Desperate Strait

Such precise control and application of strength.

It was simply inhuman.

They really wanted to peel off his human skin and see if there was a machine underneath.

This simply wasn't something a human could do.

Once again, they observed a moment of silence for the other Observer contestants.

Having an opponent like this was simply their misfortune.

They were so damn miserable.

But as they mourned for them, they suddenly started crying.

Because, no matter how miserable those contestants were, they would receive tens of millions of US dollars in compensation.

As long as they came back alive, they would be winners in life, with mansions, luxury cars, and beautiful women.

They would reach the peak of their lives in minutes.

And here they were, thinking of pitying others.

Only to discover that they were the most pitiable ones.

Fuck this damn life!

The host, Brian, had also gone pale with fright. Although he had this inclination, that didn't mean he was incapable of fear.

For a moment there, he had thought Ye Jin was about to fall.

He licked his lips and calmed himself down, though his expression remained complicated.

"Although I don't know much about rock climbing, I've seen some promotional videos. Something this difficult is practically world-class."

"That move just now should qualify as a god-tier move straight out of a textbook."

"In all my years on the job, this is the first time I've met someone so bizarre. I really want to know what other surprises he'll bring us later."

Ye Jin knew nothing about what the outside world was saying about him.

After getting past that deathly obstacle just now.

The rest of the journey went relatively smoothly.

It was much smoother compared to the deadly obstacle before, but for ordinary people, it was still an impassable chasm.

Directly in front of him was a crack that had opened up just right.

It gave him an excellent opportunity.

The crack was only wide enough to fit a few fingers inside.

But it was very long.

It stretched over a hundred meters.

Perhaps to an ordinary person, this crack would have been utterly useless.

But in his eyes, it was a godsend.

His ladder to climb.

If the surface had truly been as smooth as a mirror, without the slightest place to get a grip.

Then even with his skills honed to the utmost, there would have been nothing he could do.

Because that was something no human strength could accomplish.

But as long as he was given the slightest foothold, he could use his master talent to turn an incredibly tiny flaw into a ladder to the heavens.

That was his confidence.

His hands hooked into the crack while his feet climbed steadily over the protruding rocks.

Even if there was only the tiniest point to use, he could make the most of it.

He thrust his hand into the crack and gripped the inside tightly, his fingers twisted out of shape.

The people watching from beyond the screen sucked in one cold breath after another, terrified that he would exert himself and tear the crack in the entire rock wide open, then lose his grip and plunge off the cliff.

Ye Jin kept alternating his hands.

Moving upward in coordination with his feet.

He adjusted the rhythm of his breathing.

He matched the frequency of his breaths to the movement of his hands, putting all his strength, from the inside out, exactly where it was needed.

Not the slightest bit was wasted.

Under everyone's astonished gazes.

He moved incredibly fast.

Every step was perfectly steady.

With each step he took upward, the crowd cried out in alarm.

He moved so fast that it was nothing like rock climbing without any safety measures.

250 meters,

280 meters,

300 meters,

350 meters,

400 meters,

420 meters!

Just one crack.

Had allowed him to climb more than two hundred meters farther.

Over those two hundred-plus meters, Ye Jin gained a large number of calories.

The strain on his body began to reach a certain level.

But his eyes were filled with excitement.

Because doing all this was no challenge to him.

If the crack continued, he could climb to the summit at the same speed.

Without pausing in the slightest.

He was just that strong!

Unfortunately, the crack had already reached its end.

Above him was a recess.

Seeing how fast he was going, this person wished they could lean close to his ear and tell him to slow down.

It was simply too nerve-racking.

Every step was a step into hell!

No matter how strong you are, don't be this reckless!

When he reached this height, everyone looked down from above again and felt even dizzier.

Those who were afraid of heights could no longer bear to watch and could only follow the progress through other people's written accounts.

This was the true high ground of death.

When they saw the recess above.

They no longer knew what to think.

There.

How was he supposed to get up?

Some curious people used software to simulate dozens of methods, but none found an optimal solution.

No matter the direction or route, each was as dangerous as the next. One mistake, and he would fall off the cliff.

The area around the recess was exceptionally smooth, so the only way out was upward.

But the rock above protruded nearly twenty centimeters beyond the rock below.

Don't underestimate those twenty centimeters. For a sport that demanded physical conditioning honed to the utmost, they were fatal.

Because of those twenty centimeters, he would have to extend part of his body outward to reach the rock above.

Fortunately, there were plenty of protruding rocks above.

There was simply nowhere to get a grip below.

In other words, if he could only leave by going up.

Then all the strength in his body would have to be concentrated in his hands.

He would have to rely entirely on the strength of his hands to climb up. By then, his entire body would be suspended in the air outside, and if his hands slipped, he would truly plunge into a bottomless abyss.

The viewers looked at the simulation images posted online and were nearly scared senseless.

"How could anyone possibly do that? Supporting the weight of his entire body with both hands on those tiny protruding rocks is completely impossible."

"This is practically courting death. He can use that recess to stop and rest. Production team, why don't you end the competition? Otherwise, I can't shake the feeling something will happen."

"My eyelid keeps twitching. What the simulation shows isn't something a human can do, and his hands are so weak. How is he supposed to manage it?"

Ye Jin couldn't hear their cries.

Even if he had, he wouldn't have paid them any attention.

He took a short rest in the recess.

After such a long trek, his arms had begun to ache, but for him, who had loosened his shackles a little, it was only a trace of fatigue.

And his stamina was recovering at a frantic pace.

In just a few minutes, his strength returned to its original level.

The crowd was still calling out.

But Ye Jin had already rested enough.

He looked up and outward.

Only by stretching both hands upward could he barely touch the upper edge of the recess.

He stuck his head out twenty centimeters and barely managed to see the route above.

A plan instantly formed in his mind.

He braced his hands against the rock face above.

And leaned his body outward.

His feet stood on the very edge of the recess.

If his feet slipped, he could fall off the cliff.

His movements drew wave after wave of startled cries.

Under the crowd's utterly horrified gazes.

He pushed upward with all his strength.

His entire body flew out over the cliff, skimming the rock face above.

It seemed that in the next moment... he would fall!