Han Li's Shock!

Laifu Inn, Room No. 3 (Di Zi).

Night light streamed into the room through the window, and the candlelight flickered gently in the breeze, casting shifting shadows on the walls.

The pot of Biluochun tea on the table had been brewed twice, and although the aroma was fading, a delicate aftertaste still lingered in the air.

Han Li remained silent for a moment after hearing Zhou Ding's meaningful words.

He didn't immediately press Zhou Ding about what treasures he possessed. Instead, he lowered his eyes and slowly turned the teacup in his hand, seemingly considering how to respond.

He knew that Zhou Ding never did anything without a reason. Since he had specifically invited him here and brought up the Green Bamboo Bee Cloud Sword, his words clearly carried some hints. He probably really had some bargaining chips that were closely related to him.

After a moment, Han Li raised his head, a helpless bitter smile appearing on his lips: "Since Senior Brother Zhou has asked, I won't hide it from you. I have indeed thoroughly understood the forging method of the Azure Bamboo Bee Cloud Sword, and I believe I have grasped most of its subtleties. But to tell you the truth..."

He paused, his fingertips lightly tracing the rim of the teacup, a rare hint of bitterness in his voice: "The power of this sword formation is certainly enviable, but the material requirements for refining it are far too demanding. Putting everything else aside, just the core ingredient—a top-grade wood-attribute spirit bamboo—has kept me searching through every market in the Chaotic Star Sea, and I still haven't found a suitable one."

Han Li shook his head, his tone revealing a helpless resignation: "I've asked around a few times, but those so-called spirit bamboos are either too young and lack sufficient spiritual energy, or their attributes are impure, containing mixed and unrefined spiritual power. They're enough to refine ordinary magic weapons, but if used as the core material for a natal magic weapon, I'm afraid that after it's refined, it will only have the form but not the spirit, thus limiting the future achievements of this sword formation, which would be undesirable. That's why I haven't started refining it all these years."

After he finished speaking, he picked up his teacup and took a sip. The tea was already slightly cool and had a slightly astringent taste, just like his mood at that moment.

After listening to him, Zhou Ding didn't rush to reply, but simply smiled meaningfully. He slowly put down his teacup, leaned back in his chair, and glanced at Han Li's face before slowly speaking, "I naturally understand Junior Brother Han's concerns. After all, it's a natal magic weapon, concerning one's future path in cultivation. If the main material is subpar, it's better not to refine it at all. However..."

He paused deliberately, drawing out the last syllable until Han Li's gaze was filled with a mixture of helplessness and curiosity, before continuing, "It's quite a coincidence, I recently acquired two sections of Heavenly Thunder Bamboo by chance. I wonder if Junior Brother Han... would you be interested?"

Zhou Ding's tone was extremely calm, as if he were merely discussing a trivial matter. But these words, falling into Han Li's ears, were like a stone thrown into still water, creating ripples across the land!

Han Li's pupils suddenly contracted! The teacup in his hand almost wobbled, spilling a few drops of tea onto the back of his hand, but he was completely unaware.

Thunder Bamboo?!

These three words exploded in Han Li's mind like a thunderbolt, freezing him in place! With his composure and shrewdness, very few things could make him lose his composure in front of others. But this time, he simply couldn't suppress the shock and excitement in his heart.

Thunder Bamboo! The legendary Thunder Bamboo!

Although Han Li already knew of this item's existence from ancient texts, his impression of it remained only at the level of description. He knew that Heavenly Thunder Bamboo was an extremely rare spiritual bamboo in the world, naturally containing a trace of divine thunder power to ward off evil. That thunder power was extremely yang and strong, possessing a natural restraining effect on all evil spirits, demonic techniques, and other malevolent entities. It was a treasure coveted by countless righteous cultivators!

Most importantly, Thunder Bamboo is a top-grade spiritual material with both wood and thunder attributes!

The wood attribute ensures its quality as the main material for the sword formation, while the lightning attribute imbues it with the power of exorcising divine lightning when forging magical treasures. Using Heavenly Thunder Bamboo as the main material to forge the Azure Bamboo Bee Cloud Sword, each sword will contain a trace of exorcising divine lightning power. Once the entire sword formation is unleashed, the power of the sword energy will not only increase by at least several times, but it will also be a natural nemesis of all ghosts and demonic cultivators!

The evil and filthy forces and demonic arts that usually cause headaches are like natural enemies in the face of the Evil-Repelling Divine Thunder. They have already lost a few points before they even have a chance to fight! This effect is far superior to that of ordinary spirit bamboo.

Han Li had even sketched out a picture in his mind: his Azure Bamboo Bee Cloud Sword, its entire body radiating azure-gold lightning, the countless lightning swords crisscrossing and maneuvering amidst the enemy's encirclement, wherever it passed, those yin spirits and ghosts vanished like scraps of paper, and the magical treasures and protective shields of those demonic cultivators collapsed at the first touch... This was the sword formation he had been dreaming of!

