"This cave, though not large, houses a primordial jade that has existed here since ancient times. Ancient cultivators used immense spiritual force to condense an entire jade vein into this cave structure. Although the difference between a jade that has lasted ten thousand years and one that has lasted ten thousand years of ice is merely a single character, the distinction is one that even several of your friends must surely recognize. And once we step outside this hall, even if we excavate throughout the entire northern region, we would scarcely find several pieces of such ten-thousand-year-old jade." Master Han Li stared intently at the cracks on the altar, his face displaying a touch of pride. The middle-aged man from Qing Shan and Bai Mengxin also looked visibly excited. "Indeed, had it not been for your earlier mention of the jade cave, we would have found it hard to believe that your palace still holds such a treasure. A mere block of this ten-thousand-year-old jade—only the size of a fist—when incorporated into a divine artifact instantly endows it with the ability to emit powerful, penetrating cold energy, capable of inflicting damage both visible and invisible. Such qualities surpass those of ordinary ice materials." The gray-robed monk gazed at the cracks, his The old lady glanced at the crack, her eyes gleaming with the same spark. Han Li, meanwhile, gently traced the smooth surface of the small golden sword tucked in his sleeve, smiling faintly without speaking. "I've already informed Bai Shixiao and Ou Shixiao," said Han Li's superior, Han Li, "regardless of whether the three of you can help me break through my Chasming stage bottleneck, I will present each of you with a jade piece that has been refined over ten thousand years—my way of expressing my sincere gratitude." She took in the expressions of Han Li and his companions, and suddenly smiled softly. "Is that truly so, Master?" Even the usually cold and dignified old lady could not help but be delighted and asked with genuine enthusiasm. "As the Grand Elder of Xiao Ji Palace, I am confident I can make good on these promises," said the superior, nodding and swaying slightly. Even the gray-robed monk now showed clear signs of joy. After all, a ten-thousand-year-old jade was a material nearly extinct outside the palace—something rare and highly valued, with no market price at all. And if they could secure it, and blend it with their own essential法宝, the power of the法宝 would naturally increase by twofold. Hearing this from Han Li's senior, Han Li could not help but admire the magnanimity of this dwarf. However, under such a generous offer, the three of them would likely feel compelled to give their very best. "Then, let us enter the Xu Yu Cave now," said the senior. "The cold within the cave is exceptionally intense. Once the several of you enter, you will need to protect yourselves with flames of extreme cold, otherwise you may not be able to withstand it. Fortunately, there is a specially designated area within the cave that resists the erosion of the Xu Yu's cold. We can use it to meditate and restore our inner energy there. Otherwise, even I would not be able to remain inside for long." Then, the dwarf opened his mouth, and a bright blue fire ball burst forth, transforming into a large blue bird that soared straight up to the ceiling. After circling several times, it spread its wings and dove down, landing squarely upon the dwarf's body. At that moment, a large bird silhouette flashed past the back of Han Li, vanishing instantly, while a layer of blue ice flame erupted, enveloping him. With a series of hand gestures, he moved his body downward and drifted toward the crack. Bai Mengxin and the old woman, among others, also cast their spells, releasing fresh streams of cold flame and flying toward the fissure. However, Han Li frowned, glanced at the pale golden side doors on either side, and then at the massive tripod hovering above the crack, hesitating slightly. Yet suddenly remembering something, he smiled faintly, and, protected by a layer of purple lotus flame, followed through. As soon as he stepped into the crack, a wave of milky-white cold light surged forth, immediately producing a strange hissing sound upon contact with Han Li's purple flame—seeming as though the two were utterly incompatible, causing the purple flame to tremble and fluctuate. Han Li stood firm, not taking time to examine his surroundings before first rubbing his hands together and channeling a surge of purple lotus fire into his protective barrier, thus stabilizing his ice-flame. Only then did he have the chance to survey the area around him. The so-called Xuan Yu Cave was merely a underground cavern. Yet this cavern was formed from an exceptionally rare Xuan Yu mineral vein. These peculiar materials, colder than ten-thousand-year-old ice, were in rice-grain-sized fragments, scattered along both walls of the cave, glowing with a milky, cold light. As one moved downward, the density of the light increased, and the sound of the light striking the purple flame grew steadily more intense—like rain tapping on a banana leaf. Han Li was struck by this phenomenon and sensed something was amiss. He glanced down at the group below, noticing that no one seemed to have noticed him. Without further thought, he reached out with his hands into the void, drawing in a strand of the cold light with sheer force, and then wrapped it gently in his purple flame, holding it steady. It seemed merely ordinary coldness, nothing special at all. Yet, Han Li furrowed his brow and suddenly poured spiritual energy into his pupils. After his eyes flashed with a blue glow, a look of surprise crossed his face. Under the clear and refined spiritual vision, these milky-white cold radiance now took on tangible, filament-like forms, constantly contracting and expanding within the embrace of the purple flame—as if alive—unfazed by the extreme cold of the Purple Lattice