"I didn't expect you to have such a method."
Feng Yuanzheng watched Zhou Ming withdraw his hand from Qin Wumeng's head. Qin Wumeng slowly woke up, her expression somewhat complex.
"Boss Feng is joking. It's quite normal for us Reincarnators to master a few more skills, isn't it?"
Zhou Ming chuckled, simultaneously extending both hands and placing them on Qu Wei and Zhou Xinyue's heads.
A hazy light glowed from his palms. Zhou Ming's Soul Power, using the Hell Soul Cleansing Scripture as a bridge, acted upon the two women.
Soon, the eyelids of the two sleeping women twitched violently, and they abruptly opened their eyes.
One coughed heavily and gasped for air, like someone dragged ashore after drowning, while the other shivered as if doused with ice water.
Feng Yuanzheng looked up. Beneath his feet was lush green grass, dotted with colorful small flowers, twinkling with Fluorescence, beautiful and warm.
Further in the distance, however, was a dirt and stone passage, barren of any vegetation, as if an invisible barrier prevented the growth of these plants, forming a distinct dividing line.
At the front of the passage was the huge cavernous hollow, deep and dark, like the mouth of a primordial beast, devouring everything.
Just now, Zhou Ming and Feng Yuanzheng had dragged everyone else here, and then Zhou Ming used his methods to awaken the unconscious people one by one.
Although Feng Yuanzheng had many questions, he held back and patiently waited for Zhou Ming to awaken everyone.
"Unfortunately, they didn't wake up within the range of the bronze dream tree."
Zhou Ming said with some regret after awakening the last person, Kaka.
"Otherwise, they would be able to clearly perceive the barrier between dream and reality, just like you and I. Even if they stepped into the bronze dream tree's range again, they wouldn't easily fall into a dream."
Feng Yuanzheng's heart stirred, and he asked, "Do you mean that if I step into the bronze dream tree's range now, I can always remain conscious?"
"Not always. The effect of the bronze dream tree will accumulate over time. If you stay long enough, you'll still be affected," Zhou Ming explained.
"But it doesn't matter. The Ghost Doctor has gone to prepare medicinal ingredients to refine pills that will keep all of you conscious."
At this moment, the others gradually regained consciousness. Seeing this, Zhou Ming said to Feng Yuanzheng, "Since everyone is awake, I'll explain your questions..."
Going back in time a bit, after Zhou Ming knocked out the Ghost Doctor and left him at the cave entrance, he ventured alone into Changyun Cave to explore, and indeed, he had quite a few discoveries.
At this point, the continuously expanding grass spread into the active range of the bronze dream tree.
Due to the effect of the Killing Move, City - Spring Grass and Trees Grow Deep, the power of the bronze dream tree was transmitted along the spreading grass, causing Zhou Ming, who was far away, to fall victim to it.
Fortunately, the power of the bronze dream tree was greatly attenuated after long-distance transmission. Relying on his profound Soul foundation and strong will, Zhou Ming quickly broke free from the dream.
Afterward, Zhou Ming, enduring the bronze dream tree's continuous dream-inducing attacks, entered the underground hollow, where he saw the gigantic bronze divine tree, Shangguan Wuji sleeping on it, and Qiu Shuang, the Ghost Doctor's apprentice, who was the girl everyone saw in their dreams.
From Qiu Shuang, Zhou Ming learned everything that had happened back then.
It turned out that after the Ghost Doctor removed all the poisons from Shangguan Wuji's body, he was still unable to remove his demonic nature. Finally, he thought of a solution.
He brought Shangguan Wuji here, and by some unknown method, he made Shangguan Wuji immerse himself in a specific dream, fighting against his demonic self in the dream, hoping that one day he would completely defeat the demonic Shangguan Wuji and awaken.
As a result, Shangguan Wuji lay here for over a decade, yet he never woke up.
The Ghost Doctor couldn't enter Shangguan Wuji's dream and didn't know what state Shangguan Wuji was in, only feeling that Shangguan Wuji's Sword Intent was growing stronger and sharper, causing a stinging sensation just by looking at it.
It wasn't until Zhou Ming arrived here and, using the method of the Hell Soul Cleansing Scripture, made his will connect with Shangguan Wuji, entering Shangguan Wuji's dream with the help of the bronze dream tree's power, that he finally saw what that dream, which had lasted for over a decade, truly looked like.
"It's a kingdom of swords," Zhou Ming described.
"In Shangguan Wuji's dream, an absurd yet perfectly formed nation has taken shape. Every person within it is a convergence of a wisp of Shangguan Wuji's will. They share only one common desire: to become the world's greatest swordsman."
"Practicing swords, dueling with swords, engaging in life-and-death struggles—both the normal Shangguan Wuji and the demonic Shangguan Wuji were completely fragmented into millions of intentions, transforming into individuals in that world, men, women, old, and young, born for the sword, dying for the sword."
"Shangguan Wuji wanted to use this method to completely shatter and reassemble his demonic nature and self, forging a brand new self to be reborn."
