Chapter 814: Xiao Tian Xu

After entering the marketplace, Ding Huan felt even more strongly its desolation.

Most stalls carried only the same few items: Thousand-Wheel Stone, Space Stone, and so on.

Ding Huan had seen these before—there were many at the foot of Da Lun Mountain.

But Ding Huan never bothered to pick them up; they held little value for him.

What was for sale was mostly Sensing Array Discs, Soul-Cleansing Divine Pills, and such.

Sensing Array Discs were primarily used when traveling to Da Lun Mountain, to sense spatial and temporal dislocations in advance.

It seemed this marketplace was truly meant for Da Lun Mountain.

Ding Huan entered a merchant tower and bought several Starland Records.

He had wanted to purchase a Starland Orientation Sphere, but this tiny marketplace had none.

Ding Huan decided to go to Tianyuan Dao City.

Since entering the marketplace, he had learned this through asking other cultivators and examining some jade slips.

The name of this rule-starland was ordinary and plain: Xiao Tian Xu.

The name sounded small, but its domain was boundless.

To date, no one knew exactly how large Xiao Tian Xu was.

No one had ever spoken of its edge.

In Xiao Tian Xu, there was no boundary touching the cosmic void.

To leave Xiao Tian Xu, one could only use a Break-Realm Talisman.

No wonder there were so many low-level cultivators here—most were likely natives.

Ding Huan suspected it had something to do with the Cosmic Wall.

Not to mention others—even he, coming from the Cosmic Wall, endured hardships few could survive.

And between the starland and the Cosmic Wall lay a deep chasm carved by the Eternal Wheel?

Eternal Immortals certainly existed, but even they probably wouldn't waste time searching for Xiao Tian Xu's edge.

Ding Huan desperately wanted to know whether Meng Chuan Nü had safely arrived, but that woman was cunning—she hadn't left even one communication method.

He could only seek out a more bustling place to inquire about someone named Hui Zhi.

Tianyuan Dao City was the bustling place he intended to go.

As Ding Huan stepped out of the merchant tower, his divine sense once again detected the Jin Shan man—this fellow wore a golden knife at his waist and stood in the center of the marketplace, listening to a blue-robed cultivator speak.

Ding Huan's divine sense was powerful; he knew at once the blue-robed cultivator was talking about him.

It seemed to be about the Po Jie Dao on his back.

Indeed, the Jin Shan man's gaze immediately turned to Ding Huan, then walked over.

Ding Huan was speechless.

He didn't need to think—he knew this guy would tell him he wasn't worthy to wield the blade, and demand he hand it over.

The Po Jie Dao had advanced to the rank of Post-Heaven Spiritual Treasure; if he could find Chaos, it might even ascend to the level of a Pre-Heaven Artifact.

Such treasures naturally attracted greed.

Especially from someone who wielded a blade.

What stunned Ding Huan was that the Jin Shan man was even more arrogant than he'd imagined.

When the man reached him, he didn't utter a single word—he slashed directly at Ding Huan.

Clearly, he found talking too much trouble; killing him and taking the blade was simpler.

Ding Huan laughed in fury.

How powerful a backer must this man have, to do something like this?

No wonder he could chop down the marketplace's gate tower, and yet the marketplace folk still cleaned up his mess.

Probably the marketplace's owner stayed because there were good goods to collect,

unwilling to leave?

Anyone else would have packed up and fled long ago.

This slash was aimed at Ding Huan's life—his entire surrounding space had its vitality locked by the blade.

Since the opponent didn't waste words, Ding Huan wouldn't either.

His Po Jie Dao automatically carved a curtain of blade energy through the void.

Before the blade even landed, the space the Jin Shan man had locked shattered like an eggshell, his domain dissolving completely.

? ￠〇

The blade curtain fell, tearing the Jin Shan man's blade energy into fragments.

A spray of blood mist exploded—the Jin Shan man was split cleanly in two by Ding Huan's slash.

Just as he had slain the early-stage Divine King outside the marketplace, the bloodstain instantly darkened the soil beneath.

After delivering this slash, the Po Jie Dao hung again on Ding Huan's back.

Ding Huan reached out, grasping the void—a world tore open beneath his hand.

He didn't bother to see what was inside; he swept his hand, and everything within that world vanished with him.

"I am Qu Huaoyang of the Qu Clan—how dare you strike me…" The Jin Shan man's residual soul leaked out, finally screaming in terror.

Ding Huan acted as if he hadn't heard—a flame descended upon Qu Huaoyang, and in the next instant, Qu Huaoyang turned to ash.

It was like a cycle repeating.

Just as Qu Huaoyang had killed the early-stage Divine King, Ding Huan now killed Qu Huaoyang in the same way.

The marketplace grew even quieter; many cultivators fled en masse.

Not a single divine sense dared land on Ding Huan.

These people were terrified.

They all likely knew that once the Qu family arrived, their chances of surviving in the marketplace would be slim.

Ding Huan had planned to stop someone and ask questions, but seeing how panicked they were, he abandoned the idea.

After asking about the Qu family, he could simply turn and leave.

What would happen to the person who answered his question?

A disciple of the Qu family acted so arrogantly within the Great Wheel Marketplace—killing and seizing treasures without even needing an excuse—showing just how brazen the Qu family was.

Anyone who dared answer his question would surely be punished by the Qu family afterward.

Ding Huan walked slowly out of the marketplace.

