The mountain was silent.
Thousands of applicants stood before the immense staircase, their eyes fixed on the path that wound upward until it disappeared into the clouds.
The Headmaster slowly stepped aside.
An elderly instructor carrying a long scroll walked forward.
His voice was clear and powerful.
"The staircase before you is known as the Ten Thousand Steps."
"It is the first examination."
"It is not a race."
"You are forbidden from attacking, obstructing, or deliberately interfering with other applicants."
"Violators will be immediately disqualified."
A murmur spread through the crowd.
Some looked relieved.
Others frowned.
The instructor continued.
"You may rest whenever you wish."
"You may withdraw whenever you wish."
"But once you step onto this mountain..."
"...you will reach the summit through your own effort."
He slowly rolled up the scroll.
"The examination begins..."
"...now."
BOOOONG!
A deep bell rang across the mountain.
Immediately...
Thousands of people surged forward.
---
Han Zhen
"The path is mine!"
Han Zhen laughed as crimson Martial Qi erupted around his legs.
His powerful strides covered several steps at once.
Applicants instinctively moved aside.
"What speed!"
"As expected of Crimson Saber Hall!"
Within moments...
He had disappeared far ahead of the crowd.
---
Jian Yu
Unlike Han Zhen...
Jian Yu simply began walking.
His breathing remained calm.
Each step was measured.
His robe barely fluttered.
His fellow disciples followed several paces behind.
"Senior Brother isn't rushing."
"Because he doesn't need to."
---
Zhao Lian
She placed one foot on the staircase.
Then another.
Elegant.
Graceful.
Neither fast nor slow.
Her attendants remained below, silently watching until she disappeared among the applicants.
---
Kael
He looked at the endless staircase.
"...That's quite high."
Rowan adjusted the spear on his back.
"...Shouldn't we hurry?"
Kael looked toward the crowd racing ahead.
"Why?"
"So we don't fall behind!"
Kael thought seriously.
"The summit isn't moving."
Rowan blinked.
"...I suppose it isn't."
Kael nodded.
"Then walking normally should be fine."
Without another word...
He began climbing.
One step.
Then another.
His breathing remained perfectly even.
His posture unchanged.
His pace...
Completely ordinary.
---
High above...
Several Martial High instructors observed the staircase from stone platforms.
One young instructor laughed.
"Look at them."
"Half of them are treating this like a sprint."
The elderly instructor nodded.
"They'll regret it."
---
After climbing nearly a thousand steps...
The first signs of exhaustion appeared.
Many applicants slowed considerably.
Some leaned against stone railings.
Others drank water greedily.
Han Zhen finally reduced his pace.
"...This mountain..."
He muttered.
"...is steeper than I expected."
Even he had begun breathing harder.
---
Far behind him...
Kael continued walking.
His pace hadn't changed.
He wasn't overtaking large groups.
Nor was he trying to conserve energy deliberately.
He simply climbed.
Exactly as he had climbed mountains nearly every day throughout his childhood.
To him...
Steps were merely another kind of trail.
---
Meanwhile...
Several arrogant applicants laughed as they hurried past slower climbers.
"Out of the way!"
"If you can't even climb stairs..."
"Forget Martial High!"
One exhausted youth clenched his fists but said nothing.
The rules prohibited fighting.
---
Rowan wiped sweat from his forehead.
"...How..."
"...are you still breathing normally?"
Kael looked puzzled.
"...Shouldn't I be?"
"We've climbed for almost two hours!"
Kael looked down the mountain.
"...Have we?"
"I didn't notice."
Rowan stared.
"...You're unbelievable."
Kael smiled apologetically.
"I used to collect herbs higher than this."
Rowan froze.
"...Higher?"
Kael nodded.
"Our cabin was near the middle of the mountain."
"I usually climbed to the summit before breakfast."
"...Every day."
Rowan nearly stumbled.
"...Before breakfast?"
"...Grandpa said it woke me up."
Rowan laughed bitterly.
"I think your grandfather had a strange definition of waking up."
---
At the three-thousandth step...
The crowd had stretched dramatically.
The confident expressions from earlier were gradually disappearing.
Many applicants had already withdrawn.
Some sat beside the staircase, unable to continue.
Others looked frustrated.
"I trained for three years..."
"...and I can't even climb a mountain?"
One instructor quietly recorded another withdrawal.
---
Far above...
The elderly instructor's attention drifted toward Kael.
"...Interesting."
His pace...
Still hadn't changed.
The younger instructor frowned.
"He isn't fast."
"No."
"He isn't."
"But look carefully."
The younger instructor observed again.
Then his expression slowly changed.
"...His breathing..."
"Hasn't changed at all."
"Exactly."
---
Elsewhere...
Jian Yu also noticed.
As he overtook another group of applicants...
His gaze briefly landed on the ordinary young man climbing several hundred steps below.
Gray clothes.
Simple backpack.
Steady breathing.
Unchanging pace.
For just a brief moment...
Jian Yu's brows furrowed.
"...Strange."
One of his fellow disciples followed his gaze.
"What is it, Senior Brother?"
"...Nothing."
He continued climbing.
Yet...
For the first time...
He had remembered someone's face.
---
The sun slowly climbed higher into the sky.
The staircase became hotter.
Sweat soaked countless robes.
Legs grew heavier.
The sounds of labored breathing echoed throughout the mountain.
Only a handful of applicants still maintained their original pace.
Among them...
Almost unnoticed...
Walked the quiet mountain youth.
His thoughts remained simple.
"Grandpa was right."
"Mountain paths become easier if you don't think about how far remains."
He took another step.
Then another.
Never looking toward the summit.
Never looking behind him.
Simply continuing forward.
And high above...
More than one instructor had quietly begun writing down a single name.
Kael.
Not because he was the fastest.
Nor because he was the strongest.
But because...
Among thousands striving to prove themselves...
He climbed as naturally as though he were simply walking home.
End of Chapter 18