Joe Di stopped once more. Before him lay a massive red cocoon, spanning nearly three meters across. Within its depths, a faint pulse of life seemed to ripple.
If not for the absence of any flame aura or scorching heat, Joe Di might have suspected that the spirit of Celestial Fire dwelled within this cocoon.
Just as Joe Di was about to approach, he sensed something unusual—the cocoon was enveloped by a natural barrier, a nearly sixth-rank Immortal Array.
Joe Di set Moria Lane down and said, "I'm going to check out the cocoon. Don't follow me. You know I'm within your sight and won't go far. If you come along, you'll interfere with what I need to do."
After cautioning Moria Lane several times, Joe Di finally walked toward the cocoon. His divine sense confirmed that Moria Lane hadn't followed, and he breathed a sigh of relief. Apparently, she could now understand some simple instructions.
A sixth-rank Immortal Array was troublesome for Joe Di, but it wouldn't take him long to break it. After all, he was a master of sixth-rank Immortal Arrays.
Since entering the Immortal Realm, aside from building Starhaven City, Joe Di had devoted all his time to studying array techniques. As a result, his skill in formations was close to reaching the level of a seventh-rank Immortal Array King, though his cultivation remained stalled at the fourth layer of True Immortal.
Joe Di had already decided that once his mastery of arrays reached the seventh-rank Immortal Array King, he would dedicate all his time to advancing his cultivation.
Or rather, if he failed to break through to seventh-rank Immortal Array King this time, as long as his Cosmic Flame could undergo nirvana, he would still abandon array research and focus entirely on cultivation.
For any cultivator, cultivation is the primary goal.
After breaking the natural barrier, Joe Di approached the massive red cocoon. He reached out and touched it—its surface was icy cold, utterly devoid of warmth.
Beside the red cocoon was a pile of tiny white stones. Their purpose was unknown.
It was becoming clear that this was no Celestial Fire Spirit. Joe Di tried to tear the cocoon open, but it was so tough that even his strength couldn't break it.
Joe Di considered drawing his Azure Veil Blade to slice it open, but hesitated. If there was a life forming inside and his blade intent seeped in, it would surely perish.
Perhaps he should just take the cocoon away and place it in his True Spirit World for further study.
Just as Joe Di was about to take out his array flags, the cocoon suddenly shot out a red spike, stabbing swiftly into his waist.
Even if Joe Di had been prepared, he couldn't have dodged such speed, let alone when he was caught off guard.
The next instant, Joe Di felt his vital blood being rapidly drained away by the spike.
Joe Di instantly understood and was furious. This was no nurturing life—it was a demon that devoured everything, bones and all. The tiny white stones outside the cocoon were the remains of fallen cultivators.
With so many white bone fragments scattered here, who knew how many cultivators had perished?
Joe Di summoned his Azure Veil Blade and struck down with a single slash.
He didn't aim for the spike embedded in his body; it was so tough that even his divine-strength physique couldn't resist. His blade might not be able to sever it.
In other words, even if he could cut it, since the cocoon could produce one spike, who could say it wouldn't produce another?
Joe Di's blade slashed directly at the massive red cocoon.
He unleashed the Bleakwind Blade—the most imposing of Joe Di's three blade techniques. As the Azure Veil Blade swept forth, unstoppable blade intent surged. Unless he split the cocoon open, he would not withdraw.
Perhaps the cocoon never expected that after its spike began draining its opponent's vital blood, that opponent would ignore the spike and instead attack the cocoon itself with a weapon.
Typically, cultivators would use their treasures to strike the spike first, resolving their own crisis before anything else.
Crack! As the cocoon began absorbing Joe Di's vital blood, his blade carved a fissure into its massive shell.
But as soon as the crack appeared, it began to heal rapidly. Joe Di wouldn't let it close—he unleashed a Primordial Thunder Sigil with a wave of his hand.
The Primordial Thunder Sigil struck the fissure just in time. The crack only managed to heal halfway before the thunder sigil blasted it open again.
Crack! The cocoon split open.
Almost the instant Joe Di broke the cocoon, a terrifying wave of scorching heat surged forth.
Not waiting for the cocoon to recover, Joe Di waved his hand and swept it into his True Spirit World.
