Chapter 1169: As Long As I Live, Fate Persists
Morgan Du's heart sank. How could his luck be so terrible? If there was anyone in the world he least wanted to see, it was Joe Di. He'd fled all the way to the Genesis Cradle, only to run into Joe Di again. It seemed his fate truly had come to this.
At this moment, Morgan Du could only hope Miles Gray had heard the tolling of his bell and would come out immediately. As long as Miles Gray appeared, he was certain Joe Di wouldn't dare to touch him. As for whether Joe Di could stand against Miles Gray, that thought never crossed his mind. Joe Di was strong, but who was Miles Gray? The foremost powerhouse of Genesis Cradle—Joe Di was nothing in his eyes.
What chilled Morgan Du even more was that, after all this time ringing the bell, Miles Gray hadn't shown a trace.
"You have ten breaths left. If you don't speak now, you won't get another chance..." Joe Di said calmly. He had already decided to kill Morgan Du.
Morgan Du gritted his teeth and waited another five or six breaths. Despair consumed him—Miles Gray clearly wasn't coming. If Miles Gray intended to show up, he would have done so already.
With all hope lost, Morgan Du could only take out a Direction Sphere and toss it to Joe Di. He knew that since Joe Di had decided to kill him, begging for mercy was pointless. Fortunately, Joe Di still allowed him reincarnation—so long as he could reincarnate, there was still a chance.
This Direction Sphere had clearly been prepared long beforehand, likely for Miles Gray. No matter how bold Morgan Du was, he wouldn't dare deceive Miles Gray. Joe Di's divine sense swept over it, then he grabbed the Direction Sphere and sent it into his own world.
Before Joe Di could make a move, Soulfall Sovereign's Soulfall Lock had already slammed down on Morgan Du's head.
Joe Di regarded Soulfall Sovereign with newfound respect. This fellow had once been a tyrant—a ruler of his own universe. Now, playing the role of a follower, he still knew how to seize the moment. Clearly, he was someone who could bend and stretch as needed.
With a sweep of his hand, Joe Di erased Morgan Du’s memory rules before they could scatter into oblivion. Allowing Morgan Du to reincarnate was one thing, but letting him keep his memories after reincarnation was quite another.
Joe Di would never let someone like Morgan Du retain his memories in reincarnation. Morgan Du thought that after reaching the Third Step, he could recover his memories—wishful thinking. Not only was it uncertain he could reach the Third Step, even if he did, he’d never get his memories back.
After finishing off Morgan Du, Joe Di didn’t even bother to open Morgan Du’s world. He simply said, “Miles Gray hasn’t shown up. He may have left, or something might have happened. I plan to check his Cloudspire Sanctuary.”
Someone like Miles Gray, even if he left, would never miss someone ringing the bell. But if Miles Gray was in trouble, Joe Di found it hard to believe. Miles Gray was the top figure in Genesis Cradle—what could possibly happen to him?
"But no one knows where Miles Gray’s Cloudspire Sanctuary is," Sterling Night sighed.
If they couldn’t find Miles Gray, they’d have no way to enter Genesis City. As for the Saint Seat battle, a powerhouse like Sterling Night would never want to miss it. Though he’d lost to Joe Di this time, if he could join Joe Di in entering Genesis City for the Saint Seat battle, it would be a blessing in disguise. Otherwise, Sterling Night’s words would mean nothing before Miles Gray.
Joe Di didn’t answer. He simply closed his eyes, letting the laws of the Grand Way flow as he slowly merged the surrounding spatial rules into himself.
The others understood what Joe Di was doing. They carefully stepped aside, quietly waiting, suppressing their own Dao resonance so as not to disturb him.
A whole day passed before Joe Di finally opened his eyes.
"Well, Brother Di?" Damon Tai asked eagerly. Compared to Sterling Night and Soulfall Sovereign, his relationship with Joe Di was more equal.
Joe Di nodded. "I've found it. Just follow me."
With that, Joe Di began weaving Dao seals, conjuring a series of brand-new laws in the space around them. Whether it was Sterling Night, Soulfall Sovereign, or the others, their expressions changed as they sensed these new rules. Before, when Joe Di defeated them, they thought it was simply because his powers and fortune surpassed theirs. Now, none dared think so lightly.
With a casual gesture, Joe Di constructed a series of new cosmic laws—something even Miles Gray, the top powerhouse of Genesis Cradle, could not do. Not to mention Miles Gray, even a true Fourth Step cultivator couldn’t create cosmic rules at will.
To be able to construct cosmic laws at will meant one could create a new world on a whim, even in a place like Genesis Cradle where the laws were extremely complex and profound. To do this not only required an ultimate understanding of universal laws, but also supreme mastery of divine power.
Damon Tai sighed inwardly, thinking to himself that this Daoist Joe Di was likely the number one below the Fourth Step, just as the legends said.
While the others were still marveling, a faint stone stairway appeared before them, soon growing clear.
Everyone could now see it clearly: the Stone Stairway led to a vast plaza in the void—a garden plaza, with a spacious Cloudspire Sanctuary at its heart.
No one needed to ask; it was obvious this was Miles Gray’s Cloudspire Sanctuary.
No one had expected Miles Gray’s Cloudspire Sanctuary to be right here at Return Ridge, above their heads all along.
Joe Di stepped onto the Stone Stairway and said, "Everyone, follow me. If I’m not mistaken, Miles Gray has already left this place."
In truth, Joe Di hadn’t sensed Miles Gray’s cultivation aura. Though he said so aloud, he couldn’t shake the feeling that Miles Gray hadn’t actually left.
Joe Di had already broken the restrictions outside the garden. The group followed him inside, where they saw, inscribed to the left of the Cloudspire Sanctuary’s wide entrance: "Everywhere is a Daoist field." To the right: "Every life is cultivation!"
Above the entrance, a horizontal inscription read: "As long as I live, fate persists!"
"Everywhere is a Daoist field. Every life is cultivation! Well said, truly well said," Damon Tai sighed.
The others were moved as well. These two phrases spoke to their hearts; from the moment they began cultivating, every place they’d been was a Daoist field. Reincarnation or not, no matter how many times, they were always cultivating.
As for the inscription above, no one paid it much mind. "As long as I live, fate persists"—just four plain words, likely there just to fill the space.
Only Joe Di’s gaze lingered on that inscription: "As long as I live, fate persists!"
Within those four words, he saw helplessness and sorrow. They seemed ordinary, yet hinted that Miles Gray’s fate was not his own to command. If he yet lived, everything was his to decide.
If one day Miles Gray could no longer decide for himself, then his fate would cease to exist. The implication: he’d rather die than let another control his destiny. If he was gone, fate was meaningless. That "I" was the will of the self.
Miles Gray was the top cultivator of Genesis Cradle, and also one who’d obtained the Lawless Cradle. Who could control his fate? Only someone like Joe Di, who had also obtained the Lawless Cradle and sensed the Fourth Step without crossing it, could truly understand this feeling.