"Joe Di, you’re quite impressive. Haha, I didn’t expect that even I could misjudge someone." Ann Tu Ning’s hearty voice rang out.
Joe Di had followed Ann Tu Ning for several days, but this was the first time he’d seen her so amiable.
"Outer disciple Joe Di greets Valley Master Ann Tu." Joe Di hurriedly bowed, knowing well that this woman had a bad temper and could get angry at any moment.
Ann Tu Ning waved her hand, "Outer disciple? That’s in the past. From now on, you’re one of the most core disciples of Origin Dao Sect... How about this, you’ll first enter my Springvale Division as an inner disciple, and when the Sect Master returns, I’ll recommend you as a core disciple."
Halfway through her words, Ann Tu Ning realized she didn’t have the authority to directly make an outer disciple a core disciple, so she changed her statement to recommending Joe Di when the Sect Master returned. She believed that with Joe Di’s great contributions to Origin Dao Sect, becoming a core disciple wouldn’t be a problem.
Joe Di quickly said, "I’m just an outer disciple. If..."
Joe Di truly didn’t want to become a core or inner disciple of Origin Dao Sect. If he had wanted to, he could have done so years ago, so why wait until now?
Ann Tu Ning waved her hand, "This is what you deserve. You’ve done an outstanding service for the sect."
Joe Di knew he couldn’t hesitate at this moment, so he spoke again, "Senior, I’ve offended someone and wish to go out for a period of training. There’s something I’d like to ask for your help with..."
Ann Tu Ning laughed again, "You couldn’t have offended the sect masters of the Five Great Sects, right? So, no matter whom you’ve offended, don’t worry. As a core disciple of Origin Dao Sect, you shouldn’t be afraid of offending anyone. If you need my help, just say it."
"I have a friend who wants to become a disciple of Origin Dao Sect..."
Before Joe Di finished speaking, An Tu Ning took out a jade token and tossed it to him. "Have him bring this jade token to the sect to register. With it, he can directly become an inner disciple."
"Thank you, Senior." Joe Di quickly thanked her as he received the jade token.
Ann Tu Ning was in a great mood. She nodded to Joe Di and said, "In a moment, I’ll attend the sect assembly. You should get ready to receive your award, and after that, return to the sect with me. Originally, I intended for you to first become an inner disciple of Springvale Division, but now I’ve decided to wait until the Sect Leader returns and recommend you directly as a core disciple."
Before the competition, Ann Tu Ning had never imagined she’d have the chance to participate in the resource allocation after the Pill River Tournament. It was simply wonderful. After this, she would surely make a name for herself in the sect, and Springvale Division would gain more sect resources.
Joe Di knew there was no way for him to refuse this now, so he could only remain silent.
After Ann Tu Ning left, Joe Di immediately went to find Evan Kan. Evan Kan was still overwhelmed with excitement. He knew Joe Di was formidable, but he hadn’t expected his alchemy to be so powerful. This was the Dao Domain, after all, yet Joe Di had still managed to rank in the top twenty among a crowd of alchemy experts.
"Brother Joe, you’re incredible. I never thought you were a top-tier alchemist too—amazing, amazing..." Before Joe Di could say anything, Evan Kan exclaimed excitedly.
Joe Di smiled, "Strictly speaking, this wasn’t really an alchemy competition—it was a contest for refining Divine Essence Pills. In the Dao Domain, many powerful alchemists wouldn’t even participate, so my result isn’t much to boast about."
Joe Di was telling the truth. In this Pill River contest for refining Divine Essence Pills, the truly skilled alchemists wouldn’t take part. How precious are alchemists in the Dao Domain? Each one is highly sought after. Would they expend their own blood essence just to refine pills for others here? Dream on. If they wanted Divine Essence Pills, they could simply refine some pills for others in exchange—why risk themselves here?
In fact, most of the alchemists who came here were representing their sects, compelled to contribute—there was no choice. Every alchemist who participated was promised a slew of benefits by their sect. Only someone like Joe Di, with no rights at all, was dragged in by An Tu Ning to make up the numbers.
