Bamboo Mound

However, he quickly regained his composure, took out a hidden stone, and handed it to Ning Chang.

"This is your memory after you cultivated the fourth level of Heart Demon Swiftness. After pulling you out, I found that you were still mired in the influence of the Heart Demon. I had no choice but to call Ge Shu to extract this memory before you woke up."

Ning Chang took the cross-shaped stone, which was warm to the touch, with a distinct bluish-black light flowing within it.

He looked up at Ning Tongyu, his face showing a mixture of doubt and hesitation.

“This memory…” Ning Chang hesitated, unable to finish her sentence.

"It's alright. This black light is just a unique way in which the memories of inner demons manifest in the Hidden Consciousness Stone. When used in practice, it will not cause any negative effects such as triggering inner demons."

"Alright." Upon hearing this, Ning Chang put aside his concerns.

"But why does the Hidden Stone have this shape? And it's quite smooth..."

He flipped the Hidden Memory Stone, which contained his memories, over and over with both hands. No one had explained this to him before, so in his mind, the Hidden Memory Stone was mined just like the Spirit Stone.

"The shape of the hidden knowledge stone is random. Although it is influenced by its contents, the influence is very slight. The shape of this double-forked stone is just a coincidence."

Ning Tongyu explained, as if it were commonplace.

"Due to the influence of its content... can the shape of this stone still change later in life?"

"No, the storage and arrangement of the contents in the Hidden Knowledge Stone has not been fully studied to date. Any slight change will affect the contents, causing some of them to become chaotic or disappear."

"Didn't you say it was affected by the content?"

"That's right. When it is condensed, the contents sealed within it will cause slight changes in the shape of the Hidden Knowledge Stone. In special cases, it will also be marked with obvious marks. The black light on Changdi's Hidden Knowledge Stone is a ready example."

Upon hearing this, Ning Chang's eyes widened, and he remained silent for a few moments.

"The Hidden Knowledge Stone... was it manufactured?"

Ning Tongyu immediately understood and chuckled a few times.

"Otherwise what? It seems you thought it was dug up all along."

"Although this Hidden Memory Stone is called a stone, it is not the same as a spirit stone. In fact, it is just a container created by the fusion of memory light and spiritual power."

"oh oh..."

Ning Chang understood now.

"But, is there any secret technique needed to fuse memory flashes and spiritual power?"

Ning Tongyu shook his head.

"No, a memory spark only needs to come into contact with a sufficient amount of spiritual energy to be sealed within it, forming a hidden memory stone. As for the principle behind it, I don't know."

"So simple? But this Hidden Knowledge Stone doesn't seem to contain any spiritual power."

"This is something that no cultivator can understand. It is created by spiritual energy but does not contain spiritual energy. However, why waste time on this, Brother Chang? No one has figured it out for many years, and it is not a very important matter."

"We cultivators are single-mindedly devoted to the Dao. As our cultivation level increases, we naturally understand many things, don't we?"

After speaking, Ning Tongyu smiled and looked at Ning Chang, as if asking for his approval of the statement.

"Ha, that's true, let's forget about that kind of curiosity."

He shook his head and immediately pressed the Hidden Knowledge Stone against his forehead, accepting the memories within.

In an instant, a series of images flashed by: clouds, mountain peaks, falling, starry sky, and memories of countless stars. These memories, along with the familiar feeling, came over him, but they did not stir any emotion in him.

But his only question was whether he was truly communicating with stars in some unknown part of the universe, and what those messages actually meant...

"So, what type of inner demon is it?"

When Ning Tongyu saw Ning Chang open his eyes again, he asked a question.

"In a dreamlike state, I fell into the starry sky, feeling both weary and at peace. Countless stars shared their memories with me... or perhaps, memories."

"Well, the information in the inner demon illusion is of no reference value. It's all fabricated by your inner demon through your imagination. This time, Changdi didn't gain any advantage in dealing with the inner demon. So, unless you are absolutely certain, you must never attempt the fourth level of the Inner Demon Swiftness again!"

"That's it, then I understand."

"Now that Changdi has woken up, I'll take my leave first."

"Um..."

After saying that, Ning Tongyu vanished without a trace.

Although Ning Chang had heard those words, he hadn't quite processed them yet, so he lay back down, staring blankly at the ceiling, and remained motionless for the time being...

......

"Whoo~"

Ning Chang let out a long breath, opened his eyes, and stood up.

Without relying on the Spirit Gathering Pill, after a week of cultivation, he finally managed to replenish the 70% of spiritual power that his inner demons had wasted! His cultivation level was also consolidated at the seventh level of the Spirit Platform.

Although he does have seven bottles of Tier 3 Spirit Gathering Pills now, he plans to use them for advanced cultivation rather than to provide some acceleration during the replenishment process.

A week ago, after lying in bed all day, he got out of bed and went to the courtyard to sit cross-legged and absorb spiritual energy.

Although he was a stranger, he recognized him; Ning Tongyu had taken him to her residence.

"Next, let's replenish the bamboo leaves as well."

He stretched, making a crackling sound, and when he put his head down, all the plants in the yard were uprooted, the soil was shaken off and thrown outside the yard wall, leaving only two short, unobtrusive flower bushes against the wall.

During this period, Ning Tongyu came by once more and asked him for some Qingling bamboo seeds, which he now believes have already been planted.

Having witnessed the Nine Heavens Primordial Liquid, he no longer thinks about how to manually improve the quality of bamboo, and therefore no longer follows Wang Ban's notes for planting.

After spending about half an hour learning the Rain Summoning Technique and Rapid Growth, Ning Chang planted a bamboo seed in the loosened soil.

He then took out a drop of growth fluid and immediately used the Rain Summoning Technique to condense a fist-sized dark cloud, which stopped two meters above the point where the bamboo seed had landed.

After the growth solution was then sprayed into the clouds, the diluted solution immediately mixed with the rainwater and fell onto the soil below.

Because there was only one drop, the dark clouds dissipated in less than the time it takes to drink half a cup of tea, and the small puddle that had briefly gathered below quickly seeped into the earth, leaving only a dark patch.

As the growth solution seeped in, Ning Chang could clearly feel the changes in the bamboo seed.

The seed gradually swelled, and then a small opening appeared at the top, from which a black ray emerged, extended, and finally broke through the soil!

After breaking through the soil, the black light stopped moving, then expanded again, and a bit of green sprouted out from it!

As soon as the green shoots appeared, they hurriedly shoot upwards, eventually settling into a small, upright leaf!