Standing in front of the stairs, Apollo glanced around at the participants. They were basically jumping before landing on or around the tenth step, then proceeding to just run or walk up the mountain.
Bel, Filly, and Gail also did the same, though Bel and Gail landed on the 17th and 16th steps, respectively.
Filly landed on the 13th step. Seeing her companions already ahead of her, she couldn't help but shout, "Wait for me!" Then she started running towards the two.
The beggar turned to the step in front of him. What is it that's holding them? Curious, he raised his foot and put it on the first step. He didn't raise his other foot yet, trying to see if he could feel the 'thing' that made the others struggle up the stairs.
He waited for a few seconds but didn't feel a thing. That's when he heard a grunt a few steps away from him. Looking up, he saw a man not wearing the martial student's uniform who couldn't take another step. Apollo couldn't see the man's face, but the way he grunted and tried to raise his foot made the beggar understand what was happening.
Spreading his senses, Apollo realized that the man was not a cultivator but just a normal human. What was he thinking? And how did he even get his hands on the invitation? This made him curious, so he walked up the stairs to stand beside the man.
"Hey," Apollo said, glancing at the man's face. But the scene almost made him burst out laughing. The man's face was so scrunched up it looked like he was taking a massive sh*t!
"…W-what?" The man was silent for a moment before he managed to say something through gritted teeth.
"What do you—" Apollo closed his mouth just in time as his laugh threatened to come out. He took a breath to calm down and repeated his words. "What do you feel?"
The man slowly turned his head to the speaker.
No! Don't look at me! Apollo immediately looked away, his mouth twitching while his nose flared.
"I… feel… great… pressure… I-I can't… move," the man explained with great difficulty.
"Do you feel like something is pressing down on you?" Apollo asked, his face turned to the side.
"Y-yes…" the man answered.
"How did you…" Apollo closed his eyes and took a deep breath. When he opened them, determination to look at the man's face appeared. It's rude to talk to someone without looking at them directly. So he did. However, he instantly turned his head back, his face red from holding in his laughter. Still, he continued his words.
"How did you get your invitation?"
"I… bought it… with… my hard-earned… money," the man explained. Although the pressure was too great and taking the next step was too hard, he was still trying his best. "I… want… to cultivate… it's my dream…"
As expected, Apollo had already realized this fact. Sighing with eyes closed, he patted the man's shoulder to comfort him. "Dream, as long as you work hard, I believe you will achieve it!"
Then he looked up, his eyes now open, and started walking up the stairs. Leaving those cool words felt great. Hehe, I'm really a friendly neighborhood beggar! The sound of crashing from behind echoed. Apollo smiled, thinking there were even special sound effects for his cool performance.
That special sound effect, however, was the sound of the man falling down the stairs because the beggar's pat added more pressure. The man's body, already on the verge of giving up, collapsed in an instant.
After taking a few steps, he saw the other non-martial students already having a hard time moving their feet. So, as a friendly neighborhood beggar, he walked up to them, gave them some advice on how to achieve their dreams of becoming a cultivator, and then proceeded to walk up the stairs in a cool manner.
Special sound effects of crashing soon echoed, making the smile on the beggar's face widen. He actually knew what the sound was coming from behind. The beggar was actually doing them a favor as with their capabilities they would only end up as laughing stocks. Worst case, nobles would find amusement with them, and the ridicule and mockery would shatter their dreams.
Apollo didn't do this because he was good-hearted and really wanted to help them. It's just that he admired their guts for even trying to join this Advancement Examination despite not having any cultivation.
Shaking his head, he moved on to find the other one.
Oh? Where's the last one? Apollo didn't find the last non-martial student who got their hands on the invitation card either by defeating a martial student, buying it from them, or through other means.
Glancing up, he found the person walking at the same pace as Filly, Gail, and Bel.
"He's already a cultivator?" Apollo muttered. He didn't need to spread his senses, feel the Qi, or examine the state of the body to tell that the last non-martial student was a cultivator.
Without anyone to give advice to, the beggar walked up the stairs but stopped before the tenth step. Most of them failed here. I should be able to feel it now. With this in mind, he started walking up while preparing for that pressure to come down on him. However, even after taking a couple of steps, he still didn't feel a thing.
Nothing? Apollo became confused, though he shrugged his shoulders soon after. "Maybe I will feel it on the twentieth step."
Noon was on its way and there was still plenty of time before the day's end.
Filly, Bel, and Gail walked the steps side by side.
"Are you okay?" Bel couldn't help but ask the restaurant owner.
"I'm alright," Filly smiled. "My body just feels slightly heavier than usual."
"Don't worry, I feel it too, though subtly," Bel said.
"I think it's the natural force of gravity. The higher we go up, the more it increases," Gail commented.
"Oh? If that's really the case…" Bel took out a coin. She glanced at Gail, and the two nodded, seemingly understanding each other. "Let's wait for a moment."
"Just watch," Bel turned to her with a smile.
They didn't have to wait long before a martial student walked up the stairs beside them. His step was heavy and his knees were shaking.
"Hey, catch this," Bel said, throwing the coin into the air casually. The martial student was surprised and out of instinct, he caught the falling coin. But in the next moment, he gritted his teeth as his hand almost reached the ground.
"W-what the hell?!" The martial student couldn't help but get angry.
Bel and Gail smiled as their theories were confirmed, while the restaurant owner finally understood what was happening.