Ancient Demon

"Have her demonstrate the transformations of the demonic wings," Bai said via voice transmission. Qin Sang complied. Su Nü was secretly surprised, unable to fathom why Qin Sang was so fixated on the demonic wings or why he seemed quite knowledgeable about them. She did not dare disobey Qin Sang's command. Steadying her breath, she channeled the demonic wings—at times streaking through the air as an escape light, and at times wrapping the wings around herself like bone armor. ... "I remember now. Many of the enemies who sealed me possessed similar demonic wings. They were called demons—not demonic cultivators, but true demons. "To them, true demonic qi was what spiritual qi is to immortal cultivators. "Demonic restrictions and demonic fire were left behind by these demons. "Demons were our great enemy. "To counter the demons, we human cultivators tried to analyze the demonic arts we captured. We discovered that a portion of human cultivators with special constitutions could cultivate demonic arts directly. However, I have no recollection of any *True Demon Art*. Perhaps my memories are incomplete, or perhaps it was corrupted as it was passed down to this day." Bai's tone was subdued. Pausing, he continued, "Nevertheless, ancient demons have long vanished from the present world, so what art it is no longer matters. This girl likely possesses a special spirit physique that allows her to cultivate a demonic art directly using true demonic qi. My mind is very chaotic right now and I need to sort it out. Please carry on, Fellow Daoist." With that, Bai fell silent. After breaking the demonic restriction, Bai had recovered more and more memories, until today, he finally recalled the true identity of the great enemy that had sealed them back then. *Ancient demons...* Qin Sang sank into deep thought. In all his years traveling the cultivation world, rumors of ancient demons had seemed exceedingly rare. After pondering for a moment, an incident suddenly flashed through Qin Sang's mind. *Sin Abyss! When we entered Ziwei Palace back then, Sin Abyss launched a surprise attack, and a terrifying six-armed demonic shadow appeared. Its stature was towering beyond imagination, and its power was truly shocking. Could that have been an ancient demon?* Qin Sang felt a secret dread, and worry suddenly welled within his heart. He did not know whether returning to the Xiaohan Realm this time would bring fortune or disaster. One had to know that the ancient cultivation world was far beyond anything today; legends abounded of Mahayana stage cultivators surviving their tribulations and ascending to immortality. The cultivation levels and might of those ancient cultivators were unimaginable now. Ancient demons had existed in Bai's era and were formidable enough to be the archenemy of cultivators. A single demonic restriction had sealed Bai and his subordinates, leaving them doomed never to reincarnate. This alone showed how terrifying their strength was. If Sin Abyss truly had the aid of ancient demons, could the Xiaohan Realm and the Tianxing Alliance alone withstand them? When he returned, hopefully he wouldn't be greeted with news that both realms had fallen. When the nest is overturned, can any egg remain whole? If disaster had befallen the Xiaohan Realm, his old friends and acquaintances would likely have met grim fates as well. No matter what, though, he had to make the return trip to retrieve the Nine-Illusion Heavenly Orchid. With his strength, so long as he kept a low profile and focused solely on self-preservation, he shouldn't have much to worry about. He would observe the situation first before deciding whether to stay in the Xiaohan Realm or return to the Canglang Sea. Qin Sang sighed inwardly. Putting aside his stray thoughts, he noticed Su Nü watching him with a tense, restrained expression. "You..." Qin Sang opened his mouth, just about to say something, when his brow furrowed slightly and he turned to look into the distance. In the next instant, two streaks of light appeared at the edge of the ice plain, flying toward them at high speed. Judging by their pace, both were likely late Core Formation stage cultivators. "My senior brothers are here!" Su Nü said in delight. But catching sight of Qin Sang's silent frown, her heart tightened, and she hurriedly reined in her joy. "Fellow Daoist, please don't worry. They are both my senior brothers, and they have always treated me with great care." *People from the Eastern Pole Alliance.