Having succeeded in his strike, the external incarnation immediately retreated into the corpse puppet bag.
Veiled by the demonic fire and the sword formation, outsiders could hardly detect his presence.
Qin Sang flashed into sight, scooping up Hall Master Yin's Nascent Soul. Tapping his fingers in rapid succession, he cast layers of restrictions across it, sealing it completely.
Hall Master Yin's expression twisted from ferocity to agony, then to despair, before finally settling into absolute lifelessness.
Puff!
The demonic fire burned Hall Master Yin's corpse to ashes.
Several streaks of light and a mustard seed bag flew out from the flames, landing in Qin Sang's palm.
These were the magic treasures Hall Master Yin had wielded earlier; all of them had now changed hands.
Channeling his divine consciousness, Qin Sang roughly forced open the restrictions on the mustard seed bag. With a quick sweep, he found a bottle of Feixue Pills. His heart stirred, and he took them out. Having no time to examine the rest, he swept everything into the Qianjun Ring in one go.
Next, Qin Sang stored Hall Master Yin's Nascent Soul into the corpse puppet bag, intending to interrogate it thoroughly once he had the time.
The battle was over.
Qin Sang withdrew the demonic fire and surveyed his surroundings.
He sensed multiple gazes watching him, both openly and from the shadows.
These people had been drawn by the heavenly tribulation and were peeking from nearby. Having witnessed with their own eyes a hall master of Xuantian Palace perish with no corpse remaining—slain single-handedly by one man—every one of them was utterly shaken.
Qin Sang's gaze swept over their hiding spots.
Those watching felt as if a sharp sword was pointing straight at them from afar. A sudden, inexplicable prick of pain stabbed their minds. Stricken with terror, they scattered and fled in frantic haste.
However, neither Old Man Hunmo nor Great Sage Tianpeng was among them.
Qin Sang glanced toward the depths of the Sacred Ground, then turned back toward the floating mountain.
At the edge of the dark mist, the fighting had drawn to a close.
Qin Sang lowered his escape light and drifted lightly down to the ground. His eyes immediately caught several bodies sprawled on the earth—Shang Lu, the cultivator surnamed Yue, and the others.
A few remained alive, encircled tightly by Hall Master Jiang and his group. The positions of attackers and defenders had completely reversed.
These people had merely been duped by the Palace Master and Shang Lu; they were not the masterminds. Though some belonged to the Tianshan and Xuantian lineages, they had not been as close to Shang Lu as the cultivator surnamed Yue had been.
Tong Lingyu was not present.
Hall Master Jiang, Liuli, and the others only hemmed them in without attacking.
Having witnessed the gruesome deaths of Shang Lu and his cadre, the survivors had assumed they were doomed today. But seeing that Tong Lingyu did not seem intent on a total purge, they had no wish to fight to the death unless backed into an absolute corner.
At this moment, their faces were pale with tension. They glanced repeatedly toward the depths of the dark mist, anxiously waiting for Tong Lingyu to emerge and pronounce their fate.
Even so, they understood that even if they were fortunate enough to survive today, life would not be easy for them going forward.
Noticing Qin Sang, Hall Master Jiang frowned slightly.
Just moments ago, Qin Sang had insisted on hunting down Hall Master Yin alone. How had he returned so quickly? Could he have slipped up and let Hall Master Yin escape?
If Hall Master Yin beat them back to Xuantian Palace and spread treacherous lies, things would become exceedingly troublesome.
Just as Hall Master Jiang was about to step forward and offer Qin Sang assistance, he began, "Hall Master Yin..."
"Dead."
Qin Sang nodded, concise and plain.
Hiss...
Hearing this, every Nascent Soul cultivator present, including Hall Master Jiang, blanched. The looks they directed at Qin Sang transformed instantly, filled with deep awe and shock.
No wonder the Grand Elder hadn't worried in the slightest!
They knew all too well how formidable the various hall masters of their sect were, and Hall Master Yin had been among the very best of them. Yet he had been slain so swiftly by this man.
Only Liuli's expression showed no change; she had witnessed Qin Sang's true power with her own eyes back in the subterranean cavern.
