"Magical Power!"

He was gaining Magical Power just by feeding his Spirit Beast an elixir. This was something Yu Changsheng had never anticipated.

He could feel the Magical Power within him approaching the Qi Refining Fourth Layer. He wondered if this reward was a random occurrence or something he’d receive every time he fed it a Spirit Enhancement Pill.

’If I can get a reward every time, doesn’t that mean one Spirit Enhancement Pill is as good as two?’

’Even better, I wouldn’t have to go through the trouble of refining elixirs myself. I could just hand them to my Spirit Beasts and reap the rewards!’

’If I contract more Spirit Beasts in the future, I could feed one pill to each. I might be able to break through a whole Realm in a single night!’

The thought of it was simply too wonderful to imagine.

’Looks like I’ll definitely have to learn Alchemy in the future. That way, my Realm and my Spirit Beasts’ Realms won’t fall behind.’

’Right, how is the Red Snake King’s status?’

Yu Changsheng turned his head, and the system’s information appeared before his eyes.

[Name]: Red Snake King

[Realm]: Tier One Fifth Layer

[Comprehension]: 55

[Current Status]: Euphoria

’Tier One Fifth Layer!’

Joy blossomed in Yu Changsheng’s heart.

The Red Snake King’s breakthrough filled him with confidence.

The Red Snake King, too, was wagging its tail, circling Yu Changsheng with irrepressible excitement, wishing it could give its master a great big hug.

In just one month, it had broken through from the Tier One Third Layer to the Tier One Fifth Layer. If the other Spirit Beasts in the Beast Garden knew how fast it was advancing, they’d be sick with envy.

The rise in its Realm and the evolution of its species filled the Red Snake King with hope for the future. It decided to stop lazing around and cultivate for four—no, five hours a day!

It had to become diligent and make up for the time it had wasted in the Beast Garden. Once it became strong enough to rival a Golden Core Cultivator, it would have the power to kill those villains and avenge its parents!

The Red Snake King was smarter than other Spirit Beasts. Shortly after its birth, it had followed Elder Wei around the Beast Garden and learned that its parents had died during a mission. An Inner Sect Disciple, its parents’ master, had died along with them.

And the culprit behind it all, that other sect—it had never forgotten.

Before, knowing the gap in strength was too vast, it had chosen to give up and slack off. But now that it saw a glimmer of hope, it naturally had to work hard!

The Red Snake King nudged its head into Yu Changsheng’s chest, rubbing against him affectionately.

It made a silent vow to protect its master no matter what.

"Stop rubbing, you’re going to strangle me."

Yu Changsheng patted the Red Snake King on the head, putting a stop to its suffocating display of affection.

’What a shame about that last Spirit Enhancement Pill. If I had fed it to you, I might have broken through to the Qi Refining Fourth Layer.’

He lamented inwardly. After all, who could have guessed that feeding a Spirit Beast could also boost his own Magical Power? It seemed he would have to experiment more in the future to see if he could unlock any new rewards!

Yu Changsheng looked down at his own panel.

[Name: Yu Changsheng]

[Realm: Qi Refining Third Heaven]

[Physique: Spirit Beast Affinity]

[Cultivation Technique: Chang Chun Technique - Mastery (5/10,000), Refining God Technique - Mastery (12/10,000), Beast Taming Technique - Beginner (15/1,000)]

[Magic: Fireball Skill Mastery (65/1,000), Wind Walking Skill Mastery (175/1,000), Wood Shield Skill Introduction (15/100), Rainwalking Skill Introduction (10/100)]

[Skills: Tier One Spirit Plant (5/1,000)]

[Spirit Pet: Red Snake King]

[Essence Points Remaining: 2320]

Without adding any points, his stats hadn’t changed much from a month ago. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

But after more than a month of diligent feeding, minus the points consumed for the evolution and fusion, he still had an astonishing 2,320 essence points left.

This was his entire stock.

