Chapter 1389: Chapter 1389: Heavenly Ladder
Previously, when in the Ruoshui Palace, Fang Bai had already gained a thorough understanding of the entire process of the “Heavenly Exalted Rankings” battle from the mouths of the more than ten high-ranking mbers of Ruoshui Palace.
Thus, regarding the matter of the various Innate Sects of the True Martial Realm gathering at the Heaven-Reaching Mountain Range and competing through martial contests to vie for one hundred spots to enter the Lotus Pool Secret Realm, he was naturally well inford.
Hearing Gu Yan ntion this matter, Fang Bai glanced at him. Noticing the flicker in Gu Yan’s eyes, as though he had words but was hesitant to speak, Fang Bai said, “Elder Gu, if there’s sothing on your mind, feel free to speak.”
Gu Yan grinned and said in a low voice, “Senior Fang, I suppose you ca this ti intending to take a stroll within the Lotus Pool Secret Realm?”
Fang Bai did not deny this and nodded calmly.
Gu Yan hesitated for a mont before saying, “In that case, might Senior Fang be interested in collaborating with us from the Divine Fire Sect?”
Fang Bai was taken aback and asked in confusion, “Collaborate? What do you an?”
Gu Yan, brimming with enthusiasm, replied, “Let us join forces to first secure spots to enter the Lotus Pool Secret Realm. Then, together, we ascend the Heavenly Ladder on the Heaven-Reaching Peak…”
“Wait!”
Fang Bai interrupted Gu Yan and asked with a frown, “What do you an by ascending the Heavenly Ladder?”
From Gu Yan’s words, it seed that ascending the Heavenly Ladder was of even greater importance than fighting for those one hundred spots to enter the Lotus Pool Secret Realm.
However, when Fang Bai had discussed the “Heavenly Exalted Rankings” battle with Ruoshui Palace’s high-ranking mbers, they had not ntioned anything about the significance of the Heavenly Ladder.
Gu Yan said solemnly, “Senior Fang, it must be your first ti here at the Heaven-Reaching Mountain Range, so you wouldn’t know the marvel of the Heavenly Ladder! To us martial artists, the ninety-nine-and-eighty-one steps of the Heavenly Ladder on Heaven-Reaching Peak — if one can climb ten, or even eight steps, and then sit cross-legged to cultivate, the effect surpasses even soaking in the Seven-Colored Lotus Pool!”
Pausing, Gu Yan noticed the glimr of curiosity in Fang Bai’s eyes and realized he was intrigued. With a hidden smile, he added with a long sigh, “Only, the Heaven-Reaching Peak is easy to reach, but the Heavenly Ladder is hard to climb!”
Fang Bai asked, “Why is it so difficult?”
Gu Yan gestured toward the prival forest ahead. “Senior Fang, shall we walk and talk?”
Fang Bai nodded and strode into the darkly shaded prival forest alongside Gu Yan and another elder from the Divine Fire Sect.
The dozen or so disciples of the Divine Fire Sect followed closely behind, spiritual artifacts in hand.
Both Gu Yan and the other elder of the Divine Fire Sect were high-rank Innate Experts, while Fang Bai was at the peak of the Innate Realm. With their combined strength, they had no fear of attacks from Innate-level spirit beasts.
However, most of the dozen disciples from the Divine Fire Sect were high-rank or peak Universe-level martial artists. If they failed to remain completely alert during a sudden attack by an Innate-level spirit beast, they might end up in peril.
“The Heavenly Ladder on Heaven-Reaching Peak? No one knows who built it, but it seems to have existed since ancient tis…”
Walking alongside Fang Bai, Gu Yan explained, “The Heavenly Ladder consists of a total of ninety-nine and eighty-one steps. With each step one climbs, the pressure and resistance faced grow increntally stronger. However, at the sa ti, the Heaven and Earth Origin Energy surrounding the climber grows purer and denser. That said, martial artists whose cultivation hasn’t yet reached the Innate Realm cannot even ascend Heaven-Reaching Peak, let alone step onto this miraculous Heavenly Ladder.”
