The map was called [Conquer the Perilous Mountain]. The mountain had a 60-degree slope and a very wide perimeter. With ten thousand people spread out at the foot of the mountain, there wouldn't be any scramble to gain an early advantage in the first round.
Everyone started on the same line. The instant the countdown disappeared, all ten thousand surged forward together, making for a spectacular sight.
Did a 60-degree slope even count as a mountain?
Wasn't this just a big incline?
That was exactly what Jiang Liu thought. He pushed off the ground with one foot, leaving a small, shallow dent in the stone beneath him. His body shot forward like an arrow, covering more than ten meters in the blink of an eye and leaving everyone else in the dust.
He was completely different today from the way he'd been yesterday.
After tempering his body again and again, his physical strength had doubled on top of his Qi Refining Layer 8 foundation. His attack power, defense, and speed were all far beyond those of others at the same level.
With every step, he drove himself forward, leaving a trail of shallow footprints on the mountainside. Li Dongze stared at the sight, dumbfounded.
Li Dongze had been right beside Jiang Liu. He'd only seen a dark blur flash past his eyes. When he looked up again, Jiang Liu was already twenty meters ahead.
What kind of speed was that?
Had he gone shopping in the Permanent Pool again in just one day?
"Buddy, give me a hand!"
Li Dongze shamelessly called out, hoping Jiang Liu would take him along. They were buddies, after all. It wasn't asking too much to get him into the top ten, was it?
"Can't help you. Go make yourself useful somewhere else!"
Jiang Liu didn't even look back. His eyes were fixed on the summit. He pushed off, soaring several meters into the air, and moved across the steep mountainside as easily as if it were flat ground.
Too easy. Not the slightest bit challenging.
He'd take first place in this round just as easily, wouldn't he?
Jiang Liu thought to himself. He took a moment to glance behind him and saw that the dense mass of people had fallen nearly a hundred meters back.
The giant fireball close behind him was another twenty or thirty meters back, and the gap was only growing.
So much for a Pure Yang Body and Supreme Fire Spiritual Root. Su Weiyang, you're not up to it either.
He glanced to either side behind him. A man of incredible height came into view, making Jiang Liu's eyes narrow and a look of surprise cross his face.
Damn, that guy was tall!
He had to be two meters and forty centimeters, right?
His long legs were pumping like crazy, and he was actually keeping up with Jiang Liu!
And on closer inspection, there was someone riding on the tall man's back.
He could carry someone and still keep up with me?
As expected of the second round. Every player was one in ten thousand, so there were bound to be a few freaks.
Jiang Liu pressed his lips together, reined in his pride, and focused once more on making his way to the summit.
Only a few people stood out from the ten thousand. Racing up an entirely exposed mountainside made them impossible to miss. When Jiang Liu spotted the other man, the other man spotted him too.
"Damn, did that brat take some kind of performance enhancer?"
Yao Xiang glanced at Jiang Liu, who was moving even faster than him, and cursed with a dark expression.
He was the provincial marathon champion, the provincial obstacle-course champion, and a two-meter-forty-tall powerhouse in a long robe. How could he lose a race to some kid?
It was impossible!
That idiot on his back had to be holding him back!
When he'd signed up for the Parkour King event, he'd already made it quite clear that the Parkour King on this King's Track would be his boss.
Those long legs gave him the confidence to swagger, and a mid-grade movement technique gave him the confidence to look down on everyone else.
He could say without hesitation that the rest of them were trash.
But what the hell was up with that shorty?
One of my strides equals two of yours. My legs are almost as long as you are tall, and I've even learned a movement technique. How come I still can't catch you?
Referee, someone's cheating!
"Is that... Fellow Daoist Jiang?"
Wang Hui squinted at the man behind Yao Xiang, then froze for a moment. The joy of running into someone familiar far from home washed over him. He raised an arm and waved at Jiang Liu. "Fellow Daoist Jiang!"
"Yao Xiang, move over that way!"
Huh?
Hearing someone call out to him, Jiang Liu turned his head without thinking. He saw a huge bald head sticking out from behind the two-meter-forty giant as the man moved closer to him. Jiang Liu couldn't help feeling speechless. "Boss Wang, you sure know how to take it easy."
He was pushing himself to full speed up the mountain, while someone beside him was getting carried up. How unfair.
"Hahaha, not bad, right? Take a look at my mount. Pretty badass, huh?"
Wang Hui felt as though he'd regained the dignity he'd lost over the previous two days. He proudly patted Yao Xiang on the shoulder. "Let me introduce you. This is Yao Xiang, the provincial champion. I paid a hefty price to hire him. What do you think? Does he meet with Fellow Daoist Jiang's approval?"
Mount?
Yao Xiang's face went black. He nearly threw Boss Wang off right then and there, but then he thought of that pile of gleaming Spirit Stones and silently held back. He turned to Jiang Liu and said with a fake smile, "Kid, which sports school are you from? You've got a lot of potential, running that fast. Just say the word, and I'll talk to your coach and tell him to give you some special training."
"Who the hell are you calling 'kid'? Call me big brother!"
Before Jiang Liu could reply, Wang Hui smacked Yao Xiang on the back of the head and smiled warmly at Jiang Liu. "He's a bit thickheaded. Don't take it personally."
Damn it!
Yao Xiang was furious. He was about to let go and throw Wang Hui off the mountain, but then he remembered those dozen or so burly men in black suits and silently tightened his grip instead.
"Heh, he's a talent. Boss Wang, you've got a keen eye."
Jiang Liu saw the two-meter-forty-tall man glaring at him and gave an awkward chuckle. "Boss Wang, so you're getting a free pass into the top ten."
"Top ten? No, no."
Wang Hui shook his head and smiled. "I'm going for Parkour King!"
"Uh..."
Jiang Liu paused. "With that mount of yours?"
"Is that not enough?"
Wang Hui asked.
"Not enough."
Jiang Liu answered seriously, then paid them no further attention. He increased his speed and suddenly opened up a gap of several meters.
You think you can win Parkour King while being carried?
You really don't take my Qi Refining Layer 8 seriously!
Just as he was about to leave the two of them in the dust, his body suddenly jerked to a halt. His feet felt as if they'd been glued to the ground, and his whole body froze in place.
At the same time, a prompt sounded in his mind.
[You have been attacked by an Immobilization Talisman. Movement prohibited for 2 seconds.] [The Immobilization Talisman is too low-grade. The effect has been resisted.]
Jiang Liu: "?????"
"Hahahaha, sorry about that, Fellow Daoist Jiang. It is a competition, after all!"
Wang Hui's shiny bald head flashed past Jiang Liu's eyes, his face brimming with smug delight.
Qi Refining Layer 8? Eight magical artifacts?
You still fell for my trick!
A few casual words, and you'd already let your guard down. Young people were young people. They had no idea how dark the world could be!
"Ah, I meant to treat everyone kindly, but they didn't treat me kindly in return."
Jiang Liu watched helplessly as Wang Hui rode Yao Xiang past him. He sighed softly and silently pulled out the Law Restraint Rope, tossing it casually toward Wang Hui.
I'd been looking for a chance to test whether magical artifacts were allowed in this event. Well, now someone else had made the first move.
An Immobilization Talisman?
The effect was resisted?
Boss Wang, you're pretty bold, trying to use that piece of disposable junk on me.
Before you continue