When Jason Silentwood was gravely wounded and tried to escape, Warren Wraith and Franklin Young attacked him simultaneously. Not only that, Franklin Young shouted sternly, "Anyone who doesn't act now won't be allowed to leave with us later!"
There were no fools here; everyone understood Franklin Young's meaning. Given Joe Di's previous arrogance, if he hadn't laid a deathtrap array at the Eight Trigram Array's exit, it would be laughable.
It didn't matter if Joe Di had set a deathtrap array; as long as they joined forces to break out, no matter how powerful he was, he couldn't withstand so many Genesis Realm Emperors.
Now Jason Silentwood was clearly severely injured, and he had planned to ambush all the Genesis Realm Emperors with forbidden rituals. In this situation, no one wanted to miss such an opportunity.
Jason Silentwood knew the danger; he didn't even bother to retrieve his array disk, turning to flee at once.
But before he could activate his talisman, Warren Wraith cast a black net that locked onto him. At the same time, Franklin Young smashed down a massive Obsidian Monument, dozens of meters wide. Under the monument's crushing force, Jason Silentwood's domain couldn't resist at all—it shattered instantly.
Despair welled up in Jason Silentwood's heart. He knew that if he weren't injured, he could have escaped, but now it was almost impossible.
Since escape was impossible, he decided to fight for all he was worth.
Understanding this, Jason Silentwood ignored Warren Wraith and Franklin Young's attacks. His domain locked onto two or three mid-stage Genesis Realm cultivators, and his Grand Seal, fueled by all his divine power, smashed down upon them.
Boom! Splatter!
As Jason Silentwood's Grand Seal smashed down, the Obsidian Monument struck his head, erupting in a cloud of blood. At that moment, his Grand Seal obliterated two mid-stage Genesis Realm cultivators, leaving not even their souls behind. Only Mark Mariner of the Sea Clan survived, thanks to a top-tier defensive artifact, though he was gravely injured.
With Jason Silentwood slain and Mark Mariner barely escaping with his life, his first action was not to seize anyone's possessions, but to withdraw from the range of Warren Wraith and Franklin Young's attacks. Not only was his cultivation the lowest, but he was also seriously injured—what right did he have to fight for anyone's loot?
Ten people entered, but now only three remained.
"Fellow Daoist Franklin, Fellow Daoist Mark, how should we divide Jason Silentwood's and the other two's rings?" Warren Wraith didn't rush to snatch Jason Silentwood's ring, even though he knew it must contain countless treasures.
The situation was delicate: Mark Mariner seemed the weakest and was also injured, but he was the key to the balance of power.
Both Warren Wraith and Franklin Young were late-stage Genesis Realm cultivators. Whichever side Mark Mariner chose, the other would be at a disadvantage.
Franklin Young clasped his fists and said, "Fellow Daoist Warren, you keep Jason Silentwood's ring. Mark and I will each take one of the other two rings. How about that?"
Warren Wraith was secretly delighted—clearly, Jason Silentwood's ring was the most valuable. Before he could reply, Mark Mariner said, "My cultivation is the lowest; I won't take a ring."
Warren Wraith immediately laughed, "In that case, I'll take Jason Silentwood's ring, and the other two go to Franklin Young."
Franklin Young, like him, was also a late-stage Genesis Realm cultivator. Warren Wraith dared not underestimate him.
"That works perfectly," Franklin Young said without hesitation, picking up the two rings from the mid-stage Genesis Realm cultivators, and also taking Jason Silentwood's Ninth-Rank Array Disk.
Warren Wraith felt a pang of regret—the Ninth-Rank Array Disk was incredibly valuable. He had wanted to claim it along with Jason Silentwood's possessions, but now that Franklin Young had taken it first, he couldn't say anything. After all, he had already taken Jason Silentwood's ring; asking for the array disk as well would be too much.
Seeing Warren Wraith pocket Jason Silentwood's ring, Franklin Young sneered inwardly—serves him right.
After Warren Wraith took the ring, he said with satisfaction, "Franklin, I've wanted to deal with Joe Di for a long time. I'm sure he's set up a deathtrap array outside. If we three act together, even if he managed to set up a sixth-tier deathtrap array, it wouldn't worry me."
