"Ugh!!"
In his berserk state, Dai Mubai roared like a wild beast.
The next moment, he dropped to all fours and surged forward, moving far faster than before, quickly closing in on Ma Hongjun.
"That bastard actually caught up!"
Seeing Dai Mubai charging at him like a feral beast, Ma Hongjun hurriedly sped up.
But as the steps rose higher, the pressure from the Sea God's Light grew heavier. By the time he reached the hundredth step, the pressure spiked sharply.
Under that crushing, mountain-like force, Ma Hongjun had no choice but to slow down.
Meanwhile, Dai Mubai, having lost his reason, barely seemed affected. Driven purely by bloodlust, he instinctively chased the nearest target.
"No... I can't fall here. My teacher is still waiting for me."
With Dai Mubai getting closer and closer, fear gripped Ma Hongjun, but it also forced him to push past his limits, struggling up another step.
At the 108th step, Yu Tianheng, Dugu Yan, and the others watched the scene unfold.
"Tianheng, aren't you going to do something?" Dugu Yan frowned.
Yu Tianheng didn't answer. His body flashed, turning into a streak of blue lightning as he shot downward, reaching around the eightieth step in the blink of an eye.
He positioned himself directly beneath Dai Mubai.
Under the effects of the two mutated sausages, Dai Mubai had lost all rational thought and simply attacked the nearest person.
Now, that person was Yu Tianheng.
Without hesitation, Dai Mubai gave up chasing Ma Hongjun and lunged at Yu Tianheng, but there was no way he could catch him.
Since the transformation of his Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon martial soul, Yu Tianheng's strength, speed, and physique had all improved drastically.
His speed, in particular, was now more than twice what it used to be, rivaling that of agility-type Soul Masters.
Even without breaking through to Soul Saint, his current strength already surpassed most of them. Once he advanced, he would only grow stronger.
Moments later, Yu Tianheng reached the ground.
Dai Mubai followed, leaping down the steps and activating his second soul ring, sending five black slashes flying at him.
Yu Tianheng didn't dodge. He raised his hand and used his first soul skill, Thunder Dragon Claw, to block them all.
Now that he had drawn Dai Mubai off the steps, there was no need to hold back.
After a year of training, his strength had grown significantly, but he had yet to find a proper opponent to test himself against.
Tang San was far stronger than him, and he had no interest in getting beaten up.
As for the others, they were either too weak or too defensive, like the Shi brothers. Xiao Wu was close in strength, but he couldn't fight her seriously.
Now, this was the perfect chance.
Even though Dai Mubai had temporarily reached Soul Saint level in his berserk state, Yu Tianheng was confident he could suppress him.
"Third Soul Skill, Thunderous Fury!"
"Sixth Soul Skill, Thunderous Sacred Dragon Transformation!"
With both enhancements activated, Yu Tianheng's power surged, completely overpowering the berserk Dai Mubai through sheer force.
The fight dragged on for half an hour until the effects of the mutated sausages finally faded.
As soon as they wore off, Dai Mubai slowly regained his senses. His strength dropped back to that of a normal Soul Emperor, if not weaker.
"I... don't feel any pressure at all... Did I pass the test?"
Still dazed, Dai Mubai convinced himself he had succeeded, a look of wild joy spreading across his face.
But when he looked up, he froze.
The steps were right there, only ten meters away.
His body trembled violently as reality sank in.
He had failed.
He had believed that drinking Oscar's blood and using the two mutated sausages would guarantee success.
Even if Ma Hongjun hadn't reached the 108th step, he had planned to drain his blood next, then go after Yu Tianheng and the others.
In his mind, the plan had been flawless.
But reality was merciless.
He was back at the bottom. The sausages were gone. There was no way he could reach the 108th step anymore.
If he had known, he would have forced Oscar to make more.
Now... it was too late.
Despair flooded his chest.
After everything he had done, everything he had sacrificed, this was the result.
"I can't accept this!"
Dai Mubai slammed his fist into the ground, venting his fury.
Behind him, Yu Tianheng finally spoke, his voice cold with disdain.
"Someone who kills his own comrades has the nerve to say that?"
Hearing the voice behind him, Dai Mubai quickly turned around.
The moment he saw Yu Tianheng, he immediately realized why he had felt numb; it was this guy who had done it. His eyes turned bloodshot as he glared, breathing heavily.
"Yu Tianheng! When have I ever offended you?! If you wanted revenge on Yu Xiaogang, you should've stopped Ma Hongjun, not me!"
"Truly, you're looking down on me," Dai Mubai added.
Yu Tianheng sneered before his expression turned calm again.
"I do want to deal with that traitor Yu Xiaogang. But I wouldn't stoop to using cheap tricks on his disciple."
"That's bullshit! I've barely even crossed paths with you, so why are you screwing me over?!"
Dai Mubai's voice was filled with hatred. If not for the gap in their strength, he would have dragged Yu Tianheng down with him.
Yu Tianheng looked at him like he was an idiot.
"You really think I don't know what you were planning? If I hadn't stepped in, once you reached the 108th step, you'd have gone after my teammates."
"So what? You could've waited until I finished!"
Even now, Dai Mubai still didn't think he was wrong.
Everything he did was just to pass the test.
And Oscar? He was doomed anyway. Helping him would've been a waste.
"I'm done talking to you. You're not worth to reason with."
Yu Tianheng lost all interest. There was no point arguing with someone who was as good as dead.
Meanwhile, Tang San successfully reached the 333rd step. After a short rest, he led the others back to Seahorse City.
Some time later, Ma Hongjun finally reached the 108th step.
Seeing this, Dai Mubai's jealousy nearly drove him insane. He wished he could drag Ma Hongjun down with him.
But Ma Hongjun had already anticipated that and immediately flew away.
In the long, cold night, Dai Mubai was left alone, waiting for death.