This time, Joe Di’s cultivation lasted quite a while. With his physical body reborn through the fragments of the Cosmic Membrane, just a single Radiant Profound Pill was enough to trigger the Lightning Tribulation of the Golden Immortal stage.
Only now did Joe Di truly appreciate the benefits of the Celestial Physique. The dense and powerful arcs of tribulation lightning fell upon him, at most tearing open a bloody gash—less severe than the Thunderweb and Thunderbolt Pillars on Stormhaven Island. As for being blasted into serious injury, that was still a long way off.
After nine waves of Lightning Tribulation, Joe Di easily stepped into the first rank of Immortal Lord. Since the advent of tribulation lightning, this was the most effortless breakthrough Joe Di had ever experienced.
Ever since he obtained the Stellar Nexus, Joe Di rarely remained at the initial rank of any realm after a tribulation. His Stellar Nexus absorbed spiritual energy and immortal essence at a terrifying rate, and each time he transcended a tribulation, a massive vortex of vital energy would form around him.
This time, after advancing to Immortal Lord, Joe Di did not immediately rush into the second rank, but remained at the first. However, his Spiritual Sense became much more refined, now just a step away from breaking through to the Fourth Rank Immortal Sense.
Though he regretted not breaking through with his Spiritual Sense, Joe Di’s greatest worry now was whether he could quickly find the Trueglass Elixir.
Now at the first rank of Immortal Lord, Joe Di used Spirit Shift in the void, moving several times faster than a mid-grade immortal artifact flying vessel. The only difficulty was that, with sustained use of Spirit Shift, his Spiritual Sense was easily exhausted. In a word, it was tiring.
But after a month, Joe Di was met with a pleasant surprise.
When his Spiritual Sense was depleted from repeated Spirit Shift, he would then use Mindforge to temper his Spiritual Sense, resulting in rapid progress. Spirit Shift and Mindforge were practically made to complement each other—one consumed, the other refined and strengthened.
In three months, Joe Di finally broke through the bottleneck, and his Spiritual Sense advanced to the Fourth Rank Immortal Sense.
What delighted Joe Di even more than reaching fourth-level Immortal Sense was the appearance of a tiny bright spot on his jade slip—he was certain it marked the location of Great Cauldron City.
As long as he could see where Great Cauldron City was, he would be fine. His greatest fear was wandering endlessly through the void, unable to pinpoint its exact location.
Afterwards, Joe Di continued to travel using his Immortal Sense as propulsion. Whenever his sense grew depleted, he would practice Immortal Sense Tempering, restoring and refining both his sense and his sea of consciousness.
After two more months of urgent travel through the void, Joe Di slowed down and summoned a low-grade immortal vessel. A vast silhouette of an immortal city had appeared in his Immortal Sense—he could no longer rely solely on sense-propelled flight.
This time, Joe Di didn’t dare let Tree Brother out, nor did he allow Moria Lane to appear. Moria was a disciple of Puregate Sect, and in a place like Great Cauldron City, who could guarantee she wouldn’t be recognized?
Boom! As soon as Joe Di reached the outskirts of Great Cauldron City, he saw two cultivators locked in combat in the void.
Joe Di’s fourth-level Immortal Sense was as keen as that of most Grand Immortals. When he recognized one of the battling cultivators, he nearly turned and fled—the man was Paul Qian, and Joe Di was certain Paul had come here to hunt him down.
Blackfire’s mistake had been grave, letting an Immortal King pursue him for years and now wait outside Great Cauldron City. Fortunately, Joe Di spotted Paul Qian here, giving him a chance to be wary. As long as he kept using sense-propelled flight, the vastness of the void would make it hard for Paul to catch him. Still, he’d need to disguise himself for a while—he would never give up on Great Cauldron City.
But Joe Di quickly halted. Paul Qian was clearly at a disadvantage. The black-clad man fighting him struck with ruthless precision; every time Paul tried to escape, he was suppressed.
Splurt! A mist of blood exploded as Paul Qian’s brow was torn open by the opponent’s technique. His primordial spirit shot out, only to see Joe Di—he was stunned, even in spirit form.
He’d waited here for Joe Di for over a year, never expecting to encounter him at the very moment of his death…
Boom—a burst of flame erupted atop Paul Qian’s primordial spirit. He had no chance to resist before the fire reduced him to nothingness.