’Right now, I’m lacking in Defense Force and attack power.’

Yu Changsheng carefully considered his strengths and weaknesses.

A Divine Sense range of nearly sixty meters allowed him to anticipate an enemy’s attacks much earlier, and his current movement speed from the Wind Travel Skill was sufficient. Therefore, there were only two options for adding points.

’Add points to Fireball Skill and Wood Shield Skill!’

In the blink of an eye, both the Fireball Skill and the Wood Shield Skill broke through to Mastery!

The jumbled knowledge in his mind instantly coalesced, becoming clearer and clearer.

"So that’s how it works. I understand!"

Enlightenment dawned on Yu Changsheng. He lifted a finger and condensed a large fireball.

The wooden cabin was instantly illuminated, the air filling with scorching heat. The ferocious Flame made the nearby Red Snake King recoil in shock.

Now that the Magic had reached Mastery, he could cast it instantly without forming any hand seals.

With just a thought, the Magical Power in his body would respond.

’This fireball doesn’t look like something a Qi Refining Cultivator should be able to cast at all.’

’Its power could probably melt an iron sword in an instant.’

Yu Changsheng extinguished the large fireball on his finger and let out a breath.

’The only problem is the immense consumption. I’d probably run out of Magical Power after casting it two or three times.’

He had never imagined that a simple Fireball Skill could consume so much Magical Power one day.

But this was normal. After all, no Cultivator at the Qi Refining Third Layer could possibly train their Fireball Skill to Mastery!

"Come on, charge at me."

Yu Changsheng intended to test the Defense Force of his Wood Shield Skill and beckoned to the Red Snake King.

The Red Snake King tilted its head, its face full of confusion, not understanding why its master was making such a strange request.

’I’m a First Rank Fifth Stage Demon Beast!’ it thought. ’My body is incredibly tough; shattering a boulder with one strike would be nothing. But then look at master’s frail frame...’

The Red Snake King shrank its head back, genuinely afraid it might kill its master with a single charge.

Seeing its hesitation, Yu Changsheng didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. He could only raise his palm and cast the Wood Shield Skill first.

A green light flared, and the dense Wood Spirit Qi in the air instantly converged, forming a two-meter-tall and wide Wooden Shield in front of his palm.

"Now you can relax, right? This Wooden Shield of mine isn’t that fragile."

As Yu Changsheng felt his Magical Power continuously draining, the Wooden Shield grew harder. He shouted to the Red Snake King, "Don’t be afraid, hit me with all you’ve got!"

Hearing the command, the Red Snake King’s expression hardened. Its massive serpentine body shot forward like a coiled spring, its head slamming forcefully into the Wooden Shield.

BANG!

A jolt of pain shot through the Red Snake King’s head, causing it to involuntarily recoil. At the same time, it saw its master get thrown backward.

"HSSST!" Yu Changsheng drew a sharp breath as he landed by the door, a full five meters from where he’d been standing. He had almost flown out of the house.

Before him, the Wooden Shield remained intact, having firmly blocked the attack. The impact force, however, couldn’t be completely negated, and a stinging pain shot through his palm.

’If it can block an attack from a Tier One Fifth Layer Demon Beast, then blocking Late Middle Stage Qi Refining Cultivators should be no problem!’

’The consumption is less than the Fireball Skill. If it’s not under attack, I can probably maintain it for the time it takes an incense stick to burn. If it is attacked, the stronger the attack, the greater the consumption. Three minutes might be the limit.’

Yu Changsheng calculated the duration and was very satisfied.

An enemy’s Magical Power wasn’t endless, either. Was there any Qi Refining Stage Cultivator who could attack nonstop for three minutes?

’Probably not.’ Thinking this way, he realized he could protect himself even if he were surrounded.

Yu Changsheng recalled the Red Snake King into his Inner Realm, a profound sense of security washing over him.

Tonight, he would get a good night’s sleep.