Chapter 31: Cultivators Gather

After leaving the Tan Tian Sect, Qu Yi went straight to the Great Rift on Desert Star. This rift divided Desert Star into east and west, serving as a chasm between cultivators and ordinary people. At that time, Qu Yi sat on the edge of the rift, quietly cultivating.

Qu Yi’s main goal in visiting the Tan Tian Sect was to reveal his whereabouts. In this way, those in the cultivation world who wanted to target him would come to Desert Star instead of gathering on Fei Yun Star. The more severely he plundered the Tan Tian Sect, the faster his location would spread—something Qu Yi understood well. That’s why he exacted a heavy toll from them. It could also be said that the Tan Tian Sect’s misfortune was linked to the Xiao family, as they sent elders to hunt down Qing Wu Gui, which Qu Yi took advantage of.

This also showed that Qu Yi was stronger than the Tan Tian Sect, allowing him to suppress them firmly; otherwise, he wouldn’t have shown off.

Qu Yi had been sitting on the edge of the rift for a month, constantly scanning the Three Elements Dao. Meanwhile, the Artifact Gods inside the Dimensional Sphere were constantly sensing the layer of floating sand in the middle of the rift, trying to figure out its patterns.

Within a month, the enraged Tan Tian Sect mobilized all their forces to reveal Qu Yi’s whereabouts. They even sent disciples to various large planets, deliberately discussing him in crowded restaurants to spread news about him on Desert Star. Naturally, thanks to the Tan Tian Sect’s efforts, people in the cultivation world learned of Qu Yi’s location.

The sects on various planets in the cultivation world were either directly or indirectly connected to the Ten Great Sects. Many cultivators, upon hearing that “Li Mu” had humiliated the disciples of the Ten Great Sects and was still freely moving around the cultivation world, grew resentful. As a result, many powerful cultivators rushed to Desert Star, determined to unite their forces to kill Qu Yi.

Killing Qu Yi would bring fame in the cultivation world, and many cultivators aimed for this goal.

The members of the Ten Great Sects, however, sent highly skilled experts to Desert Star immediately. Some wanted to take the opportunity to kill Qu Yi, some sought to trace the auras of Shuo Shang, Shuo Rui, and Shuo Xu to capture them, and others intended to kidnap Qu Yi.

In short, powerful cultivators from across the cultivation world flocked to Desert Star.

…

Shan Meng, while at the Xiao family’s headquarters, was attacked by Xiao Du Bing and Xiao Du Han, along with the “Thousand Mountains Joint Killing Formation.” Eventually, he resolutely disintegrated himself, breaking through the spatial barrier of the formation and escaping.

Fleeing in his Yuan Ying form, Shan Meng had no choice but to find a secret place. There, using his Yuan Ying body, he gathered the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, gradually purifying it into the energy state of the early stage of crossing tribulations, thus slowly restoring his body. However, after his body was restored, Shan Meng now had only an energy body, without the physical form of other cultivators. If he had to face another tribulation, he would have to rely solely on his energy body to combat the tribulation energy, making him highly vulnerable to destruction or even death. Filled with rage, Shan Meng was furious at the thought that he, a strong cultivator in the early stage of crossing tribulations, had been played by Qu Yi, a cultivator only in the early stage of merging forms. After barely escaping the search by Xiao Du Bing and Xiao Du Han, Shan Meng left Dark Fragrance Star. On his way back to Flying Cloud Star, he heard news about Qu Yi’s whereabouts and immediately changed course to Desert Star. Now, Shan Meng had arrived at the headquarters of the Tan Tian Sect, atop that towering stone altar. The five powerful members of the Tan Tian Sect, along with the sect leader Sha Ding and four elders in the merging phase, stood there, not daring to breathe, waiting for Shan Meng’s questions. These five already knew that Shan Meng was a formidable cultivator in the early stage of crossing tribulations, even more terrifying than Qu Yi. If he were not satisfied, their sect would be destroyed—so they dared not be distracted in the slightest. “You five, tell me everything that happened since Li Mu arrived at your sect, not leaving out a single detail,” Shan Meng said calmly. Hearing this, the five members of the Tan Tian Sect trembled. They knew that omitting even a word could cost them their lives. Thus, they recounted in detail everything that had happened since Qu Yi arrived at the sect’s headquarters, including exactly how much spiritual stone and medicinal pills the sect had given to Qu Yi as compensation. Shan Meng watched them closely, listening attentively as his spiritual sense sensed their auras, confirming that they were not lying. He was quite satisfied. “Alright, I now know everything. I also understand that Li Mu intended to lure me here on purpose. In that case, I’ll go to the Great Rift of the Meridian Lands to find him,” Shan Meng said after careful consideration, then sneered. As soon as he finished speaking, he vanished through teleportation. The five powerful members of the Tan Tian Sect wiped the cold sweat from their foreheads, their legs turning weak as they sat down. “What’s wrong with our sect? Strong cultivators keep causing us trouble. If this continues, I’ll go crazy,” sect leader Sha Ding shouted angrily into the air.

In fact, aside from Shan Meng, several powerful cultivators at the Tribulation stage had already arrived at the Tan Tian Sect. They treated the five people like slaves, constantly interrogating them about Qu Yi. Just hearing the name Li Mu made their Yuan Ying realms tremble with fear.

Seeing the sect leader’s angry outburst, the four elders also regretted their actions deeply. If they hadn’t spilled Qu Yi’s whereabouts out of resentment back then, they wouldn’t have attracted these powerful Tribulation-stage cultivators. Now, it was too late for regret.

