Unprecedented! . . .
"Come on. Why are you fretting? Consider this—over the past two months, every task completed by this young prodigy has been unparalleled! Has anyone bested him in any other challenge?"
"Well..."
"Well, my backside! No one has! Look, don't fret. You're acting foolishly. Can't you see?"
"This lad has etched his name in history!" Lei Dadi beamed with pride. "In thirty thousand years, only my disciple could achieve such a feat! Only the disciple nurtured under my guidance could craft such a miracle, forging an unprecedented legend!"
"Let me clarify! No one surpassed him in the past, and no one will in the future!"
In their mental exchange, Lei Dadi's voice brimmed with determination.
"What do you mean 'your disciple'? 'Your guidance'?" Feng Wuying and Yun Piaoliu reacted as if two cats had their tails stepped on simultaneously. "He's my disciple as well... I've devoted considerable effort to his training too! Isn't that so?"
"The lad is on the verge of falling. His resolve and mentality are formidable, but his cultivation level..." Yun Piaoliu observed as he kept an eye on Cha Eun Xiao.
Lei Dadi and Feng Piaoliu were taken aback, their gazes turning to Cha Eun Xiao.
Cha Eun Xiao's countenance was contorted, his body drenched in sweat from scalp to toe.
- Ta, ta, ta, ta... -
Sweat streamed from his head to his feet, then dripped to the ground, creating a rhythmic symphony of droplets.
Beneath his feet, a puddle of sweat expanded.
Yet, he did not shift his posture in the slightest. He appeared weightless.
The three elderly masters were concerned. As experts in cultivation, they could discern that Cha Eun Xiao was on the verge of exhaustion. He was forcibly retaining a breath within his dantian to maintain his suspension. Exhaling and inhaling this breath into the dantian would have been a far more efficient method, but it would cause him to plummet. Even the slightest time lapse was sufficient to disrupt the equilibrium between his body, hair, and string, leading to failure.
In reality, the three elderly masters had never anticipated that Cha Eun Xiao could endure for such an extended duration. Nearly two hours had passed, and he remained stable. Only due to his limited cultivation level, he was incapable of prolonging it any further.
The three grandmasters were anxious, but they dared not intervene unless Cha Eun Xiao chose to yield. They hoped that he could become the first to conquer this incredible trial after all.
Unbeknownst to Cha Eun Xiao, he was laboring under a misapprehension. He believed that there must have been individuals in history who had previously surmounted this challenge. He presumed that since the challenge still existed, it must have been completed by someone before. He believed that if he failed, he would forfeit his training opportunities.
It was only after the training that he learned the truth. Nevertheless, he remained steadfast, unwilling to yield. He refused to concede, reluctant to relinquish the challenge that others might have already overcome. He was convinced that he could achieve anything accomplished by others.
This unyielding determination drove him to endure the training. Of course, Cha Eun Xiao was aware that he could alleviate his plight by exhaling the breath within his dantian. Nevertheless, he was reluctant to quit so soon. He yearned to persevere and complete the task, compelled by his willpower alone. The limitations of his physical condition exacted a heavy toll, causing him to sweat profusely.
He knew he was in dire straits. He recognized that he was on the cusp of two hours.
A mere ten minutes remained. He couldn't abandon the challenge at this juncture.
He needed to endure until the full two hours had elapsed!
Cha Eun Xiao couldn't contain the profuse perspiration any longer; he simply allowed it to cascade from his body. Perhaps it would assist in shedding some weight, he surmised.
As time elapsed, the spiritual qi within his dantian slowed down progressively. He felt a sense of dizziness, teetering on the brink of losing consciousness. Despite the peril, he persisted, consciously maintaining balance throughout his entire body.
He was willing to push himself to the brink of death just to endure the full two hours.
Exhaustion gnawed at him. The qi in his dantian eventually ceased its movement, threatening to let him plummet to the ground at any moment.
Nonetheless, he continued to suspend himself through sheer force of will.
Fortunately...
"Two hours! He's done it!" Yun Piaoliu exclaimed as he scrutinized the hourglass.
Just after his proclamation, Cha Eun Xiao plummeted like a meteorite, crashing to the floor in a rather undignified and awkward position. However, he cared not. At that moment, he was beyond caring. Unconsciousness overcame him before he even made contact with the ground.
The three elderly masters hurriedly rushed to his side, cradling their beloved disciple in their arms, channeling the life force energy into Cha Eun Xiao's meridians and vital channels.
In truth, they understood that Cha Eun Xiao had lost consciousness due to sheer exhaustion. A few hours of rest would eventually revive him to his usual state.
Nevertheless, they were determined to expend their life energy in a bid to hasten his recovery.
What they didn't know was a rather amusing fact: this challenge was not feasible for an ordinary human in Qing-Yun Realm. Cultivators below the Dao Origin Stage would never have completed this challenge. It had been included in the three-month special training regimen because... the sect's founding ancestor had a penchant for practical jokes.
He had devised this task purely for amusement.