A young girl’s voice was naturally sharp, and when she shrieked, it was piercing enough to rupture eardrums.
Had the cabin not been sealed by restrictions that shut out all sound from within and without, anyone outside who overheard would surely have suspected Qin Sang of harboring some bizarre proclivity.
Qin Sang gazed coldly at the Sun God Tree. Suddenly, he felt something was off. The shrill cries seemed to carry an increasing note of tears, followed by distinct sobs.
He glanced down at the Qilin source seed in his hand, then looked back at the Sun God Tree, a strange expression crossing his face. For a moment, he was struck speechless, unsure of what to say.
The Vermilion Bird Spirit was utterly heartbroken.
Never in its wildest dreams could it have imagined that Qin Sang had not refined the Qilin source seed into his body at all.
Yet the spirit could not fathom how Qin Sang had managed to cultivate the *Fire Seed Golden Lotus* to such a high realm without relying on the Qilin source seed.
The kirin that had laid this trap using a secret art to harm others without leaving a trace was certainly no benevolent being.
In bequeathing the *Fire Seed Golden Lotus*, its purpose was to revive its source seed. It had inevitably left behind contingencies within the technique, doing everything possible to guide the practitioner toward refining the Qilin source seed. Otherwise, wouldn't it all be like scooping water with a wicker basket—a futile effort that merely benefited someone else?
From this, one could infer that if a cultivator did not use the Qilin source seed, even if they managed to cross the threshold, they would surely encounter endless hurdles upon reaching a certain realm.
If the design was even more vicious, it would lead the cultivator astray, bringing about the perils of spontaneous combustion or self-destruction.
Thus, even though the kirin aura within the fire lotus Qin Sang had cultivated was exceedingly faint, the Vermilion Bird Spirit had never doubted anything, merely assuming that the source seed had lain dormant for too long and that its consciousness had dimmed.
Now, its regrets were so bitter its intestines turned green.
According to its original plan, it should have waited a while longer, until the Qilin source seed was deeply rooted and the crisis was imminent, making it far easier to control Qin Sang.
By that time, if the aura of the fire lotus still showed no change, she certainly would have sensed something abnormal and grown wary.
Yet a Heavenly Phoenix True Feather had suddenly sprung up out of nowhere halfway through. It was of immense benefit to the spirit, which had failed to resist the temptation and revealed itself prematurely.
With Qin Sang facing no threat of possession, how was it supposed to force him to submit and dutifully offer it tribute?
Worse still, this man had tricked it out of the method to extract essence from the source seed.
The more the Vermilion Bird Spirit thought about it, the sadder it became. It whimpered, then broke into loud, mournful wailing, making it impossible to tell which divine bird the weeping came from.
"Have you cried enough?"
Qin Sang listened for a while before snapping softly.
"No... hic..."
The Vermilion Bird Spirit seemed to realize how shameful it looked. Ashamed and enraged, it lodged a petulant accusation: "You tricked me out of my secret art!"
"If not for your ill intentions—if you had warned me early on of the dangers concealed within this art and helped me avert them—I would have been deeply grateful and treated you with the utmost respect. If you had made any requests, why would I have refused? How would it have come to this?"
Qin Sang snorted coldly, looking at the Sun God Tree with an unfriendly gaze.
The Vermilion Bird Spirit fell silent.
Qin Sang toyed with the Qilin source seed in his hand, sizing up the nine divine birds, and asked calmly, "Do you still want the kirin origin essence?"
"Of... What are you trying to do?" the Vermilion Bird Spirit retorted warily, though it could hardly conceal the hope in its tone.
Sensing its thoughts, Qin Sang smiled faintly. He had not asked this without deliberation.
According to the Vermilion Bird Spirit, it had a way to tame the Phoenix True Fire inside the Heavenly Phoenix Plume. Having the spirit tame it first before Qin Sang refined it should prove easier than extracting the Phoenix True Fire directly from the plume, which would be of immense benefit to his cultivation of the *Fire Seed Golden Lotus*.
Although this art was related to the kirin, he could cultivate it without relying on the Qilin source seed. Sensing the technique's immense potential and feeling no latent dangers for now, he had no intention of abandoning it.
Naturally, Qin Sang was also keenly interested in the Qilin source seed.
