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

When the dream ended, Li Hanshan opened his eyes, and the luminous pearl in the cave was still emitting a soft light.

As dawn broke outside the window, morning light streamed in through the cracks in the stone door, casting a thin band of light on the ground.

Hua Nongying lay beside him, her breathing deep and even, one hand still resting on his chest. Yun Shuyue sat on a futon not far away, flipping through a jade slip containing cultivation techniques. When she saw him wake up, a hint of tenderness flashed in her eyes.

Li Hanshan sat up and stretched his limbs, feeling that all the meridians in his body were more open than before. The half-foot-long golden sword in his sea of ​​consciousness floated quietly, like a sleeping dragon, waiting for him to awaken it at any time.

"Nongying, how long have I been asleep?"

"Three days."

Three days!

Li Hanshan felt dazed.

He was only awake for three days, but lived three years in a dream.

If this dream occurs every few months, it's equivalent to giving Li Hanshan several times the amount of time.

Although you can't improve your cultivation level in a dream like you can in reality, you can cultivate your divine sense, spells, and formations.

The effects of refining his spirit in his dream were exceptionally good. The condensation of the Divine Soul Sword made his control over his divine sense even more refined and subtle, and his mastery of spiritual power also improved significantly. He could feel that the bottleneck of the early Nascent Soul stage had loosened considerably, and he was only one step away from breaking through to the second level of the Nascent Soul stage.

In the days that followed, he continued his cultivation. During the day, he practiced dual cultivation with the sect leader, the second elder, and the women, absorbing the essence of their nascent souls to temper himself; at night, he meditated alone, refining, compressing, and integrating the spiritual energy he had accumulated during the day into his divine infant.

With the abundant spirit stones and pills he obtained from the demon's ring, his cultivation speed was many times faster than that of ordinary Nascent Soul cultivators. Furthermore, the Nascent Soul essence of the sect leader and the second elder was extremely pure, and each instance of dual cultivation provided significant nourishment to his divine infant.

A month later, he broke through to the second level of the Nascent Soul stage.

The breakthrough was relatively minor, far less dramatic than when he first formed his Divine Infant. Only in the dead of night did the surface of the Divine Infant in his dantian suddenly glow brightly for a moment, like a star ignited, before fading into silence. Li Hanshan opened his eyes, feeling the significantly more abundant spiritual energy within his body, and exhaled a long breath.

If word got out about this speed, it would shock countless people.

Cultivation at the Nascent Soul stage is extremely slow, requiring a massive accumulation of spiritual energy and a profound understanding of the laws of heaven and earth for each minor realm. Even for righteous cultivators with exceptional talent, progressing from the first to the second level of the Nascent Soul stage takes decades, while those with mediocre aptitude may stagnate for their entire lives. Yet, he crossed this threshold in just over a year.

"The Yang Ce cultivation technique combined with the Nascent Soul essence of the sect leader and the second elder is truly heaven-defying," Li Hanshan thought to himself. Without the dual cultivation effect of the Yang Ce technique, even with his talent, he would have had to diligently cultivate for decades to break through.

Another six months passed, and his cultivation was completely solidified at the second level of the Nascent Soul stage. His foundation was firm, and his spiritual energy flowed smoothly without hindrance. The Divine Soul Sword in his sea of ​​consciousness had also been repeatedly tempered by him, and now it could be condensed into form in an instant, ready to strike at any time. He knew that this sword should not be used lightly, but once it was used, it had to be effective.

One morning, Li Hanshan was practicing his sword on the stone platform outside his cave when he suddenly sensed an unusual fluctuation coming from the sky.

He stopped what he was doing and looked up. The clouds in the distance were churning in an unnatural way, as if stirred by some invisible force. A moment later, a flying boat, entirely blue and white, emerged from the clouds, breaking through layers of mist, and slowly descended toward the gate of the Hehuan Sect.

The flying boat was about ten zhang long, and its entire body was made of a kind of spiritual wood that he had never seen before. The hull was engraved with dense silver array patterns, which reflected a cold light under the sunlight. The surface of the flying boat was without any scratches, and not even a speck of dust was on it, as if it had just set sail from the most prosperous port in the Central Continent.

A streak of blue light trailed gently behind the airship, like the tail of a comet.

As the flying boat approached, the protective array of the Hehuan Sect automatically opened a gap, emitting a low hum. The flying boat passed through the array and landed silently in the center of the sect's plaza. The array patterns on the hull slowly faded, and the boat door slid open silently.

A large number of disciples quickly gathered in the square, forming a dense circle. The Hehuan Sect Master flew out from the main hall of the main peak and landed several dozen feet in front of the flying boat. Nowadays, most of the affairs of the Hehuan Sect are handled personally by the Sect Master. Li Hanshan also sheathed his sword and transformed into a streak of purple-gold light, landing beside the Sect Master.

