"Heartblade Tier?" Don Rightblade shook his head. "I have no idea about that. Maybe it exists after the ninety-ninth floor, but definitely not before that."
Joe Di asked in confusion, "Isn't it said that the highest anyone ever reached in the Fivefold Dao Tower was Ian Thompson, who climbed up to the ninety-fourth floor?"
Don Rightblade replied disdainfully, "A long time ago, plenty of elders climbed above the ninety-fourth floor—there were even many who reached the ninety-ninth. The ninety-fourth floor you mentioned was just the ranking from the last Fivefold Dao Tower event. Don't be fooled by the five-floor difference between ninety-four and ninety-nine. The gap in strength is simply incalculable."
Joe Di thought to himself that it was just as he suspected—Ian Thompson's achievement of reaching the ninety-fourth floor wasn't all that remarkable in the history of the Fivefold Dao Tower.
"Joe Di, this is the Grand Sword Array Manual from my Swordcloud Sect. You managed to reach the seventy-first floor at such a young age, so I believe this Memory Stone won't be difficult for you." Don Rightblade paid no mind to what Joe Di was pondering and handed him a Memory Stone.
Just one look at the Memory Stone, and Joe Di could tell it was ancient. The aura of age emanating from it made it clear this Memory Stone was extraordinary.
Joe Di didn't stand on ceremony. After putting away the jade slip, he turned to the other five and said, "Everyone, I do have a little trick to ascend to the higher floors of the Dao Tower. To be honest, it's not worth much. Now, Don and I are preparing to head to the seventy-second floor. If any of you would like to learn my little trick, you're more than welcome."
Don Rightblade said nothing. The trick belonged to Joe Di, so it was up to him how he wanted to share it. As long as he could reach the eighty-first floor, that was enough for him.
Previously, when Joe Di said he'd take Don Rightblade to the eighty-first floor, the others on the seventy-first floor were openly dismissive—even mocking in their hearts. But now that Joe Di was asking them directly, their attitudes changed.
What if? What if Joe Di really did have a trick to reach the seventy-second floor?
"Does Fellow Daoist Di really have a way to climb higher floors of the Fivefold Dao Tower?" one of the cultivators couldn't help but ask.
Joe Di laughed heartily. "I always keep my word. If I can't do it, I'll return whatever payment you give me."
As he spoke, Joe Di took the opportunity to make his intentions clear: if he was to take someone up, they would need to pay for it.
Bringing others up the tower was something Joe Di had already planned for. Otherwise, he wouldn't have let his conversation with Don Rightblade be overheard. Joe Di was certain that if he relied on comprehending the foundational laws on each floor, he really might be able to reach the one hundred and eighth floor.
So far, the highest anyone had reached in the Fivefold Dao Tower's history was the ninety-ninth floor. For a rootless rogue cultivator like him to reach the one hundred and eighth floor would definitely spell trouble.
Gai Tenfield's words still echoed in his ears—Gai had said that a cultivator once spent five years cultivating in the Fivefold Dao Tower, only to disappear without a trace.
Even a fool could tell that 'disappeared' was just a cover—being killed was the real story. So when Joe Di planned to bring Don Rightblade up, he had already decided to reveal this little trick to the world.
If everyone knew this trick, surely no one would target me anymore.
"I am Ling Yixiao, disciple of the Nine Star Sects, Swordcloud Sect. Young Master Di, how much payment do you expect from us?" A short, plain-looking man stepped forward, his tone carrying a hint of chill.
"Impressive, the Nine Star Sects." Joe Di gave a thumbs-up. "I was worried everyone was from minor sects and couldn't afford my spirit stones."
Joe Di had known all along that anyone who made it to the seventy-first floor couldn't possibly be from a minor sect. If they were, his method wouldn't work for them at all.
"Fellow Daoist Di, I am Leah Jade from the Seven Star Sect, Starlo Mountain. Could you tell us how much it would cost for you to share this little trick?" A woman in red stepped forward, cupping her fists politely.
There were seven people on the seventy-first floor, including Joe Di and Don Rightblade. Leah Jade was the only woman among them.
"One hundred million top-grade spirit stones per person." Joe Di raised a single finger.
"Ha! Are you robbing us? All our spirit stones combined probably don't add up to a hundred million." Ling Yixiao sneered, his eyes flashing. He vaguely sensed Joe Di was telling the truth—if Joe Di couldn't deliver, he wouldn't dare scam spirit stones this way. That would be suicide.
Joe Di replied calmly, "It's all voluntary. Don't make it sound so unpleasant—I've never forced anyone to do anything. I know you can't come up with a hundred million spirit stones right now, but you can pay a deposit and settle the rest later."
"What do you mean?" asked a sturdy young man, frowning. He simply couldn't understand what Joe Di was saying.
"It means each of you pays me ten million spirit stones up front. The rest you can pay later, with an IOU. The longer you delay, the higher the interest." Joe Di chuckled.
"I agree too. Aaron Xu from Kun Sect. I hope you're telling the truth."
