My brain has become sentient!

Xiao Lingshan, the apple of Elder Xiao's eye, one of the five elders of Han Family Fortress, is the fortress's undisputed "flower on a high mountain"—beautiful and even more skilled in martial arts. Young Master Han Yunyang has long considered her his own, and as for the others? They can only admire her from afar.

At that moment, the invisible force binding her quietly dissipated. She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye, and a wave of doubts immediately arose in her mind: This kid was panting like a bellows, his steps were as heavy as if they were filled with lead, where was the slightest sign of profound internal strength? His breathing was chaotic and disordered, completely unlike that of a martial arts practitioner.

"Could it be... all an act?" The thought sent a chill down her spine. "He feigned madness, played the victim, and pretended to be weak. Could it be that his target... was me from the very beginning?!"

She was startled by her own speculation. If it were true, this person's cunning and acting skills were simply terrifying.

Composing herself, she smiled, her voice soft and gentle, carrying a perfect blend of panic and curiosity: "Young man, where are you taking me? Perhaps... we're going on some treasure hunt?" As she spoke, she tilted her head slightly and noticed that the short sword was merely being brandished, so far away from her that another person could fit inside it.

"An opportunity!" Her mind raced, and the wood-elemental cultivation technique "Azure Spirit Technique" quietly began to operate within her body, attempting to sense the surrounding environment and find a chance to escape. "If I suddenly launch an attack, what are my chances of winning?" At the same time, she was also sensing Li Xian's aura—still chaotic and weak, unlike a disguise.

Upon hearing the question, Li Xian inwardly groaned, "Fairy sister, you're asking me? Who am I supposed to ask? What is this 'old man' in my head trying to do? I'm clueless myself! This navigation only points the way, it doesn't explain the destination!"

suddenly!

His whole body tensed up, and the short sword in his hand seemed to be controlled by an invisible hand, and with a "whoosh," it pressed against the girl's lower back with precise positioning.

"Hold her tight." The command in my head is always so concise yet agonizing.

Li Xian's other hand reflexively wrapped around the girl's waist—hmm, soft to the touch, the curve just right, the waist-to-hip ratio was almost at the golden ratio... Stop! Li Xian, what are you thinking! Is this the time to study human aesthetics?!

"You...!" Xiao Lingshan trembled, and just as she was about to struggle, that familiar, tyrannical force descended again, binding her and rendering her unable to move. Then, her feet left the ground, and her whole body floated into the air, more than half a meter high!

"Whoaaaaaah!!!"

With a whoosh, the two huddled together were suddenly lifted into the air! Li Xian's initial fear quickly transitioned to a rollercoaster-like thrill, and he couldn't help but scream, the wind whistling in his ears. "This doesn't conform to aerodynamics! No wings, no propulsion, what's generating lift?!" The soul of a science student screamed.

In stark contrast to him was Xiao Lingshan's heart, which was sinking ever lower. "As expected... this villain's target was me! Everything before was a disguise!" She closed her eyes in despair, her face filled with regret for "meeting the wrong person" and "I shouldn't have said that one word." "How ridiculous that I even pleaded for him... I was so stupid, really." Cold tears slid down her cheeks.

"Look! Miss Xiao and that bandit... they're flying!" The pursuers finally realized something was wrong and exclaimed in surprise.

Elder Tian's expression changed drastically. With a flick of his sleeve, he soared into the air, chasing after the enemy like a large bird, while fully circulating his earth-elemental profound energy.

Young Master Han Yunyang, slightly less skilled, could only sprint along the ground, barely lifting himself off the ground. His face turned ashen with rage, his eyes a mixture of jealousy and murderous intent. The others were left further and further behind, soon disappearing from sight altogether.

Holding the warm, soft body in his arms, Li Xian felt that this "flight experience" had passed far too quickly. Meanwhile, Xiao Lingshan, nestled in his arms, had her eyes tightly shut, her long eyelashes trembling, and every expression on her face screamed "torture."

The two slowly descended from the treetops, stumbling and falling for several dozen feet. Following his mental navigation, Li Xian used his short sword to push aside a dense clump of withered vines in front of him—

A narrow crevice in the rock, barely wide enough for a thin person to pass sideways, suddenly appeared!

"This 'parking lot' entrance is way too narrow! It doesn't meet fire safety regulations," Li thought to himself, but his hands didn't slow down. With one hand holding his sword, he used the other to forcefully push Xiao Lingshan, who was still in shock from flying, into the gap, and then squeezed in like a crab.

