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

Li Hanshan stood on the stone platform outside the cave, the morning breeze caressing his face. The fragments of sword intent he had gathered from his dream last night had been initially integrated into his Divine Soul Sword. Although it was only a superficial understanding, it had already subtly elevated his sword control technique to a new level.

Just as he was about to turn back to his cave to continue his meditation, a silver-white communication talisman pierced the air from the heights of the main peak and hovered precisely in front of him. The talisman burned, and Ye Shuanghua's clear, cold voice emanated from it: "Come to the eastern foot of the main peak, Qingfeng Palace."

Without delay, Li Hanshan quickly straightened his robes and flew towards the eastern foot of the main peak on his flying sword. The Hehuan Sect was shrouded in a thin layer of spiritual mist at dawn, its various palaces and pavilions appearing and disappearing in the sea of ​​clouds, like a celestial palace suspended in the air. He passed through several valleys and circled a grove of purple bamboo before seeing a pale blue palace standing quietly on a protruding rock platform at the eastern foot of the mountain. Above the palace gate hung a plaque inscribed with the three characters "Qingfeng Palace," the calligraphy slender yet vigorous, carrying a profound sense of history.

When he landed on the stone steps in front of the main hall, the hall doors were already wide open. He stepped across the threshold and found the interior surprisingly simple—no excessive decorations, no luxurious furnishings, only a few large wooden tables scattered around, with teacups and a few loose jade slips on them. Five or six people were already standing in the hall. Ye Shuanghua stood at the front. To her left was a female cultivator in a light purple dress, about forty years old, with a gentle face, a calm aura, and a profound yet understated pressure emanating from her. To her right was a tall, thin middle-aged male cultivator with a gaunt face and introspective eyes, whose cultivation was equally unfathomable.

"Here he is." Ye Shuanghua nodded slightly when she saw him, then turned to the others in the hall, "This is Li Hanshan, whom I mentioned to you before, from the Northern Wilderness branch."

The woman in the purple dress gave him a gentle smile first, her voice carrying a touch of elder's warmth: "Junior Brother Li, I am Zhang Qingxuan, your Senior Sister Zhang. Shuanghua told me about you long ago, saying that you single-handedly destroyed the Heavenly Demon Sect in the Northern Wilderness and then fought your way through the Endless Sea to reach the Central Continent. To cultivate to this level in a place like the Northern Wilderness is truly not easy." As she spoke, she took out a dark blue-green pill from her sleeve and handed it over, "Nice to meet you, a small gift, please don't mind."

Li Hanshan took the pill; it was warm to the touch, with fine silver patterns flowing across its surface, and it emitted a clear and deep medicinal fragrance. This was at least a fifth-grade pill, and of extremely high quality.

"Thank you, Senior Sister Zhang." He didn't refuse and carefully accepted the gift.

The tall, thin male cultivator spoke up, his voice steady and unsmiling: "I am Wu Zhengqing, your Senior Brother Wu. Senior Sister Zhang is very generous, so I'll offer something more practical." As he spoke, he took out a jet-black longsword from his storage bag and handed it over. "This sword was acquired by chance during my travels many years ago. Its grade isn't high, but its sharpness is its greatest strength. You've only recently arrived in Central Continent, and you probably haven't yet acquired a suitable weapon. Use this for now."

Li Hanshan took the longsword. It felt heavy in his hand. The blade was as black as ink, and the material was not visible. However, the edge of the blade gleamed with an extremely fine layer of cold light, indicating that it had been carefully tempered.

"Thank you, Senior Brother Wu," he said, clasping his hands in thanks.

The group of people standing behind Zhang Qingxuan and Wu Zhengqing also stepped forward to pay their respects. Most of them were between the peak of the Nascent Soul stage and the early stage of the Divine Transformation stage, with calm auras and measured demeanor. Judging from their positions, they were probably Zhang Qingxuan and Wu Zhengqing's respective disciples.

After counting the number of people, Zhang Qingxuan turned to Li Hanshan and said with a smile, "Alright, everyone's been recognized. There aren't many people in our sect leader's lineage, but fortunately, we're all of one mind. I called you here today not only to get to know everyone, but also to discuss something else."

Ye Shuanghua continued, "The official notice for the sect competition has been issued. It will begin in a month, divided into three groups: Golden Core, Nascent Soul, and Deity Transformation. The Nascent Soul group has the most participants and is the focus of attention for all factions. Our sect leader's lineage doesn't have many capable fighters in the Nascent Soul group, so—"

She looked at Li Hanshan: "I hope you can win first place in the Nascent Soul group."

A moment of silence fell over the hall upon hearing this. Zhang Qingxuan and Wu Zhengqing both turned their gazes to Li Hanshan, their eyes filled with scrutiny and a certain expectation.

Li Hanshan was silent for a moment before asking, "Senior Sister, how many Nascent Soul cultivators are there in the Deity Transformation group?"

