Seeing Zong Quan’s warrant didn’t surprise Lan Xiaobu; what puzzled him was why there wasn’t one for him.
He had thought it through afterward and was certain the incident would eventually trace back to him. Chong Yi had figured out his identity before dying, so others could too. He hadn’t been flawless. When the Tingdao Ship passed through the ruleless spatial rift, he was likely the only one who didn’t leave his room.
Staying in his room while the Tingdao Ship crossed the ruleless spatial rift meant he could survive at the edge of a chaotic zone.
Though this happened centuries ago, the issue lay there. He shouldn’t have disguised himself as Zong Quan to kill Chong Yi, as Zong Quan was a cultivator who vanished in the chaotic zone with him, also centuries ago.
What Lan Xiaobu didn’t know was that only nine people knew he stayed in his room during the rift crossing. He had killed four of them: Chong Yi, the long-haired steward, Zong Quan, and Gu Qiang. Of the remaining five, three didn’t return to the Tingdao Ship from the chaotic zone, leaving only two who did.
Over the centuries, those two had long forgotten the matter. Even if they suspected Lan Xiaobu was linked to the robbery, they wouldn’t report it to the Rift-Breaking Saint Dao. Who at the Creation Saint level would be foolish enough?
Reporting offered no real benefit. The Rift-Breaking Saint Dao wasn’t exactly virtuous, having scammed them out of plenty of Dao crystals on the Tingdao Ship. Reporting could even get them killed to silence them. Why? Because Lan Xiaobu’s ability to survive in a chaotic zone suggested he cultivated his own Dao, which, though difficult early on, could lead to the ultimate Dao after achieving immortality.
That was one reason. Another was that even if the Rift-Breaking Saint Dao rewarded them, it would likely be mere Dao crystals or pills—insufficient for advancing to the Fourth Step. Treasures capable of enabling that leap would never be given to informants.
If those reasons weren’t enough, the person who killed Chong Yi was no simple figure. Reporting him risked retaliation. Someone who could destroy the Tingdao Ship and its lord over scammed Dao crystals wouldn’t fear a mere rogue cultivator. Such a person clearly didn’t tolerate losses, so why stir trouble?
No one would do something harmful to others without benefit.
Though Zhuo Ting suspected Zong Quan was a disguise, he couldn’t guess it was Lan Xiaobu, as he didn’t know who Lan Xiaobu was. Even the two survivors who knew Lan Xiaobu could survive in a chaotic zone hadn’t seen him. The only one who had seen Lan Xiaobu and knew he was on the Tingdao Ship was Hu Youqing, but Hu Youqing didn’t know Lan Xiaobu survived the chaotic zone.
Lan Xiaobu shifted his attention from the warrant screen to another nearby display.
*Eternal Life Conference, Central World*
After staring for a while without understanding, he asked a man nearby, “Friend, is the Central World holding an Eternal Life Conference?”
The man was enthusiastic, chuckling, “The Eternal Life Conference is a major event in the Great Universe, held every ten thousand years, rotating among the ten worlds. This time, it’s the Central World’s turn. But we can forget about it—attending requires qualifications. Even if we had them, it’d take centuries to reach the Central World’s Heavenly Court Dao City, Anluo City.”
Lan Xiaobu thought, *I wanted to ask what the Eternal Life Conference is, not about its rotation.*
“Not to mention Anluo City, even reaching our Moru Heavenly Court’s Tianmo City is beyond us. Tickets cost tens of millions of high-grade Dao crystals—not everyone can afford that,” a female cultivator nearby chimed in.
Lan Xiaobu’s heart stirred. He sighed, “Tens of millions is still reasonable for a Heavenly Court ship—safe once you pay. But if you board a shady ship, you might lose your life.”
The first man chuckled, “You mean the Rift-Breaking Saint Dao’s ships, right? No need to be coy; everyone knows. Only those with great strength or newcomers choose their ships. I heard one finally got hit—some tough guy killed the ship’s lord and took the whole ship.”
Lan Xiaobu feigned shock, “Took a rift-breaking ship? You can’t buy those with Dao crystals, can you?”
The man replied, “Buy a rift-breaking ship with Dao crystals? Even a pile of Dao veins wouldn’t suffice. You’d need top-tier Dao material—Chaos Nails. Only with Chaos Copper can you order a rift-breaking ship from the Rift-Breaking Saint Dao’s trade hall, sized according to how much you provide.”
“Why?” Lan Xiaobu asked, though he already knew he was right: the Tingdao Ship was immensely valuable. Good thing he took it before leaving—it could fetch a fortune if sold.
The female cultivator explained, “Because crafting a rift-breaking ship requires a lot of Chaos Nails.”
Lan Xiaobu sighed deliberately to keep the conversation going, “If only I had a rift-breaking ship someday.”
The woman smiled, “Forget rift-breaking ships; they’re unrealistic for us. But I heard a Chaos Unicorn, a mutated one, was auctioned in the Central World. With one of those, you could go anywhere. Spatial rifts block flying treasures but not Chaos Unicorns.”
Lan Xiaobu’s heart skipped a beat, instinctively thinking of Tai Chuan, though he reasoned Tai Chuan was cultivating in the Dayan Realm and unlikely to be here.
The man nodded, “True, but Chaos Unicorns are too rare, especially a mutated saint beast at the Creation Realm. That one was bought by the Great Ice Pan Palace for a top-grade Dao vein and over a thousand high-grade ones. What a price.”
“A Chaos Unicorn, really?” Lan Xiaobu tried to stay calm but couldn’t.
The woman confirmed, “It’s real. The Great Ice Pan Palace got it because many powerhouses didn’t make it to the Central Universe. If it was auctioned during the Eternal Life Conference, the price would’ve doubled.”
The man added, “This won’t end quietly. That Chaos Unicorn has a name—Tai Chuan. A named Chaos Unicorn likely has a powerful backer. The Great Ice Pan Palace got it because others sensed it was trouble and stayed out.”
“Wouldn’t the Great Ice Pan Palace know that?” the woman asked.
The man chuckled, “Maybe they think they’re strong enough to not fear the beast’s backer.”
Lan Xiaobu’s mind buzzed. He couldn’t fathom why Tai Chuan was in the Great Universe. It seemed impossible—Tai Chuan was cultivating in the Dayan Realm, protected by a barrier and a Fourth Step powerhouse. Knowing Tai Chuan, it would’ve informed him if it had a way to the Great Universe.
But Lan Xiaobu quickly calmed himself. The more urgent the matter, the less he could afford to panic.
“Alas, none of this concerns us rogue cultivators,” he said casually, strolling toward Guyuan Dao City.
He knew he had to stay composed. His top priority was heading to the Central World to find the Great Ice Pan Palace. Gu Qiang, whom he’d killed, was from there, and now this persistent sect had taken his Tai Chuan.
If Tai Chuan was in trouble, Qi Manwei and others cultivating in the Dayan Realm were likely in danger too. He needed to find out who put Tai Chuan up for auction.
