No matter what, Joe Di would never join the Kun Sect. The sect master, Howard Lane, spoke gently, and his dignified appearance exuded a sense of righteousness, making people feel as if they were basking in a spring breeze. He even took the initiative to ask Howard King not to intimidate others with his aura for the sake of someone as insignificant as Joe Di, presenting himself as the very image of a gentleman and elder.
Yet Joe Di simply didn't like this man, and preferred the straightforwardness of Howard King, the Palace Master of Seaking Palace.
"Well, I'll be off then. If you need any help, just mention my name—Aaron Xu." Aaron Xu patted Joe Di on the shoulder and quickly turned to leave.
Joe Di also quickened his pace; he could step into the Void God Realm at any moment. By rights, he should leave the city immediately to find a place to undergo his tribulation. However, not only did Joe Di remain in the city, he headed straight for the Fivefold Pavilion.
Gai Tenfield had told him that the best cave dwellings were at the Fivefold Pavilion.
The Fivefold Pavilion wasn't far from Fivefold Plaza. The entire complex stretched from the storefronts at the street to the cave dwellings deep inside, all interconnected and protected by powerful arrays, almost like a miniature Fivefold City.
It was currently the Fivefold Dao Gathering, so most cultivators were inside the Fivefold Dao Tower training. As a result, Joe Di had no trouble renting a cave dwelling.
With tens of millions of top-grade spirit stones on him, Joe Di rented a cave dwelling with a courtyard. The annual rent was three million mid-grade spirit stones—a price that would drive most rogue cultivators away. But to Joe Di, three million mid-grade spirit stones was nothing.
Once inside, Joe Di was quite satisfied. Although the spiritual energy here wasn't as dense as inside the Fivefold Dao Tower, it was more than enough for his cultivation. Besides, he didn't rely solely on the spiritual energy in the cave dwelling for his training.
After setting up a simple defensive array in the cave dwelling, the first thing Joe Di did was remove the ring from his hand.
He had two rings in his possession: one was a Pocket World, naturally concealed, and nearly invisible when worn. The other was an ordinary ring used to store some basic cultivation resources.
Although the sect masters hadn’t actively probed him with their divine sense before, Joe Di still felt as if he had no secrets left, which made him uneasy. If a man does not plan for the long term, he will have immediate worries. Joe Di decided to make some preparations before leaving the city.
After taking out the Pocket World, Joe Di engraved another concealment seal on it, then slipped the ring onto his toe.
As a Grand Arraymaster, Joe Di didn't believe that anyone—even an Ascendant—could see through a concealment seal he had crafted. Moreover, the Pocket World itself was naturally concealed; once worn on a finger or toe, it would immediately vanish, blending with his skin.
He reset the restriction on the ring in his hand to a third-level seal, placed a million mid-grade spirit stones and twenty million top-grade spirit stones inside, along with a low-grade Celestial Cleaver and a few stalks of Firegod Herb, before finally leaving the cave dwelling.
He had to leave the city to undergo his tribulation; otherwise, going into seclusion would be meaningless.
"Aaron Xu greets the Sect Master!" Not long after parting from Joe Di, Aaron Xu saw Sect Master Howard Lane again and hurriedly bowed in salute.
Howard Lane smiled slightly and nodded at Aaron Xu. "Not bad. The fact that you reached the Ninetieth Tier brings honor to our Kun Sect. When you return, the sect will grant you a reward."
"It was all luck, Sect Master," Aaron Xu replied nervously, though he couldn't help feeling excited about the reward.