A streak of crimson light flashed, landing in Frederick Qi's hand. Frederick Qi frowned slightly.
With his status and position, unless something truly significant occurred, he was not permitted to receive such flying sword messages. He would receive only one of these messages every few years, and even that was a major event. Yet today, he had received two in such a short span—this was utter chaos.
If the news brought by the first flying sword message were not so momentous, he would have already lost his temper.
When Frederick Qi swept his divine sense into the flying sword, his expression changed and he abruptly stood up.
“What happened, Family Head?” Even Ezekiel Qi could not help but ask.
Both Frederick Qi and Ezekiel Qi were cultivators at the Void Spirit Stage, but Frederick Qi was much steadier in temperament than Ezekiel Qi. Unless something truly monumental occurred, Frederick Qi would never be so shaken.
A murderous aura radiated from Frederick Qi. He tossed the flying sword message to Ezekiel Qi and said, “Joe Di has wiped out our Qi Trading House in Ruinsgate City, leaving no survivors. Ethan Qi, Hugo Qi, Simon Qi—all are dead...”
“What?” This statement shocked every Qi Family cultivator in the council hall to their feet. The news was even more astounding than the recent merger of Aurora Continent and Veil Continent.
“Wasn’t Joe Di supposed to have died in the Polar Night Ruins? Even if he survived, how could he be so terrifying?” A mid-stage Soul Ancestor of the Qi Family asked in disbelief, firing off two questions in quick succession.
“He has already arrived in Thornsea City through the teleportation array. By rights, he should be at our Qi Trading House.” Frederick Qi’s tone dripped with killing intent.
Every Soul Ancestor of the Qi Family was incredibly valuable. Now that Joe Di had killed three of them, no matter what happened, if Frederick Qi did not flay Joe Di alive and burn his soul, he would be unworthy of his position as Family Head.
Boom! Almost as Frederick Qi finished speaking, the Qi Family's protective array was blasted apart. Joe Di's arrogant voice rang out, “Old ghost, you guessed right—your Grandpa Joe has come for revenge!”
“A mere ant dares to claim vengeance against the Qi Family? Everyone, attack—dead or alive, capture him first!” Frederick Qi finished speaking and was the first to unleash his artifact at Joe Di.
Even though he believed Joe Di was at most at the Soul Ancestor stage and could be crushed single-handedly, Frederick Qi still ordered all Qi Family powerhouses to join the fight.
After activating the killing array, Joe Di charged directly into the midst of the Qi Family's Soul Ancestor cultivators. This time, he did not allow any of the cultivators in the Trading House to escape; to do so would put him at a severe disadvantage.
This was the Qi Family headquarters, rumored to have Void Spirit cultivators. It was nothing like the Qi Trading House in Ruinsgate City.
Joe Di rushed forward and unleashed a Windblade. He had come here to kill—there was no room for hesitation.
The raging blade intent transformed into a vortex of blade currents, sweeping outward. Two first-tier Soul Ancestor cultivators were instantly shredded by the vortex.
“Kill!” Frederick Qi was the first to unleash his long blade at Joe Di. His artifact, like Joe Di’s, was a blade.
This time, Ezekiel Qi did not hold back. He grabbed a massive iron mound and hurled it at Joe Di. He cultivated the Path of Strength, relying on overwhelming force. Even without using an artifact, his iron fists could sweep away all opposition.
Frederick Qi’s blade intent locked onto Joe Di, and he breathed a sigh of relief. As long as his blade intent locked onto him, Joe Di was as good as dead. Though the Qi Family had lost several Soul Ancestors, eliminating this hidden, formidable enemy was at least some consolation.
If this were the old Joe Di, before he mastered blade intent, he would have responded with a Heaven-Swirl Reversal Slash. But now, Frederick Qi’s blade intent appeared riddled with flaws in Joe Di’s eyes. Joe Di darted amid the blade’s radiance, his Azure Veil Blade simultaneously locking onto Ezekiel Qi, then unleashed a punch.
Facing so many opponents, Joe Di pushed the Grand Kun Body Refinement Art to its limit, a faint layer of true essence circulating over his skin.
Ezekiel Qi was his must-kill target—this was the man who had razed Starstream School.
“A mere ant dares...” Ezekiel Qi saw Joe Di punch at his Iron Mound and even lock him with blade intent, all while ignoring the blade intent from a Void Spirit cultivator behind him and attacks from several Soul Ancestor cultivators. Was this arrogance or did Joe Di think himself a True Transformation cultivator?
Boom boom boom! Peaks converged into several mountain-like fists, colliding with Ezekiel Qi’s Iron Mound. The explosion of true essence forced two mid-stage Soul Ancestors, who tried to ambush Joe Di, to retreat.
“So strong!” Ezekiel Qi suddenly felt a sense of dread as Joe Di’s Crackblade swept toward him.
“I don’t believe it!” Ezekiel Qi had no time to recall the Iron Mound and punched at Joe Di’s Azure Veil Blade.
Spurt! A spray of blood burst behind Joe Di. His body only swayed slightly, but his Azure Veil Blade slashed down with even greater ferocity.
Frederick Qi felt his heart sink. He took no pleasure in leaving a massive, nearly two-foot-long gash on Joe Di’s back with his blade.
