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nChangan.

nA luxurious horse carriage was parked before the Martial Arts King Manor. Two graceful figures walked out of the manor.

nJiang Linglong and Princess Pei Shi entered the opulent horse carriage together. Since their driver, Zhou Wuji, had been loaned to Fang Lang by Jiang Linglong, their current driver was a martial arts master of the fourth-class realm.

nThe wheels of the horse carriage began to spin as it drove along the limestone streets, sending dried leaves flying into the air. It headed towards the Royal City through the Vermillion Bird Gate.

nOnce they entered the Royal City, Jiang Linglong wore a veil as she got down from the fancy horse carriage. She held Princess Pei Shi’s arm as they both walked into the quiet and secluded rear palace.

nAfter a while, they arrived at the palace. Princess Pei Shi patted Jiang Linglong’s hand and said with a smile, “Ling’er, you should go. I’ll meet the imperial consorts. You should learn sword arts from your aunt. You haven’t mastered the Four Seasons Form yet. Little Fang has become much stronger nowadays. If you don’t work harder, you might be left behind.”

nPrincess Pei Shi had seen through Jiang Linglong’s heart with one glance. This little one entered the palace with her today not because she wanted to visit the imperial consorts in the rear palace with her mother. It was because she wanted to learn sword arts.

nJiang Linglong’s Four Seasons Form was not passed on to her by the Martial Arts King Jiang. Instead, it had been taught to her by that person in the palace.

nJiang Linglong’s star-like eyes instantly turned into crescent moons. After that, she bid farewell to Princess Pei Shi and headed towards a side hall of the royal palace.

nVery quickly, she arrived at the courtyard within the royal palace.

nOutside the courtyard, there was no eunuch, nor were there any guards. However, there was a terrifying aura emanating from the area despite no one appearing to be around.

nJiang Linglong stood quietly outside the courtyard.

n“Aunt, Ling’er seeks an audience with you,” called out Jiang Linglong quietly.

nAfter that, a force of energy that was like a gentle breeze surged and the door leading into the courtyard opened by itself.

n“Come in.”

nJiang Linglong stepped into the courtyard.

nInside the courtyard, it was like entering a different world. There was a small pond inside and the waters were an azure blue as the waves reflected the light. A corner of the pool was dotted with lotus flowers and leaves. A glimpse of a lotus root could be seen among them.

nThere were all sorts of strange birds flying in the sky above the pond. Even though it was a winter’s day, this place gave off the feeling of a cool summer’s day.

nBeside the pond, there was a bamboo house. Outside the bamboo house, two people sat across from each other. There was a teapot filled with hot water beside them. The languid aroma of tea lingered in the air.

nOne of the people there was the person who taught Jiang Linglong the Four Seasons Form. It was her aunt, Princess Pei Shi’s sister—Consort Pei. Her name was Pei Ruonan.1

nShe inherited the looks of the Pei Family, she was extremely beautiful and her figure was well proportioned. She sat in front of the bamboo house and it looked just like a scene of a painting.

nJiang Linglong was stunned when she saw Pei Ruonan. This was because a fairly slim person sat next to Pei Ruonan. The person coughed softly non-stop and occasionally covered her mouth with a handkerchief.

nJiang Linglong quickly bowed. “Fifth princess.”

nThe fifth princess’s complexion was extremely pale. She smiled and gently nodded. “Ling’er, there’s no need to be so formal.”

nPei Rounan turned to Jiang Linglong with a smile and said, “Ling’er, your mother has already told me the reason that you’ve come. The Sword Guild is pretty good. However, if Xuanyuan Taihua was still here, perhaps she could even teach you a couple of things. Today, Chao Xiaojian, that old fool is the only one left. He doesn’t understand your sword style.”

n“I’ve heard about Fang Lang, this new champion. That talented evildoer. In a short amount of time, his cultivation has surpassed yours. If you don’t wish the gap to increase between you two, you will need to work harder from now on.”

n“I’ve heard that this boy, Fang Lang, has gone to the Main Path Guild to retrieve a sword. If this boy can really retrieve the swords that Xuanyuan Taihua has left behind, his cultivation would increase beyond imagination. You’ll need to work harder, little one.”

n“Over the next few days, you should cultivate in my bamboo forest. See if you’ll be able to gain an understanding of the sword intent behind the Four Seasons Form.”

nJiang Linglong bowed and clasped her hand. “Thank you, aunt.”

n…

nThe Main Path Guild.

nOutside the Main Path Mausoleum. The Thousand Cloud Stairs.

nFang Lang used the Double Cultivation Card and a phantom of Ni Wen materialized beside him. It looked solid and possessed Ni Wen’s understanding of runes. Besides that, after it solved a rune, the understanding of runes would be passed onto Fang Lang.

