The Spirit Transformation Talisman was incredibly miraculous. Even after Ning Fa activated the Innate Divine Thunder, he remained in an etherealized state, allowing him to confidently move forward.
At the same time, the slight coolness Ning Fa felt in his divine soul intensified, clearly indicating that the location of the Soul Nurturing Divine Spring was getting closer.
After nearly an hour, Ning Fa finally emerged from the Bay Wind. He couldn't help but let out a long sigh of relief, having consumed nearly thirty percent of his Supreme Metal Divine Thunder.
A few miles ahead, Ning Daozhen and Ying Zhen's groups were sitting on the ground without any regard for their appearance.
Both looked pale and shaken, clearly having passed through the Bay Wind, but not without difficulty.
Before they could rest for long, another black tornado that blotted out the sky and obscured the sun swept towards them.
Several Tianwu cultivators turned ashen-faced. Although Ying Zhen's expression was grim, he appeared quite composed.
Soon, both groups unleashed their magic treasures, the blue light gourd and the gray stone tablet, and entered a Bay Wind far larger than the previous one.
Ning Fa's eyes flickered, and he followed closely behind.
Moreover, within this Bay Wind, Ning Fa boldly closed the distance to both sides, to within a hundred feet.
This was because the power of spiritual sense was also severely restricted within the Bay Wind.
Ning Fa was ready to make his move.
After another hour, the condition of the two groups worsened.
The halo around the gray stone tablet above Ning Daozhen's head had become much thinner. The green mist emitted by the blue light gourd that Ying Zhen had produced had also significantly diminished.
At this moment, a fierce glint flashed in Ying Zhen's eyes, and without any warning, he slashed outwards with his left hand.
A beautiful colorful skirt female cultivator beside him was sent flying over ten feet away.
Her face filled with terror, her spiritual light flickered, and she attempted to fly back towards them.
However, the surrounding Bay Wind seemed like a fierce beast that had smelled blood. The black wind masses, as if they had substance, immediately enveloped her.
Her screams of agony were incessant. Before long, the black wind mass dissipated, leaving only a pile of white bones in its place.
Ying Zhen's expression remained unchanged, while the other Tianwu cultivators around him acted as if they saw nothing, continuing to protect him.
Ning Fa's eyes narrowed slightly, his killing intent growing stronger.
Even though Ying Zhen held a very high status, since Ning Fa had already learned of his ill intentions towards him, he would definitely not spare him due to his identity. After all, they were already destined to be enemies.
Ning Fa communicated with the Source-Crossing Heavenly Book again, changing the True Form Imprint to himself.
He decided to unleash his full power the moment he made his move, as he could recover instantly anyway.
But now was not the time. The opponent had not yet reached their absolute limit. He needed to wait for the best moment to ensure a swift kill.
Not long after, they walked out of this Bay Wind.
This time, their rest period was only a short half-hour before a larger Bay Wind swept towards them.
This time, even Ying Zhen couldn't help but show a hint of fear.
Ning Daozhen and the other two also wore extremely solemn expressions, as it seemed their already dim gray stone tablet magic treasure could no longer protect the three of them through this Bay Wind.
They exchanged glances and then tightly pressed back-to-back.
Xiao Han suddenly threw a black orb with his left hand. It exploded with a bang, transforming into a dense, water-like black light that enveloped the three of them.
After a period of distortion, a puppet resembling a black poisonous scorpion, about ten feet long, appeared.
The gray stone tablet magic treasure also flashed with gray light and merged into the surface of the scorpion puppet, giving it a layer of hazy gray radiance.
Such a move made Ning Fa, who was observing in secret, marvel. Xiao Han truly lived up to his reputation as a Puppet Master, possessing such skills.
At this moment, he had already refined some Innate Thunder Essence from his dantian to replenish his consumed innate power. He felt that the time to make a move should be within this third Bay Wind.
Ying Zhen glanced back at the black scorpion, a strange look in his eyes, and muttered to himself:
"As expected, there's some skill involved. I believe that by virtue of discovering Xiao Han and the soon-to-be-obtained Soul Nurturing Divine Spring, it should be enough for my grandfather to bestow that treasure upon me."
As he spoke, a fleeting look of excitement flashed in Ying Zhen's eyes.
He then looked at the guards beside him, casually pointing at two of them, and said in an unquestionable tone, "You two, stay here."
Clearly, Ying Zhen felt that his magic treasure could no longer protect so many people, so he decisively abandoned these two.
Without the protection of innate power in this place was equivalent to death.
These two were a golden-armored big man and a long-browed old man, neither of whom were ordinary Great Cultivators.
Upon hearing Ying Zhen's words, their faces turned ashen, but they dared not resist.
The originally imposing golden-armored big man began to beg desperately, even kowtowing repeatedly, completely devoid of the dignity of a Great Cultivator, but Ying Zhen remained unmoved.
The long-browed old man, however, said nothing more. Instead, as if relieved, he calmly sat down cross-legged, as if awaiting the arrival of death.
Only four followers remained by Ying Zhen's side.
Two were exceptionally tall, sturdy cultivators clad in animal skins, and they looked identical, clearly twin brothers.
