At Chen Yu’s command, the Martial Artists in the square swarmed frantically onto the massive, trapezoidal platform!

The colossal platform was immense. Each step was like a vast stage, presumably a place for Martial Artists to seek enlightenment.

Watching the people surge onto the Chaos Celestial Ladder from all directions, Shen Haoran didn’t rush to move. He felt it was necessary to understand the Chaos Celestial Ladder first. On the high platform, Mu Feiyu and the others also remained still. They shared Shen Haoran’s thinking: let the other Martial Artists test the waters first.

The Martial Artists below moved quickly. However, the moment they stepped onto the Chaos Celestial Ladder, their bodies all jolted, and their speed instantly dropped by half. But most of them quickly adapted to the pressure from the ladder and picked up their pace again.

Gradually, as they reached the twentieth step, their bodies seemed to sink into a mire. Their speed plummeted, and now they could only shuffle forward one grueling step at a time.

"Hmm?" Seeing this, Shen Haoran murmured softly, his eyes fixed on the Martial Artists on the platform.

On the platform, the fastest had already reached the twenty-seventh step. But the Martial Artists who made it that far seemed unable to advance another inch. Despite mustering all their strength, their feet simply could not land on the twenty-eighth step.

"The Chaos Celestial Ladder has eighty-one steps in total, with every twenty-seven steps marking a new threshold. Reaching the first twenty-seven steps means one’s Talent is mediocre. Reaching the middle twenty-seven means one’s Talent is acceptable. And for those who can ascend the final twenty-seven... they are the ones with truly exceptional Talent!" Elder Huo explained quietly to Shen Haoran.

Hearing this, Shen Haoran understood why all those Martial Artists were stuck at the twenty-seventh step. If they wanted to continue, they had to break through their own limits.

Time ticked by, and the distribution of Martial Artists on the platform grew interesting. Most of them were stalled between the twentieth and twenty-seventh steps. Almost none were below the twentieth; after all, to be noticed by the Spirit Crane Sect, one’s Talent, no matter how poor, wouldn’t be so bad as to get stuck below the twentieth step. Only a handful had made it past the twenty-seventh. Still, being able to ascend beyond that step and withstand the pressure of the second stage meant their Talent was already quite good.

"Hmph, what a bunch of trash. They’re only fit to be Outer Disciples!" Just as Shen Haoran was observing intently, a dissonant voice sounded beside him.

Shen Haoran didn’t even need to think to know it was that megalomaniac, Mu Feiyu. He despised people like him and replied coldly, "You have no right to judge others. If it weren’t for your family’s influence and cultivation resources, you might not even be half as good as them!"

Yes, this world revered strength above all else, but across the entire continent, people with mediocre Talent like them were the vast majority. After all, not everyone was lucky enough to be born into a prominent family or possess some monstrous physique.

But even though they knew their Talent was mediocre, they still poured their all into Cultivation. Because if they wanted to climb higher and go further, they could only rely on their own hard work after birth; they could only rely on themselves! Martial Artists who struggled like this, even if their strength was low, were worthy of respect. They might not be heroes in the eyes of others, but at the very least, they were heroes in their own eyes. And heroes were not for a narrow-minded person like Mu Feiyu to judge!

"Oh, is that so? Then I’ll show them what a true genius looks like!" With that, Mu Feiyu leaped, landing directly on the twentieth-something step. Then, like the wind, he rushed toward the top of the ladder. The threshold at the twenty-seventh step couldn’t slow his pace in the slightest!

"Get out of the way, you bunch of trash!" Along the way, anyone who blocked Mu Feiyu’s path was sent flying. One of them was a Martial Artist on the verge of breaking through to the twenty-eighth step. He was just about to succeed when Mu Feiyu mercilessly threw him off the Chaos Celestial Ladder!

Watching the utterly tyrannical Mu Feiyu, Chen Yu’s brow furrowed, a flash of displeasure in his eyes. Shen Haoran was also filled with rage. ’A person like that, no matter how great their Talent, is nothing but the scum of the Cultivation Realm.’ He suddenly felt that even competing with such a person was a disgrace.

"Let’s go too!" After Mu Feiyu charged up the Chaos Celestial Ladder, the two geniuses from the Thick Earth Hall and Golden Sun Hall glanced at Shen Haoran, then also leaped up and gave chase.

WHOOSH... Shen Haoran took a deep breath, suppressing the anger in his heart. He then walked over to the Martial Artist who had been thrown down by Mu Feiyu.

At that moment, the Martial Artist’s face was crestfallen, his fighting spirit completely gone. Shen Haoran stared at him intently, his eyes devoid of any emotion.

"Do you want revenge?"

The sudden question stunned the Martial Artist. Then, with a pained expression, he said, "I do! But that Mu Feiyu..."

"If you want it, then stand up! Do you think you’re worse than him? No, you’re much stronger! Don’t act like a coward. So what if he has a better background and happens to be a Martial Artist with an Extreme Attribute Physique? What does that matter? One day, you will grind him under your heel and repay today’s humiliation, won’t you!" Shen Haoran said, cutting the Martial Artist off.

Shen Haoran’s words were like a spring breeze brushing through the young Martial Artist’s heart, reigniting his vanished fighting spirit. He stood up, looked at Mu Feiyu’s gradually disappearing back on the Chaos Celestial Ladder, and once again stepped onto the insurmountable stairs.

Watching the young Martial Artist’s back, Shen Haoran smiled with satisfaction. He had helped as much as he could; the rest of the path was one the boy had to walk alone. What Shen Haoran didn’t know was that his words today would change the young man’s entire life. In the end, the young man’s achievements would astound even Shen Haoran himself.

Of course, that is a story for another time. After seeing the young Martial Artist off, Shen Haoran’s gaze fell solemnly on the Chaos Celestial Ladder, and then he took his first step onto it. He didn’t choose to advance at extreme speed like Mu Feiyu and the others. For him, this was more about Cultivation and gaining enlightenment in the Martial Arts. Speed and height were not what Shen Haoran sought.

WHOOSH... The moment Shen Haoran stepped onto the first stair, a pressure like a rising tide rushed toward him from all directions. The faint, almost imperceptible force surprised him, and he closed his eyes to carefully sense its source.

RUSH... RUSH... With his eyes closed, Shen Haoran felt as if he were standing in a stream, the pressure enveloping his entire body. It was surprisingly comfortable.

Perhaps the pressure here was too weak. Shen Haoran didn’t gain much insight. At this thought, he opened his eyes, shook his head with a sigh, and began to climb upward, step by step.

As he climbed, Shen Haoran was surprised to find the surrounding pressure constantly growing stronger. The RUSHING sound in his ears also grew louder and louder.

Sensing the change in his surroundings, Shen Haoran closed his eyes again. He carefully felt the shifts in the pressure around him, and faint glimmers of understanding began to form in his mind...