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

As night falls, the sea breeze blows across the rocks, carrying a salty, fishy mist.

The Heavenly Demon Sect members had retreated ten miles away, and the First Elder had also used the excuse of recuperating from his injuries to hide in another group of reefs. Only Li Hanshan, the Sect Master, and the Second Elder, who was meditating and adjusting his breathing in the formation, remained on the entire coastline.

The sect leader sat cross-legged on a flat rock and removed the black veil that had been tied around his face.

Li Hanshan's heart skipped a beat—this was the first time he had seen the sect leader's true face.

That face was extremely beautiful, so beautiful that it seemed otherworldly.

His features were so exquisite that they resembled a masterpiece meticulously drawn by a celestial painter, with every line perfectly placed—any more or less would be incomplete.

But on that stunningly beautiful face, there was a deep weariness, with an inescapable fatigue lingering between her brows, bloodshot eyes, and pale lips.

"What, are you stunned?" The sect leader's voice remained calm, yet tinged with a hint of helplessness. She raised her hand and fastened the black veil again, as if that veil were her true face. "Don't waste time; my injuries can't be delayed any longer."

Li Hanshan sat down opposite her, about to ask what to do, but the sect leader spoke first.

"Ordinary spiritual energy isn't enough." She looked into his eyes, her gaze as calm as a still pond. "The cracks on the surface of his nascent soul are too deep. Simply using pure yang energy to nurture it from the outside will have limited effect. If it can't reach the core of the nascent soul, the yin energy lurking deep within simply can't be forced out."

Li Hanshan frowned slightly: "Then what should we do?"

The sect leader paused for a moment, then spoke calmly but directly: "Dual cultivation."

Li Hanshan was taken aback.

"Our sect needs your pure Yang energy to be directly transferred into the core of your Nascent Soul, refining the Yin energy through the union of Yin and Yang. Ordinary spiritual energy transfer, separated by the dantian barrier, is far less effective."

The sect leader looked directly into his eyes, his deep gaze unwavering. "You've just broken through to the Nascent Soul stage; your pure Yang energy is at its purest. If you miss this opportunity, once your Divine Infant stabilizes, although the quality of your pure Yang energy will be even higher, it will be harder for it to harmonize with our sect's spiritual power."

She paused, then continued, "Moreover, the sect's meridians still retain the demon's malevolent energy. If it isn't expelled quickly, this malevolent energy will intertwine with the sect's spiritual power, gradually eroding the foundation of the nascent soul. The longer it drags on, the more severe the damage will be."

Li Hanshan remained silent for a moment.

He certainly understood what dual cultivation meant, but he was even more aware that this was the Joyful Union Sect, a place that devoured people without spitting out their bones. No matter how frankly the sect leader spoke, he couldn't completely let his guard down.

"Master," he said slowly, choosing his words carefully, "this disciple has a question."

"explain."

"Master, you accepted me as your disciple, provided me with resources, and helped me break through. Do you really want my pure Yang energy to repair my Nascent Soul, or... do you have other motives?"

The sect leader stared at him for a long while. A sea breeze blew, ruffling her loose hair. She suddenly smiled, a faint smile, yet with a touch of sincerity: "You are indeed cautious. If I truly wanted to harm you, you wouldn't have had the chance to ask that question."

She didn't explain further, stood up, and walked to a relatively secluded crevic behind the reef.

There was a smooth, wave-washed blue stone. She lay down on it, unbuttoned her black dress, and did so swiftly and decisively, without the slightest hesitation.

"come over."

Li Hanshan took a deep breath, suppressed the surging thoughts in his heart, and walked over.

Even Li Hanshan was somewhat dizzy and dazzled when he saw the Hehuan Sect Master's reclining body.

It really is

The sect leader of the Hehuan Sect was truly too charming; just seeing him made Li Hanshan's heart flutter.

The Hehuan Sect Master closed her eyes, her eyelashes trembling slightly, revealing her inner turmoil.

She looked rather shy.

However, it's unclear whether this shyness is genuine or not.

Li Hanshan swallowed hard and slowly pressed down on it.

then.

One shot, and it's dead.

The Hehuan Sect Master's body trembled.

Li Hanshan was taken aback.

Because, at the very moment the two made contact, Li Hanshan clearly felt it.

What obstacle was overcome?

This feeling alone doesn't prove anything.

Most importantly, a surge of soul power emanated from the depths of the Hehuan Sect Master's nascent soul, carrying an extremely pure primordial yin energy.

The aura was incredibly clear, like the water of a frozen pool in the deep mountains that had never been touched by anyone.

Li Hanshan was stunned.

How could a female cultivator at the peak of the Nascent Soul stage, who has cultivated for hundreds of years and weathered countless storms, possibly...?

