I'll make you the furnace and the cauldron, so you can refine Yin and Yang and prove the Great

The Second Elder's escape light disappeared into the sea of ​​clouds. Li Hanshan stood alone at the entrance of the canyon, gazing at the land of white bones shrouded in gray-white mist, and did not leave for a long time.

A mountain breeze blew from the valley, carrying an indescribable smell, like charred bones or rotting flesh. The smell filled the nostrils, making one nauseous, yet also invigorating.

Li Hanshan turned around and left on his flying sword.

Countless thoughts churned in his mind along the way.

He believed some of the Second Elder's words, but also remained skeptical. This woman was never a kind soul; her telling him this wasn't necessarily out of kindness. Perhaps she wanted to use him to deal with the Sect Master, perhaps she wanted to plant a seed of doubt in his heart, or perhaps she simply thought it was amusing. None of the people in the Joyous Union Sect were simple; behind every smile might lie a dagger.

But he had to admit that what the Second Elder said did indeed hit the nail on the head regarding his long-standing doubts.

Isn't the sect leader being a little too nice to him?

From the day he was accepted as a disciple, the sect leader took exceptional care of him. He generously provided him with pills, cultivation techniques, and insights; he personally guided his cultivation with a patience that belied his status as a peak Nascent Soul cultivator; and whenever the Grand Elder made things difficult for him, the sect leader always sided with him. He used to think that all this was because of his high battle achievements and excellent aptitude, and that the sect leader valued talent.

But now that I think about it, it seems like I went a bit too far.

The sect leader had been the sect leader of the Hehuan Sect for hundreds of years and had never taken on a disciple. Why did he suddenly accept him? Just because of his performance on the battlefield? Song Qingyun's performance was not bad, nor was Ouyang Ming's, so why did the sect leader not even glance at them?

And that war.

The Second Elder said that the Sect Master launched the war against the Blood Fiend Sect to capture cultivation vessels. This statement may not be entirely true, but it may not be entirely false either. After the Blood Fiend Sect was destroyed, although he had not witnessed the fate of the prisoners firsthand, he had heard about it. Those above the Golden Core stage were distributed among the Golden Core and Nascent Soul cultivators of the two sects, while those below the Foundation Establishment stage were used as low-level cultivation vessels and consumed in batches.

As a peak Nascent Soul cultivator, the sect leader would undoubtedly receive the most prisoners, and those prisoners would be of the highest quality.

Tens of thousands of lives.

Li Hanshan took a deep breath, suppressing these thoughts. He returned to his cave dwelling, where Hua Nongying was leaning against the stone couch smoking. Seeing him enter, her eyes sparkled, and she said sweetly, "Hanlang, what does the Second Elder want with you?"

"I borrowed some pure yang energy," Li Hanshan said calmly as he sat down beside her.

Hua Nongying frowned, put down her pipe, and looked him up and down: "She didn't do anything to you, did she?"

"no."

Hua Nongying breathed a sigh of relief, leaned into his arms, traced circles on his chest with her slender fingers, and whispered, "That's good. I thought that old hag was going to drain your essence."

Li Hanshan didn't speak, but simply put his arm around her waist, closed his eyes, and was thinking about something else.

He might not completely believe the Second Elder's words, but he couldn't ignore them either. If the Sect Master really wanted to attack him, with his current strength, he would have no chance of resistance. The gap between Golden Core and Nascent Soul was even greater than the gap between Qi Refining and Golden Core, and it couldn't be bridged by a single Immortal-grade Golden Core. Not to mention, the Sect Master was at the peak of the Nascent Soul stage.

Thinking about these things is useless.

Instead of letting his mind wander, he should focus on cultivation. Strength is the only true measure of power; if he's strong enough, no one can touch him.

In the days that followed, Li Hanshan devoted all his energy to cultivation.

During the day, he immersed himself in refining pills in the alchemy room on Jade Peak. Since helping Xu Lingxi dispel the cold energy, Jiang Nianwei's attitude towards him had become even closer, and the alchemy room was completely open to him, with medicinal herbs available for him to use at will. He refined batch after batch of high-quality pills, including Qi-Nourishing Pills, Qi-Condensing Pills, and Barrier-Breaking Pills, among others. He used some himself and distributed the rest to the women.

