Chapter Thirty-Six: The Top Ten (Part Two)

Ever since breaking through, Five Swords had kept his attention fixed on Chen Hongxu. Others might doubt the young man’s strength, but he did not. He had truly sensed an Emperor-level aura within that single sword strike. Could someone with such formidable sword intent really have climbed only the first level?

He could not fathom Chen Hongxu’s purpose, but one thing was certain: the young man was not a spy from another city. Every city possessed a Talent Ladder, and each person could climb it only once in a lifetime. If Chen Hongxu had truly been sent by another city, he would surely have climbed its Talent Ladder long ago. In that case, he would already bear the mark of another city and would not even be able to ascend the first step here.

Just as Five Swords was racking his brains, a flash of radiance suddenly burst forth at the foot of the Talent Ladder. Chen Hongxu glanced over and discovered that it was the burly man from his own world, the one who carried an axe.

Sensing Chen Hongxu’s gaze, the man turned and smiled at him. He then glanced at the stone stele, put away his enormous axe, scratched his head, and walked toward Madam Kuang and the others.

Over the following hours, one or two people were teleported out from time to time. At last, when the number on the stone stele stopped at five, the process finally came to a halt. Chen Hongxu had seen some of those who emerged, while others were strangers to him. On the whole, however, most seemed to have come from the same world as he had. Of the five people still remaining on the Talent Ladder, four were people he knew.

On the Talent Ladder, Su Daji sat in a flower sedan. No one carried it, yet it drifted leisurely upward through the air. Frowning, she leaned against the window and felt the spiritual energy of Heaven and Earth growing denser around her.

Suddenly, a dragon and a phoenix rose behind her. Ma Ji, who had always stood behind her, slowly lowered his brush. Apparently, he had conjured the dragon and phoenix once more from his imagination.

“Roar!”

With a thunderous crash, half of the stone railing beside the sedan exploded. Two dragons and two phoenixes, far larger and more terrifying than before, flew out and began battling fiercely against the illusory creatures Ma Ji had painted.

The four beasts became entangled in the air. The chaotic spiritual energy of Heaven and Earth immediately tore Su Daji’s sedan to pieces.

Expressionless, Ma Ji raised his hand, intending to paint another sedan. But when Su Daji saw the trace of blood at the corner of his mouth, her heart suddenly clenched. She hurried forward, knocked the paintbrush from his hand, and used her sleeve to wipe away the red stain from the lips of the miraculous painter.

A trace of tenderness appeared in Ma Ji’s eyes, which should have been dull and lifeless. As Su Daji withdrew her sleeve, stained with a hint of crimson, she happened to glimpse it. Her body trembled, and she cried out in disbelief, “How can this be?”

The wooden stiffness gradually faded from Ma Ji’s face. Lowering his head, he looked gently at the frightened Su Daji.

“Without love, how could there be such a thing as enchantment? Since you can care for me from the bottom of your heart, then everything has been worth it…”

With that, Ma Ji stroked Su Daji’s hair. While she stood dazed, he suddenly raised his hand and struck himself on the forehead.

His soul was scattered completely.

“Don’t!” Su Daji screamed with all her strength.

But the Ma Ji before her had already returned to his wooden expression. He could never hear her again.

Su Daji collapsed onto the steps. In a daze, she murmured, “I was wrong. I have always been wrong. What is the importance of enchanting all living beings compared with winning the heart of the one person who truly loves me?”

A flash of light passed, and Su Daji was teleported from the Talent Ladder. She slowly rose and walked to the stone stele, her face devoid of either grief or joy. Raising her hand, she erased her own name.

“From this day onward, I shall be you,” she murmured.

Everyone stared at the fourth position on the stone stele, where only the name Ma Ji remained. They were utterly bewildered.

Only Madam Kuang suddenly burst into wild laughter.

“No matter what rank this girl achieves, Miaoyin will have her.”

Five Swords frowned and shifted his gaze from Chen Hongxu to Su Daji. The seductive garments that had once appeared so alluring now seemed almost elegant upon her. He sighed.

“Congratulations. Within a thousand years, Miaoyin will likely produce an Emperor-level Venerable.”

A delighted smile spread across Madam Kuang’s face, though she made no comment. She walked over to Su Daji, took her hand, and said kindly, “Daji, come back and stand with the others.”