Three figures emerged from the flying boat.

Leading the way was a middle-aged man with a thin face and slightly graying temples. He wore a plain white robe, and a blue jade pendant hung at his waist, on which were engraved two simple, ancient characters. His steps were unhurried, each step landing silently on the stone slabs, yet the faint aura he exuded made the air within a radius of several dozen feet feel heavy.

The moment Li Hanshan met his gaze, his consciousness tightened slightly. A Nascent Soul cultivator. Moreover, his aura was far more powerful than that of the severely injured Nascent Soul demon from before; they were simply not on the same level.

A middle-aged man was followed by a man and a woman.

The man was around thirty years old, with a square face and a calm, profound aura, clearly a late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator. The woman appeared to be twenty-seven or twenty-eight, with a beautiful face and gentle demeanor, also at the late-stage Nascent Soul level. The two followed half a step behind the middle-aged man, their attitude respectful, clearly taking him as their leader.

"Are you the sect leader?" The middle-aged man stopped in front of the sect leader, his voice gentle yet carrying an undeniable composure.

The sect leader clasped his hands in a respectful greeting, saying, "Indeed. May I ask if you are an envoy sent by the main sect of Central Continent?"

"My surname is Xu, and I am the External Affairs Steward of the Sect." The middle-aged man nodded, his gaze sweeping over the Hehuan Sect disciples in the square before finally settling on the Sect Master. "I heard you've unified the Northern Wilderness? And even killed a Nascent Soul demon who escaped from the Central Continent?"

"Reporting to Senior Xu, the Northern Wilderness has indeed been unified," the sect leader said. "As for that Nascent Soul demon, he was killed by my disciple Li Hanshan and me working together."

Deacon Xu's gaze shifted slightly, landing on Li Hanshan. His eyes were like two bottomless pools of ice; with just a glance, Li Hanshan felt as if he had been seen through.

"Second level of Nascent Soul, Divine Infant." Deacon Xu raised an eyebrow slightly. "Pure Yang Body, and your divine soul has also reached the Divine Transformation level. Not bad, very good. To cultivate to this level in a place like the Northern Wilderness where spiritual energy is scarce is truly remarkable; you are indeed a rare genius."

Li Hanshan was startled.

The Nascent Soul stage cultivator is indeed powerful, having discerned so much.

Fortunately.

The other party did not see his Yang Pattern Space.

This relieved Li Hanshan and gave him a clearer understanding of the power of the Yang Ce technique.

Li Hanshan clasped his hands in a respectful greeting, without saying anything more.

Deacon Xu withdrew his gaze and looked at the sect leader again: "You unified the Northern Wilderness single-handedly, a considerable achievement. According to the rules of the main sect, you can go to the Central Continent. You can set off within three days. After arriving at the main sect, someone will reassess your aptitude and assign you to a suitable branch for cultivation."

The sect leader's body stiffened slightly, and a hint of barely suppressed excitement flashed in his deep eyes.

She had waited for hundreds of years, and this day had finally come.

"Thank you, Senior Xu." Her voice remained calm, but Li Hanshan could feel her fingers trembling slightly as she gripped her sleeve.

Deacon Xu then looked at Li Hanshan: "While the cultivation level of the second stage of the Nascent Soul realm isn't particularly high, a Divine Infant is extremely rare, and the main sect will take it seriously. Besides, you've only been cultivating for less than twenty years; your future is promising. You can go with us."

Li Hanshan felt a surge of warmth in his heart, but he suppressed the impulse and clasped his hands in a fist and asked, "Senior Xu, this disciple has a request."

Deacon Xu looked at him: "Speak."

"May I take a few people with me?" Li Hanshan asked. "I have several Daoist companions with me. Although their cultivation levels are not high, their aptitudes are quite good. I'm not comfortable leaving them here."

Deacon Xu paused for a moment, then shook his head: "No."

Li Hanshan's heart sank: "Why?"

Deacon Xu glanced at him, seemingly considering his words. After a moment, he slowly spoke: "Telling you won't hurt. Do you know the origins of the Northern Wilderness?"

Li Hanshan shook his head: "This disciple does not know."

Deacon Xu stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze sweeping over the five peaks of the Hehuan Sect and landing on the distant horizon. His voice carried the weight of time: "The Northern Wilderness is not a naturally formed continent. In ancient times, some incredibly powerful beings fought in the heavens, and with a single sword strike, they cleaved off a corner of the Tianyuan Continent. That severed corner is what is now the Northern Wilderness."