Paul Qian seized a fragment of the shattered skyship, his face clouded with gloom. His Spirit Mark was sealed upon this piece, but clearly the cultivator traveling with Sprout had discovered the mark and forcibly stripped it away.
He was certain this skyship belonged to Ron Gray. Ron Gray had been slain by that foreign Grand Ether Immortal, who then removed his Spirit Mark and left it on Ron Gray’s vessel. The ship must have collided with a Void Meteor, shattering into fragments.
Yet the void stretched vast and endless—where could he possibly search for them?
Great Cauldron. The other party must have gone to Great Cauldron. Paul Qian quickly grasped the root of the matter. He had never visited Great Cauldron himself, but its legend was well known to him.
Great Cauldron City was unimaginably distant, but recalling the aura clinging to Sprout—the power to rend the void—Paul Qian’s heart burned with excitement again. If Sprout truly possessed such a means, then he was no mere Immortal Beast, but at least a Divine Beast... the most supreme in all the universe.
In a flash, Paul Qian made his decision: no matter how far Great Cauldron City lay, he would go. He would wait, and the moment he saw the one who had slipped through his fingers, he would seize them without hesitation.
For the sake of the Dao, what was a little distance?
......
Joe Di had used Spirit Shift to flee for a full five days before finally summoning his skyship, calling out Blackfire, Sprout, and Moria Lane.
“Sprout, are you still hiding something from me? Why would even that Immortal King take an interest in you?” As soon as Moria Lane, Sprout, and Blackfire emerged, Joe Di fixed his gaze on Sprout and questioned him.
Sprout was wounded by the question. What did he mean, 'even you'? He was, after all, a tree spirit who had become a demon! Among countless ancient trees, he was outstanding. Yet he dared not say so—for he knew well, his excellence was only among trees. On this skyship, he truly was the weakest of all.
Blackfire spoke up, "Boss, I know the reason. The Immortal King targeted Sprout because of me. I used to stay atop Sprout’s head, and after awakening my divine powers, I tried to transfer my Dao to him. When I failed, my aura remained on Sprout..."
As soon as Sprout explained to Blackfire, Blackfire understood what had happened. It was just one of those foolish things he’d done in secret.
Joe Di stared speechlessly at Blackfire. How selfless could this guy be, casually passing on such a terrifying void-rending power to Sprout?
Sprout wasn’t just an ordinary old tree turned spirit—even a top-tier Demonic Beast couldn’t master Blackfire’s divine power. This was a bloodline inheritance, and if it could be learned so easily, wouldn’t void-rending become commonplace?
Joe Di shook his head and took out the jade slip traded to him by the Grand Ether Immortal. If this jade slip didn’t reveal Great Cauldron City’s location, he’d have to resign himself—there was no way he’d return to Outer Crucible City.
As soon as Joe Di brought out the jade slip, his Spirit Sense immediately captured a simple void route map. The map clearly marked the direction of Great Cauldron City within the void.
It was a void map inscribed with array coordinates—not high-level, but enough to provide the general direction toward Great Cauldron.
Joe Di handed the jade slip to Blackfire. "Blackfire, you and Sprout take turns piloting the skyship. Just follow this route. Once you spot Great Cauldron’s precise location, let me know immediately."
Joe Di reckoned this would be a long journey. The directional jade slip didn’t even specify Great Cauldron’s exact location, so the road ahead was bound to be long and arduous.