nThis was the strength of the Double Cultivation Card!

nWith two people solving runes together, their speed in ascending the steps drastically increased!

nNi Wen’s understanding of runes was pretty strong. Apart from that, her specialty was spell mastery. With her help, Fang Lang was emboldened.

nAs a result, Fang Lang’s speed at ascending the Thousand Cloud Stairs increased. The disciples who had maintained the same speed at solving runes with him were now left in the dust by him.

nFang Lang was closing the distance between him and Li Yuanzhen!

nOn the stone steps, Li Yuanzhen solved a rune question. He wiped the sweat off his forehead then turned his head around. When he saw Fang Lang, who had caught up to him, his pupils constricted and goosebumps appeared all over his skin!

n‘That is impossible! How could he be so quick!?’

nAs one ascended the Thousand Cloud Stairs, the higher one got, the slower one should be. How could Fang Lang chase up to him!?

nLi Yuanzhen felt a chill spread across his body, starting from his feet. Fang Lang had nearly turned into the dark shadow hanging over his heart.

nLosing to him dramatically in the imperial exam and then suffering a similar defeat at the Resource Battle, he had planned to avenge his previous humiliations. However, he was still defeated in an instant!

nLosing to him twice was like having two heavy hammers viciously pressed upon his heart. Crushing him under, he spat out blood and felt so unbearable that he could hardly breathe. He had even begun to doubt his own natural talent.

nThis time, the opening of the Main Path Mausoleum and the Thousand Cloud Stairs.

nLi Yuanzhen knew that he would have no hope of being among the top ten who reached the summit and be able to enter the Main Path Mausoleum to be enlightened. However, he felt that Fang Lang should be unable to do so as well.

nAfter all, Fang Lang was not a cultivator who specialized in spell mastery. He merely skimmed through spell mastery. Li Yuanzhen was the one who had truly specialized in it!

nFurthermore, Li Yuanzhen thought that he would be able to suppress Fang Lang, or at the very least, not lose to him!

nHowever, as he could sense Fang Lang drawing closer and closing the distance between them, Li Yuanzhen’s calm heart had begun to tremble.

nIt was like there was a vicious tiger behind his back that drew closer step by step. Once it was close to him, it would bear open its great mouth and swallow him whole!

nLi Yuanzhen’s forehead was covered in a cold sweat. He forced himself to calm down. He continued to solve runes and ascend the Thousand Cloud Stairs. However, since his thoughts were disturbed, his speed at solving runes slowed down considerably.

nWhen Li Yuanzhen reached the 180th step, Fang Lang arrived at the 120th step.

nWhen Li Yuanzhen reached the 200th step, Fang Lang arrived at the 160th step.

nWhen Li Yuanzhen reached the 210th step, Fang Lang was at the 190th step.

nFang Lang was like a ghost, silently drawing closer!

nThe cold sweat on Li Yuanzhen’s began to increase. It was like a huge dark shadow had enveloped his heart, causing him to feel limitless dread and hopelessness. The feeling of continuously losing and the fear that was buried deep within his heart was now crawling out like a poisonous snake to roar at him!

nLi Yuanzhen began to pant heavily as he forced himself to continue solving runes.

nWhen he solved another rune and took a step up the stone step, a gentle breeze blew past, a person dressed in white robes suddenly appeared next to him without him noticing.

nLi Yuanzhen turned his head and was startled by the figure that had appeared suddenly. It was like the evil ghost in a nightmare that drew closer bit by bit, revealing its sharp claws and teeth at the final moment!

nLi Yuanzhen felt as though something had… shattered within his heart!

n“Y-you’re… you’re an evil demon!”

nLi Yuanzhen clutched his head and began to sob loudly. His tears streamed down unceasingly.

nHe could not defeat him one-on-one, nor could he beat him in a group battle. Even at his specialty, which was runes, he was still being beaten…

n‘What was the point of cultivation!?’

nLi Yuanzhen was in tears. He knelt down on the cloud stairs and sobbed loudly. He sounded like a child who had their candy stolen from them. A child who was covered in dirt, crying sorrowfully, crying bitterly.

nFang Lang looked at the sobbing Li Yuanzhen in shock. The friendly smile on his face froze.

n“What now? So I can’t even smile? I have such an infectious and warm smile, why are you crying!?”

nFang Lang stroked his face and looked around to see the gaze on many curious eyes. He awkwardly waved his hand.

nAfter that, Fang Lang continued to step ahead, solving runes and ascending up the steps, moving ahead of Li Yuanzhen.

n…

nAt the foot of the mountain, the area before the gated arc was dead silent. Everyone looked up at Li Yuanzhen, who was crouched on the mountain path crying in a daze. Their eyes were also fixed upon Fang Lang, who had squeezed into the top fifty disciples and surpassed Li Yuanzhen. In an instant, everyone’s expression turned into ones full of disbelief.

