Before the Dragon Phoenix Academy's entrance, many elders sensed Xiang Shaoyun's change.

Even Liu Xutian was impressed. "This kid has guts!"

He already had this opinion the moment Xiang Shaoyun had opted to break through on the stairs. He had merely been keeping it to himself. Now that Xiang Shaoyun's breakthrough was about to succeed, he finally expressed his opinion. It wasn't that he enjoyed telling the obvious, but he just wasn't interested in participating in the argument between Xiao Wei and Feng Huosuo.

"Well done! The breakthrough was successful! Hahaha!" Xiao Wei shouted cheerily. He was in a terrible mood being mocked repeatedly by Feng Huosuo. Finally, he could vent his frustration.

On the other hand, Feng Huosuo's face turned ghastly. "Just because he managed to break through does not mean he will become a disciple of the academy. There's not much time left."

"Hah, you don't have to worry about that. He is a special-recruit. Even if he's a little bit late, I reckon the academy won't mind accepting a disciple so outstanding," said Xiao Wei.

"Hmph. Even after breaking through, he will only be an eighth-stage Skysoar Realm cultivator. If he can't even get through the test, it only means that he is not qualified to be a special-recruit," said Feng Huosuo coldly. He then said to Liu Xutian, "Elder Liu, please be just when the time comes for you to make a decision!"

Xiao Wei did not look too happy. He knew that this Elder Liu was known for being strictly impartial and incorruptible.

"If he can reach the top, he will remain a special-recruit disciple. If he can't reach the top, he will be eliminated like the rest," said Liu Xutian, not showing any leniency whatsoever.

There was less than half an hour remaining. After successfully reaching the eighth stage, Xiang Shaoyun was in excellent form. His soul power was growing, his Nether Soul Domain was expanding, his body was surging with power, and his stars and astral cosmos sea were enlarging. His meridians and acupoints were also being cleansed once again as his blood raged within him. The heavy weight of his armor felt almost nonexistent, and the pressure the stairs exerted on him was negligible.

Tang Longfei cried out anxiously, "Shaoyun, get up here! There's not much time left!"

When Xiang Shaoyun heard that, he stood up and wiped the blood off the corners of his lips and muttered mockingly, "This is the most dangerous breakthrough yet, but it feels quite nice."

He then stretched lazily before lifting his head and resumed his climb. This time, when he moved, he was hovering slightly above the ground. He was no longer forced to take firm steps on the stairs.

Everyone was shocked by the sight. One ought to know that each step of the stairs contained a different type of pressure. Even regular Emperors wouldn't be able to hover above the stairs. The stairs' pressure wasn't supposed to be something ordinary humans could withstand. Those young geniuses wouldn't have taken so much time to reach the top otherwise.

And now, Xiang Shaoyun seemed to be moving completely unobstructed, as if he was immune to the pressure. It was hard to believe. Of course, the people present also knew that only after possessing a certain degree of strength would one be able to do so.

In fact, the elders of the Dragon Phoenix Academy knew that doing this required not only strength, but also a certain degree of comprehension of presence. Currently, Xiang Shaoyun was exuding the presence of dragon and tiger. This was not just the presence of a King. Rather, it was a type of unrivaled presence.

This was a presence formed of an unrivaled will, etching an unrivaled overbearingness onto his soul, allowing him to charge ahead fearlessly with an unstoppable momentum. Thus, the pressure the stairs exerted did not affect him as badly as others had imagined.

Although he had seemed to have trouble climbing the initial steps, it was mostly due to the heavy armor he wore. Now that he had advanced by a stage, he was able to neutralize the pressure the armor brought him. Combined with his unrivaled presence, he was able to hover above the stairs. In a few seconds, he crossed more than half of them. It was an extremely fast speed.

"H-how is that possible? He is climbing as easily as he walks on flat land! How is he doing it?"

"He had only broken through to the eighth-stage Skysoar Realm, not the Emperor Realm! How can he ignore the pressure? I refuse to believe this! He must be cheating!"

"Did no one notice the presence of dragon and tiger around him? It is no weaker than the presence of an actual Emperor. His powerful presence is able to neutralize the pressure of the stairs. That's why he's not affected!"

"That Xiang Shaoyun is amazing! Looks like he is another one of those freaks. No wonder he managed to kill Da Zixuan so easily."

...

An uproar erupted among the young geniuses who couldn't help talking about what they had just seen. Even the elders were impressed.

"What a good recruit! Possessing such a presence at this age. He has a bright future ahead of him! Few recruits of this batch can do the same! This kid is mine!" said an elder.

A different elder said, "Haha, you're not the one who recruited him. Everyone has the right to take him as a disciple, and he also has the right to select his master. I think I'll be a better teacher for him."

The other elders also started volunteering to take Xiang Shaoyun as a personal disciple, and some of them even got agitated bickering. After all, it wasn't easy to find a good successor. An excellent disciple like this was extremely rare.

Liu Xutian asked Xiao Wei, "Xiao Wei, you're this kid's recruiter. What do you think?"

Finally, all the elders focused on Xiao Wei.

Xiao Wei sank into thought before he smiled and said, "Since I was the one who had recruited him, it's best I teach him myself."

In fact, he already had this thought when he saw Xiang Shaoyun at the Bloodsin City. However, Xiang Shaoyun's cultivation level was still a tad bit too low. Xiao Wei's initial plan was to let Xiang Shaoyun cultivate for about a year at the academy and reach ninth-stage Skysoar Realm before accepting him as a disciple. However, Xiang Shaoyun had attracted the attention of so many elders. He was definitely not willing to lose someone like Xiang Shaoyun.

Liu Xutian had a look of regret as he said, "Alright. We'll talk after he passes the test."

Evidently, Elder Liu Xutian had also been attracted by Xiang Shaoyun's potential. Meanwhile, Xiang Shaoyun had reached the 72nd step of stairs. Here, he could sense some suppression on his soul, but still not enough to pose him any sort of trouble. After all, his soul power had reached a level comparable to a peak Emperor's, getting nearer and nearer to the level of a Sovereign's.

No wonder so many people stopped here. This place has a suppression on both the flesh and the soul, thought Xiang Shaoyun as he continued his climb. With a few jumps, he reached the top.