After Joe Di finished setting up the Spirit Binding Array, he suddenly realized he had no way to leave. Joanna Brooks had already taken a pile of spirit herbs and left using her Locator Disk—how could he possibly obtain one?
Helpless, Joe Di could only rely on Spirit Shift. In theory, wherever his spiritual sense could reach, he could shift himself there.
Joe Di's spiritual sense was at the tenth level, and after several refinements with the black Firegod Herb, his tenth-level spiritual sense was far more resilient than that of Transforming True Stage cultivators in the Central Realm. Once he fully extended his spiritual sense, Joe Di was pleasantly surprised to find he could penetrate outward.
At first, Joe Di's spiritual sense could only seep a few meters out of the sealed space, but as long as he could shift out of it, his Spirit Shift could take him even farther. As Joe Di kept shifting, after half a day, his spiritual sense could already see the surging yellow sands outside.
The moment Joe Di landed outside the yellow sands, he received a message from Miles Phantom sent a month ago. Miles Phantom had told him that once he returned to the Central Realm, he should go to Destiny Isle to find him. The Central Realm Star would open in a year, and Joe Di needed to advance further there before heading to the True Domain. Miles also warned him to watch out for people from Kun Sect.
A wave of relief washed over Joe Di as he read Miles Phantom's message stating that Di Di and Tian Ku were both cultivating in seclusion on Destiny Isle. Kun Sect was definitely suspicious, or perhaps someone had seen him and Uncle Hao Lan vanish together at Nightlake.
Although he hadn't reached the Cauldron Lord Stage yet, it was still impossible for Kun Sect to catch him. Since Di Di and Tian Ku were both on Destiny Isle, he had nothing to fear. As long as he could one day reach the Tribulation King Stage, even Kun Sect would be unable to threaten him.
The Desolate River Forbidden Zone was vast and boundless. Combined with all sorts of natural restrictions suppressing spiritual sense, even Joe Di had no idea which way was the exit.
Joe Di's advantage over others was his Spirit Shift and tenth-level spiritual sense. The tenth-level spiritual sense allowed him to easily avoid sudden crises in the desert, while Spirit Shift helped him quickly find the right way out of the Desolate River Forbidden Zone. Even so, it took Joe Di a full four days, encountering seven or eight crises and more than ten packs of sand fiends along the way, before he finally emerged from the forbidden zone.
"Senior... did you just come out of the Desolate River Forbidden Zone?" Two cultivators at the edge of the forbidden zone saw Joe Di emerge, their voices quivering with awe and disbelief.
It's rumored that only Transforming True Stage experts can enter the Desolate River Forbidden Zone. Even those at the Tribulation King Stage don't dare to venture inside casually.
Joe Di looked quite young, yet he had managed to come out of the Desolate River Forbidden Zone unharmed—how could this not shock them? Of course, age was only a guess; some experts were hundreds of years old yet still appeared as youthful as teenagers.
Joe Di cupped his fists and asked, "I just got lost and nearly wandered into the Desolate River Forbidden Zone. May I ask, who is the most famous Pill King in the Central Realm?"
Facing a breakthrough to a major realm was nothing new to Joe Di. This time, if he wanted to reach the Cauldron Lord Stage quickly, he'd need a Kunlord Pill. Otherwise, he'd have to rely on time and gradual accumulation.
The main spirit herb for the Kunlord Pill was the seventh-grade Kunlord Mushroom. Thanks to Joanna Brooks, Joe Di now had six Kunlord Mushrooms with him. Not only that, he also had all the high-grade auxiliary herbs needed to refine the Kunlord Pill. As for the low-grade auxiliary herbs, those could be bought anywhere.
When they heard Joe Di had only gotten lost and nearly entered the Desolate River Forbidden Zone, the two cultivators finally breathed a sigh of relief. That's more like it—if someone as young as Joe Di could actually enter, what had they been cultivating all these years, just to end up as dogs?
"If you're looking for a Pill King, the most famous are the eighth-grade Pill King Ji Ming from Pillfall Mountain, and the eighth-grade Pill King Lian Yishui from Destiny Guild." Since Joe Di wasn't a top expert, the cultivator who replied dropped the honorific 'senior.'
Joe Di cupped his fists again. "Thank you very much."
He was already planning to go to Destiny Isle, and now that he knew Destiny Isle had the eighth-grade Pill King Lian Yishui, Joe Di naturally had no reason to go to Pillfall Mountain.
Once he was far from the Desolate River Forbidden Zone, Joe Di immediately began using Spirit Shift.
Now that Joe Di was using Spirit Shift, even Transforming True Stage experts couldn't match his speed. But after only two shifts, his commsphere received a message from Miles Phantom.
"Wait directly beneath Central Realm Star in one year. Do not come to Destiny Isle. Your sister is safe—no need to worry..."
