The Grandway Abyss seemed immeasurably deep. Joe Di, carrying Mandy Chu, leapt down and spent nearly half a stick of incense's time before his feet finally touched the ground.
The surrounding mist vanished, and before his eyes appeared a row of luminous formations. The bright glow of these arrays illuminated the area as if it were broad daylight.
Joe Di immediately noticed that, at the bottom of the Grandway Abyss, his divine sense was no longer affected. Sweeping his divine sense outward, he discovered countless stone paths crisscrossing like a spider’s web, spreading everywhere. In the center of these myriad stone roads was an especially wide stone avenue.
At the end of this stone road stood a circular building, with several words inscribed on its exterior: Grandway Exchange.
Joe Di knew well what the Grandway Exchange was—it should be a grand trading hall. But what purpose did all these spiderweb-like stone paths serve? And why were there so many of them?
Joe Di simply opened his Dao Eyes and soon sensed something amiss. At the end of each spiderweb-like stone path, there seemed to be several sanctuaries hidden away. These sanctuaries were sealed by concealment arrays—even his divine sense could not penetrate them.
Such powerful array techniques! However, Joe Di quickly understood the situation: each of these sanctuaries likely housed a cultivator in secluded cultivation.
When Joe Di repeatedly examined these sanctuaries with his Dao Eyes, the view became even clearer. Each sanctuary was built against the edge of the Grandway Abyss peak—or rather, excavated at the foot of the mountain.
Joe Di looked along each stone path and saw that every sanctuary at the end was dug into the mountain’s edge. It seemed that, for cultivators here to sense the fortune aura, they could only excavate sanctuaries at the mountain’s boundary. Yet the edges were almost filled with sanctuaries, so even if he wanted to dig one now, he could only do so at the outermost rim.
There was no need to ask—Joe Di already knew that the sanctuaries at the outermost rim had the poorest fortune aura.
Joe Di said calmly, "So according to you, cultivators who just arrived can do nothing but wait here?"
The tall-hatted man pointed to the vast plaza at the end of the stone path, outside the Grandway Exchange Hall. "Sanctuaries are for sale in that plaza. You can go there and purchase one."
Joe Di pointed toward the end of the stone path he intended to enter. "My beast companion was captured and brought here. Are you saying I can't go in and reclaim it?"
"No. Fighting is strictly forbidden here. If you attempt to use force, you’ll be slain by the Ninth-Rank Guardian Array and the Third Step cultivators." The tall-hatted man’s expression was cold and impassive.
Joe Di chuckled, "So if someone steals my belongings, I just have to accept it?"
"You can also issue a challenge. If you know who took your belongings, you can challenge them directly in the Grandway Plaza. If they accept, you can kill them and reclaim your possessions." The tall-hatted man explained.
"What if they refuse?" Joe Di felt stifled by the rules.
The tall-hatted man stared coldly at Joe Di. "If they refuse and you act, it’s death."
"Joe Di..." Mandy Chu had realized that fighting here would lead to serious consequences.
Joe Di waved his hand, understanding Mandy Chu’s warning. This place was protected by Ninth-Rank Guardian Arrays, with each array base positioned at the end of a side path.
These guardian arrays were truly terrifying. Once activated, each array base was controlled by a super arraycraft master, and such formations could easily kill him. No matter how great his skills, he wouldn’t be able to use them here.
"Let’s go. We’ll head to the Grandway Plaza first." Joe Di didn’t bother arguing further with the tall-hatted man, and after speaking to Mandy Chu, he withdrew.
At this point, any further words were meaningless. Since fighting was forbidden, why waste time here?
Seeing Joe Di and Mandy Chu leave, the tall-hatted man once again vanished into the void.
"His concealment technique is truly impressive," Mandy Chu couldn’t help but sigh. She had once been a formidable cultivator herself, but after witnessing so many powerhouses during the Creation War, she realized her own weakness. She understood that ignorance is the most dangerous thing, for the ignorant believe everything is under their control. Yet ignorance isn’t entirely useless—it at least brings fearlessness.
"You can also issue a challenge. If you know who took your belongings, you can challenge them directly in the Grandway Plaza. If they accept, you can kill them and reclaim your possessions." The tall-hatted man explained.
"It’s not a technique—it’s his understanding of Spatial Law," Joe Di said gravely.
Precisely because he knew the man’s grasp of Spatial Law surpassed his own, Joe Di hadn’t acted. Even a guardian at the Prime Realm here had such mastery. If he provoked the true powerhouses, he might really have to flee today.
The Grandway Plaza was just as empty—no sign of anyone. When Joe Di and Mandy Chu arrived at the vast square, Joe Di noticed several cultivators bound at the plaza’s edge. These cultivators were tied to pillars, surrounded by restrictive seals—something Joe Di hadn’t noticed before. Now up close, the first person he saw was Lord Voidbreaker.
As Joe Di saw Lord Voidbreaker, Lord Voidbreaker also saw him.
"Lord Voidbreaker, how did you end up in such a sorry state?" Joe Di walked up to him.
Lord Voidbreaker looked a bit ashamed, then said, "Joe Di, whatever you do, don’t break the restraints holding me. Otherwise, neither of us will escape. You have no idea how twisted these people are—each one unimaginably powerful. I thought I was strong, but here I never even had a chance to fight back."
Joe Di clearly knew not to act rashly. If fighting were allowed, he would have already torn apart Lord Voidbreaker’s restraints without hesitation.
"What happened? Tell me the story." Joe Di asked casually, all the while sketching Law Array Banners across the plaza.
With so many powerhouses present, Joe Di drew countless Law Array Banners—just in case he needed a means to escape.
Lord Voidbreaker sighed, "After chasing my quarry here, I tried to seize Bolt. But that bastard knew the rules—he let me attack but didn’t retaliate. So I broke the rules and was taken down and nailed to this plaza."
"It’s not a technique—it’s his understanding of Spatial Law," Joe Di said gravely.
Precisely because he knew the man’s grasp of Spatial Law surpassed his own, Joe Di hadn’t acted. Even a guardian at the Prime Realm here had such mastery. If he provoked the true powerhouses, he might really have to flee today.
The Grandway Plaza was just as empty—no sign of anyone. When Joe Di and Mandy Chu arrived at the vast square, Joe Di noticed several cultivators bound at the plaza’s edge. These cultivators were tied to pillars, surrounded by restrictive seals—something Joe Di hadn’t noticed before. Now up close, the first person he saw was Lord Voidbreaker.
As Joe Di saw Lord Voidbreaker, Lord Voidbreaker also saw him.
"Lord Voidbreaker, how did you end up in such a sorry state?" Joe Di walked up to him.
Lord Voidbreaker looked a bit ashamed, then said, "Joe Di, whatever you do, don’t break the restraints holding me. Otherwise, neither of us will escape. You have no idea how twisted these people are—each one unimaginably powerful. I thought I was strong, but here I never even had a chance to fight back."
Joe Di clearly knew not to act rashly. If fighting were allowed, he would have already torn apart Lord Voidbreaker’s restraints without hesitation.
"What happened? Tell me the story." Joe Di asked casually, all the while sketching Law Array Banners across the plaza.
With so many powerhouses present, Joe Di drew countless Law Array Banners—just in case he needed a means to escape.
Lord Voidbreaker sighed, "After chasing my quarry here, I tried to seize Bolt. But that bastard knew the rules—he let me attack but didn’t retaliate. So I broke the rules and was taken down and nailed to this plaza."
[Irrelevant author’s note skipped.]