The ancient manual corroborated what he knew of the Witch clan's natal insect gu arts.
Although Qin Sang had not found any explicit records on the Heavenly Eye Butterfly, he was no longer as utterly clueless as before. Several ideas had formed in his mind, though they would still need to be verified gradually over time.
"If not even the Spirit Taming Sect possesses records of it, we will just have to rely on each other and find our own way forward."
Qin Sang turned his head, his gaze softening as he looked at the Heavenly Eye Butterfly.
As though sensing his thoughts, the butterfly rested its delicate wings against his cheek, comforting him.
"Let's go!"
Returning the ancient tome to its place, Qin Sang took his leave of the Spirit Taming Sect's deputy sect master. He then flew straight south until he arrived at Cangheng Island in the Yuncang Great Marsh.
Following his instructions, Tan Yi'en had already been waiting on the island.
Qin Sang contacted a prominent merchant guild on the island and commissioned them to gather the spirit herbs required for the Fire Melting Pill recipe. Once he knew which fortified city he would be assigned to defend, they were to deliver the herbs there.
To be of service to a demon king was an opportunity the merchant guild leaped at, and the prices they offered were exceptionally fair.
At the same time, Qin Sang purchased some materials. He still had quite a few high-grade demon bones on hand, which he intended to combine with Sinkgold Wood to forge flying swords.
For the moment, top-tier spirit materials were hard to come by.
However, Qin Sang had no intention of overreaching. Forging medium-grade spirit swords would suffice for now; he could find ways to upgrade them later.
After lingering for a day to settle all these trivial matters, Qin Sang and Tan Yi'en set out, crossing the Yuncang Great Marsh until they reached its southern shore.
It was the first time Qin Sang had ever set foot in the territory of the Celestial Alliance!
His figure flashed, alighting on a mountain along the shore, and he gazed toward the south.
The Yuncang Great Marsh and the Yuncang River to its west formed a natural barrier between the Xiaohan Realm and the Celestial Alliance.
It was said that in the distant past, the two realms had been closely intertwined, viewing each other as one. No one knew when or why a rift had formed between them, but the friction had grown deeper and deeper until it ultimately erupted into armed conflict.
The Celestial Alliance derived its name from the Tianxing Plateau.
South of the Yuncang Great Marsh, the terrain rose rapidly into an expansive highland whose area was as large as the Xiaohan Realm and the Heavenly Demon Hills combined—the Tianxing Plateau.
According to the records, the pinnacle of the Tianxing Plateau was also the highest point in the entire Beichen Realm.
Compared to the Xiaohan Realm, the Tianxing Plateau was rugged and erratic in elevation, with treacherous terrain, yet its landscapes were far more monotonous. It was dominated by plateau glaciers and snowfields, and mortal society there differed vastly from that of the Xiaohan Realm.
Because the Xiaohan Realm lay wedged between the Tianxing Plateau and the Ancient Immortal Battlefield, the path northward was barred for the cultivators of the Celestial Alliance. While high-stage cultivators could still travel back and forth, low-stage cultivators faced immense hurdles if they wished to enter the Ancient Immortal Battlefield.
To the south of the Tianxing Plateau stretched a boundless desert, which shared its name with the realm itself—the Beichen Great Desert.
From this name alone, one could see that desert was the dominant landscape of the Beichen Realm; the Beichen Great Desert covered more than seventy percent of its territory.
Qin Sang had heard Senior Sister Qingjun mention that among the four islands of Beichen, Beichen Island was by no means the smallest, yet the overall strength of its cultivation world was the weakest. This was the precise reason.
A barren desert, thin spiritual energy, and sparse resources made it inhospitable not only for mortals, but also for cultivators, who struggled to find suitable locations for immortal's caves. Cultivation there was exceptionally arduous.
Across that vast expanse of sand, living creatures were rare and human presence was scarce.
Oases existed within the desert, dotted with various factions large and small, but none had ever amounted to much.
Although the Beichen Great Desert was the vastest region in the Beichen Realm, the vast majority of cultivators resided in the Xiaohan Realm, the Celestial Alliance, and the Sin Abyss. These three major powers could be considered sacred lands in the eyes of desert cultivators, and the Xiaohan Realm, bordering the Ancient Immortal Battlefield, was especially blessed by nature.
