When Joe Di opened his eyes, he found a pair of eyes less than a foot away from his face. Instinctively, he tried to retreat, but a sharp pain shot through his legs. Immediately, not just his legs, but his entire body was wracked with excruciating pain.
It was only at this moment that Joe Di realized most of his bones were nearly shattered—his ribs, leg bones, arm bones, and even his spine.
Joe Di immediately extended his spiritual sense and discovered he was still in the vast starry sky, but now on a desolate, ruined planet. The planet was so small that his spiritual sense could cover most of it.
"Did you save me?" Joe Di asked instinctively, but as soon as he spoke, he realized his mistake. There was no way this guy in front of him had saved him. He must have been carried here by the meteor storm to this tiny, abandoned planet.
Seeing Joe Di open his eyes, the young man who had been staring at him up close finally stepped aside. Joe Di judged that the youth was about his age, and like him, his clothes were tattered and his hair long and unkempt. However, the whiskers at the corners of his mouth were shaved clean.
"Save you? I'd have to be bored out of my mind to bother saving you," the young man snorted, then continued, "You're the poorest guy I've ever seen since I started cultivating. You've reached the Soul Ancestor Stage and still haven't managed to get your hands on even a Storage Pouch. How did you even cultivate to the Soul Ancestor Stage? And you actually survived in the vast starry sky, becoming a Starwanderer. I have to admit, you've got some luck."
Joe Di instantly understood that this guy must have searched through his belongings. He knew about Storage Pouches and Quantum Vault Rings, but he truly didn’t have either. He could refine top-grade spiritual artifacts, but items with storage space required special materials to craft, and he hadn’t found any yet. All he had was a cloth bag, which he lost in the meteor storm.
Thinking of this, Joe Di was startled and hurriedly tried to reach for his chest.
His arm was broken, and just that small movement made him groan uncontrollably.
The young man seemed to catch Joe Di's intention. He chuckled, tossed over a jade vial, and said, "There are a few healing pills in here. Take them. You really are lucky to have survived this. As for that piece of jade on your chest, honestly, it doesn’t interest me at all, so you can stop worrying about it."
After saying this, the young man turned and walked away, no longer bothering with Joe Di.
Joe Di actually breathed a sigh of relief. He could see the jade at his chest—so long as it was still there, everything was fine. That jade was now his only connection to Cassie Cao.
Joe Di didn’t bother picking up the jade vial from the ground. His spiritual sense swept over it, confirming there were indeed a few healing pills inside, but their quality was just average.
With his cultivation technique operating, Joe Di’s shattered bones quickly began to heal. In just half a day, he was able to move again. He picked up the jade vial and put it into his tattered pocket. Though he didn’t need those pills, the gesture was appreciated.
In the days that followed, the young man never appeared again, and Joe Di didn’t use his spiritual sense to pry into what he was doing. After a few days, most of Joe Di’s broken bones had healed, and he was able to stand up.
At that moment, the young man returned, looking at Joe Di in surprise. "You recovered so quickly? The pills I gave you weren’t that good, were they?"
"Thank you for your help, my friend. I’ve trained in body refinement, so I recover faster than most. My name is Joe Di. May I ask what yours is?" Joe Di clasped his fists and asked sincerely.
"I’m Simon Su. Looks like your body refinement technique is pretty good." Simon Su slapped Joe Di on the shoulder, completely unconcerned, or perhaps he felt Joe Di’s cultivation was far beneath his own.
Just from the name Simon Su, Joe Di felt a sense of goodwill toward him. "My son’s name also has the character 'Jin' in it…"
Simon Su scoffed, "Taking advantage of such a trivial thing—what’s the point? Your cultivation is lacking, but you managed not to die after coming here. Since you’re still alive, come with me. I’ll show you how to make a little money."
Joe Di wasn’t interested in making money; what he wanted was to find a planet inhabited by people and quickly cultivate to a higher level, to open up his own world. "Brother Su, may I ask where the nearest inhabited planet is?"
"Aren’t you from the Mad Domain?" Simon Su was surprised by Joe Di’s question.
"Mad Domain?" Joe Di looked at Simon Su in confusion and shook his head. "I’m not from the Mad Domain. Strictly speaking, the planet I come from is a martial arts world, not one for cultivators like me. I started cultivating for special reasons. You can tell I don’t even have a Storage Pouch."
Simon Su widened his eyes and circled Joe Di before giving him a thumbs up. "Amazing, you’re truly incredible. To reach the Soul Ancestor Stage on a mortal planet, your spiritual roots must be extraordinary! With all the resources my family provided, I’ve only reached the Cauldron Ascendant Stage. You’re way ahead of me."
Joe Di hadn’t expected Simon Su to be a Cauldron Ascendant Stage cultivator. He smiled awkwardly and said, "I’m just at the Seabreaker Stage; I’m nowhere near your level."
Simon Su snorted again, "I look down on those who act all superior just because their cultivation is a bit higher. Those guys act like they never started from the bottom—it’s disgusting. I make friends based on whether I like them. You seem alright, your spiritual roots are decent, but your only flaw is taking advantage of little things. Never mind, I won’t hold it against you. I’ll take you somewhere to look for Crimson Iron."
Joe Di clasped his fists again. "Brother Su, I’m really not that interested in searching for Crimson Iron. Please, tell me more about the Mad Domain. That’s the place I’d rather see."
Joe Di couldn’t help feeling helpless as Simon Su kept forgetting the topic, so he had to remind him again.
Simon Su laughed heartily. "Brother Joe… Actually, I’ll just call you A-Jiu. Do you know what kind of place the Mad Domain is? There’s nobody as easygoing as me there. Everyone acts like they’re the best in the world. Street duels break out all the time, and who knows how many people get killed every day. Even a Soul Ancestor like you would need luck to survive. Even someone like me at the Cauldron Ascendant Stage has to keep a low profile there. Stick with me, make a little money, and once your cultivation improves, then think about going to the Mad Domain."
Joe Di shook his head. "No, I came out here specifically to find a place like the Mad Domain. If I can’t find it, my cultivation won’t improve."
Simon Su was surprised by Joe Di’s determination to go to the Mad Domain. But considering how Joe Di got here, he understood. Joe Di had survived against all odds—clearly, he wasn’t afraid of death. Such a person wouldn’t fear venturing to the Mad Domain, a place perfect for advancing cultivation.
Thinking of this, Simon Su stopped laughing and spoke seriously. "A-Jiu, the Mad Domain is a continent in the starry sky. Cultivators from many worlds gather there, making it easy to obtain top-tier cultivation treasures—but it’s also the easiest place to get killed. Sometimes, someone who doesn’t like you will attack you with a Dao technique, just like that. Are you still sure you want to go?"
Joe Di didn’t hesitate at all. "Brother Su, I still want to go."
"Alright, since you’re so determined to go to the Mad Domain, I’ll go with you. But before we go, we should mine some Crimson Iron. The Mad Domain may be dangerous, but it’s also a place to make a fortune. If we get enough Crimson Iron, we can strike it rich there," Simon Su said.
He’d been to the Mad Domain once before, but it was too dangerous, so he left and came here. Originally, he planned to mine Crimson Iron alone, then return to the Mad Domain once he reached the Tribulation King Stage. Now that he’d met Joe Di, he was thinking of going back to the Mad Domain for another round.
(Wishing everyone a happy National Day! That’s all for today’s update. Good night, friends!)