At night, he practiced dual cultivation with Hua Nongying, Yun Shuyue, and Liu Ruoxue, using the Yang Ce technique to refine his golden core. Every few days, he would go to Qin Muyue, Leng Yue, and Chu Mengyao to absorb their essence for his golden core. With the six women taking turns, his cultivation speed, though not as fast as before, was still many times faster than that of ordinary golden core cultivators. Occasionally, he would also enter the sect's secret realm to cultivate with Chu Mengyao.

The days passed by peacefully and fulfillingly.

That night, Li Hanshan fell into a deep sleep, and that long-lost pulling force suddenly surged into his heart.

A surge of joy filled him, and without resistance, he allowed his consciousness to be drawn into the depths by that force. Passing through layers of darkness, he heard the familiar sound of flowing water.

slam-la-

The clear river water shimmered with a silvery-white light under the moonlight, the blue stones on the bank remained unchanged, and a thin layer of mist shrouded the distant horizon. Li Hanshan opened his eyes and found himself standing on that familiar riverbank. He took a deep breath, circulated his divine sense to stabilize the boundaries of the dream, and then sat on the blue stone, waiting.

A moment later, ripples appeared in the air ahead, and a white figure emerged from them.

Luo Li.

Five years had passed, and she was still dressed in white, her bare feet treading on the grass, her long hair cascading down, her features exquisite. But Li Hanshan noticed that her demeanor had changed. The former Luo Li was like a clear spring, crystal clear, allowing one to see right to the bottom. Now, she was like a deep pool, calm on the surface, but with undercurrents surging beneath, unfathomable.

"Grandpa!" Luo Li saw him, her face lighting up with a bright smile. She jogged over and sat down beside him. "Long time no see!"

Looking at her, Li Hanshan felt an indescribable emotion welling up inside him. Five years of longing and worry had all transformed into the smiling face before him at this moment.

"Girl, you're finally here." His voice was a little hoarse.

Luo Li tilted her head and looked him over, her eyes lighting up: "Grandpa, you've broken through again! Late Golden Core stage! Amazing!"

Li Hanshan smiled and said, "No one is as good as you. Girl, have you broken through?"

Luo Li nodded, a hint of pride flashing in her eyes: "I've broken through. Refined Void."

Refining the void.

Li Hanshan gasped.

"Girl, you're amazing!" he said sincerely. "A Void Refinement cultivator? In the Northern Wilderness, that's practically a legendary figure."

Luo Li waved her hand, her tone light and cheerful: "Grandpa, don't praise me anymore, or I'll get cocky. Refining to the Void isn't that impressive in the Yao Guang Sect. The elders are all at the Dao Integration stage, and the sect leader is at the Great Ascension stage. My cultivation is nothing compared to theirs."

Li Hanshan smiled bitterly. Half-step True Immortal—that was a realm he didn't even dare to dream of.

"Let's not talk about me anymore." Luo Li turned her head to look at him, her eyes filled with concern. "Grandpa, how have you been these past few years? Have you encountered any danger?"

Li Hanshan briefly recounted his experiences over the past few years—becoming a Holy Son, entering the secret realm for cultivation, avenging Liu Ruoxue, helping Xu Lingxi dispel the cold energy, borrowing pure Yang energy from the Second Elder, and that canyon filled with white bones.

Upon hearing this, Luo Li frowned, her small face filled with seriousness.

"That Second Elder is no good," she said seriously. "She may not have had any good intentions when she told you those things. Master, you should be careful."

Li Hanshan nodded: "I know. I won't believe everything she says."

Luo Li breathed a sigh of relief, then said, "But you also need to be careful about the sect leader. She's too good to you, abnormally so."

Li Hanshan smiled wryly: "Girl, you and the Second Elder are thinking the same thing."

Luo Li curled her lip: "That's because the facts are right in front of us. Grandpa, think about it, why would a Nascent Soul Peak cultivator treat a Golden Core stage disciple so well? Even if you are her only personal disciple, even if you have the best aptitude, it doesn't have to be this good."

Li Hanshan fell silent. He knew Luo Li was right.

"But you don't need to worry too much, sir." Luo Li's tone softened a bit. "You are now a Holy Son and the Sect Master's personal disciple. Even if she has some schemes, she won't act openly. You have time to slowly improve your strength. Once you break through to the Nascent Soul stage, you won't have to be afraid of her anymore."

