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

The flying boat glided through the sea of ​​clouds. Qin Muyue stood at the bow, the mountain breeze ruffling her long hair and tattered purple dress. She turned to glance at Li Hanshan, who sat cross-legged at the stern.

Qin Muyue was filled with curiosity about this old man, wanting to know what secrets he held.

That's why they were able to rise to prominence in such a short time.

Her submission was, to some extent, a pragmatic move, since Li Hanshan's strength at that time was not yet powerful enough to suppress everything.

Qin Muyue focused on controlling the flying boat.

Several days later, the flying boat passed through the protective array and landed in the plaza in front of the sect's main hall. Qin Muyue went to hand in her mission to the Third Elder, while Li Hanshan went straight back to Hua Nongying's cave.

The stone door opened, and that familiar red figure was the first to rush forward. Hua Nongying wrapped her arms around his neck, clinging to him, completely disregarding the presence of outsiders. The so-called "outsider" was, of course, Yun Shuyue. She stood by the stone bed, a helpless smile on her face, yet she seemed used to it.

"Han Lang, why have you been gone for so long!" Hua Nongying said coquettishly, then she realized something, her eyes widened suddenly, and she looked him up and down with her beautiful eyes. Her voice changed, "You, you've broken through to the Golden Core stage?!"

"Mm." Li Hanshan nodded.

Hua Nongying gasped, then smiled even more broadly than when she herself had broken through to the Golden Core stage. She tiptoed and kissed him on the cheek, then turned and waved to Yun Shuyue, "Senior Sister Yun, come quick! Hanlang has broken through to the Golden Core stage!"

Yun Shuyue walked over, a hint of surprise flashing in her cool eyes. Unlike Hua Nongying, she wasn't outwardly expressive; she simply said "Congratulations" softly, but the smile in her eyes and brows was undeniable.

"I will assist you in your cultivation these next few days," Li Hanshan said directly.

Hua Nongying and Yun Shuyue exchanged a glance, and joy appeared on their faces at the same time.

For the next two months, Li Hanshan hardly left his house.

After breaking through to the Golden Core stage, his pure Yang energy became several times more refined, and the effect was astonishing when he fed it back to the two women through the Yang Pattern Flower Petals.

Hua Nongying broke through to the eighth level of Foundation Establishment in one fell swoop, while Yun Shuyue broke through several realms within a month, reaching the peak of the sixth level of Foundation Establishment. Such speed would be terrifying for any core disciple of the Hehuan Sect, but the two women were already used to it. Following Li Hanshan, cultivation level was never a problem.

During a break in his seclusion, Li Hanshan entered the dream world again. This time, he was more experienced and adjusted his divine sense to its optimal state beforehand. As soon as he entered the dream, he began to try to stabilize its boundaries. The invisible membrane gradually solidified under the influence of his divine sense, and the dream's duration was extended to about a month once more. Luo Li arrived before him again, and the two sat by the river, unfolding the ancient scroll made of animal hide, continuing to study the ancient formations.

"Grandpa, look at this 'Seal' character." Luo Li pointed to a newly unlocked array pattern on the ancient scroll. "It's a variant of the 'Suppress' character, specifically used to seal the array's core, preventing external enemies from breaking through from the inside. When used together with the 'Defend' character, the defensive power can be tripled."

Li Hanshan stared intently. The runes were far more complex than the three he had learned before, their strokes twisting and turning like snakes, each turn containing some profound law of power. He tried to draw them himself, but his spiritual energy went out of control after just the third stroke, and the entire array exploded into a ball of spiritual light. Luo Li was covered in golden fragments from the explosion, but she wasn't annoyed at all; instead, she giggled.

"Grandpa, don't worry. It took me three months to learn this rune and I barely managed to draw it. This is your first time trying, so it's normal for it to explode." She reached out to brush the debris off his shoulder and then redraw the array diagram, showing it to him stroke by stroke.

And so, one taught and the other learned, and another month passed unnoticed in their dream world. Li Hanshan's understanding of ancient formations gradually deepened from the basics, and he could now barely set up a complete second-tier defensive formation. Although he was still far from Luo Li's level, it was a world of difference compared to when he first started learning.

After waking from his dream, Li Hanshan continued to devote himself to "cultivating" the girls. Hua Nongying and Yun Shuyue's cultivation levels steadily increased, and he would occasionally help Liu Ruoxue by using the Yangwen petals to push her cultivation level to the eighth level of Foundation Establishment.

The ice cube remained indifferent, but when he accepted the pill, his eyes no longer held that aloofness as before. However, he also noticed a problem: the gains he made while cultivating with the women had decreased.

Each time he practiced, it was far less helpful to him than before.

He knew the reason. Cultivation at the Golden Core stage was extremely difficult, and even with the Yang Manual, each breakthrough required a massive accumulation of knowledge.

Although the cultivation levels of the three women, Hua Nongying and the others, had increased rapidly, he could no longer gain much benefit from them. This was simply unavoidable; the gap between the Golden Core and Foundation Establishment stages couldn't be bridged by sheer numbers.

Now, it's as if Li Hanshan is using his cultivation to help them.

Of course, Li Hanshan also benefited, but the benefits were far fewer than before.

If he wants to continue breaking through quickly, he will probably have to cultivate with a female Golden Core cultivator of the same level. And at present, there is only one female Golden Core cultivator he can contact: Qin Muyue.

Therefore, Li Hanshan would visit it from time to time.

With Qin Muyue's help, his cultivation level returned to normal, but at the Golden Core level, unless Li Hanshan completely disregarded Qin Muyue, his cultivation level would not improve rapidly.

Although the transition from the first to the second level of the Golden Core is merely an accumulation of power, it is, to some extent, equivalent to progressing from Qi Refining to the Golden Core stage.

Li Hanshan thus began his secluded cultivation within the Hehuan Sect.