Chapter 5: Careless! Why Is This Thing So Uncomfortable!
Qian Yang looked at the whale glue lying quietly in the wooden box, his eyes full of satisfaction. He then returned to Spirit Hall with the merchant's clerk. Back in his room, he dismissed the clerk who had helped deliver the items. As soon as the door closed, he couldn't wait to rush to the table and open the nine exquisite wooden boxes one by one.
Each piece of whale glue was deep black with a faint luster on the surface. Smelling it closely, he could detect a slight fishy odor, which was far from the crystal-clear appearance he had imagined. Qian Yang picked up a piece of thousand-year whale glue. It felt cold and its texture was somewhat hard, similar to condensed Spirit Beast essence. For a moment, he fell into deep thought: 'In later eras of Douluo Continent, when refining whale glue, it usually requires strong external heat or Spirit Flame assistance. But I don't even have a spirit ring yet, let alone fire-type Spirit Abilities. How am I supposed to refine this black lump?'
He frowned, his fingers unconsciously rubbing the surface of the whale glue as his mind raced for a solution. Suddenly, his eyes lit up, and he slapped his forehead. 'Right! How could I forget the taiji diagram! The taiji diagram contains the power of Yin and Yang and the Five Elements. Since it can harmonize opposing forces like Spirit Power and elemental attributes, it can certainly transform into flames!'
Thinking of this, Qian Yang immediately raised his right hand. With a thought, a palm-sized taiji diagram slowly emerged from his palm—the edge of the disk was surrounded by a faint nine-colored halo, and the black and white fish in the center rotated slowly, emitting a profound and mysterious aura reminiscent of divine artifacts seen in Douluo legends. This was the first time he had actively summoned the taiji diagram while alone. Looking at the familiar yet strange Innate Treasure Spirit before him, Qian Yang took a deep breath, mobilized the only bit of weak spirit power in his body, and carefully injected it into the taiji diagram.
As the spirit power was injected, the rotation speed of the black and white fish on the taiji diagram suddenly accelerated. Immediately after, a wisp of pale golden flame slowly rose from the intersection of the two fish. The temperature of this flame wasn't high, but it carried a gentle and pure energy; it was the Fire of the Five Elements transformed by the taiji diagram, far more refined than ordinary flames produced by Spirit Skills. Overjoyed, Qian Yang quickly controlled the flames to spread out, wrapping the pieces of whale glue on the table one by one.
The pale golden flame was like a gentle stream of water, slowly enveloping the deep black whale glue without any sense of scorching. Before long, the originally hard whale glue slowly softened and melted under the baking of the flames. The deep black outer shell gradually faded away, revealing the milky-white transparent gelatinous substance inside, similar to purified Spirit Beast essence. A rich fragrance also spread out, replacing the previous fishy smell and enveloping the entire room.
Seeing this, Qian Yang quickly took a piece of the melted thousand-year whale glue and carefully put it into his mouth. The melt-in-the-mouth whale glue carried a hint of sweetness, sliding down his throat into his stomach and instantly turning into a warm current that slowly spread to his four limbs and all his bones. He felt warm all over, so comfortable he almost let out a hum. The sensation was similar to a Spirit Master's body being nourished by pure energy during cultivation.
After swallowing six pieces of thousand-year whale glue in succession, Qian Yang sat cross-legged on the bed and began to urge the spirit power in his body, guiding the warm current to flow through his Meridians and slowly refining the energy within the whale glue. Wherever the warm current passed, the Meridians seemed to be soaked in warm water, becoming wider and smoother, and his originally weak spirit power also seemed to grow a bit stronger, showing signs of early-stage tempering similar to Spirit Masters before obtaining their first spirit ring.
Half an hour later, Qian Yang slowly opened his eyes. Feeling the significantly enhanced aura within his body, a flash of satisfaction crossed his eyes. He didn't stop, reaching out to pick up a piece of five-thousand-year whale glue, melting it with the taiji diagram's flames and swallowing it as well.
This time, the intensity of the warm current far exceeded the previous ones! Just after entering his stomach, a surge of majestic energy erupted like a volcanic eruption, more than three times stronger than the combined energy of the six pieces of thousand-year whale glue. The scalding heat flow instantly washed through his internal organs and the Meridians of his limbs. Qian Yang's small face turned red in an instant, fine beads of sweat seeped from his forehead, and even his breathing became rapid.
'Holy crap! This thing is way more potent than Viagra!' Qian Yang felt the surging energy in his body and couldn't help but complain in his heart. He didn't dare to be the least bit slack, quickly concentrating all his Spirit, fully urging his spirit power to guide this violent energy to flow through his Meridians in an orderly fashion, refining and absorbing it bit by bit, just like controlling the absorption of an over-limit spirit ring.
