Guy Jinxuan came straight here, clearly intent on seeking out Moria Lane.
Joe Di didn’t know how Guy Jinxuan knew Moria Lane was here, but based on the incomplete Puregate Stele Fragment in Moria Lane’s possession, he guessed this place must be the Puregate Ruins of the Immortal Realm.
Guy Jinxuan specifically came to Puregate Sect to look for Moria Lane; it was likely that something on Moria Lane attracted him. Whatever it was, Joe Di knew they couldn’t stay here long.
Since Guy Jinxuan had come here, it was possible that Guy Silver or Guy Iron might come in the future.
Joe Di picked up Moria Lane and swiftly escaped the ruins where the battle had taken place.
After Joe Di had traveled for about half a day, two more cultivators arrived—Quentin Yang and Quentin Drew from Grand Fortuna City.
“Advisor Yang, it seems the city lord isn’t here,” Quentin Drew remarked, glancing around in confusion.
Quentin Yang chuckled, “Look, isn’t the city lord already here?”
Quentin Drew instinctively turned his head, but immediately sensed something was wrong. Quentin Yang acted like a dog before the city lord—if the city lord were here, he wouldn’t speak so casually, but would have already bowed in greeting.
Almost as soon as Quentin Drew sensed the danger, "Pfft!" A deadly aura pierced through his back, and all his strength vanished in an instant.
"Quentin Drew, you..." Quentin Yang struggled to turn his head, staring at Quentin Yang in disbelief. In that moment, his primordial spirit was pinned down by Quentin Yang's treacherous attack.
With a flick of Quentin Yang's wrist, Quentin Drew's physical body was shattered into dust, leaving only a single ring that Quentin Yang snatched up.
*Footnote: 'True Immortal' and 'immortal essence' refer to advanced cultivation ranks and energies in xianxia worlds. See glossary for details.
"A mere ant dares to covet the position of City Lord." Quentin Yang sneered, stepping to the side and picking up a tattered boot.
He knew this boot all too well—it belonged to Guy Jinxuan.
Since Guy Jinxuan's boot was here, he was certain Guy Jinxuan had perished.
With Guy Jinxuan gone, Grand Fortuna City would soon be his. At this moment, Quentin Yang could barely contain his laughter. He truly wanted to thank that Puregate Sect disciple—it must have been that disciple who killed Guy Jinxuan.
Guy Jinxuan was blinded by the allure of the Puregate Sect disciple, completely forgetting how terrifying that disciple was. After years of trailing behind Guy Jinxuan as a dog, Quentin Yang finally had his chance to take charge.
As for whether Guy Jinxuan might return, Quentin Yang gave it no thought at all. As long as he could convert his immortal essence and step into the True Immortal realm,* even if Guy Jinxuan came back, what would it matter?
*Footnote: The 'True Immortal realm' is a high rank in xianxia cultivation, signifying mastery over powerful energies and abilities beyond ordinary immortals. 'Immortal essence' is a refined spiritual energy used for advanced cultivation and techniques.
It was a pity about that Puregate Sect disciple—if Guy Jinxuan couldn't do anything to him, Quentin Yang surely couldn't either. Still, it didn't matter; with Grand Fortuna City, his strength would soon approach the Golden Immortal realm.*
*Footnote: The 'Golden Immortal realm' is an even higher rank in xianxia cultivation, representing a level of power and mastery that few achieve.
......
Half a day later, Joe Di carved out a cave dwelling on a desolate peak, finally leading Moria Lane inside.
Moria Lane was still wounded, her injuries yet to heal. Now, with her spirit shaken, recovery would be a long and arduous process.
On the jade bed, Joe Di carefully removed Moria Lane's tattered garments one by one, exposing the wound that ran from her chest to her abdomen.
The ring she once wore had long since vanished—no one knew how it was lost. No wonder her clothes were in tatters with nothing to change into, and her serious injuries had gone untreated by any healing pills. In the Twilight Immortal Era, losing a ring meant losing even a single spirit stone—a fatal blow.
Years after arriving in the Twilight Domain, most cultivators looked like wandering vagrants. Yet it was rare to see someone like Moria Lane, whose clothes could barely cover her body.
Joe Di guessed that the trauma to Moria Lane's spirit stemmed not only from the Puregate Sect's destruction and the Immortal Realm's dire state, but also from losing her sense of purpose.
For a cultivator to lose direction and purpose, then arrive in a place where cultivation was impossible, and even lose their ring—that was truly terrifying.
Joe Di was no stranger to the female form, but he had never seen a body as perfect as Moria Lane's. Even with the terrible wound on her chest, blood still seeping from it, her beauty remained undiminished.
Aside from once having feelings for Zhen Man, Joe Di had never been moved by any other woman. Once he began cultivating, he no longer let romantic emotions occupy his heart.
Even when facing Jing Mo Shuang, his feelings were of a different nature altogether.
