"Good!"
Zi Linling focused her energy, controlling the flames with all her might.
An hour later, a rumbling sound finally emanated from the Nine Extremes Universe Cauldron.
It was done!
Zi Linling's spirit relaxed, she withdrew the flames, and collapsed onto the ground, panting heavily.
Her mind was already exhausted, she had been relying entirely on her willpower to sustain herself.
Now that the pill was formed, she felt every ounce of strength drained from her body, and even her eyelids felt too heavy to keep open.
She forced herself to sit up, retrieved the pill from the Nine Extremes Universe Cauldron, packed it into a pre-prepared bottle, and then promptly fell onto the ground, sleeping soundly.
Fortunately, she always chose to refine pills beneath the Bodhi tree, so as she slept, specks of light fell from the Bodhi tree and seeped into her body.
She slept soundly, from dawn till dusk, for three days and three nights, before finally slowly opening her eyes.
Of course, the benefits were also obvious.
Not only was her fatigue completely gone, but her mental strength, soul power, and physical strength had also increased slightly.
Nine Extremes felt Zi Linling wake up, and he quickly transformed into human form, coming before her and rubbing against the softness of her chest, excitedly saying, "Master, you're finally awake."
His eyes held an unconcealed worry.
Zi Linling stroked Nine Extremes' small head, "Nine Extremes, how long have I slept?"
Nine Extremes opened his large, watery eyes and said, "Master, you've slept for three days and three nights!"
Zi Linling was greatly surprised, no wonder she felt an indescribable lightness in her body.
So, she had slept a whole month's worth of sleep in one go.
Although cultivators could stay awake for days on end, or use cultivation to replace sleep, there was always an uncomfortable feeling.
Sleeping for three days and three nights, and refining pills for seven days and seven nights, it all added up to ten days and ten nights for this refining of the Bodhi Inducement Pill.
Fortunately, these ten days and ten nights were spent in the Goddess Hall, which had a tenfold time flow, so only a day and a night had passed outside.
But even so, it had made Ye Lingyuan outside worry terribly.
A whole day and night!
This was the longest time Zi Linling had spent refining pills since leaving the Heavenly启 Kingdom!
Therefore, Ye Lingyuan's mood gradually became agitated.
He was both worried about Zi Linling and distressed for her.
After all, refining pills was a time-consuming, labor-intensive, and mentally draining process, and one wrong move could lead to soul injury.
"Bang!"
The teacup in Ye Lingyuan's hand shattered under his restless agitation.
Sticky blood flowed from his hand, yet he seemed oblivious, merely staring blankly at the Goddess Hall, which had shrunk to the size of a grape, on the table.
"Ah, I'm so thirsty!"
Zi Linling suddenly appeared where she had disappeared from before, and quickly reached for the teacup on the table.
"Lin'er, you're finally out!"
Ye Lingyuan embraced her faster than she could, wishing he could hold her right into his bones.
Those few short words were imbued with worry and a deep sense of grievance, filling her ears and striking her heart.
Ye Lingyuan's chin rubbed against her forehead, filled with extreme gentleness and pampering.
"Lin'er... Lin'er... Lin'er..."
The murmuring call swept over her heart like common foxtail grass, causing a pang of guilt to rise within her.
"Ye Lingyuan, I..."
Just as Zi Linling was about to apologize, a strong scent of blood rushed into her nose.
"Huh, why is there a smell of blood?"
As soon as the thought crossed her mind, she heard Ye Lingyuan gently say, "Lin'er, don't say those words, we don't need them between us!"
"You... woo woo..."
Just as Zi Linling was about to ask to see his wound, she felt a cool touch on her lips, and then her mouth was sealed.
The tingling, nibbling kisses quickly melted her guilt into a blank.
She unconsciously responded, returning Ye Lingyuan's tenderness with passion.
It wasn't until Zi Linling felt suffocated that Ye Lingyuan reluctantly released her.
"Lin'er, this day and night felt longer than a year?"
Ye Lingyuan's eyes were dark and deep, and the endless longing formed two vortexes, as if wanting to draw Zi Linling's exquisite face into his soul.
Zi Linling's cheeks flushed, and she shyly said, "How could it be that exaggerated? However, this Bodhi Inducement Pill is indeed difficult to refine. If not for Huangyi's Phoenix Fire, it probably wouldn't have been refined."
Ye Lingyuan gently stroked the hair at her forehead and said, "Lin'er, this king does not blame you. This king is just afraid—afraid you'll be exhausted, afraid you'll get hurt, afraid you'll be sad."
Zi Linling smiled enchantingly, then nestled into his arms and said, "Aren't I fine? It's you... Right, let me see where you're injured!"
She suddenly stood up straight and busied herself examining Ye Lingyuan's body, saying as she checked, "Who injured you? Hmph! If I find out who hurt you, I'll skin them alive!"
Her voice carried a hint of coldness.
Of course, the coldness was not directed at Ye Lingyuan, but at the person who had injured him.
Ye Lingyuan smiled without speaking, but his heart was sweet to the point of being cloying.
He greatly enjoyed Zi Linling's affectionate touching and her possessive protectiveness.
Zi Linling searched for a long time and finally found a few small wounds on Ye Lingyuan's palm.
Her expression turned peculiar, and her gaze fell on Ye Lingyuan's handsome face.
"Is self-harm fun?"
Ye Lingyuan shook his head and said with a faint smile, "Not fun! But to be cared for by Lin'er, this wound was worth it!"
The smile faded from Zi Linling's face, and she gritted her teeth, "Ye Lingyuan, His Royal Highness the Underworld King, His Highness the God of War of Heavenly启, does playing such sick games not damage your image?"
Ye Lingyuan said aggrievedly, "Who told you to disappear, and disappear for a whole day and night? Wasn't this king just inadvertently causing it due to lovesickness and being distracted?"
Zi Linling was speechless, and the anger rising in her eyes slowly dissipated.
All along, she had rarely expressed her feelings to Ye Lingyuan, only enjoying his constant declarations of love.
But she had not realized that her reserved and shy nature had made Ye Lingyuan constantly anxious.
She took a deep breath and said with heartache, "Ye Lingyuan, it's hard for me to commit to someone in this lifetime because the education and values I received are incompatible with this world of yours."
"This world of yours adheres to male superiority, where men can have multiple wives and concubines, frequent brothels, and fall for anyone they see. But my belief is: 'I wish to have one devoted person, and grow old together without separation!'"