For in the instant his long blade struck Joe Di’s back, Frederick Qi’s blade intent was completely shattered. The only explanation was that Joe Di’s blade intent was far stronger. When blade intent clashed, his own collapsed. And this was when Joe Di wasn’t even targeting him directly—if Joe Di had focused solely on Frederick Qi, he probably wouldn’t have landed a single hit.
But what truly terrified Frederick Qi was not just the collapse of his blade intent. Even with his blade landing solidly on Joe Di, given his cultivation and true essence, it should have split Joe Di in two, no matter how strong Joe Di’s protective essence was. Instead, all he managed was a two-foot gash on Joe Di’s back.
The wound looked deep and frightening, but Frederick Qi knew it hadn’t harmed Joe Di’s core at all.
There was only one reason: Joe Di’s comprehension of blade intent surpassed his own, and he was also an exceptionally strong body cultivator. To refine the flesh to the point that Frederick Qi’s blade couldn’t split it—at the very least, Joe Di was at the Three Kings Realm of body refinement.
A body cultivator at the Three Kings Realm could withstand Frederick Qi’s attacks while still fighting Ezekiel Qi with full force. A sense of dread welled up from deep within Frederick Qi—he had a very bad feeling.
(Irrelevant passage indicating chapter continuation. Skipping translation.)
Since childhood, he had never felt this way before.
Crack! The sound of brittle bones tearing echoed, chilling Ezekiel Qi to the core. Even if his fist struck Frederick Qi’s blade, all it would usually leave was a pale mark. But now, his fist felt icy cold.
Bang! Blood exploded from his fist, and Ezekiel Qi finally understood the source of the chill—Joe Di’s blade had split his fist, then torn his arm in two.
“How dare you!” Ezekiel Qi was both furious and terrified. His fist was the embodiment of his strength—now, with Joe Di’s single slash, his Dao foundation was destroyed.
The Crackblade crashed into Ezekiel Qi, and lines of blade intent exploded within his body, tearing apart both his hands and feet.
Thud—having lost his limbs, Ezekiel Qi plummeted from the sky, and his sea of consciousness began to collapse.
A chill ran through Ezekiel Qi’s heart. He understood why he had not died yet—Joe Di was deliberately prolonging his suffering.
Frederick Qi swept his long blade forth once more, fully aware that today was the day of life and death for the Qi Family. If Joe Di was not killed, the Qi Family would be finished.
Joe Di’s Azure Veil Blade flashed again, easily slaying two mid-stage Soul Ancestor cultivators. Simon Qi retreated in a frenzy.
Joe Di ignored Simon Qi and spun around, unleashing a punch.
Peaks gathered, waves raged—continuous fist waves crashed toward Frederick Qi. His blade intent instantly shattered, and he could no longer muster his blade force.
Bang! Swept up by the fist waves, Frederick Qi’s chest felt as if struck by a giant hammer, leaving him utterly drained.
Joe Di breathed a sigh of relief. He had worried that the gap between Void Spirit and ninth-level Soul Ancestor cultivators would be too vast. Though he could easily crush Ethan Qi, that didn’t mean he could defeat a first-tier Void Spirit. Now he realized he’d overthought it—the Qi Family’s two first-tier Void Spirit cultivators were no threat to him.
A shrill scream rang out as Simon Qi, who had just charged forward, was sent flying back.
This was exactly as Joe Di had expected. With his seventh-tier strangling array, if Simon Qi managed to escape, his array skills would be truly pathetic.
Before Simon Qi could hit the ground, Joe Di’s Azure Veil Blade swept out, slicing Simon Qi in half—along with a sixth-level Soul Ancestor of the Qi Family.
Now that he was accustomed to his blade intent and fourth-level Soul Ancestor combat power, killing Qi Family Soul Ancestors was as easy as slaughtering chickens.
“Stop!” Frederick Qi knew it was over. The Qi Family was finished—they had provoked a monster like Joe Di. His greatest fear had finally come to pass.
Joe Di’s face was a little pale, and he did stop. The battle had been brief, but he had expended a vast amount of true essence and divine sense and had only suffered a single slash from Frederick Qi.
This was thanks to his Void Realm body refinement and the Grand Kun Body Refinement Art—otherwise, he would never have dared fight this way. But this style of combat, direct and straightforward, was always Joe Di’s favorite.
“Fellow Daoist Di, our Qi Trading House was blind to offend you. We’re willing to pay any price if you’ll spare us just this once,” Frederick Qi pleaded sincerely.
He hated Ezekiel Qi to the core. Previously, Joe Di had seized several Qi Trading Houses, but aside from the Northridge City branch, he hadn’t killed many. Later, the family learned that most of those slain in Northridge City weren’t killed by Joe Di, but by a hunchbacked powerhouse.
This proved Joe Di was not bloodthirsty. It was only because Ezekiel Qi destroyed Starstream School that Joe Di resolved to annihilate the Qi Trading House.
Ezekiel Qi’s eyes were already dead and gray. He could never have imagined the Qi Family would end like this, nor that Joe Di would be so powerful. He was doomed, and the Qi Family would be erased from history because of him.
Joe Di couldn’t be bothered with Frederick Qi. His long blade swept out again—the Heaven’s Canopy Blade.
No matter what Frederick Qi said, Joe Di was determined to wipe out the Qi Trading House.
The Heaven’s Canopy slashed down, its blade intent infused with the laws of the world, utterly breaking Frederick Qi’s spirit.