Chapter 00217: The Open Mouthed World
# The Open-Mouthed World
Chapter 217
Novel: After the Myth
Chapter 217: The Open-Mouthed World
Upon hearing Ding Huan say that he knew about the divine sense mark on his body, Sang Yuhe felt even more at ease.
It seemed that Ding Huan was well-prepared.
"Then, should we head to the cave where I was in seclusion before?" Sang Yuhe began to understand Ding Huan's intentions.
No wonder Ding Huan had set up a trapping and killing array there earlier.
It seemed it would come in handy now.
"Exactly. I set up the trapping and killing array just in case, never expecting it would actually be useful," Ding Huan admitted, genuinely surprised.
"Ding Huan, your array skills should be quite advanced. Why didn’t you set up a concealment barrier at the auction?" Sang Yuhe had been wanting to ask this question for a while.
Ding Huan pointed behind him, "Although I don’t know this guy’s name, the fact that he has such a fearsome reputation in Yanyue City means he’s not just ruthless. He must be a meticulous person."
Sang Yuhe wasn’t too slow on the uptake.
By now, she roughly understood what Ding Huan was getting at: "You wanted him to think that not only is your strength mediocre, but your array skills are also poor. That way, he would..."
Ding Huan laughed heartily, "That way, he would confidently walk right into my array."
As they spoke, Ding Huan increased his flying speed.
Sure enough, as soon as he sped up, the True Core cultivator following them also accelerated.
In no time, Ding Huan entered the trapping and killing array he had set up earlier.
In truth, this array wasn’t meant for a True Core cultivator at the peak of their realm.
It was designed to deal with a Soul Formation expert.
Fortunately, no Soul Formation expert had come, only a True Core cultivator at the peak.
Ding Huan decided to kill him and then leave.
"Yuhe, I need to refine my Parting Spear. Can you guard me for a bit?" Ding Huan stopped the flying ship and casually pulled out the Parting Spear, speaking loudly.
Before Sang Yuhe could respond, a sinister voice rang out, "You might as well not bother refining it. There’s really no need."
The speaker expected Ding Huan to be terrified upon hearing his voice and seeing him appear.
To his surprise, Ding Huan didn’t even flinch, not even bothering to turn his head.
"Oh, whether it’s necessary or not, I’ll decide that. But you, why do you always appear like a ghost? Are you that afraid of being seen?" Ding Huan finally turned around slowly as he spoke.
"You knew I was following you?" The man frowned and took a step back.
This shouldn’t be possible.
Unless Ding Huan was a Soul Formation expert, how could he have detected his presence?
"What do you think?" Ding Huan waved the Parting Spear in his hand.
The man began to feel uncertain.
He suspected Ding Huan was putting on a brave front, but it didn’t seem like it.
Or perhaps Ding Huan’s actions were too bizarre.
Instead of attacking immediately, he stared coldly at Ding Huan and said, "I have a name, but I’ve never cared much for it. People have forgotten it over time. Now, everyone calls me Si Tu. Everyone in Yanyue City knows my nature. Those who obey me might live. Those who don’t, I kill and feed to my beast pets. Do you know why no one else is following you?"
"Perhaps they think you’re hard to get along with and don’t want to be associated with you?" Ding Huan asked, feigning surprise.
"You’re right. They know I’m following you and don’t dare to come near," Si Tu said calmly, though he was growing more alert.
Something was off today.
"Oh, so they know you’re scum. By the way, you mentioned having an open-mouthed gourd container. Is that true or not?" Ding Huan was in no mood to waste time with this guy.
Si Tu was feeling increasingly uneasy.
His gaze fell on Sang Yuhe, who stood far away, seemingly unwilling to get involved.
"Hand over the Spirit Blue Face Fruit. I’m willing to pay in spirit stones, and then we can each go our separate ways," Si Tu said, his divine sense scanning the surroundings as he gripped a spiritual tool in his hand.
He suspected that Ding Huan’s confidence might be due to hidden experts nearby.
Ding Huan tossed out an array flag and thrust the Parting Spear toward Si Tu.
"You’re asking for death!" Even though something felt off, Si Tu’s innate ferocity was triggered.
But before his weapon could strike Ding Huan, the space around him suddenly became a killing zone.
A trapping and killing array?
Si Tu finally realized what was happening.
He hadn’t detected the array earlier because its level far exceeded his understanding of array formations.
*Thud! Thud!* Two wind blades pierced through Si Tu’s body.
Si Tu tried to escape the array but realized, to his despair, that he couldn’t even touch the edges of it, let alone find the exit and break through.
*Boom!* Ding Huan’s Parting Spear shattered Si Tu’s skull.