"That’s still remarkable." Evan Kan knew just how extraordinary Joe Di was. Joe Di was modest when he said many powerful alchemists hadn’t entered the competition, and he wasn’t wrong. But Joe Di had only just ascended from the Immortal Realm—how could a newly ascended cultivator place in the top twenty of the Pill River Tournament? That was truly extraordinary.
Joe Di didn’t argue further. He took out a jade token and handed it to Evan Kan. "Brother Evan, with this jade token, you can go to Origin Dao Sect and choose to become an inner disciple. Keep it."
"Thank you, thank you..." Evan Kan took the jade token, overwhelmed with excitement. He had only hoped for an outer disciple spot, but Joe Di had secured him an inner disciple position.
Of course, with Joe Di’s promising future as an alchemist, Origin Dao Sect was eager to win him over.
"Brother Joe, can I ask why you were the only one from Origin Dao Sect to compete?" Evan Kan knew the standing of Origin Dao Sect. With such status, why was Joe Di, just an outer disciple, the only participant? He couldn’t understand.
Joe Di patted Evan Kan. "I’m not really sure about that either, but it doesn’t matter—it’s not our concern. I might not leave with you; I’ll probably go with Valley Master Ann Tu. We’ll meet again in the sect. By the way, Zhuo Wujia and Mu Jie are also in Origin Dao Sect—you’ll meet them there."
"Ah..." Evan Kan cried out in surprise, "Brother Joe, wasn’t Senior Sister Mu already..." (There was a typo about Mu Jie earlier, which has now been corrected.)
"She didn’t perish. I managed to save her once using my own methods." Joe Di didn’t hide it anymore. Mu Jie was in Origin Dao Sect, and people would find out sooner or later. Now that he had reached Dao Molding Perfection, to be honest, he wasn’t afraid of Ni Xiren. Although he wasn’t a match for Ni Xiren yet, Ni Xiren definitely wouldn’t dare to openly attack him.
As for behind the scenes, Joe Di figured Ni Xiren wouldn’t be able to catch up to him either.
When Evan Kan heard that Mu Jie hadn’t perished, he admired Joe Di even more. Although he’d heard that Joe Di had personally killed Mu Jie, he knew it was a matter of necessity—Mu Jie would not have survived anyway, and Joe Di had only done it to survive.
Now that he learned Mu Jie was alive, he realized he had misunderstood Joe Di all along.
"Will the top twenty alchemists please come forward to receive your awards." A massive platform rose in the center of the Alchemy Competition Plaza, and an elder on stage announced loudly.
"Brother Joe, hurry and claim your prize." Kan Yiwei knew Joe Di had many things to do and decided to follow his lead from now on.
To Evan Kan, Joe Di was the most formidable cultivator he’d ever met.
"Alright." Joe Di was quite excited himself. He wanted to know what reward he’d receive for placing twentieth. After all, he hadn’t known anything about the prizes beforehand.
The twentieth place was the first to receive a prize. As Joe Di walked onto the stage, the elder on the platform announced loudly, "The Pill River Tournament in the Dao Domain has concluded. The sect rewards have already been collected by the various sect representatives. Now, we present the awards for the top twenty alchemists... Twentieth place, Joe Di of Origin Dao Sect, please come onstage to receive your award. He will receive 11,900 Divine Essence Pills and a Comprehension Jade Token for the Great Dao Ridge."
All the prizes were stored in a single ring. Joe Di took the ring, feeling a bit disappointed. He hadn’t expected such a modest reward—11,900 Divine Essence Pills were practically nothing to him, since he already had a hundred million of them in his own ring.
As for that Comprehension Jade Token for the Great Dao Ridge, what was it exactly? He’d never even heard of it.
But as soon as Joe Di stepped down, someone approached him. "Alchemist Joe, I’ll offer one million high-grade Divine Crystals and a mid-grade artifact pill furnace in exchange for that Comprehension Jade Token for the Great Dao Ridge. What do you say?"
One million high-grade Divine Crystals and a mid-grade artifact pill furnace, just for a single jade token?
Before Joe Di could react, he heard Ann Tu Ning snort coldly. "Get lost! If you dare target someone from my Origin Dao Sect, you must be tired of living."
The cultivator who wanted to trade with Joe Di didn’t dare utter another word and quickly retreated.
(That’s all for today’s update. Good night, friends!)