At this moment, as Joe Di faced Moria Lane's body, a sudden heat surged within him. He took a deep breath and recited several Clearmind Incantations to steady himself.
He sighed. Back in the Minor Central World, after meeting Moria Lane, Joe Di had deliberately investigated the Puregate Sect. Disciples of the Puregate Sect were forbidden from falling in love or having Dao partners.
If Moria Lane were conscious, she would likely rather die than have her body seen by another.
"I can't be blamed for this. In this damned Immortal Realm, we have to make do." Joe Di muttered to himself, then gave Moria Lane a healing pill, cleaned her wounds, and finally refined several sets of female cultivator robes for her to wear.
The first time Joe Di saw Moria Lane, she wore only a plain green Dao robe. She seemed intent on hiding her appearance, leaving others with the impression of simple elegance.
Now, after Joe Di had washed her, her long hair was loosely tied behind her back, and she wore a newly refined pale blue immortal dress—her beauty was breathtaking.
Her beauty was utterly untainted by dust, transcending this world itself.
Joe Di averted his gaze, knowing Moria Lane was a fiercely independent woman. Even as a Puregate Sect disciple, she possessed her own thoughts and will.
He took out a ring, placing some of the clothes he'd refined, along with a few spirit veins and spirit stones, inside it before slipping it onto Moria Lane's hand.
At least when Moria Lane awoke, she'd have a ring in hand and wouldn't need to awkwardly ask him about her clothes.
After finishing these tasks, Joe Di picked up Guy Jinxuan's ring and began refining it.
Guy Jinxuan might have been a True Immortal, but the restrictions on his ring were no match for Joe Di. It took Joe Di only half an incense stick's time to open it.
When Joe Di's divine sense swept over the pile of Immortal Crystals inside Guy Jinxuan's ring, he clenched his fist in delight.
He had been in the Immortal Realm for over a hundred years, yet this was his first time seeing Immortal Crystals. Regardless of their grade, the immortal aura they radiated was enough to make Joe Di feel his cultivation loosen just by touching them with his divine sense.
Cultivating in the Immortal Realm required a Fortune Gathering Array—even with Immortal Crystals, one could only restore immortal essence. This didn't suit Joe Di; he possessed a golden Dao Principle, whose laws clearly surpassed all others in the Immortal Realm. As long as he connected with the golden Dao Principle in his Sea of Consciousness, he could absorb immortal aura for cultivation.
In truth, he didn't have a golden Dao Principle, but after comprehending the 108 foundational laws of the Fivefold Dao Tower, he had found a way to cultivate here—provided he had Immortal Crystals.
Joe Di counted the Immortal Crystals in Guy Jinxuan's ring: nearly fifty thousand lesser Immortal Crystals, and 137 mid-grade Immortal Crystals. There were no high-grade or supreme-grade ones.
Aside from these Immortal Crystals, there was a massive pile of spirit stones. Joe Di estimated there were tens of thousands of billions, all high-grade spirit stones. Unfortunately, they were useless to him.
Useful or not, Joe Di sent all the Immortal Crystals and spirit stones into his True Spirit World. He couldn't use them, but there were still little treants and Blackfire cultivating in seclusion inside.
After more than a century, Tree Brother had become an eighth-level tree demon, and Blackfire had reached the ninth-level peak. With the chaotic aura of the Immortal Realm, cultivation was impossible, so Joe Di didn't intend for Tree Brother and Blackfire to come out and experience such disorder.
As for the jade slips of techniques and pills in Guy Jinxuan's ring, Joe Di found them worthless. Not a single Immortal Pill, only low-grade cultivation pills.
However, Joe Di singled out a turtle shell from the ring.
Ancient immortal script on the shell recorded: The artifact that suppresses the realm's fate is the Fourfold Divine Cauldron. With the Fourfold Divine Cauldron stabilizing fortune, the Immortal Realm flourishes and strong cultivators rise.
Upon seeing this, Joe Di wondered if the Fourfold Divine Cauldron had been taken, causing the collapse of the realm's fortune, making cultivation and survival impossible, and ultimately leading to chaos and slaughter.
This information sparked a new idea in Joe Di: if he set up a Fortune Gathering Array in the Twilight Immortal Era, unless it was ninth-grade or higher, it would only prolong survival.
What if he referenced ancient methods and set up a Grand Five Elements Array to suppress fortune?
The reason he thought of the Grand Five Elements Array was because he possessed a Leaving Earth Flame Banner.
Joe Di didn't know the grade of the Fourfold Divine Cauldron, but if he added the Leaving Earth Flame Banner to the Grand Five Elements Array, its effect on suppressing fortune would be nearly as strong. Unfortunately, without the other four banners, he couldn't complete the set. If he gathered all five, the Grand Five Elements Array would surely surpass the Fourfold Divine Cauldron in suppressing fate.