Fire, and utterly unable to blend or merge with it. "What in the world is this? It seems as though the cold has come to life, but it still doesn't quite feel right!" Han Li's astonishment was hard to convey. These were only the cold's spontaneous attacks; if it could be manipulated and concentrated into a single point, even his Purple Lattice Fire might struggle to withstand it. A thought flashed through his mind, and suddenly he recalled something. With swift movements, he quickly rubbed his hands again—this time, a streak of crimson emerged within the purple flame. When this unusual silver flame came into contact with that strand of milky, cold light, it instantly drew the light into itself, blending seamlessly as if water and milk had merged. Seeing this, Han Li's face flashed with surprise, and he felt a surge of great satisfaction. The True Flame of the Yin Moon truly lived up to its reputation as one of the Three True Spiritual Flames mentioned by Yin Yue. Though currently only a single strand, and still less powerful than the Purple Lotus Flame in terms of intensity, it demonstrated an astonishing capacity for absorption and compatibility. When he first began to refine this strand of Yin Moon Flame, he had temporarily incorporated a small amount of Purple Lotus Flame, and that had gone without any issues. Of course, fully transforming it into pure Yin Moon Flame would naturally take far longer than a dozen years—otherwise, Han Li would have truly wanted to convert all of the Purple Lotus Flame into Yin Moon Flame. After all, this strand of Yin Moon Flame already possessed a certain degree of vitality and clearly ranked higher than the intensely cold flame. Now, seeing that this flame could effectively counteract the cold light within Xuan Yu Cave, Han Li felt a sense of relief and reassurance. At once, after a brief thought, he reversed his hands behind his back, flicked his fingers, and the streak of crimson flame shot out suddenly, vanishing in an instant into the nearby cold light. Almost as soon as Han Li completed this gesture, the young man in the green robe below seemed to sense something, suddenly lifting his head to gaze at Han Li, his eyes flashing with a touch of surprise. Han Li felt his heart sink, yet his expression remained calm and composed. He asked matter-of-factly, "Brother, is there anything I can assist you with?" The young man in the green robe carefully examined Han Li and the walls on either side, finding nothing out of the ordinary. "Nothing at all. I was merely checking whether you had followed me. To be honest, the restriction on awareness within the Xuling Hall is quite unusual, and it does feel a bit unfamiliar." Knowing Han Li's extraordinary abilities, the young man with the surname Ouyang, though still harboring some lingering doubts, spoke with exceptional courtesy, showing no hesitation or lack of respect. "Heh, how could I have failed to follow?" Yet the cold aura within the Xuanyu Cavern seemed rather peculiar. Han Li glanced down at the milky white cold light still surging upward toward the purple flame, and said softly. "This Xuanyu Cavern has existed since ancient times. Over such a long period, these cold energies may have undergone subtle transformations. Otherwise, such an unusual behavior would be quite strange for ordinary cold air." The black ice flame in the dark-clad middle-aged man's robe also crackled and snapped under the impact of the cold aura, causing him to express some surprise. Han Li smiled slightly, intending to speak, when suddenly he paused and murmured softly in astonishment. The middle-aged man blinked, lowered his gaze, and noticed that within this brief moment, the group had already reached the bottom of the cavern. There, a vast area of scattered stones stretched out, spanning several hundred feet. At one corner of this stone heap stood a red stone house. Moreover, several openings were visible on the cavern walls, suggesting that the scene was not exactly as one might expect from a single cavern. The Xuanyu cold aura here is clearly several times denser than that above. At the center of the rubble heap, a natural giant stone's summit gathers a milky-white cold aura that has coalesced into a massive luminous sphere, several zhang in diameter, rolling and shimmering constantly upon the stone's surface. Han Li, focusing his attention, noticed that the Xuanyu crystals revealed on the entire surface of the stone were as large as a thumb, radiating a brilliant glow—clearly of a far superior quality compared to the scattered ores at the entrance. Suppressing his astonishment, Han Li stepped down to the ground alongside the others. As soon as Han Li Li stepped onto the ground, he immediately fixed his gaze on the luminous sphere atop the stone, his face bright with delight. "Excellent! Wonderful! I had previously worried about how to gather the cold aura within the cave, but here, there appears to be a natural convergence point of the cold energy. This saves us considerable effort." "Han Li suddenly burst out laughing, then suddenly raised his hand, launching a blue ice spear that struck precisely upon the milky-white light sphere. 'Pfft!' As the two met, an unusual metallic clashing sound was heard, and the ice spear began to crack and shatter from its tip, gradually dispersing into scattered points of cold light and vanishing into the air. 'Excellent! Excellent!' Seeing this, Han Li beamed with delight, clearly even more pleased. 'By the way, have any of you noticed that stone cottage? It was built using sun essence stones and is the only place immune to the cold erosion of Xuan Yu's qi. We can all go there to rest for a while—let me briefly explain to you the several key precautions we must observe while moving about within this Xuan Yu cave. Otherwise, you might all end up with serious trouble. 'Serious trouble?' the old woman blinked, tapping the ground with her walking stick, and asked. (Second update!)