"Ah!"
"Hurry up, stop dawdling."
"No, no, no, this won't do. It’s impossible, absolutely impossible!" Zhang Yang refused repeatedly.
He thought Xu Xian's idea was insane.
Carry him up?
How could that be possible?
Gravity in the Sword Mound acted on the total mass of an object. For example, if the pressure on one person was like carrying a thousand catties, if Xu Xian really carried Zhang Yang, he would be bearing two thousand catties plus Zhang Yang's own weight.
Furthermore, at this point, the relative gravitational force was already far beyond a thousand catties. As they climbed higher, it would continue to increase. It wasn't as simple as just carrying a person; it was like carrying another mountain, enduring double the gravity.
This mechanism was designed specifically to prevent cheating. Carrying someone up? Was he joking?
Xu Xian knew what Zhang Yang was thinking and tried to persuade him. "Come on, your big brother is a man who's going to the Fourth Sword Heaven. I don't even care about a mere Tianjian Pool. I can handle double the gravity. Besides, if I really can't do it, I'll just toss you down. It's boring up here, stay with me so we can talk..."
Zhang Yang remained firm. "Brother Xian, I appreciate the sentiment, but it's really not right. Listen to me, you go up by yourself. Don't worry about me."
Xu Xian's face darkened. "Am I your brother or not?"
"You are."
"Then listen to me."
"But..."
Xu Xian threatened, "If you keep talking nonsense, don't call me brother ever again."
Zhang Yang helplessly compromised.
Xu Xian hoisted Zhang Yang onto his back. The gravity immediately doubled, nearly snapping his waist under the pressure.
Zhang Yang asked weakly, "Brother Xian, can you do it?"
Xu Xian gritted his teeth, looked ahead, and teased, "Remember this: a man can never say he can't. Even if he can't, he has to."
Zhang Yang was dazed.
Xu Xian began to climb.
Minutes passed, step by step. Xu Xian's clothes were gradually soaked through, sweat dripping onto the stone.
"Brother Xian, still holding on?"
"Yeah."
"Brother Xian, take a break."
"No need."
In the end, Zhang Yang fainted on Xu Xian's back, unable to withstand the constant crushing pressure.
A cold sweat broke out on Xu Xian's brow; he had almost dropped him. There was a law within the Sword Mound: when one could no longer climb, they simply had to jump off the long staircase. They wouldn't die but would be returned to the nearest sword pool.
Fortunately... the little book spirit, Shuer, appeared in time and informed him of the situation. She said with certainty that there was no danger to Zhang Yang's life. Once they reached the Tianjian Pool, he would wake up naturally.
His heart settled briefly. Xu Xian rested for a moment before continuing the climb with Zhang Yang on his back.
Heaving and huffing, he didn't forget to cheer himself up. "It's better that you're unconscious. Saves me from your nagging... They say fat people talk too much, but you're not even fat anymore. Why are you still so chatty?"
"Phew—dammit, what bastard built these crappy stone steps? Why make them so long? Unbelievable..."
The nine thousandth step was especially brutal. The hundred thousand steps of the Fourth Sword Heaven were simply not meant for humans. By that logic, the Fifth Sword Heaven would have a million steps. That would truly be the end of someone. Even without gravity, just climbing that normally would be a struggle.
No wonder no one had ever seen the so-called Divine Sword Pool in ten thousand years.
Xu Xian calculated in his head that getting an immortal sword would be enough for him.
Finally, as the daylight faded, Xu Xian stepped onto the last stone stair. The view suddenly opened up. He entered the Tianjian Pool, and the burden on his back vanished instantly. Xu Xian felt light as a feather; the phrase 'a weight off one's shoulders' finally had a literal definition.
Thousands of catties of pressure were suddenly lifted. Xu Xian wasn't used to it; he felt like he was floating. This caused his stride to be too large, and he tumbled headfirst into the Tianjian Pool, taking Zhang Yang down with him.
"Ouch!"
"Ow!"
Zhang Yang woke up groggily. Looking at the cluster of Heavenly Swords so close at hand, he was stunned. Who am I? Where am I? What was I doing?
"What happened?"
