The nineteen drugs listed above. Nie Kong had personally tasted eleven, heard the names of three without tasting, and was seeing five for the first time.

Little Nie Kong was long accustomed to encountering unfamiliar medicinal ingredients in prescriptions. Information on the Heaven Spirit Continent did not spread as readily as in his previous life, lacking television, the internet, or mobile phones that could instantly convey news from a thousand miles away; while Spirit Slates existed, they required certain conditions for use.

In this world, some sects and families, upon discovering a new, especially precious medicinal formula, often kept it closely guarded rather than disseminating it. Some Elixir Masters who invented a formula would even intentionally rename the ingredients within to mislead others.

Such occurrences were commonplace. Naturally, since Long Xuechan had produced this specific prescription, it was presumed to be accurate.

Nie Kong’s gaze moved downward, past the formula, to a few lines of script detailing the refinement method for this particular spirit medicine. Numerous alterations were visible, indicating that this method had been finalized only after Long Xuechan’s repeated experimentation.

Nie Kong scanned through it quickly, and the entire process became clear in his mind. The preparation of this medicine was intricate, and the sequence for adding ingredients into the crucible was particularly troublesome; several components even needed to be introduced in two separate stages.

Nie Kong weighed the complexity and felt that refining this drug was still within his capabilities. It was also an excellent opportunity to test his skills with a Third-Grade spirit medicine.

Even failure would be inconsequential. Given the resources of the Red Chamber, gathering these ingredients would be effortless.

If the 'Phoenix Eye Fruit' proved too difficult to locate, he could simply give the half-flesh he possessed to Long Xuechan; it held little value for him anyway. With that thought, Nie Kong nodded and chuckled, “Very well then.

Sister Chan, I shall give it a try. If I fail, don't take offense.” Long Xuechan let out a soft sigh, mumbling in a voice only she could hear, “Failure would be even better!” “What did you say?” Long Xuechan’s lips moved, but Nie Kong could not discern the sound.

Smiling faintly at Nie Kong’s face, Long Xuechan’s gaze flickered. “I said, it doesn’t matter if you succeed or fail; just do your best.” Her lips parted again after speaking, as if wanting to voice something more, but ultimately, she held it back.

“Little…” Nie Kong glanced at Long Xuechan with some suspicion. She was indeed acting strangely today, lacking her usual enchanting liveliness and cheerfulness.

She seemed to be actively concealing something, clearly preoccupied and hesitating to speak her mind: “Is there something you wish to tell me?” “No,” Long Xuechan replied with a bright, fleeting smile. Nie Kong suddenly recalled his suspicion that she might be a twin and ventured tentatively, “Sister Chan, you’ve already witnessed the effectiveness of my nine golden needles.

You know I can use them to extract spiritual power from a spiritual body, so you should trust my ability in this area. I observe a fluctuation in your aura and instability in your temperament; perhaps you could try my Nine Needles.

They might help you completely resolve the issue troubling you.” “Heh heh, you little rogue, you’re learning to trick your older sister now?” Long Xuechan paused for a moment, then lightly tapped Nie Kong’s forehead with a slender index finger, laughing so hard her slender body shook. The two proud mounds on her chest rose and fell, creating dizzying, mesmerizing waves.

Fortunately, no other men were present in this secret chamber, or their eyes would surely have been fixed upon her. Nie Kong coughed twice and grinned sheepishly, “Let’s start refining the medicine!” Hiss!

Hiss! Sounds like air being ignited echoed in the soundproofed chamber now that the door was closed.

Nie Kong’s spiritual power surged from both palms, merging at the tips of the violently burning flames. Then, splitting into two streams, they moved and shimmered like soft tendrils, or perhaps like a lover’s hands, continuously caressing the medicine cauldron.

According to the markings Long Xuechan had added to the prescription, refining this specific item required intermittent bursts of intense fire. The ‘Two Dragons Playing with a Pearl’ refinement technique was naturally the preferred method.

Nie Kong had originally intended to integrate all the various refinement techniques from the Demon God game, but his recent schedule had been too tight, leaving him no time to complete that task; he would have to postpone it for when time allowed. Fortunately, even now, the opportunities to use the ‘Two Dragons Playing with a Pearl’ technique during refinement were rare, let alone the even more complex methods—even if he learned them now, there would be no practical application.

“Whoosh!” Suddenly, the fire from Nie Kong’s left palm completely merged into his right, causing the flame to shoot high, lifting the cauldron several inches. “Crack!” Almost simultaneously, the cauldron lid sprang open.

Nie Kong swiftly pinched a drug ingredient and tossed it into the cauldron. With a soft thud, the lid snapped shut.

