Chapter 274

Words : 2633 Updated : Sep 29th, 2025

Chapter 274Upon hearing Lu Qing’s words, everyone looked up toward the heavenly ladder. At the top, Bai Bufan and the others had completely changed from their previously composed and carefree demeanor. Their faces were flushed red, they were panting heavily, and they stood on the steps with their hands on their knees, drenched in sweat. It was clear that they had almost reached their limits. However, a difference in elevation finally appeared on the steps where they stood. Bai Bufan and Situ Jin were standing together at the highest point. The others were slightly behind them, but the gap was only three or four steps. At the very back was Qin Yunting from the Xuanxin Sect. As Lin Zhirui had predicted, Qin Yunting, who excelled in light and agile martial arts, was struggling with the heavenly ladder. "Bai Bufan and Situ Jin are now on the 165th step!" Wei Zian quickly counted and exclaimed. "It looks like they’ve reached their limits. Indeed, their potential doesn’t match yours, Lord Zhirui," Mago remarked in amazement. This method of measuring potential by climbing the heavenly ladder seemed quite reliable... "Brother Bai, do you still have the strength to go higher?" Situ Jin asked Bai Bufan from the ladder, sweat dripping down his face. The trembling of his muscles indicated that his Vajra Body Technique had reached its limit. "That depends on whether Brother Situ still has any strength left," Bai Bufan replied, his expression equally strained. His usually pale face was now flushed, and his eyes were bloodshot. It was clear that he had also reached his limit. Despite this, he refused to show any weakness in front of Situ Jin. "I do have a little strength left. If I force it, I can climb one or two more steps," Situ Jin’s words caused Bai Bufan’s face to change slightly. Because he truly had no strength left to climb any higher. But then, Situ Jin said something that surprised him. "What if we call this match a draw?" "You’re willing to settle for a draw?" Bai Bufan was stunned, looking at Situ Jin in disbelief. For years, Situ Jin had competed with him at every turn, always standing in opposition. Now, with the opportunity to win in front of everyone, he was willing to give it up? "Indeed, I can use the Vajra Body Technique to force my way up one or two more steps. But if I do, I will certainly suffer a backlash from the pressure of the heavenly ladder, which would damage my physical foundation and delay my breakthrough to the Precelestial Realm. We’ve already fallen behind those two. I don’t want to widen the gap between us over a momentary dispute." Bai Bufan fell silent. He naturally knew who Situ Jin was referring to. In the past, among the Ten Heroes of Zhongzhou, he hadn’t paid much attention to those two. After all, one was from the Tianji Sect, known for their skill in divination, which likely meant their strength was a notch below his. The other was even less impressive, being the disciple of a declining sect with limited resources and slower progress. Thus, his focus had always been on Situ Jin and others with similar backgrounds to his own. Who would have thought that while they were competing with each other, the first to break through would be those who seemed the least likely? Thinking of this, Bai Bufan suddenly felt a wave of disinterest. "You’re right. Risking our martial paths over a petty rivalry is indeed not worth it. Our focus should be on breaking through to the Precelestial Realm as soon as possible, not on these minor contests. Brother Situ, this time, you win." Bai Bufan said sincerely. seaʀᴄh thё ηovёlFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Situ Jin was taken aback, just as Bai Bufan was about to concede defeat. Suddenly, a light chuckle came from above. "So these are the so-called Ten Heroes of Zhongzhou? You’re already this exhausted just from climbing a ladder. As my master said, the foundation of martial artists from the outside world is generally weak. They may look impressive on the outside, but they are rotten inside." The voice wasn’t loud, but it carried for miles, making it clearly audible to everyone nearby. The mocking tone immediately caused an uproar. "Who is that, speaking so arrogantly?" "To dare mock the Ten Heroes of Zhongzhou to their faces, who could it be?" "Looks like there’s more excitement to come!" People began looking in the direction the voice came from. In the next moment, everyone’s mouths fell open. They saw seven or eight giant birds hovering in the sky, each carrying a person on its back. The wings of the giant birds were over ten meters long, and with each flap, they generated a tremendous gust of wind. Bai Bufan and the others were initially furious at the mocking tone of the voice. But when they saw this scene, they were equally stunned, unable to muster any anger. As for Lu Qing and the others, they were even more awestruck. Coming from remote areas, they had never seen such a sight. They stared wide-eyed, full of wonder. "It’s them!" Lin Zhirui’s expression