In the Domain of Forbidden Heaven.
Nie Tian’s Star Boat flew through the spaces between huge floating meteors.
With her irregularly-shaped crystal in her palm, Pei Qiqi scanned her surroundings for any unusual spatial fluctuations.
If there were any hidden teleportation portals in their surroundings, that spatial treasure of hers would be able to detect them.
The Domain of Forbidden Heaven covered a vast area. It bordered the Domain of Heaven’s Boundaries on one side and the Domain of the Falling Stars on the other.
The speed of the Star Boat couldn’t match that of an ancient starship. However, that gave Pei Qiqi an opportunity to scan her surroundings more thoroughly.
Sitting on the Star Boat, Nie Tian didn’t practice cultivation.
However, the three unique treasures in his spiritual sea took it upon themselves to channel flame power, wood power, and star power from the starry river.
As wisp after wisp of power fused into his spiritual cores of three different attributes, the solid parts of those spiritual cores gradually expanded.
Nie Tian suddenly came to a realization. “It seems that the starry river has become the most ideal place for me to practice cultivation!”
As long as he had the flame spark, the Nine Stars Flower, and the Godspirit Tree inside of him, he would be able to channel power from the starry river and practice cultivation without relying on spiritual materials of different attributes.
Now, he was at the early Soul realm. His spiritual cores had only partially solidified. His future cultivation would focus on the condensation and crystallization of the remaining liquid part.
To complete this process, Qi warriors without the flame spark, Godspirit Tree, and Nine Stars Flower would have to rely on all sorts of spiritual materials.
Furthermore, normally, Qi warriors at the Soul realm couldn’t safely expose themselves in the starry river, much less absorb power from it.
Obviously, he was a unique existence.
Not only did his unique bloodline and exceptionally tough body allow him to withstand the deadly impurities in the starry river, but the three wondrous treasures inside of him even allowed him to channel and refine flame power, wood power, and star power from the starry river.
He suddenly realized that this trip, where he was searching for hidden outsider teleportation portals in the Domain of Forbidden Heaven with Pei Qiqi, could be considered another way of cultivation.
Since he didn’t have to do anything, and his spiritual sea was already gaining the kinds of power it needed, he was free to work on something else.
He decided that he would nourish the Flame Dragon Armor and Star Behemoth bone with his Blood Essence, and then regenerate Blood Essence by relying on his stock of flesh power, which was still abundant.
Both of them had yearned for his Blood Essence, since it had been proven to have the effect of making them stronger and sharper.
Drop after drop of his Blood Essence fused into the Star Behemoth bone and the Flame Dragon Armor.
He hadn’t stored the bone in his ring of holding since he had left the Realm of Shattered Earth.
Like him, it had also been exposed to and was gathering power from the boundless starry river.
Originally, it had only been about twenty meters long, but as Nie Tian’s Blood Essence continued to fuse into it and it continued to channel power from the starry river, it gradually grew to nearly thirty meters long.
As another drop of Blood Essence dripped on the bone and instantly fused into the complicated veins within it, the bone started to emanate a faint blood-colored light.
Nie Tian’s expedition to the three Demon realms had won him a large number of Demon corpses. Later, he had gone to assist Hou Chulan in the Realm of Wood Spirit. From her, he had gained outsider and Ancientbeast corpses at the grand patriarch level.
Even though he had already completed Flesh Tempering, it didn’t seem that he could start Blood Condensing, the last stage of Heavenly Wood Heal, yet.
Meanwhile, after devouring flesh power to its fill, his bloodline aura had also fallen dormant, preparing for its next upgrade.
That was the reason why he could generate a large amount of Blood Essence now.
Pei Qiqi’s eyes lit up as she said with narrowed eyes, “Your Blood Essence… I don’t know why, but I have a strange feeling that your Blood Essence must be very sweet and tasty.”
With these words, she gently licked her rich lips, giving her a shockingly inviting look.
In fact, she had already held herself back for quite a while, watching Nie Tian generate and fuse Blood Essence into the Flame Dragon Armor and the Star Behemoth bone.
Every time she saw a drop of Blood Essence fall on the Flame Dragon Armor’s Blood Core, she felt a strong desire for it.
However, her reserved nature made it very difficult for her to voice her desire. After all, it was Nie Tian’s Blood Essence that she yearned for.
However, seeing Nie Tian spend his red, diamond-like Blood Essence so lavishly on the Flame Dragon Armor and the bone, she finally couldn’t help but give voice to her thoughts.
Nie Tian was confused. “You… You have a feeling that my Blood Essence is tasty?”
Pei Qiqi instantly flushed and looked down. “Umm... yeah, a bit.”
