Only now did Paul Chi realize that Joe Di had already reached the Tribulation King Stage. At this moment, Paul Chi was certain that Joe Di had been concealing his true strength; Joe Di was at least a Domain Stage cultivator at peak perfection, and one of the very best at that. As for backing, Joe Di's backing was himself.
Understanding this, Paul Chi was so excited that he rushed forward without hesitation to rescue Simon Su.
As soon as Simon Su was brought to safety, Paul Chi grabbed the finest pill and placed it in Simon Su's mouth. He had already resolved to stand with Joe Di, so now he naturally did everything to please him.
The scene fell into silence, and even Eugene Zhou realized that he might have made a mistake. With Joe Di’s strength, not to mention dealing with Andrew King, he could easily handle Eugene Zhou as well. As for the weaker cultivators like Benedict Xun and Dean Carter, they became even more silent.
They had previously thought of Joe Di as an ant, so naturally it hadn’t stopped them from siding with Andrew King. Now, with Joe Di’s strength likely surpassing even Eugene Zhou, only a fool would continue to support Andrew King.
Eugene Zhou cursed himself for his misjudgment. If he had known Joe Di was so powerful, he would never have so openly sided with Andrew King from the start.
Andrew King felt his throat go dry. The longing in his eyes for the jade on Joe Di instantly cooled.
Joe Di looked at Andrew King. "It was I who killed your son. If you have anything to say, come at me. Oh, and I shattered your doghouse too. If you have complaints, you can bring them to me as well."
"You are a Domain Stage cultivator as well, so why would you bother with my son, who was only at the Void Spirit Stage? Why did you kill him?" Andrew King didn’t dare attack Joe Di; he even wished he hadn’t come here at all. Now that Joe Di had brought up his son’s death, he had no choice but to respond.
Joe Di was undoubtedly stronger than Andrew King. If he joined forces with Eugene Zhou, Benedict Xun, and Dean Carter, perhaps they could suppress Joe Di.
Thinking of this, Andrew King couldn't help but glance over at Eugene Zhou. When he saw Eugene Zhou, Benedict Xun, and Dean Carter looking as if they were admiring scenery elsewhere, his heart sank. He knew Eugene Zhou would no longer stand with him.
Of course, Eugene Zhou would not side with Andrew King. He had only done so before because Andrew King was powerful and valuable; weighing his options, he had chosen to abandon Paul Chi. Now, seeing how strong Paul Chi's backing was, he would never stoop so low as to join forces with someone attacking his own subordinate—especially since they might still lose even if they did join forces.
"So your son wanted something of mine, and I was supposed to just hand it over? Just like you wanted my things just now—I should have handed them over too?" Joe Di's tone was icy.
Andrew King forced down his anger and fear, cupped his fists to Joe Di, and said, "I truly didn't know my son was so rude, daring to demand things from a friend. That beast deserved to die. I, Andrew King, apologize to you, my friend..."
At that moment, Benedict Xun, who had been silent, suddenly spoke up: "Daoist Joe, the one who injured your friend Simon Su was actually Andrew King's disciple—the one you just killed."
"Benedict Xun, you..." Andrew King was furious. He hadn’t expected that someone who usually called him brother would stab him in the back at such a moment.
Benedict Xun said calmly, "Your son relied on your reputation and committed countless atrocities at the gates of the Mad Domain, killing hundreds if not thousands of wandering cultivators in the starry void. Anyone with something valuable had to hand it over to him. Now that Brother Joe has killed your son, it is truly a blessing for the Mad Domain."
Joe Di didn’t wait for Andrew King to say anything more—he struck out again.
Seeing Joe Di strike at him as well, a savage grin appeared in Andrew King’s eyes. He knew there would be no peaceful resolution today, so he decided to go all out and injure Joe Di first. He didn’t believe that, once Joe Di was hurt, Eugene Zhou and the others wouldn’t step in.
A burst of flame exploded from Andrew King’s chest. In the next moment, he seemed to transform into fire itself, his power surging wildly. He summoned a crimson-purple iron hammer, which turned into a hammer shadow and shot toward Joe Di’s brow.
Even Eugene Zhou looked at Joe Di in surprise. Joe Di was undoubtedly at the peak of the Domain Stage, but even so, he shouldn't be able to strangle Andrew King with his bare hands. After all, Andrew King was a true half-step Domain Stage cultivator. Now, with Andrew King using a forbidden technique, Joe Di should have no way to directly grab him.
But what shocked everyone was that Andrew King's Crimson Sky Hammer suddenly froze in midair, as if it were being restrained by an even greater power. Eugene Zhou and the others knew exactly what this power was—the power of a domain.
