"Who is it?" Advisor Nate Easton suddenly turned his head, but he didn't see anyone approaching.
Everyone around stared at Advisor Nate Easton in astonishment. Only he had heard the voice just now; the others hadn't heard anything at all.
Advisor Nate Easton's scalp suddenly tingled. Could there be another cultivator here like him?
Before Nate Easton could figure things out, a young man leaning on a cane stepped forward. He seemed to move slowly, but in Nate Easton's eyes, the youth covered the distance in just two steps, arriving right before him.
A strange illusion crept into Nate Easton's mind. With the youth's appearance, the pure and natural spiritual energy of the world around them seemed to weaken.
"Joe Di, why are you here?" Rona Grace sensed that the emperor before her was difficult to approach, and the imperial advisor beside him even more so. Just as she was growing anxious, Joe Di unexpectedly appeared.
Joe Di isn't usually talkative. If he offends these people, there may be no way out but death.
Joe Di smiled faintly. "Whether I come out or not, it makes no difference."
Rona Grace understood immediately. Clearly, the nobles had set their sights on this place. If Joe Di didn't show himself, he'd still be forced out eventually.
"I didn't realize a friend was here. My apologies!" Advisor Nate Easton cupped his hands, speaking humbly. He sensed Joe Di was no ordinary man, though deep down, he wasn't overly concerned.
Even for Joe Di, a cultivator, reaching late Foundation Establishment here is no easy feat...
This thought startled Advisor Nate Easton. In other parts of Blackmarsh Star, reaching late Foundation Establishment was indeed impossible. But was this place truly like the others?
If the other's cultivation was stronger than his...
At that thought, cold sweat broke out on Nate Easton's back.
Just then, the fireball hovering above Rona Grace's head suddenly shot toward Emperor Samuel Farr. In an instant, the flames erupted, engulfing everyone near Samuel Farr. He screamed miserably within the fire, even begging the imperial advisor to spare him.
Nate Easton was stunned. That was his fireball—he hadn't driven it with his spiritual sense, yet it had suddenly gone out of control. What was happening?
Then, something even more shocking occurred. Even if the fireball was out of control, Nate Easton should have been able to command it. But in reality, he had no control at all—fortunately, the fireball didn't turn on him, and he emerged from the flames unscathed.
Not only was Nate Easton dumbfounded—even Rona Grace was stunned.
After the fireball shot from above her head, it exploded right before her eyes. Not only did it engulf the corpse-faced emperor wearing the imperial crown, but all his ministers and guards screamed in agony within the flames.
By all rights, she and her father should have been caught in the fireball too, but in reality, neither of them was affected in the slightest.
She watched Advisor Nate Easton, unharmed in the flames, and suddenly wondered if he had taken a liking to her—was that why he had defied all order and killed everyone else?
Her gaze toward Nate Easton was now tinged with fear. Not only could this man cross the void, but he could also hurl massive fireballs with his bare hands—such powers were truly those of a deity.
The fireball erupted swiftly and vanished just as quickly. When it disappeared, Nate Easton was horrified to discover that over a thousand people from Prime Empire—including eight or nine hundred guards—had all been reduced to ashes. If anyone survived nearby, it was only him.
Farther away, two princes, witnessing the carnage, frantically turned their horses and fled.
No one knew better than the princes how terrifying Advisor Nate Easton was. He was a man capable of destroying an empire single-handedly. Now that the advisor had suddenly turned traitor and killed their father, they knew they would be next. If they didn't escape now, were they just waiting here to die?
Nate Easton was utterly terrified. He knew this had nothing to do with him—he was now almost certain that Joe Di was a cultivator far stronger than himself.
Joe Di hadn't killed him, clearly because he had questions to ask. Nate Easton was sure that if he tried to run, he'd end up just like Emperor Samuel Farr—reduced to ashes.
Watching the fleeing princes and soldiers, and the motionless Nate Easton, Rona Grace suddenly understood something. She turned her gaze to Joe Di.
If the advisor had killed them, he would have had no reason to spare the people of Galor Village, nor let anyone escape. Now, with Joe Di's calm demeanor as he approached her, Rona Grace began to realize the truth.
