Chapter 399
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Chapter 399: The Battlefield of Ten Thousand Swords!
Su Yi soon discovered that the location for the examination was known as the Heavenly Stairs.
It is said that reaching the top of the Heavenly Stairs symbolizes a leap towards heaven.
The Heavenly Stairs consists of seven levels: Mortal Grade, Fine Grade, General Grade, Commander Grade, King Grade, Emperor Grade, and the legendary Heavenly Grade.
Ascending to the Seventh Grade is considered to grant one the extraordinary talents of the Heavenly Grade, a truly divine achievement.
Legend has it that those with a Heavenly Grade aura are capable of extraordinary feats from birth, destined for greatness, surpassing all others.
However, the Heavenly Grade seems to remain a mere myth. Even disciples who were known to be powerful, such as Yun Lingfeng and Liu Yunchuan from five years ago, barely reached the Sixth Grade and never stepped into the Seventh, which shocked the entire Divine Sword School.
For an outer disciple, passing the fourth level of the Heavenly Stairs is enough to qualify them for the inner discipleship.
Failure, however, may mean that they will never have another chance to become inner disciples in their lives.
Once an outer disciple succeeds, they gain direct entry to the Battlefield of Ten Thousand Swords.
The Battlefield of Ten Thousand Swords is more than just a test; it is central to the Grand Swordsmanship Competition, offering both inner and outer disciples an opportunity to prove their worth.
Unlike outer disciples, who must first pass the Heavenly Stairs, all inner disciples are allowed direct entry to the Battlefield of Ten Thousand Swords.
This vast area, controlled by the cultivators of Divine Sword School for many years, is filled with numerous demon beasts, strategically placed to test and refine the skills of young disciples.
Though the demon beasts inside are not overly strong, they still present a lethal threat to inner disciples. Despite their relative power, these beasts can fight back, providing a true trial by fire for the disciples.
If a disciple survives the final challenge, they may earn the chance to become a direct disciple of the Divine Sword School.
The competition, however, is merciless.
But in a world ruled by the strong, such harshness is not questioned, as strength is the only currency that matters.
The journey through the Battlefield of Ten Thousand Swords typically takes about a month.
The scope of the battlefield is immense, and the dangers are constant, with countless crises lurking around every corner.
According to past records, only about a hundred out of every ten thousand disciples manage to successfully leave the battlefield, a feat considered remarkable.
While navigating the Battlefield of Ten Thousand Swords, disciples must also search for a rare stone known as the Sword-patterned Stone.
The cultivators of the Divine Sword School did not contribute many of these stones to the battlefield, and only the sixty-eight disciples who collect the most Sword-patterned Stones are permitted to advance to the final showdown at Spirit Sword Peak.
The direct disciples enter the Battlefield of Ten Thousand Swords half a month later than the inner disciples.
The direct disciples possess far greater strength than the inner disciples, and in order to give the latter a fair chance, the direct disciples wait before entering the battlefield. If this rule didn’t exist, inner disciples would have very little chance of obtaining any Sword-patterned Stones.
Only by successfully navigating the Battlefield of Ten Thousand Swords can a disciple reach the pinnacle of the Grand Swordsmanship Competition.
The final duel takes place at Spirit Sword Peak, where the disciples who made it out of the battlefield will face off.
The sixty-eight disciples who gathered the most Sword-patterned Stones are eligible for this final confrontation.
The top sixteen ranked disciples will receive prestigious rewards and enormous benefits from the Divine Sword School.
“Unrivaled rewards, unmatched benefits!” Su Yi’s eyes gleamed as he thought about the incredible advantages and rewards promised by the Divine Sword School. He was, of course, tempted, but wasn’t sure whether he would even get the chance.
Meanwhile, Su Yi and Zhang Qing continued their journey, riding the Fierce Wind Golden Eagle to collect the emblems from the school.
It seemed as though the Fierce Wind Golden Eagle had decided to stay by Su Yi’s side.
After Su Yi was escorted to Sky Sword Peak by the elder, the eagle returned to the Thirty-Sixth Sword Peak to wait.
“Brother Su Yi, did you tame this Fierce Wind Golden Eagle?” Zhang Qing asked, puzzled. This mount was supposed to belong to the Court of Justice, yet it appeared to have been tamed by Su Yi.
Su Yi gave a slight smile, sitting cross-legged on the back of the Fierce Wind Golden Eagle and gently patting its feathers.
Su Yi was aware that the aura of his Supreme Chaotic Yuan Technique had caused the Fierce Wind Golden Eagle to submit. Despite several attempts to leave, the eagle remained determined to follow him.
If given the opportunity, Su Yi could potentially grant the Fierce Wind Golden Eagle a chance at rebirth.
It wasn’t long before Su Yi received his outer disciple emblem, thanks to Zhang Qing’s assistance and the sect leader’s orders.
The emblem, while similar in material to Yuan Stone, had a subtle energy fluctuation. However, it wasn’t Yuan Stone. It appeared to have been imbued with some kind of powerful technique. After swearing an oath with his blood, the emblem became active.
With the blood oath, Su Yi now had a connection with the emblem. He could feel its condition clearly, including the five core points inside.
Holding the emblem, Su Yi was filled with emotion.
Even though he wasn’t formally a disciple of Divine Sword School, having an outer disciple emblem still made him feel like he belonged.
“In the emblem, there will be records of your points. You can also use it to receive basic elixirs at designated times,” Zhang Qing explained.
“Points…” Su Yi sighed in regret. He had already handed over a batch of space bags to the Right Dharma Protector, forgetting to extract the emblems first and transfer the points.
These points were incredibly valuable within the Divine Sword School, as they could be exchanged for nearly everything.
As Su Yi and Zhang Qing made their way back to the Thirty-Sixth Sword Peak, the sun was setting, signaling the end of the day.
Su Yi had already learned most of what he needed to know about the Grand Swordsmanship Competition. Xu Jiahui, Zhang Qing, and others had explained it thoroughly, and there wasn’t much more to add.
Moreover, Zhang Qing and Xu Jiahui were careful not to reveal too much. After all, for someone who had defeated Jian Shiyi, why should Su Yi worry about ascending the Heavenly Stairs tomorrow?
Now, everyone was more focused on themselves. Whether they had a chance to become inner disciples depended entirely on their performance tomorrow.
Failure would mean never having another chance in this lifetime.
As night descended, the moon shone brightly in the sky, causing the stars to fade into the background.
On Sky Sword Peak, Situ Liuyun gazed up at the moon, lost in thought, as if something weighed heavily on his mind.
“Sect leader, you mentioned that Elder Su never accepted disciples before, but now he’s taken on such a student. If Su Yi were just an ordinary disciple, it would be one thing, but if he were a direct disciple…”
The Right Dharma Protector looked helpless and speechless. He understood the situation, and likely, every elder and strong figure in the Divine Sword School would rather Elder Su didn’t accept disciples right now.
