The Jingxu Secret Realm, four majestic peaks stood tall.
Xu Mu opened his eyes and returned to this familiar place.
"Everyone, congratulations on passing the second round of assessment and becoming one in eighty thousand of our selection area."
A hoary voice echoed. Xu Mu and the others looked up at the sky, only to find four ancient phantoms had appeared there at some point.
"Those are the old ancestors of the four great families: Wang, Ye, Jiang, and Qi. The one speaking is the old ancestor of the Wang family," Qian Qian said from the side.
Xu Mu nodded, indicating he understood.
Old Ancestor Wang: "Next, you will have the time it takes for one stick of incense to be allowed to communicate with the outside world. After one stick of incense, I will announce the rules for the third round of the competition and simultaneously commence the third round of assessment."
As the Old Ancestor Wang spoke, he waved his hand. The vortex in the sky immediately expanded several times. The scene before everyone's eyes opened wide, allowing them to see the real world.
There, on a green grassy plain, stood many bewildered psychics, most of whom were contestants who had already been eliminated.
"Xiao Huo, well done! You actually advanced! You haven't disgraced our Yunwu Sect!"
"I'm sorry, Master. I failed to protect my junior sister. She was bitten to death by a demonic beast. It's all my fault..."
"Your ranking in this round is only in the middle. You won't have an advantage in the next round. Let me analyze your tactics."
With time limited, people inside and outside the Jingxu Secret Realm were all communicating intently across the distance. They were saying all sorts of things, the voices a jumbled mess that was quite annoying.
"Good fellow, well done! Your strength has recovered quite a bit!" Xiao Qiongqi, transformed into the form of a white tiger, transmitted telepathically to Xu Mu from afar.
Seeing Xiao Qiongqi, Xu Mu's face immediately broke into a smile. "It's okay, but it's a shame I couldn't eliminate Ye Gong to keep my identity secret."
Qiongqi waved its small claws. "It doesn't matter. In the end, it will only take two strikes from you to resolve it.
"Besides, what I want to tell you is that while you were competing, many people outside have already noticed you. You did the right thing by not using your saber."
Xu Mu nodded, his expression somewhat grave. He asked, "What about the Qi family? What's their reaction?"
Qiongqi glanced at the airship in the direction of the Qi family. Unlike the liveliness of the other families, there was almost no one speaking there; it was eerily silent.
"The Old Ancestor of the Qi family was furious when Qi Ye was eliminated and almost got into a fight with the Old Ancestor of the Jiang family. The Old Ancestor of the Ye family tried to comfort him but was almost beaten too, because Ye Gong failed to protect Qi Ye."
Xu Mu listened and nodded slightly.
These matters were within his expectations. After all, Qi Ye was a top genius of the Qi family. He condescended to come and hunt Jiang Taixu, only to be eliminated himself, causing the Qi family to lose a spot in the Myriad Races Assembly for nothing. The loss was considerable, and it was normal for the old ancestor to fly into a rage.
Qiongqi continued to transmit telepathically. "Moreover, good fellow, you've been targeted. Besides the Ye family, many forces seem to be plotting to cause you trouble. You must be careful when you come out."
Xu Mu heard this and shook his head helplessly.
Even though he had been careful to keep his identity secret, he was still targeted. Although it wasn't being targeted as "Xu Mu," it was still dangerous.
"The Jiang family... haven't they made a statement?" Xu Mu pondered for a moment and asked. By all rights, he was representing the Jiang family in this competition. With his performance, it should be enough for the Old Ancestor of the Jiang family to protect him.
"Of course, they've made a statement! The Old Ancestor of the Jiang family declared that whoever dares to touch you, he will annihilate their entire clan!" Qiongqi said excitedly. When the Old Ancestor of the Jiang family said this, it silenced all the psychics!
"Furthermore, Gongsun Jingming of Medicine King Valley, that old man you discussed alchemy with earlier, has also announced that you are one of them from Medicine King Valley. Anyone who touches you is going against Medicine King Valley."
Xu Mu was stunned and scratched his head. When did he become someone from Medicine King Valley?
"However, good fellow, you should heal your injuries and recover your strength from Mount Xi as soon as possible. Other people's power is ultimately theirs; being strong yourself is what truly gives you confidence," Qiongqi paused and reminded him.
"My strength from Mount Xi..." Xu Mu coughed awkwardly and then said, "Uh, I'll try my best."
"Everyone, time is up!"
The Old Ancestor Wang closed the vortex connecting the inside and outside. The clamorous sounds in the venue immediately disappeared.
"The third round of assessment is called the Ascension Stairway."
The Old Ancestor Wang held a bamboo scroll and announced, "The Ascension Stairway is a Primordial Treasure. It has ninety-nine steps. Each step has a different pressure, targeting the divine soul and the physical body. The higher you go, the stronger the pressure energy of the Ascension Stairway becomes."
"Contestants must ascend as high a step as possible within three hours to obtain as many points as possible. Additionally, the points you obtained in the previous round will be reduced by a hundredfold and added to this round. Before the competition ends, the psychics ranked in the top five thousand based on points will qualify for the Myriad Races Assembly."
As the Old Ancestor Wang spoke, a massive divine ascending stairway appeared in the void before everyone.
This stairway had ninety-nine steps, made of pure gold, with crimson sun golden dragons coiled around it, exuding immense nobility and powerful pressure.
Old Ancestor Wang: "Contestants, do you have any further questions about the rules?"
The crowd responded in unison: "No!"
The Old Ancestor Wang nodded, then exchanged glances with the other three old ancestors and said, "In that case, let the third round of assessment commence!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the phantoms of the four old ancestors disappeared from the sky. Before they vanished, Xu Mu felt four gazes fall upon him for a moment, making him suddenly tense up, as if he had fallen into an ice cellar.
"What are you looking at?"
Xu Mu shivered involuntarily, quickly wrapping his coarse cloth clothes tighter around himself, and then looked at the divine stairway in the sky.
At this moment, quite a few people had already seized the time to ascend and were attempting to climb the stairway. Given the limited time, Ye Gong was among them. His steps were steady and swift, and in a blink, he had already ascended ten steps.
"Let's go too," Qian Qian said, looking at Xu Mu.
"No rush," Xu Mu shook his head and then opened the jade slip leaderboard to check the point rankings.
"Ye Gong originally had over 430,000 points. After ascending ten steps, his points increased by five thousand, making it 440,000..."
"With an initial twenty-one thousand points, if I don't move at all, I should still be able to make it into the top five thousand."
After a simple calculation, Xu Mu relaxed. He said to Qian Qian, "You guys go ahead. Don't wait for me. I'll meditate for a while first."
As Xu Mu spoke, he sat cross-legged on the ground and began to quietly regulate his breath, recovering from his injuries.
Seeing this, Qian Qian nodded silently and then, along with Qi Lan and Jiang Sheng beside him, flew towards the divine stairway in the sky.
...