Joe Di paid no attention to the beetle. His gaze fell upon the Golden Core cultivator standing next to Sprout, a man at the seventh level of Golden Core. The restriction on Sprout matched the aura of this man, making it clear that Sprout was imprisoned by him.
As soon as Joe Di appeared, the Golden Core cultivator from the Qi Trading House instinctively retreated several steps.
Before they entered, the Soul Ancestor of the Qi Trading House had already warned them that if they encountered Joe Di alone, and if Joe Di had reached the Golden Core stage, they must avoid him.
Even if the Qi Family Soul Ancestor hadn’t said this, he wouldn’t have dared provoke Joe Di. Joe Di had seized the Qi Trading House's northern headquarters in Northridge City and killed nineteen Golden Core cultivators. As a fifth-level Golden Core, he knew he was no match for Joe Di.
"Is this root yours?" The seventh-level Golden Core cultivator who had taken Sprout fixed his gaze on Joe Di and asked indifferently.
If he hadn’t seen the fifth-level Golden Core from the Qi Family retreat at Joe Di’s arrival, he wouldn’t have bothered looking at Joe Di. Asking Joe Di a question didn’t mean he feared him. Entry to the Skyveil was restricted by age, and for someone under a hundred to reach late Golden Core was already extremely rare.
Even if Joe Di was concealing his cultivation, he believed Joe Di could be, at most, ninth-level Golden Core. A ninth-level Golden Core could easily suppress him, but killing him would be impossible. There were five others present; he didn’t believe that six people working together couldn’t take down a ninth-level Golden Core.
Joe Di chuckled, saying nothing. His long blade was already sweeping up vortexes of blade energy, surging toward the seventh-level Golden Core cultivator.
Sprout had already lost an arm—what reason was there to hold back now?
Seeing Joe Di attack without a word, the seventh-level Golden Core cultivator snorted coldly. Instead of retreating, he stepped forward and summoned the Lishang Seal.
The Lishang Seal instantly transformed into a towering mountain, crashing down and suppressing all of Joe Di's vortex blade energy, scattering it in an instant.
Any ordinary cultivator would have dodged such a fierce attack. But Joe Di didn’t even bother to step back; he simply threw a punch. His whirlwind blade was only meant to test his opponent’s strength—now that he had, there was no need to retreat.
The shadow of his fist became almost tangible, forming a massive peak that smashed forward, colliding with the seventh-level Golden Core cultivator’s Lishang Seal.
Boom! Violent true essence erupted. The seventh-level Golden Core cultivator felt as if an invisible iron hammer had struck his chest, and he couldn’t help but spit out a mouthful of blood.
Yet, the seventh-level Golden Core cultivator secretly sighed in relief. Although he coughed up blood, his Lishang Seal still managed to shatter Joe Di’s mountain fist.
He guessed he wasn’t a match for Joe Di. Realizing this, the seventh-level Golden Core cultivator no longer wanted to fight; he quickly tried to withdraw his Lishang Seal and retreat.
But before he could escape, he was horrified to find that Joe Di’s mountain fist was not just one blow—the second mountain had already crashed down.
Cold sweat broke out across his back. The Golden Core cultivator didn’t dare retreat any further; burning his true essence frantically, he forcibly summoned the Lishang Seal a second time.
Boom! The impact was even more violent than before. At the cost of another mouthful of blood, the Golden Core cultivator shattered Joe Di’s mountain fist for the second time.
But then, in despair, he saw a third mountain fist crashing down. If only he had a moment to catch his breath, he could have shattered Joe Di’s third mountain fist as well.
Unfortunately, he had no chance to catch his breath now, and regret filled him. If he hadn’t fought Joe Di head-on, perhaps he wouldn’t have lost so quickly. If only he’d stalled Joe Di, he might have gotten help from the others.
The third mountain fist, carrying the aura of death, enveloped the Golden Core cultivator as he heard Joe Di’s words: "At most, I can unleash three mountain fists now. Too bad you only blocked two..."
Hearing Joe Di’s words, regret filled the Golden Core cultivator’s eyes. If he’d known Joe Di could only throw three mountain fists, he wouldn’t have stepped forward—he would have steadied himself and blocked all three. He hadn’t even used his ultimate move before dying, and it was truly unwilling.
"...But after my mountain fists comes the fist tide. Even if you block the third, it’s useless. You bullied my beast companion, so this is a dead end for you." Joe Di’s words made the seventh-level Golden Core cultivator cough up blood once again, whether from anger or the force of the mountain fists.
Boom! The third mountain fist landed solidly on the Golden Core cultivator!
Bang! Like a kite with a broken string, the cultivator was sent flying by Joe Di’s mountain fist. By the time he hit the ground, he was already lifeless.