Andrew King stared in terror at Joe Di’s hand seal, realizing he was bound by Joe Di’s domain. He, a dignified half-step Domain Stage cultivator, couldn't even move in front of Joe Di, even after using a forbidden technique. It was insane...
It wasn’t just Andrew King who was terrified—Eugene Zhou and the others were even more so. Even if Joe Di was at the peak of the Domain Stage, he shouldn’t have been able to bind Andrew King with his domain.
Crack! Joe Di’s hand was already gripping Andrew King’s neck, and everyone could hear the sound of Andrew King’s neck breaking.
"Senior Joe, spare me…" Andrew King squeezed out a few words through his crushed throat, his eyes filled with terror. A half-step Domain Stage cultivator, a top Grand Array Master and Grandmaster Artificer, and the envy of all for his inheritance—his future should have been bright. To die in the Mad Domain, he felt ten thousand times unwilling.
"You covet my wife's belongings, and you think you deserve mercy?" Joe Di swung Andrew King again and smashed him down hard.
Bang! Poor Andrew King, a dignified half-step Domain Stage cultivator and a Grandmaster Artificer, was killed by Joe Di with ease.
Even Paul Chi, who knew Joe Di was hiding his cultivation, didn’t expect Joe Di to kill a half-step Domain Stage cultivator so casually.
Simon Su, who had been rescued by Paul Chi, was utterly stunned. Only now did he understand why Joe Di wasn’t the least bit worried about entering the Mad Domain. If he’d known Joe Di was this powerful, what was there to worry about?
"Joe..." Eugene Zhou finally snapped out of it. With this move, he realized that even if he joined forces with Andrew King and the others, they still wouldn't be able to withstand Joe Di's casual attack. He even suspected that Joe Di wasn’t from the cultivation world at all, but like that other person, came from the upper realm.
Joe Di glanced at Eugene Zhou and said coolly, "Trash like you isn’t worthy to be my friend. Get lost."
Eugene Zhou braced himself and cupped his fists to Joe Di again. "Earlier, I offended you and your friends. Any rebuke or contempt from you is deserved. But I have one request…"
Knowing he had to speak quickly or risk losing the chance, Eugene Zhou rushed to say, "Ten days’ journey from the Mad Domain lies a void sea called Wuchuan. A few months ago, a mysterious cultivator arrived there—his strength is likely no less than yours, Brother Joe. Since coming to Wuchuan, he’s been collecting Crimson Iron and has ordered all Domain Stage cultivators in the surrounding realms to regularly deliver Crimson Iron to him. If they refuse, they die…"
Joe Di said coldly, "So you want me to kill him for you, so you can get away."
Eugene Zhou bowed deeply. "Yes, but if you want Prime Ley Lines, you’ll have to seek out this man. Not only does he have many Prime Ley Lines, he even possesses a kind of spirit stone that’s more advanced than Superior Spirit Stones—I suspect they’re Immortal Stones…"
"Lead the way." At the mention of Prime Ley Lines and something even better than Superior Spirit Stones, Joe Di lost all interest in staying here.
His only reason for coming to the Mad Domain was to increase his own strength. After using up a million Superior Spirit Stones, he realized they were useless for further improvement. Now that he knew where to find Prime Ley Lines, he couldn’t care less about being used by Eugene Zhou.
"Yes, Brother Joe. Each of us has a restriction placed on us by him, forcing us to search for Crimson Iron." Eugene Zhou replied quickly.
Joe Di had no intention of helping Eugene Zhou remove the restriction. He simply said to Simon Su, "Brother Su, I'm heading to Wuchuan. What about you?"
Without hesitation, Simon Su handed Joe Di a ring. "Brother Joe, this is something we obtained earlier—you might find it useful, so I’ll just…"
Joe Di knew Simon Su was giving him Crimson Iron and Crimson Iron Crystal, worried Joe Di might lose and hoping he could use them to trade.
From Simon Su’s words, it was clear he wanted to leave. Joe Di handed him the rings taken from the two cultivators he’d killed, then patted Simon Su and said, "Brother Su, come with me."
This time, Joe Di suspected he would recover his cultivation and memories. Since that was the case, he decided to give Simon Su some benefits.
Hearing Joe Di’s words, Simon Su was overjoyed and quickly said, "Thank you, Brother Joe! I’ll go with you and see the world."
To travel with a powerhouse like Joe Di, Simon Su naturally had no reason to refuse.
(That's all for today's update. Good night, friends!)