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

After Zhou Changfeng left, the rustling of the purple bamboo forest returned to its usual sound in the twilight. Li Hanshan picked up the silver-white communication talisman and put it into his storage ring, like placing an unopened letter deep in a drawer. Shen Yun didn't say anything, but turned and walked towards the main house, her deep purple figure casting a long silhouette in the bamboo shadows.

At dinner time, the three sat around the mahogany round table in the main room. The dishes were more lavish than usual, several spiritual dishes prepared by Shen Yun herself. The steamed fish was cooked to perfection, and the fragrance of spiritual vegetables mixed with a faint herbal aroma filled the air. Shen Qingyue sat beside Li Hanshan, her chopsticks unconsciously stirring the spiritual rice in her bowl. Occasionally, she would look up at her mother, then at Li Hanshan beside her, a slight smile playing on her lips that she herself might not even realize.

Shen Yun placed a piece of stir-fried bamboo shoots on Li Hanshan's plate, her movements so natural it seemed she had done it a thousand times before. As she put down the serving chopsticks, she spoke, her voice regaining its sect leader's steady tone: "The Heavenly Mystery Sect won't give up so easily. Zhou Changfeng will surely report back to the sect leader after he returns, and the people they send next won't be just a simple steward."

Li Hanshan picked up his teacup, took a sip, and his gaze fell on the newly replaced bottle of spirit flowers on the windowsill: "I know."

"Given the Heavenly Mystery Sect's resources, the conditions they offer will be several times higher than what the Purple Thunder Pavilion can give you." Shen Yun put down her chopsticks and looked at him with her almond-shaped eyes. "Access to the core immortal island, resources for refining high-level spirit talismans, and even talisman Dao secret manuals of the sixth rank or above—the Purple Thunder Pavilion cannot give you these things."

Her voice was neither loud nor soft, but it lacked the natural ease she had when picking up food earlier. It was like someone placing something precious on a scale to weigh it; even though she already knew the answer, she still couldn't help but confirm the weight of that one weight.

Li Hanshan put down his teacup, and could feel Shen Qingyue's quiet yet attentive gaze as she sat beside him. Her fingers lightly touched the edge of his little finger under the table, neither gripping nor loosening.

Three days later, in the afternoon, when that aura, even heavier and deeper than Zhou Changfeng's, appeared outside the gate of the Purple Thunder Pavilion, even the Purple Bamboo Forest was slightly lowered by the aftershocks of that oppressive force.

The newcomer was a Void Refinement Elder from the Heavenly Mystery Sect. He was a lean old man, dressed in a faded gray-blue robe, his figure slender as bamboo, yet each step he took carried a steady force that caused the bluestone ground to tremble slightly. His face was like a rock weathered over many years, revealing no obvious emotional fluctuations, but his deep-set eyes clearly held a composure that suggested he controlled the entire situation, like a chess player surveying a game board.

Behind him stood two deacons at the peak of the Nascent Soul stage, each concealing their aura and standing half a step to his side, like tamed falcons. When he stopped outside the Purple Thunder Pavilion's gate, he didn't even deliberately release his pressure; simply standing there was enough to make the backs of the gatekeeper disciples involuntarily tense.

When Shen Yun emerged from the main room, her deep purple dress shimmered warmly in the afternoon sunlight. She stopped before the elderly man in the grey-blue robe, clasped her hands in a respectful bow, and said, "Shen Yun, Sect Master of the Purple Thunder Pavilion, greets Senior of the Heavenly Mystery Sect. May I ask how you are addressed, Senior?"

The old man in the gray robe nodded slightly: "I am Situ Yan, an inner sect elder of the Heavenly Mystery Sect. After Zhou Changfeng returned last time, he reported Elder Li's talent in talismanic arts to the sect leader. The sect leader attached great importance to it and specially sent me here in person."

His gaze passed over Shen Yun's shoulder and landed on the figure emerging from the bamboo grove. His deep-set eyes lingered for a moment on the aura emanating from Li Hanshan.

"Elder Li." Situ Yan's voice carried a weighty, undeniable authority characteristic of elders. "I won't beat around the bush. The Heavenly Mystery Sect is willing to offer you the following: an elder's position with the same benefits as a Void Refinement cultivator; 300,000 high-grade spirit stones annually, and an unlimited supply of fifth-grade and above pills; access to all talismanic scriptures below the sixth rank in the sect's library, and the option to consult seventh-rank talismanic fragments; furthermore—"

He paused, his voice growing increasingly solemn, "Access to the core immortal island. As long as you're willing to join the Heavenly Mystery Sect, you can enter the core immortal island to cultivate whenever you want during the open period, without needing to exchange merit points. Each time you enter, you can bring one person with you. These are conditions personally agreed to by the sect leader, and I haven't changed a single word."

Shen Yun's face paled slightly as he finished speaking. She could sense the confident composure in Situ Yan's tone when he announced those numbers, as if those resources were nothing more than a drop in the ocean for the Heavenly Mystery Sect. The total amount of spirit stones that her Purple Thunder Pavilion, which she had managed for hundreds of years, could mobilize each year was only a few times more than what he had promised to Li Hanshan alone.

