Joe Di gripped the Azure Veil Blade, now transformed to three feet nine inches, his heart surging with excitement. Though his Azure Veil Blade might not be a Creation Treasure, it could now easily tear through such artifacts.
At this moment, the Azure Veil Blade in his hand not only felt as if it were connected to his very bloodline, but also possessed an indescribable spiritual resonance.
A magic weapon does not necessarily need to develop a spirit to be considered the best, especially for offensive treasures. The true weapon is one that can pierce all illusions.
Joe Di did not know which universe he was currently in, but that no longer mattered to him.
Just as Joe Di was about to tear open the realm and use his divine sense to search for his bearings, a hoarse voice interrupted his movement.
"Nice blade, but sadly, you won't get a chance to use it."
With that hoarse voice, a powerful and overwhelming aura pressed down, followed by a figure landing not far from Joe Di. It was a young man in purple robes, holding a pale yellow jade disc.
At the first sight of this purple-robed youth, Joe Di instantly shifted his form and turned to leave.
He could not understand how Chi Yao had found him here, or how he had managed to track him down.
No matter the reason, Joe Di would never face Chi Yao alone. He was no match for Chi Yao, and fighting him would be pointless. If he could handle Chi Yao by himself, he wouldn't have needed so many preparations. With the Grand Cosmic Debate about to begin, Joe Di had no desire to get injured now.
Since he had the means to deal with Chi Yao, why would he come alone?
Bang! Joe Di was blocked by an invisible ripple of Dao laws, his movement technique stalled and forced to a halt.
Joe Di's expression darkened. He knew he had been outmaneuvered. Yet, he had no idea when Chi Yao had set up a barrier in this part of the void, nor how it went unnoticed. Perhaps he'd been too focused on refining his Azure Veil Blade.
Joe Di simply stopped, turned to glare at Chi Yao, and said, "Then let your great-grandfather see if there's a chance to split your skull with this blade."
Chi Yao replied coldly, "The Cosmic Extreme Vein I was using to stabilize my cultivation was stolen by you. Even the Vast Iron Crystal I left behind, you dared to take. No wonder you have such nerve, not even fearing the Venom of Delusion—and you’re still alive."
Chi Yao was furious. He had thought Joe Di had perished long ago and planned, after finishing with the Creation Nest, to find the place where Joe Di had died, break open his universe, and take the other half of the Cosmic Extreme Vein. Never did he expect Joe Di to survive the Venom of Delusion.
Now, Joe Di was alive and standing before him, having even dared to take away the Vast Iron Crystal—and actually succeeded. Not only that, he had refined the Vast Iron Crystal into a magic weapon. Luckily, Chi Yao had left a backup in the Vast Iron Crystal, so when Joe Di refined it, he was sealed by the trap, unable to escape. Otherwise, with Joe Di's movement technique, he would have gotten away again just now.
Joe Di knew he could only fight desperately now. As the Dao resonance surged around him, he sneered, "Chi Yao, honestly, you should be hiding in a cave somewhere, focusing on stabilizing your cultivation. I never expected you'd dare show yourself—impressive, truly impressive. Aren't you afraid that, when you vie for the divine seat, someone will tear you to pieces?"
Joe Di really didn't understand. Right now, Chi Yao should be preparing madly for the Fourth Step, not wasting time chasing him across the void. If that were the case, Chi Yao wouldn't have come after him.
"Leave the Cosmic Extreme Vein, and the blade as well. I’ll allow you to reincarnate..." Chi Yao's voice was icy, and as he spoke, a deathly aura pressed down on Joe Di like a sun-blocking cloud, suffocating him even before the fight began.
Joe Di's heart stirred—this wasn't Chi Yao's usual style. With his temperament, Chi Yao wouldn't waste words; he'd act immediately.
With that thought, Joe Di unhesitatingly unleashed the Azure Veil Blade. In an instant, the power of his blade erupted, sweeping across the cosmos and cloaking it in his Endless Blade Curtain.
Time's Third Loom—blade light surges ninety thousand miles, not a trace of dust remains!
Facing a powerhouse like Chi Yao, Joe Di attacked with his strongest technique, holding nothing back.
Chi Yao grunted, and the jade disc in his hand conjured a landscape of mountain-like shadows. The raging waves of blade force collided with these peaks, shattering countless cosmic laws and leaving the void dangerously unstable.