He simply wanted to see how strong the experts of this Small Tianxu were.

"You killed someone from the Qu family and still think you can leave?"

With a cold voice echoing, a man and a woman blocked Ding Huan at the marketplace's exit.

Two ants of the He Shen realm.

In Ding Huan's eyes, the He Shen realm was nothing but ants.

Ding Huan sent out his divine sense and discovered that the only half-sage at the peak within the marketplace had already left.

No one had come for him.

Ding Huan did not answer; his domain extended outward, and the Po Jie Dao once again unleashed a curtain of blades.

When they realized they could not move an inch, the faces of the man and woman changed.

Only someone at least at the late half-sage realm could bind them with a domain, rendering them utterly immobile.

Two He Shen realm cultivators dared to provoke a late half-sage? What else could this be but suicide?

Boom!

Another spray of blood exploded—the woman was torn apart by Ding Huan's Po Jie Dao.

Similarly, his world was casually ripped open by Ding Huan, and everything within it vanished instantly.

"Elder…" the man stared at Ding Huan in terror; he knew he was finished.

As for whether Ding Huan would be finished—he would never see it.

"Are you also from the Qu family?" Ding Huan asked the man calmly.

The man hurriedly replied: "I am not of the Qu family. I am merely an outer gate steward of the Qu family, tasked with guarding the safety of Lord Huaiyang."

"Oh, then tell me about the Qu family—be as detailed as possible. If your answer pleases me, I won't tear open your world."

Ding Huan's indifferent tone sounded like sacred words to the male cultivator.

"Yes, the Qu family established the Qu Sect Dao Court in the Small Tianxu; the Dao Court is filled with powerful figures…"

Ding Huan interrupted him: "You mean the Qu family, a single cultivation clan, established a Dao Court?"

In a normal cultivation world—or even the Immortal World—Ding Huan wouldn't be surprised.

But establishing a Dao Court in this mid-tier universe continent?

Logically, even the strongest surname couldn't accomplish that, could it?

"Yes, the Qu family indeed established the Qu Sect Dao Court in the Small Tianxu. Among the Five Great Dao Courts here, it ranks third."

"Are the other four Dao Courts also surname-based?"

"No, the other four Dao Courts arose naturally from various factions of the Small Tianxu. Only the Qu family built theirs by surname."

Long ago, Qu Qu Beige of the Qu family came here, and to cultivate the Great Dao, he forcibly established the Qu Sect Dao Court."

The man answered Ding Huan's questions without holding back.

Ding Huan had said that if he answered well, he wouldn't tear open his world.

If his world remained intact, he still had a sliver of chance to be reborn. If Ding Huan tore it apart, he would be truly finished.

"Is Qu Qu Beige the Qu family's founding ancestor?"

"Probably. I'm not certain. But the Qu Sect Dao Court was indeed founded by Qu Qu Beige."

Ding Huan asked again: "If Qu Qu Beige could establish a Dao Court, his cultivation must be extremely strong?"

"Yes, it's said that eleven Eternal Life realm experts once attacked Qu Qu Beige—he killed most of them, and the rest were either severely wounded or vanished."

After that battle, Qu Qu Beige became famous in the Small Tianxu and then established the Qu Sect Dao Court.

He himself attained the Creation Sage realm here before leaving the Small Tianxu."

"What is the Creation Sage realm?"

Hearing Ding Huan ask this, the male cultivator bound by his domain froze.

Was this man mocking him?

Otherwise, how could he not know what a Creation Sage was?

The thought flashed and vanished—he quickly said: "After achieving the Ninefold Sage realm comes the Eternal Life Sage realm.

The Eternal Life Sage is the beginning of the Dao—the first step of the Dao is called the Creation Dao Sage realm, the second step is called the World-Expanding Sage realm; the Creation Sage realm is the third step of the Dao…"

Ding Huan nodded. He wasn't completely ignorant—he had heard of these realms before, but he wanted to hear it from the man to compare for any differences.

"Did Qu Qu Beige leave the Small Tianxu because one cannot attain the fourth step of the Dao here?"

"No, I've heard someone here has already attained the fifth step of the Dao."

Qu Qu Beige cultivates the Planet Art—he must acquire more life-bearing planets to attain the fourth step."

The Small Tianxu is filled with powerful figures; Qu Qu Beige dares not use this place to boost his strength casually."

Hearing this, Ding Huan's expression turned cold.

Planet Art? That's nearly a branch of Huan's Great Universe Art.

"Does Qu Qu Beige's Planet Art require the assimilation of countless life-bearing planets?"

"Yes."

As expected, it was exactly so.

Ding Huan fell silent. No wonder the disciples of the Qu Clan were all so arrogant and domineering.

This was the result of their cultivation method.

To cultivate this kind of technique, one must hold a belief: in the eyes of the Qu Clan, every other existence was an ant, something that could die for the Qu Clan's sake.

Still, the fact that one could prove the Dao and reach the fifth step of the Great Dao here meant this was at least a mid-grade universe.

"Senior, the Qu Clan never forgives a slight. Since you killed Qu Huaiyang, you will likely face endless pursuit from the Qu Clan hereafter."

"This is Qu family territory?"

"No, this is the territory of the Great Wheel Dao Court."

"Very well, you can go in peace." Ding Huan raised his hand and slapped out; the Harmony God realm cultivator before him was smashed into pulp by Ding Huan's palm.

Ding Huan did not open his world, considering it a kept promise.