Starhaven City of the Ascendant Gate is a floating city, or rather, this city is entirely constructed from various materials and formation arrays.
Joe Di stood outside Starhaven City at the Ascendant Gate, sensing the formation rules and deadly Dao laws within. It was clear this city was built later, and he needed to be confident in protecting himself before entering.
Zachary Yu followed closely behind Joe Di. He had entered the Ascendant Gate of Starhaven City once before, but now realized he had only grasped its surface.
Occasionally, a few cultivators appeared in Starhaven City. After leaving, they quickly escaped into the void. Even though Joe Di and Zachary Yu stood outside the city's formation gate, not a single person spared them a glance.
After half a stick of incense had passed, Joe Di finally said, "Let's go. We can enter now."
With that, Joe Di stepped into the formation gate of Starhaven City. Seeing Joe Di enter, Zachary Yu hurriedly followed.
The streets of Starhaven City were not wide, and there were only a few of them. Sweeping his divine sense across, Joe Di found the streets completely unobstructed. Only by the entrances to some of the cave dwellings along the streets were there various shielding and defensive restrictions.
There were not many cultivators walking the streets. Joe Di observed that every cultivator present was at least a Fifth Step Paragon, and many, like those similar to San Wu, seemed to have reached the Sixth Step.
There were no cave dwellings for rent on either side of the street. Upon entering Starhaven City, Joe Di guessed that if one wanted a dwelling here, it had to be self-built, and likely no one would collect any fees.
Joe Di was in no rush to find a place to build a cave dwelling. Instead, he said to Zachary Yu, "Take me to see the Ascendant Gate first."
The Ascendant Gate was the place Joe Di cared about most.
"New here? Heading to the Ascendant Gate?" Joe Di's words were overheard by a passing yellow-faced cultivator, who stopped and smiled at Joe Di as he asked.
"That's right, I'm new here and I'm heading to the Ascendant Gate," Joe Di replied without the slightest attempt to conceal it.
The yellow-faced cultivator laughed, "How should I address you, fellow Daoist?"
"Joe Di. This is my friend, Zachary Yu," Joe Di answered.
Although Zachary Yu had been to Starhaven City before, he had never met this yellow-faced cultivator.
The yellow-faced cultivator gave a thumbs up. "You're quite something, fellow Daoist. My name is Quentin Gong, of the Human Clan. Yu, you must be from the Cloud Clan, right? May I ask which clan Joe Di is from?"
Joe Di had already noticed Quentin Gong was of the Human Clan. His Dao foundation had long surpassed any universe's rules, so it was normal that others couldn't tell his origin. As for the compliment, Joe Di understood: as a newcomer, he was questioned by a Starhaven City powerhouse at the Ascendant Gate and showed no fear, even revealing his name and destination—clearly confident.
"You're not bad yourself, Quentin. I'm also from the Human Clan," Joe Di replied with a slight smile, clasping his fists. Since they were both Human Clan, Joe Di planned to ask for some information.
"Haha, I thought so. You look just like someone from the Human Clan. Good, good..." Quentin Gong laughed heartily, repeating his praise. He didn't mind Joe Di's compliment in return.
After saying this, Quentin Gong became even more spirited. "Brother Joe, why go to the Ascendant Gate? Since you've just arrived, you should be looking for Ascendant Gold first. But there's no rush for Ascendant Gold—I'll take you to the auction hall, where it's all Ascendant Gold! The auction starts in a few hours, so we have just enough time to get there."
Quentin Gong was very forthright, already addressing Joe Di as a brother.
"All Ascendant Gold? People are actually selling that?" Joe Di asked in confusion. From what he'd heard, Ascendant Gold was something every cultivator needed—who would ever put it up for auction?
"Why not auction it?" Quentin Gong looked at Joe Di in puzzlement.
Joe Di pointed at Zachary Yu and explained, "My friend came here a few years ago and, when he tried to go to Forgeworld to seek Ascendant Gold, he was threatened to leave a soul imprint. Plus, any Ascendant Gold found in Forgeworld couldn't be kept for himself. If his escape technique hadn't been good, he would have fallen into someone else's hands. That's how we know how precious Ascendant Gold is—everyone needs it, and even if they get some, no one wants to sell it..."
Quentin Gong laughed again at this. "Brother Joe, that's because your friend is from the Cloud Clan."