changed dramatically, and he exclaimed in surprise. "Lord Zhirui, do you know them?" Lu Qing asked curiously. "I don’t know them, but I recognize their origin," Lin Zhirui said, staring intently at the sky. "Wearing robes with Yunshui patterns and able to ride divine birds, they are people from the Yunshui Secret Realm, one of the Four Great Secret Realms!" "The Four Great Secret Realms?" Lu Qing’s heart stirred. He remembered that when he fought with Yan Canghai’s direct disciple, the other had also initially thought he was a disciple from one of the Secret Realms. Later, he had paid attention to this information. The result was that the Four Great Secret Realms were four extremely mysterious places. No one knew where they were located. But whenever disciples from these Secret Realms appeared in the world, they always caused a great stir. It was said that even the establishment of the Sacred Mountain had only been possible with the tacit approval and support of the Four Great Secret Realms, which was why it was recognized by all the major sects in the world. In short, these were four very mysterious and powerful forces. Who would have thought they would suddenly appear here? Curious, Lu Qing immediately activated his ability and looked up at the sky. "With such a formation and attire, are they really from the Yunshui Secret Realm?!" In the high places of the Sacred City, those with powerful auras were also shaken by the scene in the sky. "There’s no mistake. That Yunshui pattern is the symbol of the Yunshui Secret Realm." "The world is changing, and spiritual energy is reviving. Finally, even the Four Great Secret Realms can’t sit still anymore?" "The people of the Yunshui Secret Realm have arrived. The others from the Three Great Secret Realms are probably not far behind." "Should we go up to greet them?" "Let’s not be hasty. We should see how things develop first. Besides, even if we do need to greet them, it’s not our place." … While these powerful figures were discussing, a young man in luxurious clothing riding one of the giant birds suddenly spoke to Bai Bufan and the others on the heavenly ladder: "What’s this? From your expressions, it seems you’re still unhappy with my earlier remarks?" Everyone could tell that the voice that had mocked them earlier belonged to this young man. "Sir, you must be joking. We bear no resentment," Bai Bufan and the others, though unable to identify the newcomers, knew that anyone who could tame such divine birds must belong to a powerful force. Based on what they had heard from their sect elders, they could roughly guess. These people were likely from the legendary Secret Realms. How could they still harbor any anger? "Really? But your expressions just now seemed very dissatisfied." The young man in luxurious clothing chuckled. "Well, if you don’t understand, I might as well show you what it means to always have someone better." With that, the young man tugged on the reins in his hand, and the giant bird under him let out a loud cry. With a flap of its wings, it created a strong gust of wind and swooped down the mountain. Its fierce momentum frightened the martial artists gathered at the foot of the mountain, causing them to cry out in fear and retreat to both sides, afraid of being crushed by the giant bird’s wings. Fortunately, the young man in luxurious clothing had no intention of harming anyone. As the giant bird approached the ground, he leaped off and landed on the heavenly ladder. The giant bird then flapped its wings vigorously, creating a whirlwind as it soared back into the sky. As for the young man, he didn’t stop at all after landing on the ladder. With a single step, he leaped into the air like an arrow shot from a bow, soaring upward. When he landed on the jade steps again, the crowd below couldn’t help but gasp in amazement. Because with that leap, he had crossed more than twenty steps, covering a distance of over seven or eight zhang. This was nearly twice the height of Bai Bufan’s initial leap! But that wasn’t all. After landing on the jade steps, the young man didn’t pause for even a moment. With a light step, he leaped upward again. It was as if the pressure of the heavenly ladder didn’t exist for him at all. On his second jump, although the young man didn’t reach the same height as the first, he still rose six or seven zhang. When he landed on the jade steps again, he took another step , and his body soared upward once more. Like a nimble monkey climbing a steep cliff, the young man continued to leap and climb rapidly on the heavenly ladder. In no time, he reached the position where Bai Bufan and the others were standing. The young man didn’t even stop, merely giving them a disdainful smile before brushing past them and continuing upward. But Bai Bufan and the others had no time to be angry. They were too shocked as they watched the young man effortlessly surpass them and continue upward. The crowd at the foot of the mountain was also silent. They were all stunned as they watched the young man ascend, even though his