A s.h.i.+p was anch.o.r.ed near the sh.o.r.e as it floated gently on the spot due to the ocean currents. On the beach, in front of where the artifact s.h.i.+p was located, two large tents had been set up. Hei came out of one of the tents. He stretched his arms toward the sky to wake up his body after a long sleep.

After leaving Ho Yeon-Hong, Hei had asked Old Tohyon to take them to a deserted island. To overcome his bottleneck and reach the second rank, he needed to enter a period of closed-door cultivation. So it was necessary to find a safe and isolated place where he could concentrate without being bothered.

Old Tohyon, thanks to his experience in navigating the Forgotten Ocean for so many years, suggested an island he knew about and was uninhabited. Having no better alternative, Hei decided to follow the old man's proposal, and therefore they camped on the island after a long ocean crossing.

'Both Lian and I are a half-step spirit soldier. Although it is closer than the peak seventh stage, it doesn't mean that we can underestimate the second rank's bottleneck. Since we are finally in an isolated area, I would say it is time to complete the pills with the remains of the whale's body. Besides, I now also have the remains of the Great Black-backed Gull available.'

Thinking to himself, Hei pulled his alchemist cauldron out of one of his s.p.a.ce rings. It had been a while since he had used it to create an alchemical product, using it instead as a tool for cooking. So first, he cleaned up the cauldron to make sure there were no impurities during the creation process. After that, he filled the cauldron with clean water he had previously purified and lit a fire to boil the water.

"After the water has started to boil, I will put the whale's heart inside to cook it. During the high flame cooking process, the meat tends to lose the water inside and become hard. Through this process, I can extract the residues of spirit power that are contained in the heart. With that, I can deposit it in the water instead. Except that the heart of the whale is really huge, so I better cut it."

With a slight sigh, Hei pulled out a large silk cloth made by Xing and brought out the heart of the whale, which was about 2-3 meters high. It was ma.s.sive and didn't fit into the cauldron at all. So Hei had no choice but to cut it into pieces. But first, he inserted a metal tube into the whale heart while the other end of the tube was suspended above a gla.s.s container. Injecting his spirit power into the whale heart, he began to make the heart beat again, pumping the blood that still resided inside through the metal tube until it ended up inside the gla.s.s container. Once he made sure that he had extracted all the blood, he went on to cut the heart into small pieces and immerse them in boiling water.

At that point, he left the heart boiling for an hour, using the alchemical manipulation string attached to the cauldron to observe the extraction state without disturbing the cooking process. To ensure the best result, he had to make sure he would lose as little spirit power as possible of the whale's body. Only then would he be able to make a better quality pill.

"How's it going?"

A female voice rang out behind him. It was Lian who had woken up and was carrying Ye and Xing in her arms. The two little divine beasts were looking curiously at their big brother, who was struggling with processing the whale's remains. They could perceive the smell of meat being cooked.

"Well, but it's a fairly long process. Fortunately, you improved the cauldron with the formations, or it would have taken longer."

"If you want, I can create a formation on the ground to reduce the amount of heat loss and adjust the outside temperature."

"It would be very welcome, thanks, Lian."

Hei stepped aside to let Lian work, who pulled out her tools and quickly created a series of symbols on the ground, arranging dust of spirit stones. Her swift and confident movements made her seem like a great expert. Hei sat on the ground as he watched her with admiration. His little sisters went to him, and both pulled one edge of his pants each.

'Big brother, we are hungry. Prepare us something to eat.' said the two little divine beasts together.

Seeing them begging desperately for food, Hei smiled and replied, "Wait for a little. Before long, the pieces of whale heart that I put in the cauldron will have completed their purpose, and you can eat them. Instead, since you're here, help me with my next task."

Hei pulled out a series of long bones of the whale and the Great Black-backed Gull and gently laid them on the silk cloth. Then he pulled out a large green jade mortar and pestle. Typically, a small mortar and pestle would have been used, but for alchemists, it was essential to have equipment suitable for treating the remains of spirit beasts, whether they were small or huge.