nZhao Zhenshi wore a dark expression. The elders of the Main Path Guild looked extremely solemn.

n“Li Yuanzhe… The son of the right administrator, Li Puyi. He’s naturally talented and has a peerless core. This attitude of his… is unacceptable. It’s such a shame.”

nLi Zhenshi shook his head.

nFrom Li Yuanzhen’s appearance, he could see that this spell mastery genius was crying and suffering a breakdown because Fang Lang had beaten him.

nThis performance was extremely disappointing!

nHe had hoped that Li Yuanzhen might have been able to make it into the top ten and enter the Main Path Mausoleum. In that manner, he would be able to obtain great learning. However…

nNumerous sighs could be heard from the surrounding elders. It was clear that Li Yuanzhen’s performance had caused them great disappointment.

nOn the other side, the old man, Huang Zhihe, smiled as Ni Wen was supported him. His wrinkled face creased up as he smiled.

n“Li Puyi’s son might have suffered a great blow. It’s extremely pitiful.”

n“However, the road of cultivation is such. You can’t expect cultivation to be an easy and pleasant thing. In order to reach the peak on the road of cultivation, one must step over countless corpses and bones!”

n“Just like at the beginning, Xuanyuan Taihua travelled alone. She was peerless and many geniuses of that generation underwent breakdowns after they were beaten by her. However, true geniuses would possess extremely powerful resilience. Even if they lost, they would not give up and would be motivated to push harder in order to strive ahead. Even if they could only vaguely catch a hint of a shadow, they would never give up.”

n“That’s what a true genius is like.”

n“If you collapse because you’ve suffered a loss, that’s not being a genius. That’s merely an ordinary person who has a little talent,” said Huang Zhihe.

n“The world of cultivation belongs to the geniuses. Ordinary folks… can’t make it far.”

nHuang Zhihe looked towards Ni Wen. His deep eyes seemed a little sorry.

n“Little one, you must feel that the gap between your ability and Fang Lang’s has grown, right? However, I admire you because you’ve never given up. Even if you suffer greater setbacks, you will continue to chase behind him quietly.”

n“Just like me back then.”

n“Little one, are you studying swordcraft? I’ve studied this in the past. You should cultivate with me from now on. I’ll do my best to help you chase up to Fang Lang.”

nWhen Ni Wen heard his words, an expression of disbelieving joy appeared on her features.

nHuang Zhihe stroked his beard. The wrinkles on his face that were like withered roots bunched up as he said with a smile, “Chao Xiaojian is an impertinant fool. He doesn’t know two cents about swordcraft.”

n“Thank you so much, Senior Huang.” Ni Wen rushed to bow and thank him.

nZhao Wuji could not help but cover his mouth with his hand and cough non-stop.

n“Cough… How can you still call him senior… ahem…”

nWhen Ni Wen heard his words, she was stunned. In the next moment, she turned to Huang Zhihe and did a ninety degrees bow.

n“Thank you, Master.”

nThis lady was intelligent and acute!

nHuang Zhihe began to chuckle happily.

nIn the distance, Zhao Zhenshi’s expression was cold. “What is he laughing about? Fang Lang has just made it into the top 50 disciples.”

n“If he wishes to enter the Main Path Mausoleum to retrieve the Reincarnating Lotus Sword, this type of level is grossly insufficient.”

n“If he does not make it to the top ten, he won’t meet the requirements to retrieve the sword.”

nHuang Zhihe swept a glance towards Zhao Zhenshi. “Little Zhao, Fang Lang is a realistic person. Watch him and see for yourself.”

n“Hmpt! For the Thousand Cloud Stairs, the first five-hundred steps test the ability to solve runes. The next 500 steps are a test of runes that attack the spiritual sense. The latter 500 steps are much more difficult and will slowly increase the distance,” snarled one of the Main Path Guild elders coldly.

nThe surrounding atmosphere went quiet. No one spoke. Everyone merely raised their heads and stared intently at the Thousand Cloud Stairs, watching the many blue-robed figures climbing the stairs non-stop, along with the single dot of white.

n…

nThe 500th step was a pit.

nThe first 500 steps tested the ability to solve runes. The next 500 steps were completely different.

nAs Fang Lang stepped onto the five 500th step, the phantom of Ni Wen that had materialized beside him because of the Double Cultivation Card suddenly disappeared.

nAfter that, all the concepts and knowledge regarding runes flooded into his brain. This was the strength of the Double Cultivation Card. The Thousand Cloud Stairs had managed to help Fang Lang boost the areas on spell mastery and runes that he had lacked in.

nWhen Fang Lang stepped onto the 500th step, the scene before his eyes abruptly changed.

