About an hour later, Bai Yuqing returned to the stone cave, carrying a thick branch laden with clusters of fist-sized fruit—enough to last the two of them several days. With a cold glance at Nie Kong, she began gnawing on a fruit and left the cave.

Indeed, just as Nie Kong had suspected, Bai Yuqing’s primary goal in entering the Illusionary Realm was to hone her combat skills; sparring with those youths and fighting spirit beasts was undoubtedly the best method. Even if the stone cave remained safe until the very end, she wouldn't hide inside until then.

When she next appeared within Nie Kong’s sight, it was already dusk.

One could only guess what ferocious battles she had endured; her white robes were now entirely dyed crimson, and her entire body reeked intensely of blood, as if she had just crawled out of a pool of gore. This time, new, deep, bone-visible gashes adorned her thighs, arms, and back.

That night, Nie Kong employed the "Nine Revolutions Golden Needle Technique," and by the next day, Bai Yuqing was fully recovered, the cost being another bottle of the higher-quality "Rejuvenation Dew" from the Pet Bag.

This pattern held for three consecutive days.

In the early morning, Bai Yuqing, who had been near death the previous night, was once again brimming with vitality. She pushed open the fissure and stepped out of the cave toward the still dim light. Watching her alluring silhouette vanish as the crack sealed shut, Nie Kong couldn't help but stroke his chin and mutter, "It's already the fifth day in the Illusionary Realm. There hasn't been any real danger, yet we've burned through four bottles of Rejuvenation Dew. It feels like a losing trade."

Of course, these were just words meant for his own ears. In reality, Nie Kong knew perfectly well that the valley remained peaceful primarily because Bai Yuqing scoured the vicinity multiple times every day, slaughtering every spirit beast and stray youth who dared to trespass.

With a thought, Nie Kong sat cross-legged against the stone wall. Over the last two days, the medicinal fragrance emanating from the White Jade Stone had grown fainter, showing signs of drying up. Nie Kong could only utilize every moment to absorb and cultivate, hoping to break through to the Second Rank of Spirit Manifestation before the fragrance completely dissipated.

...

“Jingle-jingle!”

Just as he quieted his mind, a crisp sound echoed in his consciousness. Nie Kong first froze slightly, then his expression instantly turned excited.

As expected...

"Pet 'Amethyst Illusionary Spirit Incense' has successfully upgraded to Tier Two, adding two slots to the Pet Bag; mastered Tier Two Symbiotic Combat Skill 'Cloud Overlap Flower Blast'; mastered Tier Two Symbiotic Combat Skill 'Flying Flower Flowing Shadow'; mastered Tier Two Auxiliary Skill 'Scent Identification'; 'Medicine Cauldron Phantom Body' advanced to Tier Two."

Xiang Xiang is Tier Two!

Nie Kong’s smile broadened. As soon as this notification ended, he focused his spirit on the Yaochi Acupoint in his Dantian. The little fellow, previously curled into a ball, had completely unfurled. Its roots had increased from three to six, its stem had elongated slightly, and it had grown another leaf. Apart from the tender bud at the apex, its entire body was suffused with a deep purple hue.

"Ah-ya-ya."

As if sensing Nie Kong's attention, the little thing wiggled its body coquettishly, its voice a mixture of excitement and smug satisfaction, like a child awaiting praise from an elder. Nie Kong was delighted and quickly reached into the Pet Bag, pulling out handfuls of Dragon Bud Algae and stuffing them into its mouth to reward the little creature.

While continuously chewing the medicinal herbs, Nie Kong was already eagerly savoring the consciousness that had flooded him during the moment of the pet’s upgrade.

The addition of two Pet Bag slots was easy to understand; one slot equaled one cubic meter, so two meant two cubic meters. Nie Kong focused his sense, and indeed, the Pet Bag had expanded considerably, bringing the total space to six cubic meters, combining with the original four slots.

As for the skills...

Through the mental link with the Amethyst Illusionary Spirit Incense, Nie Kong probed carefully, and streams of comprehension flowed into his mind.

