Chapter 7 Impressing the Great Xia Sword Sect

Chapter 7 Impressing the Great Xia Sword Sect

As Li Guanqi ascended the first step, he immediately captured the attention of many onlookers. They saw the young man, carrying a large box, confidently stepped onto the staircase without hesitation. The black cloth strip over the his eyes naturally drew everyones gaze.

The sect overseer, who had previously been lost in his thoughts, suddenly popped his eyes wide open, locking them onto the ascending figure. According to the his judgment, that stone box the young man was carrying must have weighed a solid two hundred pounds, at least!

Yet, the young man maintained a consistently steady breath from start to finish, displaying no signs of effort. A glint flashed in the overseers eyes as he muttered, With a physique like that hes likely already reached the realm of body refinement.

Whoosh!

A faint sound of something breaking the air reached the young mans ears, prompting him to instantly exert force under his feet, shifting his position by a foot.

Hmm?

Standing on the steps, Li Guanqi turned to face the stewards direction and respectfully inquired, Uh what was the senior trying to do just now?

Observing the young mans nimble movements, the overseers smile deepened.

No need to worry, youngster. That was just the timing talisman activating.

Li Guanqi scratched his head in embarrassment, now understanding that this was simply part of the test. The overseers finger traced a path, causing a yellow talisman to circle around Li Guanqi before finally sticking to his chest. With a smile, the he said, Go ahead, make the most of your time. The earlier you ascend, the better.

Li Guanqis lips curled into a slight smile, and he quickly clasped his fists in a respectful gesture, replying, Thank you, senior. Ill head up now.

The overseer was about to say something more, but he watched as the young man took a deep breath, exerted force beneath his feet, and shot upward like a cheetah!

Gasp such an amazing physique! I was assuming hed at least take off that box hes carrying on his back.

Along the way, numerous figures flashed past Li Guanqi, trailing behind him. Li Guanqi glanced down at the gradually dissipating talisman on his chest, estimating the time it would last.

Two hours These seemingly endless heavenly stairs must have at least a few thousand steps. This isnt going to be as easy as Id thought.

He had already spent nearly three hours walking halfway up the mountainside from its base.

Looking down, Li Guanqi saw that the sect had attracted a colossal crowd. A rough estimate suggested there were at least thirty to forty thousand people at the foot of the Great Xia Sword Sects mountain. Of that number, there were nearly ten thousand boys and girls aged twelve to fourteen. The rest were family members and servants, and it turned out that reality wasnt as simple as they had imagined.

Is he crazy? Whats he trying to do? Theres a cliff down there!

This audacious act immediately provoked shocked exclamations from onlookers.

Thud, thud!

Li Guanqi landed on the handrail with a swift, crouching motion, racing upward like a hunting leopard. However, even though his actions had left the crowd stunned, none dared to follow suit. After all, none of them had a death wish!

If someone slipped, it would be a bone-shattering plunge, and there was no hope that sects disciples would swoop in to save the day. Yet, Li Guanqi wasnt the only fearless soul in the group. The blocked staircase still had hundreds of steps to go, and others, equally daring, had reached the pinnacle of their patience.

Among this bunch were many privileged scions, who had rigorously honed their bodies since childhood and had also entered the body refinement stage. Some of them flexed their powerful arm muscles to hoist themselves up the side wall of the staircase, imitating apes and swiftly bypassing the crowd. Other individuals shamelessly stepped on others shoulders to bulldoze through the crowded crowd. With various maneuvers and strategies, everyone was in a frenzied race towards the summit.

Phew huff

Li Guanqi had tackled over two thousand steps by now, and his pace had visibly slowed down. Every step he took seemed to unleash beads of sweat the size of beans, creating a little waterfall on the white jade steps.

The cloth strip bearing the sword coffin on his shoulder had etched two long, gruesome bloodstains.

Yet, Li Guanqi clung stubbornly to the sword coffin, steadfastly following his grandfathers instructions. Sweat raced young mans face, and at this point, only a meager handful of folks could even attempt to keep up with him.

These select few had also crafted their own ways to maneuver through the crowd. The person who had relied on the wind talisman had already taken a break around the fifteen-hundredth step. As Li Guanqi, huffing and puffing, finally reached the last step, the spiritual talisman on his chest extinguished itself. Bent over, hands on his knees, Li Guanqi gasped for air.

At that moment, a burly young man approached him, patting his shoulder with a smile. Impressive, buddy. Your physique is seriously impressive!

Li Guanqi turned to the dark-skinned young man and chuckled. Youre too kind, brother. Youre no slouch yourself.

The young man guffawed heartily and scratched his head.

Ive been trying to keep up with you the whole way, and when you leapt through the crowd from that handrail, I was sweating buckets. Youve got some real guts!

Oh, by the way, lets get acquainted. Im Lin Dong.

As Li Guanqi looked at the hand extended by the young man, he hesitated for a moment before reaching out his hand and softly saying, Nice to meet you, Lin Dong.