Just then, the dark mist churned, and Tong Lingyu emerged carrying the sealed Luo Yun.
Seeing Qin Sang, Tong Lingyu showed no surprise at all. She gave him a nod, then gently set Luo Yun down. Under the shocked gazes of the crowd, she sighed softly and said, "I presume you all still remember Senior Brother Luo."
...
Luo Yun was living proof.
Seeing the long-perished Luo Yun standing alive before them, bearing those horrifying restrictions, the crowd could no longer doubt what Yin Changsheng had done. One after another, they abandoned all resistance.
The situation was brought under control without lifting another finger. Once they returned and purged the lingering influence of Yin Changsheng and his conspirators, this great turmoil manufactured by Yin Changsheng would essentially be at an end.
Of course, the ripples would last for a long time, potentially reshaping the very structure of Xuantian Palace.
At the very least, the outcome was not bad.
Both Luo Yun and Tong Lingyu were alive.
If Luo Yun's injuries could be healed and Tong Lingyu achieved a smooth breakthrough, Xuantian Palace would remain a colossus overseen by two Great Cultivators.
The greatest loss was perhaps the Fourfold Tengshe Seal, but the Jiyuan Technique could serve as compensation.
Qin Sang paid no heed to the internal affairs of Xuantian Palace. During this brief interval, he had already learned from Hall Master Jiang that an anomaly had occurred deep within the Sacred Ground.
A flash of white light had flared and vanished.
It had not lasted long, but to be visible even through the chaotic dark currents meant the disturbance was immense. One could only wonder what those fiends and demons were up to inside.
The Killing Sword fragments were deep within the Sacred Ground.
Regrettably, the sword spirit had shown no reaction since then, making it impossible to pinpoint their exact location.
No matter what, Qin Sang had to go there in person.
Glancing at Tong Lingyu, Qin Sang asked in puzzlement, "Old Man Hunmo and Great Sage Tianpeng have led demons into the depths of the Sacred Ground. Fellow Daoist Tong does not seem in any hurry?"
Luo Yun's fate hung in the balance.
Tong Lingyu was severely wounded, keeping her injuries at bay with medicinal pills, and had lost her spirit treasure, severely diminishing her combat strength.
Right now was when Xuantian Palace was at its weakest.
Yet Tong Lingyu was methodically organizing the cleanup. Her very first act was actually dispatching people to harvest the treasures within the Sacred Ground to prevent them from falling into outside hands.
Because of the Palace Master's sudden revolt, none of these tasks had been completed.
Tong Lingyu smiled faintly and explained, "Similar incidents have happened in the past, yet the one who laughs last has always been Xuantian Palace. As long as our supply of treasures like Kanchen Pearls remains unbroken, the foundation of Xuantian Palace will stand firm as bedrock. We need only a century or two to recover our strength—what is there to fear?"
She opened her palm, revealing the ice demon crystal. "Besides, with the sacred relic secure, no one else can enter the Sacred Ground. When it opens again in the future will be entirely up to us."
"Aren't you worried about what Hunmo and Tianpeng might do deep within the Sacred Ground?" Qin Sang countered.
Tong Lingyu turned, gazing into the darkness of the depths. "You might not know this, Fellow Daoist Qin, but over countless years, our forebears in Xuantian Palace explored those depths many times. The spatial turbulence there is perilous beyond measure; hall masters and elders have even fallen within, their remains never recovered. Yet across all these years, nothing was ever found! From this, we deduced that the depths of the Sacred Ground are most likely an empty void, utterly destroyed. Could the insight of our past Palace Masters and Grand Elders really be inferior to that of Hunmo and Tianpeng?"
Qin Sang's brow furrowed slightly.
The sword spirit's resonance proved that the depths were certainly not an empty void.
The judgment of Xuantian Palace's ancestors had been wrong!
As she spoke, Tong Lingyu coughed lightly, a faint flush rising on her cheeks. The efficacy of her spirit pills was nearly exhausted, and her injuries showed signs of flaring up again.
She hastened her pace of speech.
"The only thing existing there is a stone tablet of unknown origin. It stands amidst the chaotic spatial currents, supported by a lotus pedestal at its base. There are no words upon the tablet, yet it radiates an unusual ripple.
