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

Three days later, in front of the Hall of External Affairs.

Li Hanshan stood in a row with several other disciples who were also taking the assessment. He received the Heart-Eating Pill from Deacon Lu and swallowed it. The icy sensation of the poison pill entering his throat was all too familiar to him.

"Hanlang, take care."

Hua Nongying stood not far away, her red dress fluttering gently in the morning breeze.

Li Hanshan nodded to her, summoned his flying sword, and soared into the sky.

Before long, Li Hanshan flew out of the Hehuan Sect and appeared before him the Ten Thousand Mountains.

The Monster Mountain Range refers to a massive mountain range stretching for tens of thousands of miles within the Hundred Thousand Mountains. Its outer perimeter is mostly inhabited by first-tier monsters, while second-tier monsters are common in its depths, and third-tier monsters also occasionally appear.

After flying for most of the day, the outline of the Monster Mountain Range appeared on the horizon. It was a vast and desolate mountain range with ancient trees reaching the sky and vines like dragons. Occasionally, the roars of monsters could be heard from the depths of the dense forest.

Li Hanshan landed on the outer edge of the mountain range, his divine sense probing forward, covering an area of ​​several thousand feet. He detected some first-tier demonic beasts.

He ignored it and flew straight into the depths of the mountains.

On the first day, he found a late-stage second-tier black-scaled python. The giant python was coiled on a withered old tree, its body as thick as a water bucket, its scales gleaming with a cold metallic sheen. Li Hanshan launched a sneak attack using the Flowing Light Sword Technique, piercing its skull through its eye socket with a single strike. The first inner core was in his hands.

The next day, a Crimson Flame Tiger appeared. This beast was alert; it sensed the approaching sword the moment it was drawn and dodged to the side. But Li Hanshan was prepared. A fireball struck it precisely in the face, the pure Yang fire burning through its skull in a single blow. The second inner core was obtained.

On the third day, the two Ironback Wolves joined forces and, after some effort, obtained the third and fourth inner cores.

On the fifth day, he hunted and killed a late-stage Tier 2 Blue-eyed Water Ape by a pool.

Five days, five inner cores.

"Easier than I imagined."

Li Hanshan sat on a branch of an ancient tree and put the fifth inner core into his storage bag. At this rate, he could collect ten in just a few days.

He paused briefly to catch his breath and continued flying deeper into the mountains.

After flying for about half an hour, a violent surge of spiritual energy suddenly came from ahead, mixed with the roar of a demonic beast.

A thought struck Li Hanshan, and he concealed his aura, quietly sneaking over.

Deep in the dense forest, amidst a grove of trees ravaged by violence, several enormous demonic beasts formed a circle, relentlessly attacking a small white figure in the center.

Those were five second-tier demonic beasts—two jet-black leopards, a giant lizard covered in bone armor, and two large gray eagles with wingspans several meters. Five second-tier beasts, including two late-stage second-tier ones, enough to make any Foundation Establishment cultivator give way.

The target of the attack was a small animal, only the size of a house cat.

The little beast was pure white, fluffy, and looked like a newly weaned fox cub, except for a tuft of pale golden fur on its forehead. Its movements were incredibly agile, dodging left and right under the attack of the five demonic beasts, narrowly avoiding fatal blows each time.

But it's too small after all.

A blade of wind grazed its hind leg, instantly staining its snow-white fur with a streak of crimson. The little beast let out a low wail, its movements a fraction of a second slower, and the two giant eagles immediately swooped down, their sharp talons reaching for its head.

"A good opportunity."

With all five demonic beasts focused on the little beast, it was the perfect opportunity to launch a sneak attack.

With a thought, Li Hanshan's flying sword transformed into a streak of light and silently darted out.

Flowing Light Sword Technique!

The sword light was as fast as lightning. Before the black panther could react, it was pierced through the back of the head by the flying sword and died on the spot.

"roar!"

The other black panther suddenly turned around, its eerie green eyes fixed on the direction where Li Hanshan was hiding. But its reaction was too slow—a fireball had already flown to its face, the pure yang fire exploding with a bang, burning it so badly that it howled and rolled away.

