The infusion of soul power, much like a small stone tossed into a placid lake, instantly stirred subtle ripples deep within Nie Kong's soul. Amidst the continuous, gentle collisions, these soul forces began to weave themselves thread by thread into Nie Kong's very essence.

Once all the soul power derived from the "Ghost Fire Soul Dew" had been absorbed, a brief silence settled before Nie Kong's soul began to fluctuate once more.

Wisps of inky green energy slowly spread forth from the soul, gathering and coalescing into a mass...

Time passed indistinctly, until Nie Kong's soul space finally returned to calm. However, outside Nie Kong’s original core soul, there now resided a small, inky green sphere condensed from soul power, its surface intricately latticed with blood-red threads like fine netting.

"That should be enough!"

Nie Kong’s brow twitched faintly. The inky green mass suddenly surged out of his soul space and plunged into his Mindscape. In the next instant, a violet light flashed across Nie Kong’s brow—the ethereal shadow of the "Violet Luo Illusory Spirit Incense" burst free of his body, manifesting within the Heartwood Space of the Ancient Tree.

In this sanctuary, Nie Kong needed no concealment; the "Violet Luo Illusory Spirit Incense" fully revealed its true form.

Because Xiangxiang had ascended to the fifth rank, Nie Kong's Mindscape had undergone subtle alterations. First, the purple stalk had sprouted an additional broad leaf, the flower bud at its apex had significantly swelled, and the roots at the base had become far more dense.

"Hoo!"

With a flicker of Nie Kong's will, the new stems and leaves extended like vines, continuously unfurling from the stalk of the "Violet Luo Illusory Spirit Incense." In the blink of an eye, they permeated the space spanning several meters, then rapidly retracted, coiling tightly together.

In an instant, a massive, inky green sphere took shape. And nestled at the center of this sphere was that very mass of soul power separated from Nie Kong’s original soul.

Now standing at the critical juncture of condensing his second Incarnation, Nie Kong dared not show the slightest carelessness, his entire focus immersed within the environment of the "Violet Luo Illusory Spirit Incense" Mindscape. A single misstep in this phase would render the physical body of the second Incarnation impossible to refine successfully.

If an ordinary Spirit Master were attempting to condense a second Incarnation, beyond the primary catalyst of "Ghost Fire Soul Dew," they would require vast amounts of medicinal herbs and several extremely peculiar items. It wasn't simply a matter of consuming or absorbing the "Ghost Fire Soul Dew" and being done; these supplementary materials were essential for refining the physical form of the Incarnation.

For the Spirit race and the Semi-Spirit race, this process was significantly simpler.

Taking the Yin Ruins Semi-Spirit race as an example, the Mindscapes of their female members could serve as vessels for gestating offspring. Nie Kong was male; his Mindscape possessed no seed and thus lacked that reproductive function, but it was perfectly capable of cultivating the flesh of the second Incarnation.

In this process, the role of that separated mass of soul power was analogous to the tree seed nurtured within the female Semi-Spirit's Mindscape. The common Spirit Master required none of the medicines or items needed to refine a physical body when combined with "Ghost Fire Soul Dew."

"Thump!"

After a stretch of silence, a faint, distinct pulse emanated from within the inky green sphere. The mass of soul power enveloped by the Mindscape had unexpectedly gestated the heart of the second Incarnation first. Sensing the beat of this heart, Nie Kong finally let out a silent sigh of relief.

"Thump! Thump!"

"Thump..."

The sound of the heart beating persisted, gradually growing from a faint, delicate tremor into a robust and powerful rhythm.

During this phase, the events within the soul power were displayed with absolute clarity in Nie Kong's mind. Although the condensation of the second Incarnation was officially on track once the heart appeared, Nie Kong could not afford to fully disengage.

Accompanying each heartbeat, Nie Kong continuously manipulated the spiritual energy within his body using the "Yin-Yang Spirit Devouring Art," integrating it into the Mindscape and into that mass of soul power. When the heartbeat achieved perfect synchronization with Nie Kong's main body, an inky green miniature figure began to emerge from the soul power.

This small figure was only the size of Qing Yue, yet its features were an exact replica of Nie Kong's. It sat quietly in the depths of the Mindscape, legs crossed, meditating. However, as streams of Essence Qi from the Spirit Treasure were ceaselessly injected, the miniature figure's body began to steadily grow larger.

Nie Kong's consciousness was utterly immersed, losing all track of time, yet the weariness etched upon his face deepened with every passing moment.

"Aiyaya!"

Within the Jade Pond Acupoint, the little creature ceaselessly wriggled its stems, leaves, and roots, sending bursts of innate medicinal power scattering through Nie Kong's limbs and across his entire frame. Yet, even this was insufficient to restore Nie Kong to normal; condensing the second Incarnation demanded an immense toll not only on spiritual energy but also on mental fortitude... After an unknown duration, the powerful heartbeats filling this Heartwood Space began to gradually recede, becoming almost inaudible within minutes.

"Crack!"

Finally, a sound akin to an eggshell breaking echoed through the small space. The tightly intertwined stems and leaves of the "Violet Luo Illusory Spirit Incense" had solidified into substance, and now, they fractured the dim shell surrounding them.