"Xing, cut the bones into thin pieces and deposit them near the mortar. Ye take the cut bones and grind them with the pestle. Then put the bone powder back into this container." Hei ordered as he placed an oval container near Ye.

The two little divine beasts nodded their heads without making a fuss and went to work. In the meantime, Lian had finished her work and went to Hei to ask for further instructions.

"Take me a large container to put this water here and also bring me the heart of the Great Black-backed Seagull."

Lian did as requested by Hei and placed a large cooking pot next to him. Although it wasn't suitable for alchemical reactions like a cauldron, it was okay for holding something temporarily. Hei then poured inside the water he had boiled along with the whale's heart and placed the cut organ pieces aside. He would use them as a meal for his little sisters. At that point, after cleaning the cauldron again, he repeated this procedure for the Great Black-backed Seagull. Fortunately, this time the process lasted less than before.

After boiling both the hearts and since Ye and Xing had finished grinding all the bones given to them, it was time to create the pills. Hei filled the cauldron with whale blood, after yet another wash with clean water, and added inside the four spleens he had found inside the whale's body. It should be known that beings such as whales tended to possess multiple spleens compared to human beings who possessed only one.

'The spleen has the function of cleaning up the blood. Even if it is the original body is dead, I can partially reproduce this function through spirit power.'

In order not to let the blood dry too quickly, Hei poured over the water he had boiled and patiently waited while Lian helped him maintain the temperature of the flame. In that way, the process would follow the course that Hei wanted. After the blood had thickened enough, he put inside the blood of the Great Black-backed Seagull and left everything to a slow boil, ordering Lian to lower the flame to a minimum.

"Well, now, we are almost at the end. It's time to make the body itself for the pills." Hei said to himself as he wiped the sweat from his forehead. As he had imagined, the alchemical creation process was tiring, considering the size of the spirit beasts he was using as a basis.

'Big brother, feed us. We are hungry.' (Ye)

'Yes, we have finished grinding everything. Please.' (Xing)

"Okay, okay. Here you are then. A snack based on whale and seagull hearts. They are a bit tough because I had to cook them more than necessary to extract the liquids but try to make it enough for now. I'll make you something better later, okay?"

'Yay! Okay, thanks, big brother!'

While the hungry Ye and Xing devoured the hearts of the two killed spirit beasts, Hei took the powder of ground whale and seagull bones. He carefully mixed everything with the pestle so that the percentage of the two bones' types was h.o.m.ogeneous and began to create four large spheres, compacting the ground powder. Hei then used the remaining whale baleen as an outer covering through which to protect the four spheres so that they wouldn't flake off during the final process. Finally, he threw the spheres into the cauldron along with other substances. He then used his spirit power, concentrating as much as possible, to maneuver the energy of all those elements towards the four spheres.

It took five hours, but Hei eventually succeeded. All the while, Lian remained by his side. She had been maneuvering the flame of the cauldron since Hei was busy checking the changes inside the cauldron. Ye and Xing instead watched in silence, playing lazily on one side over the silk cloth since they didn't want to get too dirty with sand.

"Excellent, now the pills are ready. But I think it's better to rest for now before proceeding, how about it, Lian?"

"I agree. It is better to reach our peak condition so as to have the maximum probability of success."

Hei, therefore, took the pills on the bottom of the cauldron and placed them in one of his s.p.a.ce rings after having dissolved the protective layer created with the whale baleen. At that point, he spent the rest of the day with his family, resting both his body and mind. It was when it was the evening that Hei and Lian finally decided to attack the bottleneck towards the second rank.

a.s.suming the meditation lotus position, they swallowed two of the four pills created during the day and began to meditate, making flowing their spirit power. Soon, the energy contained in the pills exploded inside their bodies, creating an uproar in their flow of spirit power. As the spirit power of two different types of spirit beasts was contained within, it was difficult to calm such turmoil. Fortunately, the properties of the herbs mixed in the mixture had mitigated the strong contrast reaction, enough to allow Hei and Lian to be able to absorb the pills without severe consequences.

