Joe Di was relieved—he ate well and lived comfortably, and Ann Tu Ning truly seemed to treat him as the sect's representative alchemist for the competition.
Five days passed in a flash. When Joe Di heard Ann Tu Ning's voice, the spaceship had already landed.
Joe Di followed Ann Tu Ning off the spaceship. Noticing that no one else was with them, he asked in confusion, "Valley Master Ann, is it just the two of us?"
Ann Tu Ning replied coldly, "To be precise, it's just you."
Joe Di didn't ask further. Although he had a pile of questions, one look at Ann Tu Ning's icy expression told him it was pointless to ask anything.
Stepping out of the spaceship, Joe Di didn't need to use his spiritual sense; he could see the densely packed crowd with his own eyes. They were at the spaceship dock, and outside the dock were rows upon rows of shops. A towering building, hundreds of meters high, stood out among the shops, looking especially prominent.
Above the building floated five characters: Grand Dao River Pavilion.
Farther away, the area was surrounded by a protective array, making it impossible for Joe Di to see what was inside.
"Come with me to register." Ann Tu Ning said as she headed toward the Grand Dao River Pavilion.
Joe Di followed behind Ann Tu Ning. Along the way, many people greeted Ann Tu Ning respectfully, showing that she held considerable prestige in the Dao Domain.
Upon entering the Grand Dao River Pavilion, a massive sign greeted them: Registration Desk for the Dao Domain Grand Dao River Pill Tournament.
"Valley Master Ann, your Origin Dao Sect is quite late this time, haha..." Almost as soon as Joe Di and Valley Master Ann entered the hall, a hearty laughter rang out.
The speaker was an elder with sallow skin. The chilling aura radiating from him made Joe Di instinctively repulsed.
Valley Master Ann replied coolly, "Our Origin Dao Sect does not rely on pills for cultivation, unlike your Eternity Saint City, where alchemists are as numerous as cattle."
With that, Valley Master Ann ignored the elder and strode straight to the registration desk. "Origin Dao Sect, outer disciple Joe Di, entering the Grand Dao River Pill Tournament."
"Ah..." The disciples at the registration desk were stunned by Valley Master Ann's words. Only one alchemist from Origin Dao Sect for the Grand Dao River Tournament? This was the most anticipated event in the Dao Domain, with every sect eagerly awaiting it. Had Origin Dao Sect grown so powerful that it no longer cared about the tournament?
The sallow-skinned elder from Eternity Saint City was also shocked by Valley Master Ann's words. He asked in disbelief, "Valley Master Ann, is your Origin Dao Sect really sending only one outer disciple to compete?"
Valley Master Ann looked at the elder. "That's right. Unless Vice Lord Warren has some instructions?"
Vice Lord Warren chuckled dryly, his smile insincere. "Instructions? Naturally, I wouldn't dare. But I must say, I deeply admire Origin Dao Sect—such boldness! While we wait anxiously for the Grand Dao River to open, Origin Dao Sect clearly doesn't care about these mere Divine Essence Pills."
Noticing Valley Master Ann's displeased expression, the disciple at the registration desk hurriedly said, "Allow me to register you, Senior. Please hand over your tournament jade token."
The last sentence was directed at Joe Di. He handed over his competition jade token, and the registrar quickly completed his registration, then respectfully returned the token to him.
Several cultivators who wanted to greet Ann Tu Ning sensed her displeasure and wisely kept their distance.
However, as soon as Ann Tu Ning and Joe Di left the Grand Dao River Pavilion, the sound of discussion rose behind them. Within a day, news that Origin Dao Sect was sending only one outer disciple to the Grand Dao River Tournament would surely spread throughout the event.
As soon as they left the Grand Dao River Pavilion, Ann Tu Ning said coldly, "Find a place to stay on your own. The Grand Dao River Tournament is in two days. All you need to do is participate—everything else is secondary."
With those words, Ann Tu Ning turned and walked away, quickly disappearing into the distance.
Joe Di sighed. It was truly baffling. Judging from Ann Tu Ning's tone, it seemed she had just sent someone to participate casually, with no concern whether he placed or not.
