Thunder Valley, as Garrett described, lay at least a hundred thousand miles from where Joe Di stood. Joe Di had assumed that such a place would be visible even from a great distance, but upon following Garrett to the entrance, he was surprised to find it concealed within a miasma-filled wasteland.
"How did you ever find this place?" Joe Di looked at Garrett, speechless. In lands shrouded by miasma, even if spirit herbs grew, their grade would be low. More often than not, the vegetation here consisted of peculiar spirit herbs, many of which were toxic.
Garrett scratched his head awkwardly and replied, "I sensed there was something valuable inside, so I ventured in. Once I did, I stumbled upon that thunder hammer."
Joe Di nodded. "That thunder hammer is no ordinary artifact. I suspect the inscription on it is far more profound than the thunder sword you mentioned. The meridian diagram you saw is likely just a superficial cultivation method—the true path lies within the Primordial Script. Once I unravel its secrets, I’ll teach you. Come, let’s enter Thunder Valley."
Joe Di could understand the Primordial Script, but for now, he was unable to cultivate with it and had no grasp of its deeper meaning.
Garrett naturally regarded only Joe Di’s words as truth; nothing else ever weighed on his mind.
Joe Di was unaware that the Primordial Script had already become a lost art. The only reason he could decipher it was that he possessed the Book of Worlds.
As soon as Joe Di and Garrett slipped through the miasma-choked entrance, a barrage of thunderclaps erupted all around them. Joe Di gazed in awe at the spectacle before him, scarcely able to believe his own eyes.
Before them stretched a plain of thunder arcs, where endless bolts of lightning cascaded from the void—some bursting in midair, others slamming into the earth with explosive force.
He never would have imagined that Little Central Star concealed such a place. It seemed the miasma-filled entrance outside was a naturally formed concealment array—one his eyes could not pierce.
"Brother Joe, the lightning arcs at the outermost edge of Thunder Valley are the weakest. The deeper you go, the stronger they become. My cultivation is too low, so I could only go about a hundred feet in." Seeing Joe Di staring in awe at the lightning arcs, Garrett hurriedly explained.
Joe Di took out a ring and handed it to Garrett. "Garrett, inside are ten Prime Ley Lines and a small fragment of the Thunder Rhythm Vein. I squandered most of that vein before, so I'm giving you what's left. There are all kinds of advancement pills in the ring as well. While improving cultivation is important, you must also learn the Divine Sense Technique and the Da Kun Body Refinement Art. Only after mastering the Da Kun Body Refinement Art will you be able to venture deeper into Thunder Valley."
Thunder Valley was not only crisscrossed with lightning arcs, but the spiritual energy within was incredibly dense. With his god-grade body, Joe Di could not remain at the outer edge to cultivate like Garrett; he had to go deeper inside to train.
"I understand. I'll cultivate outside for now. Once my cultivation and body refinement levels rise, I'll come in to find you, Brother Joe." Garrett accepted the ring with determination.
He knew full well what awaited him and Joe Di. Without diligent cultivation on Little Central Star, if his strength lagged behind, he could easily be hunted down once he left.
Joe Di set up a defensive array outside Thunder Valley, bid Garrett farewell, and headed deeper into the valley.
He believed that with the resources he’d provided, Garrett’s talent, and the Starstream Technique combined with the Starstream Vein, his cultivation speed would be impressive. That small fragment of blue Thunder Rhythm Vein would be a tremendous help. Joe Di had obtained it from the blue pool in the Celestial Canopy, though he hadn’t realized its value at the time and used it for cultivation.
It was only after obtaining the Book of Worlds that Joe Di learned it was a Thunder Rhythm Vein. As rare as the Royal Herb Vein, it was especially valuable for cultivators with thunder spiritual roots like Garrett.
Thunder Valley was just as Garrett had described—the deeper one ventured, the denser and more powerful the lightning arcs became.
With his Tribulation King Stage cultivation and god-grade body, Joe Di found the dense lightning arcs hardly dangerous.
When Joe Di reached about a hundred miles in, he stopped. Here, the lightning arcs were as powerful as those during his tribulation, leaving streaks of blood across his skin. This spot was perfect for cultivation.
Joe Di took out array banners to set up a protective formation for his Prime Ley Line, since he planned to use it while cultivating. With such intense thunder strikes, the ley line would be shattered without protection.
Although a shattered ley line could still be used for cultivation, Joe Di had no intention of letting his ley line be destroyed by the lightning arcs. Thus, he decided to set up a protective array first.
The array banner landed beside a massive purple stone, about the size of a millstone.
Joe Di swept his divine sense over the stone and was immediately astonished. It was a Heavenly Purple Thunderstone, one of the top artifact refinement materials in the cultivation world.
Joe Di grabbed the thunderstone, feeling the surging thunder energy within—it truly was a Heavenly Purple Thunderstone. Confirming its identity, excitement welled up inside him.
