From Swamp Dog to Crocodile Ancestor

On a moonlit night, Li Yi, as usual, inhaled and exhaled the moonlight, his body twisting slightly, winding like a dragon, carrying a hint of divine charm.

The moonlight, like water, flowed into Li Yi's body, rose upwards, and transformed into a vast expanse of silvery radiance.

Li Yi calmed his mind and looked inward, vaguely glimpsing the flow of pure and turbid energy within his body once again.

The silvery aura representing moonlight floated in the air, exuding a faint, cool aura, and was extremely pure, while the turbid aura below was composed of three colors.

The yellow mist of the earth element and the green wind of the wood element flowed continuously, some of which intertwined with the clear air and moonlight, while at the bottom was a deep, dark blackness, sinking to the very bottom, like a dark, mirror-like lake.

As the moonlit night passed, Li Yi's spirit slowly returned to reality. It opened its eyes, which flickered with confusion, and remained motionless.

Now it has reached the ninth level of Qi Refining, successfully cultivated the three phases of swamp Qi, mastered three powerful spells, and even made the turbid Qi in its body take the lead, pulling the pure Qi to sink continuously.

Logically speaking, when a beast reaches the limit of the Qi Refining stage, it should be able to vaguely sense the direction of Foundation Establishment.

Black-scaled crocodiles like Li Yi cultivate the swamp energy, devour prey, and continuously eat and grow until they eventually cross a certain threshold and enter the Foundation Establishment stage.

However, it unexpectedly gained the ability to absorb and expel moonlight, thus achieving a certain balance within its body.

This balance gave it terrifying combat power, but it also made Li Yi unable to perceive the path ahead.

The path to its foundation seems to have been severed.

The three elements of wood, earth, and water are the three elements it comprehended from the swamp's energy. It has now completed all of its cultivation, but no further insights have yet appeared.

It was too late to completely abandon Yuehua now. The pure and turbid energies within Li Yi's body were intertwined, forming a strange phenomenon. Forcibly dispersing a portion of it would likely backfire and completely sever his path to enlightenment.

Li Yi, who was quietly sitting under the big willow tree, could clearly feel that even if the moonlight in his body was strong enough to balance the turbid energy, he might not be able to see the road ahead.

In comparison, the white python was much more pure. It diligently cultivated every day, constantly strengthening the moonlight within its body and refining it into the water.

Even though the solar flame, which combines the three kinds of radiance, is very powerful, it can still achieve balance by continuously cultivating itself and building its foundation on the path of water and fire.

The road ahead is clearly visible, right in front of us.

After finishing its cultivation, the white python straightened its body and then turned its head to look at Li Yi with some confusion, revealing great bewilderment in its brownish-yellow eyes.

However, it could hardly understand Li Yi's situation, so it could only watch silently.

After some thought, Li Yi had to admit that it was indeed his own human intelligence that was causing the problem. Otherwise, he would not have embarked on the path of absorbing and exhaling moonlight, and thus come to this point.

The white python's ability to inhale and exhale moonlight comes from its bloodline. Perhaps only I among the black-scaled crocodiles can truly learn something from it and embark on this path as well.

There is a reason why demonic beasts can transform into human form after reaching the Foundation Establishment stage, and they all comprehend the Dao path in human form.

Humans have short lifespans, but one year of cultivation is equivalent to ten years of aimless cultivation for demonic beasts.

"Alright, there's always a way out. I'll just focus on getting my internal energy to a complete balance first."

With that thought in mind, Li Yi turned around and returned to the hollow of the big willow tree.

Since retrieving the Ganoderma lucidum, the mother crocodile seems to have passed this crucial hurdle. Although her breathing is still fluctuating and difficult to judge, she is no longer in danger of dying.

Time flies, and another year has passed in the blink of an eye.

The large willow tree sprouted new buds and grew considerably larger, its leaves turning emerald green and full of vitality. It had benefited greatly from the mother crocodile that was building its foundation in the tree hole.

Li Yi slowly crawled out of the tree hole and then lingered under the tree, leisurely basking in the sun.

Before long, a white figure emerged from the hazy, poisonous swamp, nimbly swimming through the mud without getting dirty, and soon arrived at the big willow tree.

The white python had just returned from the place where the strange tree was located. It would go there on average once every two weeks, staying outside the protective barrier and silently manipulating the moonlight water to absorb the black mist inside.

The changes in the strange tree have been clearly contained. A year has passed, and the black mist around it has become much thicker, but no other changes have occurred.

At noon, the white python stared solemnly at the purple fragment covered with black cracks, feeling the faint light emanating from its surface, before swallowing it whole.

Then, it tightly bound Li Yi's limbs, looked down at Li Yi, and a surge of magical power slowly appeared.

The golden fragments began to operate, and some kind of mysterious spell was cast.

Li Yi instantly felt the old injury on his back flare up. The purple fragments deeply embedded in his back flesh seemed to burst into flames, scorching a large area of ​​flesh.

As excruciating pain struck, Li Yi mobilized all his strength to suppress it, but he was also forced to release some of his physical defenses.

sizzle~

Only Li Yi could hear the sound of his flesh being burned inside his body. Before long, he clearly sensed that the purple fragments were being slowly summoned and moving towards the scales.

boom!

A large patch of loose soil exploded, and the increasingly intense pain caused Li Yi to struggle on the spot.

At this moment, the white python's role became apparent. It tightly bound Li Yi, exhausting its magical power in an attempt to completely pull out the purple fragment.

boom!

The big willow tree was suddenly hit hard, its crown shook, a large patch of bark dented slightly, and a flurry of willow leaves fell down.

A willow leaf drifted down in front of the white python, and with a hiss, it was instantly burned into ashes, which scattered in the wind.

The light in the white python's eyes flickered intensely, then suddenly dimmed and finally went out.

As the fluctuations of magical power subsided, the white python felt a wave of fatigue and slowly released Li Yi's massive black-scaled body, resting its head between Li Yi's eyes.

Li Yi closed his eyes, suppressing the short, charred mark inside his body. The purple flames possessed sentience, and the terrible damage caused by burning inside his body was not something that could be easily endured.

This is a key treasure fragment of the Flamebreath Fox Clan.

However, this attempt was indeed effective. Amidst the excruciating pain, Li Yi could clearly sense that the purple fragment had advanced about an inch towards his skin.

Clearly, the fragment was indeed useful; the white python successfully gained initial control over the purple fragment, but it couldn't maintain it for long due to the excessive consumption of its magical power.

It was not a member of the Flamebreath Fox Clan, and therefore could not use this treasure as easily as it would its own arm.

Li Yi closed his eyes and waited for the pain to pass. Before long, the white python returned to Li Yi's side with a drop of willow tree sap, and used the moonlight to heal Li Yi's wounds.

Although the wound is not visible from the outside, the inside is truly terrifying.