Shi Yan opened his eyes, pinpricks of divine light flickering within them as the silvery sheen surrounding his body gradually receded until it vanished completely.

"Congratulations," Cao Zhilan stepped forward, her expression sincere. "To break through to the Second Heaven of the Status Realm so quickly—even with the aid of exotic treasures—your talent is truly extraordinary. If you returned to the Endless Sea now, with your true strength, you would absolutely rank in the top five of the Battle List!"

Gu Linglong and Cui Yanqing's delicate features shifted, showing slight disbelief.

"Top five on the Battle List?" Shi Yan chuckled softly, then shook his head. "I care nothing for that ranking; it holds no interest for me. Only ambitious new-generation experts like yourselves place such importance on Battle List rankings."

"You—you look down on us?" Gu Linglong bristled indignantly.

"Indeed," Shi Yan made no attempt to deny it, nodding seriously. "When I was in the Hundred Calamities Realm, even without borrowing the strength of a demonic beast, I could withstand a full-force strike from you. You are a powerhouse on the Battle List, yet you couldn't defeat a mere Hundred Calamities martial artist. Does that ranking seem interesting to you?"

Gu Linglong choked back her anger, glaring at him fiercely. "Do you think everyone is a freak like you?"

"Shi Yan, you are unlike ordinary martial artists; you can instantly multiply your strength several times over. Even the masters on the Battle List lack this ability. You cannot be compared to common people," Cao Zhilan smiled sweetly, speaking in a teasing, friendly tone.

She had been continuously trying to mend the relationship with Shi Yan. Lately, in both her speech and actions, she deliberately deferred to him, driven by a simple goal: to foster some goodwill toward them and ensure he didn't view them as enemies.

"No need to remind me," Shi Yan frowned, rising from the ground. He stared deeply at Gu Linglong and Cui Yanqing, then suddenly warned, "If the next time you harbor any murderous thoughts toward me, don't blame me for not waiting until I cultivate the Chaos Art before taking your bodies. Hmph. Daring to conceive a plan to kill me while I was enduring harsh cultivation—you truly have addled brains. Learn a thing or two from Cao Zhilan, so you can properly assess the situation."

Gu Linglong and Cui Yanqing’s faces changed, yet they dared not utter a rebuttal. They were only confused as to why Shi Yan had the leisure to eavesdrop on their conversation during a critical breakthrough.

They obviously did not know that after Shi Yan's main soul settled into the Sea of Consciousness, the perceptive power of his spiritual sense had reached an incredible level. Even in a state of deep cultivation, no movement around him escaped his awareness.

The reason he chose to remain in the stone hall instead of retreating into the stone chamber was his confidence in preventing any mishaps at a moment's notice, and also to test Gu Linglong and Cui Yanqing, wanting to see if they truly harbored malicious intent.

"Whoosh! Whoosh!"

The sound of vibrating wings suddenly echoed from a distance. Before long, Yu Rou and Di Shan landed together. Yu Rou was holding the surprisingly present He Qingman.

"Thud."

Casually placing He Qingman on the ground, the White Wing Clan Chief smiled slightly. Without sparing a glance for the three women, she addressed Shi Yan directly, "This girl is still a virgin. I've brought her for you. Hmm, how much longer do you need? We are pressed for time; we must depart for the Yin Beast Mountain soon."

"Give me some more time; I still need to stabilize things," Shi Yan thought, overjoyed. He nodded at He Qingman and added, "At most one month, and I will definitely be able to break that barrier. Believe me; after one month, I will settle things for you over at Yin Beast Mountain."

"One month…" Yu Rou looked up at the sky, then glanced at Di Shan, asking, "Is there enough time?"

"No problem," Di Shan nodded impassively, turning to Shi Yan. "I'll give you a month and a half. Don't disappoint me then. If you do, you will regret it."

With that, Di Shan turned and left, vanishing instantly.

"Shi Yan, Di Shan is just like that; please don't take it personally," Yu Rou smiled. "To secure this girl from Duolong, he didn't hesitate to fight Duolong, making him suffer a minor loss before Duolong finally agreed. Although Di Shan is rather detached, he doesn't easily go back on his word."

"Then I must thank him," Shi Yan nodded, looking at Di Shan's departing back faintly.

"Remember, a month and a half. After that time, we hope you can give us a pleasant surprise. Otherwise, we will all perish here, and not a single one of us will escape."

Yu Rou sighed inwardly, reaching out to pat He Qingman's shoulder, and said to Shi Yan, "I'm leaving this girl with you; you know what to do."

Yu Rou departed right after Di Shan.

"He Qingman, you…" Cao Zhilan looked quite surprised, staring at her for a moment. "You... you seem to be on the verge of stepping into the Third Heaven of the Status Realm. What happened?"

Shi Yan was also quite curious.

Although the power within He Qingman's body was restrained, her aura was very peculiar. Sounds like wind murmurs constantly emanated from her delicate frame; her vital essence was rich, and her state of mind was tranquil, suggesting a massive internal change.

Having entered this wretched place too, Cao Zhilan and the others had made no progress, being instantly restrained and highly passive. Shi Yan’s rapid breakthrough was due to the two tribal chiefs sparing no effort or spiritual treasures to cultivate him. But He Qingman clearly hadn't received such treatment, yet she had gained considerable rewards, which naturally astonished Cao Zhilan.

