Chapter 62: The Precious Pill, the Fourth Fishing Reward

The sun gradually set; Xiao Yan extinguished the Green Lotus Earth Heart Flame and wiped the sweat from his brow. As the medicinal cauldron opened, a rich herbal aroma spread out, and he used his fighting qi to extract a dozen pale green pills.

“Second-rank pill. Not bad.”

Xiao Yan placed the pills into a porcelain vial, then swallowed one himself to experience its effects and check for any flaws.

After all, this body was just a figurine; side effects meant nothing to him.

After confirming there were no side effects, he nodded in satisfaction and woke Ye Xuan from meditation, handing him the porcelain vial.

“It enhances your internal fighting qi and strengthens your physique.”

“In your world’s terms, it’s spiritual energy.”

“But as I said before, the effect won’t be obvious for you.”

“I named it Qili Pill.”

Ye Xuan took the vial, about to thank him, when he saw Xiao Yan pull out a strange object from somewhere.

It was a fruit, entirely purple-red, its surface covered in spiral patterns.

“This should be the Devil Fruit that the mutated antelope ate.”

“I originally used its heart as a medicinal catalyst. During the trial, it slowly transformed into this form.”

“Your world is truly incomprehensible.”

Xiao Yan also found it unbelievable.

For a Devil Fruit to appear in the real world was strange enough—but the key point was that the heart of a mutated beast that had eaten a Devil Fruit had reverted back into a Devil Fruit during alchemy.

Who knew how stunned he’d been when his spiritual sense detected that, while refining a pill, he’d somehow produced a fruit.

He’d even doubted whether his alchemy technique had malfunctioned.

“.”

“The novel is ready. Go read it.”

“You haven’t forgotten how to use a mouse and keyboard, have you?”

Ye Xuan fell silent upon seeing the Devil Fruit in Xiao Yan’s hand, but in the end, he took both the pill and the fruit, then said:

“That thing—you touch it once, you never forget.”

Xiao Yan waved his hand.

Come on, how could anyone forget how to use a mouse and keyboard? It’s not that you forget—it’s that you don’t need anyone to teach you.

One look and you know.

After Xiao Yan left, Ye Xuan picked up the Devil Fruit and examined it.

Though it was almost certainly the “Elephant-Elephant Fruit: Ancient Type: Mammoth Form” that the mutated antelope had eaten, why?

Why had the antelope’s heart reverted into the form of a Devil Fruit during alchemy?

Had Xiao Yan’s Strange Fire acted like the Gura Gura Fruit? He wasn’t sure—he hadn’t burned it with Three Thousand Flame Fire.

But a heart isn’t a fruit.

He couldn’t figure it out. No matter how he thought, he couldn’t figure it out.

But Xiao Yan was right about one thing: his world truly was incomprehensible.

Ye Xuan returned to the villa with the Mammoth Fruit and the porcelain vial. He took out a box, placed the Mammoth Fruit inside, and set it on the shelf where he stored Devil Fruit figurines.

After all, Devil Fruits don’t rot and require no special storage—just treat it as a regular collectible.

Back in his bedroom, he poured one Qili Pill from the vial. The pill rolled in his palm, emitting a crisp herbal fragrance. He tilted his head and swallowed it; it dissolved instantly, transforming into a warm energy that spread through his limbs and bones.

Sitting cross-legged, Ye Xuan began to activate his cultivation technique and started training.

As Xiao Yan had said, this second-rank pill offered him only limited enhancement—but since the Spiritual Energy Tide had not yet arrived, useful items were already exceedingly rare.

If he hadn’t fished up the Rat Talisman and manifested Xiao Yan, he wouldn’t have even gotten this second-rank pill.

At this moment, any external aid that could accelerate cultivation was invaluable.

In the following time, Ye Xuan’s life returned to calm once more.

Thanks to Xiao Yan’s alchemy, all three hundred bottles of Spirit Energy Tincture were refined into Qili Pills, becoming nourishment for Ye Xuan’s advancement.

As for medicinal toxins, Xiao Yan claimed that his Strange Fire already purified impurities to an extreme degree, and since Ye Xuan himself possessed Strange Fire, even if he ate these pills like meals, he’d never suffer from medicinal toxins.

The only regret was that Ye Xuan still hadn’t broken through his current limit.

The Hōgyoku had caused some loosening, but something still seemed to be missing.

Time quietly slipped away in this tranquil life, and before he knew it, the fourth month arrived.

Ye Xuan gained another fishing attempt.

But this time, the fished item’s rank was far lower than the templates of Wang Quan’s Tyranny (Youth), Three Thousand Flame Fire, or the Rat Talisman—it was merely a storage ring from a cultivation world.

Yet its volume was substantial: a full one hundred cubic meters.

Though its rank was far inferior to his previous three fishing rewards, it was precisely what Ye Xuan needed most right now.

After all, the Rat Talisman could only affect one item at a time, and he couldn’t carry dozens of figurines with him; the storage ring solved his problem perfectly.

In fact, after manifesting Xiao Yan, he’d tried manifesting a craftsman like Ma Xianhong to see if he could forge a storage ring—but even if he provided the materials, he still couldn’t use it.

The same applied regardless of the materials.

He’d also tried talismans and arrays—same result. It seemed only pills worked, and only if made from real-world herbs.

Cooking, however, worked. He’d manifested several legendary kitchen tools and had Lin Miao test them; the dishes produced all carried their inherent effects.

But unfortunately, the Rat Talisman could only affect one item at a time—if not, he could have manifested all the legendary kitchen tools and achieved immortality.

Meanwhile, the concentration of spiritual energy in heaven and earth began gradually increasing. Perhaps soon, Su Mengyao’s “Spiritual Energy Tide” would arrive.

The Tian Shu Bureau had issued multiple announcements, urging all residents to observe their pets; if any showed aggressive behavior, they should be delivered to the bureau for unified management, to prevent pets from mutating and causing irreversible consequences for themselves and others.

Yet perhaps due to overly strong emotional bonds—or because their pets were genuinely docile—the number actually delivered was small.

Most people didn’t believe mutated pets could cause irreversible harm to them.

As always, some feared dogs or cats only because they didn’t want to get hurt; if they did get hurt, no matter the breed—whether a Tibetan Mastiff or a house cat—humanity always won in the end.

Mutated pets were viewed the same way.

“Here’s this month’s Spirit Energy Tincture.”

Su Mengyao handed Ye Xuan an ancient-looking ring, her face betraying a smile she tried desperately to suppress but couldn’t hide.

Ye Xuan looked at the ring and her expression—clearly saying, “Ask me what this is!”—and already knew what it was. But seeing the storage ring he already wore on his left hand, he really didn’t want to confirm it.

(End of Chapter)