Lan Xiaobu turned to a Divine Fusion cultivator beside him and asked, “Fellow Daoist, why are these two fighting here? Doesn’t the Little Sky Street Market manage this?”
The Divine Fusion cultivator glanced at Lan Xiaobu, finding him unfamiliar. He guessed that Lan Xiaobu was new here, as unfamiliar faces often appeared in the Great Path Gobi Valley, arriving through various spatial teleportation channels from across the vast universe.
Although he didn’t feel like engaging with Lan Xiaobu, when he noticed Sage Qianyi standing beside him, his expression shifted slightly. She was undoubtedly a powerful figure. He quickly averted his gaze from Sage Qianyi and forced a smile, saying, “One of them is from the Dao Alliance, and the other is from the Sky Street Alliance. Everyone in the Little Sky Street Market knows that the Dao Alliance and the Sky Street Alliance are sworn enemies. They often clash over various issues. Today, they’re fighting over a dispute about a shop location, so they’ve taken it to the dueling platform to settle it.”
Lan Xiaobu quickly asked, “Which one is from the Dao Alliance?”
“The one with long hair is from the Dao Alliance, and the one with the Buddhist beads is from the Sky Street Alliance,” the Divine Fusion cultivator replied somewhat helplessly.
“Why isn’t the Dao Alliance’s leader here?” Lan Xiaobu had already scanned the area with his divine sense and didn’t see Zhao Gongming.
“Leader Zhao has been away for over a month and hasn’t returned yet. He’s probably tied up with something,” the Divine Fusion cultivator answered before quickly walking away, not wanting to entertain any more of Lan Xiaobu’s questions.
Lan Xiaobu didn’t bother with the cultivator. Since the long-haired man was from the Dao Alliance, he decided to wait until the duel was over and then ask him directly.
At that moment, the slightly plump cultivator’s eighteen Buddhist beads suddenly transformed into three strands of bead chains. These three strands locked down the entire space of the dueling platform. Not only was the long-haired man affected, but even the cultivators outside the platform felt the space around them stagnate, as a terrifying binding force swept over them. Clearly, this was an extension of spatial rule suppression.
“Chain Bead Space Lock…” someone who recognized the technique couldn’t help but murmur.
Lan Xiaobu had also heard of this technique. It was a great Buddhist divine ability. Once the Chain Bead Space Lock was activated, it meant that the space within its range would be controlled by the beads for a short period. Everything within that space would be at the mercy of the user.
Lan Xiaobu sighed inwardly. He wanted to intervene and save the long-haired man, but he didn’t know the rules here. If he interfered in a duel, even if he saved the long-haired man, he would likely face backlash and disdain from everyone present.
For now, Lan Xiaobu decided to wait and save the long-haired man’s primordial spirit if necessary. With the treasures he had, as long as the man’s primordial spirit survived, he could still live.
Just as Lan Xiaobu was about to give up on the long-haired man, the man suddenly broke free from the Chain Bead Space Lock as one of the bead chains was about to pierce his forehead. In that instant, his spear transformed into a violent vortex of spear energy.
The eighteen Buddhist beads were swept away by the spear vortex in the blink of an eye, and the space locked by the beads was instantly freed. At the same time, a spear light shot out from the vortex and struck toward the plump cultivator’s forehead.
The plump cultivator’s domain was torn apart by the spear vortex, and just like the long-haired man earlier, he was now locked in place by the spear’s divine ability. He could only watch helplessly as the spear light approached his forehead.
The sudden reversal left almost everyone stunned.
Lan Xiaobu thought to himself, *What a powerful divine ability! This is definitely a top-tier spear technique. The plump cultivator is done for.*
But at that moment, a massive fist shadow appeared on the dueling platform, striking toward the long-haired man.
The person who unleashed the fist shadow was even stronger than the long-haired man. The long-haired man, having gone all out, had no way to defend against this attack.
*Boom!* The spear light dissipated, and the long-haired man was sent flying. The plump cultivator from the Sky Street Alliance, pale with fear, retreated to the edge of the dueling platform. If someone hadn’t intervened, he would have been dead.
Before the long-haired man could land, a terrifying blade light descended from the void, aiming directly at his neck. Not only had this person disrupted the duel, but they were also trying to kill the long-haired man.
Lan Xiaobu was furious. Without hesitation, he unleashed over a dozen Soul-Piercing Spikes and summoned his Seven-Tone Halberd, sending a wave of halberd light crashing out.
When he first saw the defensive barrier of the dueling platform, he found it strange. It was a Level 9 defensive divine array, but it only prevented those inside from being blasted out. It didn’t stop outsiders from interfering. Now, he realized that not only could outsiders intervene, but they could even kill those dueling on the platform. This was truly a first for him.
*Boom!* A terrifying explosion of divine essence erupted in the void, tearing apart the Dao rhythms and causing the space to tremble violently.
