Standing before the majestic gate of the school, Eli Shan recounted that the old man had mentioned that he was from a big clan which was located outside of the city.

Later, they shifted to this city hoping to become an even more powerful and influential clan, but instead, they faced continuous decline. Eventually, tragedy struck when his clan was completely destroyed, and every single person was killed. His cultivation suffered severe damage, leaving him crippled and abandoned by the city lord's ruthless force at a corner of the city.

As Eli Shan was thinking about it, the gates of the school suddenly swung open, and a voice invited all those who sought to take the entrance exam.

As the candidates entered, a field came into their sight which was so immense that it seemed boundless, and was vast enough to accommodate hundred thousands of students without feeling crowded.

Just as they stood there, a commanding voice echoed across the field, stating, "We don't accept students based on their cultivation. Heh, what kind of cultivation will you kids even have? What we want is to assess your potential for the future. So, all of your tests will focus on your body, soul, blood, comprehension, and mind. Be aware that some tests may be life-threatening, so if anyone wishes to withdraw, you may do so now."

No one withdrew.

Looking at it, the voice echoed once more, "Good, now you are not allowed to withdraw from the middle of the test. Get ready for your exam."

On the vast field, at least one hundred thousand candidates were standing. Everyone had only one chance to enter, if any of them were to fail, they cannot apply for this school again.

So everyone had only one thought in their mind, failure is not an option!

At that moment, Eli Shan saw a middle-aged man who called them in, floating in the air as if naturally standing on the ground. He emanated an aura that suppressed every person standing on the field. Feeling the pressure that far surpassed Eli Shan's realm, he felt his blood boiling with excitement.

"Out of all of you, only two hundred children will be chosen," the middle-aged man declared before vanishing abruptly leaving a voice behind, "So give your best in the examination."

Looking at the middle-aged man who disappeared, Eli Shan was taken aback. He had always considered himself as someone fastest, but the man's speed was so astonishingly fast that Eli Shan couldn't even follow his movements with his eyes. It was as if the middle-aged man had dissolved into thin air. Looking at it, rather than being demotivated, Eli Shan felt a surge of excitement coursed through his veins and clenched his fist as he promised himself, "I will definitely surpass all of them one day."

As the middle-aged man vanished, a teenager suddenly soared into view. He looked at all of the children with an obvious arrogance on his face as he boldly proclaimed, "All of you, go to the stair of heaven and earth, and let's see how many kids among you can pass your first test".

With an upward gesture, the young man waved his hand, causing a staircase with thirteen steps to emerge out of the ground.

"The first three steps of the heaven and earth staircase are known as the body steps; they will evaluate your physical strength. The following three steps are known as blood steps, they will examine your blood, and the final three steps, the soul steps, will delve into your soul," the arrogant youth explained.

He continued, his tone brimming with superiority, "If you ascend to the first steps of the body, blood, and soul, you will be considered to have passed your initial trial."

"Now, imagine that you've reached the first step of the body staircase, and cannot progress to further steps, that means your body cannot take the pressure of further staircase. At that point, the Stairs of Heaven and Earth will transport you to the first step of the blood steps to examine your blood. Is that clear to everyone?"

Everyone nodded.

With those words, he vanished, and a voice reverberated in everyone's ears, simply saying, "Begin."

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A boy dressed in expensive attire looked at the staircase skeptically. "Just this? I know better than anyone how strong is my body, I can easily pass this test!"

Driven by confidence, the boy ran toward the stairs. However, just as he was about to step onto the first stair, an unimaginable force erupted, throwing the boy far away into the air.

A murmur of shock and disbelief swept through the onlookers. That guy's body was indeed looking good but he still failed the test miserably.

Then, a voice resonated once more, breaking the silence, "This stair is all about how refined and strong your body is, it doesn't matter how good your body looks, but rather how potent your physical potential truly is."

The voice belonged to the middle-aged man who had guided everyone into this trial.

