Morning always came earlier to Spirit City than anywhere else.
The sun had not yet cleared the city walls, but golden light already lay before the Angel Temple. Three hundred and sixty-five Stone Steps climbed from the mountainside, each one looking freshly cut from the dawn, its edges glimmering with flecks of light.
Qian Renxue stood before the first step, once more dressed in the golden gown of Spirit Hall's young mistress. The angelic mark on her forehead glowed faintly, and the Six-Winged Angel unfurled behind her.
Bai Jin sat on a nearby railing, holding a bag of candy.
Hu Liena looked at the temple, then at him. "The young mistress is taking a trial, and you're sitting here eating. Is that appropriate?"
"I'm busy." Bai Jin crunched a piece of candy. "I'm in charge of distracting her with the smell."
Yan wanted to laugh, but held it in.
Qian Renxue glanced back at Bai Jin and stepped onto the Stone Steps.
Golden light fell.
The first steps were easy. Only at Level 30 did the pressure truly appear. The light did not press directly against her body. It seeped inward through the gaps in the flow of her Soul Power, magnifying every impurity it found.
Qian Renxue gradually slowed.
She had only recently absorbed her hundred-thousand-year Eighth Soul Ring, and her 260,000-year left leg Soul Bone carried a powerful spatial attribute. The two forces could normally coexist, but on the Luminous Staircase, they were like two rivers trying to squeeze through the same narrow gate.
At the hundred and twentieth step, silver light spilled from the edge of her left leg and cut a fine line into the Stone Steps.
"Lift your leg half an inch higher," Bai Jin said suddenly.
Qian Renxue did as he said without looking