Gradually, Nie Kong focused his consciousness into the cauldron. As time passed, his mind became completely immersed within it, much like during today’s “Monthly Assessment.” The scene inside the cauldron was displayed without obstruction, and Nie Kong’s refining technique became smooth and masterful.

The fire from his two palms merged into one, then alternated back into the ‘Two Dragons Playing with a Pearl’ sequence with hardly any pause or stagnation—it flowed as smoothly as running water. Beside him, Long Xuechan’s eyes seemed distant, staring blankly at Nie Kong as he refined the medicine.

Though her gaze was on the cauldron, her thoughts had wandered elsewhere. After a long while, she was gradually drawn in by Nie Kong’s movements, and her unfocused gaze began to concentrate again.

Nie Kong’s manipulation of the fire was not overly flashy, but his control over its intensity was extremely precise. Moreover, the three actions—opening the lid, adding the ingredient, and closing the lid—were all executed cleanly and smoothly.

However, what captivated Long Xuechan most was Nie Kong’s timing when introducing the ingredients! It was simply… Exquisite to the Hair’s Breath!

Long Xuechan could only describe it with those four words. Every single time Nie Kong dropped an ingredient into the cauldron, he chose the most perfectly appropriate microsecond.

Not a fraction of a second too early, nor a fraction too late. What Nie Kong did appeared simple and natural, yet this represented a bottleneck that countless Elixir Masters failed to overcome.

Such exquisite temporal mastery made even Long Xuechan feel inferior. If he could achieve this level, it was hard to imagine the fusion of the medicinal energies not being high.

Logically, the higher Nie Kong’s skill, the greater the chance of success in this refinement, and Long Xuechan should have been happy. Yet, her eyes showed no hint of joy; instead, they were clouded with guilt and struggle, her beautiful eyebrows furrowed tightly, as if hiding a sorrow that could not be dispelled.

“Snap!” Another crisp sound followed, as the lifted lid closed once more. Nie Kong’s consciousness was merged with the cauldron; he was completely unaware of the passage of time or the changes in Long Xuechan’s expression beside him.

By now, the medicinal energies inside had fused into a mass, milky white but tinged with a faint pink. The newly added powdered ingredient floated around this pink mass, and fine wisps of medicinal power separated from the powder, integrating into the core energy.

With almost every added thread of fusion, the pink hue of the energy mass deepened. Once all the powder’s energy was absorbed and blended, the light pink color became intensely saturated.

Hiss! Hiss!

Like a sizzling red-hot iron suddenly plunged into ice water, a sharp, piercing sound erupted from the cauldron. However, a thread of crystalline liquid shot in from outside the cauldron, accurately striking the pink energy mass.

Instantly, the liquid dispersed, completely enveloping the pink energy. “Buzz.” The heat inside the cauldron skyrocketed, and the energy mass rippled more violently, gradually sinking.

The moment it touched the bottom of the cauldron, the previously spherical mass melted open into a pool of shimmering pink paste. Within its crystalline transparency, a hint of green began to emerge.

In the span of a breath, that trace of green spread like rapidly growing vines, extending countless branches and twigs, interlocking to cover the entire pool of pink liquid. “Crack!” As the lid opened, a speck of white light flashed in and immediately dispersed into a cloud of medicinal powder that settled into the pink liquid at the bottom of the cauldron.

“The last ingredient!” Seeing Nie Kong’s focused expression as he integrated the powder, Long Xuechan’s complexion shifted, her eyes growing more complex. Her beautiful, pale fists clenched, relaxed, and then clenched tightly again, repeating this motion dozens of times until the knuckles showed a faint bluish tint.

The emerald green spiritual fire in Nie Kong’s palms burned increasingly fierce, making the air in the secret room feel scorching. Fine beads of sweat appeared on Nie Kong’s forehead, showing that even he was beginning to strain during this final stage before the medicine was complete.

After an unknown length of time, the fire in Nie Kong’s palms finally showed signs of diminishing. “Nie Kong!” Suddenly, Long Xuechan’s eyes widened, and she let out a sharp, determined cry that sounded like rolling thunder, piercing Nie Kong’s ears and resonating directly within his mind.

Nie Kong’s body trembled. The fire surged violently, swayed intensely a few times, then rapidly retracted.

Finally, green sparks sputtered weakly from both his palms, and all movement ceased. The cauldron, losing the support of the flame’s heat, slowed its rotation drastically and soon tumbled to the floor with a heavy thud.

Nie Kong opened his eyes, glanced at the cauldron on the floor, then looked up at Long Xuechan in astonishment, “Sister Chan, were you just calling me?” “No, I wasn’t. You must have misheard!” Long Xuechan seemed relieved, an air of ease permeating her entire being.

