“We have arrived at the Stairway to Heaven.” Feng Yuxiang said as they approached the massive staircase not far away from them.
“It’s quite empty here…”
Yuan had expected there to be more people in this place for some reason, but that didn’t seem to be the case, as there were only a dozen people there including an old man sitting behind a desk right beside the staircase.
“Young Master, speak with that old man whenever you’re ready to challenge the Stairway to Heaven. I will be cheering for you from inside your body since I don’t need to participate in the trials.” Feng Yuxiang said to him before transforming into a glowing orb and entering his body.
“Xiao Hua is confident that Brother Yuan will succeed.” Xiao Hua also entered his body a moment later.
Only Lan Yingying remained, as she didn’t come from the upper heavens like the other two.
“W-Where did they go?” Chu Liuxiang asked in a baffled voice, as this was her first time witnessing such a thing.
“They’re resting inside my body right now,” Yuan said.
“What? How does that even work? Can I enter your body too?” She then asked.
“They can do that because they are my servants.” Yuan smiled.
“Anyways, let’s go speak with that old man.”
The old man sitting behind the desk looked at them and said, “Are you going to challenge the Stairway to Heaven?”
“I am.” Yuan nodded.
“First time?”
“Yes.”
“Take this medallion and enter the door whenever you’re ready. However, you should be aware that not everyone can climb the first nine steps on the staircase.” The old man said.
“What do you mean?”
“Every step on the staircase before the door will emit a certain amount of pressure. If you cannot withstand the pressure, you’ll be kicked off the staircase before you can even challenge it.”
“I understand.”
Yuan then pointed at Meixiu and the others standing behind him, “They are with me. Do they also need a medallion?”
The old man raised his eyebrows and said, “Only one person can challenge the Stairway to Heaven at a time. There is no teaming up.”
“I know. I am helping them ascend.”
“You’re what?!” The old man exclaimed in a shocked voice.
He turned to look at the beautiful ladies standing behind Yuan.
Meixiu, Chu Liuxiang, Lan Yingying, and Min Li. Four people in total. Helping a single person will increase the difficulty of his trials, yet he intends on helping four people ascend? The old man has never encountered such a bold and arrogant person before!
“Are you sure about this, young man? Even if they are your partners and you love them greatly, bringing a single person with you will increase the difficulty of the trials as well as your burden significantly. In the last thousand years, not a single person has managed to ascend while bringing someone else along, and you’re doing four at once.”
Yuan smiled and said, “I am well aware of the risks and increased difficulty. However, even then, I still wish to try.”
The old man sighed after a moment of silence.
He then retrieved four more medallions, but they were in a different color.
“Give these to those that you wish to help ascend,” said the old man as he handed them to Yuan. Even if he wished to decline, he did not have the authority to refuse anyone challenging the Stairway to Heaven. The only thing he can do is try to persuade Yuan to not make any foolish decisions, which failed spectacularly.
After accepting the medallions, Yuan handed them to Meixiu and the others.
“You can start climbing the staircase whenever you’re ready.” The old man said to Yuan a moment later.
In his mind, he was already expecting Yuan to fail the challenge.
‘He’ll regret this decision once he realizes how much wasting four years could hurt one’s cultivation career. Unfortunately, there’s no medicine for regret.’ The old man sighed inwardly.
Sometime later, Yuan approached the staircase with Meixiu and the others, and the spectators there watched with interest.
“Another challenger, huh? How long do you think he’ll last inside?”
“Probably an hour at most.”
Meanwhile, Yuan and the others looked at the staircase with their heads tilted up.
A single step of the staircase was so large that it was as tall as a three-story building, and there were 9 steps in total.
“Do you need some help getting up there?” Yuan looked at Chu Liuxiang, who was only a Spirit Apprentice.
“I do.” She nodded.
“Okay, I will carry you.”
He turned to look at Meixiu next, “What about you?”
“I also need help.”
“Fortunately, I have two arms.” Yuan chuckled.
“Yingying, can you help Min Li?” He asked her.
“It’s okay, I can reach it myself.” Min Li quickly said.
“Then let’s go up.”
Yuan proceeded to hug Meixiu and Chu Liuxiang’s waist in each of his arms before flying onto the first step.
Lan Yingying also flew.
As for Min Li, she was able to jump the height with relative ease.
However, the moment Yuan entered the first step that was a few hundred meters away from the second step, he could feel an intense pressure suddenly appear, making it more difficult for him to move forward.
Although he was able to endure the pressure without any issues, he was worried about the others.
“Are you guys okay?!”
“Huh? I don’t feel anything.” Chu Liuxiang said.
“Eh? Really? You don’t feel the pressure?” Yuan looked at them with wide eyes.
They shook their heads.
“So I am the only one feeling this pressure?” He mumbled in a dumbfounded voice.
Feng Yuxiang’s voice then resounded, “Young Master, don’t forget, you’re essentially climbing the Stairway to Heaven for them, so you will be bearing everything while they don’t experience anything.”
“That makes sense…” Yuan nodded.
“Yuan, I will help them climb the staircase. You need to focus on yourself.” Lan Yingying said to him.
“Okay. Thank you.”
After putting down Meixiu and Chu Liuxiang, Yuan proceeded to make his way towards the second step that was about 200 meters away.