From unwillingness to despair, and then to confusion...
Gavin Ford was indeed confused; he even closed his eyes. Before Joe Di had even released this arrow, Gavin already felt as though his own vitality had been predetermined.
If even his sense of time had vanished, what could he do except wait for his demise? Yet, as he was on the verge of falling, Gavin Ford discovered that Joe Di had not actually fired the Time Arrow, which puzzled him.
This arrow clearly needed to devour Joe Di's vitality to be driven. At this moment, the arrow had completely locked down Gavin Ford's life force, even the nearby Kira Ji was trapped, unable to escape.
Gavin Ford couldn't believe that Joe Di didn't realize this was the perfect moment to release the arrow. Why would Joe Di, knowing that firing the Time Arrow could kill both him and Kira Ji, allow the arrow to keep devouring his own vitality, remaining unmoved?
He knew that if a little more time passed and Joe Di lost control of the arrow, its killing intent would weaken, and the time locked by the Time Arrow would inevitably begin to flow. If that happened...
Gavin Ford became excited. If it really came to that, he could survive. With his understanding of the laws of time, as long as time began to flow even a little, he would have a chance at life.
Though Kira Ji was at the same realm as Gavin Ford, her strength was far inferior. Even though Joe Di’s Twin Loom was not primarily aimed at her, she too was immobilized. Under the locking force of this temporal killing intent, any movement would mean being slain by time itself.
Immobile as she was, Kira Ji could still clearly perceive the situation. She didn't understand why Joe Di hadn’t fired the Time Arrow yet. If he intended to spare them, he could have spoken up by now.
Yet Joe Di kept his eyes closed, as if neither the Time Arrow nor the two people trapped by it existed at all.
No one knew how much time had passed. Joe Di grew increasingly frail, while Gavin Ford grew more and more excited. Just a little longer, just a little more time, and a rift would surely appear in the space—then he could unleash his forbidden technique and escape.
Sometimes, the most exhilarating moment is also the most desperate one. Gavin Ford was just about to find a sliver of temporal gap and flee, but at that very instant, he saw Joe Di open his eyes and look directly at him—filling him with despair.
Joe Di's expression grew calm. The killing intent on the arrow did not wane, nor did it grow stronger. His gaze rested on Gavin Ford, yet it was clear his attention was not truly on the two locked by the arrow.
"Twin Loom—woven with life and death, gazing back, drawing the bow northward to shoot the Sirius star..." Joe Di suddenly fixed his gaze on Gavin Ford and said, "You two are not worthy of my Time Arrow. Leave. Deliver a message to Zane Edge: in due time, I will visit Genesis City."
At this final moment, Joe Di finally understood why his Fate's Loom had not unleashed a single instant of temporal killing intent.
If even a sliver of killing intent had erupted, these two would have only a moment of life left, as in the void of time—only an instant, within which they might witness the terror of death, despair, and the darkest breath of their lives. Or perhaps, the most beautiful moment of their existence...
But these two truly were not worthy of Fate's Loom unleashing the Dao resonance of hollowed time. Thus, after summoning Fate's Loom, it merely locked onto their temporal vitality—killing them would have been trivial.
As he spoke, Fate's Loom was already put away by Joe Di, and the Azure Veil Blade appeared, sweeping forth a curtain of blades.
As the blade curtain fell, Gavin Ford and Kira Ji simultaneously spat out a jet of blood, tumbling away like punctured balloons.
With a sweep of his hand, Joe Di sent the Seven Realms Axe and Bloodspire Tower into his own world. Though he did not kill the two, he would still collect some interest.
Gavin Ford and Kira Ji did not dare utter a single word of complaint, fleeing swiftly and vanishing from sight.
Joe Di let out a sigh of relief. He knew that with Fate's Loom, he could have easily killed Gavin Ford and Kira Ji. But clearly, when it came to slaying these two, Fate's Loom held only disdain.
Fate's Loom had no artifact spirit, but as a treasure of this caliber, it possessed pride. To use Fate's Loom to kill mere trash would be beneath its dignity.
Fate's Loom was forged by Joe Di, almost at the cost of his own life, within the void of time. The materials he chose were the most precious treasures in all the cosmos.
A treasure like this would never stoop to slaying nameless figures.