"Concentrate." The sect leader's voice rang out, tinged with indifference, as if he had already anticipated his surprise. "Don't overthink it. Our sect's cultivation method is special; only by preserving our primordial yin can we maintain the purity of our spiritual energy, which is beneficial for breaking through to the Nascent Soul stage. This has remained unchanged for hundreds of years. Today's exception is for healing, nothing more."

Li Hanshan didn't ask any more questions and bent down.

At the moment of actual union, the sect leader's lower abdomen tightened slightly.

It was a physiological reaction that could not be faked. Her fingers gripped the bluestone beneath her, her knuckles turning white, but she bit her lip and did not make a sound.

The primordial yin energy accumulated over hundreds of years surged forth like a burst dam, colliding violently with Li Hanshan's pure yang energy, and then merging into it at an almost frenzied speed.

Li Hanshan could sense the astonishing energy contained within that primordial yin energy, like a vintage wine buried for hundreds of years being unsealed.

His divine infant trembled violently under the impact of this energy, and the golden light on the surface of the nascent soul suddenly more than doubled in brightness.

He subconsciously wanted to use the Yang Ce technique to draw in this energy, but he stopped himself abruptly.

"Don't stop." The sect leader's voice came from below, tinged with urgency, "Continue to channel in pure Yang energy."

Li Hanshan suppressed the distracting thoughts in his mind and pushed the Yang Ce technique to its limit, but this time he did not gain anything from it.

The pure yang energy, like a warm golden river, flowed into the sect leader's body along the point where the two were connected, passed through the meridians, and reached the core of the nascent soul, peeling away and refining the yin energy that lingered deep within.

He could feel that the Yin energy within the sect leader was being forced back little by little by his pure Yang energy, like ice meeting the warm sun of spring.

The cracks on the surface of the nascent soul healed at a visible speed under the nurturing power, and the fine black lines began to fade and disappear. The sect leader's breathing also gradually became steady, and his pale face regained its color.

Time passed slowly between the two of them.

The waves crashed against the rocks, creating a rhythmic roar in the night. A golden shimmering light, bathed in the moonlight, enveloped the two figures.

In the distance, the Second Elder sat cross-legged at the edge of the array's core, his back to this side, eyes closed, regulating his breathing, as if he hadn't heard anything.

After an unknown amount of time, Li Hanshan finally peeled the last trace of Yin energy from the surface of the sect leader's nascent soul. He withdrew his spiritual power, straightened up, and exhaled a long breath of turbid air.

The continuous output of energy for several hours had depleted most of his spiritual power, and his face was somewhat pale, but the light of his divine infant was even more dazzling than before—the sect master's primordial yin energy of hundreds of years had silently nourished his foundation during the union, allowing his divine infant, which had just broken through, to be completely stabilized.

The sect leader sat up, slowly straightened his clothes, and tied on a black veil.

Her movements remained calm, as if what had just happened was nothing out of the ordinary.

But Li Hanshan noticed that after she fastened the black veil, she paused slightly, as if sensing the changes within her body. A moment later, she raised her head, and a genuine emotion flickered in her eyes behind the veil.

"Our sect's Nascent Soul is ready."

Her voice was soft, but it carried an emotion that Li Hanshan had never heard before.

It wasn't joy, nor gratitude, but a complex feeling that was hard to describe—like surprise, yet also like relief.

Li Hanshan leaned against the reef, closed his eyes and regulated his breathing, without saying a word.

He destroyed the sect leader's body, which had been intact for hundreds of years.

To others, this would be a remarkable achievement worthy of being celebrated.

Li Hanshan naturally also felt the thrill of being a conqueror.

But he was worried about another layer.

He didn't believe the sect leader was giving him his body to heal his wounds.

This is probably the sect leader preparing for his later breakthrough to the Nascent Soul stage.

If the sect leader is unable to break through to the Nascent Soul stage in the future, he might still choose him.

"Your spiritual energy is quite depleted." The sect leader stood up, walked to him, and looked down at him. A hint of warmth finally appeared in his deep eyes. "Rest first."

She took a jade bottle from her sleeve and placed it beside him. "A Grade Five Rejuvenation Pill; it will help you recover your spiritual power."

Li Hanshan opened his eyes, looked at the jade bottle, then at her. He didn't refuse, and carefully put the jade bottle away: "Thank you, Master."

The sect leader turned and walked towards the edge of the reef, but stopped after a few steps without looking back: "I owe you one."

This time, she said "I," not "our clan."

As Li Hanshan watched her figure disappear into the night, the tension in his heart finally eased slightly.

He lowered his head, his gaze falling on his lower abdomen—a flower had appeared in his Yang Pattern Space.

That belongs to the sect leader.