With the help of the World Tree, Joe Di's injuries improved greatly over three days. However, he dared not continue his healing. He was worried about Charlotte Ling—this Hell Vortex could even devour divine sense, and once she entered, survival would be extremely difficult.
Boom! Just as Joe Di was about to enter the Hell Vortex, the protective array he set up was suddenly struck. Sweeping his divine sense outward, he was surprised to find Shelby Young standing outside his array.
If Shelby Young hadn’t appeared here, Joe Di might not have remembered her at all.
Joe Di raised his hand to open the protective array, smiled, and said, "Congratulations, you’ve recovered your Transformation Realm."
Now that Shelby Young had recovered her Transformation Realm, most of her appearance had returned. Though not yet fully restored, Joe Di could already see she was a stunning beauty. Unlike many women, her beauty carried an indescribable sense of intelligence.
Seeing Joe Di, Shelby Young breathed a sigh of relief, bowed, and said, "Thank you, Brother Joe, for saving me. After I recovered to late Transformation Realm, I was worried about you, so I came outside the Morrison Clan. Only then did I learn that the Morrison Clan had been destroyed by you."
Joe Di shook his head. "I only killed two Prime Realm cultivators of the Morrison Clan, oh, and one Transformation Realm cultivator. As for destroying the Morrison Clan, I didn’t really do that."
As Joe Di spoke, he could already see the situation outside—countless cultivators were scrambling for the Morrison Clan’s possessions, but none of it concerned him.
Although Shelby Young already knew Joe Di had killed two Prime Realm cultivators of the Morrison Clan, hearing him say it still left her deeply shocked.
Joe Di looked to be about the same size as Ning Cheng had been back then, but when it came to fighting, he was just as terrifying. The Morrison Clan was so fearsome, keeping her pinned in their plaza for tens of thousands of years. Yet in Joe Di’s hands, they vanished in just half a day.
She thought of Moira Song, who had been killed by Ning Cheng, and of her sisters who died after Moira Song’s death. She couldn’t help but sigh. The Morrison Clan had always been arrogant—whether it was Moira Song or her kin, they were all the same.
But in the vast universe, there are countless strong and talented individuals. The debts the Morrison Clan owed would eventually have to be repaid.
"Did you come looking for me?" Seeing Shelby Young lost in thought, Joe Di took the initiative to ask.
Shelby Young snapped back to reality and nodded. "Yes, Brother Joe, when I arrived, I heard some news outside. I was worried it might concern you, so I came to tell you. I couldn’t find you outside the Morrison Clan, so I guessed if you hadn’t left, you must be here."
"Go ahead," Joe Di nodded.
Shelby Young took a deep breath. "I guessed you might have something to do with the Celestial Beyond. Outside the Morrison Clan, I heard news about the Celestial Beyond. I heard that Prime Realm cultivators from the Primordial World forcibly sealed off the Celestial Beyond, and there were seven or eight of them. It seems they’re planning something big; they’ve built a huge altar in the center of the Celestial Beyond plaza..."
Joe Di’s expression changed slightly when he heard this. The Prime Realm cultivators from the Primordial World were truly ruthless.
As a soon-to-be Seventh-Rank Formation Sovereign, Joe Di was well aware of what these Prime Realm cultivators wanted with an altar in the center of the Celestial Beyond. This was exactly what Tang Xitan and Vera Tang feared—the Primordial World’s experts wanted to merge the Sacred Dao Domain and surrounding realms back into the Primordial World. But since they lacked third-step powerhouses, they intended to achieve it through a blood sacrifice of all living beings in the Sacred Dao Domain.
As long as they slaughtered all living beings in the Sacred Dao Domain and used their souls and essence blood for the blood sacrifice, they could use that power to take away an entire realm. Since the victims were from the Sacred Dao Domain, it included all its cultivators.
Seeing Joe Di’s expression change, Shelby Young stopped talking. In her mind, few powerful cultivators had nothing to do with the Celestial Beyond.
It seemed that Brother Joe really was connected to the Celestial Beyond.
