Suddenly, a faint, almost imperceptible tug interfered with the golden needles' oscillation. Nie Kong’s heart twitched. Without hesitation, he flicked the needle shaft with his middle finger. A violent hum exploded, and the fluctuations of the nine golden needles instantly converged, surging toward the source of the suction.

A moment later, a bizarre image materialized in Nie Kong’s mind: Within Long Ting’s yaomen acupoint, a colossal vortex spun at incredible speed. Within that great vortex, countless smaller vortices whirled, layered upon one another, densely packed.

As the massive vortex rotated, at every instant, swarms of smaller vortices would pop like bubbles, while simultaneously, new small vortices would generate. Amidst this continuous cycle of destruction and creation, that strange suction force was perpetually born. It flowed out from the base of the great vortex, instantly diffusing into all of Long Ting’s meridians, causing the meridians themselves to vibrate in resonance with the rhythm of the small vortex's birth and destruction, forming wisps of swirling, tensile suction.

That grand vortex was the very root source from which the spirit body condensed Spiritual Power! It formed an inseparable whole with Long Ting’s meridians, and indeed, her entire body. As long as it existed, Long Yu would ceaselessly absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth. Once that great vortex was destroyed, the vortex suction flooding Long Ting’s meridians would also lose control and run rampant. At that point, Long Ting’s life would reach its end.

Nie Kong’s expression grew grave. This vortex in the yaomen acupoint was almost equivalent in function to the sum of Nie Kong’s "Three Spiritual Apertures" (Lingshen San Qiao); its effect on the spirit body was the same as that of the "Three Spiritual Apertures" on a Spirit Master.

According to Nie Kong’s calculation, the life essence absorbed previously should have accelerated the speed at which those small vortices were breaking and generating, instantly creating a stronger suction. This, in turn, caused the meridians to vibrate more fiercely, strengthening the resulting vortex suction, and thereby greatly increasing the speed of Spiritual Power condensation!

“Spirit bodies are indeed bizarre.”

Nie Kong slowed the speed at which he manipulated the Heavenly Needles. The vision in his mind gradually faded, and in an instant, the great vortex in the yaomen acupoint vanished without a trace.

As the fifth cycle concluded, Long Yu let out a long, seemingly exhausted sigh of relief. Nie Kong gently massaged the golden needles, beginning the process of regulating her body. The gentle fluctuations were like soft spring rain, silently nurturing the little girl's delicate form. Her eyelids gradually fluttered shut. When Nie Kong carefully removed the needles half an hour later, Long Ting had fallen fast asleep.

“Master, how is Tingting?”

Seeing that the flush on her sister’s body had faded significantly but was still alarmingly red, Long Ting’s rosy cheeks were etched with worry and anxiety. Nie Kong smiled. “Don’t worry, she’s just exhausted. She’ll recover after a good night’s sleep tomorrow.” “Thank you, Master.”

Hearing Nie Kong say this, the heart that had been lodged in Long Ting’s throat finally settled back into place. Despite her concern for her sister’s safety, an indescribable weariness began to stir within Long Ting. She slumped onto the edge of the bed, powerless, and within moments, she too had drifted off to sleep.

He activated his Spiritual Power with both palms, the searing warmth drying the sweat-soaked clothes of the two girls. Only then did Nie Kong gently lay their bodies flat on the bed and carefully pull the covers over them.

Gazing at the peaceful faces of the two young girls, Nie Kong couldn't help but shake his head. These two girls only cared about speeding up the condensation of Spiritual Power so they could provide more Wood Spiritual Power for their Master; they never once considered their own futures. As the life essence was absorbed more frequently, the great vortexes in their yaomen acupoints would inevitably expand.

For an ordinary spirit body, barring accidents, they could naturally live for over a hundred years. For a normal cultivator, that would be considered a long life. But Long Yu and Long Ting were different. If they followed him and absorbed life essence daily, the speed at which they condensed Spiritual Power would certainly far surpass that of ordinary spirit bodies—and this was by no means a good thing for them. The faster the rate, the shorter their lifespan would be!

Nie Kong couldn't help but think of Long Xuechan. He wondered how she had managed to escape the fate of a spirit body back then. If he could discuss it with her, perhaps a way to completely eradicate the crisis for the two little girls could be found. However, that information was surely Long Xuechan’s secret, and he doubted she would share it easily.

