The group—which wasn't really a group, just a collection of individuals who happened to be climbing at the same pace—passed two hundred steps without much difficulty. Since they had all started climbing late, a kind of kinship had formed between them.

  After only two hundred steps, their group encountered the first straggler. His body definitely didn't seem in the right state—he lay flat on his stomach, sprawled across the stairs, mouth foaming slightly, breath coming in ragged gasps. Lingling's eyes widened with concern, and she instinctively moved toward him.

  "Leave him be."

  A girl in regal clothes stepped forward, her tone carrying the weight of someone used to being obeyed. Xiaomeng remembered her from the base, Rong Ning, one of the noble-born children who had stayed behind. "If there was any actual risk, the sect would have taken appropriate measures."

  Hearing the words, Lingling froze mid-step.

  Xiaomeng took her hand and gently pulled her along. "What she says is probably true. He just couldn't bear the pressure and fainted. Look—his breathing is shallow, but he's alive. The sect wouldn't let anyone die in an entrance test."

  Lingling nodded slowly and continued upward, though she cast one last worried glance back at the twitching body.

  Moving ahead, they encountered several more cases like the first: children collapsed on the stairs, some unconscious, others weeping from frustration or pain. The ones who had rushed ahead without adapting to the pressure, Xiaomeng realized. Their bodies and souls had destabilized from the sudden increase. If they'd taken it slowly, paced themselves well, they might have reached further.

  After four hundred steps, the remaining children they encountered were exhausted but still struggling onward. The pressure now was dozens of times stronger than the first step, yet the ones around her climbed steadily without showing any sign of struggle. Rong Ning's expression remained cool and collected. The burly man, Tieshan, cracked his neck occasionally but showed no real strain. The fan-wielding, elegant boy, Gu Yichen, had stopped waving his fan and was actually using it to generate a small breeze for himself. Even the soft and sheltered Lingling kept pace without complaint.

  But Xiaomeng herself was starting to find it difficult!

  Spiritual roots increased affinity with spiritual energy, but they also enriched the body from birth. That much was very obvious now. Everyone around her had either a heavenly blessed single-element root or a dual-element root. All far better than her self-made three-element root, which wasn't even as good as a natural one of the same type. Their bodies had been subtly strengthened their whole lives by the energy flowing through them, and hers hadn't.

  Her breathing grew slightly ragged. Her steps became a little uneven. But she was not ready to give up yet.

  She slowly began circulating her special body refinement technique. It didn't help with cultivation at all and only strengthened the physical body a bit, which made it nearly impossible to detect even by stronger cultivators. The difference was subtle at first. Her breathing soon stabilized. Her steps found rhythm again. The pressure didn't lessen, but her body coped better.

  From somewhere behind her, she felt eyes on her back. Looking back, her eyes again met those silvery-lavender eyes. And right at that moment, she stumbled on the stairs, being rescued by Lingling from beside her. Regaining her balance, she once again looked back with a smile. Tian Yao's expression didn't change. She simply looked away from Xiaomeng and continued climbing.

  Lingling tugged Xiaomeng's sleeve. "Hey," she whispered, "did you get into conflict with her somehow?" Xiaomeng shook her head.

  "Good. Just maintain some distance from her." Lingling's voice dropped even lower. "Before you arrived, I asked around a little. She's the First Elder's personal disciple. Once we're in the sect, she'll have higher status and more influence than almost anyone."

  Xiaomeng smiled wryly at her words.

  "You!" Lingling stamped her foot and spoke in a frustrated voice.

  The sudden exclamation made everyone’s head turn. Lingling's face burned bright red as she'd spoken too loudly, and now all eyes were on her. She ducked behind Xiaomeng immediately, hiding her flushed cheeks against Xiaomeng's shoulder.

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  Before the attention could settle on Xiaomeng instead, a commotion ahead diverted everyone's focus.

  "Meng Chou! You'll pay for this!"

  A young man in ordinary clothes knelt on the stairs, his whole body trembling with rage. Ahead of him, a well-dressed youth in white robes with gold embroidery laughed contemptuously, one arm wrapped possessively around a gentle-faced girl who wouldn't meet the kneeling man's eyes.

  "Accept reality, Shen Yi." Meng Chou's voice dripped with satisfaction. "You're a cripple. Your cultivation is finished. Shen Yao's family has already agreed to our engagement. If you want to live, don't ever show your face near us again."

  He tightened his grip on the girl's hand and continued climbing, not bothering to look back—ignoring the new group entirely.

