Starting as the heir of a marquis's mansion, I gained access to a summoning system.

Dugu Xin —

Dugu Xin stood in a pitch-black forest, facing a shadow leopard that was entirely black.

The shadow leopard was ten feet long, its entire body covered in black fur, almost blending into the darkness. Its eyes gleamed with an eerie green light, and it moved silently among the shadows of the trees, as fast as a ghost.

A demonic beast at the peak of the Grandmaster level.

Dugu Xin closed his eyes, not to see with his eyes, but to hear with his ears.

In the sound of the wind, there were faint footsteps.

Front left.

He drew his sword.

A flash of sword light.

The shadow leopard let out a short, miserable cry, and its corpse fell from the shadows of the tree, with a thin line of blood on its throat.

One sword kills.

Dugu Xin sheathed his sword and walked toward the stone box behind the Shadow Leopard.

Inside was an ancient jade pendant, emitting a faint glow. Runes were engraved on the pendant, capable of concealing the wearer's aura.

"Not bad." Dugu Xin hung the jade pendant on his waist, turned around, and disappeared into the darkness.

Long Aotian —

Long Aotian stood on a wide open grassland, facing an armored rhinoceros.

The armored rhinoceros was three zhang long, its entire body covered in iron-gray scales, and a single horn on its head gleamed coldly. Its eyes were crimson, two streams of white breath spewed from its nostrils, and its four hooves pawed the ground, ready to charge at any moment.

A demonic beast at the peak of the Grandmaster level.

Long Aotian stretched his shoulders and grinned, "Come on, try bumping into someone."

The armored rhinoceros roared, lowered its head, and charged towards Long Aotian with its single horn pointing forward, like a runaway chariot.

The ground was trembling, and the grass was being trampled.

Long Aotian neither dodged nor evaded, but clenched his right fist and met the attack head-on.

He threw a punch, colliding head-on with the rhinoceros's horn.

"boom!"

A loud bang was heard, and shockwaves spread in all directions.

The armored rhinoceros's horn snapped off with a "crack," its massive head was blasted backward by the force of the punch, and its huge body tumbled in the air before crashing heavily to the ground, raising a cloud of dust.

Long Aotian withdrew his fist; not even the skin on it was broken.

"His strength is alright, but he's too clumsy," he muttered as he walked toward the stone box.

Open it, and inside is a martial arts manual—"Mountain Collapse Fist," a high-grade Earth-rank manual.

Long Aotian flipped through it and nodded: "You can practice it."

Selflessness—

The selfless young monk arrived at a secluded valley. In the valley was a small lake, and on the shore of the lake grew an ancient tree. Under the ancient tree, a white ape was crouching.

The white ape was pure white, with a robust physique and intelligent eyes that emitted a soft light. Unlike those ferocious demonic beasts, it showed no trace of murderous intent.

A demonic beast at the peak of the Grandmaster level.

The white ape bared its teeth at Wang Zi, but did not attack; it merely stared at him warily.

Forgetting himself, he walked up to the white ape, sat down cross-legged, put his hands together, and began to chant Buddhist scriptures.

"Thus have I heard. At one time the Buddha was staying in the country of Shravasti..."

His voice was calm and clear, like a mountain spring flowing gently.

The wariness in the white ape's eyes gradually faded, replaced by a sense of tranquility. It lay down, closed its eyes, and seemed to be listening to Buddhist scriptures.

After reciting the Buddhist scriptures three times, the white ape opened its eyes, which were now devoid of any ferocity. It obediently lowered its head, nuzzled its head against the hand that was so engrossed in the chanting, then stood up and made way for an ancient tree behind it.

Beneath the ancient tree, there is a stone box.

He got up, walked to the stone box, and opened it.

Inside was a round relic, radiating golden Buddhist light, warm and peaceful.

"Amitabha." Wangwo clasped his hands together, bowed slightly to the white ape, and said, "Well done, well done."

The white ape let out a soft cry, turned, and disappeared into the woods.

He put away the relics without hesitation and turned to leave.

Returning to the Origin—

The young Taoist priest Guiyuan arrived at a mountain stream. The stream was crystal clear, and fish and shrimp swam around in it.

A giant blue wolf lay by the stream, resting with its eyes closed. It was entirely blue, its fur smooth as satin, and there was a stone box beside it.

A demonic beast at the first level of the Grandmaster realm.

Guiyuan neither drew his sword nor cast a spell. He walked up to the giant blue wolf, swept his whisk, and a wisp of pure energy entered the wolf's body.

The giant wolf opened its eyes, glanced at Guiyuan, yawned, and then closed its eyes again.

After a few breaths, it fell into a deep sleep, snoring loudly.

Gui Yuan smiled slightly, walked to the giant wolf's side, and opened the stone box.

Inside was a scroll of Taoist wisdom, with four characters written on the cover: "The Sutra of Purity and Tranquility".

"The Tao follows nature," Guiyuan murmured, putting the scripture into his sleeve and drifting away.

Eastern Bright Moon—

Dongfang Mingyue arrived at a fiery canyon, where lava flowed and heat rose.

A giant, fiery red python coiled around the edge of the lava pool, its entire body engulfed in flames and radiating terrifying heat.

A demonic beast at the first level of the Grandmaster realm.

Without hesitation, Dongfang Mingyue drew her sword and unleashed a slash.

Sunset Sword Technique: The Setting Sun is Like Blood!

The sword light, like the setting sun, was blindingly red, carrying an indomitable momentum, and struck the giant python's vital spot.

The giant python hissed, its massive body writhing, magma splashing everywhere. It opened its jaws wide and spewed a pillar of fire towards the bright moon in the east.

Dongfang Mingyue dodged, and another sword strike followed.

Sword lights flashed one after another, like the afterglow of the setting sun, stretching endlessly.

After thirty moves, the giant python's head was severed, and its massive body crashed to the ground.

Dongfang Mingyue sheathed his sword and walked toward the stone box.

Upon opening it, one finds a high-grade spiritual weapon—a longsword with a crimson blade that exudes a warm aura.

"Not bad, it suits my swordsmanship perfectly." Dongfang Mingyue nodded in satisfaction and hung the new sword at his waist.

She turned to look at the distant mountains, a hint of worry flashing in her eyes.

"I wonder how things are going with my younger brother..."

One day later.

All one hundred demonic beasts were killed.

Some returned home laden with spoils, satisfied; others left empty-handed, dejected; still others fought each other to the death for the same monster.

According to incomplete statistics, nearly twenty prodigies died in the second stage, devoured by monsters, and more than ten others died in battles between prodigies.

The team, which originally consisted of one hundred people, now has fewer than seventy.

The voice of the World Spirit resounded once more, echoing throughout the sky of the entire small world:

"Second stage complete. Those who pass, proceed to the core."

"The core area, the ladder to heaven. Whoever reaches the top will inherit the legacy of the Martial Saint."

"The third challenge, the Heavenly Ladder, will begin tomorrow."

"You should all get some rest tonight."

The sound faded away, and dusk fell.

On the horizon, the last rays of the setting sun dyed the clouds red, turning the rolling mountains a dark crimson.

Dongfang Weiwo stood at the valley's exit, gazing at the faintly visible pillar of light in the distance—the entrance to the core area, the location of the ladder to heaven.

"The third challenge..." he murmured, clenching his fist, "A thousand steps, who can reach the top the fastest?"

Behind us, dusk was deepening.

The night wind howled past, carrying the bloody scent of demonic beasts and the distant chatter of geniuses.

Tomorrow will be the final battle.

Who will reach the summit, and who will fall?

Nobody knows the answer.

But everyone knows that tonight, no one is destined to sleep.