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

"Aside from someone with a pure yang body like you who needs to do that, other 'replenishment furnaces' don't necessarily require that, but the effects will be much weaker."

At this point, Hua Nongying gave a wry smile: "I have no choice but to accept this. My talent is not as good as hers. If I don't use her as a cultivation vessel at all, my cultivation will not improve at all. In the end, I will become the one who becomes the cultivation vessel."

Li Hanshan understood.

No wonder this demoness was able to drain so many furnaces even though it was her first time.

"So, Liu Ruoxue thinks you've changed," Li Hanshan said. "She thinks you've become one of those vixens from the Hehuan Sect."

"Yes." Hua Nongying nodded, a hint of sadness flashing in her eyes. "Her enemies are the kind of people who will stop at nothing to cultivate, so what she hates most is this kind of behavior. In her eyes, my choice of that cultivation method is a betrayal."

She paused, her voice lower: "And... I even stopped her from taking revenge."

"What happened?"

"Once, her enemy was seriously injured, and his cultivation level dropped drastically. She wanted to take advantage of the situation to attack, but I stopped her."

"Why?" Li Hanshan asked.

Hua Nongying rolled her eyes: "Her enemy is a Golden Core cultivator! Even if he was seriously injured, he's not someone a Qi Refining cultivator could ambush. She was only at the eighth level of Qi Refining at that time; rushing in would have been suicide. I stopped her because I didn't want her to die in vain."

She sighed, "But she wouldn't listen to my explanation at all. She thought I was afraid of being implicated by her, that I was a coward. From then on, she completely broke off relations with me."

Golden Core! Another Golden Core!

After listening, Li Hanshan remained silent for a long time.

He finally understood.

The grudge between Liu Ruoxue and Hua Nongying was not a deep-seated hatred, but rather a series of misunderstandings that eventually escalated into an adversarial relationship.

In Liu Ruoxue's eyes, Hua Nongying betrayed their friendship and became the kind of person she hated most.

In Hua Nongying's eyes, everything she did was to become stronger and to survive in the Hehuan Sect. Her stopping Liu Ruoxue was also genuinely for her own good.

But Liu Ruoxue wouldn't appreciate it.

Because she hated it so much.

She hated the cultivator who killed her entire family, hated the Hehuan Sect, that cannibalistic den of demons, and hated all those who would stop at nothing to cultivate.

Hua Nongying chose that path, which, in her view, meant standing on the opposite side of her.

"Then what do you do now..." Li Hanshan looked at Hua Nongying.

"Now?"

Hua Nongying smiled bitterly and shook her head: "There's no going back between us. She hates me, and I'm too lazy to explain. Anyway, there are no true friends in the Hehuan Sect."

As she spoke, her tone suddenly became lighter, and a smile returned to her face: "Let's not talk about her anymore. Hanlang, if you sleep with her, she'll probably hate you to death."

"That's right," Li Hanshan sighed. "She wanted to kill me."

"Did she take action?"

"no."

"That settles it," Hua Nongying said with a smile. "If she really wanted to kill you, she would have done it already. The fact that she didn't means that you are different from other men in her heart."

Li Hanshan remained silent.

He recalled the look in Liu Ruoxue's eyes when she learned of his decision to save the town, and the subtle changes in her attitude afterward.

Indeed, since then, although she still had a cold face, that chilling killing intent had faded considerably.

"She's not a demoness from the Hehuan Sect," Hua Nongying suddenly said seriously. "She has a sense of justice, and she only joined the Hehuan Sect to seek revenge. Hanlang, she may not say it, but she definitely agrees with your decision to save that town."

Li Hanshan nodded.

He began to understand Liu Ruoxue somewhat.

Anyone who witnessed their mother being sexually exploited and killed by a man would hate men and the Hehuan Sect to the core.

It's already a remarkable thing that she didn't become that kind of monster who indiscriminately kills innocent people.

"Oh, right, that Deacon Lu, and Wu Tianxiong..."

Hua Nongying suddenly remembered something, and her expression turned serious.

Li Hanshan recounted the betrayal by Steward Lu, the slander by Wu Tianxiong, and the public killing of Zhou Qingyun by Wu Zhanlong.

Hua Nongying's face turned ashen after hearing this.

