Joe Di claimed he was forging a blade, but in reality, he simply grabbed a few materials from his ring and, at lightning speed, condensed them into a long saber.
It took less than the time of an incense stick to finish forging this saber. Joe Di grasped the freshly made blade and chuckled, "Hey, fake monk, come on! Old Master Di is here to settle the score with you."
Joe Di's seemingly contemptuous gesture made Sawyer Walker's eyes narrow sharply. He didn't believe Joe Di was actually looking down on him—Joe Di's act of forging a weapon was already a move in itself, because during the process, Joe Di's Dao rhythm had touched his Heavenly Net. In other words, Joe Di could sense his cosmic rules.
Naturally, he wouldn't make a move while Joe Di was forging; even if he was wary, he had to wait until the process was complete. Now that Joe Di had finished, his confidence soared even higher. Sawyer Walker realized that Joe Di must have found some leverage.
What unsettled him most was the vague sense that the saber Joe Di forged wasn't a divine artifact, but rather a treasure imbued with its own rules. If that were the case, Joe Di hadn't just stepped into the Third Step—he'd established a world of rules with his own Dao as its foundation.
"So you do have some confidence. In that case, let me see what you've got." Sawyer Walker's tone was no longer casual; it even carried a hint of gravity.
As he spoke, Sawyer Walker raised his hand and struck toward Joe Di.
He didn't summon any artifacts or unleash any terrifying supreme techniques—it was just a casual strike. Sawyer Walker seemed intent on proving his earlier words, showing he didn't take Joe Di seriously at all.
Both Joe Di and Moria West were no strangers to true power. As Sawyer Walker's palm descended, Moria West's expression changed instantly.
Joe Di grew solemn as well. Under Sawyer Walker's palm, all the rules of space he could sense seemed to transform, becoming an entirely new set of cosmic laws—as if Sawyer Walker had condensed a realm, stepping into Realm Genesis.
At this moment, the space surrounding Joe Di transformed into a new domain—a realm where rules were born, mountains and rivers emerged, and both life and death appeared...
It looked like an ordinary palm strike, yet it evolved into a world of its own.
But there was one exception in this world—Joe Di. Only Joe Di stood apart, out of place with everything in this realm.
Having stepped into the Third Step and experienced Realm Genesis, Joe Di naturally understood what was happening. As this world took further shape, anything or anyone not belonging to it could be easily crushed or erased by its master.
Joe Di was certain that, even if this wasn't Sawyer Walker's strongest divine art, it was undoubtedly one of his most extreme techniques.
Even now, Joe Di still didn't unleash Time's Third Loom. His long saber transformed into an endless blade curtain, slashing downward as he simultaneously summoned the Creation Brush.
Before Joe Di could inscribe the word 'realm' within this world, his ears were suddenly filled with endless Buddhist chants. Invisible Buddha seals thundered in from all directions, crashing down toward Joe Di's head.
"Auspicious! Auspicious! Wherever you came from, return there..." Sawyer Walker's voice was gentle and admonishing. Yet, with each phrase that entered Joe Di's ears, his Dao rhythm scattered a little more.
Joe Di roared, seemingly unleashing his potential. Only then did the Creation Brush break free from the endless Buddhist resonance, and Joe Di swept out a massive 'realm' character.
As the Buddhist resonance binding Joe Di weakened, his long saber thundered downward. At least on the surface, it seemed Joe Di was using more than his full strength.
Boom! The blade curtain crashed into the rapidly forming world, shattering endless mountains and collapsing rivers. Joe Di felt a sudden lightness, but soon realized his strike had only torn a corner of the yet-unformed realm—he was still far from splitting the entire world.
Joe Di stepped back, refraining from further attacks. That earlier blade and brush stroke hadn't used his full strength at all.
"Fellow Daoist Di, you've truly stepped into the Third Step—congratulations." Sawyer Walker stopped as well when he saw Joe Di hold back. He'd met Joe Di once before and knew something of his strength. This time, he couldn't tell that Joe Di hadn't fought with full power.
Joe Di's strength was beyond his expectations, yet not entirely surprising. Sawyer Walker's Divine Palm Realm technique hadn't fully taken shape, so when Joe Di didn't attack, he didn't either. The longer things dragged on, the harder it would be for Joe Di to escape—so Sawyer Walker was happy to wait.
"Brother Di, act quickly! If you wait until his divine world is complete, it'll be too late." As the Destiny Sovereign, Moria West naturally understood the danger.
Sawyer Walker chuckled, "Actually, even now it's too late."
Joe Di remained unfazed and asked, "Sawyer Walker, I have two questions for you."
Sawyer Walker waved magnanimously, "We share a certain fate, Joe Di. Ask whatever you wish."
"Alright," Joe Di said. "I once hunted down a woman you know—the Immeasura Palace Lord. Do you know where she is now?"
"What a pity. If you hadn't met me first, that Immeasura Palace Lord wouldn't have survived a single slash from you. But since you won't get another chance to go after her, I'll tell you anyway. She said she went to the place where she attained the Third Step to recover. As for where that is, I honestly couldn't be bothered to find out," Sawyer Walker said lazily.
He wasn't lying to Joe Di—within the Five Elements Universe, the Immeasura Palace Lord was a peerless powerhouse. To Sawyer Walker, such a minor figure wasn't even worth his attention.
"Second question: When I first arrived here, I felt something was off. Now I finally understand—although the rules and divine energy are complete, there's an air of despair and sorrow. The moment I arrived, you showed up, fake monk. This place must be connected to you, right?" Joe Di stared at Sawyer Walker as he spoke.
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Sawyer Walker laughed, "I can't say it's unrelated, but it's not entirely my doing either. When I arrived, there was a woman named Cynthia Xing here, creating a world. She was the most fanatical world-creator I've ever seen. To forge a world of life and step into the Third Step, she frantically stripped cultivators of their vitality to refine the Law of Life for her realm—yet she didn't kill them."
Joe Di's eyes narrowed, regret welling up in his heart. He'd forgotten the old saying: a leopard can't change its spots. With someone like Cynthia Xing, how could she ever truly change? He'd once pitied her, but to think she'd harm billions of lives—this was his fault.
No matter what, he had to capture Cynthia Xing, strip her Law of Life, and return it to those cultivators who'd lost it.
"What about those cultivators whose Law of Life was stripped? Why can't I see any of them here?" Joe Di asked, trying to keep his tone calm.
He knew Sawyer Walker's Divine Palm Realm technique was now complete, so he worried the man might attack before answering.
Sawyer Walker laughed, "I'll answer your last question. All those cultivators have become my followers—they're now devoutly worshipping in my world. Fellow Daoist Di, enough chit-chat. I'm leaving now..."
As he spoke, the space of Joe Di's world suddenly turned deathly still. In that moment, Joe Di couldn't even extend his divine sense, let alone unleash any techniques. He was nothing but a lamb to the slaughter in this world.
Joe Di was furious. If he'd dared let Sawyer Walker form a world, he wouldn't fear being bound by it. Almost as Sawyer Walker tried to crush him, Joe Di's saber erupted, transforming into a shower of blade light.
The first wave of blade light had just formed when a second wave of blade curtain surged forth, followed by a third.
Unlike before, this time Joe Di unleashed Time's Third Loom with his full strength.