Not long after, Mu Chonglou excitedly left the Medicine Pagoda with the "Ruyi Fire Lotus," though Nie Kong did not give him the Grade Nine Spiritual Herb. Instead, he lent it to him, Gu Changgong, Ling Xiao, and the others busy at the Pure Heart Hall to experience for a few days. Also taken away was the prescription for the "Ruyi Fire Lotus."

As for the initial draft of the Compendium of Materia Medica, Nie Kong took it back to his attic.

For three whole days, Nie Kong immersed himself in reviewing the medicinal codices at his residence.

This Compendium of Materia Medica, using the standards of the Spirit Mansion Medicine Pagoda as its basis, categorized herbs by grade. The first part of the initial draft encompassed nearly every known herb on the Tianling Continent, with each herb illustrated with vivid depictions and annotated with extremely similar medicinal properties and effects.

The second part cataloged various known prescriptions from the Tianling Continent.

Many of these prescriptions had been subtly adjusted by Nie Kong—perhaps altering the dosage of ingredients, removing or adding certain herbs, or modifying the sequence in which ingredients were added during refinement... In addition to known formulas, there were quite a few new spiritual varieties newly developed by Nie Kong over the past year.

The herbal section of this Compendium of Materia Medica consisted of fifteen volumes: five volumes for Grade One herbs, three for Grade Two, two for Grade Three, and one volume each for Grades Four through Eight. The prescription section comprised six volumes. In total, the entire work spanned twenty-one volumes, divided into twenty-one separate booklets.

"It seems a bit thin."

Though it looked like a thick stack, after reviewing it, Nie Kong frowned slightly. The initial draft only recorded herbs up to Grade Eight, and prescriptions only up to Grade Eight. He needed to add one volume each for Grade Nine herbs and Grade Nine prescriptions. Nie Kong wasn't worried about his self-developed Grade Nine prescriptions being leaked, as the primary ingredients for refining Grade Nine Spiritual Herbs were all housed in the Ninth Layer Herb Garden of this Spirit Mansion, and they were currently completely extinct on the Tianling Continent.

Having only the prescriptions wasn't enough; one also needed the strength to refine Grade Nine Spiritual Herbs, and even with that strength, finding sufficient herbs would be futile.

However, even after adding two volumes, the Compendium of Materia Medica still felt somewhat scant.

What Nie Kong meant by "thin" wasn't the physical thickness of the codex, but its content; the current draft contained only two main categories: herbs and prescriptions.

"I need to add more substance."

Nie Kong's mind began to race, the medical texts he'd read in his previous life constantly surfacing. After a while, Nie Kong’s eyes lit up. This compendium could have a third section. It could begin with a comprehensive treatise on refinement, incorporating theories of drug combination from his past life, such as the principles of "Sovereign, Minister, Assistant, Envoy." Following that, he could invite the Grade Eight Medicine Kings and Grade Seven Spirit Alchemists—Mu Wanjing, Mu Chonglou, Ling Xiao, Gu Changgong, and others—to each write an essay detailing their refinement insights, which would be compiled after the general treatise.

This general treatise and the insights could be placed at the very beginning of the compendium.

"Fire Tree Silver Flower never-night sky, Taming Dragon Devouring God rises gracefully... These rare treasures are also herbs and must be included, perhaps in their own separate section..."

Ideas surged through Nie Kong. He immediately grabbed paper and brush, and the names of the five herbs—Pianpian Jade Butterfly Spring, God-Devouring Flower, Dragon-Taming Grass, Never-Night Sky, Fire Tree Silver Flower—flowed gracefully from his brush in sweeping calligraphy.

After a moment of contemplation, Nie Kong added the two spiritual herbs from the "Flower Butterfly Secret Realm" that possessed outstanding spirituality and had already developed self-awareness: One-Winged Autumn Begonia and Azure Moon Star Sea!

"And the 'Crane Feather White Pearl' from the Ninth Layer Herb Garden!" The Crane Feather White Pearl was the main ingredient for refining the Grade Ten Spirit-Intoxicating Incense, comparable in value to the God-Devouring Flower.

"Right, and also Xiangxiang and Qingyue."

