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

Deep inside the main hall, a towering bronze gate, several meters high, blocked the way.

The colossal gate was cast entirely from an unknown bronze, its surface covered with densely packed runes, most of which had faded and lost their luster, with only a few still shimmering faintly. On either side of the gate stood a stone beast, shaped like a qilin but with three eyes; though stone sculptures, they exuded a chilling aura of power.

Leng Yue stopped before the massive gate and cast a spell. The silvery-white light struck the bronze gate, only to be deflected by an invisible barrier. She tried several more times, but each spell was easily neutralized by the barrier, leaving not a trace.

"I've tried countless times, but I can't break it." She withdrew her hand, her tone calm, but her gaze fell on Li Hanshan.

Li Hanshan stepped forward and placed his hand on the massive bronze gate. A chilling sensation traveled through his palm, followed by an extremely subtle fluctuation of spiritual energy. He probed into it with his divine sense, only to find that the restriction was like a labyrinth, layer upon layer, unfathomable in its depths.

A thought suddenly struck him.

The patterns on this restriction bore a striking resemblance to the ancient formations he had learned from Luo Li in his dream. Although the runes were more ancient and complex, the three core basic runes—"Suppress," "Gather," and "Defend"—were exactly the same as those Luo Li had taught him.

Luo Li once said that the core of ancient formations lies in the resonance between runes. If one can find the location of the formation's eye and strike it with a specific spiritual energy frequency, one can overcome force with skill. She mentioned it casually at the time and even drew a similar restriction on an animal skin scroll as a demonstration. The restriction used in that demonstration and the restriction on the bronze giant gate before them were clearly the same method.

Could the technique the girl taught him to break the restrictions here be able to lift them?

Li Hanshan was shocked. Even Nascent Soul cultivators might not be able to break through the restrictions here, so how could Luo Li do it?

Who exactly is this girl?

He suppressed his surprise and doubt, probed his dantian with his divine sense, and at the same time circulated his divine sense and spiritual power. Following the method of breaking the seal taught by Luo Li, he condensed his divine sense into an invisible cone as thin as a hair and slowly pierced into the restriction of the bronze giant gate.

The runes within the restriction were layered upon each other, but Luo Li's method of breaking it was like an incredibly precise key. Her divine sense spike pushed inch by inch along the gaps between the runes, and wherever it passed, the dim runes lit up and emitted a buzzing tremor.

Leng Yue stood to the side, watching quietly. A hint of surprise flashed in her eyes, but she quickly suppressed it. She didn't ask, but silently observed Li Hanshan's techniques. The techniques were extremely ancient, completely different from the methods of breaking restrictions in the current cultivation world. Each incantation contained some ancient law that she had never seen before.

Suddenly, the runes on the bronze gate lit up simultaneously, bursting forth with a blinding light. After the light dissipated, the invisible barrier slowly vanished, and the bronze gate, with a muffled rumble, slowly opened to both sides.

An ancient and weathered aura emanated from behind the door, mingled with a rich spiritual energy and a faint, almost imperceptible, smell of blood. Behind the door was a deep, secluded corridor, its stone walls inlaid with luminous pearls that emitted a cold, eerie glow in the darkness.

Leng Yue's gaze fell on the long corridor, and she suddenly spoke.

"The technique you just used to break the restrictions is not a method of the Joyful Union Sect."

Her voice was calm, yet her tone carried a certain certainty. Her silver-gray eyes were fixed on Li Hanshan, as if looking at an unfathomable mystery.

Li Hanshan did not turn around, but simply said, "There are countless martial arts techniques in the world, and the Hehuan Sect is but a drop in the ocean."

Leng Yue didn't ask any more questions. She looked at Li Hanshan's back, a thoughtful look flashing in her eyes, then lowered her head and silently followed behind him.

At the end of the long corridor stood an even more magnificent hall. In the center of the hall stood a huge stone tablet, with three ancient characters engraved on it: "Northern Wilderness Sword Sect". On the base below the stone tablet, densely packed smaller characters recorded the history of the Northern Wilderness Sword Sect.

Li Hanshan walked closer to take a closer look.