Moreover, doing so would mean Nie Kong would owe Long Xuechan another significant favor, especially since Long Ting and Long Yu were his maidservants! But for Nie Kong now, the last thing he wanted was to be indebted to Long Xuechan, as his entire focus was on escaping the trap she had set for him.

“I should first refine that mass of unaligned Spiritual Power and see what marvel it holds. As for these two little girls, I will think of a solution later!”

Nie Kong let out a helpless sigh.

He went out to the courtyard and sat down, beginning to circulate the Spring and Autumn Life Cultivation Art. The mass of unaligned Spiritual Power was enveloped by Nie Kong’s Wood Spiritual Power, barely leaking out any unusual aura. However, now that he knew of its existence, locating it became much easier.

The unaligned Spiritual Power was not much; it occupied only about ten percent of one of Nie Kong’s Spiritual Apertures. With a mere thought, he tightly wrapped the mass of spirit energy, which was as transparent as air. To his surprise, no matter how vigorously he ran the Spring and Autumn Life Cultivation Art, and no matter how much his "Three Spiritual Apertures" trembled, the mass of unaligned Spiritual Power remained completely unchanged.

Nie Kong was not discouraged. Since Long Xuechan said this spiritual mass could be refined, it must be possible to refine it. He figured she wouldn't lie about something like that. Furthermore, during his intimate moments with Long Xuechan, Nie Kong’s cultivation had advanced from the Ninth Grade of Tracing Spirit (Ji Ling Jiu Pin) to the Second Grade of Spirit Fusion (Rong Ling Er Pin), a leap that would certainly require a vast amount of Spiritual Power.

Where did this power come from? Naturally, it couldn't have been the Fire Spiritual Power Long Xuechan cultivated; it must have been transformed from the unaligned Spiritual Power. If the unaligned Spiritual Power could transform into Wood Spiritual Power during that act, then the residual mass currently within him should not remain stubborn indefinitely.

However, reality delivered a sharp blow. Nie Kong skipped both lunch and dinner, cultivating deep into the night. The mass of unaligned Spiritual Power showed absolutely no change. This was a situation Nie Kong had never encountered before. No matter how wondrous the unaligned Spiritual Power was, its nature was similar to the medicinal fragrance of the "Serpent Coiled Blood Lotus" or the "Eight-Star Conch." He could easily refine the fragrance of such potent medicines, so why could he not affect a small mass of spiritual energy?

The next day, he continued refining—still no movement.

Nie Kong found it utterly baffling. He went to the Red Chamber Apothecary Hall to ask Long Xuechan. She told him that the mass of unaligned Spiritual Power remaining in his body was the very essence of the essence, and refining it in a short time was impossible; it would take at least two months.

Two months to refine such a small amount of energy? Was she joking?

So, on the third day, Nie Kong cultivated the Spring and Autumn Life Cultivation Art for half a day, then immediately attempted to refine it. Regrettably, the unaligned Spiritual Power remained completely unresponsive. It was like a stone devoid of any life aura—no matter how Nie Kong prodded it, it remained utterly still.

Nie Kong was somewhat stubborn. On the fourth day, he redoubled his efforts. Then the fifth, the sixth... the ninth, the tenth day... Nie Kong was locked in a relentless battle with it.

On the eleventh day, evening. “Huh?” Under the slightly dim trees, Nie Kong’s figure subtly shifted, and he nearly cried out in surprise. After eleven full days of arduous refining, although not a single wisp of the unaligned energy had merged into Nie Kong’s Spiritual Power, the very center of the spiritual mass had miraculously sprouted a speck of green.

The green was pitifully small, perhaps only half the size of a millet grain. But for Nie Kong now, regardless of how tiny the green was or what it represented, the fact that a change had occurred was a monumental breakthrough. This slight movement in the unaligned Spiritual Power brought a smile to Nie Kong’s face, invigorating him after ten straight days of disappointment.

Thus, in the days that followed, Nie Kong persistently refined the unaligned Spiritual Power: the twelfth day, the thirteenth day... The green intensified, then slowly spread from the center of the unaligned mass toward the edges, growing larger and larger. By the twentieth day, the green almost covered the entire unaligned Spiritual Power. At that moment, the whole mass of energy became crystalline and translucent, resembling jade.