When Nie Kong questioned her, she playfully winked her beautiful eyes. “Nothing?” Nie Kong muttered, his brows knitting with deeper suspicion.

Just as the pink liquid was about to form, a voice had suddenly erupted in his consciousness. That sudden sound was like a thunderclap, jolting his spirit out of the cauldron and causing the final step of the drug formation to slip entirely out of his control.

He had assumed it was Long Xuechan calling him, but now she denied it. The sound had resonated directly within his spirit; even Nie Kong could not discern whether it was an illusion or if he had truly heard Long Xuechan’s cry.

“I’ve only heard that when refining high-grade spirit medicines, especially those above Sixth-Grade, inner demons might manifest. I’ve never heard of an inner demon appearing when refining a mere Third-Grade medicine?” Nie Kong frowned, mumbling softly to himself.

Seeing Nie Kong deep in thought, Long Xuechan’s beautiful eyes narrowed into crescent moons, a seductive smile playing across her features as she spoke sweetly, “Little Brother Nie Kong, don’t dwell on it. The refinement is over now; thinking won’t change anything.

Let’s see how the pill turned out.” “It definitely failed,” Nie Kong sighed, shaking his head. Yet, a flicker of hope remained in his heart—the cauldron hadn't exploded, so perhaps it had succeeded?

With that thought, Nie Kong became somewhat eager. He had been highly satisfied with every step of the refinement except for that interrupted final moment.

If it had succeeded, the energy fusion rate would surely exceed ninety-five percent. According to Long Xuechan’s standard, a fusion rate above ninety percent qualified it as a Third-Grade spirit medicine.

This was Nie Kong’s first attempt at refining a Third-Grade drug, and he naturally did not wish to see it fail. “Crack!” The cauldron lid lifted lightly.

Nie Kong and Long Xuechan’s four eyes rushed into the interior of the cauldron almost simultaneously, eager to see. It was empty—not even a speck of residue remained.

“It failed! Hehehehe!” Long Xuechan suddenly clapped her fair, tender hands and laughed heartily.

After only a few chuckles, she noticed Nie Kong looking at her with an expression of utter disbelief. She quickly composed herself.

“Ah, well, Little Brother Nie Kong, since you arrived at the Red Chamber, you’ve performed quite miraculously. I assumed your success rate in alchemy would be a perfect ten out of ten.

To think you could fail sometimes—it just struck me as slightly amusing. Don’t mind it.” “Is that so?” Nie Kong studied her skeptically.

He had clearly witnessed the unrestrained joy in her expression upon seeing the failure, which was far from what one would describe as being ‘suddenly amused.’ Long Xuechan beamed with a bright smile, “Of course! How could Sister lie to you?

Little Brother Nie Kong, if it failed, it failed. Don’t be upset.

Sister wasn’t all that interested in this medicine anyway; I just concocted it for fun since I was bored recently.” “Oh.” Nie Kong nodded, no longer dwelling on why Long Xuechan was happy about the failure. His eyes returned to the inside of the cauldron.

They searched back and forth over the interior several times, yet still found no trace of medicinal residue. Refining failure invariably left residue; even if the cauldron exploded into shards, some trace would remain—this was a consensus among nearly all Elixir Masters.

But now, there was absolutely nothing left. Nie Kong had never even heard of such a situation, let alone witnessed it firsthand.

Could it be that the fire in that final moment was so intense that it vaporized all the residue left by the failed refinement? But there wasn't even a hint of a scorched smell in the air!

“Oh my, it’s so hot,” Long Xuechan suddenly murmured, her voice sweet, soft, and imbued with an indescribable, alluring charm. “It is indeed very hot.” Nie Kong paused, sensing the change.

He realized his entire body felt feverish, as if caught in a scorching summer heatwave. He had only refined one Third-Grade spirit medicine, yet this secret chamber had become this hot.

His mutated spiritual power shouldn’t be so violently potent, should it? Nie Kong turned to look at Long Xuechan.

Her face was flushed crimson, and a faint pink hue extended to her ears and delicate neck, making her look exquisitely alluring. She would occasionally raise a hand to wipe her forehead, or brush back the wisps of hair near her temples, or perhaps gently fan herself with the lapel of her robe, revealing glimpses of the red bandeau underneath.

Having spent so many days with Long Xuechan, Nie Kong had seen her make much bolder, unrestrained gestures before, during which he felt virtually nothing. But seeing these subtle actions now, Nie Kong’s heart stirred with unexpected ripples.

He felt that her entire being at this moment was saturated with an intoxicating aura. Editor’s Note: Today’s first chapter is early; I might as well move the next chapter to 8 AM as well.

The plot ahead is rather… sensitive, but I’ll keep the writing very brief to avoid censorship... To find out what happens next, please log into [Website Name] for more chapters and support.