"Everyone's strength has increased, and the Genesis Aura here is almost depleted. Why don't we head to Genesis City now?" Joe Di wasn't really asking for Henry Vaughn and Zuo Zhuo's opinions; as he spoke, he had already summoned his flying artifact.
There was still some Genesis Aura here. If Henry Vaughn and Zuo Zhuo wanted to continue cultivating, Joe Di would simply leave first.
Henry Vaughn immediately summoned his own flying artifact and said, "Alright, let's head to Genesis City now."
After speaking, Henry Vaughn hesitated and added, "Joe Di, we must stick together in Genesis City. Otherwise, facing those powerful Cosmos Lords, we might only barely survive, or even be driven out of Genesis City."
He felt uneasy—his strength had grown again, and since they had come here through the Trinity Universe's passage, his opinion should have carried more weight. But Joe Di clearly didn't care about working together.
Joe Di understood what Henry Vaughn meant—this guy probably wanted to be the leader, making all the decisions, just like he was used to as a Cosmos Lord.
Seeing Joe Di ignore him, Henry Vaughn had no choice but to drop the subject.
After cultivating in the Genesis Aura for some time, Henry Vaughn's strength had improved significantly, but he still found Joe Di hard to read.
Henry Vaughn had never been to the Genesis Universe before, but he knew the most about it, so he led the way.
According to Henry Vaughn and Joe Di, no matter which direction they traveled, they would eventually encounter cultivators. Once they met someone from the Genesis Universe, they could ask for directions to Genesis City.
To their frustration, the four of them flew through the void of Genesis Universe for seven or eight years, but saw neither a single cultivator nor even a ruined void planet. Not even the shadow of a void beast appeared.
"Joe Di, this Genesis Universe is strange. Normally, cultivators from all the great universes should be flocking here, and Genesis Universe ought to be packed. Yet after almost ten years, I've seen no trace of anyone." Quinn Moten turned to Joe Di on the neighboring flying artifact.
"I see someone," Joe Di said. He was just puzzling over the situation when his divine sense swept across a meteorite—and sure enough, there was a cultivator on it. But the person seemed lifeless, their fate uncertain.
Not only did Joe Di spot the cultivator, but Henry Vaughn and the others saw them too. The four flying artifacts immediately stopped by the meteorite.
Seeing Joe Di land on the meteorite, the other three followed suit.
The moment Joe Di set foot on the meteorite, he felt an extremely familiar aura. Genesis Lotus—this was undoubtedly the aura of the Genesis Lotus.
On the meteorite lay a woman in a green dress, her features delicate, appearing lifeless. Yet Joe Di sensed her life force was concealed by the Genesis Lotus, and the Genesis Lotus itself was hidden by her Dao. Otherwise, he wouldn't have only sensed the Genesis Lotus after landing.
The owner of the Genesis Lotus was the Lotus Sage, whom Joe Di had helped several times. The Lotus Sage was harmed by Cynthia Xing, who was later forced to suicide by Minghe Patriarch. It was rumored the Genesis Lotus was obtained by a woman. Although Cynthia Xing was reborn, she no longer had the right to compete for Genesis.
Could this woman before him be the one who obtained the Genesis Lotus during the Creation War? He'd heard she had some connection to Emperor Ye.
"Huh!" As soon as Zuo Zhuo landed on the meteorite, he exclaimed in surprise and reached for the woman, sensing the Genesis Lotus's aura as well.
Joe Di snorted coldly and, without hesitation, threw a punch.
Dao resonance exploded. Even though Zachary Zane had just entered the Genesis Realm, he was forced to retreat madly by Joe Di's punch. He felt as if his domain and Dao were almost shattered, secretly shocked by Joe Di's power.
"Joe Di, what do you mean by this?" Zachary Zane asked, his face dark as he stared at Joe Di.
Henry Vaughn's face didn't look much better. After all, Joe Di had come here using the Trinity Universe's Genesis Gate, and now, before even reaching Genesis City, he had already attacked Zachary Zane.
The meteorite had already been shattered by Joe Di's punch, and with a sweep of his hand, he brought the woman onto his flying artifact.