Unfortunately, even when the transparent, air-like unaligned Spiritual Power was entirely stained emerald green, it showed no sign of merging with his mutated Wood Spiritual Power. Yet, strangely, Nie Kong could distinctly feel a kind of ineffable, marvelous connection between it and his own mutated Wood Spiritual Power.

The twenty-first day. The mass of unaligned Spiritual Power suddenly exhibited a peculiar change. The center of the energy dipped slightly inward. Furthermore, around that indentation, the energy appeared to be slowly circulating in a clockwise direction.

The twenty-second day. The indentation in the unaligned Spiritual Power began to deepen, and the circulating speed of the energy around it gradually accelerated, showing a faint trend toward transforming into a vortex... Indeed, the indentation grew deeper and larger...

The twenty-fifth day. “Hm?” As soon as he sat down and cultivated the Spring and Autumn Life Cultivation Art for a brief moment, Nie Kong’s face broke into unconcealed joy. In that short span, Nie Kong suddenly felt an intangible barrier within his "Three Spiritual Apertures"—a barrier signifying an impending breakthrough.

Nie Kong had originally planned to spend today continuing to refine the unaligned Spiritual Power, which had now fully transformed into a vortex. But since the barrier to a breakthrough had arrived, Nie Kong had no choice but to put the strange spiritual mass aside for the moment, intending to deal with it after his cultivation reached the Third Grade of Spirit Fusion (Rong Ling San Pin).

Although his initial manipulation of the spiritual art had been clumsy, leading to the death of a few blades of grass, Nie Kong had never truly experienced the terrifying potential of the Spring and Autumn Life Cultivation Art. However, he was deeply impressed by the wonder of this art, particularly its cultivation speed. During this half-month period, thanks to the constant infusion of life essence into his meridians, Nie Kong’s Spiritual Power remained in a state of extreme activity. This made his cultivation speed nearly double what it was before. Otherwise, Nie Kong wouldn't have sensed the breakthrough barrier so quickly. This was all thanks to the Spring and Autumn Life Cultivation Art!

With a thought, a vast amount of life essence diffused from the surrounding vegetation and instantly entered Nie Kong’s body. In just an instant, the Spiritual Power in Nie Kong’s meridians began to boil violently, like intensely heated water, then surged like monstrous waves, fiercely charging into the Spiritual Apertures.

“Boom!” Immediately, a sound like thunder rumbled from within Nie Kong's abdomen, and it felt as if a tornado had swept through his apertures. The wildly surging Spiritual Power caused Nie Kong’s body to tremble violently, and a tearing pain spread from his lower abdomen, incessantly assaulting his nerve endings.

That intangible barrier only trembled slightly before returning to stillness. The Spiritual Power churning wantonly within the apertures rapidly receded back into the various meridians.

However, what surprised Nie Kong was that the vortex-shaped mass of unaligned Spiritual Power actually rushed out of the apertures as well. But it did not enter Nie Kong’s meridians; instead, it headed for the small gap between the "Three Spiritual Apertures," which was directly above the Yaochi Acupoint where Xiangxiang resided.

“It’s going for…”

Nie Kong vaguely began to understand, but before he could ponder it more thoroughly, the vortex suddenly embedded itself into the empty gap at the center of the "Three Spiritual Apertures."

“Bang!” The instant the vortex slotted into place, it was as if several different explosives had been detonated inside Nie Kong. The apertures vibrated, the internal organs shook, and a fierce surge of energy swept out in all directions through the Three Spiritual Apertures. The Spiritual Power surging majestically through the meridians instantly roared back along that surge, as if injected with a stimulant. Moments later, the surge dissipated, and the Spiritual Power in the meridians roared back with even greater ferocity.

“Roar!” It wasn't just the "Three Spiritual Apertures"; his entire body felt as though it had been instantly shattered into countless fragments. Nie Kong’s vision went black, and a mouthful of blood sprayed from his mouth. Then, without even a grunt, his body fell backward, and his consciousness quickly dimmed until he was completely unaware.

“Ah-ya-yo!”

The little fellow's cries woke Nie Kong up. Opening his eyes, he realized he was lying on the bed. No wonder he felt so comfortable; apparently, the little sisters Long Ting and Long Yu had found him unconscious in the courtyard and moved him into the bedroom.

What was the situation now?

Recalling what happened before he lost consciousness, Nie Kong quickly sat up, settled into a cross-legged position, and urgently examined the condition within his body.

“Third Grade of Spirit Fusion!”

