Before Joe Di could respond, Franklin Young continued, "Friend Joe, your Deathtrap Array is indeed formidable. But if I resort to a forbidden technique, I can break through it."
Mark Mariner, hearing Franklin Young’s words, spoke up urgently as well, "Brother Joe, Brother Franklin is right. Forbidden techniques are dangerous and inflict great harm on the user, but if our lives are at stake, we won’t hesitate to use them."
Mark Mariner’s meaning was clear—he too possessed a forbidden technique.
Boom! Warren Wraith, knowing Joe Di would not spare him, had already summoned his staff and struck at the Deathtrap Array.
Joe Di realized there could be no more hesitation. Franklin Young and Mark Mariner were telling the truth. Rather than fighting all three to the bitter end, it would be far easier to deal with Warren Wraith alone.
With that thought, Joe Di declared without hesitation, "One Supreme Ley Line each, and you may leave. Otherwise, stay where you are."
"Deal." Franklin Young didn’t even consider bargaining. He immediately produced a ring and tossed it into the Deathtrap Array.
Following Franklin Young, Mark Mariner also tossed a ring. With a sweep of his hand, Joe Di collected both rings. Neither was sealed, and inside each lay a Supreme Ley Line.
"Go." True to his word, Joe Di stepped aside, opening a path without hesitation.
Franklin Young and Mark Mariner rushed out at once, never looking back, vanishing in a flash. Warren Wraith tried to follow, but the moment he stepped forward, deadly blades of light entangled him, forcing him to summon his black net for protection.
After escaping Fenghorn Fortress, Franklin Young and Mark Mariner didn’t stop to discuss how to deal with Joe Di once he emerged. They said not a word, vanishing instantly into the void.
It was a certainty that Joe Di would kill Warren Wraith. With Joe Di’s mastery of arrays, the others stood no chance of stopping him. And even if they could, the outcome would still be uncertain.
At this moment, both Franklin Young and Mark Mariner felt that improving their array mastery was now their most urgent priority.
"Joe Di, if you want Jason Silentwood’s ring, I’ll give it to you. There’s no grudge between us—why make ourselves mortal enemies?" Warren Wraith, after a few futile attacks and realizing he was trapped by a seventh-rank Deathtrap Array, decided to negotiate bluntly.
Stepping out from the concealed edge of the Deathtrap Array, Joe Di landed before Warren Wraith and sneered, "Warren, the moment you slaughtered everyone in the fortress, I resolved to kill you. Besides, I promised my friends you’d never leave this place alive. The future? Ha! You have no future left…"
As his words fell, Joe Di swung the Azure Veil Blade in a single, decisive strike.
Against a lone Warren Wraith, Joe Di didn’t need to rely entirely on the Deathtrap Array. He preferred a face-to-face battle; the array was merely to prevent Warren’s escape.
"Dream on!" Warren Wraith snarled, sending his black net whipping toward Joe Di. He was determined not to let Joe Di retreat into the array, fearing Joe Di would use its formations against him. Now that they faced each other directly, Warren believed that if he could kill Joe Di, he’d have a chance to escape—even from a ninth-rank Deathtrap Array.
Boom! The Azure Veil Blade struck the void beside Warren Wraith, scattering the space around him. Not only did his domain shatter, but his black net seemed to lose its strength, beginning to droop.
"Law of Rupture…" Warren Wraith was shocked. Joe Di’s blade hadn’t injured him directly, yet it had torn apart his domain and the laws supporting his powers.
How profound must Joe Di’s understanding of cosmic rules be to wield such powerful abilities?
Joe Di paid Warren Wraith no heed. Once more, he swept the Azure Veil Blade, conjuring a curtain of blinding white light that locked Warren in place.
Warren Wraith’s heart sank. He knew he was no match for Joe Di. Without the seventh-rank Deathtrap Array, he might have stood a chance, but now, even without the array’s help, Joe Di threatened him. Hesitation meant death.
With that thought, Warren Wraith’s body suddenly split apart, releasing waves of foul black-red energy as his Primordial Soul shot out like a black streak.
Slash! The Azure Veil Blade tore Warren Wraith’s body to shreds, but his Primordial Soul vanished without a trace.
Yet Joe Di remained unperturbed; he was confident that his seventh-rank Deathtrap Array would not let Warren Wraith escape.
But just then, Joe Di sensed a gap opening in his seventh-rank Deathtrap Array. What kind of heaven-defying forbidden technique was this? He had no time to ponder, instantly sealing the breach with hundreds of Law Array Banners.
Bang! The breach in Joe Di’s array had barely been sealed when another violent impact shook it. Warren Wraith’s agonized scream echoed, and his weakened Primordial Soul appeared before Joe Di.
"Impressive forbidden technique—you nearly escaped," Joe Di said with a chuckle, gazing at Warren Wraith’s depleted Primordial Soul. In truth, even if he hadn’t sealed the breach, Warren had no way out. Leaving the seventh-rank Deathtrap Array only meant entering the Ninth World.
"Brother Joe, I admit defeat. Take everything—I only ask you spare me." Warren Wraith’s Primordial Soul tossed out two rings to Joe Di, adding, "I won’t ask for mercy for nothing. I know of a place with something that can further enhance your cosmic flame."
This time, Joe Di didn’t even bother to reply. With a sweep of his Cosmic Flame, Warren Wraith’s Primordial Soul gave a final, anguished scream before vanishing utterly—destroyed, body and soul.
Joe Di did care about advancing his Cosmic Flame, but Warren Wraith’s attempt to use that as leverage for survival was futile.
With Warren Wraith defeated, Joe Di didn’t leave Fenghorn Fortress immediately. He still needed to claim the Chaos Lotus, which hovered above White Lake. If he let it escape, the lotus would fall right into his Ninth World.
Within the Ninth World, Joe Di remained at the entrance of the Eightfold Formation Seal. When he returned to the edge of White Lake, he was stunned by what he saw.
The Chaos Lotus was nowhere to be seen. Had someone already taken it? That seemed unlikely—if one of them had, Warren Wraith, Franklin Young, or Mark Mariner wouldn’t have acted so indifferent.
Joe Di frowned. Had he overlooked something?
Regretfully, there was no one left to answer him. If only he’d asked Warren Wraith about the lotus’s fate.
No, the Chaos Lotus couldn’t have been taken by any single person. If it were so easy to seize, it wouldn’t have lasted until now.
With this thought, Joe Di spread his divine sense far and wide, searching every corner. He wasn’t truly searching for the Chaos Lotus—he knew that even with his powerful divine sense, he couldn’t detect it if it was hidden in the void.
He extended his divine sense, seeking only the subtle fluctuations of cosmic rules in this space. Having cultivated the Way of Rules, he could detect even the slightest ripple.
After two full days, Joe Di’s divine sense suddenly paused—he’d finally found a spot where the cosmic rules subtly shifted.
Without hesitation, Joe Di opened the Eye of the Way. A hint of verdant green flickered beneath his gaze, filling him with wild joy—this was surely the Chaos Lotus. Yet his Eye of the Way was still too weak to see it clearly.
Joe Di drew out four Fivefold Banners, but before he could deploy them, the green glow beneath his Eye of the Way turned into a streak of emerald light and vanished instantly.
Seeing the lotus vanish, Joe Di’s heart sank. It was the second time the lotus had disappeared, and he knew it would be harder to find again. But his disappointment lasted only a breath—joy surged within him once more.
Without hesitation, Joe Di withdrew the Ninth World. In one corner of his world, a twelve-petal Chaos Lotus now floated serenely.
His plan had worked—the Chaos Lotus had been successfully lured into the Ninth World.