Sprout really didn't want to study alchemy, but Joe Di forced him to learn it—he had no choice. As for Garrett Lance, he simply did whatever Joe Di told him to do.
With his natural talent, it wasn't a problem for Garrett Lance to spend some time learning talisman crafting.
Joe Di didn't care much about the pills and piled them aside. The artifact refinement materials and spirit herbs were also in abundance, but since he didn't value the pills, he also set the spirit herbs aside.
Inside the Starstream School's council hall, the atmosphere was even more tense. Nearly all cultivators above the Golden Core stage were present, including the recently emerged Grand Elder Leo Willow.
Timothy Xiang's face was still rather pale. After losing an arm, he was very likely to be stuck at the peak of the Golden Core stage.
Grand Elder Leo Willow, who had just emerged from seclusion, sat beside Timothy Xiang. He didn't look like someone who had just stepped into the Soul Ancestor realm.
Perhaps the most precious thing in Shawn Qi's ring wasn't the tens of thousands of spirit stones, but an axe technique. Joe Di intended to give this technique to Garrett Lance.
Once everything was sorted, Joe Di distributed some spirit stones to both Garrett Lance and Sprout, and tossed the alchemy jade tablet to Sprout. According to Joe Di, everyone needed to learn a skill for self-defense. He chose artifact refinement and arraycraft, so Sprout could only choose alchemy.
As for Garrett Lance, Joe Di not only gave him Thunder Sword and the axe technique, but also tossed him the talisman jade tablet.
If the haul from Qi Trading House delighted Joe Di, then the contents of Shawn Qi's ring truly astonished him.
Back when he killed Ouyang Tao and gained hundreds of low-grade spirit stones, Joe Di thought Ouyang Tao was wealthy. But after opening Shawn Qi's ring, he realized how poor Ouyang Tao truly was.
Inside Shawn Qi's ring, there were at least twenty thousand low-grade spirit stones, plus several thousand mid-grade spirit stones. Even the high-grade spirit stones Joe Di had never seen before—there were hundreds of them here.
The pills were only for healing, but inside Shawn Qi's ring, Joe Di found a much more advanced cultivation jade tablet.
After reading the cultivation jade tablet, Joe Di decided not to use Foundation Establishment Pills to build his foundation. The tablet explained that among countless foundation builders who absorb the world's spiritual energy, only a small fraction do so without relying on pills. All the truly great achievers come from this minority.
Joe Di firmly believed in the insights summarized in these cultivation jade tablets. They were accumulated over countless years by innumerable cultivators, and such practical experience was far more valuable than theory.
The artifacts in Shawn Qi's ring were all quite advanced, but of course the best was the supreme-grade Titan Axe that Garrett Lance had already refined. Joe Di guessed that, were it not for the immense spiritual awareness required for spirit artifacts, all the artifacts in Shawn Qi's ring would have become spirit artifacts.
Perhaps the most precious thing in Shawn Qi's ring wasn't the tens of thousands of spirit stones, but an axe technique. Joe Di intended to give this technique to Garrett Lance.
Once everything was sorted, Joe Di distributed some spirit stones to both Garrett Lance and Sprout, and tossed the alchemy jade tablet to Sprout. According to Joe Di, everyone needed to learn a skill for self-defense. He chose artifact refinement and formations, so Sprout could only choose alchemy.
As for Garrett Lance, Joe Di not only gave him Thunder Sword and the axe technique, but also tossed him the talisman jade tablet.
Since everyone was fleeing through Swampsea Woods, they had to comprehensively improve their abilities.
Sprout really didn't want to study alchemy, but Joe Di forced him to learn it—he had no choice. As for Geng Ji, he simply did whatever Joe Di told him to do.
With his natural talent, it wasn't a problem for Geng Ji to spend some time learning talisman crafting.
......
Inside the Starstream School's council hall, the atmosphere was even more tense. Nearly all cultivators above the Golden Core stage were present, including the recently emerged Grand Elder Leo Willow.
Timothy Xiang's face was still rather pale. After losing an arm, he was very likely to be stuck at the peak of the Golden Core stage.
Grand Elder Leo Willow, who had just emerged from seclusion, sat beside Timothy Xiang. He didn't look like someone who had just stepped into the Soul Ancestor realm.
"Grand Elder Leo, the current situation is that Qi Trading House definitely won't let our Starstream School off the hook. We must come up with a countermeasure before they act," said Elder Harvey Reed from the Law Enforcement Hall, the first to speak.
Harvey Reed and Elder Eugene Yu were close friends. After the battle with Simon Qi, Eugene Yu was killed and Harvey Reed was also seriously injured.
But compared to the life-and-death crisis facing Starstream School, his injuries were insignificant.
Leo Willow sighed, then turned to Timothy Xiang and asked, "What exactly happened to make Qi Trading House target our Starstream School?"
