Qin San took a step forward and said to the examinees, "Congratulations on passing the first stage. Follow me, the real challenge is just beginning."
Qin San appeared to be walking at a leisurely pace, but in reality, he was moving incredibly fast.
In the blink of an eye, he was already a hundred meters away.
"If you don't keep up, you'll lose sight of him," Han Ying'er reminded.
The examinees finally snapped out of their daze and hurriedly ran after him.
Fortunately, Qin San was merciful and didn't push his speed to an extreme, allowing the examinees to follow without too much difficulty.
After all, the second stage wasn't about running.
Soon, they arrived at the edge of a deep, bottomless chasm.
The examinees gulped nervously, feeling a bit scared just standing near it.
Qin San smiled faintly and said, "Follow me."
With that, he leaped into the chasm.
The examinees were stunned.
"Is he serious? That's a death jump!"
"He's at a completely different level of cultivation compared to us. How can we possibly do that?"
"Should I... write a will first?"
While some hesitated, the smarter ones had already jumped.
The first to leap was Lin Xuan, who calmly stepped forward from the crowd and jumped without a second thought.
He truly knew how to seize every opportunity.
Once the first one jumped, the others followed suit and leaped into the chasm.
Su Luo, unhurried, took a leap of faith.
As they neared the bottom, a gust of wind rose from beneath them.
Elder Yan Xi had intervened. While he was most skilled in fire magic, his wind techniques were nothing to scoff at either.
None of the falling examinees were harmed, and they all landed safely on the ground.
It was an exhilarating descent.
Some of the examinees, though unharmed, were so shaken that their legs gave out, and they couldn't stand up.
A few even wet themselves out of fear.
Qin San waited for a moment, and when no one else jumped down, he began to explain the rules.
As for those who didn't jump, they were naturally disqualified. If they couldn't even muster the courage for this, what hope did they have in cultivation? They might as well go home.
"Alright, starting now, climb back up. If you don't make it before nightfall, you're out. So, good luck," Qin San said succinctly.
The examinees, however, were dismayed.
"What? Did I hear that right? Climb back up? How long did we just fall? There's no way we can climb that in time!"
"Exactly! And it looks so steep. It's going to be nearly impossible."
"What if we run out of stamina? I don't even see many places to rest along the way."
While the weaker ones were still complaining, Li Siyi had already seized the opportunity and started climbing first.
Having missed the chance to jump first earlier, she was determined to make up for it this time. She had set a goal for herself: to be the first to reach the top.
Indeed, opportunities were fleeting. The slightest hesitation could lead to elimination.
The examinees quickly realized that this was no time for complaints. Every second was precious now.
Su Luo, on the other hand, casually found a spot to sit down and simply watched them, showing no intention of joining the climb.
After a while, when most of the examinees had already started climbing, Qin San quietly approached Su Luo.
"You're Su Luo?"
"That's right. My father is Su Chengkong."
Qin San nodded. This was the person Elder Yan Xi had instructed him to take special care of.
Though Qin San didn't understand why Elder Yan Xi wanted to favor someone in particular, he dared not disobey the elder's orders.
Still, he couldn't help but feel a bit of disdain for Su Luo. Cheating through connections was something any decent person would look down on.
Of course, Qin San wasn't foolish enough to show it.
"Follow me."
Su Luo nodded and followed Qin San to a secluded corner.
Qin San pointed to someone behind Su Luo and asked, "Do you know her?"
"I do, but not well."
"Get rid of her."
After all, cheating wasn't something to be done in the open. If it were discovered, not only would Su Luo be in trouble, but Qin San wouldn't fare much better either.
Su Luo was also puzzled. Why did this little girl keep following him? If this kept up, he'd have to report her—though, of course, there were no authorities to report to here.
"Hey, you, go away."
"My name is Little Yu."
"Oh, hello, Little Yu. Go climb, alright? I'm not insulting you—I mean, climb the chasm. With your level of cultivation, even making it up would be a struggle, let alone before nightfall."
"Mm, I'll follow you and climb."
"...You go climb. I'm not climbing."
"Aren't you about to start? I want to follow behind you." Little Yu tilted her head, confused. Why wasn't he climbing? Had he given up?
"Let me put it this way: following me won't do you any good."
"Why not?"
Looking at Little Yu, Su Luo suddenly felt like scaring her off to make her back down.
"Let me tell you something. I don't take the ordinary path. The road I'm on is much harder. To put it simply, while others only need to climb up to succeed, I have to climb up, jump down, and then climb up again to pass. I have to put in several times more effort than others, and the difficulty is several times greater. Do you understand now?"
"I understand. I still want to follow you."
Little Yu didn't hesitate for a moment, as if everything Su Luo had just said was meaningless. She hadn't absorbed a single word.
"You can't do it, and you'll just hold me back."
"I can do it! I won't hold you back. You don't have to worry about me!"
"You can't."
"I can!"
This was starting to sound like a childish argument.
Su Luo decided there was no point in continuing. Looking at Little Yu's frail frame, it was clear she hadn't had many good meals in her life. Plus, she had only been cultivating for less than a month. Even if she had talent, she was probably only at the early Qi Refining stage. Climbing up would be nearly impossible for her.
Of course, if she had the determination, it might not be entirely out of reach—though she'd likely end up in last place.
"Are you sure you want to follow me?"
"Mm."
"Alright then. Senior Brother Qin, add her to the list."
Su Luo addressed Qin San affectionately, already treating him as a senior brother.
Qin San accepted the title, as Elder Yan Xi was the overseer of this exam. Whoever the elder wanted to take care of would be admitted into the sect.
"Junior Brother Su, it's not as simple as just adding someone. You know what we're doing, right? Taking you alone is already risky. Adding another person will make it harder to explain to Elder Yan Xi."
The risk, of course, was merely the risk of being scolded. If the cheating were exposed, even if they made it into the sect, their treatment wouldn't be good. They might even be mocked by anyone and everyone.
"Don't worry about explaining. You know her talent is at the sixth level. Do you really think Elder Yan Xi would let her be eliminated here? If anything, he might even commend you for bringing her in."
Qin San thought about it and realized Su Luo had a point. Little Yu was different from Su Luo, whose talent was only at the fourth level—nothing special.
Little Yu, with her sixth-level talent, was practically a guaranteed admission.
Rules were rigid, but people were flexible. Recruiting a disciple with such high talent was worth bending the rules.
"Alright, let's go together."
Qin San pointed his finger, and a faint starlight emanated from it. The starlight flew out, and a large boulder shifted aside, revealing a hidden entrance.
"Let's go."
Su Luo followed without hesitation, clearly familiar with the process.
Little Yu also followed, her heart filled with anxiety. She wasn't sure if she could handle the difficulty that was several times greater than what the others faced.
But if I'm following him, I'll do my best.
Little Yu silently encouraged herself.
Then, the entrance closed behind them.