  ‘Shen Yi’ remained kneeling, staring at their retreating backs. His eyes had turned blood red, hatred burning so fiercely it was almost visible. If eyes could kill, Meng Chou would have died a hundred times in that single moment.

  Xiaomeng just observed the scene with mild disinterest. This kind of thing was a daily occurrence in the Upper Realm. Most of the time, the weaker person would die seeking opportunities, and if by some stroke of luck encountered an ancient legacy, be hunted down by the enemies of the original owner. It was just like a game of cat and mouse with the cat constantly changing.

  A loud crunching sound broke the silent atmosphere.

  All eyes turned to its source. Gu Yichen stood there, holding a small handful of nuts, chewing with evident enjoyment. He just blinked at the sudden attention.

  "What? I only have a handful. I'm definitely not sharing any."

  Rong Ning's fist shot toward his gut, but Gu Yichen twisted aside at the last moment, narrowly avoiding the blow.

  "No need to get so violent over a few nuts," he protested.

  Seeing her attack fail, Rong Ning ignored him completely and resumed climbing.

  Tieshan walked past Gu Yichen, pausing to give him a long, pitying look.

  Gu Yichen was genuinely confused. "What?"

  Tieshan said nothing, just shook his head and kept climbing, his expression somehow growing more sympathetic with each step.

  "What? Someone explain!" Gu Yichen raised his voice. "This was better than the dramas at the best theaters in my city!" But no one paid him any mind and even ignored him slightly.

  Idiot, Xiaomeng thought, ignoring him as well. Her gaze trailed behind Tian Yao, who had gotten ahead at some time.

  Soon enough, the group had already passed six hundred steps.

  More than half the children who had rushed ahead were now sprawled across the stairs at various points—exhausted and defeated, waiting for the sect to retrieve them. The pressure here was hundreds of times stronger than the pressure on the first step. Even Xiaomeng, with her body refinement technique, could feel it pressing down on her from all sides.

  But what puzzled her most was Lingling.

  The soft, sheltered girl who panicked at confrontation, who hid behind others when embarrassed, who admitted to skipping her studies, that same girl climbed steadily beside Xiaomeng without breaking a sweat. No heavy breathing. No visible special techniques. No sign of strain at all.

  Lingling caught her looking and flashed a bright, innocent smile. Xiaomeng decided not to question it. Some things were better left unexplored.

  During these six hundred steps, Xiaomeng had noticed something peculiar about the stairs. Yes, they radiated pressure that much was obvious. But they also refined the climber. Each step, when first trodden upon, seemed to work on both body and soul, strengthening them subtly. And it only worked once. She'd tested it by stepping back down a few steps, but the pressure was completely gone, as if that step had already given everything it could.

  With higher pressure came stronger refinement. The others had probably known this from the start or figured it out quickly. That was why they moved steadily, one step at a time, never rushing. Each step was an opportunity to get stronger and improve themselves.

  Xiaomeng had heard of such things in the Upper Realm, artifacts and arrays designed to temper disciples. But experiencing it herself was completely different. She could feel herself growing steadily stronger with each step, her soul more condensed, her body more resilient.

  High above, hidden within the clouds, four figures observed the scene below.

  "Well, this is interesting." The Third Elder stroked his beard, amusement coloring his voice. "Every year, the talented youngsters compete to see who can climb fastest. This year, they're moving in a group and chatting like old friends at a tea ceremony."

  The Second Elder nodded, his gaze fixed on specific figures below. "Is that so bad? Last year's batch ignored cultivation entirely and spent all their time playing politics. Their progress has suffered for it." He gestured downward. "At least this group has sense. And there are a few good seeds among them." His eyes lingered on Tieshan and Gu Yichen. One was all brute strength, the other cunning and intelligent.

  "What the Second Elder says has merit." The Third Elder conceded with a slight nod. "Still, a little competition tempers the dao heart. They need setbacks to grow." His gaze shifted meaningfully. "Especially the First Elder's disciple."

  The First Elder, a man whose age was impossible to guess, whose youth had not faded across centuries, allowed a satisfied smile to touch his lips. He watched Tian Yao climb with steady, effortless grace, untroubled by the pressure that had already broken thousands of others.

  "There is no one there who can make her face a setback." The First Elder shook his head.

  The Fourth Elder clicked his tongue. "Tch. First time I've been truly jealous of someone."

  The others laughed, the sound swallowed by wind and clouds.

  The Fourth Elder's gaze drifted across the stairs, cataloging potential disciples. He briefly noted the girl in the middle of the pack who seemed the most ordinary among the extraordinary ones.