"Anyone laying eyes on it would assume it to be an extraordinary treasure.
"Unfortunately, we tried countless methods—slashing with blades, cleaving with axes, striking with lightning, burning with fire—yet we could not damage it in the least, nor could we budge it, and it yielded no response whatsoever.
"Yin Changsheng spent centuries scheming, using that very stone tablet to weave a story, calculating every step to entice Old Man Hunmo. Supposedly, his original plan was to lay a trap around the stone tablet, but when you and Liuli emerged out of nowhere, that plan was shelved."
Yet such was the fickle nature of the world. Who could ever be infallible in their calculations? How could things unfold precisely according to one person's designs?
Had Yin Changsheng proceeded according to his original plan, he would have had a substantial chance of capturing Old Man Hunmo and claiming an extraordinary treasure.
Through a twist of fate, he had fixated on Qin Sang instead, leaving no one to suppress Old Man Hunmo and letting the tiger return to the mountain.
Though Yin Changsheng had abandoned his plan halfway through, he had already leaked the approximate location of the Sacred Ground.
The Lingzhi Ruyi that Old Man Hunmo had obtained from the golden-roofed hall had a profound connection with the stone tablet. Following the guidance of the Lingzhi Ruyi, he had found the entrance to the Sacred Ground with ease.
The ripples emitted by the Lingzhi Ruyi were remarkably similar to those of the stone tablet.
Upon acquiring the item, Old Man Hunmo could hardly believe that an ancient Buddhist ruin could yield a treasure seemingly tied to the Sacred Ground of Xuantian Palace.
To that end, he had studied it for a long time, mimicking the aura of the Lingzhi Ruyi to reforge the Suokong Sword with meticulous disguises, putting it up for auction at the Myriad Demons Assembly solely to observe Xuantian Palace's reaction.
Had Xuantian Palace spared no expense to purchase the Suokong Sword, it would have proven beyond doubt that the Lingzhi Ruyi was connected to the stone tablet.
Yet precisely because Qin Sang had disrupted the auction, Xuantian Palace had missed out on the sword.
Left uncertain and suspicious, Old Man Hunmo had possessed no leisure to deal with Qin Sang. He had spent over a decade busying himself with this matter before finally making up his mind to ally with the monster sage and stake everything on a single gamble.
Tong Lingyu pointed in the direction where the white light had appeared, her tone hurried. "That is precisely where the stone tablet stands. To be safe, Hall Master Jiang and Elder Mei will quietly go over shortly to take a look. There is a sacred healing herb within the Sacred Ground; consuming it will stabilize my injuries and restore eighty to ninety percent of my strength. I shall go gather the herb now, and if any unexpected turn occurs, I will rush over immediately. If you are interested in that place, Fellow Daoist, you may accompany Hall Master Jiang and the others..."
She concealed nothing regarding these matters, and was even glad to see Qin Sang step forward. Only Qin Sang could hold Old Man Hunmo and Great Sage Tianpeng in check.
With that, Tong Lingyu summoned Hall Master Jiang and Elder Mei.
The group conferred briefly.
Qin Sang flitted to Liuli's side, explaining in a low voice, "...I worry that if I happen to run into the demons, I might be besieged by Hunmo and Tianpeng. Would you be willing to lend me a hand, Fairy? You need not show yourself; simply hide in the dark and strike when the opportunity arises. Once the matter is done, there will be a generous reward!"
Saying so, Qin Sang took out the Fourfold Tengshe Seal and quietly passed it to Liuli.
At present, only Liuli and Tong Lingyu could control this treasure, and Qin Sang naturally trusted Liuli more.
A single strike would be enough.
Faced with two attacks at the pseudo-spirit treasure level, even a Great Cultivator would find it hard to endure.
Moreover, Liuli's Ice Soul Divine Light was a premier divine ability, capable of helping him restrain their opponents at a crucial moment.
Having already learned the circumstances, Liuli did not refuse. Taking the Fourfold Tengshe Seal, she said, "Helping you is also helping my sect. There is no need to thank me."
She clearly wished to delineate the boundaries of mutual interest between them, leaving no room for ambiguity.