The process lasted a couple of hours, and Xing and Ye stayed awake to keep watch. Even if they had tantrums during the day, it was because they were in a situation where they could afford it. Now, however, both Hei and Lian were in a delicate situation. Therefore, they didn't dare to behave as before, and they put themselves on the alert against any eventuality.

From one of the tents, on the other hand, Old Tohyon was looking with admiration toward the two youths, in particular, Hei. He had been observing since this morning the efforts of his young employer into making the pills. And it was even more commendable that he had such knowledge of alchemy despite being so strong in combat.

Fizz! Clank! Crack!

As if there was something to hinder their path, Hei and Lian's spirit power continued to crash into that obstacle. Eventually, after a constant a.s.sault, the obstruction that held them back was broken. Suddenly, both Hei and Lian felt their spirit power boil like never before as it shot up. It was a feeling never experienced before. Perhaps the only closest thing was when they cultivated for the first time.

'I can feel the power flowing inside me. It's really incredible.' Hei let out a slight smile as he examined his body and exhaled a deep breath.

Finally, Hei and Lian had reached the second rank, becoming full-fledged spirit soldiers. They had reached the top of martial artists' society in the islands, although they were only at the bottom of that peak as they had just advanced. Nevertheless, reaching the second rank now opened new doors, and they could face spirit soldiers head-on.

'Wow, congratulations! The big brother and Lian have reached the second rank.' Xing and Ye exploded in a series of exultations as they ran towards them. They were happy with the advancement of the two young humans.

"Congratulations. It is amazing that two young people like you have been able to reach the second rank. I doubt that in any other sect or organization, there are martial artists of your age with such a level of cultivation."

Noting the strange flow of spirit power, Old Tohyon had approached to check how it was going. And although he expected it, considering the talent shown by Hei and Lian during this period, he couldn't help but be genuinely surprised.

"Thanks, Old Tohyon, but it isn't over yet. At the moment, we still need to stabilize our foundations and learn to manage our new power before we can call ourselves true spirit soldiers. Go to sleep. My spirit beasts will take care of the guard."

"Okay, then. Congratulations again. I confess that I was worried about the latest events, but now I am not so much anymore. I hope you will be able to surprise again with another miracle, Master Hei."

With a slight bow of the head, Old Tohyon left Hei and Lian to cultivate without being disturbed. Indeed, no matter how promising they may have been, during Ho Yeon-Hong's kidnapping and the following days, he had been anxious about the retaliation they might have received. To this, it was added the revelations on the Pirate King's treasure and the threat posed by the Red Devil Jin-Sang. At this time, they no longer had the protection of one of the Four Pirate Generals, so it was only normal for him to be worried. However, Hei and Lian induced a sense of security within Old Tohyon through their advancement. He had seen what these two youths were capable of along with those two unusual spirit beasts. And now excitement for the future was flooding into his old body.

"Ye, Xing. Stay on guard. We are likely to need the whole night to stabilize the effects of the pills and rank advancement. As soon as we are done, you will be able to sleep, and tomorrow I will prepare you something good to eat. It is time for you to take your training seriously again, and we must also learn how to fly. Fortunately, the Flower Sect has already left information regarding the flight technique. It is only to understand how to adapt these techniques to you, but somehow we will. Stay a.s.sured."

The two little divine beasts nodded their heads as they returned to their guard positions. Hei then looked at Lian, who returned his gaze with a smile.

"You did a good job, Lian. We are doing well. Let's keep it up. Together, the four of us will defeat anyone who blocks our way." Hei confidently said while stroking Lian's head.

"Yes, together, we are unbeatable. I'll do your best to stay by your side." Lian whispered in a low voice so that Hei couldn't hear. After that, the two resumed cultivating. Although they had advanced to the second rank, they still had a great deal to do and prepare for. The race against time to adapt to their new power as soon as possible had now begun. They had to succeed before the real clash against a spirit soldier.