Chapter 448: Gaokao-Level Elimination Rate

As time passed, batch after batch of people stepped onto the Xianqiao and entered the Xianshan immortal realm.

From Huaguo's Taishan, Japan's Mount Fuji, the Wasteland Mountain of the Myriad Wastes Realm, the Immortal Mountain of Lord Tianhong's Greater Realm, and countless other heavens—countless prodigies, ancient beings, and even ordinary living creatures swarmed in.

No one wanted to miss such an opportunity.

After a short period of exploration, all beings had already figured it out: this Jixia Academy immortal fate did not distinguish between poor and rich, noble and lowly, high or low status—as long as you could step onto the Xianqiao and pass this trial, you would have a chance.

Throughout the myriad heavens and worlds, there were tens of thousands of worlds, and no one knew exactly how many worlds existed in the world.

Now, all living beings in every world were climbing for immortal fate—the scene was unprecedentedly magnificent, never before seen. This day was destined to be unforgettable, recorded through ancient and modern times, passed down for ten thousand ages.

The number of people kept growing.

The total number of entrants had already reached over a hundred million.

In just a short while, the number of people from the myriad heavens reached over a hundred million.

Those who had entered were observing the scenery after entry, exclaiming in wonder; those who had not entered were striving to walk the Xianqiao, extremely anxious, afraid of being left behind, because they knew this kind of recruitment could not be permanently open—there must be a time limit.

Otherwise, ancient beings like the Dark Nether Immortal King would not have waited bitterly for a hundred thousand years.

Sure enough.

Half a day later, the sky-splitting rift in the myriad heavens changed wind and clouds, countless clouds gathered, forming a colossal human figure that pierced straight into the sky, as if lying within chaos, wrapped in misty qi, its body semi-transparent.

Eyes like the firmament itself were opening.

Within them were vast oceans, undulating mountain ranges, sun, moon, and stars appearing and disappearing, as if hiding another universe!

A voice containing something like supreme uniqueness echoed between heaven and earth.

"The number of one hundred million is full; the rest shall wait for the next time."

One hundred million!?

Those outside who had not entered changed color—did this mean a hundred million people had already entered? Not one more, not one less, exactly one hundred million?

Then the next sentence nearly made people weep.

Wait for the next time? Does that mean waiting another hundred thousand years? Or even longer, when even my ashes are gone?

In an instant.

Those who had entered cheered, celebrated, and were exhilarated; those who had not entered were melancholy, regretful, filled with mixed feelings, yet helpless.

Immortal fate was originally about destiny—only those with affinity could obtain the opportunity. Their failure to enter could only mean they had no affinity with Jixia Academy.

"Next time, next time I will definitely enter!"

An immortal demon roared toward the sky—he had not entered, because he had committed sins. Walking on the Xianqiao was extremely difficult; after half a day he seemed about to approach, but when the time limit was reached, he fell just one step short.

Then this immortal demon did not complain much, and with a dark face turned around and left decisively.

Not to go back.

But to prepare to do good deeds.

His inability to enter this time was entirely his own doing from committed sins. For the next time, he had to reduce his sins, otherwise walking on the Xianqiao would end the same way.

As for when Jixia Academy would next open, he did not care—at their level of immortal demons, there were ways to extend lifespan, there were.

There was one method that could let them live for over a hundred thousand years—blood-stopping longevity seal, sealing away all vitality to extend lifespan consumption. But likewise, they themselves would fall into slumber. Yet this was also the method of extending lifespan they could achieve.

Over a hundred thousand years was not so easy to extend; where there is gain there must be loss—losing freedom in exchange for extended life. For entering Jixia Academy and achieving immortality, slumbering for a hundred thousand years was worth it!

Immediately.

A peculiar situation appeared in every world.

Many great figures were doing good deeds and giving charity, accumulating merit. Wherever there was injustice, wherever there was sin, wherever there was unfairness, these great figures would be there.

World invasion, this kind of evil deed, decreased. Great figures were prohibiting such things—invasion became world exchange.

These were matters for later.

At this time, within the Xianshan immortal realm.

This stretch of vast land had oceans and continents, dense forests, barren deserts, endless mountains and rivers…

The sky was very high, very blue, and very vast.

