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

Hundreds of enormous figures burst forth from the water, sending waves soaring hundreds of feet high, turning the twilight sky into a deep gray curtain of water. Snake heads, shark fins, tentacles, giant pincers—sea beasts of all shapes and sizes revealed their ferocious faces in the twilight, their bodies radiating demonic energy, their eyes all glowing with a scarlet light, fixed intently on the three people in mid-air.

Nascent Soul stage demonic beasts. They're all at the Nascent Soul stage.

Li Hanshan's divine sense swept over the dense demonic energy, roughly estimating that there were at least seventy or eighty Nascent Soul stage demonic beasts, among which five or six had particularly heavy and sharp auras, faintly reaching the peak of the Nascent Soul stage.

They surged in from all directions, forming a three-dimensional encirclement—on the water's surface, in the sea, and in mid-air, densely packed, leaving no blind spots.

The demon retreated behind the monsters, clutching his still-bleeding chest wound, a smug sneer on his face: "Youngsters, these monsters are controlled by my secret technique and have long since recognized me as their master. Today, you have no chance of escape."

He suddenly waved his hand, and dozens of Nascent Soul sea beasts pounced at the same time. A sea beast shaped like a giant python opened its mouth first, and venom shot towards the sect leader like dark green arrows.

Three sea lions covered in scales flanked him from the side, their sharp teeth gleaming coldly. Above them, a flock of monstrous birds with wingspans of several meters swooped down, their iron beaks like swords, aiming straight for Li Hanshan's head.

The sect leader's expression changed slightly, and he unleashed a series of black palm prints, knocking back the two sea beasts that were charging at the front by dozens of feet.

But there were too many monsters. After knocking back three with one palm, five more pounced from the side.

Her spiritual power was not at its peak after four days of continuous flight. Now that she was surrounded, although she was still able to deal with the situation calmly, she had to be distracted by defense and could not take the initiative to attack.

Li Hanshan condensed his pure Yang fire into a flaming longsword, slashing it across the neck of a crocodile-like monster, leaving a deep, charred gash. The monster merely howled in pain and charged at him even more ferociously. The sword rubbed against the scales, sparking a string of blinding sparks.

Although his physique was much stronger than it was half a month ago, he was still struggling under the siege of dozens of Nascent Soul demonic beasts.

"babble!"

A clear, crisp cry suddenly came from behind the beast tide.

The sound wasn't loud, but it clearly pierced through the waves and the roars of beasts, like an invisible ripple spreading across the turbulent sea.

Li Hanshan swung his sword to force back the demonic beast in front of him, then looked in the direction of the sound and suddenly stopped.

Among the densely packed demonic beasts, behind several of the largest Nascent Soul stage behemoths, a small white figure was perched atop the head of a jet-black giant shark.

It was fluffy, only the size of a house cat, with snow-white fur that shimmered softly in the twilight, and a tuft of pale golden down on its forehead that swayed gently in the evening breeze and the clamor of the beasts.

Li Hanshan was stunned.

He assumed the little beast was still hunting in the Monster Mountain Range of the Northern Wilderness, never imagining he would see it in the Endless Sea. Moreover, it was perched atop the head of a Nascent Soul Peak Monster, its posture as composed as a little emperor standing in its own territory. None of the surrounding savage and frenzied beasts dared to turn back and touch it; several even deliberately avoided it when approaching its location, as if it were the true master of this beast tide.

The little beast seemed to sense his gaze, and its fluffy little head suddenly turned around. Its pair of dark, bright eyes shone with two pale golden rays in the twilight, like two small suns suddenly ignited in the darkness.

It saw Li Hanshan's face clearly, and its small body suddenly stood up, the tuft of golden hair on its forehead suddenly bursting out with dazzling golden light.

The golden light was like a silent command, spreading outwards in all directions from its center.

"roar--"

All the monsters froze in their tracks at the same instant.

The sea beasts that were lunging at Li Hanshan and the sect leader with their gaping maws had their claws suspended in mid-air, their sharp teeth stopping just inches from the sect leader's shoulder, as if suddenly pulled back by invisible chains. The demon's spells were still in operation, but they seemed to have struck an invisible wall, unable to drive the beasts any further.

Then, they slowly turned their heads. Hundreds of scarlet eyes turned to the demon in unison.

The demon's cold smile was still frozen on his face, the curve of his lips had not yet faded, and his eyes had already shown confusion and suspicion.

He activated his magic again, attempting to regain control of the demonic beasts. His withered hands formed hand seals until his knuckles turned white, and he spat out mouthfuls of blood essence, which exploded into twisted, blood-red runes in the air. But as soon as the runes took shape, they were gently swept away by the golden light on the little beast's forehead, evaporating instantly like snowflakes falling into boiling water.

"Impossible!" the demon cried out, his voice trembling. "My Beast Control Technique! How could it be—"

The little beast leaped down from the giant shark's head like a white lightning bolt, piercing through layers of beast shadows, and landed on Li Hanshan's shoulder. It crouched down, nuzzled his neck with its little head, and let out a low, somewhat smug "ee," as if to say: Surprised? Unexpected?

Li Hanshan reached out and rubbed its little head, feeling both surprised and moved.

When he first encountered this little creature in the Monster Beast Mountain Range, it was just a tiny fellow being chased and fleeing in a sorry state by a third-tier monster. Now, however, it can command a group of Nascent Soul monsters in the Endless Sea. Even he finds this growth rate unbelievable.

"Stop him," he whispered.

The little beast let out a "ee," and the tuft of golden fur on its forehead lit up again.

Hundreds of demonic beasts moved simultaneously, like a dam bursting open, rushing towards the ashen-faced demon. The giant shark opened its serrated maw, and the venom of the sea serpent poured down like a dark green rain, while the iron beaks of the circling demonic birds pecked at his head, dozens of attacks falling at the same time.

The demon lord struggled to erect a protective shield of Yin energy, but it cracked under the first wave of impact. He hastily summoned the Myriad Souls Banner, attempting to release Yin spirits to defend himself, but the Yin spirits were torn to shreds by the claws of several demonic beasts as soon as they emerged from the banner.

The sect leader hovered in mid-air, watching the scene before him, and a rare moment of discomposure finally appeared in his eyes behind the black veil.

Her gaze lingered on the little creature perched on Li Hanshan's shoulder for a long time, then swept over the group of Nascent Soul demon beasts surrounding the demon lord. She opened her mouth, but didn't utter a single word.

She looked at Li Hanshan, her gaze incredibly complex. Just how many secrets did this old man still hold?

A Nascent Soul-level Yin Soul, a Divine Transformation-level Divine Sense, Pure Yang Fire, a Divine Infant, and now a small beast capable of commanding a beast tide—each of these alone would be enough to shake the Northern Wilderness, yet he has kept these trump cards hidden tightly, lurking in the Joyful Union Sect for over a decade without revealing the slightest flaw.

The demon's screams echoed in the twilight, only to be instantly swallowed by the roars of beasts and the crashing waves.