After clearing out all the clutter from the vehicle, Dong Qi didn't recklessly proceed to use the blood-forging method to refine the Iveco into his soulbound artifact right away. Instead, he first had a meal to adjust his physical condition.

  After finishing his meal and waiting for about two hours, Dong Qi ate some high-calorie chocolate and then drank two bottles of energy drinks in succession.

  Actually, glucose would have been better to consume at this time, but in an ordinary household, who keeps a long-term stock of glucose for no reason? So, he had to make do with energy drinks as a substitute.

  After making all the necessary preparations, Dong Qi placed both hands on the car's front hood and then began to circulate the blood-sacrifice method for refining a soulbound artifact, as guided by the knowledge in his mind.

  As Dong Qi activated the technique, thin crimson threads burst from the tips of his ten fingers and slowly enveloped the car's exterior like a mesh.

  As the crimson mesh continuously covered the vehicle's shell, Dong Qi gradually began to feel his body weakening from excessive blood loss.

  With the constant loss of blood from his body, Dong Qi's figure, which had already thinned from dehydration over the past few days, began to wither bit by bit, like a sponge losing its moisture.

  His originally somewhat rounded physique gradually started to become as thin as a rake.

  Dong Qi never expected that the fat he had accumulated over so many years would disappear completely in just two short days.

  Just as Dong Qi felt dizzy, unsteady on his feet, and about to collapse, the refinement of the soulbound artifact was finally completed.

  The moment he understood in his heart that the vehicle before him had become his soulbound artifact, Dong Qi could no longer hold on. His legs gave way, and he slumped directly onto the car's front hood.

  Just as Dong Qi was about to muster his weakened body to reach for the prepared supplements on the nearby table, he suddenly felt the feedback from the vehicle, now his soulbound artifact, after the successful blood sacrifice.

  As streams of warmth flowed into his body, Dong Qi's physique began to gradually expand, like a dry sponge absorbing water.

  His originally emaciated body inflated visibly, bit by bit, as if being pumped up like a balloon.

  However, this surge of warmth came abruptly and left just as suddenly. In merely ten seconds or so, the inexplicable warmth entering his body ceased to appear.

  Although this warmth was fleeting, Dong Qi understood that it was the feedback brought by cultivating the Artifact Forging Mantra. From now on, as long as he continuously strengthened his soulbound artifact, this kind of feedback would appear steadily.

  In ancient times, to strengthen a soulbound artifact during its mundane artifact phase, one only needed to continuously melt and integrate large amounts of material identical to the artifact into it, thereby gradually elevating its grade.

  After reaching a certain stage, one could then use the Artifact Forging Mantra to fuse a magical instrument into it. This would not only upgrade the soulbound artifact from a mundane artifact to a magical instrument but also potentially allow it to acquire some of the abilities of that magical instrument.

  Of course, if a suitable magical instrument couldn't be found, corresponding-grade natural treasures could also be chosen for integration.

  This cultivation method might seem very simple, but the higher one's cultivation, the more advanced the materials required for cultivation and the items needed for integration during breakthroughs become.

  At lower levels, both magical instruments and magical treasures are relatively easy to find. However, as cultivation continuously improves, items like spiritual instruments and spiritual treasures become increasingly rare in the later stages.

  When advancement requires acquired spiritual treasures or even innate spiritual treasures, those without substantial resources or great fortune would truly be unable to obtain them.

  It is precisely because the Artifact Forging Mantra has greater limitations in the later stages of cultivation that it is classified as an unorthodox method.

  But at this moment, orthodox cultivation techniques can hardly even be initiated. So now, regardless of whether it's a black cat or a white cat, any cat that can catch mice is a good cat.

  After picking up the food prepared on the nearby table and replenishing himself briefly, Dong Qi then realized.

  His originally somewhat plump figure, even after three days of dehydration, had turned skin-and-bones after refining the soulbound artifact. Then, following the feedback, his physique had actually become somewhat perfect.

  Dong Qi's body now had that look—lean in clothes, muscular when undressed.

  After examining his own physique, Dong Qi finally began to experience the functions of the vehicle after refining it into his soulbound artifact.

  His personal vehicle had just transformed from an ordinary object into a mundane artifact and hadn't acquired any new functions.

  It's just that the originally old-fashioned, ordinary vehicle now operated as if equipped with intelligent control. It could automatically open and close its doors and possessed autonomous driving capabilities, all in response to Dong Qi's thoughts.

  On the surface, his vehicle didn't seem to have changed much. But then again, that's to be expected. The Artifact Forging Mantra isn't some high-level technique; it's merely an unorthodox method that anyone can learn. It's normal for there to be little noticeable change right after learning it.

  Now that he had refined his personal vehicle into his soulbound artifact, the target for binding his newly acquired Item Upgrade ability was undoubtedly confirmed.

  With the successful binding of his vehicle, the newly obtained superpower also manifested in his mind in the way most understandable to Dong Qi.

  Bound Target: Light Passenger Vehicle.

  Body Frame: Not Enhanced.

  Power System: Not Enhanced.

  Electrical Equipment: Not Enhanced.

  Other Equipment: Not Enhanced.

  The vehicle upgrade categories appeared in his mind, differing from the traditional classification of engine, chassis, body, and electrical equipment.

  The vehicle chassis and body shell are collectively categorized under the body frame. The power system, meaning the engine, goes without saying. In-vehicle electronics like audio, air conditioning, and lighting also need no further explanation.

  The separately listed "Other Equipment" refers to externally attached devices. For example, adding protective mesh to the body, installing a plow blade on the front bumper, or even mounting weapons on the vehicle.

  Of course, such added items must align with public perception and require modification by professionals to be recognized for upgrades by the superpower. You can't just throw anything onto the vehicle and expect it to be upgradeable.

  Although the upgrade ability can directly enhance items by consuming the user's own energy, this might suffice initially. However, the consumption increases significantly in later stages. The best upgrade method is to provide corresponding materials and upgrade by consuming those resources.

  Despite the massive blood loss during the refinement of his vehicle into a soulbound artifact earlier, the feedback after successful refinement meant Dong Qi was no longer weak. He could no longer resist the urge to upgrade his vehicle now.

  Of course, Dong Qi wasn't blindly planning to upgrade using pure energy consumption at this moment. He had already thought of where to obtain large amounts of upgrade materials.

  Not far from Dong Qi's home, there is a very large parking lot. As is well known, in the suburbs of most cities, parking is generally unrestricted.

  Most vehicles parked in this suburban lot are there for various reasons—either unclaimed or because their owners would rather leave them here than drive them away.

  Based on Dong Qi's past conversations with the guard here, the longest-standing vehicle has been parked for over ten years.

  Under normal circumstances, such a vehicle would have long been eligible to be sent to a scrapyard for disposal. However, because the procedures for scrapping long-term abandoned vehicles are relatively cumbersome, and the parking lot is quite large, the matter has been left unattended for now.