Chapter 138: Off-Field Support and Life-Bound Artifact

Mucous membranes, tumors, writhing blood vessels, and twisted lumps of flesh...

This was the deepest part of Chen Huai’an’s soul.

The twisted crimson formed a terrifying depiction of Abhī Hell.

Yet, amidst the blood and filth, there was a patch of pure land.

A majestic, pitch-black spiritual coffin stood there, glossy like ink, with a five-clawed golden dragon carved on its surface. The dragon radiated a dazzling aura of dragon qi, instantly burning any writhing flesh that dared approach into ashes.

But strangely, some of the flesh remained connected to the coffin, as if all the sprawling meat and blood were extensions from it.

Chen Huai’an lay inside the coffin, utterly baffled.

Chains of countless locks shackled his body.

The occasional slick, squelching sound of the flesh echoed by his ears.

“Uh… from a psychological and psychiatric perspective, my consciousness must be trapped. In plain terms, I’m self-isolating. In internet slang... I guess this is what they call 'yùyù syndrome'!”

“And to break free from this self-imposed prison, I need to awaken myself and shatter this nightmare.”

Chen Huai’an found it ridiculous.

He had always been an optimistic person.

By all logic, this situation shouldn’t be happening.

All he did today was treat his cancer.

Yet somehow, he ended up in this mess—

Wearing a dragon robe, locked in this pitch-black box.

Wait...

Was his ultimate dream actually to be an emperor or something?

Trying to figure out how to escape, Chen Huai’an recalled an article he once read.

A psychologist had said:

To find yourself when lost, you must remember your anchor—something that proves your existence.

The first thing that popped into his head—

Was his

Virtual Girlfriend

game.

Specifically, the image of Li Qingran, with her soft, smiling eyes.

And at that moment—

The darkness before his eyes suddenly lit up.

A game interface appeared.

Chen Huai’an blinked, confused.

Wait, what? This actually worked?!

But he quickly realized—

This must be a hallucination from his subconscious.

No way the game could truly manifest here.

The scene unfolded.

Li Qingran sat at a table, sewing with a needle and thread. Beside her was a stack of fabric. She paused to stretch lazily, then continued her work.

A small box on the table already held several finished tea sachets, exactly the kind he had asked her to make.

The detail was uncanny—

Almost too perfect for a mere illusion.

Suddenly, a system prompt popped up:

【The player is currently in an abnormal state. Would you like to spend 6 yuan to receive off-field support from your virtual girlfriend, Li Qingran?】

〈Yes (Receive Li Qingran’s help to suppress the Cancerized Demonic Dragon)〉

〈No (Be devoured by the Cancerized Demonic Dragon, losing all Dragon Qi)〉

Chen Huai’an paused.

What the hell was a

Cancerized Demonic Dragon

And what exactly was

Dragon Qi

But now wasn’t the time for questions—

Just click YES!

Since he had leftover in-game funds, the system automatically deducted the 6 yuan.

【Selection successful. Please wait...】

A progress bar appeared in the top-right corner.

Then, in the scene, Li Qingran—

Who had been quietly sewing—

Suddenly lifted her head.

Her peach-blossom eyes sharpened, filling with concern and determination.

It was as if she could see him beyond the screen.

...

【Qingran, your master needs your help.】

Inside her cozy room, Li Qingran heard a familiar voice.

"Master?! What’s wrong?!"

She immediately stood and bowed toward the void.

“Please, tell me what I should do!”

【Though you are only at the mid-Foundation Establishment Stage, I need you to forge your Life-Bound Artifact immediately. Only then can you aid me.】

Li Qingran’s eyes flashed with resolve.

“Disciple obeys!”

She didn’t ask why.

Her master needed her—that was all that mattered.

A Life-Bound Artifact—

It was something cultivators typically forged only after reaching the Golden Core Stage.

Not everyone could even succeed.

To create a Life-Bound Artifact was to craft a treasure bound to one’s soul, evolving alongside their cultivation and growing stronger with them.

A cultivator only had

one

chance in their lifetime to forge it.

Failure meant they could never try again.

And the lowest known threshold for forging one was the Golden Core Stage.

No one had ever succeeded before reaching that realm.

Li Qingran knew all this.

But she didn’t care.

If her master needed her to do it—

She

would

Conveniently, the materials required for the forging had already appeared on the table—

Clearly, a gift from her master.

【Though you are only in the Foundation Establishment Stage, you possess a Supreme-Grade Dantian and a Pure Water Spiritual Root—peerless talents. Others at your level cannot forge a Life-Bound Artifact... but

you

can. Use these materials well.】

Li Qingran examined the treasures before her—

Supreme-Grade Spirit Essence.

A Three-Thousand-Year Snow Lotus Platform.

A Celestial-grade Tranquility Elixir.

Her heart trembled.

Any one of these materials could spark a bloody war in the cultivation world.

But there was no time to hesitate.

Li Qingran immediately swallowed the Celestial-grade Tranquility Elixir, carefully poured the Supreme-Grade Spirit Essence onto the Snow Lotus Platform, then sat cross-legged to meditate and begin the forging process.

...

【Your virtual girlfriend is currently forging her Life-Bound Artifact!】

【Progress: 50%...】

Chen Huai’an glanced at his subconscious wallet.

Another million gone for the top-tier materials.

Didn’t matter.

In a realm built by his subconscious, he had no budget.

If it took ten million, he’d still pick the

best

for her.

After all, in his mind—

Li Qingran deserved nothing less.

He wondered—

Since he was a sword cultivator, and Li Qingran studied in the Sword Pavilion—

Her Life-Bound Artifact would probably be a sword... right?

Time passed.

The progress bar reached 80%.

A soft aura gradually emerged around Li Qingran.

The luminous aura condensed toward the Snow Lotus Platform.

The Supreme-Grade Spirit Essence responded—

Malleable as clay, it began shifting, twisting, and molding into form.

...

A Life-Bound Artifact—

Forged from the subconscious, it always embodied what the cultivator treasured most.

Li Qingran’s brows furrowed in concentration.

Images flashed through her mind—

Swords, spears, staffs, cauldrons, shields—

But none of them felt

right

Suddenly—

A bizarre image flitted through her thoughts:

A simple, square, pitch-black object.

It looked like... a

brick

Plain, sturdy.

With an odd inscription in simplified Chinese—Dian Guan Bao.

【This is important.】

【Guard it well...】

Her master’s voice echoed through her subconscious.

But back then, she hadn’t received this so-called

Dian Guan Bao

Now—

Her heart was clear.

This

was

what she cherished most—

Because it was what her master had told her to protect.

And the only way to truly

possess

it—

Was to forge it into her Life-Bound Artifact.

The Spirit Essence on the Snow Lotus Platform began reshaping rapidly—

The blurry form solidified.

Finally—

The forging completed.

Chen Huai’an stared, utterly dumbfounded—

At what Li Qingran was now holding.

The

good news

: She succeeded.

The

bad news

: The result was... questionable.

Zooming in on the object—

He could clearly see a familiar, commercial logo embossed on its surface—

Dian Guan Bao (Power Bank).

Wait...

Sister, what the

hell

...?!

That’s—

That’s the

power bank

he bought online!!