The long-haired man, pale-faced, gripped his spear and stood to the side. He knew he had been saved; otherwise, he would have been dead.
Lan Xiaobu, however, casually collected the eighteen Buddhist beads and glared at the newcomer. It was a tall, pale-faced man, likely at the peak of the Quasi-Sage level.
“You dare interfere in a duel on the platform? Are you seeking death?” the tall man growled, his voice filled with killing intent. However, he didn’t attack. He knew Lan Xiaobu’s strength was not inferior to his own. In their earlier clash, he had suffered a minor setback. If he hadn’t reacted quickly, his sea of consciousness might have been torn apart by Lan Xiaobu’s sneak attack.
It wasn’t that his divine essence or domain was lacking, but Lan Xiaobu’s soul attack technique was terrifying. At their level, most cultivators had some soul attack abilities, but being able to penetrate a Quasi-Sage’s sea of consciousness was horrifying. This was undoubtedly a top-tier soul attack divine ability. Fighting someone like this required constant vigilance, as a single moment of carelessness could result in a shattered sea of consciousness.
“Idiot,” Lan Xiaobu scoffed before turning to the long-haired man.
The long-haired man had already recovered. He clasped his hands toward Lan Xiaobu and said, “Bei Ji thanks you, fellow Daoist, for saving my life. If you hadn’t intervened, I would have been ambushed by that despicable scoundrel.”
“Daring to meddle in the affairs of the Sky Street Alliance? You must have a death wish, newcomer,” a cold voice rang out. Lan Xiaobu looked over and saw two figures approaching from a distance.
The leader had a strange appearance. Lan Xiaobu had never seen someone with square eyes before. They looked like they belonged on a machine. Aside from his square eyes, his skin resembled tree bark, making him look extremely unpleasant. His hair was gray, like straw pulled from a garbage heap.
What surprised Lan Xiaobu even more was that he recognized the person following the square-eyed man.
“Friend, the one in front is the leader of the Sky Street Alliance, Sage He Ku. He’s very strong. The one behind him is someone who arrived not long ago, named Tu Wang,” Bei Ji quickly explained to Lan Xiaobu.
“Let’s talk after we get down,” Lan Xiaobu said. With a wave of his Seven-Tone Halberd, the Level 9 protective array was torn apart, and he stepped down to stand beside Sage Qianyi.
Seeing Lan Xiaobu effortlessly tear apart the Level 9 protective array, everyone was shocked. A Level 9 divine array, destroyed so easily? This man was clearly a Level 9 Divine Array Emperor. It was best not to provoke someone like that.
Bei Ji was also stunned. Lan Xiaobu didn’t look very old, yet he could tear apart a Level 9 divine array with such ease.
The onlookers quickly made way. It was clear that a fierce battle was about to begin.
This was a common occurrence in the Little Sky Street Market. Fierce battles broke out every few days, which was why the market was in such a dilapidated state.
“It’s you?” Tu Wang also recognized Lan Xiaobu, his eyes filled with delight.
In Sky Street, Lan Xiaobu had been a tyrant, but this wasn’t Sky Street. Today, if he didn’t squeeze every last treasure out of Lan Xiaobu, he would have wasted his trip. He knew exactly how wealthy Lan Xiaobu was—he even had Five-Colored Immortal Mushrooms, a rare Dao fruit.
“Fellow Daoist Tu Wang, you know this ant?” Sage He Ku asked curiously.
Tu Wang chuckled. “I’d recognize this kid even if he were turned to ash. He swindled a pile of top-grade divine spirit veins in Sky Street and even tricked Sage Destruction and Sage Curse.”
“He’s the Heaven God Realm ant you mentioned before, the one who stumbled into Sky Street with a bunch of Dao fruits?” Sage He Ku’s eyes lit up. To him, Lan Xiaobu now shone like a mountain of gold. Although he was also from Sky Street, he had left before Lan Xiaobu arrived.
Lan Xiaobu’s gaze fell on Tu Wang, and he laughed. “Old Tu, I thought you’d have improved over the years, but it seems you’ve only gotten worse. Today, your Grandpa Lan will teach you the consequences of selling fake goods.”
Tu Wang sneered. “Kid, let’s see how you plan to walk away from my Nine-Ring Mother-Child Blade.”
“Sage Qianyi, keep an eye on that He Ku for me. I’m going to teach this Tu guy a lesson,” Lan Xiaobu said, stepping forward.
Tu Wang was still a Quasi-Sage. As long as he hadn’t reached the Sage level, Lan Xiaobu could handle him.
Sage Qianyi nodded. “Don’t worry about that fake Sage. I’ll make sure he doesn’t interfere with your fight.”
Earlier, she hadn’t been able to gauge Lan Xiaobu’s exact cultivation level, but after seeing him block a peak Quasi-Sage with a single halberd strike, she was confident that Lan Xiaobu could handle Tu Wang.
