That was him.

Beyond that, in the depths of darkness, there was an enormous being.

It was a jet-black Qilin, with a pair of Qilin Horns atop its head. Its face, riddled with bony protrusions, exuded ancient majesty. Golden vertical pupils burned brightly, while black scales along its body opened and closed, emitting a rolling, chilling ghost energy.

Though it was another creature, it was also him!

Both the humanoid form and the Qilin form appeared frail, weak to the extreme.

Gu Jianlin could only sense a faint trace of spirituality lingering within both.

Like a star in the night sky—infinitesimally dim.

At the same time, strands upon strands of spirituality, clear and flowing like a cool spring, began to spread forth from the darkness.

It was colorless and odorless, as pure and cool as water, nourishing the boundless desolation of the void.

Gu Jianlin focused intently, guiding the stream of spirituality to flow into his body, saturating him entirely.

Unexpectedly, in an instant, the Black Qilin lifted its golden vertical pupils and let out a low growl, inhaling sharply.

Boom!

The spirituality, flowing like a creek, was devoured in its entirety by the Black Qilin.

Gu Jianlin: "...…"

He had no idea what was happening. In theory, the spirituality should have flowed into his body.

Yet now, the Black Qilin had taken it all for itself.

Still, he felt the sensation of hunger vanish completely, replaced by an indescribable satisfaction—like parched land discovering a life-giving rain.

After devouring that stream of spirituality, the Black Qilin's condition visibly improved. Though it still appeared feeble, a faint vitality returned to its ancient, awe-inspiring golden pupils.

Spirituality coursed like water across its form, nourishing its body.

The next moment, it exhaled a fragrant breath of sweet spirituality in a mist-like plume.

It drifted down entirely onto his transcendent form.

Gu Jianlin's Divine form was also nourished by the spirituality. It flowed through him like blood rushing through veins, spreading throughout his entire being. An unprecedented sensation of vitality surged through him, leaving him in unparalleled comfort.

At that moment, he realized something.

Whether in Black Qilin form or his Ascender form, they each absorbed half of the spirituality!

The 150 milliliters of secret medicine had been evenly divided!

"Why is it like this?"

Gu Jianlin couldn't fully comprehend the situation.

After a long while, both of his transcendent forms had been fully nourished, absorbing every last trace of spirituality.

The Black Qilin once again sank into slumber within his mind.

The Divine form, however, remained awake, its jet-black eyes gazing coldly downward.

The darkness shattered with a thunderous crash.

Gu Jianlin snapped his eyes open. At some indeterminate moment, his body had been drenched in sweat.

Yet instead of feeling weak or exhausted, he was brimming with energy!

"Why does the Black Qilin devour half of the Spiritual Secret Medicine? If this happens every time, wouldn't that mean my advancement speed is nearly cut in half compared to others?"

Gu Jianlin hesitated for a moment, then raised his right hand. The Divine Sacrificial Fire erupted forth!

Spirituality surged out, blazing fiercely!

And in that instant, he froze.

Reflected in the jet-black screen of the computer was his figure, clad in white sacrificial robes, covered in ominous spell markings, with an eerie and detached aura.

The five fingers of his right hand were engulfed in pale Ghost Fire.

At the same time, there was the faint shadow of an ancient and ferocious Qilin behind him. It, too, lifted its right claw covered in Black Scales.

On its sharp, pitch-black Qilin Claw, five clusters of pale Ghost Fire were also burning fiercely.

The two distinct silhouettes silently merged into one!

Gu Jianlin once again looked down at his right hand. The five clusters of Ghost Fire burning there had grown double in size!

So that's it!

The Black Qilin was him, and the Divine was also him.

When he used his powers, both forms burned through spirituality at the same time.

While this meant that he consumed more resources, it also seemed his abilities were twice as powerful as those of ordinary people!

This was... Dual Core Drive!

And this was only the surface benefit—the true power of the Qilin had yet to be revealed.