"Senior Brother Zhou, are you talking about... the Heavenly Thunder Bamboo that naturally contains the divine thunder that wards off evil?" Han Li suppressed his excitement and placed the teacup back on the table steadily, but his voice still trembled slightly.

Zhou Ding nodded, his expression calm: "It is indeed this item. Otherwise, I would be embarrassed to mention it in front of Junior Brother Han."

Han Li took a deep breath. As a cultivator who had been at the Core Formation stage for many years, his mind was resilient. Although he had momentarily lost his composure due to shock and elation, he quickly regained his composure. He knew that in situations like this, it was crucial to maintain a clear head—while the Heavenly Thunder Bamboo was precious, what he needed to confirm was its quality, age, and condition. It wasn't something that could be easily passed off as Heavenly Thunder Bamboo.

He calmed himself down, his gaze fixed on Zhou Ding, his voice regaining its usual composure: "Senior Brother Zhou, this matter is of great importance. I dare to ask if I could see the actual item first... Would it be convenient for you, Senior Brother?"

These words were polite, but their meaning was extremely clear: he needed to see and feel them for himself to determine whether the quality of the two sections of Thunder Bamboo was truly as Zhou Ding described. After all, a natal magic weapon was no child's play; if it looked similar but lacked spiritual power, it could be a lifelong mistake.

Zhou Ding had anticipated his response, so he didn't say anything more, just smiled slightly and said, "That's only natural."

As soon as he finished speaking, he reached out and slapped the storage bag. Two flashes of light appeared, and two more items appeared on the table.

The first item gleaming with a faint bluish light was a section of withered yellow bamboo, about a few inches long and as thick as a thumb. Dry and cracked throughout, it looked utterly unremarkable, like a piece of withered firewood casually tossed aside by the roadside. However, upon closer inspection, one could detect a faint, almost imperceptible, aura of lightning spirit flowing across the surface of this withered bamboo. Though weak, this aura was incredibly pure, carrying a dignified and awe-inspiring power.

The second item was contained in a bluish-gray spirit wood box. Zhou Ding gently opened the lid, revealing a section of bamboo about the length of a forearm, also withered and yellowish, somewhat similar to the first section. But when Han Li's gaze fell on the bottom of that bamboo section, his eyes froze!

A few pale golden tendrils peeked out from the broken ends at the base of the bamboo joint, shimmering faintly in the candlelight. These roots were extremely delicate, as if they might break at any moment, but their golden hue revealed an undeniable vitality under the dim lamplight. Though faint, they stubbornly persisted.

Han Li's breath hitched!

His hands trembled slightly, almost uncontrollably. If he hadn't forced himself to stay calm, he would have almost lost his composure and lunged forward on the spot!

It has roots! It actually has roots!

A thunderous roar resounded in Han Li's mind, as if a bolt of lightning had struck! He knew better than anyone how vast the difference was between a section of Thunder Bamboo with roots and a section of Thunder Bamboo without roots!

Rootless Thunder Bamboo, no matter how well stored, is ultimately just a piece of material. Every bit used diminishes it, and once it's gone, it's gone forever. It's like a fine spirit stone vein—once mined, it's gone, non-renewable, and can only be used once. Rooted Thunder Bamboo, however, is completely different! It's a seed, a living thing! It can be replanted, take root, sprout, and grow back to life!

Han Li stared intently at the few pale golden roots, feeling his heart pounding in his chest. He had seen it all in his cultivation journey, but at this moment, he couldn't control his inner turmoil. He could only desperately try to keep his face calm, but the fine beads of sweat on his temples betrayed his excitement.

He knew better than anyone else that, having possessed that mysterious little bottle, he had discovered a cultivation path that no one else could imagine over the years.

He could cultivate a seedling into a spiritual herb that would last for hundreds, thousands, or even tens of thousands of years. The spiritual liquid in that jade bottle was simply the most miraculous treasure in the world! He had fantasized countless times about what it would be like if he could one day obtain a living Thunder Bamboo and plant it in the spiritual liquid in the jade bottle. Nourished by the continuous flow of spiritual liquid, he could continuously cultivate generation after generation of Thunder Bamboo! Hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands of years... If he wanted, he could even cultivate the legendary "Ten Thousand Year Golden Thunder Bamboo"!

The Ten-Thousand-Year Golden Thunder Bamboo is a treasure that exists only in ancient legends! It is said that the entire bamboo of the Ten-Thousand-Year Golden Thunder Bamboo is golden in color, and the power of heavenly thunder contained within it is many times stronger than that of ordinary heavenly thunder bamboo. Its power is so great that it can split mountains and cleave seas! If his set of Green Bamboo Bee Cloud Swords could be forged from the Ten-Thousand-Year Golden Thunder Bamboo, the power of this sword formation would be unimaginable!

Han Li dared not think any further. He was afraid he would lose control and lose his composure on the spot.

He slowly exhaled, forcibly suppressing his turbulent emotions. He raised his head, his gaze towards Zhou Ding filled with an unprecedentedly complex expression: "Senior Brother Zhou... I am indeed very interested in these two sections of Heavenly Thunder Bamboo."

He said this sentence almost word by word.