The golden Dao light enveloped everyone, and in the next moment, Lan Xiaobu felt himself being hurled outward. He wanted to extend his divine sense, but his consciousness began to blur, eventually fading completely.
After an unknown time, a sharp pain jolted him awake. Opening his eyes, he found himself sprawled on hard ground.
He immediately realized he had arrived. As he moved to sit up, he sensed something off. His sixth sense warned him that only three or four others had regained consciousness. With his displayed cultivation at the Creation Saint Realm, waking so early would seem suspicious.
Suppressing the urge to move, he waited ten breaths before slowly opening his eyes.
“Your soul is remarkably refined for your cultivation. That’s impressive,” a friendly voice said beside him.
Lan Xiaobu saw a young man in white, a Fourth Step Great Dao cultivator and one of Moru World’s conference representatives.
“Shang Wei greets you, friend,” Lan Xiaobu said, clasping his fists.
The man laughed, “Central World folks are known to be exclusive. We Moru World people must stick together. I’m Gu Changjian. You’re not here for the Eternal Life Conference, right? If you need help, find me at Jinluo Saint Dao Inn, where Moru World’s participants are staying.” He offered a communication bead, which Lan Xiaobu exchanged without hesitation before quickly leaving the teleportation plaza.
As Lan Xiaobu departed, a slightly chubby man beside Gu Changjian chuckled, “Brother Gu, that guy’s from Qixing Saint Dao Trade Hall, probably here for business. Why bother with someone barely at the Creation Saint Realm?”
To him, Qixing’s people were those with stalled Dao progress, settling for trade hall work. Lan Xiaobu might be doing well to secure a teleportation slot, but his cultivation suggested limited potential.
Gu Changjian smiled without responding. Barely Creation Saint? Standing near Lan Xiaobu, he suspected Lan Xiaobu had hidden his true strength, undetectable even to him. He didn’t deduce this from keen observation but from noticing Lan Xiaobu was awake when he regained consciousness, only standing after a deliberate delay.
Gu Changjian was a solid Fourth Step cultivator. If Lan Xiaobu woke before him, what did that imply?
Leaving the teleportation array, Lan Xiaobu was struck by Anluo City’s vibrancy, far surpassing Tianmo City’s. He attributed it to the Eternal Life Conference; otherwise, it wouldn’t be so crowded.
Entry to Anluo City typically required conditions, but teleportation arrivals bypassed them.
Lan Xiaobu found it amusing that Anluo City’s structure mirrored Tianmo City’s, with minor differences but the same five-layer design. His current layer, the first, was the most bustling. So unoriginal, he thought, wondering if other worlds’ Heavenly Court Dao Cities were similarly uninspired.
Scanning with his divine sense, he headed straight to Yongyi Saint Dao Trade Hall, Anluo City’s largest.
Before entering, he saw a long queue spilling out, easily a thousand people.
He wanted to ask what they were buying but held back. Such a question would mark him as a newcomer, making him a prime suspect if issues arose.
He soon learned the queue was for Eternal Life Conference entry talismans, sold monthly with crowds each time.
Lan Xiaobu was stunned at how many must attend the conference. The Qixing elder had offered an entry talisman for a favor, yet here, anyone willing to queue could buy one.
But the conference wasn’t his goal. He went to the jade slip counter, purchasing a stack of Central World overview slips.
Next, he visited the Anluo Affairs Hall. Like Moru World, obtaining an Anluo City entry-exit talisman inside was simple with some Dao crystals. Outside, one needed to enter first. Anticipating future visits, Lan Xiaobu secured one.
As he finished and prepared to leave for the Great Ice Pan Palace, a conversation caught his attention.
“I heard a Chaos Dao Body woman will attend the Eternal Life Conference. Those at the discourse are lucky,” a scrawny, sleazy-looking man said.
“No need for envy. We can enter the discourse and see her too,” another chuckled.
The scrawny man scoffed, “You can look, but can you scan her entire body with divine sense? A Chaos Dao Body carries the universe’s origin Dao intent. Finding even a trace of it, or a Chaos Dao cultivation method, could propel you to the Seventh Step.”
“Poor woman. Stripped bare by countless divine senses, her life will end after the conference,” a third cultivator joined in.
Lan Xiaobu’s heart sank. Without Tai Chuan’s presence in the Great Universe, he wouldn’t be so alarmed. But with Tai Chuan here, Qi Manwei might be too. Chaos Dao Bodies were rare, and Qi Manwei had one.
“Friends, is it true a Chaos Dao Body woman will attend?” Lan Xiaobu cautiously asked.
“Of course. Saint Sword Palace provided her,” one replied casually.
Lan Xiaobu feigned admiration. “Saint Sword Palace is so generous to offer her.”
The man chuckled, “You think it’s for free? The conference organizers must compensate them heavily. And she’s uncooperative—anyone scanning her with divine sense risks her self-destruction. She’s a Fourth Step powerhouse, and even Saint Sword Palace can’t force her to comply. But the conference is different, with countless powerhouses, including Dao Ancestors. Forcing her to open her soul and Dao intent is easy.”
“I see,” Lan Xiaobu said, suppressing his killing intent. He didn’t ask her name, nearly certain it was Qi Manwei. She was safe until the conference, as dual cultivation with a Chaos Dao Body would ruin its value for sensing Chaos Dao.
Instead of leaving Anluo City, Lan Xiaobu queued for a day, spending three high-grade Dao veins and 50 million Dao crystals for a front-row Eternal Life Conference entry talisman.
Talismans varied by tier; the cheapest, costing millions of Dao crystals, were for outer seats. His purchase secured a prime spot.
He changed his mind about the conference because he feared he couldn’t rescue Qi Manwei from Saint Sword Palace in time.
