Su Luo arrived at the summit, where quite a few people were already present, though most of them didn’t look too well. Some were sprawled out on the ground, too exhausted to move. Su Luo set Little Yu down, retrieved his clothes, and then went to rest nearby.
He distanced himself from Little Yu.
Truthfully, he didn’t really need to rest, but there wasn’t much else to do.
In contrast, Li Siyi was the first to reach the top, and after only a brief rest, she immediately began cultivating. Her energy was truly formidable. However, as if sensing something unusual, Li Siyi ended her cultivation session and opened her eyes to see Su Luo arriving.
What puzzled her was why he was carrying a little girl on his back and covering her with his own clothes.
In an instant, she lost all focus on her cultivation.
“You’ve worked hard,” Li Siyi said, handing him some water.
“How do you feel? Was the climb difficult? Did you face any challenges…”
Li Siyi rambled on, but none of it was important. What she really wanted to know was, “And who is she?”
Her tone was markedly different from her earlier lightheartedness, now carrying a heavier emphasis.
“A fellow villager. She was breaking through midway, so I brought her along,” Su Luo replied.
“Oh,” Li Siyi sighed in relief.
“Why? Are you concerned?”
“Not at all, just asking casually.”
However, Li Siyi avoided looking at Su Luo as she answered.
“Alright, don’t come any closer. Everyone’s watching you.”
“Fine, I’ll go.” Li Siyi knew that Su Luo was about to be exposed for cheating, so to avoid causing him trouble, she cooperated.
But…
“So, you’re really not going to ask me to stay?”
“Go on, get out of here.”
Although there hadn’t been any prior plotline of Su Luo cutting ties with Li Siyi, it didn’t stop him from automatically distancing himself from her now.
This way, it fit the narrative, and he didn’t have to pretend to be a simp. What could be better?
“Tsk.” Li Siyi gave Su Luo a resentful look but obediently left.
Little Yu opened her eyes. She had successfully broken through to the late Qi Refining stage and felt better than ever.
But she didn’t have time to savor the sensation. She immediately began searching for Su Luo.
When she saw him, she was genuinely happy and moved closer to sit quietly by his side.
“I succeeded. Thank you.”
“You should thank yourself. I didn’t do anything.”
“No, thank you.” Little Yu was certain that without Su Luo, she wouldn’t have achieved this breakthrough.
“If you want to thank me, then keep your distance. It’s not that I dislike you, but I have my own plans.”
“Okay.”
Little Yu obediently moved a short distance away, though not too far.
Su Luo felt that was enough. After all, there were still plenty of people around, and as long as there was some distance, it was fine.
Time passed minute by minute. The sun gradually set, and as the last rays of sunlight disappeared, it signaled the end of the second stage.
Those who hadn’t made it to the summit were eliminated.
Qin San stepped forward to announce that the candidates who had reached the top of the ravine had passed and would rest for an hour before the third stage began.
There were now about a thousand people left, with more than half having been eliminated.
But those who remained were all talented candidates.
Soon, the third stage began.
Without any warning or explanation, Elder Yan Xi waved his hand, and a scroll flew into the sky.
The scroll unfurled, and characters began to leap out from it, forming patterns—some regular, some irregular—spinning chaotically in the air.
The characters didn’t form coherent sentences, and even when words appeared, their meaning was unclear.
The feeling was profound and inscrutable.
The candidates were immediately drawn to the characters, their minds wandering as they stared blankly at the sky.
But after a while, someone snapped out of their daze and looked around in confusion at the other candidates who were still entranced.
However, the next moment, this awakened candidate was escorted out by Qin San and declared eliminated.
The characters held a mystical significance. Looking at them would naturally cause one’s mind to wander, as if entering a state of enlightenment.
Or, as some might say, “My head feels itchy, like it’s about to grow a brain.”
Those with insufficient comprehension would wake up sooner, having grasped little.
Therefore, the longer one remained entranced, the higher their level of enlightenment.
But most people’s comprehension wasn’t particularly high, and candidates began waking up one after another, only to be escorted out.
Su Luo also woke up at an appropriate time, and Qin San turned away, pretending not to notice while also blocking the view of others from the sect.
But someone eventually saw—a candidate who had already been eliminated.
“Hey, didn’t that guy just wake up?”
“Yeah, I saw him move and look around.”
Su Luo immediately pretended to be deep in contemplation again.
Qin San turned back to check on Su Luo, found nothing amiss, and then left.
Thus, the others were silenced, and anyone who dared to question further was glared into submission by Qin San.
After a quarter of an hour, hundreds more had been eliminated, and those who remained had already passed. Now, it was just a matter of how long they could sustain their enlightenment.
The process was rather dull, especially for the eliminated candidates who wanted to see how things would unfold. They began speculating about who would last the longest.
Initially, Li Siyi was the most anticipated, given her outstanding performance during the ravine climb.
But unfortunately, Li Siyi woke up third from the end.
She felt a bit disappointed. Although she had expected Lin Xuan to outlast her, she couldn’t help feeling a little resentful.
Wait, wasn’t that someone else?
Indeed, apart from Lin Xuan, Little Yu was still deep in enlightenment.
Li Siyi couldn’t understand it. Su Luo hadn’t mentioned this fellow villager in his diary. Had he overlooked her?
That didn’t seem right. He was meticulous in his diary entries and wouldn’t have missed an important figure.
How suspicious.
Li Siyi grew increasingly curious.
As time passed, neither Lin Xuan nor Little Yu showed any signs of waking up. The others began to question their own abilities, especially the sect disciples.
“They’re incredible. They’re going to break the record, aren’t they?”
“Not yet, but they’re close. I never expected this year’s assessment to have so many exceptional candidates.”
“Yeah, I thought my one hour of enlightenment was impressive, but they’ve been at it for three hours now.”
“Especially that girl. She’s the youngest, and her potential is immeasurable.”
Just then, Lin Xuan woke up. He felt as though he had grasped something, yet also as if he hadn’t. But there was no doubt that he had gained a lot, even if it wasn’t immediately apparent.
Only then did Lin Xuan realize that he and Little Yu were surrounded by the crowd.
“Congratulations, you came in second,” Han Ying’er said sweetly to Lin Xuan, asking him to step aside slightly.
Second place.
Lin Xuan felt a pang of regret. He had thought he might take first place, but it seemed there was always someone better.
Now, the center of attention was Little Yu.
Everyone began guessing when she would wake up.
As they speculated, the sky brightened, leaving them utterly stunned.
The record was definitely going to be broken.
But was this for real? It was almost unfair. Compared to her, what did that make them? Clowns with no comprehension at all?
And Little Yu still showed no signs of waking up. Would the next stage of the assessment even happen?