After Bai Zhimiao left, Shi Yi began surveying his surroundings.
Naturally, the eighteen Sky-Supporting Pillars drew the most attention. Majestic and imposing, they towered there in magnificent splendor, displaying Heavenfall Academy's extraordinary foundations.
Outside the mountain gate, the entrance teemed with people. Countless beings and brilliant young prodigies from Heavenfall Province and the several surrounding provinces all longed to join the academy.
At a glance, beings of every race were present. Most were young, and there were even many children already showing exceptional promise, their bearing spirited and full of youthful vigor.
They gathered before the so-called Heavenly Gate, staring at the ancient, weatherworn stone steps ahead with a trace of longing in their eyes.
According to Heavenfall Academy's rules, anyone who could take three steps up this stone stairway to the Heavenly Gate would qualify to join the academy.
There were nine tiers of stone steps, symbolizing the supreme Nine Heavens. Each step represented one heaven, and every tier posed a different degree of trial. Heavenfall Academy used these to rank cultivators.
The more steps a cultivator climbed, the stronger their talent, combat prowess, comprehension, and other qualities were, and the better their treatment would be after joining Heavenfall Academy.
A young prodigy had once climbed five heavens in succession, startling an academy elder who accepted him as a personal disciple. A First Generation had also ascended to the sixth heaven, drawing an academy supreme elder out of seclusion to instruct them personally...
Generally speaking, even the greatest prodigy of a tribe numbering in the tens of millions would struggle to reach the minimum requirement-the Third Heaven. Those qualified to reach it were the elite among elites, truly outstanding prospects for cultivation.
Beyond that, at the fourth, fifth, and sixth heavens, the numbers dwindled exponentially. Those who could reach