Exposed

With the Hunmo Token hovering above his head, Old Man Hunmo stepped out from the ghost mist. Lightning struck the Hunmo Token, arcs of electric light flowing across its surface like a silvery-white coat draped over it, held completely at bay. Because Qin Sang had not used his full power, and the Hunmo Token possessed extraordinary might of its own, it failed to harm Old Man Hunmo in the slightest. At the same time, at the spot where Old Man Hunmo had originally been, a cluster of ghost mist silently materialized. It appeared far more dispersed than before, and after writhing for a moment, it resumed the shape of the ghost spirit, its body considerably more transparent. Old Man Hunmo had actually swapped places with the ghost spirit. The method of refining this ghost spirit was something he had derived from comprehending an ancient demonic art. He had expended countless rare treasures and fed it with his own essence blood as well as the souls of immortal cultivators; the effort he had poured into this ghost spirit was second to no magic treasure. The ghost spirit and Old Man Hunmo shared a telepathic connection, making it akin to an avatar. Not only did it possess monstrous demonic might, but it was also capable of incredible divine abilities such as shifting positions in the blink of an eye. Shifting heaven and earth could hardly be more profound than this! Witnessing this scene, everyone—Qin Sang included—felt a chill run down their spines. Possessing such a divine ability, anyone caught in Old Man Hunmo's clutches would find escape impossible, even if they sprouted wings. Just moments ago, Qin Sang had noticed that Old Man Hunmo's escape speed was indeed not as swift as his own. Coupled with his decisive disengagement from the fight, he had already opened up a considerable gap. His divine sense had grown substantially, meaning Old Man Hunmo's divine sense could no longer lock onto him from a great distance. As long as he vanished from Old Man Hunmo's sight, he would be safe. Yet before he could even rejoice, Old Man Hunmo had crossed the void and closed the distance in an instant. Such a divine ability left Qin Sang thoroughly astonished. The earlier question crossed his mind once again: during the treasure contest at the golden-roofed Buddhist hall, why hadn't Old Man Hunmo released this ghost spirit? Otherwise, Qin Sang would have faced Old Man Hunmo's true body and been forced to act, exposing himself right then and there. As his thoughts whirled, Qin Sang noticed that the ghost spirit had become far weaker than before. It lingered in the rear and hesitated, not daring to enter the battlefield. Qin Sang's mind stirred, deducing that this position-swapping ability carried heavy restrictions and steep costs. Just like Chen Yan's bizarre divine ability, it could not be used consecutively. This allowed his taut nerves to ease slightly; otherwise, he would have begun to doubt whether his two backup measures could stop Old Man Hunmo at all. *Rumble!* Thunder clattered, shaking the four seas. Old Man Hunmo walked out from the lightning, his turbid eyes fixing Qin Sang with a cold, emotionless gaze, pupils reflecting the dazzling brilliance of sword light. Facing this formidable enemy, Qin Sang knew this could not be resolved peacefully today. Old Man Hunmo had come after him instead of his enemies in Xuantian Palace; he had certainly seen through or deduced something. Once Old Man Hunmo made a move, it would surely carry thunderous force, refusing to rest until his objective was reached. Qin Sang did not bother to question him either. Without a word, he directed his sword to strike. Old Man Hunmo remained expressionless. Without any visible movement from him, the Hunmo Token hovering above his head flashed before him with a strange wail. The Hunmo Token halted in midair, manifesting a hundred-zhang phantom projection like an immense wall of light blocking the way forward. *Pfft!* The Jinchen Sword arrived in an instant, its razor-sharp sword light piercing deeply into the illusory light wall. Meeting greater and greater resistance, the sword light was forced to retract. Right then, Old Man Hunmo let out a cold snort. The Hunmo Token vaulted above the Jinchen Sword. The illusory wall of light rapidly condensed toward the center, crashing down with crushing weight to suppress the spirit sword. *Buzz...