Chapter 47: The Star-Opening Stone

On the other seven paths of the Qingyun Road, various experts also took a few steps before being forced by the pressure of the spatial rules to fall back down. Of course, no one died on those paths. Ling Xu, Liu Xiu, Wei Dongchen, Lu Feixiong, Kang Ji, Xing Bing, Bo Cang, and Ba Yigong—these eight people managed to cross the Qingyun Road together and landed in one place.

“Boss, how many steps did you take on the Qingyun Road?” Liu Xiu asked Ling Xu with a smile. Everyone knew that Liu Xiu had a fondness for Ling Xu. Hearing her concerned question, smiles appeared on everyone’s faces. Liu Xiu was very straightforward; ignoring the smiles around her, she looked straight at Ling Xu.

“I took 500 steps,” Ling Xu replied honestly, his expression calm.

All nine were shocked. They had all taken fewer than 400 steps, realizing now just how large the gap between them and Ling Xu was.

“Boss, it seems that you’ve received the most guidance from the spatial rules on the Qingyun Road among the 30 people who entered Qingbi Jade,” Wei Dongchen said immediately.

The other eight nodded in firm belief, convinced beyond doubt. Based on their understanding of Ling Xu, they naturally assumed he had taken the most steps on the Qingyun Road. But if they had known that Qu Yi had actually completed the entire path, they would likely have died of frustration.

In fact, on the other two paths, there were two people who had taken more steps than Ling Xu. One was Gongye Chen, the top disciple at the Divine General stage of the Gongye family and ranked 11th on the Earthly List. At that moment, Gongye Chen was accompanied by two others: Gongye Kaiyuan, also from the Gongye family, and Jin Guifang from the imperial Jin clan of the Tiangan Divine Realm. The other was Qiu Ze from the imperial Qiu clan of the Shanggen Divine Realm.

The Shanggen Divine Realm had the highest number of Divine Kings in the entire divine world—four—while other divine realms had either three or two. As the strongest clan, the Qiu clan had always remained low-key. Qiu Ze, the most outstanding disciple at the Divine General stage of the Qiu clan, was also low-key, though his strength ranked him 12th on the Earthly List.

Although Gongye Chen and Qiu Ze were weaker than Ling Xu, they had taken more steps on the Qingyun Road due to the innate spiritual treasures they possessed. Since no one else knew about this, and those two never revealed their treasures, the other cultivators were unaware of their true strength.

Just as the thirty people who entered the Qingbi Jade passed through Qingyun Road, they all arrived at the center of the island. At that moment, to everyone’s astonishment, countless tiny lights suddenly appeared in the void, blinding their eyes, distorting their consciousness, and putting pressure on their bodies. When the lights disappeared, a multicolored stone the size of a head hovered in the air, spinning continuously and emitting rainbow-like beams that shot toward each cultivator. This multicolored stone was the Star-Opening Heaven Stone, which existed in some space and, through certain spatial rules, seemed to appear right before everyone’s eyes. “The Star-Opening Heaven Stone has appeared!” Qu Yi said upon seeing the changes in the air. Qingwu Gui and Wuyuan also stared at it with eager eyes. They had already sensed that the stone contained spatial rules and was imbued with the heaviest substances in the universe—each grain equivalent to a world. Undoubtedly, obtaining it would bring unexpected benefits. Shortly after the stone appeared, the multicolored beams suddenly transformed into sword energies that shot out of the void and targeted the thirty cultivators who had arrived at the center. These sword energies caused the void to tear, galaxies to shift, and immense energy to surge, as if the universe were in its infancy. Undoubtedly, the power of these sword energies was beyond the resistance of those thirty cultivators at the Divine General stage. The thirty people all used their movement skills desperately to dodge. Qu Yi moved with ease amidst the sword energies; his chaotic energy could blend into the surrounding space at any time, allowing him to teleport through space, so he wasn’t worried about the attacks. However, while dodging, he was surprised to find that he could no longer sense Qingwu Gui and Wuyuan. Just moments ago, the three of them had been very close, but now it seemed as if they were separated by space—he had no idea where they were. “It seems the purpose of these sword energies is to separate the thirty people who entered the center. The Star-Opening Heaven Stone isn’t easy to obtain. We thirty must fight among ourselves before we can even get close to it,” Qu Yi thought, feeling relieved. Qingyun Road was a reward for the thirty cultivators who dared to enter the center, while the sword energies served to isolate them. Naturally, what followed was a period of fighting among the thirty, with only the remaining eight eligible to obtain the Star-Opening Heaven Stone.

