The relentless shriek of the wind continued unabated, and Nie Kong had lost count of how many times he had been swept aloft, knowing only that the duration he could endure was incrementally increasing.

One minute… two minutes… five minutes…

Ten minutes… twenty minutes…

The ferocious gale felt like countless razor-sharp blades, savagely tearing at the intensely concentrated verdancy surrounding Nie Kong. Finally, his seemingly rooted body shuddered a few times, and the roaring wind immediately descended upon him from all directions, causing Nie Kong to sway with increasing violence.

“Pffft…”

A faint sound of exhalation barely escaped before the pocket of green was shredded by the ensuing gale, exposing his body, which was then violently hurled upwards.

Nie Kong drifted weightlessly, like a skiff in a tempestuous wave, swept dozens of meters before landing with surprising lightness upon a jutting piece of rock.

“That must have been close to half an hour, right?” Nie Kong’s thoughts raced, a smile touching his lips as he immediately settled cross-legged at the edge of the stone.

Suddenly, a sound of surprise escaped Nie Kong’s lips, but because he failed to activate his Spiritual Art in time, his body was once again snatched up by the whirling, mighty wind. Nie Kong quickly adjusted his posture, floating aimlessly for a moment before settling down steadily.

“Signs of a breakthrough appeared this quickly?”

Overjoyed, Nie Kong swiftly sat down in meditation, continuing to circulate the Spring and Autumn Life-Generating Art to absorb spiritual energy elements and vitality. His Four Spirit-God Apertures vibrated rapidly.

Nie Kong had absolutely not expected that invisible barrier to manifest so soon, especially since the sky had not yet darkened, and he had not even spent half a day in the second layer of the Spirit Cultivation Illusionary Realm.

However, since the invisible barrier within the Four Spirit-God Apertures had revealed itself, there was even less reason to rush leaving the second layer. Regardless of whether he could achieve a breakthrough to Spirit Fusion Seventh Grade in one go, making that invisible barrier clearer was certainly beneficial.

Nie Kong’s spirit became completely immersed in cultivation; the intensity of the spiritual power within his body and the duration he could sustain his practice were steadily increasing!

At this moment, Nie Kong was entirely unaware…

If all the accumulated practice times were added up, not only would it exceed half a day, but it would easily surpass one or two days.

The fierce winds circled everywhere, yet Nie Kong’s body remained unshaken.

This session of cultivation had lasted nearly two hours. The boundless Wood Spiritual Energy elements and vitality around him intermingled as if they possessed substance. Beneath the encompassing thick green, Nie Kong’s mind was tranquil, yet the spiritual power coursing through his meridians surged toward the apertures like monstrous waves.

Violent explosive roars echoed incessantly within his consciousness, but Nie Kong’s state of mind remained perfectly peaceful, calmly observing that tottering barrier as if he were an outsider.

Amidst the harsh howling, Nie Kong suddenly felt his body shift minutely. Once this condition arose, it signaled that Nie Kong had reached the limit of his endurance, and his cultivation could be forcibly interrupted by the gale at any moment in the coming period.

“Just a bit more!”

The calm in Nie Kong’s heart finally gave way to a slight anxiety. Being interrupted at such a critical juncture of breakthrough would waste considerable time even if he immediately circulated the Spring and Autumn Life-Generating Art after landing again. Such a situation was best avoided if at all possible.

The wind direction grew increasingly chaotic, yet the force carried by the gale showed no sign of weakening, and Nie Kong’s body swayed more and more violently.

In the Four Spirit-God Apertures, spiritual power churned and collided fiercely. Just then, the thick green surrounding him suddenly manifested the shape of two arms. Immediately, those arms began to move rapidly, drawing waves of fluctuation from the surrounding spiritual energy elements and vitality.

Fingertips tapped rapidly: Heart Sea, Jade Brightness, Celestial Palace, Black Heart… Nie Kong condensed his spiritual power into needles, striking one hidden acupoint after another with his joined index and middle fingers.

In an instant, Nie Kong’s fingers swiftly landed upon the final acupoint, the Jade Pond.

At that precise moment, the Nine Hidden Acupoints erupted with a thunderous roar. Under the vibration of these acupoints, the spiritual power between the meridians seemed to transform into raging, monstrous dragons, baring fangs and brandishing claws as they lunged toward the Four Spirit-God Apertures…

Amidst the piercing roar, the green aura around Nie Kong suddenly exploded outwards, and his body was blown airborne by the storm. Yet, in the very instant he left the ground, a smile of profound relief spread across Nie Kong’s face—it was in that final moment that the invisible barrier suddenly dissolved…

Spirit Fusion Seventh Grade!

Although Nie Kong had known the breakthrough was inevitable the moment he sensed the invisible barrier, the joy that swelled in his chest upon genuinely reaching Spirit Fusion Seventh Grade was beyond words.

At Spirit Fusion Seventh Grade, he could consume the Spring Flower Autumn Dream, which meant reaching Spirit Fusion Ninth Grade was now merely a matter of time.

At this juncture, Nie Kong longed to return to his attic residence, losing all desire to continue cultivating in the second layer of the Illusionary Realm. Before his feet even touched the ground, Nie Kong began scanning his surroundings, searching for the exit to the second layer, but found nothing even as his boots struck the earth.

Nie Kong frowned slightly. If the first layer has an exit and a Celestial Ladder, the second layer certainly must as well!

