Bamboo Mound

Upon hearing this, Ning Tongyu was taken aback for a moment, then chuckled twice and said, "You really can't hide it from me, Brother Chang. I can't even detect any remaining traces of the Green Spirit Bamboo anymore."

“It’s not just me, Xie Jun was also affected by this bamboo, but he said that thanks to your reminder, it’s not as serious as mine.”

After saying that, he changed the subject, not giving Ning Chang a chance to continue the pleasantries.

“Wangzhou is a country under the name of the Three Sovereigns. Do you know why it is called Wangzhou?”

"I don't know, please enlighten me, Brother Tongyu," Ning Chang asked, adopting a thirst for knowledge.

To be honest, he didn't really want to know these things, but seeing that Ning Tongyu was prepared in this regard, he went along with her and let the conversation continue.

"When the three sects were founded, there were several small countries in this region, which were constantly at war. At that time, the five first sect leaders traveled here and happened to arrive when that overseas secret realm opened."

"They went there at the cost of two deaths and three serious injuries to test the rules of the secret realm. After that, they planned to stop and rest, establish a sect, and train disciples to explore the wonders within."

"But unfortunately, the small country was constantly at war and the people were suffering. For several years, they were unable to recruit a suitable disciple. Therefore, they had no choice but to take action to end the conflict and unify the country into one."

"And because that secret overseas realm was located on a lonely mountain called Buzhou, the country was named Wangzhou."

"Bu Zhou?" Upon hearing this somewhat familiar name, Ning Chang felt a little taken aback.

"Hmm, judging from Changdi's expression, have you perhaps heard of this name somewhere before?"

"Uh...no, it's just an isolated mountain overseas. How would I know its name?"

He believed that Buzhou Mountain was just a name that was the same as the one he remembered, since the cultivation systems in different worlds were different.

Moreover, in his world, Buzhou Mountain was just a vague legend, and Ning Chang only remembered that Gongzhu Rong had crashed into the mountain.

"I don't know either; the records don't explain it." Ning Tongyu shook his head.

"However, the reason I called you here this time is for the Buzhou Mountain Secret Realm. Originally, it would have been some time before its gates opened, and I estimated that your cultivation speed would not be able to keep up, so I did not introduce it to you."

"However, according to Ge Shu's recent observations, something seems to have happened to that secret realm. The surrounding space has become extremely unstable, and there are signs that it may be opened ahead of schedule."

"I don't know the specific reasons, but what is certain is that this opening will likely be the last time the Buzhou Mountain Secret Realm is open!" Ning Tongyu's expression gradually became serious as he spoke, staring intently at Ning Chang.

Feeling a little uncomfortable under his gaze, Ning Chang turned his face away and said, "But if that's the case, why ask me to go for the last opening? After all, I'm only at the Spirit Platform Realm, and my support abilities aren't high. It would be better to send those powerful Fetal Heart Realm and Transformation Realm cultivators."

"Even some disciples randomly picked from the Ascension Gate are stronger than me, right?"

“This is also due to the rules.” Ning Tongyu shook his head. “The Buzhou Mountain Secret Realm is special; it seems to use the strength of one’s divine soul to select those who are allowed entry.”

"If a cultivator at or above the Fetal Heart Realm enters, they will be attacked by the secret realm at the entrance. This is a rule that no sect has denied after testing it. The other two who accompanied the first sect leaders of the three sects died because of this."

"In that case, wouldn't the interior of Buzhou Mountain be even more dangerous?" This means that he can now assess his current strength through a proper battle.

"That's not the case. As long as you pass through the entrance smoothly, the greatest danger in the entire secret realm will only be the disciples of other sects who enter at the same time."

"Resource grabbing? This is indeed a situation that needs attention." With his abilities, he is indeed very safe against spirit beasts with low intelligence, but he has little confidence against cultivators with different abilities and varied moves.

"Well, judging from the past, even when the secret realm is open smoothly, there are still quite a few casualties caused by fighting over resources. This time the secret realm has changed, and those sects will definitely intensify their efforts. You need to be more careful then," Ning Tongyu instructed.

"I will. As long as the difference in strength isn't too great, I should be able to put up a fight. If all else fails, my speed is enough to escape most of the pursuit."

"That's not what I meant. I've already sensed Changdi's strength before. Although he doesn't pay enough attention to his own strength, he's quite powerful in his use of the Azure Bamboo. After this period of training, I imagine he's become even more adept at using it."

Furthermore, you seem to have some unique ideas, with a spiritual energy reserve far exceeding that of ordinary people, and your attack methods don't consume much spiritual energy. Therefore, even an ordinary cultivator at the Fetal Heart Realm would find it difficult to defeat you without using techniques related to the divine soul!

“This…” Ning Chang hadn’t expected that Ning Tongyu would see through him so clearly, even though he and Ning Tongyu hadn’t explored cultivation in depth!

But on second thought, this was within the realm of possibility. After all, Ning Tongyu was two realms higher than him, and the information about him could be drawn from observation.

"I don't think so..." Ning Chang relaxed his shoulders and tilted his head, saying, "That's the Fetal Heart Realm, which is a whole realm higher than mine even without using my divine soul. I can't possibly beat them!"

“Not so.” Ning Tongyu shook his head. “You’re overcomplicating the fetal heart stage. You’ll understand when you advance. Actually, the strength of your spiritual power doesn’t increase much after advancing from the Spirit Platform Realm to the Fetal Heart Stage. The specific improvement is roughly equivalent to the Spirit Platform Realm from the first to the ninth stage.”

"Similar to a minor realm advancement within the Spirit Platform?"

"That's right, the entire Fetal Heart Realm is solely focused on cultivating the strength of the soul, preparing for the complete condensation of the primordial spirit in the Transformation Realm."

"I see." Ning Chang sighed. The filter he had previously held onto regarding the existence of the fetal heartbeat had vanished, giving him the courage to face the fetal heartbeat directly.

"But if that's the case, what am I supposed to do?" Judging from Ning Tongyu's tone, it seemed that he was going to assign him a task other than collecting supplies.

"Well, because Medicine King Valley doesn't emphasize combat strength assessments, most disciples below the Fetal Heart Realm focus on researching spiritual plant cultivation, resulting in generally lower combat abilities compared to the Astrology Pavilion and the Weapon Refining Workshop..."

Ning Chang interrupted Ning Tongyu directly, "Brother Tongyu, please be straightforward and tell me the specific tasks."

As he spoke, he felt a pang of regret for Ning Tongyu.

When I first arrived, Ning Tongyu wasn't like this. Although she wasn't exactly energetic and decisive, she was still much more capable than she is now.

Ning Chang understood the reason for this situation: the position of sect leader had locked away his talent and slowed down his cultivation path!

He's been idle for too long. If a person does nothing all day, they will lose their vitality without realizing it, which is commonly known as getting old.