"How do we get out of here?" Charlotte Ling asked. To her, the Reincarnation Realm and the Lost Dao Domain were not much different.
Joe Di smiled, raised his hand and grabbed at the void. A crack, a full yard long, appeared in the air. Joe Di then said, "Quentin, Charlotte, you two should leave this place first. After you get out, if possible, wait for me at Celestial Beyond."
The laws of heaven and earth here were perhaps less clear than those of the Lost Dao Domain, but for Joe Di, tearing open the boundary here was no pressure at all.
"Joe, are you going to search for the Duality Blossom?" Charlotte Ling immediately understood Joe Di's intention.
Joe Di nodded, "Yes, I need to find the Duality Blossom. With your and Quentin's strength, there shouldn't be anyone who can trouble you in Celestial Beyond."
Joe Di had already eliminated several of the strongest cultivators in Celestial Beyond, even Nora had been slain by him. With Charlotte Ling in late Unity Realm and Quentin Wood at Unity Realm, they could walk unhindered in Celestial Beyond without anyone stopping them.
"Alright, we'll meet up in Celestial Beyond," Quentin Wood agreed without hesitation. He beckoned to Charlotte Ling and rushed into the void crack.
Charlotte Ling looked back at Joe Di with a hint of reluctance. She knew in her heart that her feelings might be one-sided. After hesitating for a few moments, she also dashed into the void crack. She was someone who knew how to let go as well as hold on. If Joe Di were ever in danger, she would risk her life to help him, repaying him for saving her life several times.
Once Quentin Wood and Charlotte Ling had left, Joe Di finally let out a sigh of relief. Now, he had two things to do: first, to search for the Duality Blossom between the realms; second, to refine the Creation Brush.
He was eager to know just how powerful his Genesis Opening Incantation would be with the Creation Brush.
Whether this place was the Nether Realm or the Reincarnation Realm, Joe Di didn't care much. He was about to tear open the void again when he suddenly heard an extremely weak voice, "Fellow Daoist..."
Joe Di stopped and fixed his gaze on a gray stone. This stone was the same color as the ground, even its Dao resonance was identical, carrying a faint aura of the underworld. If not for the stone making a sound, even if Joe Di scanned it a hundred times with his divine sense, he wouldn't have noticed anything unusual.
But as soon as the voice spoke, Joe Di found it. The gray stone looked completely identical to the surrounding stones, but at this moment, it bore a trace of the Dao. Strictly speaking, this stone was not a stone, but...
When Joe Di swept it again with his divine sense, he was shocked to discover he couldn't penetrate it at all. This was definitely a supreme treasure.
"Are you a remnant soul?" Joe Di asked, recalling the precedent set by Ye Yimo, so he immediately understood. This thing, much like the gray stone, must be attached to a remnant soul.
"Yes, I am indeed a remnant soul. This stone is nothing more than something from my former artifact..." the remnant soul explained.
"What is it?" Joe Di asked almost instinctively. As soon as he asked, he realized it was inappropriate—such things are surely supreme treasures, and he shouldn't pry.
The remnant soul didn't mind and answered, "It is a lotus seed. My artifact used to be a lotus platform, but it was taken by someone long ago. Now, only a single lotus seed remains."
Joe Di felt a bit of sympathy for the soul—having even his artifact stolen. Since a lotus seed could be produced, it meant the lotus platform wasn't forged, but a naturally grown treasure. A naturally grown lotus platform, capable of becoming a treasure, must be almost as good as an innate one.
Even knowing that the lotus seed was extraordinary, Joe Di had no intention of seizing it. He simply asked, "Why did you call out to me?"
The remnant soul's tone grew a little excited, "I knew I wasn't wrong about you—you feel no desire for my lotus seed."
Joe Di chuckled and couldn't be bothered to reply. He had plenty of treasures; even if the lotus seed was from the Genesis Lotus, he had no interest in coveting it. Unless someone tried to take his things or attacked him, he would not be polite.
The remnant soul clearly saw Joe Di's indifference, but she wasn't upset—in fact, she grew even more excited. "Earlier, I saw you casually give away Cosmic Essence. You must be a person of integrity, not one driven by greed. I was right about you."
"If you have something to say, just say it. I really don't have time to chat here," Joe Di said helplessly.
"Joe, I know my request is abrupt, but I truly need a drop of Cosmic Essence. I don't have any good treasures to offer you in return—only a trace of Genesis Lotus origin from my seed..." the remnant soul knew Joe Di's name.
Before the remnant soul finished speaking, Joe Di exclaimed, "This lotus seed is really from the Genesis Lotus?"
The remnant soul trembled even more at Joe Di's exclamation. In Joe Di's eyes, she was less than an ant. Still, she replied, "Yes, my artifact was the Genesis Lotus. But I was betrayed by someone close. If I hadn't hidden away a Genesis Lotus seed, I would have vanished into the cosmic river long ago."
She only hoped she hadn't misjudged Joe Di. If he truly wanted her lotus seed, she could only accept her fate. If she hadn't seen him use Cosmic Essence, she wouldn't have called out to him.
Joe Di recovered from his shock and said sympathetically, "The hardest thing in life is probably being betrayed by those closest to you. I sympathize with you. I do have Cosmic Essence, but your Genesis Lotus origin is of no use to me."
Hearing that Joe Di had no intention to harm her or take her lotus seed, the remnant soul was overjoyed. She softened her voice and said, "You must know the origin of the Genesis Lotus. When the universe was first created, four Creation Lotus Seeds appeared in the vast cosmos. Only one became the thirty-six-petal Genesis Lotus, a treasure of creation. The other three became twelve-petal innate treasures. While innate treasures are good, compared to creation treasures, the difference is like heaven and earth."
Hearing the Lotus Sage mention the other three lotus seeds, Joe Di was overjoyed—this was exactly the information he needed. He quickly cupped his fists and asked, "May I ask how to address you, senior?"
The remnant soul gave a self-deprecating smile. "I've forgotten my real name; everyone calls me the Lotus Sage. Just call me Lotus. Don't call me senior—I'm hardly worthy of the title."
Joe Di was never particular about seniority, so he didn't insist. He continued, "My name is Joe Di, Lotus. I still want to ask about the other three lotus seeds."
The Lotus Sage continued, "The other three lotus seeds are said to have evolved into the Inferno Lotus, the Virtue Lotus, and the Doom Lotus. Originally, these were all supreme innate treasures. If you can obtain any of them and use a trace of Genesis Lotus origin to nurture it, you might be able to cultivate a true thirty-six-petal lotus."
"Lotus, are you saying I could use Genesis Lotus origin to nurture any of the other three and cultivate a creation treasure?" Joe Di asked in amazement.
The Lotus Sage replied, "That's probably impossible—the chances are extremely slim, unless you obtain something else as well. Otherwise, it's very hard to cultivate a creation treasure. But the difference between refining a thirty-six-petal lotus and a twelve-petal one is worlds apart. Even if it doesn't become a creation treasure, it's still an extraordinary supreme innate treasure."
Without hesitation, Joe Di took out a jade bottle and tossed it over. "Alright, I agree to the exchange."
Seeing Joe Di actually throw out a jade bottle, the lotus seed—indistinguishable from a stone—trembled with excitement and swept up the bottle. Soon, the seed released a trace of origin aura.
Without hesitation, Joe Di wrapped the trace of origin aura and brought it into his Ninth World.
"Thank you, Joe Di. If I, Lotus, am ever reborn, I will surely repay the kindness you've shown me today," the Lotus Sage said, overwhelmed with emotion.