Time passed unknowingly. The sky outside gradually darkened and then slowly transitioned into late night. Inside the room, the pale golden flame still burned quietly, and the taiji diagram hovered above Qian Yang's head, constantly emitting gentle energy to help him stabilize the aura within his body, preventing Spirit Power deviation.
When Qian Yang opened his eyes again, the sky outside was full of stars. He slowly exhaled a mouthful of turbid air, a sharp light flashing in his eyes. Feeling the unprecedented abundant power in his body, he couldn't help but clench his fists—after a night of refining, the energy of the two pieces of five-thousand-year whale glue had been basically absorbed. Not only was his spirit power several times stronger than before, but his Physical Body strength had also been greatly improved, and even his senses had become more acute, approaching the threshold needed to withstand higher-level spirit rings.
Qian Yang stood up from the bed and stretched his muscles and bones at will. He felt an unprecedented lightness and power throughout his body, as if he could jump very far with just a light stomp. His gaze fell on the wooden box at the corner of the table labeled 'Ten-Thousand-Year,' and the anticipation in his eyes could no longer be suppressed—if even five-thousand-year whale glue could bring such a significant improvement, how much stronger could ten-thousand-year whale glue make him?
'Since I've already refined two five-thousand-year ones, I might as well go all the way in one step!' Steeling his heart, Qian Yang reached out and took the wooden box, directly taking out the fist-sized ten-thousand-year whale glue. Without waiting to melt it with the taiji diagram's flames, he looked at the warm luster on the surface of the whale glue and actually opened his mouth, gritting his teeth and swallowing the entire piece of whale glue.
As soon as the whale glue slid into his stomach, the anticipation on Qian Yang's face was instantly replaced by severe pain! A surge of energy ten times more violent than the five-thousand-year whale glue erupted like a dormant volcano, rampaging wildly within his body. The scalding heat flow impacted his Meridians as if it wanted to burn through his internal organs, and a tearing pain came from his limbs and bones, several times more intense than the pain when he first awakened his Spirit.
'I was too careless! Why is this thing so uncomfortable!' Qian Yang trembled all over from the pain, cold sweat instantly soaking his clothes, making even standing difficult. He forced himself to slump onto the bed, his teeth chattering. His heart was full of regret—he shouldn't have been greedy and impulsive. The energy of the ten-thousand-year whale glue far exceeded his current limit of endurance. If he couldn't control it properly, his body might literally explode from the energy!
At the critical moment, Qian Yang didn't dare to hesitate at all. He quickly concentrated all his Spirit and mobilized all the spirit power in his body, like a dam blocking a flood, firmly suppressing the violent energy within him. At the same time, he raised his hand and summoned the taiji diagram, letting the pale golden flames envelop his body. Using the Yin-Yang Power of the taiji diagram, he guided that violent energy bit by bit, making it flow slowly along his Meridians, just like forcibly absorbing a spirit ring beyond one's limit.
This refining process lasted for an entire night.
The sky outside went from pitch black to the appearance of the white belly of a fish, and then to the rising of the morning sun. The pale golden flame in the room never went out. Qian Yang sat cross-legged on the bed, his brow furrowed, beads of sweat constantly rolling down his forehead. His face turned red and then pale at times. The energy in his body was like stormy waves, impacting his Meridian walls again and again, only to be suppressed by him with great difficulty each time.
It wasn't until the first ray of morning sunlight spilled into the room through the window that the energy in Qian Yang's body finally calmed down. He slowly opened his eyes, a flash of fatigue appearing first, followed by intense surprise. He took a deep breath and suddenly jumped off the bed. When his feet hit the ground, there was actually a slight muffled thud, and two shallow footprints were stepped into the hard wooden floor.
Qian Yang moved his wrists, feeling the surging power in his body, and couldn't help but clench his fists—his Physical Body strength at this moment was at least five times stronger than before refining the ten-thousand-year whale glue! His originally somewhat thin body now vaguely showed a sense of explosive power, and his Meridians had been widened quite a bit. Although his spirit power was still at Innate Level 20, its degree of condensation far exceeded before, and its operation was also much smoother, approaching the level required before obtaining a spirit ring.
He walked to the mirror and looked at himself, whose face was still a bit pale but whose eyes were bright, and smiled with satisfaction: 'It really wasn't suffering for nothing! Although this ten-thousand-year whale glue almost killed me, the effect is truly top-notch! Now, let alone a hundred-year spirit ring, even if it's a thousand-year spirit ring, I'm confident I can absorb it steadily!'