"Rona Grace, thank you for all the help you've given me." Joe Di walked up to Rona Grace and expressed his gratitude with genuine sincerity.
Every time he emerged from seclusion, Rona Grace would wait outside his room. But today, when he came out, she was nowhere to be seen. When he swept the area with his spiritual sense, he realized something had happened.
Joe Di sighed inwardly. He could only blame himself—these troubles were surely brought on by his cultivation. In truth, it wasn't entirely his fault; though his strength was recovering, he was still far from fully healed. He was using top-tier divine spiritual energy, and at his current level, he couldn't prevent any of it from leaking out.
What surprised him was that the villagers here would take fruit to sell a hundred miles away. Even more unexpected was the presence of a late Foundation Establishment cultivator.
"Joe Di, all of this happened because of you, didn't it?" Rona Grace looked at Joe Di, her voice trembling. She had a feeling that he was about to leave.
Joe Di apologized, "I'm sorry. I was injured and didn't think things through."
"So that's how it is," Rona Grace murmured, recalling all the changes over the past year, and how her father's illness had suddenly been cured.
Everyone thought it was the auspicious meteorite, but it turned out the true blessing was Joe Di himself.
"Joe Di, are you leaving?" Feeling his remorse, Rona Grace suddenly asked.
"Yes, Rona Grace, I am leaving." Joe Di knew that once he left this time, they would likely never meet again, so he didn't bother saying goodbye.
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"Joe Di, will I never see you again?" Rona Grace's eyes suddenly filled with hope as she looked nervously at Joe Di.
The reason she had always wanted to get closer to Joe Di was because his arrival had cured her father's illness. She felt grateful and wanted to help Joe Di as much as she could.
But as she spent more time with Joe Di, she grew to love being by his side—the tranquility he brought was something she cherished. Yet Joe Di rarely wandered outside, and each time for only a short while.
So every time Joe Di came out, she would stay with him until he returned to his cabin.
Looking into Rona Grace's expectant eyes, Joe Di couldn't bear to deceive her. He nodded, "Yes, I'm afraid we won't be able to meet again."
"Joe Di, I know you're not an ordinary person, maybe you even arrived here with that meteorite. But I hope I can still see you again..." Rona Grace's voice grew excited, knowing that now was not the time for restraint.
She dearly wished Joe Di would take her with him. She didn't know if it was love, only that she enjoyed being with him.
Of course Joe Di understood what Rona Grace meant. He sighed, reached out, and gently touched her hair. "Rona Grace, we come from different worlds. Besides, I've lost a leg..."
Rona Grace's voice grew even more passionate. "Joe Di, I don't care that you've lost a leg. When my grandfather was alive, he told me that no matter who stands before you, everyone is equal—at least in spirit. Joe Di, you're standing before me now. You've lost a leg, but in my eyes, you're no different from a healthy person. Why do you still care about that missing leg? Whether it's there or not, you're still here with me, and that's enough."
Rona Grace's words struck Joe Di's mind like a bolt of lightning. Why did he care about that missing leg? Because losing it meant his Dao was scarred, missing a part...
His Dao was built upon the foundation of his physical body. If the body was incomplete, so too was the Dao.
But what if his Dao could transcend the physical and go even further?
Surging Dao intent rolled around Joe Di, and his Law of the Dao rapidly perfected itself. In that moment, Joe Di's presence faded before everyone. Only endless waves of Dao intent churned where he stood, as if the next instant, this energy would break through the heavens and rush into the boundless cosmos.
Rona Grace stared in a daze at Joe Di. The rolling Dao intent made her feel the vastness of the infinite universe.
After learning Joe Di was no ordinary man, Rona Grace realized this was her only chance to stay with him. If she missed it, she would be forever bound to the small mountain village.
Her words just now had two meanings. One was that Joe Di, despite losing a leg, was no different from a healthy person in her eyes. The other was that she, Rona Grace, didn't consider herself inferior to anyone—at least in spirit, she was equal to all.
Only now did she realize that Joe Di's existence far surpassed anything she could have imagined.
(That's all for today's update. Good night, friends!)