"Did you burn this house?"
The old man squinted at Su Fan and asked.
Su Fan nodded. He had indeed burned the house, and there was nothing to deny.
"Senior, I apologize for burning your house. If you truly want compensation, I will do my best to restore it," Su Fan said helplessly. He couldn't possibly refuse to take responsibility, especially since the other party was so powerful. Refusal might lead to a worse outcome.
The old man remained silent. He simply waved his hand towards the wooden house behind him, and the flames instantly extinguished.
With another wave, the wooden house behind him rapidly restored itself as if time were flowing backward.
"This is just an illusion, it has no substance. You don't need to compensate me," the old man said to Su Fan.
"Then why did you keep me here?"
Su Fan's expression froze.
If he didn't need to pay for the house, then there must be something else? Could this old man have some peculiar fetish?
A shiver ran down Su Fan's spine.
"Don't you want the inheritance?" the old man retorted.
"Inheritance? May I ask who you are, Senior?"
Su Fan certainly wanted the inheritance, but he wouldn't easily trust a suddenly appearing old man.
"I am Wang Xu," the old man said, stroking his beard.
Su Fan's spirit jolted.
"Damn! It's really him!"
He recalled the legendary figure from thousands of years ago.
"Why did you choose me, Senior?"
Su Fan was puzzled. Among so many people, why choose him to receive the inheritance? The situation earlier seemed more suited for Long Jianchuan. After all, he was at a disadvantage at the time, and comparing himself to Long Jianchuan, the latter seemed slightly stronger.
"Because you passed my test. You were the first to ascend the stairs, and also, you are pure."
The old man continued.
"Pure?"
Su Fan was confused. Did this inheritance require him to take a bath before it could be passed on?
"What I mean by pure is that you haven't learned any primary cultivation techniques. Your understanding of the martial path is like a blank sheet of paper, easier to paint on," the old man explained to Su Fan.
Su Fan instantly understood.
His true qi was entirely obtained through consuming attribute pills. He hadn't cultivated any cultivation techniques. The only two techniques he possessed were skill-based and had no impact on his true qi.
"Then what should I do?" Su Fan asked with anticipation.
The old man tilted his head back, squinting at the sky.
"Ascend."
"Ascend?"
Su Fan looked up at the empty sky.
Was he supposed to fly up?
Before Su Fan could speak, the old man waved his hand, and a rope descended vertically from the sky, stopping in front of Su Fan.
"This... you want me to climb up using a rope?"
Su Fan couldn't believe it.
This was much higher than the mountain. The top seemed to connect directly to the sky, with no end in sight.
The old man remained silent, waiting for Su Fan.
Su Fan hesitated for a long time.
"If I have to, I will!"
Su Fan thought to himself, if he really couldn't do it, he could always use the Bagua Token to teleport away. Who was he afraid of!
Su Fan grabbed the rope and began to climb. It wasn't difficult at first; with Su Fan's strength, climbing a rope was easy.
Su Fan felt it was much simpler and increased his speed, switching hands, and climbing rapidly upwards.
Seeing Su Fan climb up, the old man smiled and then disappeared from his spot.
After an unknown amount of time, Su Fan looked up. It was still an endless expanse. Looking down, he could no longer see the ground.
He was now in a predicament, with difficulty both going up and coming down.
He also felt his arms beginning to ache.
Su Fan wrapped his feet around the rope and rested for a moment before continuing to climb. He would not give up unless he reached his absolute limit.
After resting for a while, Su Fan continued to climb. After an unknown duration, a strong wind began to blow, causing the rope to sway violently, significantly increasing the difficulty of climbing for Su Fan.
After climbing for an unknown time, a torrential rain began to fall from the sky, drenching Su Fan to the point where he could barely open his eyes.
Then came the thunder, its deafening roar almost deafening Su Fan. At one point, it nearly struck him.
Gale, torrential rain, lightning.
Su Fan had no idea how long he had been on the rope; it felt like a century.
Su Fan's lips were cracked, and he looked up at the scorching sun, sweat pouring down his face.
After enduring the wind and rain, he was immediately met with intense heat.
Su Fan felt a desire to give up.
But he was unwilling. He had come this far; perhaps he was already halfway there. To give up now would be too much of a loss!
Su Fan gritted his teeth and persevered. At the very least, he wanted to see what was at the top!
With this belief, Su Fan rekindled his spirit.
Su Fan subsequently endured the ravages of blizzards, extreme cold, sandstorms, and many other harsh environments, but none of them broke him. The unwillingness in his heart kept him going.
Who knew why there were sandstorms at such a high altitude? He no longer had the energy to ponder such things.
Su Fan looked up again. It was still an endless expanse. He didn't know what he was persevering for after all this time.
"Damn it! That old man isn't here either! Crap!"
Su Fan no longer held any respect for the old man; his heart was filled with resentment.
"Damn it! I don't believe I can't get up!" Su Fan's stubbornness was ignited. He had persevered for so long; he couldn't just give up without seeing anything!
Su Fan relied on his willpower to climb upwards again.
Finally, when Su Fan was utterly exhausted, his hands bloody and torn, and on the verge of fainting, he saw hope. A white light appeared at the very top of the rope.
Su Fan's eyes lit up. After enduring for so long, he had finally seen hope!
As the saying goes, "seeing the mountain makes the journey to it seem shorter," but although the white light appeared close, Su Fan felt as though the distance was not closing, always remaining far away.
"This isn't another trick by the old man, is it? Stop playing with me!" Su Fan felt like crying.
This old man was truly inhuman. It was like a beautiful woman, completely naked, only allowing him to look, not even to approach, and then dancing in front of him!
Su Fan vowed that when he saw the old man, he would pull out his beard!
Despite cursing the old man countless times in his heart, Su Fan had to accept reality and continue climbing upwards.
Through Su Fan's perseverance, he finally reached the end.
The light was an opening in the clouds, and the rope descended from this opening.
After climbing out of the opening, Su Fan finally felt solid ground beneath his feet.
When Su Fan saw the environment above the clouds, he was stunned and somewhat dazed.
"Congratulations on successfully reaching the other shore."
The old man suddenly appeared, smiling and congratulating Su Fan.
"Congratulations to your grandma!"
Seeing the old man, Su Fan lunged forward, grabbed him by the neck, and began to tug at his beard.
If I don't pull out your beard today, you're too well-attached!
"Ouch, ouch! Don't pull! Don't pull!"
The old man cried out in pain.
"Explain to me, damn it, why am I still on the mountain!"