The golden giant swung its two broad, fan-like hands, seizing the purple dragon's neck firmly, then exerted a powerful force—crashing with a thunderous "boom," and instantly scattering the dragon's body into countless electric arcs. Yet, the giant suddenly lifted its head, drew in a deep breath, and with a wide opening of its mouth, unleashed a broad surge of golden light. Instantly, the scattered electric arcs were enveloped and drawn into the giant's mouth as the golden light dispersed. In moments, all the electric glow vanished. Even more remarkably, the giant's ethereal form showed no sign of stopping. As its body's luminous aura rippled, the golden light it emitted coalesced into a towering beam, plunging deep into the five-colored spiritual cloud. The cloud responded with a continuous rumble, beginning to rotate around the golden beam at its center. Under the force of a powerful suction, various glyphs surged forth from the cloud, then were swiftly drawn back and engulfed by the blazing golden light, ultimately being completely absorbed into the giant's ethereal form. In a short while, a myriad of characters of various hues surged through the golden light column, flowing downward like a tidal wave. The golden giant ape, its mouth resembling an invincible vortex, continuously drew in these symbols without any change in its expression. Observers at the edges of the misty sea watched in stunned silence. The white-haired elder repeatedly thought of terms such as "mountain-ape" and "true spirit lineage," his astonishment surpassing that of the others. As the branch head of the True Spirit family, the Valley family, he had far greater experience and insight than ordinary practitioners. He immediately recognized the golden silhouette hovering just above the misty sea—resembling a small mountain—as the true form of a Mountain-Ape, his amazement profound. "It's no wonder this individual has been reluctant to join our family—he is indeed born with true spirit lineage! Yet this form is astonishing. At such a distance, he merely radiated his aura and completely captivated us all. Moreover, the current celestial phenomenon is even more powerful than the one we witnessed last time." So many primordial energies have converged—could it be that the other party is breaking through the consolidation stage? Though the white-haired elder's cultivation level was not particularly high, his mind was sharp; within a short time, he had deduced the situation with remarkable clarity, and could hardly contain his astonishment. At this moment, not only were the glyphs flying toward the golden light, but the five-colored spiritual clouds themselves began spinning and being drawn into the golden glow. Within a short while, the spiritual clouds above took on a shape that was broader at the top and narrower at the bottom, gradually elongating and distorting into an eerie, massive funnel-like form. A vast flow of spiritual clouds, formed from the primordial energies, surged rapidly into the giant ape silhouette. The initially somewhat blurred image of the giant ape gradually became clearer and more solid, as the glyphs flashed and shimmered, and by the time of one meal, all the five-colored clouds had been completely absorbed. Yet, even now, the giant ape silhouette seemed still not satisfied. It closed its mouth firmly and then struck its chest with both hands, causing a brilliant golden light to radiate from its body. "Boom!" A white, misty gale surged upward from where the giant ape's phantom stood, rapidly swelling and soon becoming impossibly thick, completely enveloping the mountain-sized phantom beneath it. At the same time, an intangible ripple spread swiftly outward from the gale, sweeping across the surrounding mist sea, its reach so vast it left onlookers astounded. Everywhere within a myriad of miles, the fundamental qi of the heavens stirred, fragmenting into luminous specks the size of beans, and rushing furiously toward the mist sea. These specks, like moths drawn to a flame, appeared in clusters near the gale, then vanished in a flash, only to reappear within its swirling currents. A deep, resonant roar of the giant ape emerged from the gale, initially agitated and tinged with pain. As the multicolored specks multiplied, the roar gradually softened, eventually fading into silence. Yet no matter how many specks surged from all directions, the gale absorbed them all, as though it would never be full. The cultivators of the human race near the misty sea were unable to stop gulping down water, astonished by what unfolded. If ordinary cultivators were to absorb such a vast amount of celestial and terrestrial vital energy, they would likely have burst apart long ago. After a full meal's worth of time, a piercing cry of a macaque suddenly erupted within the white gale, followed by a thunderous roar that shook the very earth. The gale burst apart violently, sending out powerful gusts that surged outward in all directions, scattering the numerous luminous spots nearby. At the heart of the gusts, the colossal macaque form reappeared once more. However, this time, the shimmering outline no longer displayed its golden hue; instead, vibrant five-colored runes glowed faintly, as if the entire body were covered in a tapestry of five-colored spiritual inscriptions. From a distance, it appeared utterly strange. The giant macaque held its head with both hands, his facial expressions rapidly shifting—sometimes in agonizing pain, then in furious rage, and later, his eyes turned blood-red, as though he had plunged into a state of madness. At the same time, the runes on its body flashed wildly, causing the form to blur and then sharpen repeatedly, as though extremely unstable. The observers at a distance naturally stared, puzzled and unsure. Only the white-haired elder was deeply alarmed, growing increasingly fearful. This situation clearly indicated that the opponent had reached a critical phase of breakthrough, suffering an incursion by inner demons. Should the opponent truly lose composure and lose mental clarity, under