The other two were a pretty female cultivator with a long sword on her back, exuding heroic spirit, and a bald monk whose skin was covered in strange tattoos.
These individuals remained expressionless, seemingly unaffected by the fate of the others.
The auras of these four people were also exceptionally powerful, clearly indicating they were at least High-level Great Cultivators.
They were likely not comparable to Tianli Holy Witch's level, especially the Bald Monk, who exerted a significantly stronger pressure on Ning Fa than Hermit Xuyuan.
This was also why Ning Fa hadn't made a move in the previous Bay Wind.
The third Bay Wind finally arrived, and the three parties re-entered it.
Not long after, the Golden Armored Big Man and the long-browed elder, deprived of the protection of innate power, also turned into withered bones.
However, the Scorpion Puppets formed by Ning Daozhen and the other two appeared to possess extraordinary divine abilities, moving quite agilely within this fiercer Bay Wind.
After an unknown amount of time, everyone reached the deepest part of this Bay Wind.
The terrifying devouring and crushing forces made Ning Fa feel immense pressure, forcing him to activate both Innate Divine Thunders.
At this moment, the Scorpion Puppets' speed had also greatly decreased. On the other side, the green light gourd above Ying Zhen's head flashed wildly with spiritual light, clearly indicating it was on the verge of collapse.
Ying Zhen's expression was also grim; he had taken Recovery Elixirs multiple times.
Ning Fa's eyes flickered as he felt an opportunity arising and immediately closed in.
When he reached within about ten feet, preparing to gather strength for a strike.
Suddenly, his eyes narrowed, a sense of alarm rising sharply in his heart. He stopped immediately.
At this moment, Ying Zhen seemed to sense something, turning abruptly to look behind him, his face filled with uncertainty and surprise.
Then, he pointed his right hand to his eyes, and they transformed into a pair of Blood Pupils. Mysterious runes spun rapidly within them, and two beams of mysterious blood-red light immediately spread out, scanning backward.
The special pupil technique Ying Zhen had activated was clearly also an Innate Divine Ability.
Therefore, these two beams of blood-red light were not devoured in the Bay Wind and actually spread out for tens of feet before dissipating.
Ying Zhen, however, frowned deeply, appearing not to have detected anything.
"Young Master, what's wrong?" the Pretty Female Cultivator, who looked like a maidservant, immediately asked beside him.
"It's nothing, perhaps I was just being overly cautious."
Ying Zhen glanced back once more before giving up.
He then looked at the green light gourd above his head, which was about to give out, cursed under his breath, and took out another Blue Orb.
After crushing it, a mass of blue water enveloped the few of them. This blue water was clearly also innate power, and it could barely resist within the Bay Wind.
Ning Fa, from behind, was filled with surprise and uncertainty.
Ying Zhen must possess some exceptionally powerful and unusual Magic Treasure that could pose a serious threat to him, which was why he felt alarmed.
It was likely something similar to a Great Immortal Extermination Bead.
Thinking about it, it was normal; given his identity, possessing such a treasure was not strange.
Ning Fa felt regret and temporarily abandoned the idea of killing Ying Zhen.
Although he also had powerful trump cards, those were reserved for dealing with Spirit Transformation Cultivators, and he didn't want to use them on Ying Zhen like this. There was no need to risk mutual destruction, so he decided to put this grudge aside for now.
After a long while, everyone finally emerged from the Bay Wind.
Even Ning Fa couldn't help but let out a long sigh of relief, feeling both mentally and physically exhausted.
On the other side, with a flash of black light, the Scorpion Puppets transformed back into Ning Daozhen and the other two.
At this moment, all three were lying on the ground, panting heavily, like people who had narrowly escaped drowning and reached shore.
Ying Zhen's group was not faring any better. Even Ying Zhen was kneeling on one knee, his entire body trembling.
After a while, he managed to retrieve a Recovery Elixir and put it into his mouth, then stood up and looked forward, bursting into laughter:
"Haha! That must be where the Soul Nurturing Divine Spring is located! It was worth all my hardship to come here!"
Ning Daozhen and the other two also managed to stand up, looking ahead with extreme excitement.
Several miles away, a lush oasis could be seen, with dense vegetation. In the center of the oasis, a hazy rosy glow was faintly rising.
At this moment, the special cool sensation in everyone's Divine Soul had become extremely strong, even causing their severely depleted Divine Soul power to begin recovering at an accelerated rate.
Ning Fa also looked at the oasis with a surprised expression.
He could now feel the Moon God Heart in his Sea of Consciousness stirring restlessly, clearly attracted by the aura of the Soul Nurturing Divine Spring.
The Soul Nurturing Divine Spring was indeed miraculous, and obtaining it was truly difficult.
He wondered what kind of challenges the other six Spiritual Realms on this third level held. They were likely on the same level as this Bay Wind.
This also made Ning Fa feel even more awe towards the owner of this place, Ancestor Yuan, who was undoubtedly a Mighty Figure beyond his imagination.
Could the mysterious entity that had been secretly observing and even arranging for him previously truly be this Ancestor Yuan?
Thinking of this, Ning Fa's heart felt heavy, but the thought of the Source-Crossing Heavenly Book in his Sea of Consciousness brought him some solace.