Wan Lei's footsteps continued to pulse, reaching ever higher altitudes.
As time passed, he drew closer to the mountain peak, and the cheers from the surroundings grew more fervent.
Especially the little streamer, who shouted hoarsely with excitement, her gaze towards Wan Lei filled with a mixture of eagerness and greed, as if she were looking at a money tree.
This inexplicably irritated Wan Lei. He shot a fierce glare at the streamer before continuing his ascent.
The higher he climbed, the greater the pressure. Wan Lei's pace slowed, from jumping to running, then from running to walking, and he found each step increasingly arduous.
His forehead was beaded with sweat, his stamina gradually failing. The ever-strengthening divine sense pressed down on him, preventing him from straightening his back. He was slowly becoming like the other climbers.
The cheers around him gradually faded, replaced by sighs and scornful murmurs.
"Alas, I thought he was something special. I expected him to race to the summit in one go. Looking at him now, forget reaching it within an hour, he probably won't make it to the peak in his lifetime. What a waste of my bet."
"Hey, kid, where's your finish line? Hurry up! Weren't you good at jumping? Jump again, and I'll give you a hundred spirit stones."
"Come on, put on a show. If you can't, just roll down. You're wasting my time."
"But at this altitude, he can already score over two thousand five hundred points. As long as he holds on a bit longer in the third round, getting into the Five Elements Hall is a sure thing."
"Right, why waste time? If I were him, I'd just withdraw and move on to the third trial, to avoid delaying everyone else."
"Hurry up! Three more Sky-Piercing Arrows and I'll have a hundred. Can you do it? How am I supposed to explain this to my family in the livestream!"
The surrounding jeers and curses were incessant, further agitating Wan Lei. The stark contrast between the earlier cheers and the current curses filled him with shame and resentment, making him wish he could rush out and tear them all apart!
Wan Lei suppressed his emotions, adjusted his mindset, and tried his best to ignore the interference from those around him, focusing on reaching the summit as quickly as possible.
He kept cheering himself on, reminding himself of his purpose for being there: to rescue Xiao Yu.
This thought indeed helped him resist external distractions.
Wan Lei finally reached the ninety thousandth step.
As he was walking uphill with his head down, a commotion suddenly erupted not far away.
"Yo, isn't this Senior Brother Chai Lian? Why are you back from the East Land?"
"Alas, I was just apprehending a suspect practicing forbidden arts in the East Land and came to headquarters to report.
Seeing how lively it is here, I came over to take a look. What are you all watching?"
A flippant voice replied.
Upon hearing the voice, Wan Lei immediately stopped, turned to his left, and saw a young man in the blue robe of a disciple of the Wind Hall, a sinister smile playing on his lips. He was followed by two disciples in black robes from the Earth Hall.
As he looked up, Chai Lian also saw his face, paused for a moment, then chuckled.
"No wonder he looked familiar. Isn't that Wan Lei?"
"Oh, Senior Brother Chai, you know Wan Lei too?" Little Jin exclaimed in surprise.
"Of course, I do."
Chai Lian stepped onto a stone beside a step, whistled mockingly at Wan Lei, and then laughed.
"Do you know who I am?"
"...Chai Lian!"
Wan Lei's eyes were bloodshot, his face filled with hatred, his fists clenched tightly as he forcibly suppressed his rage.
Before him stood the very enemy who had captured Fang Xiaoyu and brought her to the Five Elements Hall!
"Yo, you know me. Do you know why I'm here? I'm here to escort Fang Xiaoyu. Good heavens, after the handover, I was lucky not to rush back to the East Land immediately, and I ran into you here.
Hahahaha, did the magpies sing today? Why have I only encountered good things all day?"
Chai Lian's laughter drew more curiosity from the surrounding crowd.
"Wan Lei, I am now officially informing you that I suspect you are involved in the case of Fang Xiaoyu stealing forbidden arts. You are now under arrest, please accompany me to the Ministry of Public Security."
"...You have no evidence to prove I am involved in this matter!"
Wan Lei pondered, believing the other party likely had no proof.
"Fang Xiaoyu has confessed. I was just about to head back to the East Land to arrest you, and I ran into you as soon as I left. Why did you deliver yourself right to my doorstep?
Hahahaha, how considerate. You've saved me another trip."
"Hahahaha..."
Chai Lian's words caused a burst of laughter from the surrounding onlookers.
"Is that so? Bring forth the confession, or I'll accuse you of arbitrary arrest, abuse of power, and personal vendetta!"
Wan Lei forced himself to calm down and confront Chai Lian.
"The confession is in the prison hall. If you want to see it, come back with me to get it. Besides, if our Five Elements Hall wants to arrest someone, do we still need evidence? What a colossal joke."
"So, you admit you have no evidence, huh?"
Upon hearing this, the smile vanished from Chai Lian's face, replaced by a chilling expression.
"Hmph, Wan Lei, when you killed my brother Chai Yan, you should have been prepared for retaliation from our Five Elements Hall.
Every disciple of our Five Elements Hall is a chosen one, how could you, a mere lowly commoner, be worthy of killing him? When I take you back, I will skin you inch by inch!"
"Then do you know? When Chai Yan died, he exploded into pieces, not a single bit of skin left."
Wan Lei retorted with a cold smile.
Chai Lian's face turned furious. However, he glanced at the surrounding people, seemingly wary of resorting to violence directly. He then chuckled.
"You're trying to provoke me, but you've failed. However, as a return gesture, I still plan to tell you some news.
On my way back, on the spaceship, I savored the taste of that girl named Fang Xiaoyu.
Tsk tsk tsk, I must say, she was truly beautiful, so vibrant, her figure was amazing, and her ice-cold demeanor was simply that of a perfect vixen.
Oh, and it wasn't just me who savored her; my two junior brothers also took their turns.
It's a pity, though, that she was unconscious and I didn't hear her screams or crying, which deducted points, hahahaha..."
"Hahahaha..."
The two Earth Hall disciples behind him also burst into laughter.
Wan Lei's expression suddenly changed dramatically. Rage surged through his mind like a breaking dam, lightning erupted from his body, like a furious and maddened beast, and a low roar escaped his throat.
"Oh, right, what's your relationship with that girl named Fang Xiaoyu?"
Chai Lian's sinister smile and smugness grew more intense, his eyes playful, his tone leisurely.
"Could she possibly be your... Dao companion?"
"You're very angry, aren't you? You really want to hit me, don't you? You really want to kill me, don't you? Hahahaha, you've arrived. There are tens of thousands of Five Elements Hall disciples here, waiting for you to show your divine might."
Chai Lian laughed arrogantly.
"Or perhaps, you're waiting for me to arrest you and then, in front of you, go and ravish your Dao companion? Hahahaha..."