Lucas Pearl chuckled, "I'm on pretty good terms with Brother Joe Di. We're currently discussing a business deal. If you try to make a move against Joe Di's friend now, I naturally have to protect him. Otherwise, if Joe Di blames me later, he might refuse to do business with me."
Sean Chen had already regained his composure and smiled faintly. "I wish you prosperous business, Lucas. I, too, share quite a bit of history with Joe Di. Perhaps we can all get a bit closer later."
Though Sean Chen concealed his true strength, in Lucas Pearl's eyes, he was even stronger than Zhan Yiji. Yet, Lucas Pearl did not see Sean Chen as his strongest opponent, nor was Sean Chen the one he sought Joe Di's help to deal with.
"Thank you for your help, Senior," Nate Rivers said respectfully to Lucas Pearl. If Sean Chen had taken him away, he feared that no secret would remain safe.
Lucas Pearl chuckled again. "No need to thank me. Look over there at that young lady—isn't she the one you care about?"
Nate Rivers suddenly turned his head and immediately saw Jane Huan watching him from afar. He nearly rushed towards her in excitement, but calmed himself in that instant. He had seen Zane Han—the First Vice Mayor of Genesis City—standing with the other vice mayors, seemingly discussing matters related to the Cosmic Seat Plaza.
Nate Rivers was certain that if he dared to rush over, Zane Han would make sure he never saw Jane Huan again.
Jane Huan looked up at her father, longing in her eyes, yet she dared not voice her wish to see Nate Rivers.
Her father had already spared Nate Rivers, which was an immense act of indulgence. If she tried to see Nate Rivers now, her father might truly develop murderous intent towards him.
She knew she shouldn't, but she couldn't help wanting to see Nate Rivers. At this moment, the distance between them was almost just a single step—yet that step felt impossibly far.
Zane Han clearly understood his daughter's intentions. While chatting with an Honorary Lord Mayor beside him, he turned to Jane Huan and said, "Go ahead and wander around, but don't stray too far. Once that cultivator finishes inscribing his name at the Cosmic Seat Plaza, the resonance of the cosmic Dao will be at its clearest—you'll gain much from it."
"Yes, thank you, Father." Jane Huan's voice trembled with excitement. She knew this was her father's permission to see Nate Rivers. Though she could guess at his reasons, none of them mattered—as long as she could be with Nate Rivers again.
"Brother Zane, you are truly blessed," the Honorary Lord Mayor said, watching Jane Huan head straight toward Nate Rivers's direction, praising Zane Han.
Zane Han laughed heartily. "The younger generation has their own ideas; all we can do is let them be."
He was no fool. Previously, he had kept his daughter from meeting Nate Rivers because Nate hailed from the Five Elements Universe, whose prospects were bleak. Not only had the Five Elements Universe failed to inscribe its name at the Cosmic Seat Plaza, it didn't even have a foothold in Genesis City.
Moreover, Zane Edge had joined forces with Sean Chen and several Dao Masters from other universes to crush the Five Elements Universe, leaving it with almost no hope of rising. In such circumstances, not killing Nate Rivers was already the utmost indulgence. To expect him to approve of Nate Rivers and his daughter? That was out of the question.
But now things were different. The Five Elements Universe cultivator who had charged onto the Cosmic Seat Plaza was clearly Nate Rivers's elder. With such a powerhouse emerging from the Five Elements Universe, inscribing its name at the plaza was a certainty. Once that was done, there would be no more worries about finding a place in Genesis City.
As the Dao Master of the Yipan Universe, Zane Han himself had once inscribed the name of his universe at the Cosmic Seat Plaza.
Whether it was Zane Han or other Dao Masters, they had all inscribed their universe's names at the plaza by relying on the Genesis City's Creation Resonance Pool.
But someone like Joe Di, who neither relied on the Creation Resonance Pool nor prayed or swore an oath before charging onto the Cosmic Seat Plaza—this was truly a first for Zane Han.
It was precisely because Joe Di had charged onto the Cosmic Seat Plaza that such a commotion erupted. Unfortunately, Zane Edge was not in Genesis City; otherwise, it would have been a spectacular life-and-death battle.
