Chapter III

"Huhu, this, that's not right—" Ah Sheng put his hands on his knees, gasping for air. He looked up, and the winding stone steps reached into the sky, and there was no end in sight.

Ah Sheng was suddenly a little dizzy, and he had to sit down and rest for a while.

"There are 10,800 stone steps in the West Mountain Gate, called the Cloud Ladder—" The voice of the sword soul sounded, and said: "There are formations in the stone steps, and every time you climb a step, the weight on the climber's body will increase. ”

"Ahh

"The weight of every twenty steps increases by one catty, and if you climb two thousand five hundred and sixty steps, the weight is only one hundred and twenty-eight catties. Sword Soul said lightly.

"One, one hundred and twenty-eight-" Ah Sheng almost didn't spit out a mouthful of old blood, he folded his fingers and calculated, his face suddenly became extremely ugly, and he was stunned: "By the last few thousand steps, you have to carry five hundred pounds to climb the mountain?"

"What if that's not the case? Do you think the West Mountain Gate is so easy to enter? This is just the first pass. Sword Soul said slowly.

"I knew that I should have gone to Dongshanmen. ”

"There are three passes in the West Mountain Gate, five levels in the East Mountain Gate, six levels in the South Mountain Gate, and six levels in the North Mountain Gate, each of which is extremely difficult. Where are you going?"

"Oh-" Ah Sheng pursed his lips and stood up again, this time he didn't straighten his waist, he walked up almost half-slumped step by step.

"You can't climb with just your body's strength, then you can climb up to 5,000 steps, and the pressure of more than 200 catties can crush you. Do you remember what I taught you about the method of luck? You want to let the Yuan Qi that is incorporated into your body swim among the limbs and bones, and turn the power of Yuan Qi into your own power-"

Ah Sheng nodded, gritted his teeth and stood up straight, silently reciting in his heart the obscure mantra that the sword soul had taught him.

"You have a thin foundation and lack of vitality in your body, so you must absorb vitality all the time, even if your breathing stops, you can't stop absorbing vitality. Otherwise, even if you are lucky enough to enter the West Mountain Gate, with your talent, you will be expelled from the division in the first year of the Mountain Gate Examination-"

Ah Sheng was speechless, these words, the sword soul had already told him no less than ten times on the way to Xishanmen. But he understands the truth, but how easy is it to do?

"Concentrate and practice the sword qi technique. The sword soul roared.

Ah Sheng hurriedly concentrated, and according to the essentials of the sword qi technique, he guided the little vitality in his body to the limbs and bones.

On Ah Sheng's body, a weak and invisible gray aura began to flicker, it was a subtle sword qi, but it was only the size of a sweat hair, and ordinary people couldn't see it with the naked eye at all.

Sure enough, Ah Sheng really felt that the pressure on his body was much less, and even his breathing was smoother.

"The higher you go, the more pressure you're carrying. So, every time you go up, you have to use more vitality to support your body. Especially in the end, once you are deflated, the power of more than 500 catties can squash you. Sword Soul said.

Ah Sheng didn't even have the strength to nod his head, he wanted to ascend to the top while using the sword qi technique, and he also had to absorb the heaven and earth vitality while condensing the qi. If he hadn't practiced thousands of times along the way, he wouldn't have been able to do it.

But even so, Ah Sheng went extremely hard. There are constantly people passing by him, and they are all people who already have a good sense of Taoism, and the pressure of a few hundred catties is not a big deal for them at all.

"Many, how many steps?" Ah Sheng asked inwardly, his hands on his knees, already wet with sweat.

"Come on, hold on!" the sword soul cheered Ah Sheng up.

I don't know how long it took, Ah Sheng really couldn't stand still, propped his hands on the stone steps, and climbed up step by step.

"Also, how many more?"

"There's not much, work harder!" Sword Soul continued to cheer up.

In the end, Ah Sheng had to stop and breathe for a long time every step he climbed, and he would not ask how many steps were left, because his spirit was already in a trance, and he almost relied on his body instinct to climb up.

Faintly, Ah Sheng seemed to hear a noisy sound.

Suddenly, Ah Sheng felt a pain in his heart, and his body slammed, as if a leather ball suddenly expanded, and his skin was about to burst, as if it was about to explode. He couldn't help but open his mouth and spit out a mouthful of turbid air, accompanied by a mouthful of blood.

A broad palm suddenly pressed against Ah Sheng's back, and a powerful and gentle force was injected into his body, suppressing those suddenly expanding vitality.

Ah Sheng slowly came to his senses, he opened his eyes slightly, and found that the scene around him had changed, and there were many people standing around him, looking at him in amazement.

"This boy, I saw him lying motionless on the stone steps, and I thought he was dead, but I didn't expect to climb up. ”

"It's unbelievable that an ordinary person with no Taoism can climb the ladder. ”

But that's the end of it. The next two levels, he can't pass it anyway-"

Ah Sheng realized that the noise he vaguely heard before turned out to be the discussion of these people. And he, unconsciously, has stepped over 10,800 stone steps and successfully ascended the West Mountain Gate.

Ah Sheng turned his head and saw a big man with a beard on his face, looking dazed.

"Your body is weak, and the external pressure drops sharply when you step up the ladder, and if you don't adjust it in time, the compressed vitality in your body will burst. Dahan said lightly.

Ah Sheng came to his senses, and it was this person who saved him.

"Thank you, Venerable, for saving your life. Ah Sheng was grateful, and knelt on the ground. If you die after climbing the ladder, it will be a joke.

The big man raised his hand slightly, and an invisible force held Ah Sheng up.

"There is gold under the knees of a man, and he is not allowed to kneel except for the prince of heaven and earth. Dahan said in a condensed voice.

"You saved my life, and you should be a reborn parent. Ah Sheng wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and asked in a condensed voice, "Dare to ask the benefactor's name?"

"Hahaha, you don't have to worry about it, saving your life is just a gesture. The big man smiled and turned away, and he returned to the crowd and took the hand of a little girl about twelve or thirteen years old.

The little girl was extremely delicate, looking at Ah Sheng with a pair of big smart eyes, and then looked up at the big man, as if she had asked something.

The big man said to the little girl with a smile.

Ah Sheng couldn't hear their conversation, but he guessed that it was a father and daughter.

"If he hadn't rescued you just now, I would have been able to keep you from dying, but you might be injured—" The voice of the sword soul sounded in Ah Sheng's heart.

Ah Sheng nodded.

"Next, there are two more levels-"