Bamboo Mound

Just as it began to show signs, he habitually suppressed it. Ning Chang then realized what was happening, and his sudden confusion caused his spiritual energy to stagnate for a moment, but it quickly resumed its flow.

At first, the outside world was completely silent, with only the rustling sound of the wind blowing through the weeds.

Ning Tongyu sat cross-legged to the side, staring at Ning Chang. His spiritual power was already in a semi-activated state, just waiting for Ning Chang to do something uncontrollable so he could take action immediately!

When that restlessness rose again, Ning Chang stopped trying to control it and continued to operate the circuit described in the Heart Demon Rapid Journey.

When he first started cultivating, he could guess the principles behind those techniques and martial arts. However, since leaving the Cloud and Mist Secret Realm, he could no longer explain how these functions worked using his original knowledge.

It can't even expand its learning and cognition beyond following the instructions!

After the wisp of spiritual energy at his heart circulated a few more times, and as the spiritual energy throughout his body began to tremble slightly, Ning Chang knew that he had successfully entered the first stage of the Heart Demon Rapid Movement!

Moreover, he only felt slightly irritated, not as intensely as he usually felt... or perhaps it was thanks to Yao Xiangcao...

"It seems the first stage can be used freely. I've gotten 70% of the speed boost for free. Next up is the second stage."

Without pausing, he reversed his spiritual energy path and continued towards the second stage of the Demonic Ascent.

According to the cultivation method, the influence of the inner demons in the second stage will be greatly enhanced, but with Ning Tongyu by his side to take care of him, he naturally has no worries.

As the spiritual energy continued to circulate at his heart, the spiritual energy throughout his body and the trembling of his heart gradually accelerated...

Finally, as the vibration frequency increases, until the moment of fusion!

Everything came to an abrupt end, replaced by a continuous and steady feeling of pressure covering the heart and the outer walls of the meridians!

The sensation emanating from these areas was as stiff and unresponsive as hands still damp from being wrapped in a plastic bag.

But unlike ordinary plastic bags, it seems to be filled with dense serrations, constantly trying to exploit and sever his meridians and mind while under pressure!

Fortunately, due to the fusion of the tremors, even though it was sharp inside, it did not move at all, making it just an ornament.

He has now successfully entered the second stage of the Inner Demon Journey!

As he entered this phase, Ning Chang's sense of irritability suddenly intensified, and his breathing became rough, as if he had reached the limit he had ever reached before!

The surrounding air seemed to grow heavy. Ning Tongyu stared intently at Ning Chang, the spiritual energy in his hand flickering slightly, ready to deal with any unexpected situations that might arise.

"Hmm... I've got double the speed. It does affect my thinking a little, but I can still control it."

Having successfully broken through to the second stage, his speed increased again, this time doubling!

He knew that the fragrance of the distant grass and the fruit of the tree played a big part in this; if it weren't for that elusive sense of etherealness, the restlessness would have been three or four times stronger!

Thinking of this, he stopped the operation of the inner demon's rapid movement and exited the accelerated state.

"Did Changdi fail? After all, it was his first attempt, so it's normal to fail at times."

He opened his eyes, turned his head to look at Ning Tongyu, "No, I've already cultivated to the second stage, and it's still within my control. Next..."

"The second level!?" Ning Tongyu suddenly asked, his eyes wide. "Brother Chang has already pushed the Heart Demon Swiftness to the second level?"

"Hmm, is there anything I should be careful about?" Ning Chang was puzzled. Had he somehow broken the rules again?

"No...no, Chang-di, please continue." Ning Tongyu was somewhat embarrassed. Compared to Ning Chang's speed in cultivating techniques, his once-proud talent was simply insignificant!

Ning Chang may not understand now, but he knows that in addition to being harmful and having uncontrollable power, most of the restricted books in the library are also very difficult to cultivate. On average, it takes three times as long as other normal cultivation methods to cultivate successfully!

Not to mention that Ning Chang advanced to the second level in just 25 minutes without making any mistakes!

"The situation at the second level is still within our control, but I'm not so sure about the third level. Brother Tongyu, you can start making preparations."

"okay, I get it."

Seeing Ning Tongyu nod, Ning Chang entered a state of cultivation again. After quickly raising his Heart Demon Swiftness to the second level, he began to advance towards the third level.

However, there was a slight change: when he entered the second level again, the restlessness he felt was less than before, which was a pleasant surprise.

As the flow of spiritual energy changed again, the ratchet teeth inside the pressure membrane that originally covered the meridians all flipped over to face outwards, and at the same time, a second pressure membrane began to gradually form on the body surface, with the ratchet teeth facing inwards.

Finally! In a split second, both ratchet teeth detached from the pressure membrane and launched! They bounced and collided throughout his body's meridians, heart, and skin!

With countless collisions, a torrent of emotions erupted within him, but unlike what he had imagined, he felt no anger whatsoever. Instead, his heart was instantly filled with fear, sorrow, and a profound disgust for everything...

After an unknown amount of time, seeing that the collision of the rattles showed no signs of abating and that the intensity of the various emotions remained unchanged, Ning Changcai determined that he had reached the third stage!

Upon reaching this level, the emotions that arose prevented him from thinking normally, so Ning Chang simply exited the cultivation state, opened his eyes, and took a few deep breaths.

Only then did he realize that his clothes were soaked with sweat and his hair was stuck to his face.

"Did you fail?" Ning Tongyu asked with concern, waving her hand to wipe the water off Ning Chang's body and dry his clothes as well.

Not long after Ning Chang entered a meditative state again, he began to furrow his brows and tremble all over, which lasted for almost half an hour!

Ning Chang shook his head and said slowly, "I would say it's a half success. The effects of this third layer are less than I expected. However, Yao Xiangcao also contributed to this. Although I didn't completely lose my mind, I couldn't think normally."

"But Brother Tongyu, I have a question I'd like to ask."

"But it doesn't matter."

"So... um... what are the typical signs of the final stage before confronting one's inner demons?"

"Before confronting your inner demons, the manifestations will vary depending on the method used. Changdi, why don't you tell me what you've encountered?"

"The information I read in the library said that people in a state of inner demons behave in the opposite way to normal times. So according to this logic, I should become furious, or my main emotion should be anger."

"But after just one round of cultivation, all I can feel is... um... fear? Aversion."