Joe Di wandered around the shops surrounding the plaza, surprised to find many spirit herbs available—even fourth- and fifth-grade spirit herbs could be bought.
What delighted Joe Di most was the abundance of pill formulas. Although the prices were high, he didn't hesitate, spending nearly ten million high-grade spirit crystals to buy almost a hundred pill recipes. The cheapest cost several thousand crystals, while the most expensive neared a million.
After buying over a hundred pill recipes, Joe Di finally avoided the embarrassment of being an alchemist who knew only a dozen or so formulas.
"Dean Carter is here—he's one of the Ten Dao Prodigies..." A low voice reached Joe Di's ears, prompting him to look back. He saw a tall, handsome man with short hair and a spirited appearance.
Beside this handsome man were two beautiful female cultivators.
"That's right. Dean Carter is Great Buddha Mountain's most outstanding Dao Forging expert. Only geniuses like Ethan Chang, Serena Yu, and Morgan Leaf can compare to him."
"No, Morgan Leaf and Ethan Chang are a bit inferior. Dean Carter is not only a top genius but also a Dao Forging Pill God. Fairy Serena of Guangjing Sect is also one of the Ten Dao Prodigies and a Dao Forging Pill God."
Joe Di hadn't expected to hear Morgan Leaf mentioned. As he tried to listen more closely, a cold snort interrupted, "Ten Dao Prodigies? Those losers are hardly worthy of the title! Bah!"
The cultivators who had been discussing earlier quickly fell silent at this disdainful voice and stepped aside.
Joe Di also stepped aside with the other cultivators. A black-clad youth glanced at Joe Di before strolling past at a leisurely pace.
This was definitely another top-tier cultivator at the second stage of Dao Verification. Joe Di sensed that this person's aura was even stronger than Ann Tu Ning's. Like Joe Di, the youth carried his weapon on his back—Joe Di's was a blade, while the youth's was a long black staff.
After the black-clad youth had walked far away, someone sneered, "That guy really doesn't know his place, daring to call the Ten Dao Prodigies trash. I bet in ten thousand years, any one of the Ten Dao Prodigies will step over him. His only advantage is probably his age."
"Hmph!" One of the cultivators who'd been discussing the Ten Dao Prodigies snorted coldly, "You probably don't know who just passed by, which is why you dare speak so recklessly."
"Who is he?" Joe Di asked.
The snorting cultivator replied, "He's also one of the Ten Dao Prodigies, but from many years ago. His name is Li Tu, the Little King."
When the name Li Tu, the Little King, was mentioned, the surrounding cultivators all gasped.
No one refuted his words, because he was right. The current generation of Ten Dao Prodigies was strong, but compared to Li Tu, the Little King's generation, they really were inferior.
Li Tu, the Little King? Joe Di suddenly found the name familiar. Seeing the surrounding cultivators fall silent and quietly leave after hearing the name, Joe Di quickly asked, "Could you tell me who the Ten Dao Prodigies of Li Tu's generation were?"
The cultivator who had mentioned Li Tu glanced at Joe Di and said, "They were Di Xinren, Zhong You, Xu Bai Shang, Zhong Ao, Huan Yue Shan, Li Tu the Little King, Jiang Dai..."
The cultivator suddenly fell silent, then hurriedly slipped away. Joe Di saw Li Tu, the Little King, turning back.
Joe Di was shocked. He finally understood where he'd heard the name Li Tu, the Little King—it was from Zhong Ao.
He'd also heard of Zhong You. The River of Mountains belonged to Zhong You, and the Sacred Yin Pearl he'd obtained in the River of Mountains had been collected by Zhong You. Zhong Ao had been imprisoned by Zhong You in the River of Mountains, and Joe Di had rescued him.
He never expected that among the Ten Dao Prodigies of that era, he'd heard of so many—and was even friends with one of them.
Whether it's Zhong You, Jiang Dai, or Xu Bai Shang—if any of them learned of Joe Di's existence, they'd probably come here at all costs and tear him to pieces.