speed had slowed considerably from the start, it was still remarkably fast. One hundred seventy, one hundred eighty, one hundred ninety... Even after surpassing Bai Bufan and the others, the young man continued to leap several steps at a time. Everyone watched as he steadily approached the legendary heights. Finally, when the young man’s body landed firmly on the 200th step, still as stable as ever and with a calm expression, the crowd below erupted. "Two hundred steps! He actually reached the 200th step!" "Isn’t it said that Postnatal Realm martial artists can only reach the 199th step at most? Beyond that is the domain of the Precelestial Realm. Could it be that this person is a Precelestial Realm expert?" "Impossible! I didn’t sense the unique aura of the Precelestial Realm from him." "The record for a Postnatal Realm martial artist climbing the heavenly ladder was set over a thousand years ago by ‘Emperor Yu’. Who would have thought someone would break it today!" "Who is this person, to be even more talented than ‘Emperor Yu’ from a thousand years ago?" … In a high place in the Sacred City, those powerful figures were also shocked. "He actually reached the 200th step. Is that young man still in the Postnatal Realm?" "Of course. Otherwise, with such a boastful attitude, mocking Bai Bufan and the others, if he were in the Precelestial Realm, it would be like bullying the weak and making a fool of himself." "No wonder he’s a disciple of a Secret Realm. The pressure at the 200th step is enough to make even a newly advanced Precelestial Realm expert struggle, yet this young man climbed it with ease. Judging by his appearance, it seems he can still go much higher. Could it be that he can fight against a Precelestial Realm expert while still in the Postnatal Realm?" "Fighting a Precelestial Realm expert while still in the Postnatal Realm isn’t that surprising. People from the Four Great Secret Realms have done it before." "The inheritance of the Secret Realms is indeed different from ours. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have been able to control this world from the shadows for so long." "In the past, even when disciples of the Secret Realms came out to train, there were only one or two at most. But this time, so many people from the Yunshui Secret Realm have come out, and they’re being so high-profile. It seems the world is truly about to change." … "He climbed to the 200th step so easily." On the other side, Lin Zhirui was also stunned as he watched the figure on the heavenly ladder. As someone who had climbed the heavenly ladder more than once, he knew how strong the pressure was on the ladder. Especially after the 150th step, the pressure almost reached the limit for a Martial Grandmaster. Even for him, it had been a slow, painstaking climb to finally reach the 171st step. He had never imagined that a Postnatal Realm martial artist could so easily climb the heavenly ladder and reach the 200th step. That’s right, although Lin Zhirui couldn’t sense the young man’s aura from such a distance, he was sure that the young man was indeed a Postnatal Realm martial artist. The disciples of the Yunshui Secret Realm were known for their arrogance. They would never stoop to bullying the weak. But it was precisely because he understood this that the shock in Lin Zhirui’s heart was even greater. "Lord Zhirui, it seems your information was incorrect. There are still Postnatal Realm martial artists who can reach the 200th step. No wonder they’re from the legendary Secret Realms. Even a random person from there is so formidable," Lu Qing said with admiration. "Lu Qing, why are you still so calm?" Lin Zhirui suddenly asked, noticing Lu Qing’s expression. "Hmm?" Lu Qing looked at him in confusion. "Seeing such a huge gap, don’t you feel even a little despair?" Lin Zhirui asked. "A huge gap? Are you referring to this expert from the Yunshui Secret Realm?" Lu Qing saw the confusion on Lin Zhirui’s face and suddenly understood his question, smiling gently. "Lord Zhirui, people have different talents and fortunes. In the path of cultivation, there are naturally those who are better or worse, those who are faster or slower. But having embarked on this path, we can’t just give up on cultivation because our talents are inferior to others, right? Since that’s the case, why should we trouble ourselves by constantly comparing ourselves to others? As cultivators, we only need to compare ourselves with ourselves. As long as today’s self is stronger than yesterday’s self, it means our cultivation efforts haven’t been in vain. With perseverance, even if we can’t catch up with those peerless geniuses for a while, I believe that one day, we will also encounter our own opportunities. As it is said, ‘The movement of heaven is full of power. Thus, the superior man makes himself strong and untiring.’ Don’t you think so, Lord Zhirui?" After hearing Lu Qing’s words, Lin Zhirui was suddenly struck with a deep realization. Table of content

Chapter 274

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