Shaking his head, Liu Xing dismissed thoughts of her and approached the pond. The water's surface shimmered in the soft light, reflecting the night sky, and several large stones rested in the center. He considered this place the perfect spot to test the necklace's abilities.

Leaping from the pond's edge, Liu Xing landed atop the largest rock in the center. Tiny ripples spread across the water's surface as his feet touched down. Black, yellow, red, and blue koi fish swam beneath him, occasionally splashing their tails and creating small ripples of their own. He suspected someone had built the pond, but looking around, he saw only trees, bushes, and moss-covered boulders. No houses or clan compounds were visible nearby.

Standing on the stone, Liu Xing touched the necklace and examined it closely. An engraving of two fiery wings caught his eye, reinforcing his hope that this necklace was indeed the Red Wings of Stability.

"Time to activate it," he muttered to himself. If this necklace was the Red Wings of Stability, activating it should cause two small fire wings to sprout from his back.

He sent qi into the necklace and felt the familiar drain of his qi. He allowed the necklace to absorb his qi, wondering if it would go on forever, like the Thunderstrike Gauntlets. After several minutes, with half of his qi gone the necklace stopped draining, and the necklace now gave off a warm sensation, as if it were saturated and ready for use. Liu Xing willed the necklace to activate, and immediately felt a warm sensation enveloping his body, like being wrapped in warm honey.

He checked himself, but saw no glow emanating from his back. Anyone observing him would see a man wearing only blood-stained pants, nothing more. He turned his head to check his back, hoping to see fire wings, but found nothing.

Liu Xing grimaced. "Looks like this necklace isn't the Red Wings of Stability after all."

Although he could feel a stable qi surrounding his body and a sense of increased durability, as if his vitality had been boosted, disappointment still lingered. The Red Wings of Stability was a treasure he had intended to offer the sect to win the race. This necklace likely had a similar function, but it wasn't on the list of gifts for Hao Yun. Furthermore, the stable qi he felt was not as potent as the frog's.

Liu Xing sighed, then attempted to cheer himself up. He focused on the positive—at least he had gained something from the fight.

"Let's see how this necklace works with my gun's qi," he muttered.

Liu Xing summoned his gun in his left hand and channeled qi into it, which transformed into bullets, then reabsorbed the energy into his body and directed it to the necklace. As the necklace absorbed the qi, Liu Xing felt a pleasant vibration, and when it was fully saturated, the familiar warmth returned.

Liu Xing activated the treasure. As before, he felt warm qi envelop him. Again, he turned his head to check for wings, only to be disappointed.

Shaking his head, he focused on the warm qi surrounding him, hoping it would be denser or stronger than before. Instead, Liu Xing found the effect was essentially unchanged. The only apparent difference was the amount of qi required for activation.

"There's no way it's the same," Liu Xing muttered, furrowing his brow.

He refused to accept this conclusion. The qi from his gun was unique; every technique and treasure amplified in power when fueled by the converted bullets. There was no logical reason for this necklace to be an exception.

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Liu Xing experimented with the stable qi and soon noticed a difference. Before, the warm qi surrounding him felt like mud--stable, but difficult to manipulate. Now, although the feeling was similar, this stable qi was responsive and easy to move. This was a useful property. He knew that when the qi enveloped his entire body, it felt thin, and the effect was weaker than the frog's. But with the ability to manipulate the stable qi, he could concentrate it at a specific point to amplify its effect.

Excited, Liu Xing decided to concentrate all the stable qi into his right gauntlet, his preferred weapon. In the previous fight, it had nearly broken under the strain of pure qi. He hoped this enhancement would allow the gauntlet to withstand and channel even more pure qi, resulting in a more powerful attack.

The moment he willed the stable qi to move to his gauntlet, it responded instantly. In a fraction of a second, he felt the stable qi concentrate in his right gauntlet. As the qi focused, yellow lines materialized, circling the metal surface like delicate strokes of paint. Liu Xing raised an eyebrow. To confirm it wasn't a mere coincidence, he shifted the concentrated qi to his left gauntlet. Similar yellow lines appeared. Liu Xing moved it again, this time to his stomach. When the qi settled there, he looked down and saw a yellow spiral on his abdomen, reminiscent of a certain fictional character containing a powerful fox. He then moved the concentrated qi back to his right gauntlet.

He pinched his chin thoughtfully. The yellow lines seemed purely aesthetic and unnecessary. If yellow lines suddenly materialized on his gauntlets, an opponent would instantly be alerted, assuming Liu Xing was planning something. Still, it wasn't too bad. He might look silly if yellow lines appeared on his face, but if it meant making his face more durable, Liu Xing would gladly choose silliness over death.

"Alright, let's test the durability of my Thunderstrike Gauntlets now," Liu Xing said with a smile. With each improvement, his power grew. He still believed he lacked the strength to confront a Core Splitting realm cultivator, but Liu Xing was steadily closing that gap.

***

Early morning sunlight filtered through the leaves, casting mottled shadows across the forest floor as Liu Xing walked leisurely along a dirt path. Countless snakes slithered through the underbrush on either side. A giant green snake, as large as a crocodile, fixed its piercing yellow eyes on him. Dozens of black and red snakes moved in unison, each sporting tiny horns with red tips.

A massive python the size of a cow bulldozed through the bushes and small trees, its black eyes giving it the appearance of a leader among the many snakes following Liu Xing. There were snakes everywhere, perhaps a thousand in all, each moving in its own way. Some slithered along the dirt path, others snaked through branches, and some tunneled underground, leaving small furrows in their wake.

Liu Xing walked as if oblivious to the many snakes trailing him, but he simply felt no threat. Despite their large numbers, he could easily deal with them. His mind puzzled over why they had suddenly begun to follow him. Though some looked hostile, baring fangs as if challenging him, and others tried to impede his walk, none actually attacked. So, Liu Xing allowed them to follow.

Soon, Liu Xing spotted a suspension bridge ahead. He realized he was approaching the location of the Diamond Pills. He retrieved the token from his spatial bag and summoned the interface regarding the Diamond Pills.

Name: Diamond Pills

Location: Near the Second Gray Cloud City

Description: These pills were concocted by a master alchemist named Zhang Ye, a loose cultivator allied with the Purple Moon Sect. He died four hundred years ago, poisoned by his rival at a pill-concocting tournament held by the Heavenly Lightnin Sect..

Additional info: The five remaining Diamond Pills are now guarded by a fox spirit beast.

Another additional information indicated that the pills could be found by traveling south from an inverted triangle. Liu Xing suspected they were hidden in a similar location to the lake he had visited the previous day.

Closing the interface, Liu Xing stood before a suspension bridge. It was a short bridge, and he could see the other side clearly. There, a single red snake had raised its head, its red eyes gleaming with intelligence.

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