Everyone became nervous after witnessing how miserably the first applicant failed.

One after another everyone tried to step on the first stair but none of them succeeded.

After thousands of children failed, eli shan's gaze fell on a guy. This guy was approaching the staircase with a look of confidence and arrogance.

"It's the son of the city lord."

"Wait, son of the city lord is here for the examination?"

"You didn't know? Headmaster of this academy went to meet the city lord for some work and when he saw his son's physics, he personally invited him to join."

"So this test is just a formality for him, huh?."

Eli Shan heard everyone and understood the origin of the arrogant boy, and looked forward to his test.

Son of the city lord, Hao Yu, advanced confidently toward the heaven and earth staircase. As he arrived at the foot of it, he extended his right leg over the first step, exerting downward pressure.

Suddenly, the air crackled with an overwhelming pressure that erupted from the stairs. It enveloped his body, causing him to grit his teeth in pain and making him bend slightly. However, he did not stop and used his cultivation to continue pressing his leg downward.

Suddenly, as his leg forcefully tapped on the first stair, a wave of pressure swept through the atmosphere, leaving everyone dumbfounded.

"Whoa," exclamations of amazement spread through the crowd.

"As expected from the son of the city lord, he is really a genius among geniuses."

"Congratulations on being the first student to stand there," the voices of admiration and praise began to swirl around him.

Everyone around him began to butter him, but he didn't even spare a single glance on them.

Stepping on the first step was within his expectation, it was not that big of a deal, with that in mind, Hao Yu got ready to step on the second step of the heaven and earth staircase.

As he extended his leg toward the second step of the staircase, a sudden jolt of intense force gripped his entire body. It felt as though he was on the verge of being torn apart by the sheer power that enveloped him. But still, with determination in his eyes, he persisted and kept pressing his leg down onto the stair.

However, the pressure intensified even more as his leg kept pressing down, causing him to let out a roar of pain.

His upper clothes were torn apart by the pressure and his fine muscle could be seen by everyone.

Summoning every ounce of his strength, he continued to press down on the stair with all his might. Gradually, after a prolonged struggle, he finally managed to set a foot on the second step of the staircase.

Just as he stepped and stood on the second stair, the pressure suddenly vanished and Hao Yu began to sweat profusely and felt like his whole body has been destroyed.

But no matter how he felt, he didn't want to stop and looked at the third step with burning eyes.

With unwavering resolve, he again began to move forward, but just as his leg touched the edge of the third step, he suddenly felt a powerful force that made him feel as if his whole body is going to explode into countless pieces. His face changed drastically and a look of horror appeared on his face.

Afraid of the result, he hastily withdrew his leg and the overwhelming pressure around him suddenly vanished. His surroundings blurred into a whirlwind and suddenly, as if by magic, he was transported to a neutral stair, positioned just beneath the first step of the blood steps.

Glancing backward, he felt scared thinking about the force which he felt without even stepping his leg on the step. Everyone present also felt the pressure that emanated from the third step of the staircase, and had a serious expression... except eli shan, who had a strange expression on his face and had only one thought in his mind, "That's all?"

At first, looking at Hao Yu's expression, he thought that the pressure of the third step will be unbearable, but as he felt the pressure which vanished as soon as it came into contact with him, he couldn't help but think lightly of the third step. Of course, he couldn't be sure about it because he had only faced the residual pressure that remained after Hao Yu's trial.

On the blood staircase, Hao Yu continued to ascend. He reached the second step of the blood staircase and again and teleported to the stairs of soul, reaching its second step as well.

The examiner from the academy, who had been attentively observing the trials, descended and approached Hao Yu. With a smile, he congratulated him, "You've successfully cleared the first round. You're now qualified to proceed to the second test."

With those words, the examiner enveloped Hao Yu in his aura and guided him to the resting area which was designated for successful candidates. This area was situated atop a mountain peak. From there, he had a wide view of the ongoing tests and could watch how other students were performing.