If he could extract all the essence from the source seed and make it his own, his divine soul would grow substantially, and his overall strength would rise accordingly, giving him a few more measures of assurance when entering Guixu in the future.
At his current realm, making substantial progress in this world was exceedingly difficult. When the path to ascension was open, Deity Transformation cultivators without the burden of sect juniors would simply head east after a period of quiet cultivation.
The Qilin source seed was undoubtedly a rare opportunity.
Yet seizing this opportunity would be far from easy, certainly not as simple as the Vermilion Bird Spirit made it out to be.
Qin Sang wished to extract the essence from the Qilin source seed without triggering any accidents that might awaken the seed within him, even though he had no fear of possession.
Relying solely on this secret art gave him no absolute assurance. To guard against the unexpected, he might require the assistance of the Vermilion Bird Spirit when necessary.
Through several rounds of probing, the Vermilion Bird Spirit had revealed a great deal in its complacency.
Qin Sang could see that while it might not be purely benevolent by nature, neither was it a wicked, heinous monster; it was merely somewhat naive.
Had it been anyone else who held someone's life in their grasp, they would have demanded anything they pleased. Who would allow him to haggle like the Vermilion Bird Spirit had, or offer such generous terms?
However, that was only an assessment based on his brief exchange with the spirit; he still needed to uncover its true background.
"Have you forgotten the oath I swore earlier?"
Qin Sang pinched the Qilin source seed, holding it up between them, and said with a beaming smile, "Whether I was in danger of being possessed has no bearing on the validity of that oath. I have no certainty of finding the kirin origin essence on my own, nor do I want the secret exposed if others learn of it. Cooperating with you is not a bad choice. Unfortunately, I am of the human race and do not yet know if I can refine the kirin origin essence. If it proves incompatible with me, whose else could it be?"
The eyes of the nine divine birds suddenly blazed, radiant flames shimmering with excitement. "Are you telling the truth?"
The Vermilion Bird Spirit was not truly foolish. Knowing that there was no such thing as a free lunch, it hesitated before asking, "What do you want me to do?"
Qin Sang closed his fingers, gripping the Qilin source seed firmly in his palm, and said solemnly, "I intend to extract the essence from the Qilin source seed and refine the Phoenix True Fire. I fear my strength alone will fall short, and I hope you will assist me with all your might."
Hearing this, the Vermilion Bird Spirit wished it could incinerate Qin Sang on the spot with a mouthful of Nanming Primordial Fire. Qin Sang was even more outrageous than it had been, expecting it to labor for nothing, yet it was utterly powerless against him.
Qin Sang understood the principle that one could not expect soldiers to fight on an empty stomach. He could not dangle the ethereal kirin origin essence before it forever, so he added, "The Qilin source seed and the Heavenly Phoenix True Feather were originally my possessions. Considering your merit in explaining the treasures' secrets, as long as you assist me faithfully, I may share a portion with you as I see fit."
This was roughly the same as the first two conditions the spirit had proposed, but far more palatable than before.
Recalling its shameless complacency not long ago, the Vermilion Bird Spirit felt flustered and humiliated.
Before it could agree, Qin Sang's tone suddenly shifted, turning cold. "I can overlook your earlier extortion, and these terms are no harsher than yours just now. But the prerequisite is that you earn my trust; otherwise, I will certainly find a way to eliminate the hidden danger at my side! Tell me of your origins..."
The Vermilion Bird Spirit fell silent for a long time, but in the end, it spoke, laying bare its history.
Listening to its account, Qin Sang realized that rather than calling it the Vermilion Bird Spirit, referring to it as the fledgling spirit of the Vermilion Bird was far more apt.
As it turned out, when he had acquired the Vermilion Bird True Feather, the fledgling spirit had not yet been born. Instead, it had gradually regained sentience at his side, within the Sun God Tree.
As for the exact time, even the fledgling spirit could not say clearly. By its description, it felt as though it had been able to sense its surroundings long ago, but it had remained muddled and ignorant, unable to understand the meaning of anything it perceived, unconscious of morning, dusk, or the cycles of the moon.
