As fast as a person’s name and a tree’s shadow, the news of the "warehouse theft" at the Gourmet Association quickly spread within a small circle.

But it seemed to be a matter of course; how could a small Gourmet Association resist the assault of a sixth-tier peak thief? 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

However, this seemed to confirm a fact from the side - although Fang Wen was not in a good state, she had not lost her foundation; at least, she still had the confidence to provoke the Gourmet Association.

Strength was the best pass, acting recklessly was the endorsement of being "confident"; Fang Wen’s condition became the most important bargaining chip in the trade.

"...That’s it?"

"That’s it."

Not long ago, under Lu Ping’an’s surveillance, the people sent by the Bureau of Anomaly Management completed the transaction with Fang Wen.

One party paid a pile of "trash", the other signed an agreement, which included "not actively causing trouble in the Ancient City" and "not entering the Ancient City area (excluding the Secret Realm) within three years after completing the contract."

Part of the contract’s content (not coming in for three years) was proposed by "Fang Wen", showing her sincerity; the Bureau of Anomaly Management offered a Decree-level contract created by a high-level Contractor, which was also a big bleed-out in another sense.

Lu Ping’an also got an extra guarantee, making it even less likely for Fang Wen to leave the trading area.

Of course, in his eyes, these were just insignificant episodes; along the way, Fang Wen seemed resigned and followed the script strictly, giving him some peace of mind.

Now, in the small warehouse behind the garden, facing the wreckage of the two high-level mechanical humanoids, the remaining materials are being collected.

"For the Bone Flesh Foundation, use Animated Armor and metal materials; for Blood Essence, use Ghost Essence, add the wreckage of high-level mechanical soul-awakening Creation with the Core of Wisdom, the entire newborn life is determined to be made of all-metal construction..."

This was the direction of Lu Ping’an’s efforts; what he needed was a set of "armor."

But armor alone is not enough...

"This... still can’t be used..."

Putting down the Battle Axe, the Life Illustration had completed the conversion of the target wreckage, and a page of the Codex fell into Lu Ping’an’s hands.

[Unnamed Animated Armor’s Fighting Experience (Brass Upper): Although its life experience is not long, it has a certain amount of combat experience from birth, providing the linker with up to lv4 metallic boxing experience]

Like preparing the experience page for Little Flame in advance when creating it, Lu Ping’an is also preparing basic combat experience for the newborn "pet."

Since their core materials were knight trials, the skills fitting here were naturally higher, but after sweeping down, the result was subtle.

"...Is this a 3-tier Magic Monster that only has lv4 fighting experience? Isn’t this equivalent to the first-tier standard?"

"What do you expect from a newborn Magic Monster? Didn’t you notice that their basic attributes only reach the 3-tier standard, and the combat skill intensity barely reaches it, but the modularity is terrible when used."

Newborn magic monsters have good attributes and bodies, but their experience and perception of life are often blank.

And the 4-tier magic monsters of the 30th floor, not only are they hard to deal with, but they are also few in number, and you can only fight three times a day... Lu Ping’an has recently only encountered Ghost-creatures.

In those few battles, Lu Ping’an was jumping around like a chicken.

He had silver weapons to combat ghosts, but facing a real Silver-tier ghost, the overwhelming psi attacks, the stealth raids from nowhere, plus the most annoying Undying-nature, Lu Ping’an was driven out twice using the dog-biting tactic.

The only victory he had was at a significant cost to his life-points.

"...I hope it’s not a loss."

Lu Ping’an’s "Spirit Cat" scroll had once again consumed a valuable use.

Since humans can’t catch the elusive ghosts, I’ll stop being human... and become a ghost!

Short-term Spiritualization not only lets Lu Ping’an physically touch ghosts but also lets him intuitively lock onto the lurking Ghost-creature.

With the advantage of taking your mind off the helpless, Lu Ping’an successfully killed it in a single burst.

And the spoils of war, besides the higher quality Ghost Sand, there was one thing...

[Charming Spirit Phenomenon (Silver Lower): A special and powerful psi, but the user must have a Ghost Body.]

Before, Lu Ping’an had hunted quite a few ghosts and acquired brass and iron pages such as "Ghostification," "Wall-penetration," and "Telekinesis." But this time, he hit the jackpot.