Raging waves rise endlessly, beneath the peaks there is no life! This was the true portrayal of Joe Di’s fist.
Sprout dashed to Joe Di’s side at lightning speed, standing together with Melody Qin.
The remaining five Golden Core cultivators stared at Joe Di in shock. They couldn’t see his true strength, but for him to kill a seventh-level Golden Core with a single blade and fist, he had to be either at peak Golden Core or half-step Soul Ancestor. Throughout the entire fight, there was no chance for them to coordinate, nor for the slain cultivator to call for help.
Especially when Joe Di threw that punch, even as spectators, they could feel the lingering aura of death within it. If they had to face such a punch themselves, it would surely be suffocating.
With a flick of his hand, Joe Di caught the storage pouch of the Golden Core cultivator he’d just killed. Then, tossing a ball of flame, the cultivator’s body was swiftly reduced to nothingness.
The restriction on the seventh-level Golden Core’s storage pouch was nothing to Joe Di; he easily opened it, grabbed Sprout’s severed arm, and tossed it to Sprout. Raising his hand, he released Sprout’s restriction and said, "Go ahead and reattach it yourself."
"Congratulations on recovering your pet, fellow Daoist. There must be great secrets here. You’ve avenged your pet by killing Mi Sa, so why not join forces and continue exploring?" After Joe Di killed the late-stage Golden Core who had threatened Sprout, another seventh-level Golden Core cultivator stepped forward, cupping his fist in greeting.
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"Big Brother, all these guys tried to intercept me. They said whoever chopped off one of my arms first would get to keep me. Mi Sa was just the fastest—otherwise, these bastards would’ve split me up." Sprout reattached his severed hand, his tone furious.
Joe Di didn’t respond. Though he’d easily killed one seventh-level Golden Core, that didn’t mean he could defeat five mid-to-late Golden Core cultivators working together.
Even if he could, he’d still be injured.
This place was clearly a cultivation sanctuary, possibly containing top-tier treasures. Many knew about it, and no matter how strong the outer space array was, it couldn’t withstand too many attacks. If those outside joined forces to assault the natural space-strangling formation, the array would eventually be destroyed.
Once the array was broken, it wouldn’t just be the few of them entering anymore.
"Daoist Di, though I’m with the Qi Trading House, I’m not bound to them. My surname isn’t Qi, and I never laid a hand on your pet..." Seeing Joe Di remain silent, the fifth-level Golden Core cultivator from Qi Trading House stepped forward to speak.
Joe Di looked at the Golden Core cultivator from the Qi Trading House. "You want me to spare your life?"
If there was one force Joe Di despised most on the Aurora Continent, it was undoubtedly the Qi Trading House.
The remaining Golden Core cultivators stared in surprise at the Qi Trading House cultivator, thinking that Joe Di truly was formidable. But there were five of them—if they joined forces, they might not have to fear Joe Di. And yet, someone was already begging for mercy before the fight even started?
But this Qi Trading House cultivator was different. He knew exactly how many Golden Core cultivators Joe Di had killed when he seized the Qi Trading House’s northern headquarters—nineteen. No matter what methods Joe Di had used, if he didn’t beg for mercy today, he’d be dead for sure.
Gritting his teeth, the Qi Trading House cultivator produced a jade slip and handed it to Joe Di. "Daoist Di, here’s a jade slip for you to look at. If you’re willing to spare me, I’ll give you what’s inside."
Joe Di sent his spiritual sense into the jade slip and quickly understood the cultivator’s intent.
This Golden Core cultivator wasn’t surnamed Qi, but Chong—his name was Chong Xun, one of the few core members of the Qi Trading House who didn’t bear the family name. Back in Northridge City, the flame that Hunchback stole from the Qi Trading House belonged to Chong Xun’s father, who had obtained it in the Skyveil.
Chong Xun’s father was severely wounded in the Skyveil in order to obtain the flame, and died soon after returning. Chong Xun only received a spot to enter the Skyveil because his father had acquired the flame.
But his father kept a secret—the flame was incomplete, missing a Fire Nirvana Nest. Without it, the flame couldn’t be upgraded.
That’s why the Qi Family kept the flame in a fire-attributed cave abode in Northridge City to nurture it, instead of giving it to a Soul Ancestor cultivator—the flame wasn’t complete.
The Fire Nirvana Nest was the birthplace of the flame; only by consuming the nest could the flame become complete and have a chance to advance.
Chong Xun’s father hadn’t had time to take the Fire Nirvana Nest before being badly burned. He handed the flame to the Qi Family but never mentioned the nest. After his death, only Chong Xun knew about it.
Chong Xun thought the flame had been taken by Joe Di, so he hoped to use the location of the Fire Nirvana Nest to save his life.
(That’s all for today’s update. Good night, friends!)