The myriad sword energies were merely swept around for a moment before disappearing quickly. All space stabilized once again, but there was no one left on the ground—it seemed as if everyone had entered some other space. At this time, Qu Yi was walking across a lake; the entire space appeared to be covered in water, endless and boundless, yet the surface was perfectly calm. “This entire space is water, and this water is actually the primordial energy of water. Beneath it lies the essence of primordial energy—what a miracle!” Qu Yi expanded his consciousness to sense his surroundings, marveling at what he saw. Soon, he stepped directly into the water. In the Divine Realm, almost all precious materials for crafting were seized by the eight major divine domains, especially those required for the Divine Marshal level, which were rarely found in any part of the realm. Thus, upon discovering the wonders of this lake, Qu Yi immediately realized there must be abundant water-related crafting materials here. If he didn’t collect them now, he might never get another chance. He didn’t want to reach the Divine Marshal level only to have no materials to craft divine artifacts of that rank—that would be embarrassing. So, he resolved to gather every precious material from this lake. The Tiny Realm Ball left his body and floated in front of him, acting like a water-penetrating bead to create an independent space. Then, like an elephant drawing water, it began to absorb the entire lake. In terms of size, the Tiny Realm Ball was far larger than the entire Divine Realm, so absorbing the whole lake was no problem at all. With the sound of sucking water, the lake’s surface dropped rapidly. In just a short while, the lake dried up, leaving behind a vast deposit of precious minerals—the entire riverbed was a minefield, filled with countless valuable materials that emitted dazzling lights. “Just as I thought—since there’s water primordial essence in the lake, how could there be no crafting materials beneath it?” Qu Yi smiled in satisfaction, his eyes shining as he gazed at the riverbed, his demeanor filled with enthusiasm. Naturally, the Tiny Realm Ball resumed its absorption process. Whole patches of precious materials disappeared with a whooshing sound, as if land were being relocated, all entering the Tiny Realm Ball. As Qu Yi excitedly collected the materials, his consciousness suddenly sensed something unusual in the space—a cultivator was flying toward his area. Immediately, he retracted the Tiny Realm Ball and flew into the air with a smile, waiting for the arrival of the newcomer.

Soon, a man of imposing presence, exuding a heavy aura of the earth, approached—none other than Bo Cang, ranked seventh on the Earthly Ranking List. “Qu Yi, it’s really you,” Bo Cang said with a smile as soon as he arrived, fixing his gaze on Qu Yi.

Bo Cang had expected the mysterious Qu Yi to enter the Central Realm, but he never thought his first opponent would be him. He was shocked, yet immediately filled with a fierce fighting spirit, eager to see Qu Yi’s true strength. Although Ling Xu, ranked first on the Earthly Ranking List, had said that Qu Yi hid his strength well, Bo Cang still had doubts. As someone ranked seventh, he couldn’t bear to avoid Qu Yi; he must fight him personally before deciding whether to flee. Anyway, Bo Cang believed he could still escape even if he lost, so he was eager to battle Qu Yi now.

“You’re Bo Cang, ranked seventh on the Earthly Ranking List. It seems you’ll be my first opponent,” Qu Yi said with a smile, already drawing the Spring Rain Sword and pointing it at Bo Cang, his eyes smiling. In this Central Realm, only eight people could survive. Since a confrontation meant battle, Qu Yi wasn’t bothered with courtesy and made his intentions clear right away.

Bo Cang laughed loudly and immediately took out a divine artifact—a golden crescent shovel, radiating a powerful aura, clearly a formidable weapon. “Qu Yi, you’re quite direct. Then let’s fight now!” Bo Cang shouted joyfully as he waved his crescent shovel.

At that moment, Qu Yi shook his head and said with a smile, “Bo Cang, you’re ranked seventh on the Earthly Ranking List, with 42 million spiritual entities in your body. With such strength, you’re indeed a cultivator with great potential. But sadly, since you’ve encountered me today, it seems fate has it this way. Hand over your life.”

With that, Qu Yi dashed forward, appearing right in front of Bo Cang. He no longer held the Spring Rain Sword but instead delivered a palm strike. This palm strike was formed from 70 million spiritual entities of metal, wood, water, and earth, only the size of a palm, yet it struck Bo Cang instantly, causing spatial tremors and altering the world around them, leaving people’s souls in turmoil.

“You…”

Bo Cang knew Qu Yi had hidden his strength before, but he never imagined it to be this deep. After all, Ling Xu, ranked first, only had 60 million spiritual entities in his body. Qu Yi’s current strength had already surpassed Ling Xu’s. In the blink of an eye, Bo Cang summoned a defensive armor from within to withstand Qu Yi’s palm strike.

Using a crescent shovel couldn’t possibly block Qu Yi’s attacks; Bo Cang knew this well, so he instinctively brought out his life-saving artifact. Qu Yi’s palm struck Bo Cang, breaking through his defensive armor but not his body. Yet Qu Yi immediately followed up, pressing his hand against Bo Cang’s chest. “You…” Bo Cang was panicked; he couldn’t believe Qu Yi’s movement skills were so abnormal that they left him no time to react. By then, Qu Yi’s hand was filled with chaotic energy, which was directly injected into Bo Cang’s body.