It felt like a dream. He was lost in a daze, then saw Xu Xian sprawled on the ground. He asked in disbelief, "Brother Xian, did you really carry me up? I'm not dreaming, am I?"
Xu Xian lay on the ground, gasping for air. He curled his lips and said, "Try slapping yourself..."
"Huh?"
"If it hurts, it's not a dream. If it doesn't, it is."
Zhang Yang sat on the ground and, without a second thought, gave himself a hard slap.
Slap!
The full-force slap of a master forger...
Pain flared, and tears immediately welled in his eyes. He inhaled a sharp breath of the evening air. "Sss—!"
But instead of feeling pain, he was as happy as a child. He crawled on his knees to Xu Xian and stammered excitedly, "Brother Xian, it hurts! It hurts a lot! It's not a dream!"
Xu Xian didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "You idiot!"
He hadn't expected the kid to actually do it, and so hard at that. He was truly honest to a fault.
Zhang Yang didn't care about that. He was moved to tears. He hurriedly declared, "Brother Xian, I'm so touched. Really. If you don't mind that I'm a guy, I'll pledge myself to you in marriage!"
"Get lost, get lost, get lost!" Xu Xian sat up and snapped irritably. "Is this how you repay a favor? You're returning kindness with enmity!"
Zhang Yang scratched his head and chuckled foolishly. "Hehe, I'm just too excited."
Xu Xian took a moment to recover, then stood up. "Alright, go find your sword."
"What about you, Brother Xian?"
Xu Xian's gaze pierced through the Tianjian Pool, landing on the long staircase that vanished into the clouds. He said confidently, "Me? I’m going to keep climbing, of course. I won't turn back until I've claimed an immortal sword..."
Meanwhile, outside the Sword Mound, the sun was setting, casting a red glow for thousands of miles. In front of the Sword Gate, Ye Xianyu, Li Qingshan, and Wen Qingxue had not left, still waiting.
Suddenly, amidst the dusk, two blue lights brushed across the Sword Gate like meteors in the night sky. Though they bloomed only briefly, they were gone in an instant.
Yet the three of them saw it clearly. Drawn to the sight, they looked up in awe, their eyes filled with wonder...
Ye Xianyu furrowed her brows. "How can there be two?"
Li Qingshan shook his head. "I don't know. Perhaps another disciple happened to ascend at the same time."
After a moment of silence, Wen Qingxue spoke up. "I checked. Thirty days ago, Zhang Yang from the Zhujian Peak entered the Sword Gate and has not come out yet."
"Oh?" Ye Xianyu rubbed her chin and murmured, "Zhang Yang... Why does that name sound familiar?"
Li Qingshan said, "He's the little chubby guy who was with Xu Xian at the start."
"Oh—still don't remember."
Li Qingshan was speechless. Wen Qingxue said nothing.
Ye Xianyu laughed. "But not bad. Reaching the Tianjian Pool is no easy feat. I recall that in their batch, only that girl from the Lin family reached the Tianjian Pool."
Li Qingshan smiled. "Now there are three."
Back then, those three had also crossed the Longevity Bridge together. He thought to himself that perhaps this was the invisible hand of destiny.
Wen Qingxue spoke softly with admiration, "Little Grand-Uncle reached the Third Sword Domain in just a single day. He's incredible."
Whenever someone reached a sword pool, the Sword Gate would respond. A flash of white light meant the Spirit Sword Pool; green meant the Earth Sword Pool; blue was for the Tianjian Pool; and gold was for the Immortal Sword Pool.
Today, white, green, and blue had all flashed. It meant Xu Xian had ascended through the Triple Sword Heaven in half a day.
Ye Xianyu asked, "Xiaoshan, how long did it take you?"
Li Qingshan replied, "Three days." He paused and asked back, "What about you, Master?"
Ye Xianyu smiled. "Me? I was about the same as your Martial Uncle—less than a day..."
Hearing this, Li Qingshan had a good idea of the timeframe. It must have taken her longer than Xu Xian. This meant there was a high probability Xu Xian could pull out an immortal sword. And if Xu Xian pulled out an immortal sword, it meant he won. That was two million merit points! Suddenly, his mood was excellent.
Rate on N.U.
