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

Above the swamp, that chilling aura had already approached within ten miles. The grayish-white mist, as if stirred by an invisible giant hand, surged and retreated to both sides, revealing a hunched figure. A gray robe fluttered in the wind, and the dry well rune on the hem of the robe gleamed with a cold light. His cloudy eyes held scrutiny and greed.

Grandma Yin.

Li Hanshan stood on a withered tree at the edge of the swamp, his aura completely concealed, as if he had merged with the surrounding withered wood. His gaze fell on the figure rapidly approaching, his mind quickly calculating the difference in strength between himself and the opponent. Second level of the Nascent Soul stage, seemingly even more stable than when they last met, followed by three silver corpses, each radiating an oppressive aura comparable to a peak Nascent Soul cultivator.

"Senior," Xiao An's voice came, tinged with urgency, "the Yin meridians in this Yin acupoint are several times larger than the previous ones. I need at least three more hours to fully absorb the essence."

Three hours. Li Hanshan silently counted the hours in his mind, his gaze still fixed on the approaching figure. He didn't turn around, nor did he hesitate, only replying with his divine sense: "You absorb it in peace. I'll buy you some time."

As soon as he finished speaking, he leaped from the withered tree, his pure Yang energy exploding around him. Purple-gold flames, like an erupting volcano, enveloped him completely. Instead of retreating into the depths of the swamp, he charged headlong into the approaching figure, like a moth drawn to a flame, deliberately running into the hunter's net.

Granny Yin hovered in mid-air, her turbid eyes narrowing slightly as she watched the streak of purplish-gold fire burst forth from the edge of the swamp. She had assumed something had happened within the Yin Cave to trigger the sensory barriers she had placed nearby. Unexpectedly, a familiar figure emerged—the little old man from the Hehuan Sect.

"Boy, you dare to cause trouble on my turf?" Granny Yin's voice was hoarse and cold. Her withered fingers clenched slightly in her sleeve, and gray spiritual power was silently gathering in her palm. "You got away last time, but you won't be so lucky this time."

Li Hanshan steadied himself a hundred feet away from her, pure Yang fire quietly burning around him, its purplish-gold light casting a warm glow on the surrounding gray-white mist. He spoke, his tone somewhat nonchalant: "Oh? So this area is your territory? I thought your influence was much greater, but I didn't expect you to only manage such a small place."

Granny Yin's expression darkened slightly. She didn't act immediately; her cloudy eyes swept over Li Hanshan twice, sensing the aura contained within the purple-gold flames surrounding him. After a moment, her brow twitched almost imperceptibly.

"Ninth level of Nascent Soul?" Her voice carried a hint of barely suppressed surprise. "You were only at the third level of Nascent Soul last time, and in just a few years... you've broken through six levels?"

Her gaze grew increasingly greedy, as if she were eyeing a rapidly ripening fruit. "Very well. The higher one's cultivation level, the higher the grade of the Corpse Demon one can refine. A Pure Yang Sacred Body at the ninth level of the Nascent Soul stage, once refined into a Silver Corpse, would probably be able to withstand even a mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivator."

Without another word, she raised her hand and pointed. The three half-step silver corpses behind her moved simultaneously, their silver-gray figures like three silent bolts of lightning, rushing towards Li Hanshan from three directions at the same time. Their claws tore through the air, creating a sharp whistling sound, and Yin energy condensed into fine gray patterns at their tips.

Li Hanshan was prepared. He did not retreat; the pure yang fire condensed into a thick fire shield in his palm, and he slammed it into the silver corpse that was rushing towards him.

The moment the fire shield collided with the silver corpse's claws, a blinding purple-gold light exploded. The scorching heat caused the Yin energy on the silver corpse's claws to hiss and emit puffs of white smoke. The silver corpse was forced back several steps by the impact, and a small scorch mark appeared on the silver-gray runes on its claws.

The attacks from the other two half-step silver corpses landed simultaneously from his side and behind.

Li Hanshan's figure blurred, a burst of purple-gold flame erupting beneath his feet. He shot out like an arrow through the gap between the two silver corpses, his fire shield flipping in the air, precisely blocking the first half-step silver corpse's claws. But the second half-step silver corpse's attack came too fast. He dodged to the side, narrowly avoiding a fatal blow, the claws grazing his left arm, tearing a hole in his robe and revealing the pale golden skin beneath.

Nine Revolutions Golden Body Technique.

During his years at the Hehuan Sect, he had never neglected this body-refining technique. Although he had only cultivated it to the second stage, his physical strength already far surpassed that of ordinary Nascent Soul cultivators. The claw mark only lightly scratched the skin, and not much blood even seeped out.

Granny Yin frowned even more deeply. She had originally thought that even if the three half-step silver corpses joined forces, they could at least severely injure the old man, if not immediately defeat him.

However, the opponent's reaction speed and physical strength were far greater than she had expected. What concerned her even more was that the old man maintained a calm demeanor throughout the breaks in the battle, without panicking or rushing to break through. Instead, it seemed as if he was deliberately pulling the battlefield away from the swamp.

She sensed the underground—the Yin energy channels deep within the swamp were drying up at an abnormal rate, as if something were draining its essence from the bottom. The rate of absorption far exceeded natural consumption, clearly indicating that someone below was plundering it with all their might.

A cold glint flashed in Granny Yin's cloudy eyes. Her Yin acupoint had been breached. But when her gaze returned to Li Hanshan, that coldness was quickly suppressed by an even more fervent greed. The Yin acupoint could be rebuilt, and the Yin meridians could be allowed to recover slowly, but once the opportunity to obtain a Pure Yang Saint Body at the ninth level of the Nascent Soul stage was missed, who knew when the next chance would come?

She withdrew her senses, no longer paying attention to the situation underground, and unleashed a burst of spiritual energy at the three half-step silver corpses, intensifying her attack.

At the same time, her trump card, a silver corpse, was unleashed and attacked Li Hanshan.

Li Hanshan sensed that she had given up exploring the underground, and felt relieved.

He dodged the silver corpse's attack again, and with a fierce swing of his broken sword, he cleaved an attacking half-step silver corpse in two!

"My silver corpse!"

Granny Yin was furious, but also heartbroken.

Although it was a half-step silver corpse, it took her countless efforts to create it, and yet Li Hanshan killed it just like that.

Startled, she quickly retrieved the other half-step silver corpses.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, flames exploded beneath Li Hanshan's feet, and he sped off towards the northeast at a pace that was neither too fast nor too slow, just enough for Granny Yin to see his movements without her catching up immediately.

As expected, Granny Yin did not hesitate. She snorted coldly and transformed into a streak of gray light to chase after her.

"So what if your broken sword is sharp? This time, you won't escape again!"

She didn't want to give the old man any more chances to escape; a pure Yang holy body at the ninth level of the Nascent Soul stage was worth far more than all the accumulation of a Yin cave.