Joe Di did not pursue Lucas Tyrant. If he truly wished to chase him down, it was possible, but Joe Di simply didn’t want to waste the time. To hunt Lucas Tyrant would take years, and with the Cosmic Debate about to begin, he couldn’t afford to squander so much time.
"Brother Joe..." Lucas Tyrant's arrival had been abrupt and uncertain, and now that he was gone, Fabian Farr stepped forward with a hint of flattery in his tone.
Joe Di asked, "How is it that this place possesses such complete Heaven-Earth laws, and even has endless, dense Heaven-Earth vitality and the breath of life?"
Fabian Farr didn’t dare hide a single word. "Brother Joe, after you left back then, the Heaven-Earth laws here gradually became complete, and then life began to recover..."
Joe Di immediately understood. By using the Lethe Bridge to leave this isolated domain, he had inadvertently connected it with the Five Elements Universe, gradually perfecting its Heaven-Earth laws.
"However, even as the laws improved, there was still little Heaven-Earth spiritual energy. Until several hundred years ago, when a Prime Divine Spirit Vein fell from the void..."
Hearing this, Joe Di frowned slightly. For a Prime Divine Spirit Vein to fall into this domain and make the Heaven-Earth vitality so dense—it was almost impossible.
"That Prime Divine Spirit Vein was different from those we usually see—it was pure black. When it first landed, the perfected Heaven-Earth laws and vitality surpassing even the Five Elements Universe caused everyone to recover madly. In a short time, most cultivators returned to the Third Step..."
At this, Joe Di began to understand. He suspected that the black vein which fell here was much like the half segment of Obsidian Dao Vein he obtained in the Creation Nest. It probably wasn’t a Divine Spirit Vein at all, but a Cosmic Dao Vein—the highest grade at that.
With the Cosmic Debate about to begin, all sorts of Dao Veins hidden in the vast cosmos were starting to reveal themselves.
Fabian Farr seemed to recall the scene, his eyes brightening. "At that time, everyone realized that the black vein was extraordinary, and countless people rushed to seize it..."
Joe Di sighed inwardly, "Lost Dao Domain has fallen so far. When a Cosmic Dao Vein appears from the void, instead of integrating it into the domain for everyone's benefit, people go mad fighting over it."
Countless magic treasures clashed, shattering the black vein into fragments, which then dissolved into endless Heaven-Earth vitality that spread throughout the Lost Dao Domain...
Joe Di nodded, "That's fine too. Everyone can use this vitality to cultivate."
Fabian Farr sighed, "After the black vein was shattered and merged into Lost Dao Domain, although the Heaven-Earth vitality became dense, the aura that surpassed an entire universe's laws was lost. Now, it only helps us sense the direction of the Dao."
A Convergence Realm cultivator standing beside Fabian Farr cupped his fists and said, "Brother Joe, that was not a Supreme Ley Line, but a Cosmic Dao Vein. I've heard that whenever a Cosmic Dao Vein appears, it means the cosmos is about to be reordered."
As expected, some of the old cultivators understood. Joe Di's gaze fell on the Convergence Realm cultivator who spoke. "What's your name?"
Hearing Joe Di's question, the Convergence Realm cultivator hurriedly cupped his fists again and even stepped forward, saying, "My name is Daniel You. Greetings, Brother Joe."
Joe Di nodded in agreement. "Brother Daniel is right. That wasn't a Supreme Ley Line, but another kind of top-grade vitality vein in the cosmos—a Cosmic Dao Vein. And this black Cosmic Dao Vein is especially precious, far surpassing ordinary veins. I'm here today because I have something important to tell everyone..."
Upon hearing Joe Di mention something important, the many powerful cultivators listened attentively. In fact, even if Joe Di hadn't mentioned anything important, they still hoped he would take them along when he left.
There were thousands of Third Step experts here, and Joe Di very much wanted to bring them to the Saint Seat Plaza of the Genesis Universe.
"Everyone, when you entered the Lost Dao Domain, you must have heard of the existence of the Fourth Step, right?"
When Joe Di mentioned the Fourth Step, the crowd began to murmur. Of course they knew about it—no one had managed to cross into it, though.
