Chapter 4: Clearing the Meridians and Relaxing the Vessels

"Then what is the use of this Purple Flame Ring?" Qing Mei asked, still unrelenting.

"Since you have acknowledged the Purple Flame Ring, you have become a Space Mage. You can slowly comprehend the ways of a Space Mage on your own later. There are many things my previous master stored in the ring's space; go take a look. Just use your consciousness to control it."

Qing Mei followed the red-haired youth's instructions, and with a flash, she entered the space.

Before her was a very spacious courtyard. In the middle of the courtyard was a pond, surrounded by a circle of houses.

Qing Mei walked into the first room. Inside was an exquisite black alchemy furnace, and the shelves beside it were packed densely with medicine bottles. There were also many precious medicinal herbs. Not interested, Qing Mei went to the second room. It was filled with various weapons, all of which were Earth-tier or higher. There were even some Sub-God-tier weapons that were priceless in the outside world, and some were even God-tier.

Qing Mei picked and chose, eventually finding a dagger made of purple-gold stone. This purple-gold stone was an extremely hard material; when forged into a sharp weapon, it could cut through iron like mud.

Outside, a piece the size of a finger would cost thousands of gold coins. A dagger made entirely of purple-gold was truly incredibly expensive. Unfortunately, Qing Mei didn't know that yet. She tucked the dagger into her clothes; it would be good for self-defense. In her past life, she rarely used guns when carrying out missions, preferring to use a dagger for a one-hit kill, so cold weapons suited her better.

She arrived at the third room, which was densely packed with books—all of them secret manuals of Earth-tier or higher, covering various elements. Qing Mei thought for a moment and found a book that introduced the world. Being a newcomer, and since the former Qing Mei rarely went out, she knew very little about this world and needed to brush up on her knowledge.

Qing Mei entered the fourth room and immediately perked up. She had just been wondering where to get some money, and she hadn't expected to find so much here. It was all piled up like small hills—gold coins and some colorful coins. After stuffing some away, Qing Mei went out to the courtyard. Just as she stepped out, she saw something red, she didn't know what it was, sleeping on the grass and sunbathing. Qing Mei walked over and picked it up, causing the little thing to wince in pain.

"Hey, hey, put me down, it hurts..." A familiar voice rang in Qing Mei's mind; it sounded like... Yan Lie's voice!

Qing Mei looked around but didn't see that red figure. "What are you looking at? I'm right in your hand!"

Qing Mei looked at the little creature. Its red fur was soft, and its size was like that of a small fox. Its large, round, watery eyes were glaring at Qing Mei, and its four little paws were kicking hard.

"You are Yan Lie?" "What do you think, stupid woman? Put me down quickly." Qing Mei suddenly laughed. Yan Lie watched this smile; although it was very beautiful, he felt that there was something not so pleasant hidden beneath it.

"Yo, getting arrogant now, aren't you? Why don't you turn back into a human? Hmm?"

"Do you think I want to be like this? I just formed the contract, and my abilities haven't recovered yet, so I can't stay in human form for long."

Yan Lie glanced at Qing Mei with disdain. "From now on, we will communicate through our consciousness; I cannot speak in this mimicry form. You can freely use all those things you saw in the rooms. The fruit trees around here are spirit fruits; they contain rich spiritual energy and can aid in cultivation. Go to the alchemy room and find a Marrow Cleansing Pill to clear the impurities from your body. I suspect your lack of spiritual power is due to blocked meridians; otherwise, how could you have contracted the Purple Flame Ring? Eat it in a moment, then get into that pond."

Qing Mei listened to him quietly, then tossed Yan Lie onto the grass, went to find the Marrow Cleansing Pill, swallowed it, and obediently sat in the pond.

Yan Lie glared at Qing Mei. He hadn't expected such a pretty little girl to be so violent, throwing such a cute creature around... Wait, could it be that his charm was fading?

As soon as Qing Mei entered, an extremely cold sensation spread throughout her body. Suddenly, a wave of scorching heat surged through her, and the cold and heat perfectly countered each other, making it less unbearable for her.

"Now, cultivate according to the mental technique I tell you," Yan Lie said to Qing Mei through their mental connection.

Immediately, a string of words entered Qing Mei's mind, and she silently began to cultivate following the voice. About a quarter of an hour later, a sudden pain emerged. Qing Mei felt every muscle and bone in her body tearing apart, giving her the urge to faint.

"If you faint, all your efforts will be wasted, and you'll even suffer a backlash," Yan Lie's teasing voice rang out.

Qing Mei held on stubbornly. The tissues in her body tore and reorganized, tore and reorganized again, over and over, making her want to vomit blood.

Finally, the pain stopped. Qing Mei opened her eyes and saw Yan Lie lying by the water, watching her.

"How do you feel?"

"My whole body feels comfortable and much better."

"Come, let's test how much spiritual power and elemental affinity you have."

The two communicated through their consciousness like this. Qing Mei changed her clothes and sat on a lounge chair under the fruit tree, feeling incredibly comfortable.

Yan Lie wobbled over, carrying a crystal ball, and placed it on the table. "Come, put your hand on it." Qing Mei pouted and placed her small hand on the crystal ball. "Close your eyes and try to channel the spiritual power you sense into the crystal ball." Qing Mei did as she was told.