Next, Ji Tianran went all out to break the sealing array.
Meanwhile, Chu Feng endured the bombardment and tempering of the blue thunder, and he had gained new rewards.
As the thunder struck faster and faster, the blue aura that aided his body's recovery began to stack.
Though the blue aura was temporary—once the thunder's tempering ended, it would inevitably vanish—while it persisted, it not only allowed Chu Feng's body to recover rapidly but also contained cultivation power.
And as the stacked aura grew thicker and thicker, that cultivation power kept rising. Now, the blue aura's cultivation had surpassed Chu Feng's own, reaching the Heavenly God Realm.
Most importantly, the cultivation power within the blue aura could be wielded by Chu Feng.
However, this power would inevitably weaken along with the blue aura until it vanished entirely. Chu Feng could only possess it temporarily.
Still, Chu Feng didn't care about this cultivation power at all.
After all, within this Age of Gods, such cultivation power was useless.
What he cared about was that the blue aura could make his body recover faster, allowing him to endure the thunder's tempering at an increasing frequency.
It would let him build the stairway within the passage more quickly.
...
Over on Ji Tianran's side, he too was demonstrating his talent.
With the guidance of the old monster within his body, his understanding of the Age of Gods' sealing array grew ever deeper.
He broke through the sealing array with increasing ease—even though the difficulty was escalating, his speed was actually accelerating.
The world had no idea what the two of them were going through.
But they could still gauge the general situation from the stairways being built.
And so those two stairways became the focal point of the world's attention.
As Chu Feng and Ji Tianran's stairways continued to climb, within just a few short days they were approaching the end.
By now, Zi Ling, Xiao Yu'er, and the others had long since arrived at the rendezvous point Chu Feng had designated.
Everyone was observing the grand array, watching the changes within the Age of Gods.
Naturally, their faces were filled with worry.
It wasn't just Zi Ling and Xiao Yu'er.
Even the Totem Dragon Clan's patriarch, along with Long Mucheng, Totem Jiu Dao, and even old-generation figures like Jie Shanxian, were visibly tense.
Only one individual was completely relaxed—it lounged casually in its seat, legs crossed, gnawing on roast goose, watching the Age of Gods like a spectator.
No—it wasn't actually human at all.
It was Fei.
"You all need not worry in the slightest."
"There's absolutely no suspense here."
"Sure, Ji Tianran's stairway isn't building all that much slower than Chu Feng's."
"But the quality of those stairways is completely different!"
"My brother Chu Feng's stairway is not only dazzling but also glowing—it clearly isn't ordinary."
"As for Ji Tianran's stairway, it just looks like a bunch of mud bricks. The moment he steps on them, they might crumble right away and splatter that old fool Ji Tianran to death on the spot."
As Fei spoke, the sound of chewing goose meat could be heard between words.
"If only that were true, that would be wonderful."
Xiao Yu'er replied.
But only Xiao Yu'er responded—the others couldn't be bothered to pay Fei any attention.
Because right now, Chu Feng's stairway was already extremely close to the top, with only a few steps remaining.
Victory was right before their eyes.
But an unexpected turn came swiftly—when Chu Feng's stairway was just one step away from the passage, the final step refused to appear. Instead, Ji Tianran's stairway gradually caught up.
"How could this happen?"
"Don't tell me something went wrong?"
At the sight of this, Zi Ling and Xiao Yu'er's already anxious faces tensed to the extreme.
After all, anyone could tell.
Something had gone wrong.
And at the same time, inside the Age of Gods, Chu Feng was still standing where he had been before.
At this moment, a dense blue aura coiled around his entire body.
The blue aura clung to him like armor, making Chu Feng look extraordinarily imposing.
And the aura's contained power, after continuous stacking, had now reached the Eighth-rank Heavenly God level.
Yet there was not a trace of joy on Chu Feng's face.
Because the vast expanse of thunder overhead had already dispersed.
As if signaling that the tempering was over.
But his stairway was still one step short.
That single missing step prevented him from entering the passage, from reaching the pinnacle of the Age of Gods.
He... had failed.