The gale rushed him up again, and he continued to survey the area from above, still unable to spot any trace. This was rather strange? A cultivation ground like this should ideally place the exit in an obvious, easily visible location!

Landing again, Nie Kong failed to pay attention to his descent and tumbled right outside a circular aperture. Looking up, Nie Kong suddenly noticed something peculiar: the inner wall of this perfectly round hole possessed spiral grooves, and the openings were slightly wider at one end and narrower at the other.

Those spiral patterns were somewhat similar to Spiritual Runes!

The moment this thought crossed Nie Kong’s mind, the gale surged from behind him. With a whoosh, Nie Kong was swept into the hole.

Suddenly, a powerful repulsive force erupted inside the tunnel!

The recoil was so strong that Nie Kong couldn't muster any thought of resistance. In an instant, his body shot out of the aperture like a cannonball, slamming against the stone wall dozens of meters away, leaving Nie Kong dizzy and his chest churning with turbulent energy.

Ever since he managed to sustain cultivation for over a minute, Nie Kong had rarely suffered such discomfort. To endure this again immediately after breaking through to Spirit Fusion Seventh Grade was unexpected. However, forcing down the severe pain in his back, Nie Kong stood up with a look of delight.

That sudden recoil made Nie Kong realize the truth: the second layer of the Illusionary Realm did have a Celestial Ladder and exits; they were just everywhere.

The hole he was just swept into—wider at the entrance and narrower at the exit—must be the passage leading to the third layer of the Illusionary Realm. Perhaps because his power was too weak, even with his vitality, he couldn't reach the third layer, which required cultivation at the Spirit Control level or higher, resulting in him being forcefully ejected.

If the entrance were narrower and the exit wider, that would surely be the way out of the second layer! As his body was swept up by the wind once more and descended from a height, Nie Kong unhesitatingly darted several meters sideways and plunged headfirst into the next smooth, round aperture before him.

Spinning rapidly along the grooves inside the passage, Nie Kong’s consciousness slipped into slumber in an instant. When he reopened his eyes, his spirit had returned to the stone chamber illuminated brightly by Moonstone. Releasing the shimmering Illusory Spirit Stone in his palm, Nie Kong let out a long sigh.

Then, Nie Kong rushed out of the stone chamber with maximum speed, passing through the massive Dragon Stone Great Door, where a dazzling, brilliant golden light greeted his eyes…

It was already morning!

Nie Kong froze for a moment. Did the sky in the second layer not synchronize with the outside world like in the first layer? It must be so! Nie Kong slapped his forehead—he had truly become lost in cultivation. The last session alone lasted about two hours; adding it all up, it was definitely more than half a day!

In his mind, Nie Kong hastily withdrew the token from that Dragon Stone Great Door.

Thirty accumulation points had been deducted…

He had actually cultivated in the second layer of the Spirit Cultivation Illusionary Realm for ten days?

Nie Kong found this utterly unbelievable. Even when he realized the sky in the second layer wasn't synchronized, he thought he had only been inside for two or three days at most; he never imagined the actual time elapsed far exceeded his estimate! After a long pause, Nie Kong finally snapped back to reality and hurried away…

Ten minutes later. The attic.

“Master, you’ve returned!”

“Sister and I were so worried…”

Long Zha and Long Ting pouted, their teary eyes blotchy red, clinging tightly to Nie Kong’s arms on either side, seemingly afraid he might suddenly vanish. Since that night ten days ago when Nie Kong failed to return, the two little girls had been constantly on edge.

The next morning, they had rushed off to find Miao Ge, Tai Ji, and the others.

When the girls explained the situation, Miao Ge and the rest also grew worried. In fact, on the afternoon the ‘Spring Flower Autumn Dream’ was auctioned, they had also entered the Spirit Cultivation Illusionary Realm to cultivate for a period but hadn't encountered Nie Kong. They had initially assumed Nie Kong had come out much earlier, not realizing he hadn't returned from the Illusionary Realm all night.

Miao Ge and the others inquired around and finally learned that Nie Kong had entered the second layer via the Celestial Ladder.

Knowing Nie Kong’s location made Miao Ge and the others even more anxious. It was rumored that only Spirit Control masters could enter the second layer, and even typical Spirit Control masters found it difficult to stay inside for long. Yet, Nie Kong had been gone for more than half a day.

Generally, accidents were impossible during cultivation in the Spirit Cultivation Illusionary Realm, but anomalies could occur. Furthermore, Nie Kong was not a true Spirit Control master, having entered the second layer with Spirit Fusion cultivation. Perhaps Spirit Control masters were safe, but Spirit Fusion cultivators faced great peril!

Fortunately, Gu Yi later visited, learned of the situation, and went to find Gu Chang Gong, pleading with him to personally check the Spirit Cultivation Illusionary Realm. Only then did the others feel somewhat relieved. However, while Miao Ge and the others ceased worrying, the two little girls, Long Zha and Long Ting, could never fully set their minds at ease.

As a result, when Nie Kong appeared today, the two girls burst into tears. Seeing their rain-washed, heartbroken expressions, Nie Kong couldn't help but feel a touch of guilt; he hadn't realized his cultivation in the second layer had caused such prolonged worry to those outside…

P: Brothers, the Medicine King has received a recommendation push. Tomorrow…