The first four waves of blade force were just unleashed, only to be smashed to pieces by the chaotic disc shadows. A terrifying Dao resonance swept forward, striking Joe Di's chest like a solid rod, sending him flying and crashing into the ripple-like barrier.
At that moment, Joe Di felt as if his entire body had been torn apart and then kneaded together at random. His Dao resonance was in chaos, his bones deformed and cracked. Though Chi Yao suppressed Joe Di's Time's Third Loom and prevented its full power, he too was shaken, his Dao resonance unstable for a breath’s time.
Instead of fear, Joe Di felt joy. That brief moment was enough for him to tear open the barrier and escape—yet he didn’t use it to flee.
Instead, he stepped forward, looking at Chi Yao and said calmly, "Chi Yao, you really do have guts, trying to kill me with just an avatar. Where did you get such confidence?"
Even after clashing with Chi Yao and being completely outmatched, Joe Di could tell that this was not Chi Yao's true body. Chi Yao’s strength was on a different level before; the only explanation was that this was an avatar.
As for the ripple barrier blocking him, Joe Di now understood. Chi Yao hadn’t lied—the Vast Iron Crystal had indeed been reserved for him. For some reason, Chi Yao hadn’t taken the crystal immediately, giving Joe Di a chance.
In fact, after Joe Di took the Vast Iron Crystal, he figured Chi Yao wasn’t worried, since very few could refine it. The reason he didn’t pursue immediately must have been due to being held up by something important.
By the time the person who took the Vast Iron Crystal tried to refine it, Chi Yao would be free from his other matters. Since Chi Yao had tampered with the crystal, anyone refining it would be locked down by his Dao resonance seal.
Chi Yao was truly formidable. Even if he failed to chase down the Vast Iron Crystal, he could always track it through the mark he left on it.
Since Chi Yao himself hadn’t come, Joe Di knew he still wasn’t a match for even the avatar. Still, he was determined to wear down this avatar. Unlike Joe Di, who could find a place to heal after injury, if Chi Yao’s avatar was damaged, advancing to the Fourth Step would be even harder.
With this realization, Joe Di was delighted—he wouldn’t retreat.
"You’ve got guts too..." Chi Yao showed no concern that Joe Di had recognized him as an avatar. The pale yellow jade disc in his hand unleashed billions of Dao resonances, each one spawning a blade of killing intent, sealing off all space and time around Joe Di. Even as an avatar, Chi Yao could still kill him.
Joe Di was secretly alarmed. At Chi Yao’s level, every move was a top-tier divine art. If not for cultivating the Rule Dao, under such terrifying Dao resonance, he wouldn’t even be able to move, let alone fight back.
A vast aura, surpassing this universe, pressed down. In the midst of this overwhelming Dao resonance, Joe Di felt like an ant beneath a falling iron hammer.
Joe Di closed his eyes, Dao resonance swirling around him as his Rule Dao spawned wave after wave of cosmic resonance. Even though Chi Yao's avatar could seal everything in this space and suppress all within it, he still couldn't suppress Joe Di, who was rooted in his own Rule Dao.
Under the crushing force of Dao resonance, Joe Di spat out a mouthful of blood, yet the Azure Veil Blade surged forth once more.
This time, the Azure Veil Blade unleashed a single blade curtain. As it swept out, time and space dissolved into nothingness. Not just an avatar, even Chi Yao’s true body would feel the overwhelming power of the Loom of Ages Dao resonance.
Loom of Ages—life is but a fleeting guest, untouched by twilight.
Chi Yao’s avatar paused, a hint of confusion flickering in his eyes. This seemed to be a divine resonance tailored to counter him—life as a fleeting guest, his very existence tied to his true body far away. As an avatar, cut off from the true body, he was as rootless as drifting duckweed.
Chi Yao’s avatar looked up. The vast void was filled with falling petals, as if autumn had just ended and the blossoms were tumbling from the trees, filling the sky.
See how flowers bloom and fall—life’s temples are already graying!
Divine resonances collided, blood bursting from Joe Di, yet at the same moment, the Loom of Ages’ blade curtain found a gap and slashed through the space occupied by Chi Yao’s avatar.
(That's all for today's update. Good night, friends!)