Chapter 949: Acceptance Speech

Chapter 949: Acceptance Speech

With several banging sounds, Gong Xiaotian'er and Wang Biao’s group halted once more, each collapsing onto the ground with a thud.

They had already reached over nine hundred and fifty floors, but the pressure here was overwhelmingly intense. Their protective spiritual energy was being crushed and scattered, and they couldn’t even summon their life-bound spiritual tools, let alone channel spiritual power to activate them.

“The area below is so lively,” someone remarked during their rest, everyone panting as they gazed downward.

“If I’m not mistaken, we’re the main attractions today,” Dao Zhi said with a tone full of gravity.

“You’re overthinking it.”

“My master always said that Shishu Ye Chen brings his own aura of grandeur wherever he goes,” Gong Xiaotian'er said, scratching his nose.

“Now that’s music to my ears.”

“A bunch of fools.” The little spirit child, who had just finished eating, started climbing upward again. Though small in size, it moved incredibly fast, reaching the top in one go and leaving Wang Biao and the others stunned.

Hahaha!

As soon as it reached the stone platform at the top, the creature darted around wildly, free from the terrifying pressure.

Awesome!

Once it calmed down, it let out a deafening roar that shook the heavens and earth, startling the elders below and making some spit out their tea.

Who’s yelling like that?

The old folks grumbled, stroking their beards in annoyance.

Over there—it’s that little thing! Someone pointed to the little spirit child munching on spiritual stones on the stone platform.

Huh? Someone else has made it up.

The onlookers noticed that after the little spirit child, more figures arrived at the top: a young man in purple robes, a girl in green robes, a boy in white robes, and a girl with fiery red hair.

Dongfang, Ximen, Nangong, Beichen!

Some senior cultivators chuckled while stroking their beards, recognizing these four disciples as from those four great families.

Bang! Bang!

At the same time, Zhao Zixun from the Zhao family, Niu Ben from the Panlong Sea Domain’s Niu family, and Dao Zhi, the self-proclaimed Saint of Thievery, stepped onto the stone platform with force.

Following them were the young disciples from the Shangguan family, Ouyang family, and Situ family, including some from the three sects.

Next came the Xuan generation disciples from the Haotian Shijia and Muyun Shijia, followed by those from Zhu Jian Cheng, Beihai Shijia, Xuantian Shijia, Xingyue Gong, and Qixi Gong. Compared to Hu Wa and Xi Yan’s group, they looked much more disheveled, all slumped on the stone platform and gulping down spiritual liquid.

Pfft!

A sound of spitting blood echoed from the stone stairs—it was Li Xiao, the state master of Tianxiang Guguo.

He had been defeated on the nine hundred and fifty-third floor, overwhelmed by the terrifying pressure that made him cough up blood. As a recent Ren Yuan realm cultivator, it was impressive that he had made it this far.

Sigh!

With a sigh, he withdrew from the stone stairs and flew down.

After him, more disciples staggered onto the stone platform, each with blood trickling from their lips.

Damn!

Watching figures pass by like beasts, Gong Xiaotian'er, Wang Biao, and Shao Yu couldn’t help but twitch their mouths.

The three glanced back and saw only Yu Feng lingering on the six hundred-something floor; they were the only ones left on the Tongtian Stone Stairs.

How awkward is this!

The three coughed awkwardly, scratching their heads as they sat on the nine hundred and seventies floor.

Idiots! You three big idiots!

At the top of the stone stairs, the little spirit child started cursing, looking as obnoxious as ever.

Hey, you little brat!

The three jumped up in anger, mustering all their strength to climb step by step with banging sounds.

Under everyone’s watchful eyes, they coughed up blood one after another. The dozen or so steps ahead felt like an insurmountable chasm, each one exacting a heavy toll.

Eventually, they gave up walking and started crawling.

The sight made everyone in the audience twitch their lips—those in the know saw three people, but others might think they were three toads.

Ouch! It hurts so much!

Below, Chen Rongyun, Li Zhang, and Wei Wenzhuo grimaced in pain.

It wasn’t for no reason—Xiong Er was gripping Chen Rongyun’s hand, Huo Teng was holding Li Zhang’s, and Xie Yun was clutching Wei Wenzhuo’s. The three watched their disciples nervously, their grips tightening.

Almost there, almost there!

They silently cheered for their disciples, squeezing even harder and making Li Zhang and the others’ hands crack.

In the end, their disciples didn’t disappoint. Shao Yu crawled up first, followed by Wang Biao as second.