Zane Edge would never allow anyone to inscribe their name at the plaza without relying on the Creation Pool, nor would he tolerate anyone doing so outside his control.
You could say that Joe Di was simply lucky—he came to leave his mark when Zane Edge happened to be away.
Though Zane Edge was absent, Joe Di managed to withstand the crushing Dao resonance of the plaza with his own abilities. He was no ordinary person. With such a powerful backer, Nate Rivers wouldn't suffer injustice if he were with Zane Han's daughter.
What Zane Han didn't know was that Zane Edge's absence from Genesis City was also related to Joe Di. If he knew, he would have been even less likely to oppose his daughter's relationship with Nate Rivers.
...
Joe Di came to a halt—his divine sense was completely sealed, and not even his Dao of Laws could influence the rules here. Joe Di understood that the problem wasn't with his Dao, but that the plaza's cosmic rules were simply too advanced, far beyond what his current cultivation could affect.
Perhaps when he reached the Genesis Realm, he could alter the rules here and bring this world under his own Dao of Laws.
On the hazy plaza, one Dao Resonance Stele after another floated—some high, some low. Each stele bore the name of a universe, surrounded by swirling Dao resonance and encircled by streams of purple fortune.
Where should he inscribe the name of the Five Elements Universe? Joe Di searched around but found no empty stele. Every stele already bore the name of another universe.
Moreover, the cosmic rules here were clearly too advanced—his divine sense was bound, and he couldn't tear through this restraint with his own Dao of Laws.
Joe Di tried to take a step forward, but to his surprise, as soon as he willed it, his foot wouldn't budge. That single step felt as heavy as a thousand pounds. Without the support of his Dao, he couldn't move even an inch.
Standing still, Joe Di knew that if he couldn't step forward, he would be unable to leave his mark in this place.
The sole purpose of entering the Cosmic Seat was to inscribe one's universe's name. If he failed, being mocked by other universes would be the least of his worries—the greater danger was that the Five Elements Universe might be expelled from the Genesis Universe.
Perhaps there was an even greater cosmic Dao above Genesis, and if the Five Elements Universe couldn't even exist, how could it hope to break free from this world? How could it ever control its own fate?
Dao resonance burned around Joe Di, his laws whirled frantically. The resonance and laws surrounding him crackled with the rotation of his cosmic fate, yet he still couldn't take a single step.
Joe Di drew in a sharp breath and couldn't help but summon Fate's Loom—his legendary bow. He refused to accept this defeat. If he could use Time's Third Loom and Fourth Loom to charge onto the Cosmic Seat Plaza, surely he could take a step here as well.
The resonance of time surged, and wild temporal power exploded around Joe Di. Fate's Loom, his legendary longbow, finally spanned the void before his eyes.
Joe Di struggled to brace himself with the longbow, Dao resonance burning as time flickered around him. In that moment, it was as if the entirety of a person's life was being fast-forwarded to the extreme.
Time flows like a shuttle, life is fleeting; the forest blooms, spring fades to red—all within a single thought...
Joe Di's jet-black hair instantly turned grey, the frenzied passage of time Dao resonance forging a new void. Within this void, Joe Di was finally free from restraint. His archer's stance fully unfolded, and Fate's Loom swept up endless temporal laws, tearing rifts through the powerful rules of the world.
Dao resonance rises, the longbow stands!
Fate's Loom, weaving life and death beyond comprehension. Looking back, I draw my bow northward, aiming for the Sirius!
Boom! Dao resonance burst forth as the Time Arrow swept up endless brilliance of temporal Dao resonance, tearing through all obstacles around him. The space surrounding Joe Di cleared, and his vision instantly opened up.
(That's all for today, friends. Good night! Lao Wu wishes all readers of 'Heaven's Ninth' a happy new year, may everything go smoothly, and may you have good health! For my New Year's greetings and reflections on writing 'Heaven's Ninth' so far, check out my public WeChat account—already posted. You can search for the official account '鹅是老五' or 'eslw26' on WeChat.)