Nine Nether Dragon Emperor-Chapter 256: The Young Master is the Rule of Rules!
Before she even entered, she was already feeling apprehensive. As it turned out, her worst fears were realized. The moment she stepped inside, she saw Nanling Bully kneeling before Ning Xuan!
What’s more, it wasn’t just ordinary kneeling—he was hugging Ning Xuan’s thigh!
You Ruo’s first reaction was a single thought. He’s just like a dog! He’s the spitting image of a dog wagging its tail, begging its master for mercy!
Yet, at that moment, Nanling Bully’s eyes held nothing but the sight of Ning Xuan.
"I’m begging you, please tell me the method," he pleaded earnestly, on the verge of banging his head on the ground.
Seeing this, You Ruo was completely floored. Is this really the Venerable I know?!
Behind them, Jiang Boya and the other three exchanged dumbfounded looks. What in the world was going on? Why was a Venerable kneeling?
Chu Tian was the first to snap back to reality. Damn it! We should have let those guys outside who said Ning Xuan was being used as a Blood Sacrifice see this! If the situation weren’t so inappropriate, he would have celebrated like mad.
Opening the Heavenly Ladder was clearly Ning Xuan’s doing! The Venerable not only didn’t help, but he didn’t even know how Ning Xuan managed it! Otherwise, this scene would never have happened.
His Divine Sense swept over the still-blank Ancestral Records, and Chu Tian felt a compelling urge to rush over and have Ning Xuan be the first to leave his mark.
In the future, this Ancestral Record might become famous throughout Yao Guang! By then, all the major powers in Yao Guang will surely be green with envy!
Just then, Ning Xuan looked over in their direction. Not knowing what possessed him, Chu Tian immediately put his thoughts into action.
"What do you mean by this? I don’t accept gifts," Ning Xuan asked, confused, having determined that the item Chu Tian was offering was worthless.
Chu Tian’s smile stiffened, and he decided to tell the truth. "Well, I’ve been expelled from my family. Now I’ve decided to start a new clan. This is the Ancestral Record, and I believe you have the potential to make a name for yourself throughout Yao Guang, so could I trouble you to..."
Before he could finish, Ning Xuan shook his head and cut him off. "Make a name for myself in Yao Guang? You’re thinking too small."
Chu Tian’s face flushed with embarrassment as he tried to retract his hand. But Ning Xuan snatched the record away and, with a few quick strokes, signed his name in the most conspicuous spot on the first page.
Although Chu Tian hadn’t said it, Ning Xuan guessed that the reason he was expelled from the Chu Family was for speaking up for him.
Dazedly, Chu Tian took back the Ancestral Record, his mind still reeling.
"Uncle, you should begin your assessment," Ning Xuan hastily reminded Nanling Bully, having noticed out of the corner of his eye that Jiang Boya and the other two were also giving him strange looks.
Being seen kneeling and pleading by the candidates from the Sin Domain didn’t embarrass Nanling Bully in the slightest. In his heart, Ning Xuan was already a godlike existence. These youngsters don’t even have the right to kneel before the Young Master!
However, looking at the Ancestral Record in Chu Tian’s hand, Nanling Bully’s face filled with envy. If not for the inappropriateness of the occasion, he might have snatched it on the spot!
That was the Young Master’s own calligraphy! Its future value is absolutely immeasurable!
As for the assessment, Nanling Bully respectfully agreed the moment Ning Xuan spoke. Then, he announced to Chu Tian, "You don’t need to take the assessment. You pass."
The Young Master deigned to leave his mark in this person’s Ancestral Record. If I don’t seize this chance to curry favor, I’ll have lived for decades in vain!
Chu Tian and the other three were stunned. Is this even allowed?
He was about to refuse, intending to climb the Heavenly Ladder on his own merit, but the words changed on his lips as a new thought struck him: "Thank you! I will certainly live up to your esteemed kindness!"
Refusing wouldn’t offend Ning Xuan, but it would definitely offend the Venerable! More importantly, I have no real confidence in climbing the Heavenly Ladder. The Ten Clans Competition has been held many times, and there have even been champions who failed at this very trial! If I refuse this kindness only to fail, I’ll be nailed to the pillar of shame for all time! My failure would be dragged out and publicly shamed at every Ten Clans Competition to come!
That was a fate he absolutely wanted to avoid.
"Excuse me, Venerable Sir, isn’t this against the rules?" Mo Wu mustered his courage to speak. Just a moment ago, his master had seriously warned him that he had to stop this.
The Heavenly Ladder only has three spots available each time! If Chu Tian passes without an assessment, he’ll still take up one of those spots! In a normal assessment, Chu Tian is the one I’m most confident in defeating! After all, there’s Ye Yi with his Double Pupil and Jiang Boya from the premier family. I lack confidence against them. But Chu Tian is different. Like me, he’s a dark horse. Most importantly, I haven’t seen anything particularly extraordinary about him!
Mo Wu had already mentally reserved the third spot for himself, but now Chu Tian was being given a free pass. He was naturally unhappy.
"Rules?" Nanling Bully glanced at Mo Wu and said arrogantly, "Here, I am the rules!" He finished by looking at Ning Xuan with a fawning smile. "Of course, the Young Master is the rule above the rules."
"Master, are all the Venerables in the Upper Realm like this?" Mo Wu asked the remnant soul in his mind.
The remnant soul exploded with fury. "How is that possible?! This guy is a disgrace to me... a disgrace to all Venerables!"
Mo Wu subconsciously nodded in agreement, his eyes full of resentment as he glared at Nanling Bully.
Damn it! You really know how to lick boots! He despised Nanling Bully to the very core.
"Since you agree, then prepare yourselves. You will begin climbing the Heavenly Ladder shortly!" Nanling Bully completely misinterpreted his nod.
After saying this with a straight face, he immediately scampered over to Ning Xuan’s side, his face crinkling into a huge, fawning smile.
Seeing that it was impossible to change the Venerable’s mind, Mo Wu had no choice but to give up and begin preparing. Ye Yi and Jiang Boya did the same.
Climbing the Heavenly Ladder sounded simple in principle. One only had to ascend a hundred steps to push open the celestial gate and enter Yao Guang. However, those mere hundred steps had barred countless brilliant prodigies from ever reaching it. Therefore, the three of them didn’t dare to be the slightest bit careless. They prepared for a long while before finally making their move.
At first, Nanling Bully was very nervous. He suddenly remembered that the Heavenly Ladder was supposed to contain all sorts of trials. What if the ladder the Young Master constructed is just an empty shell? That would be a disaster!
But soon, he completely relaxed. He saw that the trio had barely climbed a dozen steps before their speed slowed noticeably.
The Young Master’s Heavenly Ladder has trials, too! And they don’t seem easy! Right, I remember the ancient texts say this Heavenly Ladder was built a thousand years ago by a peerless prodigy at the absolute pinnacle of the Heavenly Realm! It was because he earned the recognition of the Heavenly Dao that the rule of two Venerables being required to open it was put in place—to protect it! Wait a second...
Thinking of this, Nanling Bully suddenly came to a realization. A flash of insight struck him, revealing a terrifying possibility. If his guess was correct, the implications were simply too horrifying!
Subconsciously, he began to secretly observe Ning Xuan, hoping to discern some clue from his expression.