The cave was a hidden world inside. A faint light from an unknown source illuminated the surrounding stone walls, making them appear exceptionally smooth and clean, as if they had been meticulously polished. Most amazingly, the air was as fresh as a forest after a rain, completely unlike the damp and musty atmosphere one might expect from a cave; the temperature and humidity were just right.

"Is this place...inhabited? Or is it some kind of ruin?" Xiao Lingshan's heart leaped into her throat. "That villain really did lead me to his lair!" Fear of the unknown overwhelmed her, and she could barely move a finger. She tried circulating the Azure Spirit Technique again. This time, she vaguely sensed an extremely pure energy permeating the cave, completely different from the "wood-type spiritual energy" she knew. It flowed quietly, as if possessing its own order. But when her senses swept over Li Xian, she felt a "void"—not that there was no energy, but that it was isolated by something of a higher level.

The two moved about seven or eight zhang (approximately 33-40 meters) through the narrow passage, when suddenly the space ahead opened up—

brush!

The entire space was suddenly illuminated, as if it were daytime! A bright, ridiculously spacious stone hall was revealed before our eyes.

The surrounding walls were neatly cut and smooth as mirrors, gleaming under a pure white light that seemed to come from nowhere, making it look like a high-tech exhibition hall. There were no torches, no luminous pearls; the light seemed to emanate evenly from the walls themselves.

"Where's the light? Where's the switch? This doesn't fit the characteristics of a point light source..." Li Xian looked around, bewildered. "This light... appeared out of thin air? Where does the energy come from?" The little physics he learned in his previous life was completely inadequate here.

Curiosity overwhelmed everything. He slowly walked deeper into the hall and saw stone beds, stone tables, stone benches... The furnishings were simple, yet they exuded a minimalist futuristic feel. Everything fit together perfectly, as if it had grown directly from the stone.

Suddenly, his gaze fixed on the center of the stone table, and he paused in his breath.

On the table were some extremely tiny objects. If it weren't for his abnormally good eyesight after his rebirth, he would have never noticed them.

He saw something that made his heart pound—a miniature metal globe, less than half a centimeter in diameter, that was slowly rotating! Continental plates and ocean outlines were faintly discernible, and even miniature mountain textures could be seen.

"A masterpiece...this is simply a miracle!" He was utterly shocked. "The precision of this machining, nanometer level? Micrometer level? Can current technology achieve this?"

Then, more microscopic wonders came into view: steel knives, iron spears, and bronze swords one millimeter long, gleaming with a cold light; silver coins the size of a needle tip; gold foil as thin as a cicada's wing and almost transparent... Each one was so exquisite that it defied the common sense of physics, like the toys of some mad scientist and top craftsman.

"Did you do these things?" Li Xian couldn't help but ask himself.

"Obviously," the voice in my head replied, with a hint of "is that even a question?" "A little toy to verify some theories."

"What theory could possibly lead to this?!" Li Xian felt that his worldview needed to be rebuilt.

"You'll understand later. Right now, we have a more important 'experiment' to do." The voice in his head pulled his attention back to reality. "However, before we begin, I need to confirm one thing. The girl you saw, she seems... to have some special sensitivity to the energy here?"

Li Xian was so engrossed in the microscopic world that he had forgotten about the fairy he had "kidnapped" behind him.

Xiao Lingshan stood there dumbfounded, equally stunned by the surreal scene before her. Compared to this, the magnificent Han Family Fortress seemed like the mansion of a nouveau riche in the countryside. This aura, this creation, this omnipresent yet pure energy devoid of any elemental attributes, belonged to no world she knew.

Her "Azure Spirit Technique" circulated slowly and spontaneously in this environment, and a trace of cool energy was drawn into her body, which made her even more confused—this place didn't seem like a demon cave, but rather like... some kind of holy land?

In the spacious, unsettling hall, there was only her and this strange little bandit.

"No... I can't just sit here and wait to die!" Fear spurred her courage. She began to hold her breath and slowly, slowly moved towards Li Xian, who was engrossed in studying miniature models. No matter how magical this place was, abducting her and taking liberties with her was a real crime!

Li Xian was completely unaware that his attention was drawn to something more familiar—it seemed to be a… miniature, streamlined, rotor-equipped alloy drone model? He couldn’t resist getting closer to take a look.

It's now!

