I am a winner with Chinese poetry

Facing Zhu Chenxu's hopeful eyes, Gu Yunzhou shook his head helplessly and replied weakly: "What to do? Just leave it alone!" After saying this, he closed his eyes and continued to adjust his breathing to restore his strength.

Zhu Chenxu was stunned when he heard this nonsense, his face filled with bewilderment. He obviously didn't understand this modern joke, so he could only blink and stand there at a loss.

"I can't do anything about this. This trial is clearly testing everyone's willpower and endurance. Didn't you see that even the Wen Palace has been sealed? Let's take a break and continue!"

Gu Yunzhou panted as he wiped the beads of sweat from his forehead. He felt exhausted, but the situation before him was clear at a glance—there were no shortcuts. The only viable solution was to keep his feet on the ground and climb upwards step by step.

"Alright, alright, Zhu Chenxu, stop talking so much nonsense and save some water! I'm terribly thirsty right now, and it feels like there's a fire burning in my throat. Does anyone of you still have any water? Take it out and I'll be in this emergency!"

Jiang Liunian had long since lost his usual elegant demeanor. His face was covered in dust and sweat, his hair was disheveled, and he leaned against a nearby rock in a rather awkward position. His cracked lips parted slightly, his eyes vacant and dull as he stared straight ahead.

"Oh, I'm so thirsty too! Unfortunately, I left all my water bottles in the Wen Palace. Now that the Wen Palace is sealed, I can't get any water out even if there's water inside!"

Zhu Chenxu was also extremely thirsty and couldn't help but lick his dry lips gently, hoping to relieve the dryness in his mouth. However, that little bit of moisture was quickly blown away by the whistling mountain wind. Not only that, the wind made his mouth feel even drier and more unbearable.

"Everyone, please stop talking. We need to climb up slowly and quickly while we're still a little exhausted! Look, it's getting late. If we delay any longer, it will be even harder to climb when night falls!"

As Gu Yunzhou spoke, he looked up at the sky. He saw that only half of the crimson sun was now hidden behind the towering mountain peaks, like a shy child quietly hiding. He estimated the time and thought that in a little while, the sky would probably be completely dark.

After all, it is a bitterly cold winter day. Once the warm sunshine is lost, these people have no cultural energy to inject into their bodies to resist the cold and fatigue. If they can't climb to the top of the mountain early, they will suffer!

But that's not the most worrying issue. What if the moonlight isn't bright tonight? If it's just bright and the stars are sparse, making it hazy, you might still be able to see the path clearly. But what if dark clouds completely obscure the moon, making it difficult to even make out the steps? Or even worse, a downpour... Just thinking about that scenario makes me feel cold and my scalp tingle!

Thinking of this, several people finally gritted their teeth, endured the soreness and fatigue in their bodies, stood up from the ground with difficulty, and then continued to climb up slowly and firmly.

Time passed quickly, and in the blink of an eye the sun completely disappeared behind the mountain. Night fell quickly, and the entire sky became dark and gloomy as if covered by a huge black curtain.

Fortunately, although the moonlight tonight was a little dim, it didn't rain. Seeing this, Gu Yunzhou breathed a sigh of relief and secretly prayed that the journey ahead would be smoother.

At this moment, he felt as if his body had been hollowed out. He was tired, thirsty, and hungry. The feeling of extreme exhaustion and weakness washed over him like a tide. Ever since he became a Confucian scholar and allowed the cultural energy to flow into his body, such feelings had become unfamiliar and distant to him.

You should know that Wen Qi has a wide range of uses. Not only can it be used in fierce battles, but it can also demonstrate its unique role in all aspects of daily life.

For example, when traveling, literary energy can give people light steps and lasting endurance; for another example, when resisting the cold, with the nourishment and care of literary energy, although we cannot say that we are completely fearless of cold and heat, at least in the cold winter, Confucian scholars will not feel too uncomfortable, they will only feel a little chill.

Because of this, in the icy and snowy winter, one could often see scholars in thin clothing strolling leisurely. In the past, Gu Yunzhou might have thought they were deliberately showing off, pretending, but after the infusion of literary energy into their bodies, he truly felt it. Because of the protection of literary energy, they were no longer afraid of the cold.

However, the situation at this moment was completely different. Having lost the support of their Wen Qi, everyone finally felt the bitter cold of winter. It hadn't been that long since the Wen Qi entered their bodies, so why had they so quickly forgotten the bitter cold they had once experienced?

"I'm so hungry... so thirsty... so tired... I want to sleep... I want to warm myself by the fire..." Zhu Chenxu was completely wilted. His originally bright eyes became dull, his face was dazed, and he kept mumbling softly.

"I want to too! Oh, I didn't expect this trial to be so difficult. Tell me, how many people have chosen to give up at this moment?" Jiang Liunian was lying on the steps with his legs spread out. The steps were quite spacious and could accommodate him to lie down, but the hard texture made him feel uncomfortable.

"I don't know. I guess many people can't hold on. After all, most of them have never suffered hardship. Just thinking about giving up and being able to sit comfortably in a warm house by the fire, eat delicious meat in big mouthfuls, and finally drink a whole pot of steaming hot tea happily, my heart can't help but beat!" Zhu Chenxu responded weakly, licking his lips unconsciously while speaking, as if those tempting scenes were already before his eyes.

Hearing this, Gu Yunzhou cast his gaze towards his two companions, who looked rather disheveled and had no image at all, and asked softly, "So, are you two willing to give up? You know, we've already climbed halfway up the mountain!"