In Tianyuan's mind, as soon as his auction opened, countless Fourth Step Edict Saints would vie for the Ascension Crucible he had captured.
The opportunity to break through to the Fifth Step Paragon was a temptation Tianyuan understood deeply, especially for those Fourth Step Edict Saints who had been stuck at their bottleneck for countless years.
Yet what confused him was that, despite his clear explanation, not a single person participated in the auction—not even a single bid was made.
Had he not made himself clear enough? No, he was certain his words were plain. As for the true purpose of these Ascension Crucibles, everyone here should know even better than he did. He'd held such an auction once before, and when someone leaked the secret, he had unleashed a massacre to keep it contained.
With no one bidding immediately, even those Fourth Step Edict Saints who hadn’t known the situation quickly learned what was at stake. The Human Clan had produced someone who slew Blood Clan’s Pan Fan and, in succession, more than a dozen Fourth Step Edict Saints from the Redlin Clan. Who would dare bid for a Human Clan Ascension Crucible now?
Anyone who truly desired an Ascension Crucible would only dare to trade for it in secret.
"Gentlemen, do you think I'm deceiving you?" Tianyuan frowned, then reached out and tossed a middle-aged scholar onto the dueling platform.
The scholar was covered head to toe in restrictive seals, yet even from afar, the circulating Dao aura around him was unmistakably complete.
"Saint Tyron?" Henry Yi, who had just arrived, exclaimed in astonishment. How could an expert like Tyron have been captured by Tianyuan? What was going on?
But Tianyuan continued, "This Ascension Crucible is the finest among all I possess. If I hadn’t already stepped into the Fifth Step Paragon..."
"It doesn't matter if you've reached the Fifth Step. You're already a dead man..." Before Tianyuan could finish his words, a figure—Joe Di—stepped onto the dueling platform.
"Get lost!" Tianyuan's killing intent surged, his domain expanding violently. He sensed that Joe Di had yet to reach the Fifth Step—how dare a mere Edict Saint challenge him for the Ascension Crucible?
A harsh cracking sound echoed as Tianyuan immediately sensed something was wrong. The domain he had just unleashed slammed into what felt like an impenetrable cosmic wall—not only unable to expand, but already beginning to collapse.
Startled, Tianyuan raised his hand to summon his artifact, only to feel a massive handprint clamp down on his throat. The rules of space around him shifted completely, and he found himself utterly unable to break free from this new cosmic order.
Regret flooded Tianyuan—he knew he'd been careless. Because of that, his domain had been crushed, and he was now bound and suppressed by cosmic laws that had nothing to do with this universe.
He realized that even without his carelessness, he wouldn't have been a match for his opponent. Still, if only he'd had a chance to use his evasion technique, he might have escaped.
"Stop! I'll give you all the Ascension Crucibles you want..." Tianyuan screamed in desperation, convinced that Joe Di had come to seize the artifacts.
Crack! Tianyuan could even hear his own neck snapping beneath the primordial handprint. Terror welled up within him—how could such a powerful cultivator exist? Even the Redlin Patriarch or Jing Wanying couldn't crush him like this.
Though he was at the early stage of Fifth Step Paragon, already nearing the mid-stage, his opponent's strike left him no opportunity to activate his evasion technique. Such overwhelming strength!
Wave after wave of Dao resonance crashed into his Spirit Palace, severing his Dao flow. Tianyuan stared in horror at the relentless Dao laws assaulting him, his soul trembling. Was someone truly capable of opening his cosmic world? How deep must one's understanding of the rules be to accomplish this?
Crack! Joe Di tore open Tianyuan's cosmic world, sweeping away everything inside. More than ten Saint Seat Holders were cast out and left on the dueling platform.
"Spare me, friend! I am willing to..." As Tianyuan sensed the approach of death, a deep, bitter resentment surged in his heart.
Even though he knew his chance of survival was nearly zero, Tianyuan still pleaded for mercy.
Joe Di seemed not to hear him at all. He tossed a Cosmic Flame onto Tianyuan, then left him in the center of the dueling platform.
A blood-curdling scream echoed, sending chills down the spines of everyone in Allclan Sanctuary's vast plaza.
