This Spirit Spring Is Nice

Wang Xun stood at the entrance of the team barracks, looking at Kisuke Urahara's mysterious appearance, and gently stroked his fingertips.

Has the Spirit Spring Project made any progress?

That's something to keep in mind, but hopefully it's not a scam...

Given Kisuke Urahara's previous behavior, he had to be on guard.

"So, what does Third Seat Urahara mean?"

Kisuke Urahara chuckled, then his expression turned serious again.

"Not only the spiritual spring itself, but the experimental results on those plants and animals are also quite good."

"So Wang Xun, shouldn't you follow your usual practice and check on the current progress?"

"By the way, there's also this..."

Kisuke Urahara rubbed his fingers together, his meaning all too clear.

Wang Xun understood and nodded slightly.

So they came to ask for money.

The timeframe seems about right, which makes sense.

Coincidentally, he was also very interested in the current output of the spring water.

"Please wait a moment, Third Seat Urahara. I will give instructions regarding the team's affairs and then come."

A moment later, Wang Xun gave instructions on everything and then went to find Kisuke Urahara again.

Let's go.

Urahara followed with a smile, and the two walked side by side on the stone path of the Seireitei.

The two chatted idly along the way.

After entering the Second Division, looking at the familiar scenery around them, the suspension bridge leading to the Maggot's Nest soon came into view.

The two stepped onto the suspension bridge, where the iron chains swayed.

Wang Xun, supporting himself on the iron chain, gazed at the distant, isolated island, then changed the subject.

"Speaking of which, Third Seat Urahara, what's the latest on the case of the Soul Reaper from Rukongai?"

Urahara paused, his smile fading slightly. He raised his hand and scratched his head, a hint of helplessness in his voice.

"This matter is far more complicated than expected. Captain Yoruichi asked me to keep an eye on the nobles' movements. But no matter how much we investigate, we've only caught some small fry; we haven't gotten to the core of the problem."

Seeing that Kisuke Urahara was unwilling to talk more, Wang Xun understood.

After the last mission, he knew that this case involved a wide range of people. Urahara's words were half true and half false. He must have found out something, but he just didn't want to say more.

He didn't press further, because some things are better left unasked.

As the suspension bridge beneath my feet gradually came to an end, the black iron gate of the Maggot's Nest stood before me, its cold metallic gleaming chillily in the morning light.

Upon seeing Urahara, the guards at the gate immediately opened the iron gate and bowed to let him pass.

The two walked down the road towards Kisuke Urahara's secret laboratory.

"Speaking of which, I forgot to ask."

Urahara suddenly spoke, breaking the surrounding silence.

"How far have you progressed in your Kaidō with the Fourth Division?"

"I heard from Tessai Tsukabishi last time that you were quite good at Dual Incantation in the Kidō Corps, so I imagine you're not bad at the Kaidō either."

"Things went fairly smoothly. Now that I've taken on the Fourth Seat of the Fourth Division, Captain Unohana has put me in charge of organ repair techniques for seriously injured soldiers."

Wang Xun answered calmly, as if he were talking about something ordinary.

Kisuke Urahara paused, his eyes widening slightly, his face showing a look of genuine surprise.

"Fourth Seat... Wang Xun, your progress is rather alarming."

"Captain Unohana certainly values you. You've only been in the Fourth Division for a short time, and you've already risen to the Fourth Seat seat?"

"I'm still far inferior to you, so please don't tease me, Third Seat Urahara."

Wang Xun remained calm and continued walking forward.

"Let's go, I want to see what you've actually accomplished."

Urahara snapped out of his daze, smiled, and followed.

Passing through the hidden door, the familiar secret laboratory came into view, but it was completely different from the last time.

This laboratory was several times larger than before, with various containers filled with different kinds of elixirs and herbs on the surrounding workbenches.

On the cultivation rack in the corner, there were rows of crystal-clear glass bottles, each containing an unknown spiritual plant. The leaves glowed faintly under the nourishment of Reiatsu.

And in the center of the laboratory was that sacred spring.

What used to be a small pond, barely two meters square, has now expanded into a spring pool four or five meters wide.

