Joe Di smiled, "Quentin, do you really think I'm the kind of person who needs friends to pave my way with their lives?"
Quentin Wood waved dismissively at Joe Di and spoke calmly, "Actually, this is my own decision. Staying here, I've lost every opportunity. All that's left for me is to wait for death."
"Even if I sought cooperation with Samuel Shang, I would never do such a thing," Joe Di said without hesitation.
Quentin Wood nodded. "I know. Back then, Samuel Shang trapped me with the Starshroud Umbrella and corrupted my Dao foundation with the Lost Dao Toxin. Though I escaped with my life, my life cycle was destroyed. Even if I made it out, it wouldn't be any different from staying here. If you could bury my true form somewhere teeming with vitality, when I reincarnate, I might retain some memories. For me, that's not a bad outcome."
Pausing for a moment, Quentin Wood continued, "Besides, even Samuel Shang doesn't know more about the Spirit Plant Chaos Realm than I do. Finding the Cycle Resonance was pure luck for him. If he could have left, he would have found someone else long ago—he wouldn't still be stuck here now."
Joe Di's heart stirred. Samuel Shang had tried to cooperate with him several times, just as Quentin Wood said—if Samuel Shang could find someone else, wouldn't he have escaped already? Right now, Joe's strength far surpassed anyone else in the Lost Dao Domain, but what about ten thousand years ago, or even a million? Samuel Shang wanted his help because Joe had something no one else did.
The Lethe Bridge—Joe Di instantly understood the reason.
It was just as Quentin Wood had said. If Joe Di summoned the Lethe Bridge to connect with the Cycle Resonance, then joined forces with Quentin to tear open the void of the Reincarnation Realm, how was that any different from Quentin, as a spirit plant, using his own fall to communicate with the Cycle Resonance?
Thinking this through, Joe Di immediately said to Quentin Wood, "Quentin, find a place where we can connect to the Cycle Resonance. Let's do this together."
"Joe..." Charlotte Ling's face paled at Joe Di's words. She couldn't bear the thought of Joe risking Quentin's life for her survival. Even if Quentin was willing, she would rather not live this way.
Joe Di smiled faintly. "Don't worry, Quentin doesn't need to fall in order to connect with the Cycle Resonance. I have my own way."
Quentin Wood looked at Joe Di in astonishment. In the Spirit Plant World, connecting with the Cycle Resonance without a spirit plant's demise—what method could Joe possibly have?
Despite his doubts, Quentin still said, "Then follow me."
He had already made up his mind—if Joe Di couldn't do it, he would immediately use his own life to communicate with the Cycle of Rebirth.
Quentin Wood was clearly familiar with Halfmark Marsh. After half a day, he led Joe Di and Charlotte Ling to a marsh pit.
The pit was nearly a hundred feet across, its center riddled with massive fissures.
"This place is called the Halfmark Marsh Pit. The reason I chose it is because, in all of Halfmark Marsh, the water here is always the last to disappear," Quentin explained.
Joe Di nodded and pulled out a handful of Array Banners. "I'm going to set up a Concealment Array. When we tear open the void barrier, Samuel Shang must not find out."
"Let me help," Quentin Wood said without hesitation. He was also a Ninth-Rank Formation Sovereign.
Joe Di waved him off. "I can handle it myself."
The reason Joe Di declined Quentin Wood's help was simple: even as fellow Ninth-Rank Formation Sovereigns, their arraycraft produced vastly different results.
Joe's arraycraft was born from the Path of Laws, far beyond anything Quentin could match. Once his Concealment Array was set, Samuel Shang would never discover it until the barrier was torn open.
Watching Joe Di drop array banners one after another, Quentin couldn't help but marvel inwardly. He was certain Joe was unlike anyone else, possessing peerless techniques, and his mastery of arraycraft was on a level they simply couldn't compare to.
Normally, setting up a Divine Guardian Formation to defend an area a hundred feet across would take Joe Di less than the time it takes to burn half a stick of incense—or even less.
But this time, it took him nearly ten days to complete the formation.
Once the Divine Guardian Formation was in place, Joe Di immediately activated it and summoned the Reincarnation Bridge.
"The Reincarnation Bridge..." Quentin Wood gasped in shock as he saw Joe Di's legendary artifact.
In that instant, both Quentin and Charlotte Ling understood. With the Reincarnation Bridge in Joe Di's possession, he could surely open a channel to the Cycle Resonance.
For Joe Di, the most critical task wasn't just finding the channel to reincarnation, but figuring out how to break through it once he did.
"Joe, if I'd known sooner, I would've called a few more experienced friends to help. The three of us alone are a bit lacking." Seeing the Reincarnation Bridge, Quentin Wood realized Joe's chances of escaping had already risen above sixty percent.
Joe Di waved his hand. "Don't worry. Once I activate the reincarnation channel, you both attack with everything you've got. If you see an opening, rush through immediately."
"Got it." Quentin Wood replied without hesitation, not needing Joe's reminder. Charlotte Ling had already summoned her artifact, her gaze fixed on the void around the Reincarnation Bridge, waiting for Joe Di to open the channel.
Joe Di activated the Reincarnation Bridge, and waves of Cycle Resonance echoed through the void.
Even though the Reincarnation Bridge wasn't aimed at them, Quentin Wood and Charlotte Ling still felt their souls tremble, as if they might break free and enter the bridge at any moment.
Joe Di froze. He could clearly see giant words forming above the Reincarnation Bridge, their shapes shifting from blurry to sharp.
Life and Death, Ten Law Realms; Six Paths, Self-Rebirth!
Was this the Genesis Opening Incantation? Joe Di understood instantly—this was it. He remembered Samuel Shang's incantation began with 'Void, Silence, Shadow and Yin-Yang!' He wasn't sure about the rest, but it definitely wasn't 'Life and Death, Ten Law Realms; Six Paths, Self-Rebirth!'
In a matter of moments, Joe Di grasped it. Though both were Genesis Opening Incantations, his was different from Samuel Shang's, shaped by his own artifact and cultivation method.
Joe Di was ecstatic. Samuel Shang's incantation might suit him, but not necessarily Joe. The incantation awakened by Joe's resonance and artifact was truly his own.
Before, Joe Di merely wanted the Creation Brush. Now, he craved it.
It was easy to imagine—if he ever faced a true Third Step cultivator, as long as he stood atop the Reincarnation Bridge and wielded the Creation Brush, few could withstand him. Staring at the ever-clearer Genesis Opening Incantation, Joe Di felt more and more certain: only by writing it with the Creation Brush could he unleash its full power.
With that thought, Joe Di abruptly stopped channeling the Cycle Resonance.
Quentin Wood looked at Joe Di in confusion. "Joe, if your Reincarnation Bridge holds out a bit longer, the reincarnation channel to the Spirit Plant World will open."
Joe Di nodded. "I know. I have to make a trip to Lost Dao City. You and Charlotte wait here. As soon as I return, we leave immediately."
Neither Quentin Wood nor Charlotte Ling asked why Joe Di needed to go to Lost Dao City. They trusted that, at such a crucial moment, Joe had his reasons.
......
Ever since Joe Di left, Samuel Shang hadn't been at ease. Even though he knew Joe couldn't leave the Lost Dao Domain without him, Samuel still worried. After all, Joe had so many treasures—if he figured out the reincarnation channel, he just might try it.
Still, Samuel was confident—if Joe Di summoned the Reincarnation Bridge again, he'd sense it.
As soon as Joe Di activated the Cycle Resonance, Samuel would lead his people over at once. Whether to seize the Reincarnation Bridge or use the moment to escape the Lost Dao Domain, he wouldn't miss the chance.