Looking into Liuli's earnest eyes, Qin Sang guessed at her thoughts. He sighed inwardly and chose not to argue with her.
The four slipped away from the dark mist and flew quietly toward the depths of the Sacred Ground.
Before long, Qin Sang's expression stirred slightly. He abruptly halted his escape light and said, "Fellow Daoists, please proceed ahead. I have encountered an old acquaintance and will return shortly."
Hall Master Jiang and Elder Mei exchanged a glance, asking no questions.
Qin Sang and Liuli altered their course. Before flying very far, they landed on a mountain.
The mountain was lush with flourishing greenery, exotic blossoms in full bloom, and immortal vines twining around the trees—a rare, scenic beauty within the Sacred Ground.
Atop the peak, standing upon a green boulder, was an old man.
He stood with his hands clasped behind his back, his aura somewhat drifting. Tilting his head slightly, his murky eyes peered through the darkness, gazing unwaveringly toward the sinkhole, seemingly unaware of the two who had landed before him.
"Such heavenly might... The one undergoing the tribulation was Yin Changsheng, was it not? Xuantian Palace is truly passing through troubled times!"
He sighed in lamentation, then withdrew his gaze to look upon the striking pair before him. A raspy chuckle escaped his lips. "What this old man did turned out not so terribly in the end—it brought about quite a fine match."
The man was none other than Dongyang Bo!
His death before Qiu Mubai had been a ruse!
Facing the man who had brought her so much misery, Liuli's demeanor remained cold and aloof. She seemed disinclined to waste words on him, remaining silent.
Qin Sang narrowed his eyes and said coldly, "You dare appear alone before me. Have you come to seek death?"
"Indeed!"
Dongyang Bo's expression suddenly darkened, and he barked, "Qin Sang, kill me!"
Qin Sang frowned.
This man truly wished for nothing but death.
Dongyang Bo no longer posed any threat; his present behavior only struck Qin Sang as bizarre and ridiculous.
Seeing Qin Sang make no move, Dongyang Bo wore a mocking smile and sneered, "What? Now that this old man has delivered himself to your doorstep, what are you still afraid of? If you do not kill me in this lifetime, how will your mind ever be at peace! How did someone so indecisive ever survive to this day?"
"Heh..."
Faced with Dongyang Bo's provocation, Qin Sang felt not the slightest ripple in his heart. He let out a chuckle and cast a glance toward the exit of the Sacred Ground. "Hypocritical pretense! Are you worried that I will vent my wrath on Qiu Mubai later?"
Dongyang Bo's expression froze.
Qin Sang's cultivation had progressed at an astonishing speed, far exceeding his imagination.
Liuli was likewise a favored talent of heaven, backed moreover by the premier sect of the North Sea.
If they set their minds to making things difficult for Qiu Mubai, even if Qiu Mubai were lucky enough to preserve his life, he would find it impossible to take a single step forward in the future.
Qin Sang snorted coldly. "You underestimate me far too much!"
Dongyang Bo looked deeply at Qin Sang, then suddenly threw his head back and laughed uproariously.
"Haha..."
Laughter.
Wild, unrestrained laughter.
His laughter grew louder and louder, shedding its aged frailty to shake the very heavens, regaining a trace of his former bearing as the founder of Shaohua Mountain, yet laden with desolate sorrow.
"Yes! I underestimated you. I have underestimated you all along!"
Qin Sang watched on with cold detachment.
"Cough, cough..."
Dongyang Bo began to cough violently, cutting short his wild laughter. He raised a hand to press firmly against his chest, catching a ragged breath. "Very well. Given your disposition, if I were to die at your hand, Mubai would only be in greater danger."
With that, Dongyang Bo reached into his robes and withdrew a crystal.
The crystal was spherical in shape, easily held in one's palm. It was milky white throughout, completely devoid of impurities and exceptionally pure.
"Take it!"
Dongyang Bo tossed the crystal toward Qin Sang.
Qin Sang's eyes flickered. His divine consciousness swept rapidly over it, and he prudently mobilized his true essence into a large hand to catch the white sphere at a distance, lest Dongyang Bo play any underhanded tricks.
