"Ah, kill me, Big Brother, I could only manage about forty steps of the Ice God Hall's staircase, and now I have to climb one hundred and thirty-six steps!"
Zhu Zhuqing and the others didn't speak, only looked at her and Nami with a hint of pity. The others only needed to climb one hundred and eight steps.
And Nami, with the highest assessment level, needed to climb a full three hundred and thirty-three steps.
"Silly girl, my staircase only has ninety-nine steps in total, and just because you can't stand the cold doesn't mean you can't withstand the pressure. Don't scare yourself like this."
"Is that so? Then this young lady feels like I can do it again!"
Hearing her Big Brother say that the Sea God's Light wasn't as difficult as the icy staircase, Ning Rongrong immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
"Let's go try it after we eat. If we don't feel the difficulty, I always feel itchy in my heart."
"Okay, I feel the same way. Let's go after we eat."
Dugu Yan's words received unanimous approval from the group, and they all decided to try the waters immediately.
After eating, the group summoned Sha Lan, wanting to go to the Sea God Forbidden Ground to accept the assessment.
Sha Lan didn't object. She had already received the Sea Maiden Douluo's notification that everything should be based on the will of these children.
"Follow me!"
The group followed Sha Lan up the hills behind the city, and only then did they see the full view of the entire Sea God Island. It was a donut-shaped ring island, and the seven cities where the holy pillars were located were scattered in the seven directions of the island, while the center of the island was a large expanse of ocean.
Sha Lan took the group on a boat to the central sea, and after sailing hundreds of nautical miles, they discovered the island in the center of the ocean.
"Is that the Sea God Forbidden Ground?"
"That's right. Only those who accept the Black Level or higher assessment need to come here for the assessment. I wish you all the best."
Arriving on the central island and passing through a forest, when the group stopped, a square dome-shaped building like carved from white jade appeared at the top of the island's center.
From a distance, the building was full of sacred light, and the road leading to the top was covered with steps that stretched as far as the eye could see.
"This is the Sea God Island's Forbidden Ground, and the top is the Sea God Hall, and these steps are the content of your assessment, a total of one thousand and one steps."
"One thousand and one steps? I thought Nami's three hundred and thirty-three steps were the end of it?"
Xiao Wu clicked her tongue when she heard the number of steps. After exchanging glances with her companions, she took the lead and rushed towards the steps, muttering to herself as she sprinted.
"Xiao Wu will see what's so difficult about these steps!"
The Little Rabbit's reaction was very sudden, and before Sha Lan and Ning Bei could stop her, she had already arrived in front of the first step.
"Bang."
"Ouch!"
Xiao Wu had just planned to jump ten or eight steps in one breath when she was bounced back by an invisible energy, landing on her butt in front of everyone.
"Pfft."
Ning Rongrong almost couldn't hold back her laughter. Xiao Wu's appearance of rushing up first but now flying back with a gray face was too funny.
"Hey, there seems to be an invisible wall in front. It just bounced Xiao Wu back."
Ning Bei stepped forward and pulled the Little Rabbit up from the ground, slapping her head in annoyance.
"You have to walk here. No matter how much strength you use to jump or rush up, you will be bounced back with the same amount of force. Just walk honestly!"
Hearing this, everyone suddenly understood, and Little Rabbit even glared at Ning Bei.
"Big Brother Ning Bei, why didn't you say so earlier? You made me look bad."
"Did you give me a chance? You rushed forward before I could even say two words."
Ning Bei spread his hands, indicating that he wouldn't take the blame.
"This gentleman is right. The steps in front of the Sea God Hall can only be ascended by relying on physical strength. Any other method is impossible."
After listening to Sha Lan and Ning Bei's explanation, everyone gave up the idea of taking shortcuts. Nami took a breath and took the lead in stepping onto the first step.
As soon as she stood still, a pressure came from all directions, trying to push her down the steps, like pressing a water-filled balloon with a finger.
Seeing Nami successfully climbed the first step, the others followed suit and began their climbing journey.
Nami also moved her feet towards the second step. Standing on the second step, Nami clearly felt that the pressure that wanted to bounce her away was a bit stronger, estimating it to be about ten percent higher than the first step.
Next, Nami quickened her pace, wanting to see where her current limit was. Five steps, ten steps, all the way to the twentieth step. At this time, Nami's pace had slowed down, and sweat had oozed from her temples and forehead. After glancing upwards, Nami gritted her teeth and continued to climb.
Having reached the thirtieth step, the resistance coming from all directions had made Nami a little breathless. Sweat on her forehead began to drip like water droplets, leaving water stains on the steps, and her movements became difficult.
Unwilling to give up, Nami immediately released her Spirit, and the Third Spirit Skill, Tide-Calling Blessing, was activated, comprehensively enhancing her physical attributes. Feeling that her body had suddenly become lighter, Nami continued to climb towards the upper steps.
This time, Nami climbed to the fortieth step in one breath. The feeling of suffocation came again. This time, she was completely helpless. Her whole body relaxed, and her body was directly bounced away by the pressure.
Ning Rongrong, who was still familiarizing herself with the resistance on the steps, let out a cry of surprise when she felt Nami flying past her.
"Nami, are you okay?"
"I'm fine, just a little exhausted. The resistance above is so strong!"
Seeing that Nami was fine, Ning Rongrong breathed a sigh of relief. After a brief exchange, Nami began to meditate in place to recover her Soul Power.
Dugu Yan, due to her highest cultivation, quickly came to the fiftieth step. After looking back for a moment, she directly began to meditate and cultivate in place at Ning Bei's instruction, planning to climb again after her body adapted to the pressure here.
Among the other companions, Xiao Wu and Long Nianbing, who had the highest physical strength, also came to the steps where Nami had just been. Both of them were now sweating profusely, and it was clear that they were also approaching their limit.
In contrast, the mental-type Spirit Masters Ye Yinzhu and Zhu Zhuqing were much worse. The two stopped at the thirty-fifth step, lifting and lowering one leg several times, but failed to move themselves further.
The most speechless one was the little good-for-nothing Ning Rongrong. This girl's face was flushed red on the fifteenth step, and it was clear that she was the worst in terms of physical strength.
Looking at her companions who were far away from her, Ning Rongrong felt ashamed and annoyed. She raised her left hand, and a hazy light flashed. The Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda was summoned by her.
"Nine Treasures, Name Known·Working Non-Stop."
Ning Rongrong was working for herself for the first time. After five rays of light entered her body, she immediately felt full of strength, and she scurried up several steps.
Arriving at the twenty-eighth step, Ning Rongrong once again resumed her flushed appearance, and let out an unwilling roar:
"Ah!!! This is too difficult, how long will it take this young lady to climb one hundred and thirty-six steps?"
"Martial Aunt Rongrong, this month is the month of the monkey this year!"
Ning Rongrong: Is that what I meant?
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