What did it mean to be ruthless? This was true ruthlessness. The method of burning both Dao and soul was unbearable to any expert—the stronger the cultivation, the more excruciating the torment beneath the terrifying Cosmic Flame.
"Please, just end it quickly..." Even someone as ruthless as Tianyuan could not endure such agony. Moments ago, he had begged for mercy; now, he only wished Joe Di would grant him a swift death.
During the Grand Conclave, at least a million cultivators filled the area outside Allclan Sanctuary. Yet, apart from Tianyuan's anguished cries, an eerie silence reigned.
Some Edict Saints, who only now understood why no one bid for the Ascension Crucible, shuddered inwardly. Had they not investigated first and simply bought an Ascension Crucible from Tianyuan, they might have been among those suffering now.
Beneath the dueling platform, a disheveled man in black muttered, "Stanley Fang, you were right. If not for you, the Cloud Clan would have been in grave danger..."
The man in black was none other than Zachary Yu, the long-lost patriarch of the Cloud Clan who had recently returned. When he first came back, not even James Wan or the Redlin Patriarch fazed him. If Stanley Fang hadn't warned him to avoid provoking Joe Di, he would have tried to teach Joe Di a lesson himself.
"Patriarch, you give me too much credit. I saw him slay Peter Fan with my own eyes, so I know just how strong he is. Now, it seems he's even more powerful than when he killed Pan Fan." Stanley Fang replied respectfully.
Joe Di raised his hand and lifted the restrictions from twelve Saint Seat Holders who had emerged from Saint Seat Plaza.
"Are you Joe Di? And you, Henry Yi?" Saint Tyron relaxed as he recognized Joe Di, then saw Henry Yi approaching.
Joe Di nodded. "Let's all leave for now. This isn't the place for conversation."
The other Saint Seat Holders rescued by Joe Di hurried forward to thank him. Though they knew he was extraordinary, the fact that he had killed Tianyuan and opened his cosmic world to save them made it clear that his power was on an entirely different level.
Once off the dueling platform, Henry Yi asked, "Brother Tyron, even if you haven't reached the Fourth Step, your strength should be enough not to fear Tianyuan. How did he manage to capture you?"
Saint Tyron shook his head and sighed, "I was too impatient. After discovering a method to reach the Fifth Step..."
"The Fifth Step?" Henry Yi stared at Saint Tyron in astonishment. Every Saint Seat Holder who emerged from Saint Seat Plaza had a perfected Dao, and with focus, could quickly refine their Dao laws and reach the true Fourth Step. But to advance from Fourth to Fifth Step required countless years of accumulation. How could Saint Tyron claim he'd found a way to reach the Fifth Step?
Saint Tyron nodded seriously. "That's right. But your physical body isn't perfected—you must first refine your Fourth Step Dao before you can advance to the Fifth Step."
Hearing that his physical body wasn't ready for the Fifth Step, Henry Yi felt somewhat relieved. If there really was a method to reach the Fifth Step that he didn't know about, while he was still struggling for the Fourth, that would have been a bitter injustice.
Saint Tyron continued, "I did succeed in stepping into the Fifth Step..."
"You reached the Fifth Step Paragon?" Henry Yi and the other Saint Seat Holders from Saint Seat Plaza stared at Tyron in astonishment.
To have reached the Fifth Step and still been captured by Tianyuan—while Joe Di subdued Tianyuan with a single move—just how powerful was Joe Di?
Saint Tyron spoke gravely, "That's right, but let me be clear—the Fifth Step is simply the Fifth Step, not some so-called Paragon..."
Joe Di silently agreed; he too believed that Tyron was right.
Saint Tyron went on, "After stepping into the Fifth Step, I faced the Decline of the Cosmic Dao."
The Decline of the Cosmic Dao? Joe Di was shaken—Tyron's achievements were truly extraordinary. Otherwise, how could he, like Joe Di, encounter such a decline?
"The Decline of the Fifth Step Dao?" Henry Yi asked in surprise.
Saint Tyron nodded. "Exactly. If not for the Decline of the Dao, someone like Tianyuan wouldn't even have been worth my attention."
(That's all for today's update. Good night, friends!)