“Tan Tian Sect, I am Xiao Du Han. I’ve come to ask you some questions.” Just as the five people of the Tan Tian Sect were cursing fate, another startling voice rang out.

Xiao Du Han, the ancestor of the Xiao family, had finally arrived.

The five people of the Tan Tian Sect sensed through their spiritual awareness that this was a powerful cultivator in the early Tribulation stage. All five of them felt utterly exhausted, lacking even the strength to stand.

…

Many cultivators had come to the Desert Planet. Normally, only a few thousand cultivators would be transported here each year, but this year, as many as a hundred thousand had arrived, making it seem like a grand gathering in the cultivation world.

The main purpose of these cultivators was to search for Qu Yi.

A year passed, yet no one had found any trace of Qu Yi. The hundred thousand cultivators searched every inch of the fissures in the Desert Planet’s terrain but still found nothing. Just as everyone began to suspect that Qu Yi had left the planet, he suddenly reappeared, killing some of the cultivators and leaving behind messages indicating that he was hiding on the Desert Planet.

These messages meant only one thing: he would reappear after a year.

So, the hundred thousand cultivators simply decided to cultivate on the Desert Planet, waiting for a year to pass before searching for Qu Yi.

The Tiny Realm Ball turned into a grain of yellow sand, located at the edge of the fissure. Tens of thousands of cultivators scanned it daily with their spiritual awareness, but no one noticed this grain of sand. After all, the deserts on both sides of the fissure pushed the sand into it, forming two sandwaterfalls. The Tiny Realm Ball was hidden behind these sandwaterfalls, motionless and unnoticed.

Inside the Tiny Realm Ball, Qu Yi opened his eyes after meditating, looking at the Artifact God who had been lying on the soft chair.

“Artifact God, a year is about to pass. I can reveal myself now, right?” Qu Yi said with a smile.

Qu Yi’s decision to cultivate on the Desert Planet for a year came from the Artifact God’s advice. The Artifact God claimed that after a year, the layer of yellow sand floating in the middle of the fissure would fluctuate, allowing the Tiny Realm Ball to enter beneath the Desert Planet’s surface.

The Artifact God turned over, sat up on the soft chair, tilted his head left and right, and then said, “Why rush? Wait a few more days. That layer of yellow sand has already started to loosen.”
Qu Yi pursed his lips and stopped talking to the Artifact God.
The Artifact God glared at Qu Yi in annoyance. He had been sleeping soundly, and after being woken up by Qu Yi, he was ignored after just one sentence.
“You little rascal! I’m still your master in array formation and artifact refinement. Not even a hint of respect for your teacher!” The Artifact God snapped angrily before lying back down on the soft chair.
As for Qu Yi, he was already in a meditative state and couldn’t hear this complaint at all.
…
Five more days passed, and suddenly Qu Yi appeared at the edge of the Meridian Earth Rift.
A few cultivators in the Convergence Stage nearby didn’t even have time to react before they were killed by Qu Yi.
This was how the cultivation world worked—the strong preyed on the weak, and strength ruled everything. These cultivators had come to the Desert Planet precisely to kill Qu Yi, so there was no need for pity when he emerged from the Dimensional Sphere and killed them.
“Hmph, a few cultivators in the early Convergence Stage thinking they can come to the Desert Planet to kill me? How utterly overconfident,” Qu Yi sneered as he tossed around the seven Yuan Ying he had just obtained.
As soon as these seven early Convergence Stage cultivators died, they were noticed by other cultivators in the distance, and word of Qu Yi’s appearance spread quickly. Thus, cultivators on both sides of the Meridian Earth Rift rushed toward where he was.
About two hundred cultivators had gathered, all at the Convergence Stage, yet not a single one dared to attack Qu Yi first.
Qu Yi simply smiled at the surrounding cultivators, with no intention of flying away.
“Li Mu, I’m Ji Hui from the Guangyuan Sect. If you give up your cultivation skills and hand over your possessions, I guarantee your life will be spared,” called out a cultivator in the mid-Convergence Stage from the crowd.
Qu Yi immediately turned to look at this cultivator, his lips twitching. It seemed the Guangyuan Sect really had a connection to him—another mid-Convergence Stage elder had been sent.
Final strike!
Suddenly, Qu Yi’s body disappeared, reappearing beside Ji Hui, the elder from the Guangyuan Sect. The other cultivators, who hadn’t sensed Qu Yi’s presence earlier, now saw him beside Ji Hui—only to find that Qu Yi had already taken Ji Hui’s Yuan Ying.
Qu Yi smiled as he returned to his original position and said, “What do you all think, fellow cultivators? Is there anyone else who wants to destroy my cultivation?”
Silence fell over the scene!

Joking aside, just now when Qu Yi attempted to assassinate Ji Hui, his speed was so great that not even his own spiritual sense could detect it. How could one defend against Qu Yi’s attacks? It was impossible to resist him. As a result, not a single one of the thousand cultivators present dared to risk their lives and all remained silent.

Qu Yi sneered, standing confidently at the edge of the fissure in the ground, waiting for even more powerful cultivators to arrive.

Sure enough, the news of Qu Yi’s appearance had already spread among the cultivators, and many who were far away rushed over, tightening the encirclement. Now, there were no fewer than five thousand cultivators.

Qu Yi remained unafraid, still standing there with a smile.

Suddenly, four figures appeared in the distance—all powerful cultivators in the early stages of the Tribulation Phase, including Shan Meng and Xiao Du Han.