Master Feng's eyes flickered. "With his strength, he should be able to hold off Bi Fang alone, and that is enough. If we truly obtain the Xuantian Palace's supreme treasure, the fewer people who know, the better. Moreover, bringing in an outsider isn't like dealing among ourselves, who have centuries of friendship; dividing the spoils would be awkward."
The white-robed scholar hesitated. "The situation is not yet under our control. My only worry is that when all our cards are finally laid on the table, we won't be able to hide it from his eyes and will be forced to tell the truth."
Master Feng had already devised a countermeasure and said breezily, "That won't matter either! Everything is merely the demons' conspiracy—we, too, were kept in the dark the whole time and only just saw through it."
"Brother Feng speaks with great wisdom," the swordsman in black chuckled.
...
Qin Sang sped across the surface of the sea, toying with a bamboo slip-shaped treasure in his hand—a unique messaging treasure of Mount Fengyang.
En route, he clearly sensed that the atmosphere had grown even more tense than when he had left.
From Master Feng, he had learned that there were at least five Demon Kings active in the vicinity.
The most powerful was Bi Fang, whom Qin Sang had already encountered. Its strength was beyond doubt, and it had long been Master Feng's archrival.
Another to watch out for was Wa Yu.
Qin Sang had fought it as well, and Wa Yu's poison happened to be countered by the fat silkworm.
The other three Demon Kings each had their own methods, but their fame fell slightly short of those two.
According to Master Feng's plan, should they end up in a chaotic melee, Qin Sang would tie down Bi Fang. Then, whether Master Feng teamed up with Qin Sang to surround and slay Bi Fang, or went to eliminate the other Demon Kings first, he could act with composure.
Qin Sang recalled the chase by the three Demon Kings.
At the time, Bi Fang had only displayed exquisite escape techniques and blood-light divine abilities; it surely had other divine abilities it hadn't had the chance to use.
How could a powerhouse like that lack trump cards?
Qin Sang resolved that unless he was certain he could slay Bi Fang, his first consideration would always be his own retreat.
Shouchen Island.
The island's shape bore some resemblance to the Crescent Moon Realm—narrow and elongated from east to west like a city wall, blocking the azure waves surging from north and south.
Keeping a low profile, Qin Sang flew to the outskirts of Shouchen Island, produced his token, and sent it shooting inside as a streak of light.
Before long, a streak of light flew out from the island, revealing a Core Formation cultivator.
This man was also a direct disciple of Master Feng, ordered to lead troops garrisoned here.
"Qian Cheng pays respects to Senior Mingyue!"
The man glanced around, spotted Qin Sang, and hurriedly flew over to bow in greeting.
Qin Sang instructed Qian Cheng not to make a fuss, then followed him onto the island.
Qian Cheng led Qin Sang to the best cave dwelling on the island.
"You may withdraw for now. If there are any unusual movements from the demons, do not panic; just report to me in good time."
Qin Sang did not decline the accommodations. Looking around, he gave his instructions calmly.
Qian Cheng assented repeatedly, beaming with delight. With a Nascent Soul cultivator presiding over the island, they had a pillar of support. Even if the demons attacked, they would now have the power to resist.
Qin Sang's cave dwelling sat at the peak of a mountain. Not a soul was in sight around it, and the area was exceedingly tranquil.
He stepped inside and closed the door.
A moment later, an illusory figure slipped quietly out of the cave dwelling. Qin Sang scanned the surroundings and darted toward a desolate low hill at the edge of the island.
Inside the silent cave dwelling sat a figure holding the messaging magic treasure—it was actually the Nascent Soul talisman puppet in disguise!
Arriving at the barren hill, Qin Sang swayed, slipped through the island's warding restrictions, and made a stealthy exit from the island. Nearby, he found an inconspicuous reef and casually carved out a cave dwelling.
When a Nascent Soul expert chose to hide, the cultivators on the island could search heaven and earth without ever uncovering his trace.
The reason he went to such trouble was that he did not entirely trust Master Feng.
Nascent Soul Patriarchs were each and every one sly and treacherous foxes. Qin Sang had met Master Feng only twice, and he knew even less about the temperaments of Island Master Shen and the others, so he dared not take their words at face value.
