"You..." Grant Chase stared at Joe Di as if he'd seen a ghost.
His strength among peers was not the strongest, at best slightly above average. But his escape technique, Cloudstride, was so exceptional that even Saints who made vows might not catch him. Thanks to this top-tier technique, he had escaped death countless times.
Just Cloudstride alone was enough to make countless powerful cultivators vie for it.
Joe Di didn't bother answering. Dao resonance swirled in his hand, and his Grand Dao domain had already sealed off this space. At this point, escape was impossible.
Grant Chase finally understood the gap between himself and Joe Di, in both strength and escape technique. He calmed down, cupped his fists respectfully to Joe Di, and said, "Senior, I was blind to covet your Dao Vein. If you can show mercy, I, Grant Chase, will agree to any condition."
Joe Di said indifferently, "First answer my previous question: why are Dao Veins so precious here?"
Grant Chase hesitated, then carefully said, "I can answer all of Senior's questions, even open my own world, but I ask Senior..."
"My patience is limited. If you keep talking nonsense, I'll search your soul directly," Joe Di said coldly.
Feeling Joe Di's killing intent, Grant Chase dared not hesitate any longer. Even if there was only a sliver of hope, he didn't want to give up.
Dao Veins are extremely rare here. Even a single Low-grade Dao Vein is something countless people fight over. I saw Senior using one for cultivation, so I grew greedy...
Grant Chase's words made Joe Di frown again. Dao Veins are scarce? Then why does Genesis Cradle have so many Dao Veins?
That's right, it seems even the Saints at Saint Seat Plaza didn't have many Dao Veins; otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to board the Chaos Skyship with just ten Dao Veins.
Where did all the Dao Veins in Genesis Cradle come from? If Cosmic Dao Veins are so precious, then Genesis Cradle must be extraordinary. Unfortunately, he hadn't asked Chi Yao about it in detail.
"How many types of Divine Veins are there here?" Joe Di's tone softened a little.
Grant Chase quickly explained, "The lowest is the Low-grade Divine Vein, then Middle-grade, Upper-grade, and Supreme Divine Vein. Above Supreme Divine Vein is the Dao Vein, which is also divided into Supreme, Upper, Middle, and Low grades."
"And above the Dao Vein?" Joe Di thought, since the Divine Realm had nine layers, it was normal for Divine Veins to have Dao Veins as well.
"It's said that above the Dao Vein, there's another type of Divine Vein, but I've only heard of it and never seen it..." Grant Chase's tone was calm, but inside he grew increasingly terrified. He sensed that the surrounding cosmic rules no longer belonged to this world but were controlled by Joe Di. What kind of cultivator was this person who subdued him?
If the other party came from a powerful background, why ask such simple questions? But if he came from some obscure place, why was his Dao so terrifying?
"You said earlier that I haven't made a Saint Vow—what do you mean?" Joe Di continued to ask.
Grant Chase was truly stunned this time. What did this mean? If Joe Di really didn't know about making a Saint Vow, he couldn't believe it. But if he did know, why ask him?
Seeing Grant Chase remain silent, Joe Di's face darkened. "What, you can't answer?"
"Ah, no, that's not it," Grant Chase quickly replied. "To fully shape one's Dao and form its embryonic concept is the first step of enlightenment. The second step is to gradually perfect one's Dao until it becomes complete. When you can construct your own world, that's the third step. Nearly half of those who can shape their Dao can build their own world and reach the third step."
But crossing from the third step to the fourth step is extremely difficult. All who succeed become great powers in their own right.
"Crossing into the fourth step is what you mean by making a Saint Vow?" Joe Di was gradually understanding.
Grant Chase nodded. "Yes, Senior. Only after making a Saint Vow can one step into the fourth realm and become a ruler. My Dao partner Luna Zhi's father is a Fourth Step Saint Vow cultivator. Now that Luna Zhi has been killed, he will be the first to hunt me down because he knows I took Luna away."
Grant Chase wanted to tell Joe Di that they were now on the same side.
"What is making a Saint Vow?" Joe Di ignored Grant Chase's reminder. He had killed Fourth Step cultivators before, and with a single strike at that.
Grant Chase was stunned. He thought, If I knew what making a Saint Vow was, I would've become a Saint long ago. But since Joe Di asked, he dared not refuse to answer and cautiously replied, "Senior, I am dull-witted. I've been stuck at the Creation Realm for a million years and have yet to touch the threshold of making a Saint Vow, so I don't really understand..."
Seeing Joe Di's displeased expression, Grant Chase hurriedly added, "Although I don't know what it means to become a Saint Vow cultivator, I do know that once you do, your power multiplies many times over. With my strength, Eugene Zhi of the Grand Yin Divine Court could crush me with a single slap..."
When Grant Chase mentioned being crushed with a slap, he suddenly stopped. He thought of Joe Di—Joe Di was clearly also a Saint Vow cultivator, since he too could crush him with a single slap.
If Joe Di was a Saint Vow cultivator, why ask him these questions? He dared not ask Joe Di.
Instead, Joe Di grew even more puzzled. If becoming a Saint Vow cultivator was truly as powerful as Grant Chase claimed, then the Saint of North Sound shouldn't have been killed by him in a single strike. The only explanation was that this Fourth Step Saint here wasn't as genuine as it seemed, which matched his previous suspicions.
What comes after the Fourth Step? Is it the Fifth Step?
After asking, Joe Di stared at Grant Chase. If there was a Fifth Step after the Fourth, then it meant the Divine Realm truly had nine layers. There must be a Sixth Step after the Fifth.
Grant Chase answered respectfully, "Yes, after the Fourth Step comes the Fifth. But in our universe, there are said to be fewer than ten cultivators who've reached the Fifth Step. As for the Sixth Step, because our universe is only of middle grade, I've never heard of anyone reaching it."
Seeing there was nothing more to ask, Joe Di swept his Azure Veil Blade in a wave of blade light toward Grant Chase and said, "Since your answers are thorough enough, I'll allow you to reincarnate..."
"Senior, spare me! I can help you escape Eugene Zhi's pursuit..." Grant Chase had always been wary of Joe Di, but as Joe Di's blade fell, he realized he was powerless to resist. At that moment, he even wondered if Joe Di had surpassed the Fourth Step and was truly a Fifth Step cultivator.
With a slash, the Azure Veil Blade tore through Grant Chase. At the same time, Joe Di's Dao resonance rules surged forward, and before Grant Chase's soul dispersed, Joe Di tore open his world.
What surprised Joe Di was that Grant Chase's world contained seven stunning women. But they too sensed the world being torn apart, and all wore fearful expressions.
Everything in Grant Chase's world was swept away by Joe Di. The seven women were sent out of Grant Chase's world, falling to the ground.
Joe Di didn't wait for the seven women to react. He threw a ball of flame onto Grant Chase's body and then used his rule-based escape technique, vanishing instantly.
He hadn't planned to save them, but neither did he intend to kill the seven unrelated women. The best approach was to release them and leave quickly, avoiding any entanglement.
Sister Quan, Grant Chase has been killed... The woman in the red dress was the first to react. Seeing the spear and ashes on the ground, she immediately understood what had happened.
Joe Di had no interest in Grant Chase's spear and couldn't be bothered to pick it up.
The other six women also realized what had happened. The one called Sister Quan immediately said, "Let's leave quickly. Grant Chase was killed by a powerful cultivator—we are free now."