Li Hanshan nodded, suppressing these thoughts, and asked about another matter.

"Girl, have you ever heard of extraterrestrial demons?"

Luo Li's expression froze slightly.

She paused for a moment before slowly speaking, "I've heard of it. I found some records about extraterrestrial demons in the ancient ruins. It seems that every now and then, extraterrestrial demons launch a large-scale attack. Those records are very fragmented, most of them incomplete, and I can only see snippets of information."

She paused, a hint of solemnity flashing in her eyes: "Those records say that the extraterrestrial demons are extremely terrifying. Every attack they launch causes widespread devastation, and many sects have been wiped out by them."

Li Hanshan's heart skipped a beat. Leaving aside the distant issues...

As far as he knew, the Northern Wilderness Sword Sect was destroyed by the extraterrestrial demons.

He recalled the dilapidated sword pavilion in the secret realm, and the inscription on the stone tablet. Those inscriptions said that the Northern Wilderness Sword Sect was destroyed by extraterrestrial demons, all the cultivators in the sect died in battle, and the mountain gate was destroyed.

Li Hanshan didn't ask any more questions. He dared not ask too much, fearing that he might trigger that life-or-death crisis again, just like last time. But he had a vague premonition—the matter of the extraterrestrial demons was probably more serious than anything he could think of right now.

Luo Li seemed to sense his hesitation and didn't continue the topic. She reached out and gently took his hand.

"Grandpa, let's not talk about that anymore. While we still have time, let me help you refine your spirit. Although your spirit has reached the Nascent Soul level, it's not stable enough. I'll help you temper it to make your spirit more solid."

Li Hanshan did not refuse. He knew that Luo Li would consume a large amount of her divine soul essence every time she helped him refine his spirit. But he also knew that Luo Li would not listen to his advice; if she said she would help, she would definitely help.

Their palms touched, and Luo Li's soul power surged into his sea of ​​consciousness once more.

This time, Li Hanshan was experienced. He adjusted his divine sense to its optimal state beforehand, and as soon as he entered the Refining Spirit stage, he fully cooperated with Luo Li's guidance, while also diverting a portion of his divine sense to stabilize the boundaries of the dream. Under the wrapping of his divine sense, that invisible membrane became increasingly solid, and the dream dissipated at a slower and slower pace.

Three days, five days, ten days, twenty days.

Time passed in the dream, and Li Hanshan's consciousness grew increasingly solid and powerful under the nourishment of Luo Li's soul power. His early Nascent Soul stage consciousness was tempered to its limit, showing a faint tendency to advance towards the mid-Nascent Soul stage.

Luo Li's face grew paler and paler, but she did not stop.

A month later, Li Hanshan finally withdrew his hand.

The boundaries of the dream remained firm, showing no signs of dissipating. He had successfully extended the dream for over a month. This meant he could spend more time with Luo Li in the dream and learn more.

"Girl, that's enough." He looked at Luo Li's pale face and said with heartache, "You've already helped me so much."

Luo Li shook her head and forced a smile: "It's alright, I just need to rest for a bit. Grandpa, your spiritual sense is already very close to the mid-Nascent Soul stage. Once you break through to the peak of the Golden Core stage, I'll help you refine it one more time, and you should be able to break through then."

Looking at her exhausted appearance, Li Hanshan felt a surge of indescribable bitterness in his heart.

"Girl, why are you so good to me?" he couldn't help but ask.

Luo Li paused for a moment, then smiled. Her smile was warm, like the spring sunshine.

"Because the old man is a good person," she said matter-of-factly.

Good people.

Li Hanshan smiled bitterly. Having spent so many years in the Hehuan Sect, he had lost count of how much blood was on his hands. Was he a good person? Probably not. But if Luo Li said yes, then that was it.

The two chatted for a while longer. Luo Li talked about interesting things about the Yao Guang Sect, her discoveries in the ancient ruins, and the bottlenecks she encountered in her cultivation. Her tone was light and cheerful, as if she were chatting with an old friend. Li Hanshan listened, occasionally interjecting a few words, and the gloom in his heart gradually dissipated.

As the dream began to blur, Luo Li stood up and waved to him.

"Grandpa, see you in my dreams next time."

"it is good."

Li Hanshan opened his eyes, and the first thing he saw was the stone wall of the cave. Outside the window, the sky was just beginning to lighten.