Uncanny Valley
Zhong Ling stopped in front of a huge ancient tree and looked up. The dense branches and leaves almost completely blocked the sky.
She could feel that this ancient tree seemed to have given birth to a "spirit", which, although weak, was real.
"Then I'll help you." She injected wood-type spiritual power into the ancient tree. After she withdrew, the ancient tree shook its branches and leaves, as if to express gratitude. Zhong Ling patted the trunk of the ancient tree, said goodbye to it, and continued to move forward.
Zhong Ling continued to go deeper, his spiritual sense covering an area of several miles around him, exploring every inch of land.
Suddenly, Zhong Ling stopped in her tracks, and her spiritual sense detected an extremely powerful energy gathering point about ten miles ahead.
This energy was not comparable to the scattered spiritual plants she had encountered before. It was majestic and pure.
This discovery ignited Zhong Ling's interest. She had originally thought she was just collecting some medicinal herbs, but she had never imagined that such a rich source of natural energy could be hidden in this deep forest.
She immediately adjusted her direction and moved through the dense forest like a ghost, several times faster than before.
At the same time, her consciousness was highly concentrated, closely monitoring any unusual movements that might occur in the area ahead and around her.
The closer they got, the more pronounced the pressure from that energy became. When they were less than a mile away from the energy source, Zhong Ling's forward consciousness touched an invisible wall.
This is not a formation or restriction set up by a monk. There are no runes on it. It is more like a naturally formed energy field.
Almost at the same time as he touched the barrier, Zhong Ling keenly sensed that inside the barrier, there was an extremely powerful breath of life lurking. This breath was ancient and wild, and seemed to be associated with the energy source.
Zhong Ling stopped and stood outside the barrier, not rushing in immediately.
She stood still for a moment, her spiritual sense carefully exploring the characteristics of this invisible barrier, feeling the patterns of its energy flow, and also analyzing the strength and properties of the powerful life breath within the barrier.
The guardian's strength should not be underestimated. It is at least equivalent to that of a cultivator in the middle stage of foundation building, and has a wild and fierce nature.
Breaking in by force is obviously not the best option and is likely to trigger a violent backlash and hostility from the guardians.
In order to avoid unnecessary conflict, Zhong Ling moved his mind slightly, mobilized the spiritual power in his body, and at the same time activated a trace of the spatial power of the mustard seed space.
She did not choose to break the barrier violently, but instead cleverly combined her spiritual power with the power of space, and like mercury pouring on the ground, she slowly and carefully penetrated into the invisible barrier.
The process was not smooth. She could feel a slight blockage, as if passing through a layer of sticky gel.
The energy of the barrier spontaneously produced repulsion, but Zhong Ling's infiltration method was extremely subtle and did not trigger its defense mechanism.
After a few breaths, as her body swayed slightly, the sense of obstruction disappeared and she successfully passed through the barrier.
Suddenly, the view became clear.
What comes into view is a hidden valley. It is not large in area, but it seems like a paradise.
The fog in the valley is thicker than that outside, but it does not appear gloomy, but rather full of vitality.
Sunlight shines through the mist, illuminating the unusually lush vegetation in the valley. The shapes and colors of many plants are completely different from those in the outside world, obviously having been nourished by the rich energy of this place for a long time.
And in the very center of the valley, the source of that tremendous energy is clearly visible - it is not some kind of spiritual plant, but a small spring with a diameter of about ten feet. The spring water is a light milky white, gurgling out. It is this spring that nourishes the vitality of the entire valley.
Just then, a low, warning roar sounded in the valley.
She looked up and saw a huge, tiger-like beast with two horns on its forehead slowly rising to its feet not far away. Its body was covered in dark golden hair, its muscles were wiry, and it exuded a sense of power.
A pair of amber animal eyes were staring at Zhong Ling, the uninvited guest, with eyes full of vigilance and alertness.
A powerful aura emanated from the strange beast, and Zhong Ling looked at it calmly.
Zhong Ling didn't move rashly. She tried to separate a strand of her spiritual consciousness and carefully extended it forward, trying to touch the other's consciousness. Zhong Ling told the strange beast, "No harm, stay for a moment, and take what you have."
"roar--!"
She was answered with an even more commanding growl, and the moment her spiritual sense made contact, it was repelled. The beast scratched the ground lightly with its front paws, its muscles tensing even more, clearly viewing her spiritual sense probing as a provocation.
Communication failed. But this brief contact also allowed Zhong Ling to confirm that the other party was not an irrational beast.
At the same time, she also sensed more clearly that within the body of this strange beast, near its left hind leg, there was an old but still active energy disorder, like some kind of old wound that was difficult to heal.
If she were to force it, it would definitely be a fierce battle. Regardless of the outcome, the noise would be too loud, which was not what she wanted.
With a thought, a soft, light green spiritual power emitting vitality appeared at Zhong Ling's fingertips.
This is the purest wood-based vitality, carrying a healing and nurturing aura.
She snapped her fingers and green spiritual power flew towards the strange beast.
The strange beast instinctively bared its fangs, trying to disperse the foreign energy, but the pure vitality contained in the green spiritual power made it pause.
It could feel that this energy was not harmful to it, but instead brought with it a... very comfortable aura.
It hesitated for a moment, then let it fall on the old wound on its left hind leg.
After the wood-type spiritual power penetrated into the beast, it felt as if a warm current was passing through its left hind leg. The left hind leg, which had been aching for years, was no longer as painful.
The roar in the beast's throat gradually subsided, and its tense muscles relaxed slightly. The look it gave Zhong Ling was still alert, but with less hostility and more confusion and scrutiny.
It seemed that it didn't understand why the intruder was helping it?
Taking advantage of this opportunity, Zhong Ling tried to communicate with her spiritual sense again: "Take the spring and the plants, and I won't hurt you."
The strange beast looked at her silently, its huge head tilted slightly, and its amber pupils blinked.
It could feel that the two-legged beast in front of it was not weak, but it did not exude the greed and murderous aura that disgusted it.
Especially the green light just now, which really relieved the pain of its old injury.
After weighing the pros and cons, the strange beast did not give way and continued to guard beside the spring, telling Zhong Ling that this was his bottom line - you can pick plants, but don't try to touch the core things.
Seeing this, Zhong Ling stopped insisting and turned her attention to the plants around the spring. The land around the spring was moist and fertile, and many rare flowers and plants grew there, with thick, bright leaves, emitting a rich spiritual energy.
Several of these plants were used as auxiliary materials for refining foundation-building elixirs. Nearest the spring, there was a small tree several feet tall, emerald green with leaves like jade carvings. At its top lay three golden fruits, each radiating a faint, precious light.
"Golden Marrow Fruit?" Zhong Ling's heart stirred. This was a true treasure, a precious item that could help Foundation Establishment cultivators consolidate their cultivation and even help them break through bottlenecks, even in the world of cultivation.
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