"Wu Zhanlong actually dared to kill someone to silence them right in front of Elder Jiang? Isn't he afraid that Elder Jiang will report him to the sect leader?"

"What's there to be afraid of?" Li Hanshan sneered. "Zhou Qingyun is nothing but a ghost. Who would offend a Golden Core elder for a ghost?"

Hua Nongying fell silent.

She knew Li Hanshan was right.

In the Hehuan Sect, strength is everything. Wu Zhanlong is a Golden Core cultivator, so he has the right to be unreasonable.

"Deacon Lu is also a problem," Hua Nongying said, frowning. "If he's not dead, he'll most likely cause you trouble when he gets back."

"I know," Li Hanshan said calmly. "That's why I plan to apply to become a core disciple before they return."

Hua Nongying's eyes lit up.

"That's right! Once you become a core disciple, your status will be different. Even if Wu Zhanlong and Deacon Lu want to deal with you, they won't dare to do so openly within the sect."

"Let's go."

Li Hanshan stood up.

The two left the cave and flew towards the Inner Affairs Hall, which was higher up on the main peak.

The Inner Affairs Hall is responsible for the inner sect examinations and promotions of disciples. It is located on a cliff halfway up the main peak. The hall gate is more magnificent than the Outer Affairs Hall, and is made entirely of white jade. Two stone beasts stand in front of the gate, baring their teeth and claws, lifelike.

Inside the hall, a man in a blue robe was meditating.

Noticing someone enter, he opened his eyes, his gaze sweeping over Li Hanshan, a look of deep surprise appearing in his eyes.

"You've actually reached the Foundation Establishment stage?"

The man in the blue robe was none other than Fu Jianfeng, an inner sect steward.

"Yes." Li Hanshan clasped his hands in a fist salute. "Disciple Li Hanshan requests promotion to core disciple."

Fu Jianfeng concealed the surprise in his eyes, took out a bronze mirror, and gestured for Li Hanshan to place his hand on it.

Li Hanshan did as instructed.

The bronze mirror lit up, then dimmed again after a moment.

"It's definitely Foundation Establishment." Fu Jianfeng's tone was somewhat amazed. "You're a hundred-year-old man, but you do have some skill."

He took out a golden token from his sleeve and handed it to Li Hanshan.

"From this day forward, you are a core disciple of the Hehuan Sect. Core disciples are still considered inner disciples, but their cave dwellings, monthly stipends, and privileges are all one level higher than those of ordinary inner disciples. For specific details, please refer to the jade slip when you return."

"Thank you, senior."

Li Hanshan took the token and felt its weight in his hand.

The token was entirely golden, with the characters "Hehuan" engraved on the front and his name and promotion date on the back. Spiritual energy faintly flowed within the token, and it seemed to contain some kind of restriction.

He put away the token and left the Inner Affairs Hall with Hua Nongying.

"Hanlang, you are now a core disciple!"

Hua Nongying linked arms with him, laughing even more heartily than he was.

She tiptoed and gently breathed into his ear, her voice sweet and soft: "I missed you~"

Li Hanshan's heart skipped a beat.

The two returned to their cave dwelling, and Hua Nongying closed the stone door and activated all the restrictions.

That night, Hua Nongying was more passionate than ever before. As if she wanted to vent all the fear and anxiety of the past few days, she used all her charm to pester Li Hanshan for sex again and again.

Li Hanshan naturally accepted all comers.

After achieving the Heavenly Dao Foundation Establishment, his physical strength far surpassed that of before, and his Pure Yang Meridian ensured that his Pure Yang Qi was inexhaustible. The two remained entwined for an entire night.

As dawn broke, Hua Nongying leaned wearily against him and fell into a deep sleep.

Li Hanshan, however, did not sleep.

He looked down at the stunningly beautiful face in his arms, and a complex and indescribable emotion welled up in his heart.

This vixen initially wanted to drain him dry.

She was later subdued by him and became his female slave.

Later, she kept acting, trying to control him with her charm, but he saw through her act.

She only truly submitted when the Yangwen flower opened to its third petal.

But now, there was something different in the way she looked at him.

Is it genuine emotion, or a more sophisticated disguise?

Li Hanshan didn't know.

But what he knew was that in the Hehuan Sect, which was known for its ruthless and man-eating nature, it was always a good thing that someone was genuinely kind to him.

Even if this sincerity is only a little bit.