"Are you sure about this?

" Jin Wang asked for probably the 5th time that night.

"Don't rush through if you're not 100% sure.

"

Hao Xuan stood in front of the wooden tank with only a one-piece of cloth covering his privates. He stared at the bubbling grey liquid that was moving on its own. It looked like a slime creature trying to find its way out of the tank.

He nodded once,

"As sure as I can be. I can't put it off any longer.

"

"What about the last energy? Did you even comprehend it yet?

"

Hao Xuan looked at Jin Wang with a grin,

"Not all the way, but I have an idea about what to do now.

"

Jin Wang looked back at him blankly, like he couldn't comprehend what he had just heard.

"Y-You have an idea?

"

"I went over all the information I have regarding understanding energies. From what I gathered, you don't have to completely understand an energy from the get-go. As long as you have your own comprehension of what it is, that's a good first step. Is that not right?

" he looked at him for confirmation.

Jin Wang hesitantly nodded back with furrowed brows.

"It 'is' true, but that's still easier said than actually done. Focus on your physique first, then the breakthrough.

"

Hao Xuan shook his head with utmost confidence,

"No need. I don't do well under normal circumstances. Unless I'm pushed back into a corner, it will only get harder and harder for me. Not to mention this is the perfect opportunity. Breaking through to the spirit realm requires complete unification of mind and body. Since my physique will already be undergoing changes, why not kill two birds with one stone?

"

"Dude, doing something like that requires a very high control over your body, which you ain't got. It sounds good in theory but the reality is much different!

" Jin Wang couldn't help but disagree with Hao Xuan's point of view. It was far too dangerous.

"Look, I'm gonna do this with or without you, so it's your choice. You can leave if you want, nobody's stopping you. But I'm doing it.

"

Hao Xuan's response left Jin Wang speechless. But before he could make an argument, a soft splashing sound woke him up. He looked up and saw Hao Xuan standing in the tank. The grey liquid already making its way up his legs like a living being.

"WHA- IDIOT! Listen to me! Don-

Hao Xuan met his gaze with a genial smile. His fists clenched tight, making the veins slightly bulge out.

"Don't worry, It'll be fine. I...feel...invincible!

"

Hao Xuan rode on the rush of hormones he got from confessing his feelings to Xu Qing. It was these hormones coursing through his veins that gave him the confidence boost.

But whether that was a good thing or not would be a completely different topic.

He closed his eyes and laid down in the tank. The liquid quickly latched onto his skin, covering him completely.

Jin Wang watched on in a daze. Finally shaking his head helplessly,

"Love really does make one do the most foolish of things. Not that he was too smart to begin with, but this....

"

With a deep sigh, Jin Wang walked over to the table placed in the corner of the room, and picked up the small pouch from there. It held the things the old demon had given Hao Xuan to help him break through to the spirit realm.

He turned the pouch upside down as four crystals the size of his fists fell out. They pulsed with a bright blue light that spun around in circles inside them, threatening to break out at the slightest touch.

"What the f*ck?!

"

He almost jumped back in shock looking at the Top-tier Low-grade spirit stones in front of his face.

Spirit stones were the concentrated, crystallized forms of different spiritual energies. They could be normal spirit stones or could have a special attribute like the Lightning Spirit Stones Hao Xuan got from the Den.

The ones that the old demon gave him were normal spirit stones that were suitable for all cultivators, the only difference being that their tier or purity was very high.

The higher the purity, the easier they were to absorb and the fewer impurities would, in turn, enter the cultivator's bodies during the absorption process.

The classification of normal Spirit Stones was this:

Low-Grade

Mid-Grade

Top-Grade

And each grade had three tiers which signified their purity levels. The higher the tier, the purer the energy within.

These tiers were Low, Mid, and Top tier.

So the Spirit stones which were on the table in front of Jin Wang were actually Low-grade which weren't that rare, but they were Top-Tier which made them even more expensive than Mid-grade Spirit stones.

In a quarry of 50 tons, there would be less than 1% of any top-tier spirit stones. Their demand was sky high while supply ran abysmally low. Just these four stones would easily fetch hundreds of billions of gold in the open market, not that he would even dream of doing that.

He picked one up and examined it closely. Its blue light reflecting off of his pupils.

'Why is the old man so generous all of a sudden? Even for him, these wouldn't have been easy to get a hold-off...

"

He couldn't help but get suspicious of their relationship. Was Hao Xuan a long lost relative of the old demon? A bastard son perhaps?

*Crack*

While he was busy admiring the spirit stone, a series of muffled cracking noises came from the tank, waking him up.

"Oh sh*t, forgot about this moron!

" he turned around and checked on Hao Xuan's condition. There were continuous popping and cracking sounds emanating from what looked like a hardened grey cocoon now.

The liquid had completely solidified from the top, completely encasing Hao Xuan from head to toe.

Jin Wang picked up the four spirit stones and placed one on each side of the tank. He made a sign with his hands and a small strand of white energy that was razor thin came out of his index finger.

It hovered in his palm like a silky white strand. He took one end and attached it to the spirit stone on the right, then took the other and attached it to the one at the top.

He repeated this process 4 times, connecting all the spirit stones together in a diamond-like shape.

As soon as the last strand connected and the 'circuit' was completed, the dense spiritual energy encaged within the Spirit stones started leaking out in waves. All of it remained within the boundaries, shrouding the wooden tank in almost a mist-like energy.

Jin Wang wiped the sweat dripping off his forehead and fell down some distance away. It seemed like creating those silky strands took a lot out of him.

"Now it's all on you....

"