Li Shuyang stood beneath the mountain gate with a gentle smile, as each child who had passed the second trial came running to bow and pay respects to him.
The six-hundred-year-old Li Shuyang paid these grand gestures no mind at all—he was more than deserving. He seemed in a good mood, sometimes reaching out to lightly pat a child's head as a gesture of kindness.
"Once you've rested, you may ascend the mountain. Take three hours to reach Hammer Sound Pavilion, and you'll be considered to have passed. If you fail to arrive on time, someone will escort you up. Even if you enter the Outer Sect, you must cultivate well. In the future, there is hope to be admitted to the Inner Sect. Back then, even I failed to scale these thousand stairs, but isn't that so? I still cultivated until now, didn't I? So, relax, don't be nervous. Go on then, go, go…"