Su Daji turned her head. Her expressionless face was covered in tear tracks. She nodded and said softly, “There is no longer any person named Su Daji. My name is Ma Ji.”

Madam Kuang froze for a moment. She raised a hand, smoothed Su Daji’s hair, and sighed.

“What a foolish child.”

Meanwhile, the Ma Ji who had always followed Su Daji gradually blurred and finally disappeared. The only thing he left behind was a paintbrush, which Su Daji did not know when she had taken into her hand.

At this moment, only four people remained on the Talent Ladder: Bing Long, Zhang Shufang, Fan Strawbag, and a youth named Mu Takuya.

Bing Long was still in first place. Just as everyone had expected, although his pace had slowed considerably, the way he continued climbing suggested that he might become the first person in the endless history of Martial Emperor City to reach the summit.

Mu Takuya ranked second, only a hundred or so steps behind Bing Long. Yet he was clearly nearing the limit of his strength. He often remained on a single step for a long time before managing to climb to the next one.

Zhang Shufang, who was in third place, had evidently encountered a problem as well. Looking at Bing Long blocking her path, she said, “I always thought you would appear much earlier.”

Bing Long did not reply. A red radiance flashed across his hand and condensed into the shape of a dragon’s head. Expressionless, he raised his hand and struck toward Zhang Shufang.

“Although I know you are false, even if you were real, I would never attack you.”

Zhang Shufang smiled, closed her eyes, and was enveloped in a burst of white light before being teleported out.

She slowly opened her eyes and glanced at the swollen stone stele. When she saw that the name occupying her heart still remained in first place, she smiled and paid no further attention to anything else. Turning around, she walked toward the main group.

As for Fan Strawbag, who had yet to enter the top ten, he hummed a vulgar little tune as he wandered upward, stopping now and then. From time to time he touched one thing or tapped another, behaving entirely like an official inspecting the premises.

Suddenly, he felt a restless urge. After casting furtive glances in every direction, he grinned, lowered his trousers, and urinated against the exquisite carvings on the railing.

Having taken care of one of life’s great necessities, he pulled up his trousers and leaped onto the next step. He rubbed the carved phoenix, continuing until he had wiped dry the droplets that had accidentally clung to his hand. Only then did he cheerfully continue climbing.

Another half-month passed. Mu Takuya, who had been in second place, was teleported out. He looked no more than fifteen or sixteen, yet his face bore a sorrow far beyond his years.

Before long, he concealed his emotions, as though he had made some important decision, and walked heavily toward another flight of stone steps leading into the city.

The million spectators surrounding the area erupted into an uproar. Everyone understood what this choice represented: he would join no sect, but instead sell his allegiance to an aristocratic clan.

This was a promising young man who currently ranked second. Even if the youth surnamed Fan eventually overtook him, a place among the top three was virtually guaranteed.

The scene descended into chaos. Numerous established clans began assessing how many bargaining chips they would need to produce, while remote clans that had sent only spies to observe considered how to transmit the news back as quickly as possible.

Amid the commotion, Mu Takuya looked back at the countless newcomers. Reluctance filled his eyes. Then he clenched his fists, gritted his teeth, and vanished into the crowd.

Six Swords watched him leave and sighed.

“Another person with a story.”

Madam Kuang was holding Su Daji’s hand and was clearly in excellent spirits. Yet even she seemed somewhat weighed down at the loss of such a talent.

“He must have made this choice because the small world could wait no longer. Our sects have an explicit rule forbidding us from interfering in the struggles within the small worlds. Thus, apart from joining an aristocratic clan, he probably had no other path available to him.”

“Sometimes, it seems as though ten million choices lie before you, when in truth there may be only one you can make.”

Five Swords sighed as he gazed at the number on the stone stele: two.

He knew the final result was near.

After cultivating for so many years, he had long since reached the Immortal Longevity realm, a state that ordinary people regarded as the realm of immortals. How long had it been since anything had managed to arouse his curiosity?

Again and again, he asked himself how that mysterious man, who always stood with his hands behind his back, would ultimately choose.

Hidden Saint 36 — Hidden Saint: Chapter Thirty-Six, The Top Ten, Part Two — Complete.