The oppressive force of the Calamity Realm pressed down on everyone like a towering mountain.
The seemingly endless staircase gradually began to overwhelm many teams.
"Damn it, shouldn't this be a team fight?"
"Why are you here to climb the stairs?!"
Li Chen looked at the many fallen teams around him, then at the dark steps, and murmured, "Is this really all there is to it?"
"Then why did Instructor Yu say it was both a test and a battle?"
He was somewhat puzzled, and this place seemed to be a real place, although it was only simulated by an illusion, but the realism was almost indistinguishable from a fake.
Li Chen looked up at the still-burning torch, and the wall below it, which was illuminated, was covered with blackened, dried liquid for some reason.
"Blood?"
At this moment, Jianping walked to his side. However, Jianping's face was slightly pale. Although only half of the oppressive aura that was constantly descending was actually felt by his body, it was still terrifying.
He pursed his lips and said, "Dawn Pass, the border pass!"
"One of the Four Great Passes for Human Race to resist Eerie Monsters!"
Li Chen listened to his explanation, a series of scenes instantly flashed through his mind.
He had roughly guessed what was going on with the liquid on the walls, but he hadn't expected this illusion to be so significant.
Stepping onto these steps, one realizes that this is the first line of defense for the Human Race against the Eerie Monsters.
Although it was just an illusion, everything felt so real.
What follows will certainly not be so simple.
Not far from them, two teams were already arguing loudly.
A young girl dressed in Lolita fashion stood next to Ji Shao, muttering curses.
"Su Xian, what kind of man are you, you son of a bitch?"
"This is the Heart-Questioning Road, the illusion of Dawn Pass, and you actually used your own abilities!"
A hint of a smile flashed in Su Xian's eyes; she showed no anger at her words.
Why don't you ask your sister Ji Shao? Ask her if she used her powers too?
"I'm just trying to get through this."
"There are many more interesting places ahead, I'm not going to waste my time here with you guys."
After saying that, he called out to his teammates and quickly started climbing upwards.
A hint of anger flickered in the little girl's eyes. Ji Shao, standing beside her, patted her head gently and said, "Xiaowan is gone, but we can't fall behind. This Heart-Questioning Road isn't so simple; this is just the first hurdle."
Although it's called climbing stairs, the competition begins the moment they take their first step.
Yu Qingnian, who was observing from one side, shook his head and murmured, "I didn't expect that the first checkpoint alone would stop so many people."
"Unlikely to achieve great things."
Li Chen and his companions followed the path illuminated by the torches, moving forward step by step.
Although Li Chen was under immense pressure, Su Zhe and the others were not having an easy time either.
"Chen-ge, how about I fill in for you for a bit?" Su Zhe asked, his expression somewhat pale.
They had already climbed nearly half of the stairs, and Li Chen had carried that terrifying sense of oppression all the way to this point. Even though they were only halfway up, they could still feel the terror, let alone the fact that there had been no reduction in pressure.
"No need." Li Chen frowned, seemingly not feeling much pressure.
He was almost familiar with this oppressive feeling; after all, it wasn't as terrifying as the one inside him.
This one is just a straight line, while the white steps keep going up, with almost no upper limit.
Compared to this, it's like comparing a small fry to a big fish.
Su Zhe sighed and stepped back behind him, sighing again.
Luo Lin and Meng Xi walked silently behind, without saying a word, remaining quite silent.
Knowing they couldn't hold out for long if they stepped up, they stopped holding the team back.
Jianping's eyes were filled with unreadable thoughts, and a woman's voice kept echoing in his mind.
"Xiaopingping, don't you want to experience that feeling of oppression?"
"Should we make Xiaochenchen keep going?"
"That's the pressure of the Calamity Realm cultivator!"
Jianping's expression turned somewhat unpleasant, and he let out a cold snort.
"Shut up."
Then, looking at Li Chen's advancing figure, he walked up to him.
"Hmm?" Li Chen looked at Jianping beside him with some confusion.
I'll do it for you.
Before Li Chen could speak again, Jianping Li Chen already walked in front of him.
Instantly, an immense sense of oppression descended upon Jianping, and for a moment, Jianping's eyes showed some shock.
He was shocked that Li Chen could walk for so long under this oppressive aura, and he was also shocked by how intense this oppressive aura was.
No wonder those teams that were still moving forward were taking turns climbing up little by little, unlike them who were carrying the whole thing by themselves.
However, Li Chen smiled.
In truth, the oppressive force of this Calamity Realm was nothing to him.
When Su Zhe saw that Li Chen had been pushed down by Jianping, he immediately told Li Chen to stay in the back and be ready to take over from Jianping at any time.
I don't know how much time has passed...
They finally reached the top of the stairs and looked back; their group was actually ahead of many others.
"Damn, this is killing me." Su Zhe lay on the ground, panting heavily. The oppressive aura had disappeared, leaving only a blood-stained doorway at the end.
Li Chen laughed and said, "You just don't exercise enough."
However, he didn't actually feel anything up to this point in his Heart-Questioning Road.
Then he looked at the blood-stained door.
"What will happen next?" Li Chen slowly placed his hand on the door, a sense of mystery appearing and disappearing.
A "click" sound rang out.
The gate slowly opened.
The sounds of countless swords clashing rang out, as if they had entered the most realistic battlefield.
Countless phantoms of Sequence User flashed past them, their abilities appearing everywhere as if they were free.
They stood in the center of the battlefield, where the Sequence User and the Eerie Monsters fought a life-or-death struggle before them.
In the distance, a large door, shimmering with a faint light, had already opened.
But now, Eerie Monsters are surging towards them like a tide.
"Is this the true battlefield of Dawn Pass?" A trace of solemnity flashed in Li Chen's eyes. He had never seen such a war before, where human lives were as worthless as grass and Eerie Monsters as numerous as the tide.
Neither news reports nor mobile phone reports have ever covered the situation here, and no one has ever been willing to come here, so they are unaware of it.
This time they saw it, and finally understood why the borders needed strong people to protect them.
They were never there to guard that particular pass, but rather for the vast Human Race itself!
If these Eerie Monsters were to enter their city, the entire city would likely be destroyed in an instant.
Su Zhe, Jianping, and the others remained silent, simply watching as the Sequence User recklessly charged towards the Eerie Monsters tide.
Life is trampled on mercilessly, like that of an insect.
It was as if everything had lost its meaning.