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Chapter One Hundred Fourteen: Azure Stone Slab, Skyway
The world is vast and full of wonders. From a distance, Ye Huan's gaze remained fixed on the two individuals before him. Despite being only a couple of steps apart, once he got a clear look at their appearances, he was immediately struck with awe.
One had skin like water, with sharp facial features and piercing eyes, while the other had bright eyes and a radiant smile, exuding a hint of softness. Even when compared to Ye Huan, their looks were impressive.
"One's surroundings nurture one's appearance. Judging by their looks, this place doesn't seem desolate at all."
As his peripheral vision caught the distant swirling sands, Ye Huan's mind was filled with questions. After a moment of hesitation, he tentatively addressed the two in front of him, "Excuse me, may I ask where this place is?"
"Eastern State Daliang!"
The one with sharp features replied in a deep voice, his curious gaze scanning Ye Huan as if wondering why he was there. Unbeknownst to them, upon hearing this response, Ye Huan's heart was already in turmoil.
Eastern State Daliang!
What Great Liang was aside, Eastern State was clearly a reference to another continent. Although he had mentally prepared himself for this possibility, hearing it confirmed by someone else made the reality feel different.
After contemplating for a while and retracting his M4A1 assault rifle, Ye Huan took a deep breath and politely introduced himself. "I am Ye Huan from the Nine Provinces Continent. May I know your names?"
"From the Nine Provinces?" The astonishment on the faces of the two Taoists was no less than Ye Huan's initial shock; their eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets.
It was no wonder that Ye Huan was unaware, while the two Taoists were fully aware of the invisible Barrier along the coast of the Nine Provinces Continent and the Eastern Continent, which could not be crossed by anyone lacking great strength.
After circling around Ye Huan twice, the sharply featured man finally set aside his many questions and responded to Ye Huan, "My name is Mu Ziling, but you can call me Mu Zi. As for that effeminate one, he is my senior brother, Qian Erlang."
"Mu Zi, are you trying to get yourself killed?" With a swift motion, Qian Erlang struck Mu Ziling hard on the head before turning to Ye Huan with a smile and adding, "We are both Cultivators from Daliang Yuxu Palace. Ye Huan, would you be willing to come back with us?"
Yuxu Palace? What kind of place was that? Why did these two Taoists want to take him to Yuxu Palace?
Hearing Qian Erlang's words, Ye Huan hesitated for a moment. However, considering his unfamiliarity with the surroundings and the Nine Provinces, he nodded heavily. He wanted to see if he could extract some information from Mu Ziling and Qian Erlang during their journey to Yuxu Palace.
Surprisingly, even though this area was filled with swirling sands and normal people would hardly choose to speak, through Ye Huan's efforts, he learned quite a bit of important information. For instance, Yuxu Palace was similar to the prominent families found in the Nine Provinces Continent; it was one of the well-known sects from Great Liang in the Nine Provinces.
Moreover, and perhaps more importantly, everyone on this continent was a Cultivator, akin to what was referred to as Cultivators in the Nine Provinces Continent. They were classified into eleven realms based on their strength: Foundation Establishment, Cultivation, Excitement, Fasting, Golden Core, Nascent Soul, Exit the Body, Separation of Spirit, Combination, Transcend Tribulation, and Great Ascension.
The Foundation Establishment Stage was also known as the entry-level stage; its strength was even inferior to that of a First-Level Warrior in the Nine Provinces Continent. However, once one entered the Cultivation Stage, they could wield various magical treasures and Flying Swords. Their power could almost rival that of Ye Huan as a Fifth-Level Summoner, especially with living examples right beside him.
Mu Ziling was a Cultivator at the Cultivation Stage. Although he lacked any Flying Swords or magical treasures to enhance his strength, he relied solely on his skill called Shrink the Earth to an Inch. He could achieve speeds comparable to a Military Hummer at full throttle. It was evident that as one's realm increased, so did their strength. If one successfully Transcended Tribulation afterward, they might even ascend to immortality.
"Practicing cultivation—this is just a quick way to enhance one's strength!"
Thinking back to Lingxiao wielding the Crimson Beauty Sword and slaying twenty-five high-level warriors, strength had become something Ye Huan valued above all else. He even contemplated whether returning with Mu Ziling to Yuxu Palace might allow him to learn some skills under a master.
