Apotheosis

Once Zen left, Calum turned to a servant and said, "Fetch me the Dragon Path Array Plate."

The servant gave a short bow, went into the palace, and returned with an unadorned array plate in hand.

The road from here to the mountain peak was named the Dragon Path and had existed ever since work on the palace had completed.

This ancient path was covered by many major arrays that intended to protect the path by taking lives of intruders.

Sword arrays like the Hacking Sword Array and the Fallen Sword Array provided fundamental protection for the Oneness Sky Palace.

Calum wasn't high-ranked enough to have his hands on all those sword arrays.

The array plate he was holding controlled the Cloudy Mountain Array that was built to test climbers trying to scale the mountain.

For a while at the beginning, the palace didn't build the Dragon City.

Anyone wanting to join the palace had to go straight up the mountain.

Every day, there were countless people climbing the mountain. Hundreds and thousands of them would fail the Cloudy Mountain Array.

Once the Dragon City was built, it became difficult even to become qualified to climb the mountain.

"This person is at the first stage of the Other Shore Realm. The eighth-class difficulty will do," said Calum.

"The eighth class…" Sellers was surprised.

Calum glanced at Sellers and asked, "What's wrong? You're afraid it's too difficult for him?"

The array plate Calum was holding could adjust the difficulty of the Cloudy Mountain Array. The eighth class was the easiest of the lot.

It was suitable for Zen's cultivation level.

Sellers chuckled and said, "If you set it at the eighth class, we might witness a new record today."

Calum thought for a while and said, "If you think so highly of him, I'll set it at the seventh class."

Sellers didn't say anything.

It was no big deal for Zen to walk the Dragon Path. It was just one way to get him up the mountain.

Sellers was thinking to himself that even though Zen was only at the first stage of the Other Shore Realm, he could easily handle a fifth or even a fourth-class Cloudy Mountain Array. The seventh or eighth class wouldn't eve

, and then turn it up to the second class. Milo had still made it to the mountain top.

But Milo was a talent with Instant Enlightenment and the palace regarded him as a treasure.

A talent like Milo didn't have to be tested by the Dragon Path. The Flow Sword Sect had sent him here for fun and he had, in the process, set the highest record of all time.

Would Calum compare Zen with Milo? That was impossible!

The third-class difficulty did slow Zen down.

He had ascended so fast because he had ignored the swords coming towards him.

He wouldn't get hurt no matter how the flying swords came after him.

Zen had, by now, covered two-thirds of the path. The flying swords were gaining power now. He had to spare some strength to destroy them, and also occasionally dodge them.

Zen came up with an idea so that he could ascend even faster.

His arms turned black underneath the sleeves. He held his arms up to protect his head, and sped up once again.

The flying swords were like raindrops, and the force contained within was several times stronger than that of the swords in Sword Tower. But they only numbed Zen's arms, without leaving a mark.

"Has he sped up again?" Calum exclaimed, his eyes wide in astonishment.

This wasn't what he had expected to see.

Even Sellers was surprised now.

He had always thought that there was quite a huge gap between Zen and Milo, but it now looked like the gap had diminished greatly.