Sensing the strength of his Spiritual Power, Nie Kong was secretly delighted. It seemed that final push had successfully resulted in a breakthrough. This period of unconsciousness had been worth it.

However, when Nie Kong sensed the condition of his Spiritual Apertures, his entire being froze! Where the "Three Spiritual Apertures" had been distributed in a triangular pattern, there was now a smaller aperture nestled in the gap between them, completely occupying the space above the little fellow’s head! The little fellow was clearly very dissatisfied, crying out "Ah-ya-ya" while whipping the side wall of the small aperture with its roots. The little flower bud was also pushing hard against the bottom of the aperture, seemingly trying to shove it out from above its head.

“That vortex-shaped mass of unaligned Spiritual Power, after embedding itself, actually transformed into a new aperture?”

Nie Kong muttered to himself, his eyes filled with disbelief. The scene at the aperture location completely overturned Nie Kong’s prior understanding. On the Tianling Continent, Spirit Masters only had three apertures. Yet, after toiling for twenty-five days, Nie Kong not only failed to refine the mass of unaligned Spiritual Power but ended up with an extra small aperture!

“Four Spiritual Apertures (Lingshen Si Qiao)?”

Nie Kong didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He sat stunned for a long time before gathering his wits and attempting to circulate the Spring and Autumn Life Cultivation Art.

To Nie Kong’s great surprise and delight, all its characteristics and functions remained, and even the speed at which Spiritual Power circulated within his body had increased by at least a double! If the speed of Spiritual Power flow in the meridians doubled, didn't that mean his casting speed for skills could also be significantly boosted? If he cultivated using the three large and one small apertures directly, there would likely be some very positive benefits as well.

Perhaps having more apertures was beneficial, not harmful? A gleam flashed in Nie Kong’s eyes. Just as he was about to test further, the sound of hurried footsteps echoed from outside.

Judging by the sound, the two people running ahead should be the sisters Long Ting and Long Yu, and the one following them with slower, steady steps must be Long Xuechan. Soon enough, the door pushed open, revealing the figures of Long Ting, Long Yu, and Long Xuechan.

“Master, you’re alright?”

Seeing Nie Kong looking energetic, the two little girls rushed to the bedside, their faces beaming, the worry vanishing from their brows. After finding Nie Kong spitting blood and collapsing in the courtyard, Long Ting and Long Yu were terrified, only calming down slightly when they saw his breathing was steady. It took them great effort to move Nie Kong inside. After a night passed with no sign of him waking, the two girls grew anxious and rushed to the Apothecary Hall’s West Courtyard to find Long Xuechan, as she was the only person they were familiar with in Spirit Guard City.

Nie Kong patted the heads of the two little girls, comforting them. The girls squinted their eyes into crescent moons, seeming like little cats enjoying their Master’s caress.

Long Xuechan gracefully approached the bedside. The soft sunlight caught Nie Kong’s face as she chuckled sweetly, “Little Brother Nie Kong, judging by your appearance, you must have gained a great harvest. Tell me, did this sister lie to you? Though I must admit, succeeding in under a month is a bit sooner than I anticipated.”

Nie Kong paused, then was left speechless. “Sister Chan, the harvest you mean is that little aperture? I distinctly remember you saying that the unaligned mass of Spiritual Power was to be refined…”

“That’s right, exactly!” Long Xuechan giggled, her full bosom rising and falling, causing the two little girls, Long Yu and Long Ting, to look on with envy, wishing they could transplant those plump mounds onto their own chests.

“You call that refining?” Nie Kong laughed wryly.

Long Xuechan hooked Nie Kong with a captivating glance and chuckled softly, “Who says refining must mean refining it into Spiritual Power?”

“Huh?”

Nie Kong was momentarily speechless. There really didn't seem to be such a rule. Refining Long Xuechan’s mass of unaligned Spiritual Power into Wood Spiritual Power, or refining it into a small aperture—the essence was the same; only the final result differed. It was the stark contrast between the final outcome and his initial expectation that made it hard for Nie Kong to accept.

Long Xuechan smiled sweetly, “Alright, Little Brother Nie Kong, stop glaring. Its marvelous aspects… you will soon understand for yourself. By then, you’ll probably be very grateful to this sister. However, don't even think about repaying me by offering yourself in marriage; this sister only likes young virgins.”

Nie Kong felt no particular reaction to the latter half of her statement. The two...