* Qin Sang gave Su Nü a deep look. Their objective was unmistakable, heading straight in this direction. It seemed the woman carried something that could guide their path. Since Bai had already regained part of his memories, there was no point in staying here any longer. To investigate the origin of this demonic art, one would likely have to seek out the Eastern Pole Alliance Leader himself. Not wishing to cross paths with the Eastern Pole Alliance, Qin Sang said nothing further. With a slight flutter of the Phoenix Wings, his figure turned into a beam of escape light and shot away in the opposite direction. In the blink of an eye, Qin Sang became a speck of azure light, vanishing into the boundless ice plain. Su Nü had not expected Qin Sang to fly off so decisively without a single word. She stared blankly in the direction he had gone, blinking with an inscrutable gaze. *Whoosh! Whoosh!* Two figures flew over at top speed, landing on either side of Su Nü. One was a burly man with a hulking build, while the other appeared somewhat aged, looking like an elder in his fifties with a long beard beneath his chin. "Phew!" The burly man exhaled deeply, his breath somewhat unstable, and complained, "Junior Sister, you really gave Senior Brother and me a hard time finding you! Didn't we tell you to find a safe place to wait for us to rendezvous and not wander off alone? How did you end up so far away?" The long-bearded elder narrowed his eyes slightly, staring in the direction Qin Sang had disappeared. He asked in a solemn tone, "Junior Sister, who was that person just now? Did he harm you?" "Senior Brother, you've misunderstood. It was entirely thanks to that fellow daoist's help that I managed to escape with my life..." Su Nü explained the ins and outs of what had happened. The two realized what had transpired. The burly man felt a lingering fear. "Close! That was too close! I wonder which sect that brother hails from. When we return, we must report this to Master and the Business Alliance to properly thank him!" Su Nü shook her head and said with regret, "He wasn't willing to disclose his identity. I don't know his background." "In the Trial Realm, we are all rivals, so being cautious is only natural. If fate allows, we will meet again someday. You just need to keep it in mind, Junior Sister," the long-bearded elder consoled her, then remembered something. "By the way, hasn't Third Junior Brother arrived yet?" Third Junior Brother was precisely the handsome youth who had died at Su Nü's hands. Su Nü's expression remained unchanged as she said calmly, "I was pursued by ferocious beasts and ran all the way here in one breath. I haven't seen Third Senior Brother at all. Perhaps something held him up." Suspecting nothing, the two peered around for a while without spotting anyone. The long-bearded elder spoke up: "The three of us should be able to move freely across the Mystic Ice Plain now. There's no need to wait here aimlessly. Let's travel while waiting for Junior Brother to catch up. Junior Sister, heal your wounds first; we will keep watch." "Yes," Su Nü replied obediently. She cast a glance toward the direction where Qin Sang had disappeared, then leaped forward to follow them. ... Regardless of how Su Nü and the others discussed him, Qin Sang flew a certain distance, summoned the ebony sword to clear the path, and also released the White Crane. The deeper one went into the Mystic Ice Plain, the harder the journey became. Nevertheless, Qin Sang successfully traversed the ice plain and completed the second trial. Straight ahead. A faint, shimmering curtain of light blocked the way forward. Qin Sang paused, recalled the White Crane, dispelled the Heavenly Demon Transformation, and walked forward. Passing through the curtain of light, the bizarre chill vanished. Qin Sang found himself inside a square courtyard furnished with stone stools and chairs. At this moment, several cultivators were meditating and regulating their breath here. Sensing Qin Sang's arrival, someone opened their eyes, sized him up for a moment, and then withdrew their gaze to focus on recovering. *These people can be considered the first tier...* Qin Sang observed them secretly. As expected, everyone possessed a powerful aura; they were the standouts among the cultivators. *No Nascent Soul Patriarchs in sight. It seems the trials for the two groups of cultivators are separate. That makes sense; otherwise, who would dare compete with Nascent Soul experts?*