A fierce glint flashed in Xiao Lingshan's eyes, and she unleashed her long-prepared palm strike! The first move of the Han Family Fort's ultimate technique, "Entangling Silk Binding Spirit Hand," "Green Vine Probes the Way," was a fierce palm strike aimed directly at Li Hou's heart! She held nothing back with this palm strike, determined to defeat her enemy in one blow!

"ah--!"

A cry of pain rang out.

Li Xian was startled and turned around to see Xiao Lingshan lying on the ground, curled up and trembling, her face drained of color and filled with extreme pain, as if the slap had hit her herself.

"Girl? What's wrong? A sudden serious illness? Appendicitis? Or a backlash from your cultivation technique?" Li Xian rushed forward, asking with genuine concern and an innocent look in his eyes. He truly hadn't seen the other party make a move; he had only heard the shout.

"You... villain..." Xiao Lingshan gritted her teeth, squeezing out the words. In her eyes, besides pain, there was also deep fear. "If you want to kill... then kill! Why... to humiliate me like this!" She clearly felt that the moment her palm touched Li Xian's body, a sharp, needle-like, and violent energy surged upwards along with her internal force, instantly sweeping through the meridians of her arm and bringing a tearing pain.

"Why would I kill you?" Li Xian was even more puzzled. "We have no grudge against each other... uh, it seems like we do now. But I really didn't do it!"

"She tried to ambush you from behind, so I gave her a small amount of electrical stimulation as punishment," the voice in your head calmly explained, as if saying, "I just dusted you off." "The intensity was well controlled; it will only hurt, not leave any permanent damage. After all, she is an important 'experimental subject.'"

Li Xian: "..." Well, now the misunderstanding is even deeper, and there's no way to clear it up now. Looking at the girl's painful and resentful eyes, he felt inexplicably uneasy.

At this moment, an extremely thin white silk thread floated leisurely to Li Xian's eyes, shimmering with a soft, pearly light.

"Tie her up. Our 'experiment' needs to be quiet from now on, and she might cause a disturbance."

Li Xian reached out and took the silk thread. It was cool and supple to the touch, and the material was not visible. He pulled it gently, and it was extremely resilient.

"This is a nanocomposite material, and your top laboratories on Earth have only just begun to develop it. It took me a lot of energy to create it." The voice in my head seemed to have become more "human," even carrying a hint of boasting, "Praise me!"

Li squatted down, looking at Xiao Lingshan who was sweating profusely from the pain, and said in as gentle a tone as possible, "Miss, I'm sorry, please bear with it for now. I promise, as long as you don't do anything reckless, I will never hurt you." Even he himself sounded like a villain when he said that.

He used silk thread to bind Xiao Lingshan's hands. The thread seemed soft, but it tightened automatically upon contact with her skin, instantly leaving a faint red mark.

"Ouch, I'm sorry, I'll be gentler!" Li Xian was flustered and didn't know how to control this "high-tech" device, which only tightened further.

"Tie up their legs too."

He immediately conjured another thread in his hand.

"Don't be afraid, don't be afraid, it will be over soon." He awkwardly tied the other person's ankles while gently patting the other person's shoulder to comfort them, like coaxing a child.

The gentler his movements and the calmer his tone, the deeper the fear in Xiao Lingshan's eyes grew. In her eyes, this villain's acting skills were unparalleled, his methods unpredictable, and he possessed the sorcery to injure people invisibly and create things out of thin air—he was simply a demon in human skin! His "gentleness" at this moment was nothing more than a cruel game of cat and mouse!

After tying her up, Li Xian looked at the girl, who was tightly bound and lying on her side on the ground, glaring at him angrily, and sighed. Only then did he have time to express his respect to the "big boss" in his mind. He devoutly prayed in his heart: "Great God! You must be a legendary deity descended to earth! You saved my life, I will never forget your great kindness! Whatever you need, just say it, I will go through fire and water for you!" He had to put on a good show, after all, his life was in the other person's hands.

"A god?" The voice in my head seemed amused by the word. "An interesting metaphor. However, I am not the god you imagine. Let's focus on the present. Our time... may be running out."

"Not much time?" Li Xian's heart tightened.

"The entrance has been widened by brute force. Your 'visitors' will be here soon." The voice in the brain was calm and even. "Before they rush in, we need to complete the first crucial experiment. This is related to whether you survive today."

Li Xian suddenly felt a chill run down his spine, as if he could hear the sound of shattering rocks and shouts coming from the cave entrance.

"Now, look under the stone table."