He knew his own situation well. A hundred years ago, when he entered closed-door seclusion, he had just over a hundred years of lifespan left. Originally, he was unable to break through to the Soul Ancestor realm—but when the sect-destroying alarm sounded, even his secluded cave received the alert. Driven by desperation, he frantically pushed through and entered the Soul Ancestor realm. In theory, this realm should trigger a lightning tribulation, but none descended for him.
In other words, his Soul Ancestor realm was false—his lifespan hadn't increased at all, and he had only a little over ten years left before his end.
Timothy Xiang revealed everything he knew, including the fact that Eugene Yu, who tracked Joe Di and Garrett Lance, had already perished. After finishing, Timothy Xiang worried that Grand Elder Leo might abandon Joe Di, so he added, "I believe that for a genius like this, no matter how much trouble they cause, our sect should bear it for them. Otherwise, what do we have to pass down? How can our Starstream School stand strong on the Aurora Continent?"
Leo Willow nodded, but before he could speak, Ouyang Mufei stepped forward and said, "Sect Master, Elder Leo, I'm not just opposed to Joe Di and Garrett Lance because my grandnephew Ouyang Tao was killed by them. Joe Di and Garrett Lance robbed Qi Trading House in Swampsea Town and killed Shawn Qi, drawing the attention of Soul Ancestor Simon Qi. It's clear they'll bring even greater disaster to Starstream School in the future. Disciples like these will only lead our sect to ruin. I recommend issuing an expulsion order and sending people to hunt them down."
Timothy Xiang frowned, but before he could speak, a flying sword landed in his hand. After reading its contents, he said gravely, "The investigation into Joe Di's killing of Shawn Qi is complete. It was because Joe Di and Garrett Lance caused a spiritual energy vortex while cultivating at the Resthaven Inn in Swampsea Town, which aroused Shawn Qi's suspicion. Shawn Qi broke Joe Di's protective array and discovered he had a tree spirit.
Shawn Qi immediately took Joe Di and Garrett Lance to the Qi Family Rest House, intending to kill them and seize their secrets and the tree spirit. Unexpectedly, Joe Di was not one to fear death. He feigned compliance, followed Shawn Qi to Qi Trading House, then ambushed and killed him, finally taking the treasures and escaping with Garrett Lance and the tree spirit into Swampsea Woods."
Leo Willow nodded in agreement. After Timothy Xiang finished speaking, he asked, "So you mean Joe Di did everything himself from start to finish?"
"That's what I've heard. Garrett Lance's cultivation is low—he couldn't have taken action. If I were in their shoes, I'd have done the same. It seems Elder Eugene Yu was right: Joe Di and Garrett Lance have extraordinary talent, or else they wouldn't have caused such a stir with their cultivation. This time at the Heavenly Ruins battlefield, our Starstream School paid a huge price and barely got scraps, always at the mercy of others. Even without Joe Di, our sect would lose its legacy and completely decline on the Aurora Continent." Timothy Xiang said without hesitation.
Leo Willow's tone softened. "Sect Master, endure a bit more and investigate why Joe Di killed Ouyang Tao. If Joe Di had a legitimate reason, then even if our Starstream School is shattered, we won't let our disciples be bullied and hunted. But if Joe Di did it just to seize spirit stones, then expel him. The sect needs legacy, but not that kind of person to carry it forward."
"I'm worried that Joe Di and Garrett Lance are in grave danger in Swampsea Woods. Qi Trading House has issued a kill order, and several Golden Core cultivators have entered the woods to hunt them down," Timothy Xiang said with concern.
"Until we understand why Joe Di killed his fellow sect brother, their survival depends on themselves. Elder Harvey Reed was right—Qi Trading House has ten Soul Ancestor elders, and rumor has it they even have someone beyond the Soul Ancestor realm. Our Starstream School is limited by resources and techniques; except for me, who barely counts as a Soul Ancestor, we basically have no Soul Ancestor cultivators..." Leo Willow said worriedly.
Peak Master Lily Waters of Helian Peak stood up and said, "I've received secret news that Qi Trading House has discovered an ancient ruin, and almost all their Soul Ancestor cultivators have gone there. So, until they return, our Starstream School doesn't need to worry about this matter."
......
News quickly spread that Qi Trading House in Swampsea Town had been robbed by a Starstream School disciple named Joe Di, and that Simon Qi himself wanted to destroy Starstream School, only to discover the school had a hidden Soul Ancestor patriarch.
This caused the number of people searching for Joe Di and Garrett Lance in Swampsea Woods to decrease significantly—offending a Soul Ancestor patriarch was no trivial matter.
Moreover, many noticed that Simon Qi, the Soul Ancestor patriarch of Qi Trading House, hadn't come to Swampsea Woods either, further confirming the rumor.
Naturally, Simon Qi couldn't go to Swampsea Woods now. His arm had been destroyed, and he needed to find a top-tier treasure to restore it as soon as possible, or he'd remain stuck at the Fourth Level Soul Ancestor for life.
Golden Core cultivators still faced many restrictions in Swampsea Woods, but Soul Ancestor cultivators did not. Simon Qi's inability to enter the woods actually made things much safer for Joe Di and Garrett Lance.