He had come to the outer realms alone.
If they intended to scheme against him and frame him, it would happen without anyone knowing, and there wouldn't even be anyone to avenge him.
At the very least, if they deflected trouble onto him and made him draw the main demon forces, his situation would turn perilous in the extreme.
One could never be without caution against others.
Taking precautions for a rainy day, Qin Sang had slipped away in his true body and left the Nascent Soul talisman puppet in the cave dwelling, so that if anything went wrong, he could remedy it in time.
Now that he had broken through to the middle Nascent Soul stage, his control over the Nascent Soul talisman puppet was even stronger.
Moreover, with his senior sister's prior painstaking guidance, though it was not as nimble and effortless as an external incarnation, so long as the distance was not immense and perception was not severed by a barrier formed by powerful restrictions, he could manipulate the Nascent Soul talisman puppet through the divine soul mark imprinted upon it.
Neither Master Feng nor Island Master Shen had seen Qin Sang fight.
Only a few Demon Kings knew he possessed a Nascent Soul talisman puppet.
Presumably, those Demon Kings would not be chatting with Master Feng about that.
With his arrangements in place, Qin Sang sat cross-legged in the cave dwelling and took out his demonic banners.
He prepared to focus his energies on the *Fire Seed Golden Lotus* and the *Heavenly Demon Refining Form* first, as they were less demanding of ambient world spiritual energy.
Time slipped slowly by in quiet cultivation.
Undercurrents surged across this stretch of the sea, but on the surface, calm prevailed.
The guards on Shouchen Island carried out their duties step by step. With nothing of importance occurring, Qian Cheng did not dare disturb Qin Sang's secluded practice.
...
An unnamed island.
The white-robed scholar sat quietly in the hall. At regular intervals, he attempted to activate the demon rat's essence blood to search for the Xuantian Palace traitor.
Judging by his tightly furrowed brows, however, he seemed to have made little progress.
...
To the north.
Waves surged wildly.
Demonic qi soared into the heavens!
Had any human cultivator witnessed this scene, their legs would have trembled uncontrollably, and they would have turned and fled without hesitation.
Above the sea, a dark, dense mass spread far and wide.
Tens of thousands of demon soldiers circled in midair or bobbed up and down in the water, encircling a small island on all sides.
One could still tell that the small island held the ruins of a human city, but at this moment it was dead silent, without a single human figure in sight.
The demon soldiers encamped around it seemed terrified of this island and dared not take a single step onto it.
On the celestial mountain within the island, a cultivator's cave dwelling had been occupied by several Demon Kings.
The three Demon Kings that had pursued Qin Sang were all present, each having assumed human form.
Wa Yu had turned into a bald, burly man whose skin was dark green and still bore fish scales.
The fleshy growth atop Bi Fang's head remained dazzlingly scarlet. Even in human form, that unsightly growth could not be dissolved, making its appearance exceedingly bizarre and outright hideous.
Jiao Hu, on the other hand, had transformed into an exquisite young woman of petite stature, draped in translucent gauze that revealed tantalizing glimpses of her curves. Her eyes brimmed with affection and glistening watery light, radiating incomparable allure.
Apart from them, there were two other Demon Kings, a male and a female, seated on stone chairs with their eyes closed, resting their spirits.
Wa Yu looked restless, pacing back and forth and casting glances toward the cave dwelling from time to time.
"Why has there been no movement for so long? Could Fellow Daoist Hong's divine ability have failed?"
Bi Fang urged Wa Yu to be patient. "Humans are ignorant, but don't you know any better? Fellow Daoist Hong hails from the Rainbow Rat clan, born as twin bodies in a single womb, sharing a natural bond of telepathy. Cultivating both bodies simultaneously, the second body is a natural incarnation. Though its strength is modest, it possesses an enviable, peerless divine ability: should the main body perish, it can revive through the incarnation. Fellow Daoist Hong has always been cautious. It was only because he failed to foresee Old Devil Feng's trickery that he was plotted against and lost his main body. The incarnation has never been used, so it is sure to be foolproof. It's just that revival is certainly no simple matter. Have some patience and wait."
Chapter 1381