The spike at his waist was still draining his blood, but Joe Di ignored it, staring in shock at the flame before him—shaped like a ginseng root.
Was this the Celestial Fire Spirit?
"Screeeee!!!" A long, tearing shriek erupted from the ginseng-shaped flame, and then the terrifying fire surged wildly toward Joe Di.
Before Joe Di could react, the black flame of his Cosmic Flame formed a protective shield around him.
But Joe Di quickly realized his Cosmic Flame wouldn't hold out for long.
Now Joe Di knew exactly what he had to do—he frantically refined the Celestial Fire Spirit while urging his Cosmic Flame to devour it and achieve nirvana.
Without Joe Di, his Cosmic Flame wouldn't stand a chance of devouring the Celestial Fire Spirit—one encounter and it would be consumed instead.
Even though Joe Di had made the right choice in the shortest possible time, he still couldn't stop the Celestial Fire Spirit from rapidly wearing down his Cosmic Flame shield.
Joe Di was keenly aware—if this terrifying flame tore through his Cosmic Flame's shield, he would have no chance of survival.
His only hope lay in body refinement. He had the Genesis Body Codex, which was excellent, but back in the cultivation world, due to the constraints of heaven and earth, he could only strengthen his body up to the Divine Realm.
After reaching the Immortal Realm, he'd been struggling just to survive—he hadn't even found a place to train his body, let alone refine it.
Now, with death at his doorstep, he had to break through the Divine Realm if he wanted any chance to live.
The difference between mortal and immortal wasn't just about fire and the universe's myriad things—it also aligned with the Dao of Heaven and Earth. To further temper his body, he needed a treasure for body nirvana.
The best treasure for body nirvana was the Chaos Blue Reed, but Joe Di didn't possess it. All he had was a small fragment of the Cosmic Membrane.
Using a fragment of the Cosmic Membrane for body nirvana—perhaps only Joe Di in the entire universe would attempt such a thing.
Whether the Cosmic Membrane fragment could help him achieve body nirvana depended not on him, but on the fragment itself. If it was destined for him, he could use it; if not, even if he were reduced to ashes by the Celestial Fire Spirit, he couldn't harness it for nirvana.
Joe Di frantically activated the Genesis Body Codex, while simultaneously communicating with the Cosmic Membrane fragment in his sea of consciousness, hoping to use the terrifying flame to achieve body nirvana and transcendence.
As soon as Joe Di connected his divine sense to the Cosmic Membrane fragment, a golden law within it responded.
The golden law began to pulse angrily, as if protesting Joe Di's actions. If he used the Cosmic Membrane fragment, it would have nowhere left to reside.
The reason this golden law remained in Joe Di's sea of consciousness wasn't because it favored him, but because it was bound to the Cosmic Membrane fragment.
Yet this Cosmic Membrane fragment belonged to Joe Di—it was his by right, and the law couldn't take it away.
No matter how dissatisfied the golden law was, Joe Di paid it no heed. With his life at stake, no matter how powerful that law was, his priority was survival.
To Joe Di's great relief, the Cosmic Membrane fragment did not reject him. As soon as he activated the Genesis Body Codex, the fragment settled into his Starhaven meridians.
Boom! At that moment, Joe Di's Cosmic Flame was torn apart by the Celestial Fire Spirit.
With a single sweep, the Celestial Fire Spirit stripped away all of Joe Di's clothing and began to burn his flesh.
A terrifying sensation of burning flesh overwhelmed him—the agony and torment nearly made Joe Di faint. Yet, with unwavering willpower, he kept his soul and consciousness intact. Even as his body melted away, he frantically operated the Genesis Body Codex, using the Cosmic Membrane fragment to achieve body nirvana.
Fainting now would be courting death.
The foundational laws he had comprehended took effect; Joe Di quickly grasped the basic laws within the Cosmic Membrane fragment. The Genesis Body Codex rapidly permeated the fragment, which transformed into drops of pure spirit liquid, fusing completely with Joe Di's flesh. His refined body surged upward under the power of the Genesis Body Codex.
A golden law burst from Joe Di's brow, circled above his head, then vanished into the void.