Joe Di’s face remained somber for a long while before he finally said, "Junior Sister Xiangbing, I plan to enter the Hell Vortex, then head to the Celestial Beyond. You’d best leave now. I killed two Prime Realm cultivators of the Morrison Clan, and most of the cultivators below Prime Realm have already fled. I didn’t pursue them, but staying here is dangerous for you."
"I’ll leave soon. But Brother Joe, do you know what the Hell Vortex really is?" Hearing Joe Di wanted to enter it, Shelby Young’s heart skipped a beat and she quickly asked, hoping to dissuade him.
Previously, she’d thought Joe Di came for the Hell Stone, but now realized he intended to enter the Hell Vortex itself.
Hearing Shelby Young’s words, Joe Di was delighted. "Junior Sister Xiangbing, you know about the Hell Vortex?"
Shelby Young nodded. "Yes, I’ve heard people talk about it. As long as the soul remains after death, even if the spirit is lost, it doesn’t matter. If the soul finds Chaotic Magma, it can reconstruct the body and restore cultivation and strength. Chaotic Magma exists only in one place—the Realm of Sevenfold Rebirth. The Hell Vortex is the transmission channel leading to the Realm of Sevenfold Rebirth."
Joe Di was astonished as he pointed at the vortex before him. "Junior Sister Xiangbing, even I might not be able to enter such a vortex. You’re saying a soul can safely pass through here to reach the Realm of Sevenfold Rebirth? If it were that easy, countless slain souls in the universe would be trying to enter the Realm of Sevenfold Rebirth."
A vortex that could devour even divine sense—Joe Di absolutely did not believe a broken soul or primordial spirit could pass through. If such a place truly existed, it would be even more miraculous than the Duality Blossom or any other supreme body-restoring treasure.
Shelby Young explained, "Ordinary souls can’t enter the Hell Vortex, but those who have cultivated the Sevenfold Soul Rebirth Path can. Not many people know about the Realm of Sevenfold Rebirth, and even if they do, without cultivating the Sevenfold Soul Rebirth Path, they can’t enter the Hell Vortex. Even then, finding an entrance that leads to the Realm of Sevenfold Rebirth is extremely rare."
Joe Di said, "So, Morris Zhou returned to the Morrison Clan to heal because if anything happened, he could escape into the Hell Vortex?"
Shelby Young hesitated, then shook her head. "Not necessarily. Even Morris Zhou might not know that the Hell Vortex leads to the Realm of Sevenfold Rebirth. And there isn’t only one Hell Vortex—though they’re rare, there are a few scattered in other places. They’re just seldom known because it’s so hard to enter and even harder to leave."
"Then how do you know about it?" Joe Di asked Shelby Young, puzzled.
A trace of sorrow appeared in Shelby Young’s eyes. After a moment of silence, she said, "I once married a man named Moira Song. He knew about this, and he also cultivated the Sevenfold Soul Rebirth Path."
Joe Di had heard Shelby Young mention this person before and didn’t think much of it. Instead, he asked, "So, by your reasoning, Moira Song might not have died, but entered the Hell Vortex to restore his soul and body?"
Shelby Young shook her head. "He’s dead—his soul was completely destroyed. There are restrictions for entering the Realm of Sevenfold Rebirth. At the very least, your soul must be intact. The Realm of Sevenfold Rebirth is a place for perfecting the body, soul, and Dao. It’s not enough to have just a fragment of primordial spirit."
"Alright, I’ll go in and take a look. You should leave now—I don’t know if I’ll be able to come back." Hearing these explanations, Joe Di suspected there might be many souls inside seeking to perfect their bodies, which made him even more determined to enter.
According to Shelby Young, if there were any beings inside, they must be powerhouses, all possessing remarkable abilities. If Charlotte Ling hadn’t perished, she would be nothing but an ant before such beings.
"Brother Joe, you still want to go in?" After explaining the Hell Vortex and the Realm of Sevenfold Rebirth, Shelby Young was stunned that Joe Di still insisted on entering.
Joe Di nodded. "Yes. My friend is trapped inside. I must go in and see for myself."