In the novel, the first trial is only the stairs. Everyone of them has a target number and they need to reach that step. The only obstacle is that the higher they go, the more spiritual pressure increases, on those stairs. And to overcome it, they decide to use the stairs and that giant pressure to cultivate. They spend the entire "1 year" time limit cultivating on the stairs, everyday sitting on an higher step for X hours, to increase the effect of the cultivation. And only the last day, they solved the trial. Also because they cannot leave that place. All around the base of the stairs there is a giant halo of water, where there are tons of spiritual beast. To be precise, daemon sharks and their leader, the daemon shark queen, who is a 100.000 years old beast that can take human form. And they fight with her too, to train between one cultivation and another. Also because after they complete the first trial, they discover that second trial asks them to leave that place, defeating her (without killing her. She is a friend now^^).