Chapter 106: Challenging the Ninth Floor!

  On the ninth floor, Dugu Han carried a sword with a pine grain pattern on his back, took one step forward, and the sword light burst out from under his feet as he stepped onto the first step.

  Then he stepped onto the stage without stopping.

  The second step, the third step, the fourth step...

  Dugu Han's ascent was too swift; the crowd below had only blinked, and he had already climbed nine steps before finally slowing down.

  But just three breaths later, he continued to climb the stage, this time nine consecutive steps!

  Each floor has 99 steps, is Du Guhan going to divide it into nine times and climb up to the tenth floor?

  At this moment, under the Wind and Cloud Stage, the atmosphere is fervent, with everyone discussing heatedly.

  "Rumors say that Dugu Han's true strength is not inferior to those who have condensed a Blood Core, and this statement is not false! Given time, once he condenses a Blood Core, he will definitely become even stronger!"

  "Hmph, easy to say, but how difficult is it to refine the Blood Drill? Even with a hundred Nine-Drop Blood Essences, there's no guarantee of success! Who can be certain if Dugu Han can take that step?"

  "You don't understand! The Dugu family doesn't condense Blood Beads until they're over twenty, not because they can't, but because they won't! If Dugu Han were willing, he might have already condensed two Blood Beads!"

  "It's not just two, I think three are possible! 'Dugu' and 'Qixuan' have always been on par, the current Qixuan had already condensed the Blood Drill two years ago, would the current Dugu be any worse?"

  "Dugu is not inferior to the Seven Xuan. If it weren't for the Dugu family's thin bloodline, perhaps the four major families of the imperial capital would have become five!"

  No matter who, whether jealous or admiring, cannot deny the greatness of Dugu Xian. For a hundred years, Dugu's prestige has been renowned, and his iron-like reputation was forged with blood.

  Dugu Xian bore the weight of Dugu's thousand-year glory on his shoulders, walking step by step upwards with a firm and powerful pace.

  "Don't look anymore, no matter how strong and legendary he is, that's his own solitary coldness, and has nothing to do with us. Let's just drift away, bow our heads and walk our own path, only then can we go further." Chu Cheng's voice sounded softly.

  Is it cold?

  That's just a goal you're about to surpass anyway.

  At this thought, Chu Cheng took a big step forward, and after half a stick of incense, the eighth floor was right in front of him.

  "Hey, hey, Chucheng wait for me! Hah, hah! Where did this broken weight come from? I'm about to be crushed!" Dongfang Ye panted heavily, his whole body sweating profusely, every step he took was extremely arduous.

  For him, being able to set foot on the eighth floor was already the best outcome. Even if he were crushed by a powerful force the next moment, it would not be unexpected.

  "Dongfang Ye, say a few less words and save some energy to climb up! As far as I know, the higher you climb, the more benefits you'll get when entering the Qingming Ruins! Work hard!" Ling Xutu was right next to Dongfang Ye, sweating profusely.

  "Hah! The more I talk, the more energy I get! Disciple, bring me the Golden Elixir Incantation, open it for me, open it, OPEN IT!" Dongfang Ye's furious roar shook the air as his body emitted a dazzling golden light, enveloping himself in what looked like a gigantic golden elixir.

  Jīn dān yǒu xíng wú zhì, dàn nà jīn sè guāng máng què néng gòu kàng wài jiè qiáng dà de wēi yā, zhè jiù shì rú yì jīn dān jué, dōng fāng sàn yī cóng qīng míng yí jì zhōng dài chū lái de qiáng dà xuán gōng, xuán miào zhī chù, wán quán bù zài tiān yīng jué, shén yǒng mán jué zhī xià.

  This Ru Yi Jin Dan Jue has internal elixir and external elixir distinctions.

  Dongfang San Yi has both internal and external cultivation, with the internal alchemy formula tempering himself and the external alchemy formula refining elixirs. The current Dongfang San Yi is already a 7th rank alchemy grandmaster, his status not below that of ordinary Mountain Sea Realm strong practitioners.

  Dongfang Ye was born with divine power and had a rough temperament. He couldn't cultivate external elixir techniques at all, but only cultivated internal elixir techniques.

  It must be said that although Dongfang Ye is rough, he has extremely high innate talent and his comprehension in cultivation is at a genius level. The Neidan Jue in his hands underwent a special transformation and became the Ruyi Jindan Jue with Dongfang Ye's unique characteristics.

  With the help of this Golden Elixir Formula, Dongfang Wild Top resided in a powerful oppressive force, yet he took big strides forward, as if without any pressure.

  "This big lummox... is indeed a natural-born genius! They say that fools are lucky... I won't lose to him!" Ling Yun's eyes flashed with light, his competitive heart racing wildly, the Qing Grass Sword intent on his body suddenly changed, adding a hint of elegance and vigor.

  That is... Green Pine!

  Heavy snow presses on the green pine, but the green pine remains upright and straight. To know how noble the pine is, wait until the snow melts!

  Lingyun Sword Second Sword, Qingsong Sword!

  At this critical moment, Lingyun suddenly grasped a hint of Qing Song's sword intent and broke through!

  The faint will of the green pine sword intent, mixed with the green grass sword intent, that unyielding determination, supports the cloud-crossing, step by step climbing upwards.

  His strides were not as big and flowing as Dongfang Ye's, but they were exceptionally firm, each step seeming to tread out a footprint, as if to leave evidence of his existence for the future.

  Two people, one in front and one behind, went straight up to the eighth floor!

  And in front of them, Leng Cangfeng and Luo Hongmu walked side by side.

