"..." "Time crawls by, and there are only seven people here..." "I heard that as soon as that Ruyi Fire Lotus is auctioned off, the Compendium of Materia Medica will start selling in the Red Mansions across the continent. I wonder if that's true?" "It should be true. If the Compendium of Materia Medica is truly as incredible as rumored, I'd bankrupt myself to get a copy." "I wonder if Nie Kong is still accepting disciples. It would be wonderful to be taken under his wing." "..." For days now, the entrances to the taverns, apothecaries, and auction houses in the Red Mansions have been constantly thronged with Spiritual Masters and Spiritual Pharmacists, all desperate for accurate news about the Compendium of Materia Medica. Unfortunately, all they are gathering are various rumors.

In a loft beside a tavern, Long Xuechan leaned against the railing of the corridor. After listening for a moment, she turned back with a smiling air and said, "Meixian, did you hear that? Your man is truly formidable. Even before the Compendium of Materia Medica is released, it’s like this. Once the pharmacopeia is issued, he will truly be the number one Medicine King of all time."

Long Meixian, stretching languidly on the recliner, frowned upon hearing this. "That’s your man, he has nothing to do with me."

"Nothing at all?"

Long Xuechan let out a soft laugh. A green shadow flickered across the open window, appearing instantly beside Long Meixian in the corridor. "If he has nothing to do with you, then where did the seed inside you come from..." She gently stroked her slightly protruding abdomen, her brows etched with amusement. "Little darling, lie still and don't move. Mommy loves you."

"You’re just his little thief!" Long Meixian couldn't help rolling her eyes, though a flicker of an almost imperceptible smile crossed her lips as she glanced at her belly.

"What little aunt? We are sisters. What's yours is mine, and what's mine is yours. You are the little darling's mother, and I am also the little darling's mother." Long Xuechan hummed twice and, even through her white gown, planted two resounding kisses—pop, pop—on Long Meixian’s swollen belly.

"..." Long Meixian was utterly speechless.

With a quick turn of her eyes, Long Xuechan said alluringly, "Meixian, visiting Nie Kong brother at the Spirit Residence is such bliss. I plan to go again in a few days. Won't you truly come with me to see?"

Long Meixian gritted her teeth and said bitterly, "If you want to go enjoy yourself, then go enjoy yourself! Stop saying such shameless things to me. However, I advise you to stay here in the Red Mansion and watch over the 'Ruyi Fire Lotus' until the auction is over, lest you accidentally lose it and end up with nothing at all."

"Don't worry, it absolutely won't be lost... Hmm, Sister Meixian, didn't you say Nie Kong brother has nothing to do with you? Why are you suddenly so concerned about his ninth-grade spirit medicine?"

"Hmph! Who cares about his spirit medicine! I care about you!"

"..."

The ninth-grade spirit medicine, the 'Ruyi Fire Lotus,' was naturally not going to be lost!

Because guarding it was not only Long Xuechan. The very day the invitations from the Red Mansion were delivered to the various sects and noble clans, Long Tiangong had already arrived in Luocheng.

When news of the ninth-grade spirit medicine spread across the world, many Heavenly Spirit Masters estimated that, given their personal fortunes, they would struggle to acquire the 'Ruyi Fire Lotus' at the auction. Thus, they sought alternative routes, preparing to steal or forcibly seize it. However, once it was rumored that Long Tiangong himself was personally overseeing the Red Mansion, all those harboring sinister intentions immediately quieted down.

Who among the continent's peak Heavenly Spirits had not heard of the Dragon King's mighty renown?

Although Long Tiangong had not yet crossed the Spirit Tribulation, even Kou Xilai, the Master of the Spirit God Hall who had passed through two levels of the Spirit Tribulation, might not be able to claim an assured victory over him. With such a super-expert guarding the 'Ruyi Fire Lotus,' what thief or fiend would dare risk death to steal or snatch that ninth-grade spirit medicine?

Consequently, no matter what tidal waves the 'Ruyi Fire Lotus' and the Compendium of Materia Medica stirred up across the Heavenly Spirit Continent, Luocheng’s Red Mansion remained utterly calm.

More than twenty days flashed by, and the date set for the auction drew ever closer.

By this time, the number of powerful experts gathered on the Heavenly Spirit Continent already exceeded fifty. Among them, the Spirit Pharmacists of Grade Seven and above—apart from Mu Zhonglou and Gu Changong, who were busy compiling the pharmacopeia in the Spirit Residence—included You Li, Hua You, Tan Zhong, Zhan Tianfeng, and others who had all rushed over. Even the fellow who had avoided Nie Kong during his challenge had shown up in Luocheng. This auction for a ninth-grade spirit medicine was attended almost exclusively by Heavenly Spirit experts, and nearly all attendees had registered their names at the Red Mansion.

"So many Heavenly Spirit experts gathered; it's a sight seldom seen in decades."

On the eve of the auction, even Long Xuechan couldn't help but be astonished while looking at the roster of Heavenly Spirit Masters in her hand. Even the struggle for the Spirit Residence deep within the Forbidden Spirit Marsh last year hadn't attracted this many Heavenly Spirit experts. Then again, that was understandable; to contend for the Spirit Residence, participants had to bring Divine Power Artifacts, and other factions simply couldn't compete with the Spirit God Hall in that regard. This auction, however, relied purely on financial might, and on the Heavenly Spirit Continent, there were many sects and noble clans with thousands of years of heritage whose wealth could rival that of the Spirit God Hall.

"This... Nie Kong has initiated this wave of pharmacopeia fervor with the Ruyi Fire Lotus. If the Compendium of Materia Medica he compiled doesn't satisfy everyone after the auction, the sheer torrent of spittle from the continent's Spirit Masters could drown him," Long Meixian scoffed, her abdomen seeming to have swelled a little more.

"I saw the first draft of his pharmacopeia. Your worries will absolutely not materialize. Enough talk; the auction begins tomorrow, and I need to go check on the setup of the auction hall." Long Xuechan stood up, gave Long Meixian's protruding belly another smiling pat, and then gracefully departed.

"..."

After watching Long Xuechan close the door, Long Meixian’s gaze fell back upon her own abdomen, her expression quite complicated.

She didn't know what her current state of mind was. Whenever she thought of that figure, she constantly ground her teeth, wishing she could tear a piece of flesh from him. Yet, the moment she sensed that slow-strengthening life force within her belly, an inexplicable joy would surface in her heart. Did she hate that person now, or not?

Struggling with the conflict for a long time, Long Meixian leaned back on the recliner and drifted into a hazy sleep.... As if in a dream, Long Meixian felt her body suddenly become warm, as if basking in a spring breeze or wading through a hot spring—so comfortable and pleasant that it seemed every pore on her body had become exceptionally clear.

When that warmth dissipated, a searing hot current suddenly appeared.

This current was completely different from the gentle warmth just before. The warmth enveloped her entire body, bringing extraordinary comfort, but this heat was only a narrow stream, causing the skin all over her body to tremble.

The current first lingered around her lips, then moved to her cheeks, chin, the bridge of her nose, forehead, and even her ears, meticulously attending to her entire face several times over. It then slid over her neck and coiled round and round her chest... That familiar, tingling, exquisite sensation surged from the depths of her heart, making Long Meixian feel as if her entire blood was boiling. An indescribable bliss spread throughout her body.

But the hot current still snaked across her skin like a spirit snake, quickly moving from her chest to her abdomen, then back from her abdomen to her arms before vanishing.

Just as she felt a sense of loss, the current reappeared in her calves and began to spread upward, moving from her calves to her thighs, and from her thighs to...