"Why is that?" This time it was Zachary Yu who didn't understand.
Quentin Gong chuckled. "A few years ago, a top expert from the Cloud Clan killed too many people. Before even reaching the Ascendant Gate, that expert was taken out by several others working together. Since then, no more Cloud Clan experts have shown up here, and Cloud Clan cultivators have kept a low profile. When you first arrived, not knowing the rules and openly searching Forgeworld for Ascendant Gold, you naturally became prey for others."
Then he turned to Joe Di, "Brother Joe, if you hadn't met me and went to Forgeworld looking for Ascendant Gold, you wouldn't have fared much better. But now that you know me, things are different."
Joe Di smiled indifferently. "I've heard that clan distinctions are pretty weak here. Why does knowing you make things different?"
Quentin Gong said dismissively, "We of the Human Clan are naturally different from the other clans. Wherever we go, we are the most united, always helping each other. As for Ascendant Gold, if you have enough divine spirit veins or Dao veins, you don't even need to go searching for Ascendant Gold—the auction can get you what you need."
You should know that if you stay here long enough, your Dao foundation gets stripped away, right? Ascendant Gold not only lets you enter the Ascendant Gate, but it also delays the stripping of your Dao foundation. But Ascendant Gold alone isn't enough—you also need divine spirit veins or Dao veins. That's why, here, spirit veins and Dao veins are as valuable as Ascendant Gold. Come on, let's go to the auction first, then I'll take you to look for Ascendant Gold."
(End of this section. Please click next page to continue reading!)
Joe Di didn't care about Quentin Gong's claim that the Human Clan was different from other clans. He'd seen plenty of infighting among humans and didn't think there was much difference.
"Quentin, since the auction isn't for a few hours, I'd rather visit the Ascendant Gate first," Joe Di declined Quentin Gong's invitation to go to the auction immediately.
"Fine, you just got here—wanting to see the Ascendant Gate is understandable. Let's go, I'll go with you to the Ascendant Gate, then we can still make it to the auction afterward," Quentin Gong said casually, waving his hand.
From his words, Joe Di sensed that Quentin Gong didn't treat him as an outsider. Maybe it was because Human Clan cultivators were rare here, so meeting one felt like seeing a fellow countryman.
...
The Ascendant Gate really wasn't far; its location was just outside Starhaven City.
Quentin Gong led Joe Di and Zachary Yu, and it only took them an hour to reach the Ascendant Gate. There was no one outside. As soon as Joe Di arrived, he saw a ripple-shaped formation gate.
Joe Di stepped forward. Quentin Gong thought Joe Di was about to enter the formation gate and immediately called out, "You absolutely can't go in now! Without Ascendant Gold, entering the Ascendant Gate would crush you to dust. And don't get too close—the Dao backlash of the Ascendant Gate could pull you in!"
Joe Di wasn't about to enter the Ascendant Gate; he was sensing the Dao laws of the gate. Ignoring Quentin Gong, he walked to within just over two zhang of the gate before sitting down.
Seeing Joe Di sit down, Quentin Gong breathed a sigh of relief. He knew Joe Di was still a little too close—just over two zhang was barely safe. They'd only just met, so he couldn't exactly drag Joe Di back.
Once seated, Dao resonance flowed around Joe Di. The rules formed by his Dao Tree merged into the area outside the Ascendant Gate. Soon, Joe Di felt an unprecedented threat from the Dao laws, but also a powerful attraction from the Grand Way.
There was definitely a Fifth Dao Branch he needed inside the Ascendant Gate. If he could cross the gate, he would break into the Fifth Step immediately.
He had to enter the Ascendant Gate, but Joe Di didn't try again. Instead, he stood up and said, "Quentin, take me to the auction. Then I'll go to Forgeworld to search for Ascendant Gold."
"Yes, that's the right idea!" Quentin Gong exclaimed in delight.
He lowered his voice, "Brother Joe, I've got a few rivals here. If we run into them at the auction, they might mock me to my face. Just ignore it. We're not losing anything—they wouldn't dare make a move first."
Joe Di smiled but didn't respond to Quentin Gong's concern. He wasn't the patient type—here, everyone was after Ascendant Gold. He didn't owe anyone and wouldn't take anything from anyone. If someone gave him attitude, he'd return it with a fist.
(That's all for today's update. Good night, friends!)