Although cat girls are great, Jiang Che is a man who values the present.
Leng Ningqiu is also his capable partner, so it would be inappropriate not to show her more affection.
On the office sofa, Leng Ningqiu leaned back casually, her delicate shoulders draped with a simple black women's blazer. Her long, perfect legs rested on the rosewood coffee table, with one leg's black stockings torn in a few places, while the other stocking was completely missing.
Her sensual red lips were as fiery as flames, and her captivating eyes resembled those of a fox. Her gold-rimmed round glasses hung loosely, and with one hand propping her chin, she exuded an air of laziness.
If she were to light up a women's cigarette, the vibe would be perfect, but Leng Ningqiu didn't smoke!
"Qiu'er, you're actually jealous?"
Jiang Che sat beside Leng Ningqiu, playing with the soft strands of her hair.
Although Leng Ningqiu was a puppet gifted by the system, she was also a real person with her own independent thoughts.
She and Dong'er were polar opposites. While both were absolutely loyal to Jiang Che, Dong'er was introverted, like a girl with autism, rarely speaking and often appearing dazed.
In contrast, Leng Ningqiu was passionate and charming, like a fiery fox.
"Master, if you don't visit Qiu'er often, Qiu'er will be very sad~"
Jiang Che finally understood why the ancient King Zhou was so infatuated with Daji. Honestly, which man wouldn't be bewitched by such a vixen?
...
Jiang Che inspected the quality of the medicinal herbs in the box and nodded in approval.
These precious herbs were at least a hundred years old, and Leng Ningqiu had scoured pharmacies across the country and even attended auctions to find them.
Of course... most of them were acquired from ancient martial arts families.
"The temporary transformation pill requires herbs that are mostly a hundred years old. These are easy to find, but the permanent transformation pill requires thousand-year-old herbs. So far, we've only managed to find one thousand-year-old ginseng."
Jiang Che frowned slightly.
He had been racking his brains over Su Mianmian's transformation issue.
While the temporary transformation pill wasn't bad, the permanent one was still necessary.
"Master, according to our investigation, the thousand-year-old fleeceflower root seems to be in the possession of the Ghost Doctor Sect. It's their treasured heirloom."
"The Ghost Doctor Sect?" Jiang Che's mouth twitched.
Why did that name sound so familiar?
"Damn, isn't that Lin Yu's sect? I didn't expect them to have such a treasure!"
Jiang Che remembered now.
After several months, Lin Yu was finally useful again.
"I'll call Qiangzi later and have him take Lin Yu to the Ghost Doctor Sect to retrieve the treasure. I think that old geezer from the Ghost Doctor Sect will agree, right?"
Jiang Che grinned.
He was too kind. He could have just sent someone to steal it, but instead, he was letting his disciple handle it first...
Given Lin Yu's current state of corruption, he no longer recognized anyone except Brother Qiang. He had been completely molded by Brother Qiang.
Making him betray his master? He wouldn't even blink.
The thought of the master-disciple betrayal made Jiang Che chuckle involuntarily.
...
After storing all the herbs in his ring space, Jiang Che returned home.
Although the herbs were ready, the process of refining the transformation pill was extremely complicated.
While a traditional alchemy furnace wasn't necessary, the control of internal energy had to be precise.
[Gathering internal energy and condensing alchemical flames is an ability only a grandmaster can master.]
Jiang Che's internal energy was granted by the system, the purest form of energy, so naturally, he could condense alchemical flames.
"Su Mianmian, get over here! Whether you can transform today depends on me."
Su Mianmian, who had been lying on the balcony sunbathing with her belly up, instantly perked up her ears.
[Transformation?]
She flipped over and dashed to Jiang Che in just a few seconds.
[What did you say? Can I really transform?]
[Jiang Che, I've been so restless lately, I can't even sleep at night. Hurry up and let me transform! I'll even be your cat maid for half a year, how about that?]
It was clear that Su Mianmian was willing to throw away her dignity for the chance to transform.
"Hmph, eating spirit fruits will only make you a spiritual beast, not a human. If you really want to transform, you'll need a transformation pill."
[Transformation pill?]
Su Mianmian tilted her head and instinctively licked her paw. She had already developed some cat-like habits.
"Yes, a transformation pill. It can turn you into a human form."
[For real?]
"Tsk..."
Jiang Che didn't say much more. He slowly raised his hand, and a pure white flame burst from his palm. The intense heat even distorted the surrounding air.
[What the hell? What kind of ability is this? You're actually an ability user?]
Su Mianmian clearly had no idea what was going on, but she was thoroughly impressed and began to feel hopeful.
Jiang Che took out a few hundred-year-old herbs from his ring space and began refining them in front of Su Mianmian.
"Su Mianmian, this is a thousand-year-old ginseng. I spent over 20 million to buy it."
"And this is a ten-thousand-year-old snow lotus seed. I spent 50 million to acquire it."
Jiang Che was just showing off, knowing Su Mianmian couldn't tell the difference between herbs.
When helping someone, it's important to make it seem like a big deal so they feel more indebted to you.
Sure enough, Su Mianmian was stunned.
[This... this is so expensive?]
She didn't have a concept of the value of spirit fruits, but she was very sensitive to money.
These herbs added up to almost a billion. Even if she sold herself, she wouldn't be worth that much.
[Jiang Che... maybe... maybe we should forget it?]
This was almost a billion! She hadn't seen that much money in two lifetimes.
But Jiang Che ignored her. He began his first attempt at refining a pill using internal energy.
It wasn't too complicated. He just followed the instructions from the Book of Mathematics and Physics, and soon, a pure white, smooth pill appeared in his hand.
It emitted a faint fragrance, which seemed ordinary to humans but was intoxicating to Su Mianmian.
"Meow meow meow!!!"
Just smelling the pill's aroma made Su Mianmian's eyes roll back, her legs trembling as she collapsed to the ground, her limbs twitching uncontrollably.
[Ah~~~ What is this smell? It's so good...]
After a moment of excitement, Su Mianmian got up and started circling around Jiang Che's legs.
Jiang Che pinched the pill between two fingers and examined it.
His first attempt at pill refining was a success. He really was a prodigy in alchemy!
When one door closes, another opens. Although his cultivation talent was lacking, his alchemy skills were exceptional.
"Did I just get the treatment of a destined protagonist?" Jiang Che was pleasantly surprised.
[Ding! Friendly reminder from the system: That's the power of the Book of Mathematics and Physics, not yours.]
Jiang Che: "......"