In the vast heaven and earth, a towering immortal mountain—springs babbling, trees verdant green, immortal mist swirling, misty clouds drifting, faintly the cries of auspicious beasts could be heard, immortal palaces appearing and disappearing—at a glance it was clearly a dwelling place of immortals…

And a slightly shorter peak happened to connect with the firmament.

On top was a platform built of ancient green bricks.

On the platform.

Many people walked out from the doors of ancient stone-carved buildings—densely packed, no one knew how many.

At the very least, tens of millions.

Each person wore a look of dejection, face pale, deeply hiding exhaustion and lingering fear. They had experienced the six scenes and six landscapes of desert lone smoke, snowy ice plains, ocean waves, and so on, and passed tests of wisdom, courage, reaction, temperament, and the like—nine parts desperate struggle, one part luck—only then did they make it through.

And at this time, below the green peak, there were also clusters of buildings of varying heights, forming an ancient-style small town, with quite a few people in the town as well.

At this moment, in several places outside the town, a large batch of people suddenly appeared—these people were even more miserable, faces sallow yellow, eyes lifeless, looking utterly devoid of interest in living.

Needless to say, these were the people who had not passed the tests of desert, ice plains, and so on, and had been eliminated.

Some leaned against trees staring blankly at the sky; some watched with great interest the barren forest that could never be seen on Earth.

Who had ever seen towering trees ten meters in diameter, with deep green dense canopies blocking out the sky?

And rabbits taller than a person, butterflies the size of small cars, and so on.

If ordinary small animals were this huge, then how terrifying must the carnivorous animals in the forest be—wolves, lions, and the like—and some carnivorous animals were also pack animals…

One could imagine that if one left the town, the probability of death would be infinitely close to one hundred percent.

Beyond amazement, there was more excitement and sighing.

Those on the green peak's green brick platform were excited, because they had passed the tests.

Those in the town below the green peak sighed—they had not passed, and probably had no share in immortal fate. The only thing worth celebrating was that the beings who tested them had the virtue of cherishing life, did not let them die in the test, and they still had their lives—a blessing within misfortune.

"This eliminated at least eighty or ninety million people."

Zhang Hao stood on the platform, gazing down. Below, outside the town, the crowd of outsiders was densely packed, their numbers far exceeding those who had passed through onto the platform.

"Nine out of ten eliminated — what a brutal cut rate."

Gao Xiang Hong replied, sighing at how terrifying the trial's difficulty was.

From what could be seen on the platform, there were currently around ten million people. One had to remember that a total of one hundred million had entered this time — out of that hundred million, only ten million remained. A ninety percent elimination rate could hardly be called low.

"I feel like I'm back at the college entrance exam. Having to stand out among every student in the whole country — that's just brutal."

Zhang Hao couldn't help but grumble. Damn, this trial is just as hard as the college entrance exam.

As they spoke, he and Gao Xiang Hong couldn't help but glance at the otherworlders beside them. Having been through the college entrance exam themselves, did that count as giving them more experience than these people?

And indeed it did.

Seeing the ninety percent elimination rate, the otherworlders exchanged uneasy glances, a wave of lingering fear washing over them.

Only those from the Original Realm wore calm, composed expressions.

Compared to the college entrance exam, this was nothing. The college entrance exam was the real nightmare — you had to bravely scale the heights, every extra point meant surpassing tens of thousands of others.

Whether it was Hua Country or other countries like Japan, in many nations the college entrance exam was one of the great turning points of life.

"I have a feeling it isn't over yet."

At that moment, Jiuzhou Di Yi Xian walked over, his brow slightly furrowed.

If the trial had already ended, it shouldn't be like this. He feared the trial was more than just this.

His voice wasn't loud, but everyone around heard it, their hearts pounding uncontrollably.

"More?! My god, no way. Nine thousand million have already been cut — still more to cut? Picking one in ten thousand? Is that it…"

Some otherworlders wore agonized expressions. The previous trials of the great desert and the frozen plains had already been brutal enough, and now there were more to come — the difficulty would likely only go higher. Who could withstand that?

Many people's faces darkened; they could only privately pray they'd pass.

Having finally made it to the blue-brick platform, none of them were willing to become one of the people in the town below.

……