* The Jinchen Sword's rank was still relatively low; unable to bear the immense burden, its blade trembled. Feeling the terrifying pressure transmitted from the spirit sword, Qin Sang's expression tightened slightly. Retreating swiftly, he cast a flurry of sword incantations, repeating his earlier maneuver to command the Jinchen Sword to deploy the sword formation. The next instant, the Jinchen Sword turned from defense to attack. The sword formation enveloped the Hunmo Token in turn and attempted to drag Old Man Hunmo into its bounds. Unfortunately, Qin Sang's plan came to naught. Old Man Hunmo already had some understanding of Qin Sang's swordsmanship. Seizing upon the Jinchen Sword's relatively low rank, he used his own cultivation and the Hunmo Token's superior rank to force Qin Sang to deploy the sword formation prematurely to counterattack. In this way, Old Man Hunmo could leisurely evade and avoid being trapped within the array. The black bamboo staff tapped firmly against the void. Old Man Hunmo's figure flashed repeatedly, appearing dozens of zhang away, successfully pulling clear of the area before the sword formation fully formed. Within the Seven Po Killing Array was only the Hunmo Token. Old Man Hunmo glanced back at the sword formation, a peculiar syllable issuing from his throat. Immediately, the Hunmo Token shook violently, producing the sound of bells and chimes. In a flash, ten thousand beams of brilliant radiance burst forth. Had it been any other sword formation or restriction, it likely would have been completely thrown into disarray by this power, riddled with openings. Qin Sang did not dare be negligent in the slightest. The sword formation unfolded into endless permutations as countless sword threads coalesced and dispersed continuously. Though seemingly chaotic, it followed an exquisite order, obliterating those beams of light. On the surface, neither side seemed able to gain the upper hand. Only Qin Sang knew how immense a burden he was bearing; he felt even more exhausted than when dealing with Xuantian Palace earlier, and this was only the beginning. Facing an opponent like Old Man Hunmo, a top-grade spirit sword was simply too inadequate. Once he returned, he absolutely had to re-refine the Jinchen Sword as soon as possible! Seeing this, a hint of solemnity also appeared in Old Man Hunmo's eyes. Based on this sword formation art alone, his opponent possessed enough skill to shake the Boundless Sea. Old Man Hunmo silently wondered: with the opponent's strength, procuring a supreme-grade spirit sword shouldn't be too difficult. Otherwise, facing the sword formation at its peak, even he would have to treat it with great caution. Having tested the sword formation's might, Old Man Hunmo paid it no further attention. Shifting his gaze back to Qin Sang, he lightly raised the black bamboo staff, and a streak of light shot forth. Qin Sang exhaled slowly. The demonic fire forming his fire armor flowed back into his sleeves. With a light shake of his arm, miniature demonic banners flew out one after another. Things having reached this point, there was no longer any need to hide. This was the perfect chance to test the true strength of a great cultivator! "It really is you!" Even without seeing the demonic fire, merely beholding the demonic banners brought back the distinctive aura fresh in his memory. A furious roar burst from Old Man Hunmo's lips, murderous intent soaring skyward! Qin Sang gave a weird, sinister chuckle and taunted, "Why be in such a towering rage, Fellow Daoist? Is it permissible only for you to launch sneak attacks, while this poor Daoist is forbidden from retaliating?" Before his voice had faded, stream after stream of demonic fire surged from the demonic banners, morphing into a flaming dragon that swallowed the streak of light without causing much of a ripple. At that moment, trailing far behind, the members of Xuantian Palace widened their eyes in disbelief, unable to believe what they were seeing. That mysterious person had toyed with them so thoroughly, yet he still hadn't exerted his full power. Even across such a distance, they felt a sense of palpitation. The two elders exchanged a glance, their faces shifting between pale green and white. When they saw Old Man Hunmo step in, they had worried the sacred relic would fall into someone else's hands; only now did they realize how naive their concerns were. The Nascent Soul cultivator protecting Shi Xue and her companion caught up, swallowed hard, and muttered, "Even if the Grand Elder were here, he might not be able to trap him, right?" A heavy silence fell. They were unwilling to admit that this was likely the truth. The Grand Elder might be able to defeat him, but keeping him here would be no easy feat. Unless they had foreseen this person's true strength in advance and made thorough preparations before acting, leaving no flaw exposed.