Then, at some unknown point, it suddenly realized it seemed to have regained its sentience. Looking back upon the past, everything was blurred and chaotic, seeming both real and illusory, as if it had all been a grand dream.
The fledgling spirit suspected that its spirituality had never been lost, but rather that its consciousness had been shattered, only awakening now.
Qin Sang recalled the place where he had obtained the Vermilion Bird True Feather. It had resembled a pill-refining fire chamber. He suspected that the master of that place had imprisoned the Vermilion Bird Spirit so that it would continuously supply Nanming Primordial Fire.
The fire chamber had been equipped with restrictions capable of sealing the Nanming Primordial Fire, and a single fragment of green copper had been enough to suppress the Vermilion Bird True Feather.
The fledgling spirit had remained ignorant for so many years in that place, only regaining sentience after he carried it out of Ziwei Palace, which was likely related to the restrictions in the fire chamber.
Qin Sang urged the fledgling spirit to search its memories of the past carefully. Yet worn down by endless ages, it retained only a single, vague recollection: being pinched by the scruff of its neck by a hand and thrown somewhere unknown, remaining in a daze ever since.
It could no longer recall what that hand looked like, but a certain aura remained deeply etched into its memory, and it was convinced that this person was its arch-enemy.
"I, the dignified Vermilion Bird, will definitely avenge this!" the fledgling spirit declared in a huff, its tone laced with a hint of grievance.
Knowing that its enemy must be extraordinarily powerful, its fourth condition had been intended to make Qin Sang help it seek revenge, though it had kept the details concealed for fear of frightening him away.
Now, with both the Qilin source seed and the Heavenly Phoenix True Feather lost to it, who knew how many years it would take before it could seek revenge?
Hearing this, Qin Sang was almost moved to laughter. No wonder it had acted so completely unversed in the ways of the world, spilling all its secrets after just a few words.
To think he had even addressed it as 'senior' several times, nearly being taken in by a fledgling spirit.
Fortunately, he possessed the jade Buddha. Otherwise, this predicament truly would have been difficult to resolve, leaving him no choice but to dutifully attend to the fledgling spirit like a human pet.
However, while the fledgling spirit's intellect was still shallow, certain instincts remained. Upon encountering the Qilin source seed and the Heavenly Phoenix True Feather, it instinctively knew they were beneficial to it, as if born with the knowledge of how to restrain them. This was also why the fledgling spirit believed it had awakened rather than being newly born.
To the naked eye, that Vermilion Bird True Feather appeared complete, each barb distinct, sleek, and supple.
In reality, that was not the case.
Perhaps because it had been sealed for too long, having its Nanming Primordial Fire constantly drawn away while suffering the relentless erosion of the chamber's restrictions, the Vermilion Bird True Feather had suffered unseen damage. It had already changed beyond recognition, and the nature of the Nanming Primordial Fire had also been altered, differing from true Vermilion Bird True Fire.
Upon its rebirth, the fledgling spirit discovered that not even it could restrain its own wildly violent true fire. It could only painstakingly comb through and repair it, awaiting the true feather's restoration. Staying within the Sun God Tree was actually easier; outside, it could not even condense fire into physical form and had to rely on the Sun God Birds to speak.
Precisely because of this, controlling the Sun God Birds was no easy task for it, leaving it completely helpless against Qin Sang.
If the fledgling spirit wished to return to its prime, the Vermilion Bird True Feather was of paramount importance, but the speed of its self-recovery was far too slow.
Absorbing the essence of the Qilin source seed was to strengthen its true spirit, while refining the Phoenix True Fire was to restore the Vermilion Bird True Feather; neither could be dispensed with.
Unfortunately, all these treasures belonged to Qin Sang.
The fledgling spirit stammered hesitantly, "Give me a bit more... If I recover faster, I can help you sooner too."
Qin Sang smiled. "Don't aim too high just yet. Do you know that ascending from this realm is no easy matter, and that the Heavenly Dao has changed?"
"What Heavenly Dao?" The fledgling spirit was bewildered.
Seeing that it did not seem to be faking, Qin Sang informed it of the changes in this realm to see how it would react.
"Th-this... When will I ever get my revenge?"
The nine divine birds stared dumbfounded, letting out several startled squawks. The spirit could say nothing coherent, yet it did not forget its revenge.