He had always been cautious; even when victory was assured, he never let down his guard, let alone against someone as treacherous and cunning as Dongyang Bo.
Seeing Qin Sang's caution, Dongyang Bo scoffed. "I call this object a puppet crystal, obtained back in Ziwei Palace. After consulting ancient texts and contemplating it for years, I deduced that the puppet crystal is a unique treasure used for refining puppets. Originally, I planned to refine it into the Nascent Soul talisman puppet after acquiring it from Shangyuan Qingjing Palace..."
Pausing briefly, Dongyang Bo continued, "This item originally came as a pair, one black and one white, perfectly matching yin and yang. I deliberately revealed the Yin Puppet Crystal before the Ghost General, who bought it and refined it into his puppet. Holding the Yang Puppet Crystal from then on allowed one to sense that puppet within a certain range. This old man originally intended to track them in secret to seek an opportunity for one final gamble, but I had not anticipated my vitality would deteriorate so rapidly, rendering the journey impossible."
At this point, Dongyang Bo chuckled once more. "You too are keenly interested in Old Man Hunmo's schemes, aren't you? Today, this old man shall lend you a helping hand. I would like to see just how great a storm you can stir in the cultivation world hereafter! If you die at the hands of those demons, all the better; this old man will have a companion on the road to the underworld and won't be lonely."
Without waiting for Qin Sang's reply, Dongyang Bo turned toward Liuli and released a streak of light.
"The Mystic Female Jade Tripod True Scripture also originated from Ziwei Palace. This old man searched Ziwei Palace afterward, but unfortunately failed to uncover its origin or a method of resolving it. Herein lies all the information regarding that vile art. But Ziwei Palace is no more; this is all this old man can do..."
Liuli caught the streak of light, her gaze complicated.
When a man is about to die, his words are kind.
Of course, both she and Qin Sang understood that while Dongyang Bo's actions might contain a sliver of repentance and atonement, they were mostly done for Qiu Mubai's sake.
Qin Sang sent his divine consciousness into the puppet crystal.
Under Qingjun's influence over the years, Qin Sang's understanding of puppetry was quite respectable.
Just as Dongyang Bo had said, the puppet crystal was indeed a treasure of the Dao of Puppetry. However, this was Qin Sang's first time encountering such an item, and he could not discern its full intricacies in short order.
After a moment's thought, Qin Sang gripped the puppet crystal. Before storing it away, he laid a layer of demonic fire restrictions over its surface to prevent the Ghost General from sensing him in turn.
Dongyang Bo could not have predicted that Qin Sang would appear in the Sacred Ground; the puppet crystal had been prepared for his own use, so he would not have sabotaged himself.
Furthermore, since he had come for Qiu Mubai's sake, he would hardly dare tamper with it, lest failing to ensnare Qin Sang lead to backfiring on himself.
Even so, out of habitual caution, Qin Sang took precautions all the same.
"He is dead," Liuli murmured softly.
Qin Sang looked up and saw Dongyang Bo standing upon the green boulder with his hands behind his back, gazing toward the north like a statue.
His aura had vanished entirely.
With his vitality depleted and having detonated his Vajra Bracelet, Dongyang Bo had long since been weakened to the absolute extreme. It was solely through sheer determination that he had held on to his final breath until now.
"Let us bury him," Qin Sang said after a moment of silence.
Liuli nodded. "Very well."
Her feelings toward Dongyang Bo were even more tangled than Qin Sang's.
Back when her master was trapped in Ziwei Palace, Liuli had been merely in the Qi Refinement stage. The slightest ripple in the cultivation world could have spelled her demise. Had it not been for the shelter provided by Dongyang Bo and Shaohua Mountain, creating that haven on Jingyue Peak for her, she would certainly have suffered countless tribulations, and whether she would have ever attained the qualifications to rescue her master remained unknown.
Yet it was also this very man's schemes that had bound her to the brand of that vile art, leaving her unable to find release.
Qin Sang looked around, flitted before a cliff face, and swung his sword to carve out a burial chamber.
Liuli moved Dongyang Bo's body inside, positioning him facing directly north.
Looking upon the sealed burial chamber, Qin Sang had never imagined that one day he would dig a grave for Dongyang Bo with his own hands.