The Northern Wilderness Sword Sect was once the strongest sword-cultivating sect in the Northern Wilderness. At its peak, it boasted no fewer than ten Nascent Soul cultivators and hundreds of Core Formation cultivators. However, during a great calamity thousands of years ago, the Northern Wilderness Sword Sect was invaded by extraterrestrial demons. Its protective array finally collapsed after a century of relentless attacks. All the sect's cultivators perished in battle, and the sect's gate was destroyed. Only this sword pavilion, hidden in a secret realm, remained, preserved to this day thanks to the final Nascent Soul elder who used his life's cultivation to set up a protective barrier.

"Extraterrestrial Demons..." Li Hanshan frowned slightly. He had heard this name once from Luo Li, but she had only mentioned it casually without elaborating. Now it seemed that these extraterrestrial demons were no ordinary monsters, but a catastrophe capable of destroying even a Nascent Soul sect.

His gaze fell upon a stone platform behind the monument. Floating on the platform was a broken sword, only half its blade remaining, the cut smooth as a mirror, as if it had been bitten off by something. Two ancient seal characters, "Slaying the Heavens," were engraved on the blade. Even after thousands of years of erosion, the broken sword still radiated an extremely sharp sword intent; just standing several feet away made one's skin ache.

The swordsmanship of the Northern Wilderness Sword Sect was once renowned throughout the world. Now, only this broken sword remains, hanging forlornly on the stone platform, forgotten by the world in this dark and sunless secret realm.

Around the main hall, there are several tightly closed stone doors. Each stone door is engraved with runes in the same style as the bronze gates, but the complexity varies.

Li Hanshan walked towards the leftmost stone door and probed it with his divine sense. The core of the restriction on this door was a "seal" incantation. It was the variant rune that Luo Li had taught him a few months ago. He followed the example and opened the stone door after a moment.

Behind the door was a small stone chamber. In the center of the chamber floated an ancient scroll made of animal hide, next to which lay a storage ring. Li Hanshan stepped forward, picked up the scroll, and unfolded it. On it was drawn an ancient map. On the map were four ancient seal characters: "Extraterritorial Battlefield."

The extraterritorial battlefield? The Northern Wilderness Sword Sect was destroyed by the extraterritorial demons. Where is this extraterritorial battlefield marked on the map? Li Hanshan put away the animal skin scroll and storage ring and walked towards the second stone door.

And so, the two opened seven or eight stone doors in the main hall. Each stone door had a different restriction, but the core runes were all the same basic runes that Luo Li had taught them.

Leng Yue followed behind him, carefully collecting the jade slips and magical artifacts they had plundered along the way. She remained silent throughout, but each time she saw Li Hanshan easily break through a restriction that even she couldn't overcome, a hint of undisguised surprise would flash in her eyes. She was increasingly unable to understand this old man. He held more secrets than she had imagined.

Upon reaching the last stone door, Li Hanshan opened it and retrieved an ancient scroll and a long, jet-black sword. He unrolled the scroll; most of it was incomplete, but the opening lines sent a shiver down his spine.

"The way of the sword is limitless, wielded by the spirit. Divine consciousness is the sword, capable of cleaving the heavens and splitting the earth."

This is exactly the same as the spiritual attack technique he cultivated, and in some ways even identical.

Li Hanshan carefully put away the ancient scroll and the black longsword, then stood up. He surveyed the dilapidated hall, his mind churning with countless questions. The Northern Wilderness Sword Sect, the extraterritorial battlefield, and the barrier-breaking techniques and spiritual attack techniques that the girl had taught him... everything pointed in the same direction. The girl must have some connection with the Northern Wilderness Sword Sect, and she might even have been to this secret realm herself. Otherwise, there was no way to explain why she was so familiar with the restrictions here, nor could there be any way to explain why the techniques she taught him were so compatible with the Northern Wilderness Sword Sect's heritage.

But the girl never mentioned the Northern Wilderness Sword Sect to him. She said she was a disciple of the Yao Guang Sect, and what she taught him were just scattered ancient techniques. If she really had a connection with the Northern Wilderness Sword Sect, why didn't she just tell him directly?