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

As dusk fell, Li Hanshan was squatting behind a rock collecting a Concentration Fruit hidden in a crevice when a deafening roar suddenly echoed from the depths of the medicinal field.

The sound was deep and resonant, carrying a sense of oppression that penetrated to the bone. The entire earth trembled slightly, and even the medicinal mist floating in the air was shaken, causing visible ripples.

Li Hanshan suddenly looked up and saw a huge gray figure standing up from the dense forest several miles away.

The figure was several meters tall, moving slowly like a small mountain.

Its entire body was covered with thick, rock-like armor plates, its limbs were as thick as pillars, its head was shaped like a giant lizard, and with each breath it exhaled hot white vapor from its nostrils, possessing the strength of an early-stage Nascent Soul cultivator.

"This is a Rock Armored Earth Dragon, in the early stage of the Nascent Soul realm. It has thick skin and tough flesh, making it difficult to harm with ordinary spells."

Ye Shuanghua appeared beside Li Hanshan at some point, her voice low but still composed, "Keep picking, don't stop. I'll take care of it."

Before she finished speaking, she flashed and transformed into a silver-white sword light, aiming straight for the throat of the rock-armored earth dragon.

The sword light was extremely sharp, drawing a perfect arc in mid-air and accurately striking a relatively thin gap in the armor plates on the dragon's neck.

The earth dragon, in pain, let out an even more furious roar, its massive tail sweeping across the land, turning countless rocks and trees to dust.

Ye Shuanghua flipped in mid-air to avoid the sweeping attack, and the second sword followed closely, striking the same wound. Dark red blood gushed out from the crack.

Li Hanshan withdrew his gaze, not wasting the time that Ye Shuanghua had bought for him.

He quickly picked the Concentration Fruit and then headed deeper into the medicinal field. With his Nascent Soul level divine sense spread out, the aura of spiritual herbs within a radius of hundreds of miles was clearly discernible in his perception.

He picked several Dragon Transformation Grasses in succession, and then discovered two extremely ancient Mind-Concentrating Fruit Trees in a crack in a stone wall. His hands were almost constantly busy, filling jade boxes one after another, and the medicinal fragrance in his storage bag grew stronger and stronger.

On Ye Shuanghua's side, the battle was also nearing its end. Although the rock-armored earth dragon had thick hide and tough flesh, under Ye Shuanghua's continuous and precise strikes with her Jinghong Sword, the wound on its neck was torn wider and wider. Finally, it could not hold on any longer, let out a mournful cry, and collapsed to the ground with a thud, creating a deep crater.

But Li Hanshan's premonition was correct. The earth dragon's roar was like stirring up a hornet's nest, triggering a chain reaction throughout the entire medicinal field. Moments later, several equally powerful auras emanated from the depths of the field, each more terrifying than the last. They were rapidly approaching from all directions, moving at an incredible speed, like a disturbed swarm of bees.

Ye Shuanghua's expression finally changed: "Damn it. There are many more demonic beasts in this medicinal field than last time we came. Let's go!"

Li Hanshan didn't covet more, storing the last Concentration Fruit in his jade box before turning and following Ye Shuanghua as they sped back the way they came. But the auras behind them were too fast; in just a few dozen breaths, they had already burst out of the dense forest and appeared in the twilight. They were three enormous, jet-black wolves, several times larger than ordinary wolves, with protruding fangs and emerald flames burning in their eye sockets. Each one possessed an aura no weaker than a mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivator, with the leader even faintly touching the threshold of the late-stage Nascent Soul realm.

Ye Shuanghua forced back the giant wolf charging at the front with a single sword strike, her gaze sweeping across the direction of the medicinal field. She said in a deep voice, "They came from the depths of the medicinal field. Logically speaking, there shouldn't be so many high-level demonic beasts here... No, the exit is gone."

Her voice suddenly turned cold. Li Hanshan followed her gaze and saw that the crack in the stone wall they had passed through was now blocked by a thick, pale golden light barrier. The light barrier rippled and flowed, like a wound healing, completely isolating the two of them from the outside world.

"The natural array's barrier is shrinking." Ye Shuanghua's voice was calm but tinged with seriousness. "The protective array of this ancient medicinal field is operating on its own, and we can't get out for a while. We must find a place to hide first, and then look for an exit once the array stabilizes."

As she spoke, she once again swung her sword to repel the giant wolf that pounced on her, grabbed Li Hanshan's arm, and charged towards the depths of a dense forest at the edge of the medicinal field. The three giant wolves pursued relentlessly, their speed astonishing, several times grazing the edge of Ye Shuanghua's sword light, their sharp claws flashing.

Ye Shuanghua meandered through the dense forest, finally stopping in front of a natural stone cave hidden by vines.

The entrance to the cave was extremely narrow, allowing only one person to squeeze in sideways, but the interior space was surprisingly spacious enough to accommodate several people. She squeezed into the cave sideways, with Li Hanshan following closely behind.

After the two entered the cave, Ye Shuanghua raised her hand and cast a talisman. The talisman collected the two's auras and turned them into a stream of light that rushed into the distance.

Then, with a flick of her wrist, she severed the vines outside the cave entrance with a sword flash, and set up a simple concealment spell to completely cover up the presence of the two of them.

After the three giant wolves caught up, they did not stop, but chased after the flowing light.

"That's a substitute charm; it lured them away."

Ye Shuanghua breathed a sigh of relief.

The cave fell silent. Li Hanshan leaned against the stone wall and turned to look at Ye Shuanghua, noticing that she was sitting on a protruding rock, breathing slightly heavily.

"We're trapped here." Ye Shuanghua's voice was calm, yet carried a barely perceptible hint of weariness. "I don't know how many days it will last."

Li Hanshan was silent for a moment, then suddenly spoke, "Senior Sister, about that time in the sea... I also benefited greatly after your breakthrough." He paused, looking into her eyes, "How about... we do it again?"

Ye Shuanghua's movements stiffened slightly, and she looked up at him.