The cold wind brushed through the flowers and grass across the mountain, wafting waves of delicate fragrance.
After a moment's reflection, Qin Sang wielded his sword to carve four characters into the adjacent rock face: Master of a Sect.
...
Having buried Dongyang Bo, Qin Sang and Liuli did not linger, flying immediately toward the depths of the Sacred Ground.
Knowing the location of the stone tablet, their speed was far greater than Old Man Hunmo's had been.
Passing the final floating mountain, Qin Sang glanced back.
In the distance, brilliant rays of peculiar light flared occasionally across the floating mountains, whether from cultivators clashing or treasures being unearthed.
Every now and then, scattered streaks of escape light flew into the depths of the Sacred Ground. Their objective was the same: drawn by the white light, they had come to try their luck.
Naturally, these individuals had to possess at least the Nascent Soul realm of cultivation; otherwise, reaching the stone tablet alive would be impossible.
Whoosh!
A fierce gust of wind bore down upon them.
The moment they entered this region deep within the Sacred Ground, they encountered a chaotic current ten times more powerful than those outside.
Forewarned by the Heavenly Eye Butterfly, Qin Sang led Liuli through a series of swift maneuvers, easily evading the turbulence.
Here, he did not employ his lightning flight technique.
First, he worried Liuli would be unable to keep pace; second, not knowing where Old Man Hunmo and his companions were, lightning flight would be far too conspicuous.
As they wove through the area, Qin Sang transmitted his voice: "I hope you will never mention that tribulation lightning to anyone in the future, Fairy."
Using the tribulation lightning to trigger Yin Changsheng's heavenly tribulation had been an act of sheer necessity.
With life and death on the line, Qin Sang had been unable to afford any reservations.
At the time, Tong Lingyu and Luo Yun had been sealed in the blood pool and remained unaware of what had transpired, but Liuli was privy to it.
However, Liuli had been focusing all her effort on steadying her mind and resisting the erosion of the vile art's brand back then; she likely had not noticed that the tribulation lightning came from the Heavenly Eye Butterfly.
Qin Sang did not deliberately offer an explanation, concocting excuses about magic treasures or divine abilities.
Doing so would only have drawn unnecessary suspicion.
Liuli was exceptionally sharp; grasping Qin Sang's underlying meaning, she swore an oath on her inner demon on the spot.
As they conversed, the two pushed ever deeper.
Because the chaotic currents shifted ceaselessly, they were forced to change direction constantly. Even after speeding along for a good while, they caught no sight of Hall Master Jiang or Elder Mei, leaving them no choice but to rendezvous at the stone tablet.
Though the spatial turbulence was dangerous, given their respective strength, they were not overly intimidated.
The location of the stone tablet could only be considered the outer fringe of the Sacred Ground's innermost depths.
Only by venturing further inward would one encounter the true peril, where even Great Cultivators would find every step arduous.
As they flew and dodged, Qin Sang kept observing his surroundings while sinking a wisp of his mind into his dantian, continually touching the Killing Sword fragments in hopes of awakening the sword spirit for guidance.
Unfortunately, every call vanished like a stone dropped into the sea. The sword spirit seemed to have completely exhausted its vitality and fallen into deep slumber.
Qin Sang frowned inwardly. One could only enter once every three centuries, and facing such a vast and perilous expanse, how long would it take if he had to search it inch by inch?
Though his thoughts raced, Qin Sang's speed never flagged.
When they finally neared the stone tablet, Qin Sang spotted Hall Master Jiang and Elder Mei ahead. Yet he found them rooted to the spot, staring straight ahead with expressions of utter disbelief.
Directly before them, deep within the darkness, white mist was billowing upward.
The white mist seemed boundless, spreading rapidly in all directions. Even when swallowed by the turbulent currents, it replenished itself in an instant. From within the white mist radiated an extraordinary ripple.
Even without extending his divine consciousness, Qin Sang could sense that a mysterious space lay ahead. The spread of the white mist signified the expansion of that space—or rather, that this space was originally part of the Sacred Ground, and was now opening bit by bit.
The stone tablet and the lotus pedestal had both completely vanished!
Chapter 1503