Chapter 48

As nine beams of golden light descended, it also indicated that the Nine Heavens Ladder had been activated. However, the originally noisy square suddenly fell into an eerie silence at this moment. Almost everyone's eyes turned slightly red, for they all knew that only by ascending the Nine Heavens Ladder could one qualify to enter the Xiantian Sect and vie for the inheritance of the Xiantian Holy Hall!

This, which should have been a closely guarded secret, had somehow spread around the area at some point.

At this moment, these people were not uninterested in the spots on the Nine Heavens Ladder, but each of them was well aware that without a Xiantian Token in hand, they could not ascend the ladder at all.

Staring at the Nine Heavens Ladder, Ye Zhong smiled and slowly swept his gaze over Ning Yu, Song Shaochen, and Ye Yihao. Since they were competing for a spot, he needed to pick the easiest targets.

Su Yu clearly noticed the sudden change in Ye Zhong's eyes. She seemed to have some thoughts, but in the end, she smiled gently and did not say more.

The atmosphere in the square remained absolutely quiet, and time passed second by second, as if everyone's figures were frozen. However, after a while, Mo Fanlong of the Mo family slowly stepped forward. Then, with a casual flip of his hand, a translucent jade token appeared in his palm. With another wave of his hand, the token flew out and automatically stopped in front of one of the steps of the ladder.

Under the mysterious gazes of countless people, Mo Fanlong slowly walked over and stepped onto the ladder. The moment he stepped on, a beam of golden light enveloped him, clearly indicating that the Nine Heavens Ladder had recognized his qualification.

With Mo Fanlong's step forward, the expressions of many strong figures in the square changed, but they all held back. Mo Fanlong's strength at the sixth level of Body Tempering was enough to shock these strong figures! They did not dare to provoke such a person.

However, with Mo Fanlong being the first to step onto the ladder, the eyes of the strong figures in the square flickered even more. There were only nine steps, and each person who ascended reduced the number of spots. For those pursuing the inheritance of the Xiantian Holy Hall, missing this opportunity might mean missing it for a lifetime.

In this eerie silence, after a moment, Song Shaochen suddenly chuckled. He then flipped his hand, and a Xiantian Token appeared in his palm. Holding the token, he slowly walked towards one of the steps, his expression inscrutable.

"Hmph, Song Shaochen, with your strength, it might be inappropriate for you to ascend the Nine Heavens Ladder, right?" Many people's eyes rapidly changed as they watched Song Shaochen's actions, for he only had the fourth level of Body Tempering, which did not intimidate others much.

However, upon hearing this, Song Shaochen slowly turned around, his indifferent gaze sweeping the square before he coldly said, "If anyone wants to take the Xiantian Token from me, now is the time to act. Just don't blame me if you die!"

As his voice fell, the strong figures of the Song family also slowly stepped forward, their faces filled with cold smiles. Song Shaochen was a strong figure from the Song family, one of the five major families, and also an inner disciple of the Star Constellation Sect. Therefore, ordinary people did not dare to do anything to him.

Under the strange gazes, Song Shaochen slowly stepped forward, then threw the Xiantian Token and boldly stepped onto one of the steps.

After Song Shaochen, Rong Tian and Lei Ruoxu also slowly stepped forward. However, these two were extremely powerful, and although many people's hearts were stirred, they ultimately did not dare to take any action.

With four figures stepping onto the Nine Heavens Ladder, the number of spots was immediately halved, making the breathing of the strong figures in the square become more rapid.

"Ha—"

Ning Yu slowly stepped forward, his light laughter echoing in the square, "Since the rest of you do not want to move, I will take a spot first."

As he spoke, Ning Yu slowly stepped forward, and with a flip of his hand, a Xiantian Token appeared in his hand.

Seeing Ning Yu step forward, a strong figure finally could not hold back. With a cold laugh, he instantly attacked, "Ning Yu, you are just a person from the Chiyun Martial Academy. Do you really think you have the qualifications to ascend the Nine Heavens Ladder!"

"Poof—"

Before the words were finished, Ning Yu, standing in place, casually waved his hand, and a palm struck the attacker's chest, instantly killing him. Ning Yu then smiled slightly, "This is my qualification."

As his words fell, Ning Yu stepped onto one of the steps under the shocked gazes of the crowd.