The Sin Abyss lay to the southeast of the Celestial Alliance, separated by a stretch of grassland that served as a buffer zone between the two forces. It was said that this grassland was being steadily swallowed by the desert.
Now, that buffer grassland had long fallen under the control of the Sin Abyss.
The southern flank of the Tianxing Plateau was far gentler than its northern side, but its descent was uneven. Often, a stretch of flat terrain would be followed by a sheer precipice.
The two greatest drops were known as the Two Southern Tiers of the Tianxing Plateau.
Despite holding the high ground, the Celestial Alliance had suffered successive defeats in the previous war.
The passes along the first tier had already fallen, occupied by the Sin Abyss. At present, the forces of the Sin Abyss were advancing steadily across the first tier. Once the final bulwark fell, the Tianxing Plateau would have no natural barriers left to defend.
The Celestial Alliance was a coalition formed by the various factions of the Tianxing Plateau to fend off enemies on both fronts, currently led by Daoist Zhenyi.
Qin Sang activated his phoenix wings, wrapping Tan Yi'en in true essence as they soared higher and higher, finally reaching the summit of the Tianxing Plateau, where the central metropolis of the Celestial Alliance stood.
This was the highest peak Qin Sang had ever seen.
Night was falling.
The sky was cloudless and clear for ten thousand li.
A sea of stars shimmered above, coalescing into the Silver River, so close it felt as if one could reach out and touch it.
Yet even with Qin Sang's cultivation, he dared not rashly venture into the astral winds of the upper atmosphere.
Qin Sang gazed into the deep, vast firmament, recalling the bold words he had once spoken to Princess Dongyang. After forming his Nascent Soul, he had passed through the Great Sui and reinforced the restrictions on her tomb.
Now, he stood among the figures at the pinnacle of this world.
Yet the higher his cultivation climbed, the more he felt his own insignificance.
Nascent Soul, Soul Formation, Void Refining, Body Integration, Mahayana—only after crossing the tribulation and ascending could one truly become an immortal.
In this era, the late Nascent Soul stage was already the apex of power. Soul Formation cultivators existed only in legends, to say nothing of anything beyond.
Where did the path ahead lie?
If the Storm Belt was a cage, could the path lie beyond it?
*I'm thinking too far ahead.*
Qin Sang chuckled self-deprecatingly. Every subsequent bottleneck would have to be broken through on his own, and whether he could even reach the late Nascent Soul stage remained entirely unknown.
At last, the outline of Tianxing City came into view.
Though it fell far short of Tianxing City in the Canglang Ocean, here it was undeniably the preeminent metropolis.
Qin Sang did not conceal his aura. Flapping his wings, he flew straight toward one of the city gates.
The guards before the gate noticed his approach, and a Core Formation stage cultivator immediately flew out in haste, bowing respectfully. "Might Senior be Demon King Mingyue?"
They had clearly received word of the demon kings coming to their aid, allowing them to recognize him without difficulty.
"Indeed, it is I."
Qin Sang folded his wings and landed before the man, setting Tan Yi'en down.
"Elder Ji is waiting inside the city for the demon king seniors. Please follow this junior into the city..."
"Wait for me here," Qin Sang instructed Tan Yi'en.
He then followed the cultivator into the city. A short while later, they arrived at a palace that was clearly a core stronghold within the city, where he met Elder Ji of the Celestial Alliance.
"I was just hearing Fellow Daoist Snake King mention you, Fellow Daoist Mingyue, and here you are!"
Elder Ji wore Daoist robes. He had lean, angular features and appeared to be in his forties, greeting Qin Sang with remarkable warmth.
"Fellow Daoist Snake King was full of praise for you just now. Only today did I learn that another outstanding young talent has emerged in the Heavenly Demon Hills! With Fellow Daoist Mingyue holding the line, Sandie Pass will surely remain impregnable."
"Fellow Daoist Ji flatters me. I imagine Fellow Daoist Snake King exaggerated considerably."
Qin Sang cupped his hands in return. "Does this mean you have already decided that I should be stationed at Sandie Pass?"
Chapter 1176