Even in his final moments, Si Tu was still wondering if this was a fifth or sixth-level trapping and killing array.
The last words he heard were, "With your sorry state, you thought you could be a butcher?"
He finally understood that Ding Huan had already refined the Parting Spear in the auction house’s private room.
The lack of a concealment barrier was deliberate, luring him into the trapping and killing array.
He cursed himself for being too careless.
After mocking Si Tu, Ding Huan looked down at the Parting Spear in his hand, "What a shame. The first blood you drink in my hands is from such trash."
It was fortunate that Si Tu was already dead, or this comment would have infuriated him.
"Is this a fifth-level trapping and killing array? Ding Huan, are you a fifth-level array master?" Sang Yuhe looked at Ding Huan in disbelief.
She knew Ding Huan’s array skills were strong, but she never imagined he could set up a fifth-level array.
In the cultivation world, fifth-level array masters were exceedingly rare.
Many sects’ protective arrays were set up by array masters from the Ascension Realm.
"Yes. Actually, I set up this trapping and killing array to deal with a Soul Formation expert. Using it on a True Core cultivator is a bit of a waste," Ding Huan casually replied as he took Si Tu’s storage ring.
He wasn’t entirely satisfied with his array skills.
A fifth-level trapping and killing array was still risky against someone like Elder He.
Fortunately, he had acquired a fifth-level Hell Vine seed at the auction.
With some additional preparations, he might be able to hold his own against Elder He.
After collecting everything and burning Si Tu’s body, Ding Huan summoned the flying ship and said to Sang Yuhe, "Yuhe, take control of the ship. We’re heading to Hidden Sword Mountain. I want to see what treasures this butcher has in his ring."
Sang Yuhe was momentarily stunned, then said, "Ding Huan, Hidden Sword Mountain no longer has any swords. The place is shrouded in poisonous mist year-round. It’s essentially a toxic mountain now."
"Exactly. Why else would I go there?" Ding Huan replied matter-of-factly.
"I see. You’re going to collect the poisonous mist?" Sang Yuhe finally understood why Ding Huan had bought the container artifact.
Ding Huan didn’t respond.
It was obvious, wasn’t it?
Sang Yuhe initially wanted to warn Ding Huan that Hidden Sword Mountain was too dangerous to approach, and collecting the poisonous mist could be deadly.
But then she realized that if she could figure it out, surely Ding Huan already knew.
With that in mind, she focused on piloting the ship toward Hidden Sword Mountain.
In just a few breaths, Ding Huan broke into Si Tu’s storage ring.
Inside, he found piles of low-grade spirit stones, with only a few high-grade ones.
This made Ding Huan sneer.
It was clear that Si Tu had only preyed on weaker cultivators.
A typical bully, his ring was filled with low-grade spirit stones, low-grade magical tools, and talismans.
To Ding Huan’s delight, he found a Three-Colored Purple Rain Flower in Si Tu’s ring.
At first, he thought it was the one from the auction, but upon closer inspection, he realized it wasn’t.
Si Tu should have been searching for spirit herbs to advance to the Soul Formation realm.
Why would he keep a Three-Colored Purple Rain Flower, which was useless to him? It seemed Si Tu was nothing more than a murderous thief who preyed on the weak.
Ding Huan couldn’t help but feel a sense of relief.
By killing Si Tu, he had likely saved many lives.
Soon, Ding Huan pulled out a small gourd about the size of a palm.
This was the open-mouthed gourd? Si Tu actually had one?
The gourd was indeed unusual.
Unlike regular gourds, which are smaller at the top and larger at the bottom, this one was the opposite.
Its mouth was disproportionately large, and it lacked a stopper.
Ding Huan began refining the gourd.
The powerful restrictions within it shocked him.
Even with his array skills, refining a top-grade spiritual tool like this should have taken less than a day.
But after an entire day, he had only broken through the first layer of restrictions.
He had no idea how many layers there were.
After breaking the first layer, Ding Huan’s divine sense penetrated the gourd, and he was stunned.
This wasn’t just a container artifact—it was a world.
Even with only the first layer refined, the space inside spanned hundreds of miles.
Though it was barren now, Ding Huan believed that with proper care, it could become a thriving world.
He wondered if the cauldron he had left on Dawnlight Peak could be moved into this gourd world.
The only downside was that the gourd seemed to be missing its stopper, which he hadn’t found in Si Tu’s ring.
Given Si Tu’s limited abilities, he probably couldn’t even touch the first layer of restrictions, let alone refine the gourd.
It was likely something Si Tu had stolen from someone else.
"Ding Huan, we’re approaching Westwind City," Sang Yuhe’s voice came through.
(That’s all for today’s update.
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(End of Chapter)