"Each of you hand over ten million high-grade spirit stones, then get lost." Joe Di knew that if both of them tried to escape, he could only kill Miles Young.
Miles Young's face was pale. What he had once considered an insignificant ant had easily crushed him. He, Miles Young, had always been a favored son of the heavens; there were certainly fewer than five geniuses on the Evernight Continent who cultivated faster than him.
Jade Carter's chest heaved with anger. As the only daughter of the Immortal Watch Sect's leader and a top-tier cultivator on the Evernight Continent, when had she ever been bullied like this?
She quickly calmed down. She had witnessed Joe Di's ruthlessness firsthand. Earlier, Joe Di had killed two early-stage Golden Core cultivators from the Evernight Continent without hesitation, proving he was truly a demon of slaughter.
"I can't produce ten million high-grade spirit stones, at most I have five hundred thousand. If that's not enough, then we'll have to fight to the death." Once she regained her composure, Jade Carter's Rainbow Glass Sash once again unfurled, forming rainbows between herself and Joe Di.
Joe Di waved his hand dismissively. "Such paupers. Fine, then—five hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones each."
Two storage bags were tossed to Joe Di. Both Jade Carter and Miles Young had storage rings, so they hardly cared about mere storage bags.
"You may leave now. Don't make me change my mind." Joe Di pointed into the distance, his tone harsh.
Though both Miles Young and Jade Carter coveted the flame atop the mountain, they had no choice but to leave.
A Golden Core perfection and a Soul Formation first stage from the Immortal Watch Sect being bullied in the Skyveil was something no one on the Evernight Continent would believe. Yet, that was exactly what had happened.
...
After driving off Miles Young and Jade Carter, Joe Di immediately began to observe Flamecrest.
If he couldn't obtain the Azure Flame, it would be a great disadvantage for him. Without the flame, he would have to devote himself to arraycraft. Unless he reached the rank of ninth-level Array King, he could forget about removing the Bonebrand Spirit Mark on his body.
Though he had become a sixth-level Array Master in just a few years, Joe Di knew that even with a few more years, he might not reach the rank of Array King.
The path of arraycraft only grew more complex and difficult as one advanced. If his cultivation kept pace, his research into arraycraft would yield twice the results with half the effort. But if he focused solely on arrays, his cultivation would fall behind, leading to a vicious cycle and little progress in arraycraft.
His cultivation could not lag behind. Joe Di worried that the person who used Mindshift might be waiting for him outside the Skyveil. If he didn't improve his cultivation quickly, going out would mean walking into a trap.
Therefore, he had to obtain the Azure Flame.
The temperature around Flamecrest was extremely high. As soon as Joe Di reached the foot of the mountain, he found it hard to breathe, and his long hair was singed. His skin sizzled as if he were meat on a grill, and even his true essence began to stagnate.
Joe Di's heart sank. He was still far from the summit, yet he could barely hold on at the base. How could he possibly obtain the flame?
Joe Di retreated. No matter how much he wanted the Azure Flame, he couldn't risk his life here.
Joe Di, his body scorched black, stared grimly at the Azure Flame atop the mountain. He could only admit he was too late. If he had arrived while the flame was still sealed, he might have had a chance to obtain it. Now, unless his cultivation advanced several major realms...
Even advancing several major realms would be dangerous, or perhaps only a body-refining cultivator could obtain this flame.
Body refining, body refining...
Joe Di could no longer hesitate. He had to refine his body. He had a premonition that if he didn't obtain this Azure Flame, his future would be bleak.
Encountering a flame like this was already a stroke of immense luck. To find a second one in a short time was nearly impossible.
Joe Di did have a few body-refining techniques in his ring, but he had reviewed them all and could only call them trash.
Joe Di's spiritual sense landed on Sprout. "Sprout, what kind of spiritual pills can you refine now?"
"I can refine third-rank spiritual pills now," Sprout replied quickly. It knew Joe Di was asking to gauge its progress in pillcraft.
After reaching the third rank, advancing to the fourth would take time and accumulation for a tree demon like Sprout. So, while Joe Di cultivated, Sprout used most of the spiritual herbs Joe Di had given it to practice making pills.
Sprout had been with Joe Di for quite some time and understood his temperament. Knowing Joe Di had provided a heap of resources for pill refinement, if it didn't make significant progress, it might be driven away.
At first, Sprout had been reluctant—almost forced—to recognize Joe Di as its master. Now, it couldn't wait to stay by his side. Without Joe Di, it would have been stuck in some forest for years, draining blood just to reach the third rank, and that was if it didn't get chopped down first.
