Gao Han looked around and found that there were much fewer people, and many of them had disappeared.

"It's the circle of ripples just now." Zhongli Tingzhou said calmly.

Bi Qingling couldn't help but look at him. It was really rare to hear this person speak. From yesterday till now, he had not heard him say more than three sentences.

"Those who are here now are those who have passed the first round of assessment. Those who were eliminated have been teleported to another place."

"I see." Gao Han nodded. Some of the people who stayed behind looked familiar.

They were the kings, princes and nobles of small countries that they met by chance in Pingcheng or Ziyun Town.

"The next step is to start the formal registration. A cultivator from the Purple Sky Sect will come out later."

As soon as Bi Qingling finished speaking, a cultivator from the Zixiao Sect in fluttering white robes came out, as if to confirm his words.

The monk had a very young face, but he exuded a sharp sword aura, and a faint sense of oppression hung over everyone's heads.

Gao Han narrowed his eyes slightly. Is this the cultivator from Zixiao Sect? This person's cultivation is at the Golden Core stage, but he is probably already at the Great Perfection stage, otherwise there wouldn't be such an obvious sense of oppression.

Along the way here, I had heard that Zixiao Sect was one of the largest sects in Lingtian Continent.

In the sect, many cultivators are sword practitioners. Their sect masters, superiors, and elders are all powerful sword users, and sword practitioners are said to be the strongest spiritual practitioners in Lingtian Continent.

One force can defeat ten skills, which refers to sword cultivation.

He chose Zixiao Sect not only because of its fame, but also because Zhongli Tingzhou also used a sword.

Even if you cannot become Master Zixiao's disciple, joining the Zixiao Sect will still allow you to get better development and more resources, and the road ahead will at least be much smoother.

"My name is Yuan Ran, and I'm the senior brother in charge of this registration. Those who can come here have passed the first test. I hope you will continue to work hard next time."

The young monk left after saying this, just as decisively as he came.

"Is that all?" Gao Han asked Bi Qingling.

"Don't be impatient. Of course it's not over yet. The next test should be the second level." Bi Qingling said.

"It's starting so soon? I thought it would have to wait until the next day." Gao Han raised his eyebrows in surprise.

Bi Qingling laughed, "It was true in the past, but now it's not a normal recruiting competition. I guess there will be several tests in succession, so the next performance will be very important."

While they were talking, there was a sudden slight noise among the people in the square.

The clouds lingering in front suddenly parted to the sides, revealing a long staircase. You couldn't see the end of the staircase when you went up, it was like a fairyland.

"What is this?" Gao Han raised his head.

"The Zixiao Sect's iconic Cloud Ladder should have the rules of this level engraved in front of it." Bi Qingling showed a look of understanding.

Gao Han and Zhong Li Tingzhou's eyes shifted to Bi Qingling at the same time, "But do you want us to climb up?"

"It should be correct. The recruitment competitions in previous years were also like this."

Bi Qingling was actually a little surprised, because he thought that the challenges of this year's recruitment competition would be different from the past, but he didn't expect that the first level would still be the Yuntian Ladder.

The three of them walked to the Yuntian Ladder, and there was only one sentence on it, just as Bi Qingling had said.

The goal is to require all applicants to reach the square at the top of the Yuntianti Mountain within one hour. Those who exceed this time will be eliminated.

Many people who have read the rules have already started climbing the ladder.

Gao Han and Zhongli Tingzhou took a look and found that most people were very relaxed at the beginning, but after a while, their bodies began to stagnate.

Only a few people were still climbing up briskly.

After entering the Cloud Ladder, figures will become illusory, and some people who are running in the front will soon disappear.

"Let's go. It's quite interesting. It seems that it's not as simple as climbing up." Zhongli Tingzhou curled the corners of his mouth, as if he had just found something that interested him.

Bi Qingling looked at Zhongli Tingzhou in surprise as his tone and mood suddenly changed.

"He only reacts to things that interest him." Gao Han saw what he was thinking and explained.

"Brother Zhongli is indeed a very special person." Bi Qingling's eyes flashed. He also realized that the Yuntian Ladder was different from before. He could take this opportunity to observe the true strength of these two people.

Without seeing their strength with his own eyes, no matter how magnanimous he is, he cannot express full recognition.

"I'll go first." Gao Han nodded and followed Zhongli Tingzhou.

Bi Qingling paused before following them. Since he needed to observe, it would definitely be easier to follow them.

The entrance to the Yuntian Ladder seems to have a layer of transparent water curtain. When you go in, the water curtain creates circles of ripples.

Gao Han instantly felt the pressure coming from above. Different from the oppression he felt from the Yuanran monk, this pressure was deeper and longer-lasting.

High above, majestic and sacred, once you are in it, you cannot resist and can only hold on.

Although it's heavy, it won't make you collapse at the beginning.