Upon hearing this, Fang Bai’s interest in the Heavenly Ladder on Heaven-Reaching Peak grew even more intense. He asked, “Elder Gu, what’s the highest step you’ve climbed?”
Gu Yan’s old face reddened slightly, and he chuckled bitterly, “Shaful as it is! Back when my cultivation was at the initial stage of the Innate Realm, I managed to reach the twentieth step of the Heavenly Ladder before I couldn’t go any further. So, on the twentieth step, I sat cross-legged and cultivated for forty-nine days. When I exited my cultivation state, I had broken through to mid-stage Innate…”
“Forty-nine days, and you elevated one minor realm? Is it really that fast?”
Fang Bai raised his eyebrows, his heart stirred.
If what Gu Yan said was true, then this “Heavenly Ladder” was indeed a rare and extraordinary cultivation treasure. No matter what, he had to check it out on this trip.
“May the heavens strike down if I speak a single lie!”
Seeing the suspicion on Fang Bai’s face, Gu Yan solemnly swore an oath before continuing, “But it’s a pity. The Lotus Pool Secret Realm can only be opened once every five years, and for only forty-nine days at a ti. After breaking through, I couldn’t continue staying there and had to leave.”
Fang Bai asked, “And five years later? Did you advance to your current high stage of the Innate Realm at that ti?”
“No, no…”
Gu Yan shook his head repeatedly and said, “If I were a prodigy, perhaps I could have leveraged the Heavenly Ladder to advance another minor realm within five years. Unfortunately, my aptitude is diocre. It ultimately took four trips up the Heavenly Ladder to reach the fortieth step, where I cultivated for forty-nine days and finally advanced to the high stage of the Innate Realm.”
At this point, he pointed to the other elder from the Divine Fire Sect beside him. “My potential has its limits, so my hope of advancing further is slim. This ti, I’ve mainly co along to accompany Elder Liu Che. Among the four elders of our Divine Fire Sect, Elder Liu holds the greatest hope of advancing to the peak of the Innate Realm. He has already attempted the Heavenly Ladder three tis and made so progress each ti. We hope he can achieve a breakthrough this ti.”
Fang Bai glanced at Liu Che, sensing that his aura as a martial artist was indeed slightly stronger than Gu Yan’s. With sufficient external support, there was indeed a possibility of him advancing to the pinnacle of the Innate Realm.
Additionally, Fang Bai speculated that the Heavenly Ladder must surely have been created by so imnsely powerful being from a higher plane. Its placent on Heaven-Reaching Peak might have been intended to provide martial artists of the True Martial Realm with opportunities for advancent.
As the two conversed, their steps were swift and unhesitating, and in no ti, they had ventured over a hundred miles deep into the prival forest.
Along the way, a few spirit beasts with strength comparable to human martial artists at the initial Innate stage crossed their path. But upon sensing the formidable auras of Fang Bai and the others, these beasts fled far away, unwilling to provoke them.
“Elder Gu, has anyone ever reached the highest step of the Heavenly Ladder?”
Fang Bai suddenly asked.
Gu Yan thought it over carefully before responding, “That’s hard to say. The Heavenly Ladder is incredibly tall, with each step spanning a hundred zhang. By this calculation, the eighty-one steps of the ladder would total nearly ten thousand zhang in height. On top of that, the ladder is located at the summit of Heaven-Reaching Peak, making its overall altitude even more astonishing. The highest dozen or so steps of the ladder are lost within the clouds, rendering the view of what lies above completely obscured…”
Upon learning that the Heavenly Ladder was so towering, Fang Bai couldn’t help but be taken aback. He thought to himself that above ten thousand zhang in the sky, the wind would howl ferociously and the air currents would surge violently — conditions unbearable for ordinary Innate-level experts.
Gu Yan continued, “However, in the past century, it’s been said that a few peak Innate-level experts have reached the final dozen or so steps above the clouds. Whether or not they truly reached the summit, though, remains unknown.”
Fang Bai asked curiously, “Why is that?”
Gu Yan explained, “Because those peak-level Innate experts never descended after ascending. Many speculated that perhaps the final dozen or so steps above the clouds were too perilous, or that those experts encountered so dire misfortune, resulting in all of their deaths.”
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