As his most powerful artifact, Joe Di could indeed use Fate's Loom to kill anyone he wished, but he too was unwilling to cheapen its worth. Unless absolutely necessary, or facing an opponent he could not handle otherwise, Fate's Loom would not appear.
Even when it did appear, it was not as a physical bow and arrow, but as the divine ability of Fate's Loom.
Joe Di let out a breath of relief, for without Fate's Loom, even wielding the Azure Veil Blade in his current state, he truly could not have killed Gavin Ford and Kira Ji.
......
In the City Lord's mansion of Genesis City, Gavin Ford stood before Zane Edge, still feeling somewhat dazed.
Since his debut, Gavin Ford had faced countless dangers, but never before had he lost faith in his Dao as he did today.
It was only now that he understood—when Joe Di let him go, he had already fallen.
He had lost his treasured Seven Realms Axe, and no longer had the qualifications to vie for cosmic supremacy, or even to perfect his own Dao.
Zane Edge's expression remained calm; he didn't even furrow his brow. Only after a full incense stick's time did he slowly ask, "Are you certain he let you go, and not that he was unable to kill you?"
Gavin Ford respectfully replied, "Dao Master, I am certain he had the power to kill us, but simply found us beneath his notice."
Zane Edge nodded. "Then tell me about his longbow."
Gavin Ford remained bowing. "Once the arrow was nocked on the longbow, its killing intent locked onto me and Kira Ji. To be precise, it was a temporal killing intent. In that instant, I felt as though the time of the entire universe was under the control of that soon-to-be-released arrow. My life itself ceased to flow; everything became stagnant. I had no chance to resist, no power to fight back... In that moment, I felt utterly insignificant and powerless."
"Are you certain it was time that locked your vitality, causing it to stagnate, and not merely the killing intent?" Zane Edge asked Gavin Ford, his tone calm.
Gavin Ford's heart skipped a beat. Ever since Joe Di had taken the Seven Realms Axe from him, his Dao had ceased to progress, and even the clarity of his Dao resonance had begun to fade.
Yet at this moment, he once again felt a crisis—a crisis of death.
"Yes..." Gavin Ford had just spoken the word when a terrifying spatial killing intent locked down all his avenues of escape.
"Dao Master..." Gavin Ford stared at Zane Edge in shock—why would Zane Edge want to kill him?
Zane Edge said coolly, "You've lost your fighting spirit. Even if you returned to the Seven Realms Universe, you'd only sap the morale of our strongest. If you stayed in Genesis City, it would only add to Joe Di's fame. Go now. I'll tell others you were mortally wounded by Joe Di's trickery in battle and died of your injuries..."
"Zane Edge, you..."
Gavin Ford couldn't even finish his sentence before Zane Edge struck his brow with a palm.
Too hasty—a fatal blow delivered too quickly. Just after killing Gavin Ford, Zane Edge remembered something crucial.
Gavin Ford possessed an uncanny intuition for life and death—even Zane Edge couldn't match it. Before Gavin Ford had come to him, Zane Edge hadn't intended to kill him. Only after Gavin Ford revealed that Joe Di had taken the Seven Realms Axe and spared his life did Zane Edge resolve to do so. If he'd harbored such intent from the start, Gavin Ford would never have come.
He had forgotten to ask Gavin Ford why, before going to Inch Origin, he hadn't sensed the threat of the bow and arrow. Could it be that Joe Di obtained it at Inch Origin?
"Gavin Ford, do you know where Joe Di's bow and arrow came from?" Zane Edge asked quickly.
Gavin Ford stared at Zane Edge with a sneer. "Zane Edge, you'll find out..."
He had originally intended to tell Zane Edge that he suspected Joe Di's bow and arrow were forged by Joe Di himself in the void of time. When the arrow locked onto him, he sensed a hollow in his life—a feeling of utter emptiness.
But he would say no more. He was certain that Zane Edge would one day face Joe Di's bow and arrow—and that his fate would be no better than Gavin Ford's. He was sure Joe Di had disdained killing him, but would never spare Zane Edge.
"Bang!" With those words, Gavin Ford turned into a mist of blood.
A top-ten ranked expert in Genesis City, after his Dao heart was shattered by Joe Di, was then caught off guard and killed by Zane Edge—unable to withstand even a single blow.
(That's all for today. Good night, friends!)