"If it were just Shangguan Wuji himself, he would never be able to do such a thing, but the bronze dream tree provided him with a continuous supply of dream power, allowing Shangguan Wuji to construct this absurd, bizarre, and incredibly magnificent dream world."
"Unfortunately, it was made by the dream tree, and it was also ruined by the dream tree. While the power of the dream constructed this vast dream world for Shangguan Wuji, it also provided power to every intention within that dream world, continuously creating countless new sword techniques, pushing the old aside for the new, making the entire world's Sword Dao level higher and higher, and also causing Shangguan Wuji's idea of unifying all intentions to fall through."
"He has already lost himself in the dream. Without external intervention, he might never wake up in his entire life."
Zhou Ming's narration plunged everyone into silence.
This matter was truly too mystical, making it difficult for people to accept it immediately, which was understandable.
What the veterans were more concerned about was how to awaken Shangguan Wuji. The so-called external intervention certainly wasn't a crude and simple method.
"So, what should we do?" Kaka said, stroking his chin. "You were willing to wake us all up, so you must need our strength, right?"
"It seems you all have a deep misunderstanding about me," Zhou Ming said with narrowed eyes. "I, Zhou Ming, have always shared benefits with my companions and shouldered difficulties myself. If it weren't for you all, I would have resolved this matter on my own long ago. Why wait until now!"
"Hehe, really?" Feng Yuanzheng let out two dry laughs, his face expressionless.
"Just tell us what to do."
"After you all arrived here and fell unconscious, the Ghost Doctor and I discussed a feasible plan," Zhou Ming shrugged, cutting to the chase.
"Using me as a bridge, and with the Ghost Doctor's methods, we will send all of us into Shangguan Wuji's dream, breaking the self-contained balance within the dream, shattering the dream, and allowing Shangguan Wuji's scattered intentions to re-converge. This way, we can awaken Shangguan Wuji."
"Furthermore, during this process, all of our wills will be tempered, and we will gain a portion of Shangguan Wuji's true Sword Dao. Of course, how much we gain will depend on our performance in the dream."
At this point, he paused and said to the five newcomers, "This is your opportunity. Because the dream is a projection of one's own will and does not bring in real-world power, if you are outstanding enough, your gains will definitely not be less than ours, the veterans."
"Then, what if we encounter life-threatening danger in the dream...?" The youngest, Zhou Xinyue, asked timidly.
"If you die, you die, so fend for yourselves," Zhou Ming sneered. "But I can give you one chance. Those who don't want to participate can speak up now, lest you lose your lives in vain and achieve nothing."
As soon as these words were spoken, the five newcomers immediately grew tense, looking at each other, all remaining silent.
"If you feel you can't make a decision now, it's okay. Anyway, the Ghost Doctor's preparations will still take some time. Once you've thought it over, you can come find me anytime."
Zhou Ming showed a smile of unknown meaning and called Qin Wumeng over.
"Come on, let's go find the Ghost Doctor and see how his preparations are coming along."
With that, he pulled Qin Wumeng and walked out.
"Let's go take a look too. Maybe we can trigger some side quests."
Kaka pulled his two teammates and gave a subtle glance in Zhou Ming's direction.
"You all think about it here. We'll be back soon." Leaving that remark, they left without caring if the newcomers heard them.
Soon, only the five newcomers remained.
In the passage, Feng Yuanzheng and his two teammates walked quickly.
"Zhou Ming, that guy is too devious. He tricked those newcomers into being completely stunned. Good thing I'm clever; I saw through his deception at a glance."
Feng Jianye patted his head, letting out a smug laugh.
Kaka placed a hand on his forehead, unable to watch, and began to worry if his teammate's excessively low IQ would lead to him being brutally beaten in the dream until even his own mother wouldn't recognize him.
"Don't be careless. We don't know the principle of how this dream is constructed, and no one can say for sure what will happen if one dies in the dream."
Feng Yuanzheng cautioned Feng Jianye a couple of times, then chuckled softly.
"He's screening newcomers, hehe. It's a good idea to select new teammates from among them, after all, their team's star rating is still relatively low, and the mortality rate for cultivating newcomers isn't high."
Kaka said, "I always feel that this matter isn't as simple as Zhou Ming made it out to be. He's definitely hiding something from them!"
"What reason does he have to hide something? Is there some great benefit he wants to keep for himself, or is it because..."
"Because the information he's hiding is related to our mission?" Kaka's heart skipped a beat, and a word blurted out: "Dragon Vein! The bronze dream tree is related to the Dragon Vein!"
"What!" Both were startled by Kaka's guess. Feng Yuanzheng's face quickly turned cold: "What evidence do you have for this conclusion?"
"No evidence," Kaka frowned. "It's a hunch. That's why I wanted to pull you two along, not just to give the newcomers space, but also to prove my suspicion."
"Then what are we dawdling for? Let's just catch up and ask him clearly!" Feng Jianye said anxiously.
"No rush. If we ask him directly, he'll definitely quibble endlessly. There's another person who can certainly give us the answer we want."
"Who?"
"The Ghost Doctor!"