The spring water shimmered with a warm glow, and wisps of white mist rose from its surface, mingling with a rich Reiryoku aura that slowly swirled in the air.

A faint barrier surrounds the spring, constantly drawing scattered Reishi into the water, making the Reiatsu within it increasingly rich and potent.

Large fragments floated on the surface of the spiritual spring. Wang Xun suddenly realized that each fragment retained the color it had when it first appeared, without any of the fading that often occurs over time.

He guessed that perhaps due to the special nature of the spring water, these fragments had existed for a much longer time than those he usually saw.

This is truly... a huge surprise.

On the open ground by the spring, the once plump chickens and pigs have also changed a lot.

Several large roosters with glossy feathers strolled by the spring, their necks slightly raised, and a faint Reiatsu emanated from their bodies.

Meanwhile, on the fruit and vegetable plants surrounding the spring, plump fruits hang from the branches, gleaming with an enticing luster.

"How is it? Not bad, right?"

Urahara watched as Wang Xun walked to the edge of the spring, looked down and gazed at it, and began to introduce it aloud.

"I've revamped the spirit-gathering barrier and optimized the Reiatsu concentration this spring water can contain. Now, the spirit-gathering efficiency of this hot spring is more than five times what it was before."

Wang Xun walked to the edge of the spring and looked down. The Reiryoku Fragment in the water were densely packed, several times more concentrated than usual.

The fragments gleamed with a warm light, slowly floating in the water. As Wang Xun approached, the fragments were gradually absorbed into his body.

Instantly, a dense Reiatsu surged into his body, and system notifications rang in his mind one after another.

[Gained 485 Small Reiryoku Fragment, +4850 Spiritual Might Experience]

[Spiritual Might: Rank 6 (Experience: 12880/17000)]

Looking at the numbers on the system panel, a hint of surprise flashed in Wang Xun's eyes.

We are more than halfway to breaking through to level five.

The enhancing effect of this spiritual spring was indeed as amazing as he had expected.

In the past, he would have needed to spend over a month traveling with the Fourth Division and the Kidō Corps to accumulate so much Spiritual Might experience.

Now, with just one trip, such gains have been made.

Urahara, that guy, really knows his stuff.

"You've put a lot of effort into these improvements."

"That's natural."

Urahara chuckled, walked to the lab bench, and began fiddling with the bottles and jars on it.

"These ingredients, cultivated using spiritual springs, not only taste delicious but also replenish Reiatsu."

"If they were to be mass-produced, whether for supplying the Gotei 13 or selling to nobles, it would generate a very considerable income."

Wang Xun nodded slightly, his gaze falling on the spring pool.

The Reiryoku Fragment are slowly coalescing again.

As he turned to look at the animals around him, he caught a glimpse out of the corner of his eye that Urahara, while fiddling with the bottles and jars, had seemingly casually placed a small bottle of reagent on the edge of the lab bench, mixed in with the other bottles and jars.

The bottle had an ordinary label and looked unremarkable, but the faint ripples emanating from it stirred something within Wang Xun.

The fluctuation was extremely similar to the strange feeling he had experienced during the last mission in East Rukongai.

Urahara's fingertips paused lightly on the bottle of reagent, then he casually picked up another bottle of spiritual liquid, while secretly observing Wang Xun's behavior out of the corner of his eye.

This reagent was specially modified by him for today's test.

It's even purer than the last bottle, with a higher concentration of ethereal Reiatsu.

He wanted to know whether Wang Xun was truly unaware of the probing in East Rukongai last time, or whether he already knew but simply didn't want to expose it.

What he really wanted to know was how much Wang Xun actually understood about the ethereal Reiatsu within his body.

Wang Xun's gaze lingered briefly on the bottles and jars before casually shifting away, as if it were just a casual glance, without revealing the slightest anything unusual.

Then, Wang Xun looked up at Urahara with a faint smile on his face.

"Third Seat Urahara, the effects of this spiritual spring have far exceeded our expectations. Now, we can discuss further cooperation."

Urahara looked at Wang Xun's ordinary expression, but the searching in his eyes disappeared into the darkness.

"Yes, of course."