When it was Gong Xiaotian'er’s turn, Shao Yu and Wang Biao simply hauled him up. Once on the stone platform, the three sprawled out like dead pigs, forming a rather eye-catching display.

Whew!

After they made it, many people breathed a sigh of relief.

Now, all eyes turned to Yu Feng, who was resting on the seven hundredth floor, massaging his legs and back. As the last one on the stairs, his perseverance was truly remarkable.

“After the grand competition, bring him over,” Ye Chen transmitted to Hongchen Xue.

“Being favored by the Holy Lord of Tian Ting, he should feel honored,” Hongchen Xue replied with a light smile.

“He lacks nothing but an opportunity,” Ye Chen said with a smile.

Ahem.

No sooner had Ye Chen spoken than a coughing sound came from the stone platform—it was Wang Biao.

“On this grand occasion, I’d like to say a few words.” Wang Biao stood at the edge of the platform, cleared his throat, and straightened his clothes seriously. “Today, standing here, I first want to thank my master. It’s because of his tireless, shameless efforts in teaching me cultivation that I’ve achieved what I have today.”

His voice boomed with emotion, moving him to tears and leaving the entire audience in stunned silence, their expressions frozen.

Has this guy lost his mind?

It took a moment for someone to mutter, wondering what kind of master could produce such an eccentric disciple. Is this an acceptance speech?

Speaking of masters, many glanced at Huo Teng, who was built like a tank and now teary-eyed. “I’m proud of you, my disciple.”

Oh my god!

Even Gu Santong and the others, known for their composure, rubbed their foreheads at the sight.

Get out of here! My turn!

On the platform, Shao Yu kicked Wang Biao, who was still rambling, sending him tumbling.

Ahem!

Shao Yu cleared his throat, adjusted his collar, and under everyone’s gaze, his eyes welled up with tears. “Today, standing here and achieving what I have, I first want to thank my shameless master. Though he always blames me for peeping at female disciples bathing and has a face that begs for a slap, I’m still grateful to him. He’s shown me what it means to be shameless, how precious that spirit is, and the courage it takes to uphold it.”

He grew more excited as he spoke, tears and snot streaming down, leaving the audience feeling like they’d been struck by lightning.

Instinctively, many looked toward Huo Teng—or more precisely, at Xie Yun, who was also wiping away tears.

At that moment, everyone was baffled. Are you here to train disciples or just to clown around?

“Since everyone’s shared, I’ll say a few words too.” Before Shao Yu could finish, Gong Xiaotian'er pulled him aside.

Like the others, he smoothed his hair, straightened his clothes, cleared his throat, and forced tears into his eyes. “First, I want to thank my master, and his grandfather, his grandmother, his father, his uncle, his eldest uncle, his second uncle, his third uncle, his seventh aunt, his eighth aunt…”

Listening to his impassioned list, the entire audience was dumbfounded. Was this greeting eight generations of ancestors?

They’d seen eccentrics before, but never ones like this.

Meanwhile, Xiong Er was so touched he started crying.

The Xiong family members’ faces turned as colorful as a palette, having been “thanked” from top to bottom.

Even the usually calm Liu Yi gaped, his expression even more vivid.

The Hengyue Zong people mostly covered their foreheads. What sins did they commit in a past life to end up with these “once-in-a-century geniuses”?

“It’s because of him that I’ve grown so plump, feeding me tiger whip all day long,” Gong Xiaotian'er continued, fully immersed and tearful, oblivious to the astonished stares.

“Hey, someone bring me that thirty-zhang great saber.”

“I must say, Hengyue Zong really produces talents!” Hongchen Xue remarked with interest, glancing at Ye Chen.

“That’s all thanks to their masters’ fine teaching,” Ye Chen said, covering his forehead.

“That’s what they call the student surpassing the master,” Gu Santong said thoughtfully, stroking his beard. “I have high hopes for these three kids—they’ll go further down the path of shamelessness.”

Ah!

No sooner had Gu Santong spoken than a scream erupted from the platform.

Everyone watched as Gong Xiaotian'er went down—mid-speech, he was suddenly floored. Not just him; Wang Biao and Shao Yu were also knocked out cold by the other disciples. Led by Dao Zhi and Niu Ben, several surrounded the trio, and things got a bit bloody from there.

Now, the world was quiet, and so was everyone else.

Uh-hehehe!

After a while, someone let out an awkward laugh, breaking the strange atmosphere.

But today, they had truly witnessed something extraordinary. Hengyue Zong was full of characters—Ye Chen’s generation was troublesome enough, but Wang Biao’s had completely shattered everyone’s worldview.