Joe Di signaled everyone to quiet down and began to explain about the Saint Seat Plaza, the upcoming grand contest for the Saint Seats, and especially the Cosmic Debate. Now, the Saint Seat Plaza was filled everywhere with vitality surpassing even the highest cosmic laws.
These experts had been trapped in the Lost Dao Domain for countless years. Every piece of news Joe Di brought shocked them. After he finished speaking, no one asked questions; the whole Lost Dao City fell utterly silent. The cosmos was about to be reorganized, and every cosmic expert would have their own place—but they were trapped here.
Joe Di broke the silence. "After the Debate, all the top cultivators from the universes will fight with all their might for the Saint Seats. My Five Elements Universe has deep foundations, but unfortunately, we've been sabotaged. Now, there are few strong cultivators left. If anyone is willing to help the Five Elements Universe, please step forward."
"Of course we're willing to help the Five Elements Universe." Voices rang out unevenly, but Joe Di noticed that almost all the experts were willing to fight for the Five Elements Universe.
To have cultivated to the Third Step—and as the oldest batch at that—was equivalent to being the pioneers of the Five Elements Universe. Having survived until now, they were certainly no fools.
If the Five Elements Universe lost its Saint Seat, it would be a disaster for them as well.
The struggle for the Saint Seat is really a struggle for cosmic orthodoxy. Even if, as Joe Di said, Chi Yao hasn't crossed into the Fourth Step or become master of the vast cosmos, the Five Elements Universe must have its own Saint Seat.
If the Five Elements Universe loses its Saint Seat, it means its cosmic orthodoxy will be abandoned. Any cultivator born in the Five Elements Universe, cultivating under its Heaven-Earth laws, will see their strength decline once more as the universe's orthodoxy is forsaken.
Once the orthodoxy is stripped away, the Heaven-Earth laws of the Five Elements Universe will inevitably weaken and fade. In the future, they might even decline to a state worse than the Lost Dao Domain.
At a time like this, with a powerhouse like Joe Di leading them, no one could or wanted to stand aside. By joining the Cosmic Debate and helping the Five Elements Universe win a Saint Seat, they too would gain immense benefits.
Fabian Farr said, "Brother Joe, there are too many people here—it will be hard to leave the Lost Dao Domain." He knew how Joe Di entered, by tearing open the domain boundary, but didn't know how he left. Earlier, when Lucas Tyrant left, he saw that it was with the help of a top-grade talisman.
A talisman capable of tearing open the Lost Dao Domain would be priceless, and with thousands of people here, how could they all leave?
"Everyone, don't worry. I have a way," Joe Di said, then began to scatter formation flags, his divine sense simultaneously sketching out the array flags and rules.
He had once used the Reincarnation Bridge to construct a passage out of the Lost Dao Domain, and today he could do the same by using Reincarnation Dao Rhythms.
He no longer had the Reincarnation Bridge; after so many years, it was gone. But with his mastery of the Third Step and the Dao, building a Reincarnation passage for everyone to leave the Lost Dao Domain was no problem at all.
But Joe Di didn't build a Reincarnation passage—he constructed a direct bridge from the Lost Dao Domain to the Five Elements Universe. Back then, after leaving the Lost Dao Domain, he had to set up a Reincarnation passage and a burst array. Now, using his own formation skills, he opened a direct passage between the Lost Dao Domain and the Five Elements Universe, with no need for the Reincarnation passage.
Watching a winding long bridge constructed from Dao Rhythms stretch deep into the void, everyone was secretly shocked. They had known Joe Di was strong—otherwise, he couldn't have crushed Lucas Tyrant so easily. Now, seeing him set up this domain-spanning bridge linking the Lost Dao Domain and the Five Elements Universe, they finally understood just how powerful he was. None of them, even those who had reached the peak of the Genesis Realm, could have built such a bridge.
"Let's go, everyone. Once you reach the Five Elements Universe, head straight to the Genesis Gate. The Genesis Gate has a teleportation array to the Mortal World, and the Mortal World has a teleportation array to the Saint Seat Plaza. Go to the Saint Seat Plaza to cultivate and wait for me. I will definitely return before the Cosmic Debate," Joe Di said, pointing to the winding domain bridge.
[Irrelevant passage omitted: web novel navigation prompt.]
[Irrelevant passage omitted: author's note.]