"Can you refine Ascendant Pills?" Joe Di asked in surprise, quite satisfied with Sprout.
He had handed all the spiritual herbs he'd obtained to Sprout. The fact that Sprout could refine third-rank spiritual pills meant it hadn't been slacking off.
"Big brother, I've already refined Ascendant Pills." Sprout said, handing a bottle of pills to Joe Di. It was secretly pleased—if it couldn't refine something as basic as the Ascendant Pill, it wouldn't deserve to be called a third-grade pill master.
Ascendant Pills are among the top pills for advancing from Foundation Stage Perfection to the Golden Core realm. The main spiritual herb is Shaping Grass, but neither Sprout nor Joe Di needed such pills.
As for itself, Sprout had only recently learned to refine Ascendant Pills two months ago, but it had already forgotten about that milestone.
Joe Di's spiritual sense swept over the pills and immediately recognized them as high-grade. If Sprout's pillfire had been stronger, these would have been supreme-grade pills.
Tree demons truly are born alchemists. Joe Di stowed away the pills and said, "Give me all the pills you've refined."
Sprout had refined all kinds of pills—not just Ascendant Pills, but also Foundation Pills, Restoration Pills, Vitality Pills, Origin Pills, and more.
Whether or not he could obtain a top-tier body-refining technique now depended on his luck.
Just as Joe Di was about to set up the formation flags to begin arranging the array, several streaks of light flashed past the edge of his spiritual sense. Traveling at such speed within the Skyveil was extremely risky; unless there was great benefit, no one would rush like this.
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Originally, Joe Di planned to arrange a massive Spirit Gathering Array and use the vortex of spiritual energy to attract others. He would then set up a stall for pills and magical artifacts, specifically to trade for body-refining techniques.
Now, seeing people rushing ahead, he put away his formation flags and followed. The aura of his pet beetle was inside the Flame Mountain, but since he couldn’t enter, searching for the beetle was out of the question.
"Fellow cultivator, please wait!" Joe Di sped up and intercepted a Golden Core early-stage cultivator who was rushing past.
Seeing Joe Di move even faster than himself and unable to discern Joe Di's cultivation level, the Golden Core cultivator quickly stopped and cupped his fists cautiously. "May I ask what you need, fellow cultivator?"
Joe Di also cupped his fists and said, "I noticed many fellow cultivators hurrying in the same direction. May I ask what has happened?"
Hearing this, the Golden Core cultivator relaxed slightly and replied politely, "A relic of an Ancient Sect has been discovered in the Skyveil. However, it's protected by a top-tier defensive array, and everyone is attacking it. The array is extremely powerful and hasn't been breached yet—I only just received the news. If you wish to go, you can join me. The more people, the better; strength in numbers, as they say."
"Thank you for your help." Joe Di heard that cultivators were gathering at the entrance to the Ancient Sect, so of course he had to go.
If he wanted to acquire a top-tier body-refining technique, it would be best to be where the crowds were.
The Golden Core cultivator cupped his fists to Joe Di, then sped off again. Joe Di followed, and after more than half a day, the two finally stopped.
Looking at the dense crowd, Joe Di was amazed—there were at least a thousand or two cultivators here. Who knew how many had entered the Skyveil this time? Just one relic was enough to gather so many people.
Joe Di was immediately struck by the grandeur of the ruins—it truly was the site of an Ancient Sect. No one knew how much time had passed, but even now, the ruins exuded a majestic aura. From the faint outline of the mountain ranges within the sect, Joe Di could imagine how glorious it must have been in its prime.
"All Nascent Soul cultivators stand in the front row! Golden Core cultivators, take positions on either side! Foundation Establishment cultivators, stand at intervals..." A deep voice rang out, interrupting Joe Di's reverie about the sect.
All Nascent Soul cultivators? Joe Di swept his spiritual sense across the area and was surprised to find that the speaker was actually a Nascent Soul, Second Level expert. Not only that, but beside him were at least three Nascent Soul, First Level cultivators. One of them he recognized—it was Jade Carter.
When Joe Di saw Jade Carter, both she and Miles Young also noticed him, though neither spoke. Miles Young's arm appeared to be healed; clearly, these major sects had access to top-tier healing pills.
As Joe Di swept his spiritual sense over, the Nascent Soul, Second Level cultivator immediately sensed it. His gaze fell on Joe Di, and he stared coldly, "Everyone here is working together to attack this ancient grand array. You’re concealing your cultivation, causing confusion. Remove your concealment technique and reveal your true cultivation."
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