A flash of violet light, and the Mindscape retreated into Nie Kong's brow, instantly clarifying the surrounding space.

Opposite Nie Kong, a naked body was fully revealed. Its height, physique, and facial features... it was as if stamped from the same mold as Nie Kong. The only difference was that the skin of this new body was completely inky green.

"Hoo!"

Nie Kong awoke, drawing a long breath. He opened his eyes, eagerly looking toward the figure opposite him. At the exact same moment, the body opposite also opened its eyes, both pupils blazing crimson red, as if two fierce flames burned within them.

Inky green skin, scarlet eyes...

"This is the Second Incarnation!"

Feeling the profound connection between himself and the body before him, Nie Kong smiled with satisfaction. Nie Kong had already sensed the physical differences in this body compared to his main form, so seeing it now was no surprise. What truly astonished him was that he sensed an aura emanating from the Incarnation identical to that of the spirit beasts found within the "Underworld Fire Deep Spring" space.

Upon reflection, Nie Kong realized this was not strange.

In the Illusionary Space, virtually all spirit beasts contained abundant soul power within their bodies. Since this second Incarnation was refined from "Ghost Fire Soul Dew" and integrated soul power into its physique, it was only natural. Nie Kong surmised that the emergence process of those spirit beasts within the Illusionary Space likely bore a strong resemblance to the creation of his own "Second Incarnation."

"Yue'er."

Nie Kong felt a sudden impulse and glanced to his side. Xiao Shui Ling was coiled upon his left shoulder, while on his right shoulder sat Qing Yue. The little medicinal spirit had somehow slipped out of the beast plaque resting on Nie Kong's chest and was curiously observing his Incarnation.

"Oh dear,"

Qing Yue gasped, suddenly raising her hands to cover her eyes, seemingly realizing she had been brazenly staring at a man's naked body. However, even as her small hands shielded her face, her gaze still peered through the gaps between her fingers.

Sensing Qing Yue’s movement, Nie Kong chuckled softly. With a thought, his main body and the Second Incarnation stood up almost simultaneously.

"Merge!"

He uttered softly, and the Second Incarnation suddenly lunged toward Nie Kong. The short distance of a few meters vanished in a flash. The moment the two bodies touched, the Second Incarnation rapidly dissolved back into Nie Kong's form. In less than the time it takes to blink, the Second Incarnation was gone from the Heartwood Space.

At that instant, Nie Kong’s exhaustion vanished entirely; he instantly became radiant and full of vigor.

Witnessing this bizarre spectacle, Qing Yue completely dropped her hands, her eyes wide open, her delicate little face etched with astonishment. She clearly had not anticipated that the Second Incarnation and the main body could merge back into one.

"............"

The moment the Incarnation integrated, a series of crisp popping sounds resonated from within Nie Kong’s body. The intensity of his spiritual energy began to surge upward at a maniacal rate, crashing like tidal waves toward the single aperture of his Spiritual Spirit Acupoint.

Nie Kong hesitated for no moment, immediately sitting down cross-legged. Under the frantic assault of spiritual energy, the invisible barrier within his Spiritual Spirit Acupoint began to manifest, growing progressively weaker. After only two or three minutes, the barrier abruptly dissipated.

Spirit Control Second Grade!

"Boom!"

The commotion within his body showed no sign of ceasing; the spiritual energy remained as frenzied as before, surging toward the Spiritual Spirit Acupoint like an incoming tide, a massive surge that seemed capable of overturning mountains and seas. With this intense impact, Nie Kong's spiritual energy strength continued to increase...

After roughly fifteen minutes.

"Boom!"

The invisible barrier, which had only recently appeared, shattered and vanished once more.

"Spirit Control Third Grade!"

Nie Kong was ecstatic, an irrepressible look of excitement blooming on his face.

On their journey to the 'Furious Sand Wasteland,' Nie Kong had heard Gu Chang Gong mention that upon the successful condensation and first fusion of the Second Incarnation with the main body, one's cultivation level would experience a significant boost. Nie Kong had assumed an increase of one grade would be the maximum, but unexpectedly, he had ascended two full grades, breaking through from Spirit Control First Grade straight to Spirit Control Third Grade!

"Hmm, quite good. It only took six days to successfully condense the Second Incarnation, and your cultivation has advanced two grades—far exceeding my expectations," the Ancient Tree's gentle voice suddenly chimed in, his tone carrying a slight hint of joy.

"Only six days?"

Nie Kong was slightly taken aback. During the condensation process of the Second Incarnation, he had absolutely no sense of time. Early on, he had worried it might take over ten days. He was quite surprised that the final duration had been shortened by several days. Still, in retrospect, if he had known a two-grade advancement was possible, he would willingly have spent a month here, let alone ten days. Of course, this method of advancement was a one-time event and could not be repeated indefinitely.

To break through to the Core Formation stage within two years, he still had to head to the 'Abyss of Perdition'!

... ... ... (To be continued!) PS: I misremembered a date yesterday; the master of the "Underworld Fire Deep Spring" achieved Spirit God status two thousand years ago, which has now been corrected. There is only one chapter today, and the owed chapters have reverted to seven—a tragedy. Today was not delayed by time constraints, but rather, I simply lacked the motivation to write while sitting at the computer—I must overcome this slump. zE6 Main character, VI core blade