Volume One, Chapter Four: The Bracelet's Space

That bitch said there was a magical space inside; at that moment, surely she had no reason to lie to me.

Jiang Heng held the bracelet in his hand, examining it closely. The bracelet was entirely white, yet it bore markings that resembled the patterns of mountains and rivers.

There were only a few ways to refine a magical artifact. Back when he had given it to Han Jingyue, she was merely a practitioner at the Qi Refining stage, so she likely knew no more about it than he did.

He first attempted to refine it using the standard methods he knew, channeling his spiritual energy into it. After two double-hours, there was not the slightest change.

It seemed that method was ineffective. The only remaining option was blood sacrifice.

He gently pricked his fingertip and let a drop of blood fall onto the bracelet. To his surprise, the bracelet absorbed the blood as if it were a living thing.

However, the blood only stained a small section. Realizing he didn't have enough, Jiang Heng took a dagger and sliced across his left palm. Fresh blood surged out instantly.

He clenched the bracelet in his palm, and the seeping blood was quickly absorbed entirely. Suddenly, the bracelet emitted a hazy red glow, expanded automatically, and snapped onto his left wrist.

The red light faded, and the bracelet returned to its original pale, greenish-white appearance.

Only Jiang Heng knew that a bond had been forged between him and the bracelet. He closed his eyes and began to meditate, extending his consciousness toward the artifact.

With a soft pop, as if passing through a thin, supple membrane, he found himself in a vast, white expanse.

Beneath his feet lay a patch of lush green grass, and in the center of the meadow sat a clear pool.

A stone tablet stood upon the grass, inscribed with hundreds of characters—it was, in fact, an instruction manual for this spatial bracelet.

Jiang Heng read through it carefully and realized that Han Jingyue had not lied to him. The bracelet was actually a portable medicinal herb garden. It could absorb spiritual energy from the outside world, creating an environment within the space far richer in spirit than the outside, which could drastically shorten the growth time of medicinal herbs and significantly enhance their potency.

Furthermore, the spiritual energy gathered by the bracelet could not only nourish the space itself but also benefit the wearer, acting like a high-level spirit-gathering formation.

A treasure indeed! Jiang Heng nearly jumped for joy.

He clenched his fists tightly, his breathing becoming ragged, and it took quite some time for him to calm down.

With this treasure, his future would surely be bright. Even if he had to rely on a mountain of pills, he could push himself to the late Foundation Establishment stage.

As for reaching the Golden Core stage, that was not merely a matter of resources and effort; it also required a touch of luck.

Hmph, after the treacherous things Han Jingyue and Gu Lan did to him in his previous life, he didn't believe they would be able to overcome their inner demons; their fates were likely no better than his had been.

But in this life, he would personally exact the debt they owed him.

He immediately retrieved some spiritual herb seeds suitable for his current level and planted them. He could perform these tasks using his consciousness, which was not only convenient but also served to train his mental strength—killing two birds with one stone.

However, his current consciousness was still weak. After completing these tasks, he felt dizzy and listless, so he climbed onto his bed, not even bothering to remove his clothes, and drifted off to sleep.

Xiaohan Village, nestled against the mountains, was populated mostly by mortals without spiritual roots who relied on cultivating spirit grains and raising spirit fowl to make a living.

For an ordinary family, such income was enough to live comfortably. But if a family produced a child with talent who wished to learn a craft and transcend their social class, it was no easy feat.

The thing the Han family boasted about most to their neighbors was that a descendant of a Golden Core ancestor was desperately pursuing their daughter. It gave them not only status but also tangible benefits.

Otherwise, given their family's circumstances, how could they afford to send both children to a sect for study? The daughter studied alchemy, while the son studied at the Forging Academy. As long as both obtained the rank of First-Grade Alchemist or Forger in the future, they could open their own shops or serve as consultants for other workshops, and their standard of living would be entirely different.

Han’s mother and father felt very fortunate that two people with five spiritual roots could actually produce two children with three spiritual roots. Although their daughter’s talent was mediocre, she was beautiful enough to captivate Young Master Jiang.

Over the past two years, Young Master Jiang had sent many gifts, totaling several hundred spirit stones, which was just enough to maintain the children’s tuition and daily expenses.

Today was their day off, and they had gone to the market together. She wondered what fine things that generous young master would give Jingyue. Whenever they went to the market, she looked forward to it with great anticipation.

But why hadn't they returned by this hour? In the past, by the time the sun set, that clear-spirit crane would be seen gracefully flying in from the sky, and her daughter would return under the envious gazes of the villagers.

Han’s mother muttered to herself while preparing dinner, waiting for them to return.

"Mother, I'm home!" a voice called from outside. Han Jingyue had finally returned.

Hearing the voice, Han’s mother came out, ready to exchange a few words with Young Master Jiang. However, she did not see the Jiang family’s young master; instead, it was Gu Lan who was with Han Jingyue.

Han’s mother’s face immediately darkened. Other than a handsome face, this Gu boy had even worse talent than her own daughter; what kind of future could he possibly have?

Yet, her daughter beamed at this boy, while she gave the Jiang family’s young master nothing but cold looks. She had told her so many times to treat the young master better and coax him appropriately so they could get more money out of him.

What could she possibly gain by hanging around this good-for-nothing?

Han’s mother glared viciously at Gu Lan and shouted at Han Jingyue, "Get inside!"

Han Jingyue could only offer an apologetic look to Gu Lan. Gu Lan smiled at Han’s mother and said, "Good evening, Auntie!"

"Hmph!" Han’s mother rolled her eyes.

Once inside, Han’s mother asked sternly, "What is going on? Why wasn't Young Master Jiang the one who brought you back?"

"There is no 'why'!" If she hadn't asked, it would have been fine, but the question only reminded Han Jingyue of the humiliation she had suffered at the market. With a dark face, she said, "Can you give me ten spirit stones?"

Han’s mother widened her eyes in disbelief. "My heavens, where would I get that many spirit stones?"

"Don't lie to me!" Han Jingyue retorted sharply. "Not to mention the money you've earned over the years, just the spirit stones from the things Jiang Heng has given me must amount to three or five hundred. If you can afford to buy forging tools for Jingning, why can't you give me ten spirit stones?"

"I have a use for them!" She still had to pay back Gu Lan and Gong Huimin; she didn't want to lose her friends.

"Hmph, no!" Han’s mother wouldn't give them to her. "If you want spirit stones, go ask Young Master Jiang. He is at your beck and call; what are a mere ten spirit stones to him?"

"You..." Han Jingyue wanted to say that she had broken things off with Jiang Heng. But if she said that, she feared her mother would nag her for thirty years.

Forget it, she wouldn't mention it for now. Besides, knowing Jiang Heng’s character, who knew what tricks he would come up with tomorrow to pester her again? He was like a stubborn dog—you couldn't scold him away, you couldn't beat him off, and you couldn't drive him away.

She had better think of how to make Jiang Heng offer the spirit stones without a word, acting as if he were desperate to give them to her, while she herself would have to put on a show of being terribly conflicted about accepting them.