Under Ye Huan's wandering thoughts, time passed quickly. After about an hour, an imposing mountain peak appeared before him. Looking up from the foot of the mountain, he saw that the Azure Stone Slabs stretched endlessly, forming a series of steps that seemed to lead to the heavens.
"This is the foot of Yuxu Peak. If you want to climb up to Yuxiao Palace, you must go on foot," Mu Ziling said as she took the lead, followed closely by Qian Erlang.
Gritting his teeth, Ye Huan also began to walk, step by step along the Azure Stone Slabs toward the summit. Since he had already arrived at the foot of Yuxu Palace, he decided to seize the opportunity to ask a question that had been bothering him. "Mu Zi, can I ask why you brought me to Yuxu Palace?"
"Haha, there is a Barrier in the center of the Nine Provinces Continent and Eastern Continent. Even a Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator would find it difficult to cross. So I deduced that since you can appear in the Eastern Continent, you must be a genius!" Mu Ziling replied with a smile before continuing up the mountain without looking back. Ye Huan was momentarily stunned by her words and thought to himself, 'I was considered a genius during the talent test at Ye Family; could it be that I can also become a genius in cultivation?'
Of course, such thoughts were only safe in his mind. There was no way he could say them out loud; after all, up until now, Ye Huan still had no idea how so-called Cultivators practiced their cultivation.
As he pondered this, he kept walking. After covering quite a distance, he was already panting from exhaustion. To his astonishment, when he looked up again, it seemed like the Azure Stone Slab path had no end in sight.
"Hey Mu Zi, just how many Azure Stone Slabs are there on this road to Yuxu Peak?"
Feeling as if he might collapse onto the ground any moment now after crossing several more Azure Stone Slabs, Ye Huan directed his gaze toward the peak of Yuxu Palace and asked.
Without turning around, Mu Ziling and Qian Erlang appeared completely unfazed by fatigue. Qian Erlang responded to Ye Huan, "Not many; there are only ninety-nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine slabs."
"What?!"
Looking back, Ye Huan estimated that he had climbed about three or four hundred Azure Stone Slabs. He stared intently at the Azure Stone Slabs in front of him, calculating. Given the thickness of each slab, approximately thirty centimeters, there were about ninety-nine thousand nine hundred ninety-nine slabs. Yuxu Peak must be at least thirty to forty thousand meters high. After all, even in the Twenty-First Century, the highest peak of the Himalayas was only a little over eight thousand meters!
‘If I really make it up there, will I suffer from altitude sickness?’
This thought flashed through Ye Huan's mind, and he regretted agreeing to come to Yuxu Palace with Qian Erlang and Mu Ziling earlier. With a sigh, he could only continue climbing.
Throughout the day, from dusk until the next morning, and from sunset to twilight, Ye Huan's life revolved around the Azure Stone Slabs. As for Mu Ziling and Qian Erlang, those two scoundrels had complained about Ye Huan's slow pace and had gone ahead, leaving him alone halfway up the mountain!
“I need strength… I really need strength…”
After a day and night of climbing, Ye Huan could clearly feel the onset of altitude sickness. He had to find some goals for himself; otherwise, he might never reach the summit of this mountain!
He persisted through another day of climbing. His feet were blistered from constantly stepping on the Azure Stone Slabs, and his complexion was pale from lack of oxygen. Yet Ye Huan dared not stop. The higher he climbed toward the sky, the colder it became. At night, every gust of cold wind made him shiver uncontrollably. His strong physique felt so insignificant against nature's height…
At the peak of the mountain, an old man with eyes like twinkling stars observed everything clearly. He nodded in approval before turning to Qian Erlang and Mu Ziling behind him and asked, “Erliang, Mu Zi, did you encounter this person near the West Coast?”
“Master Ancestor,” Mu Ziling responded quickly. “According to our master's instructions, we were originally heading to the West Coast to collect materials for refining Flying Swords when we came across this man who claimed to be from the Nine Provinces Continent.”
Mu Ziling spoke first, earning a series of eye rolls from Qian Erlang.
Waving his hand to signal that Mu Ziling and Qian Erlang could leave, the old man turned his gaze back downwards, sharp as an eagle!
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