Zane Chong was not a direct descendant of the Qi Family, so Joe Di had no intention of killing him. Now that Zane was ready to reveal the location of the Fire Nirvana Nest, Joe Di was even less inclined to take his life.
This was not something Joe Di would say lightly. He glanced at Zane Chong and said calmly, "Can you tell me who was responsible for destroying Rongyi Village back then?"
"It was Hugo Qi from the Qi Family. He was the one who suggested wiping out Rongyi Village, and he did it alone." Zane Chong replied without hesitation, showing no concern at all.
After all, there were no cultivators from the Aurora Continent here, and even if there were, he wouldn't care. Once he left this place, he had no intention of staying with the Qi Family any longer. His father had died serving the Qi Family, and the flame his father obtained was kept by them instead of being handed over to him. He no longer wished to work for the Qi Family, and another reason was the man before him—Joe Di.
Rumor had it that when Joe Di destroyed the Qi Trading House in Swampsea Town, he was only at the mid-stage of Energy Refinement. In just a few years, he had advanced to the Golden Core stage. While there were others who had reached Golden Core in a few years, for someone like Joe Di to do so and instantly defeat a seventh-tier Golden Core expert was truly unprecedented.
One could easily imagine the heights someone like him would reach in the future. With Joe Di's bright prospects, the fate of the Qi Trading House was just as easy to foresee.
"Alright, hand it over. As long as you leave the Qi Trading House in the future, I won't hold anything against you." Joe Di nodded.
Joe Di was far less indifferent than he appeared. From a certain perspective, the value of the Fire Nirvana Nest far surpassed that of the flame itself.
This wasn't to say that flames weren't precious—in fact, flames were extremely rare. Even top-tier sects might not possess a truly exceptional flame; at most, they would open a place atop a ground fire vein for pill refinement or artifact forging.
Flames were precious, but very few could advance smoothly—most lacked the Fire Nirvana Nest. After a flame was born, it wouldn't actively seek out the Fire Nirvana Nest but would slowly absorb fire spiritual energy to grow. With time, the Fire Nirvana Nest would gradually become indistinguishable from ordinary stone, making it difficult to identify. Some flames, upon reaching a certain stage of growth, would find and consume the Fire Nirvana Nest. But more often, flames would be collected by cultivators before they could mature.
So a great deal of time was wasted like this. Even after Joe Di arrived, none of them had crossed the pool.
Now that Joe Di was about to leave with Sprout, how could they be willing? Truth was, Joe Di was simply too formidable—otherwise, that seventh-tier Golden Core cultivator would have acted instead of just calling out to him.
Upon hearing Joe Di’s reply, the Golden Core cultivator was left speechless.
If he doesn’t take you, what can you do about it?
Joe Di’s divine sense already detected intense fluctuations outside—the valley’s natural killing array was under attack.
There were surely valuable things across the blue pool, and Joe Di truly didn’t want to fight these Golden Core cultivators. But if they tried to gang up on him, he wouldn’t hesitate to kill.
The seventh-tier Golden Core cultivator instinctively glanced at the others, but none showed any intention of fighting. Joe Di was simply too strong, and since they didn’t even know what lay beyond the pool, risking their lives wasn’t worth it.
With Joe Di’s strength, even if they all attacked together, the result would likely be mutual destruction.
The seventh-tier Golden Core cultivator took a breath and cupped his fists to Joe Di. “Fellow Daoist Di, I have two grade-four spirit herbs…”
Before the Golden Core cultivator finished speaking, Joe Di already understood his intent. He waved a hand to stop him and said calmly to the group, “Spirit herbs and ores mean nothing to me. What I lack is a flame. If anyone has one, I might bring you across.”
So a great deal of time was wasted like this. Even after Joe Di arrived, none of them had crossed the pool.
Now that Joe Di was about to leave with Sprout, how could they be willing? Truth was, Joe Di was simply too formidable—otherwise, that seventh-tier Golden Core cultivator would have acted instead of just calling out to him.
Upon hearing Joe Di’s reply, the Golden Core cultivator was left speechless.
Joe Di was stunned. He had only mentioned it in passing and never intended to take these Golden Core cultivators with him. Logically, even if someone knew where the flame was, they wouldn’t volunteer the information. The things here might be precious, but perhaps not as precious as a flame.
“You really know where the flame fell?” Joe Di asked, a bit skeptical, looking at the sixth-tier Golden Core cultivator.
The sixth-tier Golden Core cultivator quickly took out a jade slip from his storage pouch and handed it to Joe Di. “Here’s the location of the flame. You can check it. The flame is within the Skyveil.”
Joe Di took the jade slip, and his expression changed slightly.
The jade slip showed the location of a ground fire vein, marked in detail—even indicating the exact spot of the flame.
But he already had such a jade slip—the one Zane Chong had just given him marked the same location. However, the details were different, with notable discrepancies in the precise position.
“You’re saying the flame’s location is here?” Joe Di’s tone showed no joy—he suspected this flame was the one Zane Chong’s father had taken.
The Golden Core cultivator noticed Joe Di’s expression and quickly said, “Fellow Daoist Di, although many know of this place, I’m certain no one’s marked it as clearly and accurately as I have.”
Joe Di was moved by the word “detailed,” and his divine sense swept over the jade slip again—he found something different.
The location given by the sixth-tier Golden Core cultivator matched the Fire Nirvana Nest location given by Zane Chong, but the details were different—the precise positions varied.
Zane Chong’s father had personally taken a flame, so he wouldn’t have marked the Fire Nirvana Nest wrong. But this Golden Core cultivator claimed his location was especially accurate—so perhaps the flame he mentioned wasn’t the same as the one Zane Chong’s father obtained.
Joe Di put away the jade slip with a blank expression and said calmly, “I have the flame’s location. I keep my word—you can follow me.”
“Thank you, Fellow Daoist Di.” The sixth-tier Golden Core cultivator quickly cupped his fists and hurried over.
That flame was precious, but he knew his own limitations. He’d been to that place before, and with his current strength, not only was it impossible to obtain the flame, he could hardly get close. The Skyveil wasn’t always open. Before it closed, he wouldn’t get the flame. Since he couldn’t, he might as well give the location to Joe Di in exchange for tangible benefits.
“Fellow Daoist Di…” Zane Chong also cupped his fists, unwilling to give up.
Joe Di understood his meaning. “You can come along too.”
What Zane Chong gave him was important, and Zane would definitely leave the Qi Family. Given how the Qi Family operated, Zane and the Qi Family would only be enemies, never friends. That’s why Joe Di let Zane come along.
“Thank you, Fellow Daoist Di.” Zane said happily, quickly stepping to Joe Di’s side.
The remaining three Golden Core cultivators looked at each other. Now that Joe Di had two Golden Core allies, they didn’t dare make a move. But matching the value of a flame with their own treasures was impossible.
Joe Di didn’t care what these people thought. He could see that a spatial killing array hung above the blue pool, and he couldn’t break it—nor could Sprout pass.
But the array within the blue pool was different and much lower level—barely a grade-five array. He only needed to cross the pool.
Joe Di raised his hand, tossing out several array flags to set up a grade-four defensive array and shield his area. Then he threw several more flags into the pool.
The seemingly ordinary blue pool suddenly erupted with dense spiritual energy. Just sensing it, Joe Di felt his cultivation begin to stir.