Joe Di's divine sense swept over the Primeval Spirit Sanctuary in fury. Within this sanctuary, countless cultivators were refining Soulbinder Gold.
If one were to ask what the cruelest material in the universe is, Soulbinder Gold would be the undisputed answer. Its raw material comes from the very core of a living planet, meaning that refining Soulbinder Gold requires annihilating multiple life-bearing worlds and extracting their innermost essence.
But the cruelty does not end there—refining Soulbinder Gold demands the lifespan and blood essence of cultivators. Throughout a cultivator’s entire lifetime, they might only manage to refine a thumb-sized fragment of Soulbinder Gold. Once they succeed, their lifespan is spent.
Joe Di's divine sense swept across the area, and he found that at most ten million cultivators remained refining Soulbinder Gold. If all these people were from the Primeval Realm, it meant that less than one in a thousand of the original cultivators survived.
In fact, Joe Di was certain he was not mistaken. These ten million were trapped within a massive sealing array, each one moving like a soulless puppet, endlessly repeating the motions of refining Soulbinder Gold. Some would collapse and die as they worked, only for a force to sweep their bodies outside the array. Worse, if any cultivator became distracted, a blade of energy would instantly strike them down, their remains tossed aside like bones.
Outside the sealing array lay heaps of white bones, piled up like endless mountain ranges.
Previously, hearing that the Bay Family’s cultivators had taken over the Primeval Realm had already filled Joe Di with anger. But witnessing this tragedy firsthand, his killing intent surged—what purpose could such a cultivation clan possibly serve?
Joe Di threw a punch, shattering the sealing array with a single blow.
All the cultivators who had been refining Soulbinder Gold with their blood essence and lifespan stopped in shock, raising their heads to stare at the sky.
Moments later, many cultivators were overjoyed to discover that, for the first time, not refining Soulbinder Gold did not result in instant death. Moreover, the sealing array seemed to have been broken. In the past, anyone who paused their refining, even for a few breaths, would be killed immediately.
Joe Di hovered above the crowd and sighed. "The owner of this Spirit Sanctuary was Barry Jack. He has already been slain by me."
By all rights, at these words, the emaciated cultivators should have cheered and stood up. Yet to Joe Di’s confusion, they only stared at him in a daze, neither moving nor celebrating. Their faces were not just numb—they were shrouded in layers of deathly gray.
Joe Di quickly understood the reason. It seemed these cultivators thought he had only killed Barry Jack to seize the Primeval Spirit Sanctuary for himself, becoming nothing more than another Barry Jack. Having been penned in this sanctuary, they naturally assumed there would be more suffering ahead.
Joe Di could only say, "I will send you out now. The realm outside is called the Taiji Realm. If you wish, you may live and cultivate there. If not, you are free to leave at any time."
"You won't keep us captive?" A frail elder, whose only movement came from his eyes, shakily stood up and looked at Joe Di in disbelief. If Joe Di hadn't arrived, he would have survived only a few more years at most.
Joe Di replied, "I have no such vile habits. I will be taking the Primeval Spirit Sanctuary away. In fact, even if you do not wish to leave, I must ask you to depart from here."
"We are willing to go." The cultivators grew excited as they realized what was happening. Encountering a powerful figure with no interest in enslaving them was something they had never even dreamed of.
Without hesitation, Joe Di summoned waves of Dao resonance, sweeping the millions of cultivators out of the Spirit Sanctuary and into a vast open space in the Taiji Realm. As for the piles of bones, Joe Di sent down a flame, reducing them all to ashes.
But when Joe Di looked at the mountains of Soulbinder Gold, he could only sigh.
Soulbinder Gold is not only the cruelest material in the universe, but also one of the most precious. It can be used to set up the most advanced arrays and forge supreme artifacts—even treasures surpassing supreme artifacts. Weapons made from Soulbinder Gold suppress an opponent’s spiritual sense in battle, showing just how valuable it truly is.
Yet even those cultivators who forged artifacts from Soulbinder Gold would often conceal its aura. In the cosmic world, those who used Soulbinder Gold were despised, and could even become targets for collective attack.
Joe Di was certain that if he forged ten thousand supreme blades from all this Soulbinder Gold, his blade array would become his deadliest weapon.
Joe Di shook his head and tossed out a formation flag, sealing away the mountain of Soulbinder Gold.
This pile of Soulbinder Gold had been forged from the lives of tens of billions of cultivators, every ounce condensed from their blood. No matter how much he needed top-tier materials for his blades, he would never use this.
The Bay Family of the Bay of Legends—he was determined to destroy them. Even if he hadn't found their exact location in the rings of the Bay Family cultivators, he intended to seek them out and wipe them out. Such a repulsive clan, always annihilating and refining entire realms. Who could guarantee that the cultivators who offend them don't have friends or family living in those realms? Since they can't be guarded against, it's best to eradicate them.
The Bay of Legends surely had many powerful cultivators, and likely more than a few at the Third Step. Although their Third Step experts were much weaker than those of the Abyss of the Dao, Joe Di decided to go into seclusion for a period. He also planned to visit the Lost Dao Domain and reclaim the Yin-Yang Taiji Diagram.
He was the Taiji Dao Lord, and since the Yin-Yang Taiji Diagram was the Taiji Realm’s treasure for suppressing fate, he would reclaim it and restore it to the Taiji Realm.
Joe Di had found the direction of his Dao. As long as he had enough cultivation resources and kept integrating his Dao laws, his strength would keep rising. Besides, his Genesis Opening Incantation also required seclusion.
After storing away the Primeval Spirit Sanctuary, Joe Di was about to draw out several supreme divine spirit veins when his hand paused. Suddenly, his figure flashed as he rushed into the Ninth World, excitement burning in his eyes.
"Nora Xiu..." Even though he knew Nora Xiu was safe, seeing her revived before his eyes left Joe Di overwhelmed with emotion. After all these years, he had finally saved her.
"Old Master, Madam has awakened..." Bolt hurried over, eager to please.
Nora Xiu was stunned for a moment, then realized Joe Di was the Old Master. Years of suppressed longing burst forth, her eyes reddened, and she could no longer hold back, rushing into Joe Di’s embrace.
Since their separation on Earth years ago, she had cultivated desperately and raised two children on her own. The hardships she endured were known only to herself, but now, at last, she was reunited with her husband.
Bolt was no fool. It quickly turned to sneak away, but in the next instant, Joe Di had already tossed it out of the Ninth World.
(Thousands of words are omitted here, so this chapter must end here. That’s all for today’s update—good night, friends!)