Watching this scene, Ye Zhong's gaze flickered, then fell on the strong figures of the Ye and Su families. If his guess was correct, these two families should have each obtained a Xiantian Token. If so, it seemed he would have to focus on these two families to get a Xiantian Token. However, Ye Zhong had no psychological burden about taking things from the Ye and Su families.

With a light laugh, Ye Zhong softly said, "Senior Sister Su Yu, and Qu Xuan, if you two want to ascend the Nine Heavens Ladder, it would be easier to go now. But when only two spots are left, it won't be so simple."

Hearing this, Su Yu nodded casually, but Qu Xuan's face instantly turned extremely pale. Clearly, she also understood that without a certain level of strength and backing, holding a Xiantian Token and stepping forward would be like handing over the token to others, with no other effect.

"I don't believe that with the name of the Star Constellation Sect, these guys would dare to act recklessly!" Xiang Qiyu coldly snorted, her face showing a hint of fear.

Hearing this, Qu Xuan's face became even paler, clearly understanding that in such a situation, the name of the Star Constellation Sect would not have much effect.

Seeing Qu Xuan's expression, Ye Zhong sighed and shook his head, "Qu Xuan, I can help you once more to ensure you ascend the Nine Heavens Ladder, but after that, you will have to rely on yourself. The competition for the inheritance of the Xiantian Holy Hall will be extremely fierce. You need to think carefully about whether you want to go up."

Qu Xuan's expression became even paler, her aura like a deep valley's blue, even more captivating. After a moment of contemplation, she finally looked deeply at Ye Zhong and said, "If I give you the Xiantian Token, what are your chances of obtaining the inheritance of the Xiantian Holy Hall?"

Hearing this, Ye Zhong looked at Qu Xuan strangely, then shook his head, "I don't know, and even if I enter, I am not aiming for the inheritance of the Xiantian Holy Hall. My goal is something else."

Su Yu looked at Ye Zhong in surprise, clearly not expecting that he knew there was something else inside and probably knew what it was.

"But, what if you can obtain the inheritance of the Xiantian Holy Hall?" Qu Xuan continued to ask.

"If I can, we can all observe it together?" Ye Zhong smiled, "But you don't need to give me the Xiantian Token. If I want it, I will take it myself."

As he spoke, Ye Zhong's smiling gaze fell on Ye Yihao and the others, and the look of taking everything in his path made their expressions change slightly.

Qu Xuan's face was conflicted, and after a moment, she finally flipped her hand and placed the Xiantian Token in Ye Zhong's hand, saying softly, "Senior Brother Ye Zhong, if you can obtain the inheritance of the Xiantian Holy Hall, I hope you can let us observe it."

Ye Zhong looked at Qu Xuan, and after a moment, he smiled. If the three of them had left when Mo Fanlong attacked him, he would not have cared about them. But with what had happened, he nodded, "Alright, I wasn't very interested in the inheritance of the Xiantian Holy Hall, but for your sake, I will try. Senior Sister Su Yu, how about we continue our cooperation?"

Hearing this, Su Yu silently looked at Ye Zhong for a moment before saying lightly, "Let's see if you can make it up. I should have no problem, but you..."

With that, Su Yu smiled and, ignoring Ye Zhong's expression, clapped her hands and walked forward, then, under the gazes of many strong figures, boldly stepped onto one of the steps.

Clearly, many people recognized Su Yu. Although her strength was not enough to intimidate them, no one dared to act, for they were all extremely smart. If they attacked Su Yu now, they would attract a group of protectors, and what would they do then?

"Ha—"

Seeing Su Yu ascend the Nine Heavens Ladder without any obstacles, Ye Zhong chuckled, then his gaze fell on Ye Yihao and the others, saying lightly, "Ye Yihao, you should have a Xiantian Token, right? Why not go up now? Are you afraid I will take it?"

"Ye Zhong, don't be too overbearing!" Ye Yihao's eyes turned cold, and he said in a deep voice.

"Originally, I planned to take the Xiantian Token from you, but I had good luck..."

Ye Zhong smiled, then shrugged and casually tossed the Xiantian Token in his hand, then stepped forward. At the same time, an extremely terrifying aura spread from his body.

"I, Ye Zhong, am taking a spot today. I believe no one in the square has any objections, right?"

"If anyone has objections, feel free to speak up. I will humbly accept them!"