Nie Kong added the words "Purple Luo Phantom Spirit Incense" before "Pianpian Jade Butterfly Spring," and appended "Qingyue Phantom Heart Orchid" after "Pianpian Jade Butterfly Spring."

Purple Luo Phantom Spirit Incense, Qingyue Phantom Heart Orchid, Crane Feather White Pearl, One-Winged Autumn Begonia, Azure Moon Star Sea, plus the previous five rare treasures like Pianpian Jade Butterfly Spring—this made...

After inscribing these four grand characters above the list of medicines, Nie Kong suddenly remembered something, and a peculiar smile spread across his face.

"Brother, you added Xiangxiang too?"

Tai Yan had been standing quietly nearby watching. Seeing Nie Kong set down his brush, she affectionately hugged him from behind, her full, soft breasts pressing tightly against his back, her pretty face brimming with curiosity.

Nie Kong shifted his body, pulling Tai Yan onto his lap, and smiled, "Xiangxiang deserves to be ranked first among these Ten Great Rare Treasures."

Many people in the Spirit Mansion now knew of Xiangxiang's existence, but they all assumed the little one was a medicine spirit that hadn't yet taken human form; no one knew its true origin.

Nie Kong never intended to carelessly expose Xiangxiang's secret, but adding its name posed no significant obstacle. His right palm slipped beneath Tai Yan's red robe, meandering slowly between her legs. Nie Kong smiled wryly, "I will introduce the nine great treasures in detail, such as the Pianpian Jade Butterfly Spring, Qingyue Phantom Heart Orchid, and God-Devouring Flower. However, for the Purple Luo Phantom Spirit Incense, besides its name, there will only be blank annotations."

"Brother is wicked."

Tai Yan's beautiful eyes darted, and she instantly understood Nie Kong's intention. She giggled, "With the foundation of the herbs and prescriptions, no one on the Tianling Continent will doubt the authenticity of the Ten Great Rare Treasures. By then, everyone will likely speculate about what kind of herb the Purple Luo Phantom Spirit Incense is. This way, people will be even more curious about the Compendium of Materia Medica." As she spoke, Tai Yan's two tightly closed, slender thighs parted slightly.

His hand slid in smoothly to the bottom, the slippery sensation traveling up his fingertips, instantly recalling the enchanting intimacy of Tai Yan from the night before. Nie Kong felt his focus waver and quickly withdrew his fingers: "Tai Yan, I almost forgot you. Your true form is also worthy of being listed among the Ten Great Rare Treasures."

"Me?"

Tai Yan blinked her beautiful eyes in confusion.

Nie Kong raised his brush and added the words "Returning Gaze Grass" after Xiangxiang's name. After a moment's thought, Nie Kong smeared over the character for "Grass" and changed it to "Flower," smiling broadly, "Like Xiangxiang, you will only have your name recorded in the medicinal codex, with no introduction provided."

Tai Yan smiled radiantly and nodded, "Brother, now there are eleven."

"..."

Xiangxiang, Qingyue, and the "Crane Feather White Pearl" certainly couldn't be removed, and the previous five great treasures had to stay. That meant he could only eliminate one between the "One-Winged Autumn Begonia" and the "Azure Moon Star Sea." After pondering for a while, Nie Kong finally put pen to paper and struck out the "Azure Moon Star Sea."

"Alright, Tai Yan, help Brother send these back to the Pure Heart Hall."

"Mmm."

Tai Yan picked up the thick set of books and the paper recording Nie Kong's suggestions, and cheerfully ran out of the attic.

Nie Kong sat at the desk, his eyes lightly closed, carefully recalling the medicinal codices he had just reviewed. Ten minutes later, light footsteps sounded again, and immediately, two arms wrapped around Nie Kong's torso from behind, their warmth, softness, and firm resilience pressing against his back.

Nie Kong smiled without turning his head, "Sister Chan, you've arrived so quickly."

"Little scamp, you sent a message to Sister in such a hurry; how could I not rush over?" Long Xuechan twisted her body and settled onto Nie Kong’s lap, her sexy, moist red lips immediately sealing Nie Kong's mouth. Her jade-like hands also began moving urgently, burning with passion.

"Sister Chan, let's attend to business first," Nie Kong murmured, his voice indistinct.

"No, first... mmm..."

"..."

To be continued.