Victor Chao did not dare to make another move. Instead, he clasped his fists toward Joe Di and said, "Daoist Di, I believe that no matter where you are, no matter how strong you are, there must be reason. Your strength is indeed formidable, but even if you can stop me from searching for someone today, can you stop the Dao Master himself from coming?"
Joe Di sneered, "Is the Dao Master supposed to be so impressive? The title 'Dao Master' doesn't scare me, Joe Di. As for reason, I haven't even seen those three Golden Pages, but just because your Dao Master claims they're his, does that make it true? If I said this Vast Chaos belonged to me, would it be mine? I can't control your Dao Master's shamelessness, but if you put your face out for me to slap, that's just pathetic."
Victor Chao's face darkened. "Daoist Di, do you really think you have me suppressed? I know there aren't many like you here, but at the Dao Master's side, there are countless people as strong as me. Offending me is one thing, but if you offend the Dao Master, you'll regret it in the future."
Joe Di laughed heartily. "I've been threatened since I was a child, and I'm still living well. Most of those who threatened me have disappeared without a trace."
Moria West suddenly interjected, "Daoist Chao, as far as I know, those three Golden Pages were indeed obtained by Daoist Ye, and they were ownerless. For your Dao Master to forcibly claim them as his is a bit much. Also, who exactly is your Dao Master? Perhaps we all know him."
Victor Chao snorted coldly, "Since the division of the Five Elements Universe, our Dao Master has never come out, unless you are one of those who opened the heavens and have entered the Chaos Gate. Otherwise, you would not know our Dao Master. You are from the outer realm of the Five Elements Universe, so entering the Chaos Gate is naturally impossible."
"Isn't the Chaos Gate supposed to be impossible to open? How did you get out?" Joe Di didn't actually know if the gate could be opened; he had only seen the massive stone gate with no visible flaws and was just making conversation.
"Oh? You know about the Chaos Gate?" Victor Chao exclaimed in surprise, his gaze toward Joe Di changing slightly.
Even Moria West looked at Joe Di in astonishment. To be honest, she had never heard of the Chaos Gate either, even though she herself was a powerful cultivator who had opened the heavens.
Joe Di pretended to be mysterious and nodded, but said nothing.
Seeing Joe Di's expressionless face, Victor Chao continued, "That's right. The Chaos Gate was previously sealed by powerful cultivators using the Heaven-Opening Chaos Array, making it impossible to open by ordinary means. But after so many years, the chaos essence in the Five Elements Universe has almost been depleted. Without the suppression of chaos essence, opening the Chaos Gate is no longer such a difficult matter."
Joe Di and Moria West exchanged glances. They were in the Five Elements Universe themselves. What did Victor Chao mean by saying the chaos essence here was almost depleted? They couldn't make sense of it.
Moria West quickly asked, "We're in the Five Elements Universe, aren't we? Wasn't the chaos essence consumed after the universe was created, with most of it merging into the universe itself?"
Victor Chao replied disdainfully, "After the Five Elements Universe was formed, ninety percent of the chaos essence was sealed inside the Chaos Gate, which is also called the Inner Realm of the Five Elements Universe. The remaining ten percent was left outside the gate for all beings to compete for—that's the universe we're in now, known as the Outer Realm of the Five Elements Universe."
Joe Di began to understand and asked in surprise, "Daoist Chao, do you mean that after the Five Elements Universe was formed, it split into two major parts—one is the Five Elements Universe where we currently live, and the other is the part inside the Chaos Gate?"
Victor Chao nodded. "That's not wrong. In fact, everyone is in the same universe—the only difference is the existence of the Chaos Gate."
Joe Di chuckled, "Daoist Chao, you said earlier that the Chaos Gate can't be opened because the ninety percent of chaos essence from the Five Elements Universe is suppressing it. If it can't be opened, then there shouldn't be any treasure leaking out. What do the Three Golden Pages have to do with the Five Elements Universe?"
Victor Chao replied calmly, "That's because you don't understand. After the Five Elements Universe was divided by the Chaos Gate, nine Rift Dao Tokens appeared inside the gate."
Rift Dao Token? Joe Di had heard of this before. It was a legendary treasure. Baker Wynn had managed to escape the Creation Gate because he obtained a Rift Dao Token.
"You've probably never heard of the Rift Dao Token, since there are only nine in the entire Five Elements Universe. Anyone who gets one would never show it off. With a Rift Dao Token, you can split open any domain or plane and come and go as you please."
Victor Chao paused here and looked at Joe Di. "Now you understand why those three Golden Pages ended up outside the Chaos Gate, don't you?"
Joe Di asked slowly, "Since the Chaos Gate can now be opened, why haven't the powerful cultivators inside come out? Shouldn't your Dao Master be able to leave as well?"
Victor Chao chuckled and gestured around him. "Although this is also the Five Elements Universe, just look at the spiritual energy here—it's so thin it's almost unbearable. As for chaos essence, there's practically none. Every cultivator inside the Chaos Gate advances by leaps and bounds. Even though the chaos essence within has thinned considerably, cultivating inside is still far superior to outside."
With the universe on the verge of upheaval, who would want to come out now? Maybe only when the chaos essence inside is almost depleted will everyone come out to take a look."
Victor Chao then pointed to the young cultivator beside him. "His name is Du Qing. Do you know how long he's been cultivating? Less than ten thousand years in total, and he's already a Hunyuan cultivator. How many Hunyuan cultivators in the Five Elements Universe reach that level within ten thousand years?"
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Joe Di's expression grew somber. No wonder cultivators in the Five Elements Universe were weaker than those in other universes—the majority of the chaos essence had been cordoned off by others as their private garden. This reminded him of the Tianwu Realm, where he once lamented that all the chaos essence and treasures were sealed within a single domain, leaving the cultivators of Tianwu Realm to suffer. Now, was the Five Elements Universe really any better off?
So many treasures appeared when the Five Elements Universe was formed, but in the vast universe, its cultivators are actually weaker than those of other universes.
"You're all too selfish," Moria West couldn't help but say, deeply moved. As one of the Ten Great Dao Lords of the Five Elements Universe, even she couldn't rank among the very top in other universes. Clearly, the resources of the Five Elements Universe had been monopolized. And what was monopolized was the most vital chaos essence of the universe itself."
"Selfish?" Victor Chao laughed loudly. "After the Five Elements Universe was formed, countless treasures appeared—Hongmeng Dao Laws, Creation treasures, countless innate artifacts... Inside the Chaos Gate, there was only ninety percent of the chaos essence. After obtaining the Three Golden Pages, the Dao Master chose the chaos essence and didn't compete for the other innate or creation treasures. If that's selfish, aren't the cultivators outside the Chaos Gate even more selfish?"
Moria West took a deep breath, trying to calm herself. "That's completely different. The innate and creation treasures are opportunities for whoever obtains them. But that ninety percent chaos essence was meant to nourish the Five Elements Universe itself. By hoarding it inside the Chaos Gate for your own cultivation, you've weakened the universe's rules and Dao Laws compared to other universes."