After adapting himself for a while, Gao Han took firm steps and climbed up.

There was no end in sight for the long ladder. After walking for an unknown amount of time, Zhongli Tingzhou in front of him suddenly stopped, looked back at him, and waited for him to come up before speaking.

“Going up further, it should be another level.”

"Nine is the maximum number. We have already walked up two hundred and ninety-nine steps."

The previous digit must change when it reaches nine, but since the change is not significant, Gao Han is not included.

Zhongli Tingzhou had not yet stepped onto the 300th step, but he had already felt it.

"Are you counting while climbing the ladder?" Bi Qingling, who had caught up with him from behind, asked in disbelief. His back was already sweating and his spiritual energy consumption was greater than usual, but he still had no sight of the end of the ladder.

Only after I came up did I realize that the previous Yuntian Ladder test was really child's play compared to the current one.

Of course, he had never participated in the Zixiao Sect's recruitment competition before, but he had asked around, but those who had participated didn't tell him.

"Yeah, I just counted them." Gao Han paid attention to details, so he made a note of them out of habit.

Bi Qingling saw that he was still so relaxed and was speechless. It was really just a moment.

He originally thought that Zhongli Tingzhou was beyond his ability to see through, but he didn't expect that this Brother Gao was no ordinary person either.

Zhongli Tingzhou continued to move upwards, with Gao Han following closely beside him.

Once you cross the extreme number of nine, heavier pressure instantly squeezes your body from all directions.

My legs feel so heavy as if they were tied with hundreds of pounds of stones. Unless I use my spiritual power to resist the pressure, it would be difficult to climb up and I might not be able to hold on later.

Those in front of them have already started to circulate their spiritual energy to relieve stress.

But the end of the Cloud Ladder is not in sight. If I use my spiritual power now, what will I do later?

There is no spiritual energy in the Cloud Ladder, and those who take the test cannot meditate to recover, or restore their spiritual energy through their own absorption.

Gao Han adapted himself for a while before starting to climb up. After climbing more than ten floors, Bi Qingling, who was originally behind him, suddenly surpassed him.

Gao Han glanced at him and said nothing. Everyone has his own way of climbing.

Bi Qingling's outburst did not last long, as Gao Han surpassed him.

Passing through the thick white fog in front of me, the surrounding scenery suddenly changed.

Tall buildings rise from the ground, and in the driveways in the sky, there are hovercrafts flying back and forth.

Not far to the left, there was a huge holographic screen playing a video. A group of insect beasts with terrifying faces were chasing a group of humans running in front of them with their fangs and claws bared.

This familiar yet unfamiliar scene hasn't appeared for a long time.

Gao Han's pupils shrank slightly. Has he returned to the future world of his previous life?

No, he clearly remembered that he was participating in the Zixiao Sect's recruitment competition the last second, and it was impossible for him to return to the future world all of a sudden.

Unless, this is a test from Zixiao Sect.

Gao Han carefully recalled the steps he had counted, and it seemed that the scene around him changed when he stepped onto the 699th step.

It seems that we have entered a period of change where the number 99 is the extreme. Will this change unearth the deepest desires in people's minds?

Gao Han turned his head and looked at a familiar villa not far away that was also deeply hidden in his memory.

A few children were playing in the yard, and adults were walking out of the gate talking and laughing.

They didn't realize that what happened next would change their lives.

Several adults picked up the children who were playing and fighting, and soon loaded several hovercrafts with large and small bags. The hovercrafts then drove to the port of the planet.

The scene jumped directly to the port, and Gao Han watched them walk into the spaceship parked at the port.

Even he himself didn't know why he didn't go over to stop it, knowing that the spaceship would explode after leaving the planet, and everyone on the spaceship would eventually be reduced to ashes in the explosion.

Even if you know how to stop it, it's impossible to stop something that has already happened.

Gao Han didn't look away until the spaceship was out of sight. His face was as cold as ice, but his heart had already become numb.

More than ten or twenty years passed, and when he thought he was about to forget those voices and smiles, they suddenly appeared in his mind again.

Gao Han's emotions fluctuated slightly, but soon calmed down like a pool of dead water. When he looked forward again, the scene had changed.

There was no spaceship, no hovercraft, nor the beautiful villa that carried his childhood memories, only a long staircase.

In front of the stairs, there were more than a dozen figures standing, all of them motionless.

Zhongli Tingzhou was also among them, standing motionless, as if he was trapped in some kind of illusion. He was probably experiencing something similar to him.

Gao Han looked back again and saw a curtain of water that looked like rippling waves. There were many people at the bottom of the ladder, which seemed very far away.

Turning back, he continued to climb.

"Huh?"

A soft whispering voice suddenly sounded in the void. The monk in white did not control the volume of his voice, but the people below did not hear it.

"What's wrong?" Another young monk standing next to the white-robed monk heard the voice.