nThe rune patterns on the mossy steps seemed to come alive and turn into a complete rune. A ripple of spiritual sense seemed to transform the surrounding environment into a crazy, vicious sea composed of 1,000 needles and 10,000 leaves!

nFang Lang stood on the stone step. As the winds rose, his white robes billowed widely in the wind.

nThe runes that had been activated radiated with terrifying offensive power, like it was about to unleash terrible destruction on Fang Lang’s body and mind!

nThis was the difficulty of the latter 500 steps, the difficulty that would continue to rise!

nThe runes were no longer meant to be solved by the people climbing the stairs. The runes have come alive to perform spiritual sense attacks and affect the surrounding environment. This change would naturally cause a spiritual attack on the disciples that were ascending the stairs!

nFang Lang stopped in his tracks. He paused on top of the 500th step.

nBefore Fang Lang’s eyes, a sharp wind saber was formed out of spiritual sense, which was now aimed at his head.

nFang Lang’s scalp tensed up at the sight of it. However, a moment later, his eyes lit up.

n‘This was a fight!?’

nThe first 500 steps were a test to uncover the missing part of the runes. Fang Lang was not gifted in this area.

nHowever, the next 500 steps were a test of fighting ability!

nFang Lang was particularly gifted in this area!

nFang Lang’s spiritual sense came from absorbing the broken pieces of the Tang Code’s Blood Arrow. It contained the powerful, tenacious oppressive and offensive power of the Tang Code!

nThe moment to turn the tables might begin from the 500th step!

nBoom!

nA powerful gust of wind blew past and transformed into a saber that swung towards Fang Lang’s head.

nThe spiritual sense in Fang Lang’s head that was condensed into Tears of God in his consciousness froze. After that, Fang Lang raised his hand and a bow appeared.

nA bow that was created from spiritual sense!

nHe squeezed his fingers and drew his bow!

nArrows formed from spiritual sense shot out into the sky!

nThe arrows sped out at high speeds, looking like a roaring enraged blood-colored dragon!

nBang!

nThe wind saber shattered into pieces before Fang Lang. It represented the appearance of the 500th step’s rune. Crack! It shattered like a mirror!

nFang Lang’s white robes billowed as he stepped onto the next step, holding his bow.

n…

nAfter 500 steps, the number of Main Path disciples who could continue ascending the steps had become few in number, so few that they could be counted on one hand.

nAn Fan had reached the 899th step. He placed his hands behind his back as his azure blue robes fluttered. He looked extremely cool.

nEven though he had lost to Fang Lang in the group battle, it did not hugely impact him. After all, he was like a demon king. A Sword Guild disciple like Fang Lang was merely a soldier who had defeated the demon king with his teammates.

nHe did not fear defeat. He would maintain a lofty, arrogant demeanor even in the face of a loss!

nThe rune condensed into a form. It seemed like there was a hurricane stirring before his eyes. An Fan’s spiritual sense stirred within him and the rune instantly changed form, turning into a brick wall right before his eyes. In the face of the hurricane, the wall did not crumble. Hence, An Fan was shielded from it.

nThe 900th step!

nAn Fan’s lips were upturned. Now… where was Fang Lang right now? Had he arrived at the 500th step?

nConfident of his victory as he stood on the 900th step, An Fan turned his head back to look at the stone steps below the clouds. He wore a smile on his face when he saw Fang Lang on the 500th step who had his eyes closed.

n“Oh… He’s reached the 500th step. That’s befitting of the new champion of this year’s Imperial Examination. His performance in a field that isn’t his specialty is still extremely impressive.”

n“However… that’s all he’s managed so far.”

nAt that moment, Fang Lang had only arrived at the 500th step. It would be practically impossible for him to chase up to become among the top ten.

nThis was because the difficulty of the runes on the next 500 steps would rise drastically. It would be extremely draining on one’s spiritual sense. If one was not strong enough, they would be completely crushed into oblivion by the runes!

nAll of a sudden, An Fan saw Fang Lang move. After that, the smile on his face began to disappear bit by bit.

nThis was because he saw Fang Lang conjure a bow on the cloud stairs. In a single breath’s time, he managed to crack the rune on the 502nd rune.

nFang Lang’s movement became faster and faster. He had been walking up the steps before. However, he was now running up the cloud stairs with his white robes billowing around him!

nAs he ran, he did not stop shooting arrows!

nA single arrow destroyed a rune; he managed to advance to the next step with a single arrow!

nHe seemed to cut through the runes like a hot knife through butter, skyrocketing up the steps like a white dragon!

n1 裴若男 Pei Ruonan, the literal meaning of Ruonan is ‘like a man’, which might be a cheeky choice of words by the author for Jiang Linglong’s aunt who fights with a sword.

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