A Silver-tier page undoubtedly relieved Lu Ping’an. He didn’t know if the newly born creature could use it or not.

Theoretically, the only ingredient for "Blood Essence" is ghost materials. It or he or she should possess an innate spiritualizing constitution.

The newborn’s core keywords are "Animated Armor," "Mechanical Creation," and "Ghost." In a sense, it is somewhat related to the Charming Spirit Phenomenon. Lu Ping’an instinctively felt that the chance of using it was high.

This indirectly reflects the power of the Life Illustration. It allows users to select corresponding materials to create creatures depending on their needs.

The only constraint is that it doesn’t manage nurturing. Apart from some level of threat of death caused by "destroying the illustration," there’s almost no feasible oversight method.

Looking at Little Flame’s example, newborn magic monsters might not understand the concept of "life and death," and certainly wouldn’t pay attention to threats. In the end, whether it can follow your command depends on you.

And what if the newborn creature is a highly intelligent being? It might be even worse. Enslaving an intelligent being will backfire sooner or later, let alone the fact that its "positioning" is armor, leading to countless ways it could kill its master.

"...I’ll communicate with it when the time comes."

Lu Ping’an shook his head, thinking about these things even before the new creature was born was too far away. If it came to it, he would resort to offering a salary.

Feeling relaxed, Lu Ping’an steadily collected materials and honed his martial skills.

What surprised him was the significant improvement of Meow during these days, posing a threat to himself several times during the battles.

"...No kidding, who do you think taught her?"

Meow’s pride was evident, but to be honest, she didn’t expect Lei Shuiyun’s improvement to be this obvious, nor that the ignorant kitten would work this hard.

Lu Ping’an didn’t argue this time but simply nodded in approval.

In actual combat, Lei Shuiyun clearly bore Meow’s mark.

Her previous fighting techniques were mainly standing, and various techniques revolved around her upper limbs... Simply put, she appeared more like a human or a product of an ancient ape evolutionary tree.

Now, her usual stance when fighting was on all fours, every limb ready to exert force, and every muscle on the verge of exploding. Coupled with her innate gift for spiritualization and cliff-walking, she resembled a mountain cat at a glance.

Her sudden attacks and explosions were incredibly deadly in the early stages of combat.

If her opponent was prepared in advance, she would quickly make use of her mobility advantage and either pull away for another round of sudden attacks or rush in with a spear.

The two Silver-tier equipment allowed her to take the initiative in battle fully. Along with her "Spirit Cat" talent, chasing her down became impossible.

Changing her fighting style entailed readjusting her foundation. Although it looked unconventional, this was the best path for her and her talents.

With her profession, equipment, and tactics, she had come a long way from being a complete novice a few months ago, forming the blueprint of a true master.

In actual combat, Lu Ping’an had to be cautious when dealing with her explosive and sneaky attacks. Her unique angle of attack combined the fighting styles of warriors and assassins, making it even more challenging to defend against.

If she were to launch a surprise attack at night, or if she initiated an assassination, the difficulty of defending against it would significantly increase.

According to Lu Ping’an’s estimate, an ordinary 3-tier practitioner might get assassinated unprepared if they didn’t have proper equipment.

"Her Runner and Battle-profession can both reach 2-tier, and she is also preparing to be a 1st-tier Beast Tamer."

The improvement in soft skills was one aspect, but the enhancement in hard skills was also gratifying. Lu Ping’an was surprised at her progress, even considering the "double-time" bonus and "fast stamina recovery" assistance in the Trading Land.

After all, during these days, he hadn’t even provided her with many investment opportunities. She advanced to this level mainly by her own efforts.

"...In a sense, it’s an accumulated release. My rituals and medicines unlocked her ’Spiritualization’ ability. Her time of awakening her talents wasn’t short, but it was suppressed... "

Her brother’s over-protection limited her potential? Lu Ping’an nodded without asking further.

As time went by, Lu Ping’an collected more materials and... bathing lotion/maintenance oil/ghost-spring potion. This Secret Realm probably didn’t welcome him anymore.

Going through a martial arts trial Secret Realm by using dogs to intimidate opponents didn’t seem right.

Therefore, when he struggled to bear it any longer, and Mr. Knight was getting annoyed, he finally collected all the materials, leading to the birth of a new creature.