Seeing the situation was dire, the two giant eagles flapped their wings, ready to soar into the sky. But a beam of black light flew out from Li Hanshan's sleeve, transforming into the form of Xiao An. She formed hand seals, and Yin energy transformed into two chains, tightly binding the wings of one of the giant eagles. At the same time, Li Hanshan's flying sword pierced the chest of the other giant eagle.

In just a few breaths, four of the five second-tier demonic beasts died.

Seeing that things were not going well, the giant lizard turned and fled, disappearing into the depths of the dense forest in the blink of an eye.

Li Hanshan did not pursue them. He emerged from his hiding place and extracted the inner cores of the four demonic beasts one by one, two of which were at the late stage of the second tier.

This unexpected gain brought his number of inner cores to seven.

"Three more are needed."

He had just put away the inner core when he suddenly felt something rubbing against his feet.

Looking down, he saw the snow-white little beast squatting at his feet, its head tilted back, its big black eyes curiously observing him. Blood was still seeping from its right hind leg, but it seemed completely unconcerned, instead sticking out its pink little tongue to lick his boot.

Li Hanshan was stunned.

This little thing, isn't it afraid of him?

"You're not shy at all." He crouched down and examined the little beast's injuries. The wound caused by the wind blade wasn't too deep, so he took out some medicinal powder and sprinkled it on.

The little animal obediently let him bandage it, but its eyes remained fixed on his face, as if trying to memorize his appearance.

"Alright, let's go." Li Hanshan stood up and waved his hand.

The little beast remained crouched in place, watching him without moving.

Li Hanshan paid no attention and summoned his flying sword to leave. But as soon as he took off, the little beast turned into a white light and jumped onto his shoulder. Then it naturally lay down and its fluffy tail brushed against his neck.

"you--"

Li Hanshan was both amused and exasperated. Just as he was about to lift it down, his expression suddenly changed drastically.

An extremely terrifying aura emanated from the deepest part of the mountain range.

The aura was vast and violent, carrying an arrogant and ferocious air. Even a wisp of its aftershock, which swept over from afar, made Li Hanshan, a cultivator at the sixth level of the Foundation Establishment stage, feel suffocated.

Tier 3 monster!

Moreover, it is an extremely terrifying existence among the third tier!

Even more terrifying was that the aura was approaching him at an alarming speed. Wherever it passed, all the beasts in the mountains and forests fell silent, even the chirping of insects disappeared, and the entire world seemed to be filled only with that terrifying pressure.

Without a second thought, Li Hanshan activated his flying sword with all his might and flew towards the outer edge of the mountain range.

"Eee!"

The little beast on my shoulder suddenly cried out twice and pointed in a direction with its tiny paws. The sound was clear and melodious, like the clinking of some kind of jade.

Li Hanshan glanced down at it, hesitating for a moment. This little beast had just been attacked by five second-tier monsters, and now a third-tier monster was charging towards it—why did this attack seem to be aimed at it?

"Eeeee!" The little beast pointed in that direction again, its little paws gripping his collar, its bright black eyes filled with anxiety.

Li Hanshan gritted his teeth, changed direction, and flew off along the route indicated by the little beast.

I can't worry about anything else, I need to escape first.

The flying sword sped through the forest, but the terrifying aura behind him drew ever closer. Li Hanshan pushed his spiritual power to its limit, unleashing a series of fire escape techniques, his figure flashing through the dense forest, each movement covering dozens of feet.

But the presence behind them was still closing in.

That third-tier demonic beast was incredibly fast.

Just then, the small beast on his shoulder suddenly emitted a faint light. The light was pale gold, emanating from the tuft of golden fur on its forehead, enveloping Li Hanshan.

Li Hanshan felt his body lighten, and the speed of his flying sword suddenly increased by nearly twice!

"This is......"

He didn't have time to think it through and seized the opportunity to escape at full speed.

Using his Fire Release technique in conjunction with his increased speed, his figure became a blurry afterimage in the dense forest, covering dozens of miles in just a few breaths.

The terrifying aura behind them gradually receded into the distance.

After flying for another half an hour, that aura completely disappeared from the range of perception.

Li Hanshan then slowed down and landed in a secluded mountain stream, panting heavily. The continuous high-intensity flight had depleted most of his spiritual energy, and he felt a faint emptiness in his dantian.

He sat down against the stone wall, about to take the Qi-replenishing pill, when the little beast on his shoulder jumped down first, landed on his knees, and looked up at him.