I Tame Beasts by Feeding

"Elder Yun, a promising talent has appeared on your Beast Taming Peak. You must be sure to nurture him well."

Yun Hejing was startled, but replied, "Changsheng is indeed quite talented in Beast Taming. Once this trial is over, I will certainly guide him well."

Lu Ruikai shook his head. "I don’t know how this kid does it. For a Beast Master, he sure has a lot of tricks up his sleeve. He’s not simple at all..."

"He must have an expert guiding him from the shadows."

Yun Hejing didn’t reply. The image of Elder Wei surfaced in her mind. She knew that Elder Wei had always held Yu Changsheng in high regard, but... ’Perhaps even Elder Wei would be astonished by Yu Changsheng’s performance now?’

...

Seven thousand five hundred... seven thousand six hundred...

The higher he went, the greater the pressure with each step. At this height, every step was a struggle for Yu Changsheng. He began to gasp for air, sweat dripping onto the stairs drop by drop.

He paid no mind to Gu Zhen behind him. Yu Changsheng had only one goal: the eight thousandth step.

’There’s a gift every thousand steps. The gift at the eight thousandth step... no one has claimed it for many years. I wonder what it could be...’

Yu Changsheng pushed forward with difficulty. His qi and blood surged, and his Divine Sense spread out like a vast sea, urging his body ever upward. Despite the strain, he kept his mind focused, a sliver of anticipation for the gift at the eight thousandth step growing within him.

Unlike the rewards at the five thousandth and six thousandth steps, the one at seven thousand was for a height that someone reached almost every year. Naturally, the gift was rather ordinary.

But the eight thousandth step... no one had set foot on it in a hundred years. One could only imagine how precious its reward would be.

At the seven thousand five hundredth step, Gu Zhen finally couldn’t hold on any longer and chose to teleport away.

At this moment, nearly all the disciples and Elders were focused on Yu Changsheng. Some were filled with admiration, some with surprise, and others with shock—but not a single one looked on with contempt.

"With a mere Qi Refining Cultivation, he’s overpowering a host of Foundation Establishment geniuses..."

"To think that the biggest dark horse of this trial would come from Beast Taming Peak."

"Is Beast Taming Peak about to make a comeback and reclaim its former glory?"

Seven thousand eight hundred! Seven thousand nine hundred!

By the time he set foot on the seven thousand nine hundredth step, Yu Changsheng was utterly exhausted. The omnipresent pressure was so intense his very flesh seemed to grind together. His Divine Soul was faring slightly better, but it too was being crushed to the point of suffocation.

His Qi Refining Peak Cultivation was as good as useless here; it provided no help whatsoever. He could only watch as his physical body and Divine Soul struggled to endure.

Yu Changsheng gritted his teeth. For the first time, his feet came to a halt. His face flushed crimson, and the simple act of lifting his leg became incredibly difficult, as if it bore the weight of a mountain.

’If only I had a Foundation Establishment Cultivation... even just Early-stage Foundation Establishment, this wouldn’t be so difficult. My Cultivation speed is still too slow...’

Yu Changsheng sighed. Pressing his lips together, he took another step. His body trembled, and his aura fell into disarray for an instant.

The pressure had increased exponentially from the seven thousandth step to this point, past the seven thousand nine hundredth. Each new step here was several times more intense than any of the steps below the seven thousandth mark.

Under this immense pressure, Yu Changsheng’s body couldn’t help but hunch over, crouching low to the steps as he advanced, one step at a time.

Seven thousand nine hundred eighty... seven thousand nine hundred ninety...

When he finally took the last step, landing on the seven thousand nine hundred and ninety-ninth stair, the surrounding pressure reached a terrifying peak. It swept in from all directions, like a tidal wave intent on drowning him.

His Foundation Establishment Body began to exert its full power. His qi and blood roiled, forming a phantom armor that covered his skin. But even so, Yu Changsheng was suffering. His qi and blood flowed in reverse, causing him to stagger as he struggled to lift his head.

’Seven thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine steps... That was my limit back then, and I was already at the Foundation Establishment Fifth Layer...’

Lu Ruikai quietly watched everything Yu Changsheng did. Only when the youth finally mounted that step did his gaze flicker, revealing an indescribable emotion.

’To reach this step already proves that you are my equal... But can you take one more?’

As these thoughts surfaced in his mind, a strange glint appeared in Lu Ruikai’s eyes. It looked like anticipation.

Aside from Lu Ruikai, everyone else was also watching with rapt attention. Some felt anxious, others hopeful... Everyone’s emotions were stirred, and Yun Hejing’s heart was once again in her throat.

’The pressure doubles every thousand steps... Seven thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine. Is this final step where Lu Ruikai fell, too...?’

On the step, Yu Changsheng was nearly prostrate, struggling to raise his head. His eyes burned with defiance and stubbornness.

Besides the crushing pressure that left him breathless, something else caught Yu Changsheng’s attention: a line of small, faintly glowing words carved into this very step.

"To know what is beyond your control, and to be content with it as destiny. —Lu Ruikai"

The calligraphy was vigorous and powerful. Within the flamboyant strokes, one could faintly hear the hum of a sword, and Yu Changsheng could clearly perceive the Sword Intent emanating from the words.

He could also sense the emotions of the person who carved them—a feeling of utter helplessness, yet also one of complete acceptance.

"’To know what is beyond your control, and to be content with it as destiny?!’"

Yu Changsheng stared at the line of words Lu Ruikai had left behind and looked up with a grin. Streaks of blood and sweat dripped from his nose and mouth, but he paid them no mind.

He put sudden force into his arms, the veins on them bulging as his eyes became completely bloodshot. The sound of his bones breaking, like a string of firecrackers, echoed from within his body. CRACK! CRACK! Overwhelming pain washed over him.

Yu Changsheng let out a muffled grunt. In that instant, his internal organs all sustained a certain degree of damage.

"How very magnanimous of you! But I, Yu Changsheng, refuse to believe that anything is ’beyond my control’!"

Yu Changsheng roared. His qi and blood surged as he drove his Divine Sense with the Thousand Thoughts Slash, manifesting a sword before him. A torrent of power erupted, pushing him forward inch by inch.

Yu Changsheng straightened his torso. First his arms crossed the threshold, then his feet followed, inch by painstaking inch, until at last, he had crossed onto the next step.

BOOM!

The moment he set foot on the eight thousandth step, Yu Changsheng was instantly slammed flat against it. He coughed up mouthful after mouthful of blood, and his Divine Soul grew faint.

An infinite storm erupted at that moment. The air condensed, and overwhelming phantom images bombarded Yu Changsheng. His eyes opened to a mere slit.

His qi and blood collapsed. His Spiritual Soul Protection was on the verge of shattering. His body felt as if it had been hammered a thousand times, his chest caved in, and the sound of breaking bones rose and fell without end.

’It’s still not enough...’

Nearly unconscious, Yu Changsheng bit his tongue to stay awake. He struggled to crawl forward. Before him, a black Stone Box floated in the air, exuding an ancient aura.

It was the reward for reaching the eight thousandth step.

"Get... UP!!"

Yu Changsheng roared furiously. In that instant, all of his body’s potential erupted. The remaining Medicinal Force from the Life-Returning Pill began to rapidly dissolve, serving as his most powerful reserve of strength, continuously repairing his body.