Joe Di stopped in his tracks. Before, he was told to go, and now he was told not to come to Destiny Isle? What did that mean? Joe Di immediately sent a message back to Miles Phantom, but received no reply.
After hesitating for a moment, Joe Di decided to trust Miles Phantom and not go to Destiny Isle for now. He believed in Miles's character—if he said Di Di was fine, then she must be.
Moreover, Joe Di understood one thing: if something had really happened, going to Destiny Isle would just be walking to his death. If even Miles Phantom couldn't guarantee safety, what good would it do for him to go?
Given that, he might as well cultivate until he reached the Tribulation King Stage before heading over. In the Central Realm, he, Di Di, and Tian Ku had no close friends or relatives. If all three of them ran into trouble, there wouldn't be anyone left to pick up the pieces.
With that in mind, Joe Di put on a disguise mask, sheathed the Azure Veil Blade on his back, and turned to head for the nearest trading post.
An hour later, Joe Di left the trading post, heading toward Pillfall Mountain.
After making some inquiries at the trading post, Joe Di also learned the origin of Pillfall Mountain. It was originally called Cauldron Pill Mountain, one of the top sects in the Central Realm—stronger even than the current Five Grand Sects.
Cauldron Pill Mountain was famous for its supreme alchemy cauldron, the Genesis Cauldron. Because of the Genesis Cauldron, the mountain produced countless pill dao experts. Back then, anyone in the Central Realm who needed high-grade pills would go to Cauldron Pill Mountain. The mountain had a whole group of Pill Kings capable of refining ninth-grade spirit pills.
Cauldron Pill Mountain's rise and fall were both tied to the Genesis Cauldron. Because so many coveted the cauldron, the mountain was besieged by numerous powerful sects. Even though Cauldron Pill Mountain had many allies, when the situation deteriorated, no one stood up for them. After its destruction, the Genesis Cauldron vanished as well.
It was that battle that led to Cauldron Pill Mountain's downfall, and since then, people simply called it Pillfall Mountain. Even so, among the two eighth-grade Pill Kings in the Central Realm, Pillfall Mountain still had one.
But that's all that's left—rumor has it Pillfall Mountain now has only two people: the eighth-grade Pill King Ji Ming and his young pill apprentice. There isn't a third soul in Pillfall Mountain.
Every year, many cultivators come to Pillfall Mountain seeking pills, but few succeed. There are three rules for requesting a pill from Pill King Ji Ming: first, you must bring your own spirit herbs, and you need double the amount for one batch of pills; second, you must fulfill a request from Pill King Ji Ming; third, you owe him a favor and must answer his call whenever he asks.
Now that Joe Di knew Kun Sect was hunting him, all he wanted was to break through to the Cauldron Lord Stage as soon as possible. As for owing a favor, Joe Di honestly didn't care much.
Two hours later, when Joe Di stood outside Pillfall Mountain, he finally understood why Cauldron Pill Mountain was once a top sect.
Even now, standing outside, Joe Di could see the jagged, broken peaks stretching into the distance. Just as the rumors said, most of these peaks had been shattered, and the traces of battle were still faintly visible. Normally, a place for alchemy would be rich in spiritual energy, but here, it was incredibly scarce—the spiritual veins had clearly been drained.
Joe Di extended his spiritual sense inside, but quickly encountered a spiritual sense-blocking barrier. He summoned his skyship and landed it just outside the barrier.
Pillfall Mountain was no longer the Cauldron Pill Mountain of old; even the most basic mountain-protecting array was gone.
Standing outside the spiritual sense-blocking barrier, Joe Di cupped his fists and called out loudly, "Joe Zimo, a wandering cultivator, requests an audience with Senior Pill King Ji Ming—I have a request!"
His voice echoed through the mountains, and since Joe Di used his spiritual sense to amplify it, he was sure that as long as Ji Ming was in Pillfall Mountain, he would hear him.
To Joe Di's disappointment, after calling out, he waited several minutes but received no response.
Joe Di could only repeat his request, but still, there was no reply.
He had to get his hands on the Kunlord Pill; besides auctions, this kind of pill couldn't be bought at any pill house. Moreover, Joe Di suspected that one Kunlord Pill wouldn't be enough, so he had to seek help from a Pill King. After calling out several times with no response, Joe Di sent his spiritual sense through the barrier.
He saw all sorts of low-grade spirit herbs; following them with his spiritual sense, he soon found a somewhat dilapidated grand hall. The barrier outside the hall was intact, but he sensed no sign of life.
Joe Di's spiritual sense pierced through the hall's barrier, and he finally saw Ji Ming. Ji Ming sat in front of a pill cauldron, his face dark and ashen, his skin dry—clearly, he had been dead for a long time.
Dead? Ji Ming was dead—who else could he ask to refine the Kunlord Pill?