Joe Di sensed the more complete laws of heaven and earth. Before he could speak, Zane Wu sighed and said, "Only today have we truly arrived in the Dao Domain."
Joe Di wholeheartedly agreed with Zane Wu. Compared to the Wormhole Gate, this was the place they truly belonged.
Leapgate City had no guards, but there was a grand gate with Dao patterns fluctuating within a span of about a meter. Joe Di and Zane Wu gripped their tokens and stepped toward the gate. The tokens in their hands emitted faint ripples, and the gate opened. The two entered without hesitation.
The moment they entered Leapgate City, an even denser surge of heaven and earth energy rushed toward them.
What puzzled Joe Di and Zane Wu was that there were surprisingly few people in this divine city. Zane Wu's divine sense was not strong enough to detect clearly, but Joe Di's was formidable—he could vaguely sense that the population of this city definitely did not exceed one hundred thousand.
Joe Di noticed that most of the cultivators walking through the city wore tokens similar to theirs at their waists, and his heart sank.
He didn't need to ask to know that these people, like them, had come from the Wormhole Gate. Since they all arrived through the wormhole, it was impossible that everyone would remain in this city. No matter how remarkable the city was, there would always be some who left for distant places.
The only reason so many people remained in the city was clear: after leaving the Wormhole Gate, departing from Leapgate City also came with conditions.
Zane Wu noticed this as well. Knowing his own reasoning was no match for Joe Di's, he kept silent and simply followed behind. Now, he and Joe Di were like grasshoppers tied to the same string—if one of them got into trouble, the other would not escape unscathed.
The city was vast, yet there were surprisingly few shops.
Of course—a divine city with only about one hundred thousand people wouldn't have much business to conduct.
"Congratulations to you both for entering Leap Dao Gate and arriving in Leapgate City." As soon as Joe Di and Zane Wu entered the shop, the shopkeeper greeted them with a smile, clearly aware that they were newcomers.
Joe Di guessed that, in a place like Leapgate City, the shopkeeper must already be familiar with every face.
"Thank you, fellow Daoist. May I ask, how can one leave Leapgate City?" Joe Di cupped his fists politely as he asked.
The shopkeeper smiled, "It's unlikely that either of you will be able to leave the city anytime soon."
Joe Di asked in confusion, "Why? We have neither Immortal Crystals nor Dao Crystals here. How can we stay in the city and cultivate?"
The shopkeeper replied, "Don't worry—our city is rich in divine spirit energy, with a Dao Vein buried beneath it. Even without Divine Crystals, you can forge your Dao here if you spend enough time. As for cultivation resources, since you made it this far, you must have accumulated a lot of merit points. These merit points can be exchanged for all sorts of cultivation resources. They're recorded on your token, and every purchase will be deducted directly from it."
Only now did Joe Di and Zane Wu realize that the merit points on their tokens were actually useful. Apparently, hunting more insects was not just for leaving the Wormhole Gate. They also understood that Dao Crystals were a form of Divine Crystal.
The shopkeeper continued, "Besides merit points, if you still have insect materials on you, that's even better. Insect materials are much more valuable here in the city than at the Wormhole Gate. I buy them for high prices as well. In Leapgate City, you don't need to guard the Wormhole Gate—just focus on cultivation, and eventually you'll be able to leave."
Joe Di cupped his fists, "May I ask, when will we be able to leave Leapgate City?"
The shopkeeper replied, "As long as you have enough cultivation resources, you can leave Leapgate City right now. There's a teleportation array here, but you'll need fifty thousand merit points and one hundred thousand high-grade Divine Crystals. If you have those, you can teleport out immediately."
Zane Wu sighed, "We just arrived from the Wormhole Gate. Where can we get Divine Crystals? Will Immortal Crystals work?"
The shopkeeper replied helplessly, "In the Dao Domain, Immortal Crystals are worthless. If you don’t have Divine Crystals, it’s fine. You can apply to return to the Wormhole Gate to hunt insects. Since you’ve already entered Leap Dao Gate, any insects you kill will be yours, and you can bring them here to exchange for Divine Crystals anytime."
