Tang Wan-er to keep it.
“Sister, since I said I’m giving it to you, take it. If you don’t, I’ll just throw it away.”
Meng Qi was extremely moved. She knew Tang Wan-er’s temperament was extremely direct, and she didn’t like beating around the bush. If she refused, then Tang Wan-er really would just toss it away.
She could only take the dress. Sending her Spiritual Strength into it, the dress suddenly brightened and directly appeared on her.
The multicolored feathers lit up her face, making her appear too beautiful to even touch.
“Sister, you really are beautiful. It’s too bad that that scoundrel knows how to run ahead while sticking his butt out.” Tang Wan-er looked at Long Chen’s figure. Long Chen was exhausted but still pushing on, so of course he didn’t have time to look back at how beautiful she was.
“Thank you.” Meng Qi smiled. Circulating her Spiritual Strength, the dress disappeared and a small feather appeared in her hair, looking just like an ordinary hairpiece. This was another form of the Brilliant Feather Dress, and an advantage of this soul item.
If Meng Qi was attacked, it would automatically activate to protect her. If there was no danger, it would stay in this feather form. It would use Meng Qi’s soul energy to nourish itself.
“Check your luck too!” said Tang Wan-er.
Meng Qi reached in and pulled out a white pearl. The pearl released powerful spiritual fluctuations.
“Soul Fixing Pearl?! How could her luck be this good?!” cried a monastery head. This was a high grade treasure as well!
Chapter 733 900th Stair
Technically, the chance of obtaining a high grade treasure was the same as obtaining trash. Long Chen had obtained trash twice. His luck was heaven-defying.
As for Meng Qi, she had obtained a high grade treasure twice. Her luck was also heaven-defying. It was truly a stark contrast.
As for Tang Wan-er, her luck had been average last time, but this time, she had obtained a high grade treasure which was an extremely rare soul item. How could there be such a difference?
Looking at that figure that was rushing higher, everyone had a bewildered expression. Was this simply the difference between people?
That Soul Fixing Pearl was an Enchanted item used to assist cultivation. It was a treasure that would make soul cultivators go crazy.
It was an extremely rare treasure that could increase a person’s soul energy. But it was a one-use item. Once the energy inside it was used up, it would shatter.
However, the soul energy inside it was enough to turn someone with an incredibly weak soul into an expert.
“Sister, you should take this,” said Meng Qi.
Tang Wan-er shook her head. “My Spiritual Strength might not be as strong as yours, but it’s still very strong. It would be better to leave it for Gu Yang. His Spiritual Strength is too weak, and just a defensive soul item isn’t a guarantee of protection.”
Meng Qi nodded. Although Tang Wan-er’s Spiritual Strength wasn’t as great as hers, it was still far and above average. This Soul Fixing Pearl would only increase her soul energy by a maximum of ten percent.
But if it was given to Gu Yang… then his soul would become above average amongst these elite disciples. Although he wouldn’t be able to fight others with his soul since he had no experience or talent in that regard, at least he wouldn’t be instantly killed by soul experts.
Meng Qi looked behind her at Gu Yang and the others. They were already covered in sweat.
“Gu Yang, work hard! I’ll leave this reward with you!” Meng Qi tossed the Soul Fixing Pearl directly to him.
Gu Yang gratefully caught it. He had heard all their previous words. “Don’t worry sister-in-laws, I will definitely meet your expectations!”
The laughing Meng Qi and Tang Wan-er immediately turned red. How could this fellow say such coarse words? They hastily continued on their way.
“Guo Ran, hold on. You’ll be able to get a reward soon.” Guo Ran was doing his absolute best to persevere, but he had reached his limit. His burst of energy had been completely used up. It took four Dragonblood warriors to drag him along.
Gu Yang and the others also reached the 666th stair and received their rewards. Some of those rewards were high grade, some were low grade. They couldn’t compare to Meng Qi and Tang Wan-er, but they were still extremely excited.
After obtaining their rewards, they felt even more drive to climb higher. The rewards this time were a whole level higher than last time. A high grade reward at this level was better than a high grade reward at the lower level. Then the next reward had to be beyond their imaginations.
Other than Long Chen’s group of five, there was no longer any sense of order on the Netherworld Heaven Staircase. The disciples were scattered all around.
Over twenty Celestials were led by Gu Yang, then Yue Zifeng, and then Li Qi and Song Mingyuan. When it came to perseverance, they were on a much higher level considering they had undergone the pain of their bones shattering nine times. They were over fifty stairs ahead of the other Celestials.
Behind the Celestials were the Dragonblood warriors and Guo Ran. They also began to collect their rewards.
“Guo Ran, wake up. Take out your treasure!” One of them slapped Guo Ran in the face a few times and shouted in his ear.
Guo Ran barely had the energy to reach out with his arm. Regretfully, he didn’t have Meng Qi or Tang Wan-er’s luck this time. He pulled out a sword, one that was merely a low grade Enchanted item. That was useless to him, as he would be able to forge it himself, and its power might even be greater.
He collapsed on the ground, and no matter what, he wouldn’t get up. He began to snore just like that.
“What should we do?”
“Just leave him here. Pull him to the side so no one steps on him. Boss only said that he had to get to the 333rd stair. This is already beyond expectations.” One of the squad leaders pulled him to a corner and then continued forward.
Three hundred and sixty Dragonblood warriors had all reached the 666th stair. Quite a few of them had obtained weapons that they wanted, or even cultivation techniques and secret tomes. There
were also medicinal pills and protective items, etc. They were incomparably excited.
Seeing them so excited, the monastery heads couldn’t help sighing.
The Dragonblood warriors really were easily satisfied. That was a good thing, as it raised their morale and expelled their negative emotions.
But as for the previous Celestials? The items they had pulled out had been quite a bit better than theirs, but many of them had shaken their heads and sighed, feeling like their luck was bad. Without even knowing it, that increased the pressure on them.
The Dragonblood warriors continued forward. Behind them, there were less than ten thousand disciples still fighting to go forward. The others had collapsed.
Unable to see hope, they were invaded by their negative emotions. It was truly too difficult to endure. That was especially true since many of these elite disciples didn’t even know their own reason for cultivating.
Their parents had simply told them that they had to properly cultivate. That they had to excel, to bring honor to their ancestors, to conduct themselves properly.
And so, they had begun cultivating. But many of them didn’t even know why they had to excel and why they had to bring honor to their ancestors. They had simply been forced to walk forward on this path.
Now, these geniuses had become weaklings. The better their families’ circumstances, the greater their origins and status, the easier they collapsed.
It was those who came from comparatively poorer origins who had stronger wills. This situation occurred every time the Netherworld Heaven Staircase was activated, so it was no longer a novel sight.
The Xuantian Dao Sect’s only responsibility was to give them a cultivation environment. They didn’t have the manpower or resources to properly educate each disciple in how to properly live their lives. Furthermore, their teachings would be the same: cultivate, excel amongst your peers, bring honor to your ancestors, and conduct yourself properly.
Close to half of the disciples hadn’t reached the 333rd stair. As for those that had passed, ninety percent of them didn’t reach the 666th stair.