But it wasn't the Heavenly Purple Thunderstone itself that excited him. Any other cultivator would be ecstatic to obtain such a treasure, perhaps unable to sleep from joy, but Joe Di understood its origin far better.
Heavenly Purple Thunderstone had only one source—it was derived from the thunder energy of Primordial Thunderstone. Compared to Heavenly Purple Thunderstone, Primordial Thunderstone was the true treasure.
In other words, Primordial Thunderstone was not something native to the cultivation world. Yet Joe Di was convinced there must be Primordial Thunderstone within Thunder Valley; otherwise, he wouldn’t have found such a large Heavenly Purple Thunderstone here.
Joe Di stored the Heavenly Purple Thunderstone in his ring and sent his divine sense searching again. The lightning arcs in Thunder Valley were so dense, thunder energy permeated everywhere, and his divine sense could only reach within a thousand feet. Even so, in a short time, Joe Di found over a hundred Heavenly Purple Thunderstones of varying sizes—the largest were millstone-sized, the smallest as small as a baby's fist.
Joe Di knew that with his current divine sense and strength, searching for Primordial Thunderstone in the vast expanse of Thunder Valley would be difficult. His top priority was to quickly improve his cultivation.
...
Joe Di arranged four Prime Ley Lines around himself. Amidst the dense lightning arcs, as he cultivated with the Starstream Technique, he felt as if he were training within a thunder tribulation.
(Skip: Irrelevant website message)
In truth, Joe Di had misunderstood something. He thought that cultivating with ley lines atop a spiritstone mountain was the best method. In reality, once spiritual energy reached a certain density, stacking sources no longer mattered. The only advantage of a spiritstone mountain was its unique spiritual source rules. A complete ley line also possessed a similar rule.
At this moment, even without the dense thunder energy from the lightning arcs, Joe Di’s cultivation speed under four Prime Ley Lines would not be much slower than atop a spiritstone mountain. Now, with the addition of endless thunder energy, his progress was even swifter—advancing at breakneck speed.
Originally, Joe Di had planned to reach the fourth layer of Tribulation King Stage in a year, but it took him only two months to break through.
Cultivating in Thunder Valley offered another benefit—the constant tempering of his divine sense by thunder strikes, which continually strengthened his sea of consciousness.
Six months later, Joe Di reached the fifth layer of Tribulation King Stage, his divine sense encompassing a radius of over ten miles. After a year, as he broke through to the sixth layer, a sudden insight dawned upon him. The cascading bolts of lightning were no longer just arcs striking his body; something new was awakening within his mind...
Joe Di immediately began reciting the technique inscribed in Primordial Script on the octagonal copper hammer. What he couldn’t understand before now became clear, forming flowing patterns in his mind. He naturally thought of the meridian diagram Garrett mentioned.
As Joe Di immersed himself in this newfound understanding, the lightning arcs striking his body grew denser, and even distant thunderbolts were drawn to him by his spiritual intent, sweeping toward him.
In no time, Joe Di was enveloped by lightning arcs, just as he had been during his tribulation cultivation. Moreover, the four ley lines he’d placed beside him began to melt faster, their spiritual energy fusing with the lightning arcs and then vanishing into his body.
Completely absorbed in his insight, Joe Di was oblivious to the changes happening around him.
One day, one month, one year...
When the thunder energy Joe Di was comprehending finally reached its peak, BOOM! A thunderclap erupted deep within his sea of consciousness. Joe Di's eyes snapped open as he formed a series of hand seals.
Under his hand seals, an invisible pattern emerged, gradually becoming clearer until it transformed into a streak of lightning. With a resounding crack, the lightning exploded in the void.
Four bold characters suddenly appeared in Joe Di's mind: Primordial Thunder Sigil.
This was no mere spell—it was an unparalleled divine ability. Joe Di had only just begun to grasp its mysteries.
Joe Di's heart surged with excitement. He felt the true essence accumulating in his star meridians reach its limit; under the Starstream Technique, a new meridian was opened, and his cultivation advanced from the sixth to the seventh layer of Tribulation King Stage.
Although reaching the late stage of Tribulation King was a joy, what thrilled Joe Di most was mastering the Primordial Thunder Sigil.
This was a true killing move—unseen and formless when unleashed, and by the time the thunder sigil erupted, the target would have no chance to evade.
Joe Di swept his divine sense outward, instantly covering a hundred miles.
He could now venture deeper. Without hesitation, Joe Di collected the four ley lines, which had already been mostly consumed, and moved further into Thunder Valley. The emergence of the Primordial Thunder Sigil here strongly suggested that Primordial Thunderstone truly existed in this place.
(Skip: Author note wishing readers a happy Mid-Autumn Festival—irrelevant, per guidelines.)