Cloud Overlap Flower Blast: The Tier Two form of Pet 'Xiang Xiang's' Tier Nine skill 'Flower Mountain Blood Sea,' and the advancement of the Tier One Symbiotic Combat Skill 'Flower Blast.' Requires simultaneous casting by the Master and Pet 'Xiang Xiang.'

Ultimately, this "Cloud Overlap Flower Blast" was merely an upgraded version of "Flower Blast." When Xiang Xiang eventually reached Tier Nine, this skill would presumably evolve into its final form, "Flower Mountain Blood Sea"—the ultimate move Xiang Xiang possessed when it was at its peak, Ultimate B demon form.

Nie Kong looked forward to it, but at this moment, Xiang Xiang was still far from Tier Nine, and he himself was only at the First Rank of Spirit Manifestation.

Nie Kong proceeded to examine the next Tier Two Symbiotic Combat Skill.

Flying Flower Flowing Shadow: Light as a flying flower, swift as a flowing shadow. A skill for Pet 'Xiang Xiang' to evade attacks and flee from enemies, requiring simultaneous casting by the Master and Pet 'Xiang Xiang.'

Evasion and retreat...

Recalling the official description of the Amethyst Illusionary Spirit Incense on the Demon Devil website, Nie Kong was overjoyed. The Ultimate B form possessed a mysterious skill that allowed it to evade eighty percent of a player's attacks for three minutes upon activation, and when its health dropped to thirty percent, it would automatically flee the Demon Devil Palace to avoid being surrounded and killed. Could these two attributes have combined to form the current skill, "Flying Flower Flowing Shadow"?

If effective, this "Flying Flower Flowing Shadow" could absolutely rival high-grade spiritual arts specialized in movement techniques, much like the footwork Mu Hongling displayed while practicing with her spinning top. Once mastered, this technique could compensate for Nie Kong's current biggest weakness.

After a long while, Nie Kong managed to subdue his excitement.

Scent Identification—this was a skill Nie Kong was intimately familiar with; it was the unique appraisal technique possessed by Pharmacists, which, as its level increased, allowed it to analyze all unknown medicinal substances in the Demon Devil game. Now that "Scent Identification" had no level restriction, as long as Nie Kong consumed a medicinal substance, extracted its potency for the little fellow to absorb, it could clearly discern the drug's effects and various attributes.

With this capability, Nie Kong’s future endeavors in refining spiritual medicines would become vastly more convenient. Of course, for Nie Kong to achieve the profound mastery over Chinese medicine he possessed in his previous life and become a true Spiritual Medicine Master, relying solely on the Amethyst Illusionary Spirit Incense's "Scent Identification" would be far from sufficient.

Finally, the advancement of "Medicine Cauldron Phantom Body" was mostly as Nie Kong had previously surmised. When transformed into a Tier Two medicine cauldron, the little guy could sustain the form for one hour, requiring ten hours of rest after each use. Doubling the duration was indeed a significant improvement.

"Medicine Cauldron Phantom Body!"

Nie Kong commanded silently in his mind. The little fellow’s stem and leaves shook violently, and immediately, a small medicine cauldron shot out of the Yaochi Acupoint, flew out of the Dantian, and finally materialized before Nie Kong's eyes.

He could actually summon it externally!

Nie Kong was pleasantly surprised and carefully pinched the small, three-legged cauldron hovering in the air, placing it in his right palm. The little thing was slightly larger than before, about three fingers wide for Nie Kong. The body of the cauldron was almost entirely covered in pale purple, with only hints of green remaining on the lid.

The patterns on the cauldron’s surface were much clearer than during Tier One. If all those fine lines were completely traced onto paper, they would form the shape of a mature Amethyst Illusionary Spirit Incense.

"By being able to summon the medicine cauldron outside my body, I can now openly refine medicines!"

Nie Kong couldn't help but laugh aloud. Although he couldn't keep the cauldron summoned constantly, two hours a day was completely sufficient, and even if someone became suspicious, Nie Kong had plenty of ways to deflect scrutiny. In that instant, the suffocating feeling Nie Kong had experienced recently—hesitating even to sell the "Rejuvenation Dew"—vanished completely...

...