"Warren, are you a Sixth-Rank Formation Grandmaster?" Franklin Young asked in surprise.
Warren Wraith chuckled, "I'm a Fifth-Rank Array Grandmaster—not quite sixth, but I don't fear sixth-tier arrays."
Hearing Warren Wraith was unfazed by sixth-tier arrays, Franklin Young wondered if he had been too cautious in giving Warren Jason Silentwood's ring. In his mind, no matter how skilled Joe Di was, he could at most set up a sixth-tier deathtrap array. If there were only one or two people, Joe Di and his array might truly be able to kill them. But with Warren as a Fifth-Rank Array Grandmaster, there was no need to fear Joe Di.
Though he felt a bit of regret, Franklin Young still laughed and said, "Since Warren is a Fifth-Rank Array Grandmaster, there's nothing to worry about. With the three of us and Warren's array mastery, even Joe Di will have to drink our foot-washing water."
Previously, they hadn't feared Joe Di's deathtrap array outside because there were eight or nine of them. No matter how formidable Joe Di was, he couldn't trap eight or nine Genesis Realm Emperors alone. But no one expected things to change so drastically—ten entered, and only three would leave.
......
After Joe Di retrieved two Five Direction Banners, he used four of them to upgrade his deathtrap array to a Seventh-Rank Formation. And it was among the strongest of seventh-tier deathtrap arrays.
Originally, Joe Di intended to trap six people, then let three or four go. But unexpectedly, after Gou Zibi left, only three came over.
Warren Wraith—he was a must-kill target. Franklin Young probably didn't like him either; if he learned Joe Di had killed the demon clan's Jin Shengxun, he wouldn't let it go. As for Mark Mariner, the Sea Clan mid-stage Genesis Realm, Joe Di didn't pay him much mind.
But what about the other three? Jason Silentwood was nowhere to be seen, and besides him, two other mid-stage Genesis Realm cultivators were also missing.
No matter—he would trap these three first.
"No need to go any further; this must be the entrance to that brat's trap array," Warren Wraith said, stopping in his tracks.
Joe Di was speechless. Without hesitation, he flung out dozens of array banners, instantly rearranging the Law Array Banners. If this was the extent of his array mastery, he wouldn't dare block a group of Genesis Realm Emperors here.
The surrounding space shifted in an instant, oppressive energy sweeping over them. Both Warren Wraith and Franklin Young found their divine sense suppressed to the extreme.
Franklin Young's expression changed. Though his array skills weren't as high as Warren Wraith's, he was well-traveled. When Warren spoke, they were still outside Joe Di's deathtrap array, but now he was certain they'd entered it. And from his sense of things, Joe Di's array was likely not a sixth-tier deathtrap array.
Warren Wraith was startled, a sense of foreboding rising within him. He realized this deathtrap array wasn't sixth-tier—it was seventh-tier. To pull him into a seventh-tier deathtrap array required more than just being a Seventh-Rank Formation Sovereign; it demanded profound mastery of spatial laws.
But how could Joe Di possibly set up a seventh-tier deathtrap array? It was simply impossible.
Seeing Warren Wraith's expression, Franklin Young knew his guess was right. Warren might be a Fifth-Rank Array Grandmaster, but compared to Joe Di, he was a tier below.
With this in mind, Franklin Young stepped away from Warren Wraith without hesitation, calling out, "Joe Di, I've always respected you. Why use a guardian array to trap me?"
Joe Di treated Franklin Young's words as air and asked, "Where is Jason Silentwood?"
Before Franklin Young could reply, Mark Mariner hurried forward and answered, "Jason Silentwood tried to use our blood for a corruption ritual on the Chaos Lotus, so we joined forces and killed him."
"Who has Jason Silentwood's ring?" Joe Di asked calmly. Though he didn't fear the three Genesis Realm Emperors, trapping all three made it difficult to kill Warren Wraith. If one of them risked self-destruction, he might not be able to kill Warren.
Franklin Young was secretly pleased, just as he'd expected. "Joe Di, Jason Silentwood's ring is with Warren Wraith."
Still trapped in the deathtrap array and studying the formation, Warren Wraith's heart sank at Franklin Young's words. He finally understood why Franklin hadn't wanted Jason Silentwood's ring.