"I agree. Leah Jade, disciple of Starlo Mountain, Seven Star Sect." the woman in red said as well.
Ling Yixiao of Swordcloud Sect gave Joe Di a cold glance. "I agree as well, just as Brother Aaron said. I hope you're telling the truth."
The last man looked rather gaunt. He smiled and cupped his fists to Joe Di. "Since everyone agrees, I do as well. Cyrus Quinn, disciple of Sky Medicine Valley, Eight-Star Sect."
The strong young man who spoke earlier grinned at Joe Di. "I agree too. Xuan Yuan Kong from Kun Sect. I hope you're telling the truth."
"I agree. Le Qiongyu, disciple of Starlo Mountain, Seven-Star Sect." the woman in red said as well.
Ling Yixiao of Void Sword Sect gave Joe Di a cold glance. "I agree as well, just as Brother Xuan Yuan said. I hope you're telling the truth."
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The last man looked rather gaunt. He smiled and cupped his fists to Joe Di. "Since everyone agrees, I do as well. Xin Qilun, disciple of Heavenly Medicine Valley, Eight-Star Sect."
"Good, since everyone agrees, I'll tell you how I managed to reach the seventy-first floor so easily." With that, Joe Di produced an array disk. "My success in reaching this floor was mainly thanks to this disk."
As he spoke, Joe Di infused the array disk with the seventy-one foundational laws he'd comprehended from the Fivefold Dao Tower.
This array disk wasn't crafted by him, but by his master, Quinn Windflower—an Evolution Array Disk. Its main purpose was to teach Joe Di the Dao of Arrays and help him advance in arraycraft.
Quinn Windflower knew he couldn't teach Joe Di much directly. The only thing he could pass on was arraycraft. Since Joe Di called him Master, he simply gave him several array evolution disks.
With Joe Di's current level in arraycraft, he could only glimpse the surface of this disk. Still, it would be of great help to his future progress in arrays. Unfortunately, for the sake of survival, he had no choice but to reveal it now.
Compared to the disk Quinn Windflower gave him, Joe Di was even more eager for the one hundred and eighth floor of the Fivefold Dao Tower. He had a feeling that once he reached it and acquired the one hundred and eighth foundational law, he would experience a qualitative breakthrough.
Arraycraft could be studied slowly, but the chance to enter the Fivefold Dao Tower only came once. Who could say what would happen ten years from now?
"An array disk?" Le Qiongyu looked at the disk Joe Di produced, utterly confused by his meaning.
"Is that an immortal-grade array disk?" Among everyone present, Don Rightblade had the highest proficiency in arrays. With a single glance, he recognized it as an artifact surpassing the cultivation world's standard.
"An immortal artifact?" The others cried out in shock. Even a Nine-Star Sect might not possess an immortal artifact—each one was a sect treasure.
Joe Di took a deep breath and cupped his fists. "That's right, it is indeed an immortal artifact. I found it by the shores of Nightfall Lake not long ago. To be honest, I hadn't planned to climb the Fivefold Dao Tower, but after acquiring this disk, I decided to come here without a moment's hesitation. Take a look at the inscription on the back of the disk..."
As he spoke, Joe Di flipped the disk over.
Sure enough, everyone saw several ancient characters faintly inscribed on the back of the disk: Fivefold Dao Disk.
Joe Di was confident that, with his skill as a rank-nine King Array Master, none of these mere cultivators would be able to decipher the inscription.
"Is this really the Dao Disk of the Fivefold Dao Tower? I seem to sense the tower's rules within it..." Ling Yixiao said, stunned.
Seeing the moment was right, Joe Di cupped his fists again. "Everyone, I've brought out an immortal artifact—the Dao Disk of the Fivefold Dao Tower. Is one hundred million spirit stones too much to ask? Besides, I don't have to cooperate with you; I can find other partners once I reach the seventy-second floor."
Xuan Yuan Kong of Kun Sect bowed to Joe Di. "Thank you, Fellow Daoist Di. That's not expensive at all. Once I leave the Fivefold Dao Tower, I guarantee I'll pay you the rest of the spirit stones."
With that, Xuan Yuan Kong was the first to hand Joe Di a ring. "Here are five million top-grade spirit stones—the only ones I have. No need to wait for the seventy-second floor, I'll pay you now."
With Xuan Yuan Kong taking the lead, the others quickly handed their spirit stones to Joe Di. Most gave two or three million, with Ling Yixiao offering six million—the rest wrote IOUs.
No one asked why Joe Di revealed the immortal artifact, the Fivefold Dao Disk. Everyone knew the reason: if Joe Di didn't show the disk, he'd be surrounded by countless powerful cultivators once he descended from the upper floors. By bringing them along and making things public, Joe Di reduced his risk. Everyone understood this, so there were no secrets.
That's also why Joe Di said he didn't necessarily have to take them. In fact, he could easily find disciples from other major sects to ascend with him. The real question was, when he left the Fivefold Dao Tower, what would he do with the Fivefold Dao Disk?
......