Nie Tian fell silent.
“Don’t, don’t take it the wrong way,” Pei Qiqi hastily explained. “I just find that your Blood Essence smells nice. That’s all...”
“Wait,” Nie Tian said. “Perhaps my Blood Essence can help you too.”
If he used his Blood Essence to unleash Life Drain or Life Shackle, then it would be a deadly poison for outsiders that carried rich flesh power.
However, if he used it to activate Life Grant, then it would be a medicine that could help strengthen the Flame Dragon Armor and the Star Behemoth bone, and extend other humans’ lifespans.
Before, he had thought that Pei Qiqi was still young and had a long lifespan ahead of her, so it had never occurred to him to give her his Blood Essence.
Only at this moment did it occur to him that Pei Qiqi was a hybrid like him, and his Blood Essence could help strengthen her body and enrich her life force.
Just as Pei Qiqi was going to explain herself further, a drop of Nie Tian’s Blood Essence flew out of his heart. “I’ll fuse this drop of Blood Essence into your heart. Pay close attention to the changes you may experience.”
With these words, the translucent and sparkling drop of Blood Essence flew towards her ample chest.
“Life Grant!”
After going through her garments, the drop of Blood Essence easily infiltrated her soft skin and fused into her heart like a drop of water fusing into the sea.
The drop of Blood Essence rapidly dispersed in her heart.
In the next moment, wisp after wisp of flesh power that carried the profound truths of life flew out of her heart and into her acupoints all over her body.
Pei Qiqi couldn’t help but let out a moan of extreme pleasure. She felt as if she was relaxing in a warm spring as wisps of Nie Tian’s flesh aura gradually flew into and expanded her acupoints.
Her acupoints were vessels that held her spatial bloodline power.
Each and every acupoint was like an independent space, which was originally rather fragile. Every time she exerted herself to cast a spatial escape magic, they would crack, or even collapse.
However, as Nie Tian’s Blood Essence fused into her, she shrewdly discovered that not only was the spaces within her acupoints expanding, but also they were also becoming tougher.
Such discoveries overjoyed her.
Soon, the drop of Blood Essence dispersed and vanished completely in her heart.
However, the wisps of flesh power it released continued to strengthen and expand her acupoints in every part of her body.
“How about it?” Nie Tian asked with an anticipating look in his eyes.
He had only experimented with his Blood Essence on Master Blood Spirit. The result was that his lifespan had been successfully extended.
This was the first time he had fused his Blood Essence into a hybrid. Therefore, even he wasn’t sure whether it would help Pei Qiqi as he had expected.
Pei Qiqi nodded vigorously. “Your Blood Essence is helpful to me, very helpful!”
Before Pei Qiqi could say anything else, Nie Tian grinned and said, “Awesome!”
Another drop of Blood Essence was then summoned from his heart and fused into Pei Qiqi’s heart in the same fashion.
Pei Qiqi instantly felt the wondrous effect of this new drop of Blood Essence. Overjoyed and overwhelmed, she said, “Nie Tian, your Blood Essence is very precious. You...”
Nie Tian laughed broadly. “It’s alright. I can recover it by channeling flesh power from dead outsiders and Ancientbeasts. Right now, I still have plenty of them that I don’t have any specific use for. That’s why I was generating and giving Blood Essence to the Flame Dragon Armor and that bone.
“I could give it to them, so of course I can give it to you. Don’t worry, senior martial sister. I still have enough dead outsiders and Ancientbeasts to condense more Blood Essence.”
After a moment of hesitation, Pei Qiqi nodded slightly. “Alright, thank you.”
She had only accepted two drops of Nie Tian’s Blood Essence, and she already understood the wondrous help they could provide her.
The expansion and reinforcement of her acupoints would mean that she would be able to hold more spatial bloodline power, and that she would suffer from lighter backlashes when she used escape magics and other forbidden spatial magics.
For these reasons, she decided to accept Nie Tian’s offer.
As the Star Boat continued to roam the starry river, Nie Tian condensed and fused drop after drop of his Blood Essence into Pei Qiqi.
Thanks to this, her acupoints were gradually expanded and strengthened. Not just that, but even her meridians, bones, and internal organs had become tougher than before.
She felt that her body became a bit tougher with every drop of Blood Essence that fused into her.
Two weeks passed...
Nie Tian eventually used up the Demon corpses he had looted from the three Demon realms.
It was also at this moment that something suddenly stirred the spatial treasure in Pei Qiqi’s palm.
Pei Qiqi’s eyes snapped open. “There’s a teleportation portal nearby!”
Looking into the crystal that was filled with glowing spatial blades, she gently flicked her finger at it, and then showed Nie Tian a direction.