Each of those conditions precisely struck at the most critical weakness of a Nascent Soul cultivator. A sixth-tier or higher talismanic inheritance, unrestricted access to a core immortal island—things she herself, as a newly promoted Void Refinement cultivator, couldn't obtain, yet the Heavenly Mystery Sect could offer them so easily.

Shen Qingyue stood on the stone steps in front of the main house, listening to the conditions Situ Yan announced. She kept her head down, her fingers unconsciously clenching the fabric of her sleeves, her knuckles turning slightly white, but she didn't utter a single word.

Li Hanshan walked to Shen Yun's side and stood still. He sensed the calm and collected scrutiny in Situ Yan's deep-set eyes, like that of a chess player, and he also sensed the slightly tense shoulder line of Shen Yun standing beside him, as well as the faint sound of Shen Qingyue clutching her sleeve on the stone steps behind them.

He spoke, his voice neither too loud nor too soft: "Thank you for your kindness, Elder Situ. Please also convey to your sect leader that I am deeply grateful for the Heavenly Mystery Sect's kindness. However, I have already settled down in the Purple Thunder Pavilion."

Situ Yan's eyes flickered slightly. He said, "Elder Li, you need to understand that with your talent in talismanic arts, staying in a sect like the Purple Thunder Pavilion will only limit your development. What the Heavenly Mystery Sect can give you is something the Purple Thunder Pavilion could never provide within a hundred years. The sixth-order Purple Thunder Talismans you drew are indeed of superior quality, but that's only the sixth order. The threshold for the seventh order of talismanic arts is far beyond that of the sixth order. Without higher-level inheritance and resource support, you can only stop here at best."

His voice was neither loud nor soft, but it carried a firm conviction: "The foundation of the Purple Thunder Pavilion cannot support your future path."

Li Hanshan remained silent for a moment. He could sense that what Situ Yan said was indeed true; the resources of the Heavenly Mystery Sect far surpassed those of the Purple Thunder Pavilion, and only the top three sects in the entire Immortal Alliance had accumulated the inheritance of seventh-order talismanic arts. If he was only pursuing the ultimate in talismanic arts, the Heavenly Mystery Sect was undoubtedly the best choice.

But he also noticed that when Situ Yan said the words "Anjia," his gaze lingered on Shen Qingyue for an extremely brief moment. That gaze held a knowing quality, as if he had received a tip-off—the Tianji Sect had clearly learned of his marriage. The reason he offered such generous terms was because they were aware of Li Hanshan's concerns.

So he didn't hesitate for long, and spoke in a steady voice: "Elder Situ, the affection of a beautiful woman is priceless. Some things cannot be bought with spirit stones or inheritance." He glanced at Shen Yun, then at Shen Qingyue on the stone steps behind him, "I have found someone willing to stay with me in the Purple Thunder Pavilion. I appreciate the kindness of the Heavenly Mystery Sect, but there is no need to mention this matter again."

Shen Yun stood beside him, listening to his words, "something priceless," and her shoulders relaxed slightly. She could sense the seriousness in his tone, as if he had weighed the matter in his heart countless times and finally given an answer that needed no further revision.

Shen Qingyue stood on the stone steps in front of the main house, her fingers slowly loosening from the fabric of her tightly clenched sleeves. Her eyes were slightly red, and her lips moved, but she ultimately did not say anything. She simply stood there quietly, the afterglow of dusk falling on her slightly lowered eyelashes, casting a small, fine shadow on her eyelids.

Situ Yan's gaze lingered on Li Hanshan's face for a moment before he nodded slightly, refraining from further attempts to persuade him: "Since Elder Li has made up his mind, I will not try to persuade you any further. However, the doors of the Heavenly Mystery Sect are always open to Elder Li. If you ever change your mind, you are welcome to come and find me at any time."

After he finished speaking, he bowed slightly to Shen Yun, then turned and walked towards the mountain gate. His gray-blue figure seemed to blend into the shadow of the spirit tree in the twilight, and soon disappeared around the corner of the stone steps.

Shen Yun stood there, watching the gray-blue figure disappear into the twilight, remaining silent for a long time. She felt her fingers, gripping her sleeve, growing slightly numb; the tension that had been building up only began to ease after the figure had completely vanished. She turned around, her gaze falling on Li Hanshan's face, and spoke gently, "Just now... you really didn't waver?"

Li Hanshan looked at her almond-shaped eyes, which were particularly bright because of their conversation, and did not rush to answer. He could see the subtle undulations in her shoulders returning to normal, and the flattened smile on her lips slowly relaxing.

He smiled and said, "I haven't wavered. But I'm thinking that since the Heavenly Mystery Sect is willing to offer such a high price, it means I'm indeed worth it. In that case, my bargaining chip in staying with the Purple Thunder Pavilion is even stronger."