Joe Di, like the other cultivators, stood at a distance, unmoving. Only after the black-clad cultivator collected Paul Qian’s ring and departed did Joe Di follow the others toward Great Cauldron City.
No one discussed Paul Qian’s death. It was as if the slaying of an Immortal King here was a trivial matter. This made Joe Di all the more cautious—clearly, the security outside Great Cauldron City was no better than that of the Dusk Immortal Realm.
No one could see Joe Di’s true cultivation, so to avoid unnecessary trouble, he simply revealed the aura of a first-stage Immortal Lord.
Years of drifting in the void had left his hair and beard long. Joe Di didn’t bother to tidy himself; he intended to present himself as a lone wanderer who’d roamed the void for ages.
He hardly needed to disguise himself. After so long wandering the void, and coming from the Dusk Immortal Realm, Joe Di—though young—carried a subtle air of void-worn desolation. This was a trait unique to many void drifters, not something one could imitate with mere disguise.
Joe Di settled in a massive plaza spanning hundreds of miles. At its far end lay a thousand-zhang-wide road of void-carved white jade, slanting upward into the distance.
Following the crowd of void travelers, Joe Di walked up the sloping road for nearly a stick of incense’s time before glimpsing the faint outline of a colossal city gate within the array.
Above the city gate, four large black array-forged characters glimmered: Great Cauldron Freedom.
It was undoubtedly a ninth-level immortal array. Though Joe Di was a seventh-level Array King and couldn’t construct such a formation himself, he could still recognize it.
Outside the gate was a circular void-inlaid platform. Above it, a row of words read: Great Cauldron Freedom City Identity Token Exchange—one thousand top-grade immortal crystals per token.
Joe Di watched as someone placed a thousand top-grade immortal crystals into the slot, and a black jade token materialized out of thin air.
Once that person left, Joe Di did the same, tossing in a thousand top-grade immortal crystals and receiving a black jade token. It was much like the identity tokens used in Starhaven City—there, every resident needed one to enter or leave.
Joe Di requested four identity tokens in succession, keeping three and sweeping his sense over the remaining one.
He quickly discovered that any name could be inscribed into the token. More than that, it tracked Great Cauldron Freedom points.
He hadn’t entered Great Cauldron City yet, so his freedom points were zero.
He then read the introduction carefully. Joe Di expected to spend some time in Great Cauldron Freedom City, so he needed to understand its rules—much like those of his own Starhaven City, with its many regulations.
In just a few breaths, Joe Di grasped the basic rules of Great Cauldron Freedom City.
The city lord of Great Cauldron Freedom City was named Mi Ji, wielding the greatest authority within the city.
Within Great Cauldron Freedom City, two things circulated most: immortal crystals and freedom points. One hundred top-grade immortal crystals could be exchanged for a single freedom point. Clearly, these points were vital—tracked on the identity jade token, which itself had ranks, with black being the lowest.
When enough freedom points were spent in the city, the token’s color would change: black, gray, white, silver, blue, purple, gold.
Great Cauldron Freedom City forbade fighting. If one wished to duel, there were only two ways: fight on the Freedom Platform, or—as Joe Di had just witnessed—fight outside the city. Outside, life and death were left to fate.
What caught Joe Di’s attention most was that the city levied a residency tax.
Anyone who hadn’t purchased a cave estate within the city had to pay ten top-grade immortal crystals per day. Those who bought a cultivation estate only paid a fixed fee once.
Joe Di sighed inwardly. If he didn’t have some immortal crystals left, even sleeping on the streets of Great Cauldron Freedom City would be beyond his means.
Fastening his token to his belt, Joe Di entered Great Cauldron City, marveling at its majestic grandeur.
He’d visited Outer Cauldron Void City before, but compared to Great Cauldron, it was like a remote mountain village—its immortal aura sparse, its buildings haphazard.
Great Cauldron Freedom City was clearly planned with scientific precision. The streets were broad, lined with orderly towers and cave estates, their heights grand and imposing. The immortal aura was dense—ten top-grade crystals a day hardly seemed excessive.
Cultivators thronged the streets, as numerous as grains of sand.
What shook Joe Di most was that Immortal Kings—who could dominate the realm—were everywhere; he’d already spotted several. Some individuals’ cultivation was utterly unfathomable, clearly beyond the Immortal King level.
Here, he was truly but an ant.