  These two people didn't know each other, their temperament and demeanor were completely different, and there was a slight age gap between them. However, at this moment, they became mutual opponents and references for comparison, climbing together and urging each other on!

  Luo Hongmu was from a large family and practiced superior mysterious skills. He wasn't like Zi Xuan, a spoiled young master, with an extremely strong spirit and willpower. At this moment, climbing the stairs felt somewhat leisurely.

  Of course, he didn't find it that easy, but instead used all his might to mobilize the spiritual energy around him, forming a layer of aura to resist the pressure from outside.

  A cold blade, yet as dull as a wooden block or stone, not showing any sharpness or anything special, just step by step climbing up, the intention of hiding one's edge is to reveal it at the moment when the edge is fully exposed. But now is not the time for the edge to be fully exposed.

  Leng Cangfeng liked to hide himself, and this time was no exception.

  Chu City is truly a leisurely stroll in a quiet courtyard.

  Dugu Han challenged the tenth floor, and it was not without impact on him. The most intuitive manifestation is that he no longer walked shoulder to shoulder with Leng Cangfeng and Luo Hongmu, but instead quickened his pace, leaving the two behind in an instant.

  After half a stick of incense, Chu Cheng had reached the eighth floor.

  He slightly closed his eyes, and Chu City felt the pressure from the eighth floor.

  The oppressive power of this eighth floor has already surpassed most of the stairs between the 26th and 27th floors of the Warm Jade Building, and is even comparable to the top few steps of that staircase. Even some of the refined Nine-Drop Blood Essence cultivators may not be able to stand firm.

  This eighth floor, Luo Hongmu will definitely be able to come up, and Leng Cangfeng will also have no problem. As for Dongfang Ye and Ling Yundu, it's hard to say.

  The two of them were slightly inferior in their cultivation after all, and if compared in terms of spiritual willpower, they couldn't even compare to Leng Cangfeng.

  Leng Cangfeng's will is something even Chu Cheng looks up to with admiration.

  Sure, here is the translation:

  As expected, after about ten breaths, Luohongmu and Lengcangfeng ascended to the eighth floor together.

  As soon as he reached the eighth floor, Luo Hongmu immediately sat down cross-legged and began to meditate, fully adapting to the pressure of the eighth floor. As for the ninth floor, he no longer had any thoughts of challenging it.

  He was very clear about his own limits. The ninth floor staircase, he could absolutely climb around forty or so, and even if he went all out, he might be able to climb fifty or sixty, but it was absolutely impossible for him to reach the ninth floor.

  Contentment is a lasting joy; knowing when to stop is a great wisdom. This is the small wisdom he has gained as a member of a large family, and it is also a major principle for getting along with others, cultivating oneself, and nurturing one's nature.

  Leng Cangfeng didn't sit down, but instead closed his eyes like Chu Cheng, feeling the pressure from the eighth floor. He seemed carefree and nonchalant, but where his true limits lay, no one knew except himself.

  Maybe even he himself doesn't know.

  "Tu ya, Chu Cheng, Leng Cang Feng, why didn't you two wait for me? Tu ya, I'm furious, furious! I want to ascend, I want to reach the eighth floor!" Dong Fang Ye shouted angrily.

  Then his whole body was boiling with blood and energy, and in the golden light that formed the Golden Elixir, there was a hint of eerie red color. The next moment, Dongfang Ye took a big step forward, and actually three steps became two steps, and he forcibly charged up to the eighth floor!

  But in the next moment, Dongfang Ye suddenly opened his mouth and spat out a mouthful of blood.

  "Big Brother Dongfang!" Chu Cheng suddenly opened his eyes, leaned forward to support Dongfang Ye, and a bloody glow flashed in his eyes as the Blood Pupil Technique was activated. He took a closer look at Dongfang Ye and put his mind at ease.

  "Dongfang brother, you're really too reckless, actually forcing the unstable seventh drop of Blood Essence to rotate, almost causing it to collapse... Fortunately, your innate talent is exceptional, and your Blood Essence is far more concentrated and stable than ordinary people's, which is why it didn't collapse. Next time, don't be so arrogant." Chu Cheng admonished.

  "Haha, no big deal, I'm blessed with good fortune and a strong fate, even if I pawned my soul to the heavens, I can still get it back. What's there to worry about?" Dongfang Ye laughed loudly, completely carefree.

  "Huff, Dongfang Ye, you're really something, even faster than me!" Lingyun Du also climbed up.

  But as soon as he climbed to the eighth floor, he immediately fell headfirst and then slowly got up, sat down cross-legged, took out a bottle of elixir, poured out more than a dozen grains with a gurgling sound, and closed his eyes to meditate.

  "You think you can surpass me? I'm the one who's going to surpass you!" Dongfang Ye shouted, then took out a bottle of elixir and swallowed it whole without even opening the lid. The jade bottle shattered between his teeth, and the elixir was swallowed along with it.

  "Hmph, this is a third-grade elixir, yours is only second-grade, isn't it inferior?" Dongfang Ye raised his head.

  "...... Barbarian! No brains!" Lingyun Du didn't bother to respond, and instead focused on regulating his breath.

  Having seen these two people, Chu Cheng raised his head and looked towards the higher part of the high platform.

  On the stairs from the ninth floor to the tenth, Dugu Han had climbed five times, each time nine steps, and was now on the forty-fifth step. Looking at his face, he was still calm, gentle as a breeze, and carefree.

  "Dugu Han, I believe the tenth floor can't stop you! Don't disappoint me, you must reach the tenth floor! Otherwise, wouldn't you be surpassed by me?" Chu Cheng said calmly in his heart.

  Then in the next moment, Chucheng stepped forward and climbed up a new staircase.