Seeing this, Qin Sang could not help but feel a touch of disappointment. "If you want revenge, all the more reason to help me enhance my strength. Only by ascending to the upper realm will there be any possibility of advancing further."
Now, he had yet another reason to subdue the fledgling spirit.
Although the fledgling spirit could not control the Vermilion Bird True Feather, as long as it aided him wholeheartedly, manipulating the Sun God Birds would become far easier.
With tacit cooperation between both sides, they might even attempt to mobilize all nine divine birds!
Facts had proven that the power of the Sun God Birds was not a simple matter of addition. If all nine birds took the field together, even if they could not sweep through Guixu, they would scarcely meet a match.
This journey back to familiar grounds had truly yielded a bountiful harvest!
Not only had he obtained the Taiyi Star Carriage, but he had also gained such an asset. Once he digested these gains, even if he could not find the Ascension Platform, he would have the capability to brave Guixu.
The Vermilion Bird Spirit could only rely on Qin Sang now and was already swayed; the dire state of this realm prompted it to make a decision all the faster.
It did not take long for both sides to settle on the terms.
"Do you remember your former name?"
Qin Sang's expression softened and his tone grew gentle. Seeing the entirely fiery-red Sun God Birds shake their heads, he teased with a smile, "From now on, you'll be called Little Red."
The nine Sun God Birds craned their necks in unison.
"I am the dignified Vermilion Bird!"
Only after Qin Sang agreed to respectfully address it as 'Vermilion Bird' did it finally relent.
Though both sides had traded barbs and negotiated back and forth, very little time had actually elapsed.
Outside the dharma boat, the waters were calm and peaceful. Standing atop the ripples, the Flood Dragon King's personal guards dared not make any reckless moves as they kept watch over the boat. Unfortunately, every one of them was taut with nerves, their bodies rigid, their imposing aura reduced to less than a tenth of what it had been.
By now, the Flood Dragon King was likely contacting the various clans of the Demon Sea.
"Fellow Daoist, there is no need to stand idly here. You may take your leave."
Qin Sang transmitted his voice outside. For a joint consultation among the clans, the Phoenix Clan could certainly not be absent.
The Phoenix King had not expected Qin Sang to let her go so easily. A look of surprise and suspicion crossed her face. Glancing at the avatar, she tentatively flew out of the dharma boat. Seeing no resistance, she dove into the sea and vanished, entering the ancestral grounds of the flood dragon clan.
Their deliberations would surely require some time.
Inside the cabin, Qin Sang temporarily put away the Heavenly Phoenix True Feather, set the Sun God Tree before him, and cupped the transparent lotus seed in his palm. "How much time will it take to seize the essence of the Qilin source seed?"
"Hard to say."
The nine Sun God Birds shook their heads. "Without letting me intervene, I can't judge. However, I must remind you: if you extract the essence from the Qilin source seed by yourself, you must constantly suppress the kirin's true spirit with your divine consciousness so it doesn't awaken. During this period, if you engage in combat, your divine consciousness will be restricted, and you won't be able to fight at full strength."
Qin Sang nodded slightly. He was already mentally prepared for this, but it mattered little; only fierce beasts could threaten him in this realm, and he was hardly lacking in methods.
The so-called restriction did not mean he could not use his divine consciousness at all; it merely meant his perception would be slightly diminished, casting divine consciousness secret arts would become difficult, and manipulating the fire lotus would feel sluggish.
His physical body, poison bead, movement techniques, magic treasures, sword formations, and the rest were all available. Though they might consume more true essence, that was well within acceptable bounds.
Having altered his plans, he decided to return to Zhongzhou first to arrange the repairs for the Taiyi Star Carriage before heading to the North Sea.
The journey was long, and repairing the Taiyi Star Carriage was not something that could be completed in a short time; neither would hinder his refining of the Qilin source seed.
As long as it did not take an extraordinarily long time, he could afford to wait. If it truly took too long, he could simply share a bit more with the Vermilion Bird.
If he completely devoured the essence within the Qilin source seed, he wondered just what realm he would reach.
Qin Sang looked forward to this immensely. Probing cautiously, he separated a thread of divine consciousness and wrapped it around the Qilin source seed.
Chapter 1740