"What’s the usual exchange rate?" Zane Wu asked tentatively.
"A ten-merit-point insect can be exchanged for one low-grade Divine Crystal… One hundred low-grade Divine Crystals can be exchanged for one high-grade Divine Crystal…"
Joe Di and Zane Wu both gasped, instantly understanding why so many cultivators couldn’t leave Leapgate City.
With such rates, how long would it take to exchange for a hundred thousand high-grade Divine Crystals? This rule clearly traps cultivators here, preventing them from ever reaching the true Dao Domain.
...
The Dao Domain is vast and boundless; no one knows how many sects, families, or powers exist within it.
But the top sects in the Dao Domain are only a handful, such as Eternal Court Sacred Dao City, Yan Yi Dao Sect, Guangjing Sacred Sect, and others.
Places like Starhaven Stronghold are countless. Starhaven is renowned, but it’s only a corner of the Dao Domain—and that’s just because Starhaven has two Dao Transformation experts.
The two Dao Transformation experts in Starhaven are the current Stronghold Master, William Sha (early Dao Transformation), and the previous master—his father, Yin Wushang, who is at the late Dao Transformation stage and rumored to be near perfection.
But today, Starhaven made headlines across half the Dao Domain: the previous Stronghold Master, Yin Wushang, broke through the first step of Dao Realm and entered the second step, becoming a true Dao Origin expert.
Dao Origin experts are renowned throughout the Dao Domain. With one now in Starhaven, its status leaped by several ranks.
With a Dao Origin expert, Starhaven has finally risen from obscurity to join the ranks of famous sects.
With a Dao Origin expert, Starhaven naturally had to hold a Dao Origin Grand Ceremony. Though it didn’t affect the whole Dao Domain, it certainly drew attention from a significant corner of it.
Anyone within a reasonable distance—and any sect aware of Starhaven’s new Dao Origin expert—whether invited or not, came to Starhaven to attend the Dao Origin Grand Ceremony.
Nixon Ren, president of the Qianyuan Trading Guild, naturally arrived at Starhaven immediately. The guild is dominant at the Wormhole Gate, but Nixon Ren is only at the mid-stage Dao Transformation. In front of Starhaven’s Dao Origin expert, Yin Wushang, he’s just an ant.
...
The guest hall of Starhaven was packed. At this moment, in the rear hall, Yin Wushang wore a dark expression. Even the current Stronghold Master, William Sha, stood before him with his head bowed, not daring to make a sound.
After a long while, Yin Wushang finally spoke calmly, "Yuer’s talent is extraordinary, and it’s a growth-type talent. Her future achievements may even surpass mine, yet she’s been unconscious for over a year due to a cultivation issue. You’re truly unworthy of your position as Stronghold Master."
"I accept your criticism, Father," William Sha said, head still bowed, not daring to argue. In fact, he’d invited countless doctors and alchemy masters, but none could diagnose Shapuyu’s condition.
Yin Wushang understood his son well and did not continue to scold him. He simply sighed, stood up, and said, "I’ll go check on Yuer."
As Yin Wushang went to see Shapuyu, Nixon Ren grew anxious. He’d just received news that Zimo, who’d taken his Dao-Ascending Pill, had placed in the top ten—even first on the Wormhole Merit Leaderboard—and had left the Wormhole District to enter Leapgate City.
This was no small matter. Zimo had obtained a mysterious array disk, which was now in his possession. Since he’d taken it, how could he still earn one hundred ten thousand merit points?
Relying on buying insects? Ha, that would only fool ignorant children. Clearly, Zimo has secrets Nixon Ren hasn’t uncovered, and Nixon Ren was itching to fly to Leapgate City and capture Zimo for a thorough investigation.
But he didn’t dare leave now—he was attending Yin Wushang’s grand ceremony, and Yin Wushang hadn’t appeared yet. If he left, what would that mean?
Fortunately, he knew that no matter how many merit points Zimo and Zane Wu obtained, they wouldn’t be able to leave Leapgate City. Otherwise, Nixon Ren might have risked everything to leave.