the control of the demons, it would be entirely possible for them to launch a devastating assault right here. With the opponent's astonishing cultivation level, the lower- and mid-tier cultivators present would have absolutely no chance to resist and would be helpless, forced to meet their end. Such incidents had occurred more than once before. The white-haired elder grew more and more anxious, and under mounting pressure, he urgently channeled his inner qi, striving to rise and lead his people to safety. Yet, as soon as his body rose halfway, his legs trembled and he once again sank back to his knees. Although the distant giant ape's silhouette seemed slightly disoriented, its emanating spiritual pressure showed no sign of diminishing. The mere Yuan婴 cultivator could not move an inch, his inner spiritual energy completely immobilized under the overwhelming pressure, and even unable to send any alert messages to his kin. The elder was filled with growing fear! At the same time, within the sealed chamber deep in the mountain peak, Han Li sat motionless upon a peculiar small spiritual array, his physical form as still as a statue. A golden-azure Yuan婴, about half a foot tall, floated several feet above his body, strangely gazing at a corner of the chamber beyond the array. The Yuan婴 held a golden, fragmented blade in both hands, while seventy-two slender, jade-green swords of about an inch in length surrounded it, forming a tight protective circle. Around these swords, a silver short blade, a jade-green cauldron, and a black giant sword slowly rotated in a continuous, rhythmic motion, encircling the Yuan婴. What makes it strange is that one of the Yuan Ying's eyes glows with a steady blue light, while the other pulses with a vivid, blood-red hue, split precisely down the bridge of the nose, conveying two entirely distinct expressions. One half of the face is contorted with unnatural muscle movements, filled with fierce, wild intensity, while the other half appears to smile faintly, its gaze unusually cool and serene—seeming as though two separate individuals named Han Li exist within the Yuan Ying's body. Below, the physical form holds a hand in a series of gestures and the other hand supporting a bronze incense burner, within which a half-rotten, dark incense stem is subtly inserted but remains unlit. From the ceiling of the chamber, vast scrolls of five-colored spiritual characters drift downward, vanishing silently and without a trace upon touching either the Yuan Ying or the physical body. Yet in the corner where the Yuan Ying is gazing, a mass of black vapor the size of a human head swirls restlessly, emitting a continuous, eerie wailing sound. As soon as this sound reaches the ears, the mind immediately grows restless, unable to achieve calm, and an unusual, intense desire to engage in combat arises. The calmer half of the Yuan Ying remained undisturbed, unaffected by the strange cries. However, the other half, stirred by the cries, saw the blood in his eyes grow ever more intense, his fury swelling until it seemed his last shred of rationality was about to vanish. The Yuan Ying's eyes, shimmering with a blue glow, suddenly flashed with a sharp cold light. With a single hand movement, he pointed his finger at the incense burner held by his physical form. "Pffft!" A silver flame erupted from his fingertip and struck precisely the remnants of incense within the burner. Instantly, the incense ignited, filling the entire chamber with a mysterious sandalwood fragrance. Remarkably, after deeply inhaling the scent, Yuan Ying found that the previously uncontrollable other half of his face immediately calmed down, the blood in his eyes gradually lightening. At the same time, the dark mist hidden in the corner emitted a sharp cry the moment it first touched the fragrance—then abruptly ceased. The black mist surged wildly, gradually dissipating amidst the fragrance, revealing a ghastly face devoid of eyes and nose, etched with profound suffering. Upon seeing this, the Yuan'ing immediately opened his mouth and unleashed a golden arc of electricity. With a thunderous roar, the arc struck precisely upon the ghostly face, causing it to tremble violently. The ghost gritted its teeth in fury, suddenly emitting a piercing cry, and then blurred into indistinct form before finally vanishing into a stream of black mist. Only then did the Yuan'ing slowly close his eyes. Gradually, the once-twisted features faded away, and when he reopened his eyes, his gaze was as clear and fresh as ever. "A mere celestial demon who has split his focus—hoping to disrupt my mind during the invasion of my inner demons? Truly, he has underestimated me." The Yuan'ing murmured, a quiet scorn in his voice. Then, he tossed the remaining blade into the air above his head and swiftly pressed a series of hand seals before closing his eyes once more. The five-colored runes pierced through the roof and suddenly accelerated, more than doubling in speed, causing the entire chamber to shimmer with vibrant, radiant light. At the same time, a peculiar fragrance emanated from the body below. Yet the Yuan婴 seemed entirely unaware, desperately drawing in the five-colored runes formed by the celestial and terrestrial vital energies from the void, and its body visibly expanded, inch by inch. Half an hour later, the Yuan婴 had grown to a height of three or four feet, towering like a child. At that moment, the colossal ape silhouette hovering above the mountain suddenly condensed into a beam of light and withdrew downward, plunging a vast surge of celestial and terrestrial vital energy into the chamber, which poured vigorously into both the Yuan婴 and the physical body. The body's skin began to become translucent, and the fragrance it emitted grew increasingly rich and intense. The Yuan婴 above had, within just a few breaths, expanded in size—its form shimmering and pulsing—until it reached the size of a physical body. Yet, with eyes tightly closed, it floated gently, suspended in midair, its brows and forehead etched with deep expressions of pain.