"Not many, but not few either." Ye Shuanghua's voice was calm. "The Nascent Soul group is a key project that the Elders' Council is focusing on, but many Nascent Soul cultivators choose to lower their cultivation level to register for the Core Formation group in order to increase their chances of winning. Although the sect rules prohibit Nascent Soul cultivators above the Nascent Soul level from participating in the Core Formation group, Nascent Soul level cultivators can participate in the Core Formation group within the scope permitted by the rules, which is not against the rules. In addition, there are plenty of disciples at the peak of the Core Formation stage."

Li Hanshan secretly calculated in his heart. He was currently at the sixth level of the Nascent Soul stage, just one step away from the late Nascent Soul stage. He wasn't afraid of the peak Nascent Soul stage, as the quality of his Pure Yang Fire was enough to suppress the spiritual power of most Nascent Soul cultivators. But the first level of the Divine Transformation stage was a different story; it was a qualitative difference. Although his Pure Yang Fire and Divine Soul Sword gave him the ability to fight beyond his level, the more opponents he faced, the greater the variables became.

"First place in the Nascent Soul group." He repeated, then nodded. "I did my best."

"It's not just about trying our best, it's about having to." Ye Shuanghua looked at him seriously. "This competition is related to the resource allocation of the sect leader's lineage for the next ten years. If we can get a good ranking in the Nascent Soul group, our influence in the Elders' Council will increase a lot."

Li Hanshan's expression remained unchanged: "Understood."

Zhang Qingxuan added from the side, "Don't worry too much. We'll arrange the schedule and opponent information for you, and find out the background of those elders' disciples in advance. Just focus on preparing for the battle."

Wu Zhengqing remained taciturn, simply nodding at him: "If you need any help, come find me."

The group discussed some details, such as which opponents Li Hanshan needed to pay close attention to before the competition—several core disciples at the peak of the Nascent Soul stage from the Elders' Council were on the list, including even a veteran cultivator at the first level of the Deity Transformation stage; and the elimination format, meaning each round of the draw could result in a formidable opponent. Zhang Qingxuan specifically added, "Chang Sheng and Chen Jie's people will definitely try to manipulate the draw so you run into strong enemies early on. You need to be prepared to face tough battles in the early rounds of the elimination tournament."

Li Hanshan noted them down one by one, memorizing the names and cultivation levels. Zhang Qingxuan and Wu Zhengqing then explained the registration process and timelines before leaving Qingfeng Hall with their respective disciples. Soon, only Li Hanshan and Ye Shuanghua remained in the hall.

Ye Shuanghua walked to the palace entrance, gazing at the faint outlines of the mountains in the distant sea of ​​clouds. After a moment of silence, as if remembering something, she said, "Since you're going to participate in the competition, you need to consolidate your cultivation." She didn't turn around. "Go back to your cave and cultivate first. I need to talk to you later."

Li Hanshan watched her figure standing in the morning light, asked no further questions, clasped his hands in a salute, and then left Qingfeng Palace.

After returning to his cave, he didn't rush to cultivate. Instead, he took out the dark blue-green pill that Zhang Qingxuan had given him and examined it carefully. The pill was perfectly round, and the medicinal power it emitted was gentle and lingering, clearly a high-grade pill for strengthening the body and nourishing the vital energy.

He carefully put away the pills, sat cross-legged, and was about to begin sorting through the information he had gathered about his opponents that day when a slight fluctuation of spiritual energy came from outside the cave. Li Hanshan got up and pushed open the stone door. Ye Shuanghua was standing on the stone platform, dressed in a silver-white outfit, her long hair tied in a high ponytail. Her clear, cold eyes fell on him, like a spring in a mountain stream illuminated by moonlight. She didn't speak, but stepped aside to let him through the cave door and walked straight in.

Li Hanshan followed her back into the cave, where the stone door closed behind them.

Ye Shuanghua walked to the stone bed, stopped, and turned to look at him. When she spoke, her tone remained as flat as ever, leaving no room for discernment of her emotions: "What do you want to do?"

"Dual cultivation," Li Hanshan said frankly, walking up to her. "There's still a month until the competition. Senior sister, please help me break through to the seventh level of the Nascent Soul stage as soon as possible."

Ye Shuanghua lowered her eyes, her cold and aloof face showing little expression. She remained silent for a few moments, then finally raised her hand to untie the belt around her waist. Her silver-white outer robe slipped to the ground, folded into a pile, revealing the plain white inner garment underneath.

She walked to the stone couch and sat down without saying a word, but her posture said it all.

Li Hanshan sat down beside her and put his arm around her waist. This time, there was less tension and more understanding between them. Although Ye Shuanghua's body still tensed slightly when he touched her, she quickly relaxed, allowing his pure yang energy to seep into her dantian along her meridians.

As Ye Shuanghua felt the warm spiritual energy coursing through her meridians, she suddenly whispered, "If you keep doing this, I'll drain you dry."