"Zachary Zane, don't you know what I mean?" Joe Di said calmly. Even though Zachary Zane had entered the Genesis Realm, Joe Di didn't take him seriously at all.
Henry Vaughn tried to soften his tone. "Joe Di, it's true Zachary Zane was tempted by the Genesis treasure, but we came here together—working as one is most important. Besides, we all discovered the Genesis treasure at the same time. Even if you want to claim it, you should at least let us know and offer some compensation. Striking out like this is a bit much, isn't it?"
Joe Di chuckled and looked at Henry Vaughn. "Henry Vaughn, I've said before that I won't pursue what you did to the Five Elements Universe in the past. But that doesn't mean if you do something again, I won't hold you accountable."
"What do you mean, Joe Di?" Henry Vaughn's voice turned cold. This wasn't the Trinity Universe, and Joe Di wasn't giving him any respect—he was a Cosmos Lord, after all.
Joe Di replied coldly, "Henry Vaughn, are you really clueless or just pretending? As a Cosmos Lord, can't you tell this woman is a cultivator from the Five Elements Universe? Even if you can't, you should know the Genesis Lotus belongs to the Five Elements Universe. Zachary Zane tried to seize a wounded Five Elements Universe cultivator and snatch the Genesis Lotus—shouldn't I intervene?"
Henry Vaughn frowned. He truly hadn't recognized the woman as a Five Elements Universe cultivator, but he'd heard the Genesis Lotus was their treasure. With Joe Di's mastery of the Rules Dao, even if the woman seemed lifeless, he could sense her origins—Henry Vaughn simply wasn't as capable.
Before fighting Joe Di, Zachary Zane would never have let the Genesis Lotus slip by. But after just one punch, he realized he wasn't a match for Joe Di.
He glanced at Henry Vaughn—if Henry made a move, he'd go for the Genesis Lotus. Quinn Moten didn't even factor into his calculations.
Henry Vaughn clearly had no intention of fighting Joe Di; he knew all too well how formidable Joe Di was. The Genesis Lotus was a top-tier treasure, but now that Joe Di had it, it would be hard to take. Besides, this was the Genesis Universe—he didn't want to clash with Joe Di before even reaching Genesis City.
Still, Henry Vaughn knew he had to make a choice.
In his mind, Zachary Zane was strong, having just entered the Genesis Realm, but deep down, Henry Vaughn preferred to ally with Joe Di. Just as he thought this, his eyelids twitched, and he immediately said to Joe Di, "Since that's the case, let's part ways. Zachary, let's go."
Seeing Henry Vaughn turn and leave without hesitation, Zachary Zane quickly followed—he didn't dare face Joe Di alone.
"Henry, why didn't you fight Joe Di just now? With two Genesis Realm cultivators, we should be able to take him on." Zachary Zane asked as he caught up, ignoring Quinn Moten.
Henry Vaughn laughed, "Zachary, that woman was probably being hunted. Anyone who can chase down the owner of the Genesis Lotus is no ordinary figure in Genesis City. Why get ourselves involved?"
He didn't explain further, because he'd already sensed fluctuations in the void. Zachary Zane hadn't noticed anything—his strength was a level lower.
From Henry Vaughn's experience, the source of these spatial fluctuations was likely as strong as he was.
The Genesis Lotus was indeed a precious treasure, but Henry Vaughn didn't care much—he had his own treasures. He'd sought out Joe Di for help, not to offend the powerful cultivators of Genesis City before even entering it. Otherwise, he'd be helping Joe Di, not getting help himself.
Seeing Henry Vaughn and Zachary Zane leave, Quinn Moten was a bit surprised. "Joe Di, Henry Vaughn really has some backbone."
Not everyone has the resolve to give up the Genesis Lotus, especially since they all discovered it together. The Genesis Lotus is different from other treasures—its petals can be separated.
Joe Di produced a Life Dao Fruit and fed it to the woman, then said disdainfully, "That old guy left because he sensed someone was coming after us."
"Someone's coming?" Quinn Moten was startled. He still hadn't sensed anyone approaching.