"I truly didn't expect to see you all again…" A hint of bitterness flashed across He Qingman's charming face. "I thought that after some more time, I would have completely dissolved into nothingness. In fact, in ten more days, Duolong would have finished me off... absorbing all the wind power within my body. If Di Shan and Yu Rou hadn't gone to the Gray Wing Clan to demand my release, I certainly wouldn't have escaped death."

"What happened?" Shi Yan frowned.

"After I entered this place, I fell into the Gray Wing Clan's territory. Because I possess the Wind Martial Spirit, Duolong imprisoned me in a place intensely saturated with wind power, using my body as a vessel to absorb that wind power, and then to siphon off my own strength…" He Qingman simply described her situation with a bitter expression. "If not for Shi Yan's request, I definitely wouldn't have escaped Duolong’s clutches. I always knew his objective, but I was powerless to resist."

"You thank him?" Gu Linglong sneered. "You haven't necessarily escaped his grasp yet. Don't you know why he demanded you?"

"I heard... he wants a woman to vent his frustrations?" He Qingman’s cheeks flushed, but she looked at Shi Yan without fear. "You asked Di Shan and Yu Rou to bring me here, do you really intend to treat me that way? Shi Yan, you..."

"Ahem, ahem…" Shi Yan let out two dry coughs. "You're overthinking things. You are different from... from these three. I won't do anything to you. I mean, I don't consider you an enemy, so I won't harm you."

"As expected," Cao Zhilan chuckled lightly. "I knew He Qingman would be fine. She never viewed the Yang family as enemies, so she naturally wouldn't meet the same misfortune we did."

"Hmph!" Gu Linglong and Cui Yanqing’s faces darkened considerably.

"Shi Yan, you—you really intend to deal with them like that?" He Qingman looked quite surprised. "Although, although they hunted you for so long, wouldn't doing this to them be unfair to Sister Xinyan?"

Shi Yan's expression shifted. "Hmph," he coldly retorted, "I know what I'm doing!"

He Qingman frowned but didn't press further, sighing inwardly and merely shaking her head.

"Find yourself a room. It's very safe here. As long as I don't die, you three will be fine," Shi Yan said coldly, turning toward a secluded chamber, no longer wanting to say more to He Qingman.

If his Five Demons of the Sea of Consciousness were not experiencing anomalies, killing the three women would be the cleanest form of revenge. However, the cultivation of the Five Demons remained highly perilous; even with his main soul situated in the Sea of Consciousness, he knew the cultivation of the Five Demons of the Heart Sea was incomplete and would still involve dangers. Keeping the three women nearby was merely a precaution against potential anomalies—a necessary evil.

It was inconvenient to explain the nuances of the Heart Sea Five Demons' cultivation to He Qingman, so even if she perceived him as a lecher, he could only accept it.

Inside the secret room. Shi Yan sat cross-legged, holding his breath, focusing his mind, sinking his spiritual focus back into the Sea of Consciousness. He monitored every movement there, seeking the rhythm of the main soul’s transformation, internalizing the consciousness transmitted by the main soul, sensing the ripples within the Sea of Consciousness, and grasping the profound mysteries of the soul.

His soul gradually entered a state of ethereal clarity.

The main soul, within the Sea of Consciousness, subtly released its soul consciousness, merging it with the spiritual sense residing there. It borrowed the power of the Sea of Consciousness to enhance the main soul’s strength, nurturing it, allowing all its aspects to slowly strengthen.

His mental focus sank into the main soul, constantly roving and contemplating within it, eventually arriving at a region of soul consciousness, vast and white.

A tiny black seed within that soul region was emitting wisps of black smoke. As soon as these wisps materialized, they dissipated immediately, seemingly spreading quietly throughout that area of the soul.

Found it! Shi Yan’s heart tightened. He suddenly gathered the power of the spiritual sense within the Sea of Consciousness, superimposing the fiery power from within his body onto that spiritual sense, forming blazing beams of light from his spiritual sense. He fiercely hurled them toward the black seed within the main soul.

"Sizzle! Sizzle! Sizzle!"

Under the burning of these beams of scorching spiritual light, the black seed suddenly emitted even more black smoke, but this was immediately enveloped and incinerated by the subsequent influx of spiritual light. In a short while, the tiny black seed implanted in his main soul was completely burned away under the scorching fire-flame nature of his divine sense.

In a dim great hall, many members of the Yin Wraith Clan knelt on the ground, listening to Yi Tianmo's lecture on soul knowledge.

Yi Cuibi and Yi Feng were also present in the hall, their expressions intent.

Suddenly, Yi Tianmo, seated high upon the main throne, his gaunt frame trembled violently. Faint wisps of black smoke began to emerge from his pupils.

"Father! What's wrong?" Yi Cuibi cried out urgently.

Yi Tianmo's expression turned grave, but the black smoke in his eyes slowly dissipated. After a moment, his eyes returned to normal, and his body stopped trembling.

"The young generation is formidable, truly formidable…" Yi Tianmo murmured under his breath, a strange light flashing and vanishing in his eyes, his expression complex.